Halloween and other headlines

Here we are, September 7 and the autumn/Halloween season has begun at Disney. The Magic Kingdom had its first "Mickey's Not-So-Scary Halloween Party" last Friday. My job this fall puts me very close to all the parties. Opening night of the season went incredibly well and hopefully is a sign of what's to come in the latter part of '08.

Lindsay is coming along nicely, her belly button has almost completely disappeared. Soon, it will pop up just like the little thingy on the thanksgiving day turkey, signaling that Abbie is done baking and ready to be introduced to the world! Only 10.5 weeks to go.

We moved last weekend, OY! I'm glad it's over, we only moved down the street. Not really far enough to warrant the need for a U-Haul. However, you could have convinced me that we needed one very easily while wheeling our 500 lb armoire through the parking lot at 11:30 pm. But it's all over and everything is set and we love the extra space. So there.

Lindsay had her baby shower yesterday which was a rousing success. Lindsay commented numerous times on how nice it was to have all those old friends all in one place. A friend of ours, Becky, went all out in planning the event. Many thanks go to her and her husband, Evan, for not only helping us move, but in also planning such an amazing shower.

Zoey is good. She's staying busy exploring all the new nooks and crannies of our place. The first week was a little stressful for her as she couldn't quite figure out why we weren't in our regular house, but it seems as if this is now home for the little doggy.

The storms have not affected us nearly as much as the news stations would have you believe. There has been a lot of rain, but fortunately our part of town hasn't been too badly hit. I hope everything is going well in your part of the world. Take care everyone.

She's a Dancing Machine

Greetings everyone! It's been quite some time since our last post. Lindsay and I have been spending the majority of our weekends packing whatever we can to make the move easier at the end of the month.

All is well in baby world. Abbie gets bigger and bigger every day, and according to Lindsay gets stronger every day as well. We have started playing music to the tummy and have learned Abbie's favorite composers already. She is a huge fan of Chopin and piano music in general. Beethoven, even the gentle Beethoven is not her cup of tea. She is also a fan of Norah Jones, but not Michael Buble. But regardless of what we play to the stomach, she immediately begins moving, and, according to Lindsay, starts grabbing at the headphones (meaning the thumps from inside happen right where the headphones are sitting on her stomach).

I took Zoey to the tennis courts yesterday and we played like a doggy should for about 10 minutes. On the way home though she started limping. Apparently she slid the wrong way on the concrete and hurt her paw. So we're nursing ourselves back to health today, nothing serious, but she's treating it lightly.

Both Lindsay and I have a very busy week ahead with work and packing for a move. I hope everything is running smoothly in your corner of town. Feel free to drop us a line any time. Take care

The Mischievous Abbie

Greetings friends! As time wears on Abbie (and Lindsay) get bigger and closer to the due date. We're over halfway there and Lindsay is definitely starting to feel the effects. Lindsay had a great couple of doctor visits and the result is that it is now 100% a girl, she's healthy and looks great and all is right on track. In other news, Lindsay has been feeling Abbie kick constantly for a few weeks now, but I finally got the chance to feel it too. It's all starting to get very exciting.

In housing news, we finally decided to stay in the rental market and have to decided to upgrade in the apartment complex we are currently in. The location is too convenient and it's too good on gas to consider moving farther away. We have also pushed up the moving date to late August which will give us about 3 months to settle in before Abbie is scheduled to arrive. Lindsay will be a much bigger help at that point rather than later.

Lindsay's mom visited last weekend which gave us house guests for two weekends in a row. Zoey loved it, she gets so excited she almost doesn't know what to do with herself. We saw "Wall-E" last week which is a great movie. If you haven't already, go see it, it will warm your heart. Once again, enjoy all the pictures, and I hope all is well in your part of town. Take care.

This is the picture that inspired the blog title. It looks as if she just got into some mischief and she has the "who me" look on her face.



Classic baby picture

Pictorial Update

Melissa convinced us (with little effort) to stay up way past our bedtime last night to enjoy more time in the (surprisingly not crowded at all) Magic Kingdom. We took oodles of pictures, which are posted below. Enjoy!

The token shot of my companions

The Sister and I

Good Times aboard Aladdin's Magic Flying Carpets

Waiting for the night-time parade: SpectroMagic

More & more pregnant each and every day

We never get to ride the carousel!

My horse stopped approximately 30 feet in the air...I'm on my "high horse," GET IT?

We each gave the sword in the stone the old college try

Melissa didn't try very hard

I, on the other hand, put my back into it

Overall, it was a great evening. It brought back great memories of closing up the Magic Kingdom when we were kids. Little ice-cream treats here and there, and a dinner at Pecos Bills, we forget how lucky we are sometimes. All it takes is a three day weekend and a little time to reconnect with why we all love to come to Florida. Enjoy the pictures, have a great rest of the weekend.

She likes a Triscuit

Happy Independence Day everyone! Lindsay continues to grow and grow. AND! Our growing baby has finally started to exercise her muscles. Lindsay felt Abbie kick for the first time a couple of days ago. In fact, Lindsay just ate a Triscuit and felt her kick, hence the blog title. I have yet to feel her kick, but I trust Lindsay that she's actually moving around now. Lindsay goes 5 months on Monday. Making us halfway there...I knew it would go by fast, but seriously?

Melissa (my sister) is back from Europe and visiting us in beautiful Orlando, FL. And since we live so close to one of the biggest Independence Day fireworks shows ever, it would be silly not to attend such an event. Zoey has thoroughly enjoyed having a friend at home all day this week.

Life seems fairly mellow at the moment. Which, people keep telling me I should enjoy it while I can. Work and home are in great balance and Lindsay and I both are just thrilled with the way things are going. I hope everything is well in your corner of the world. Have a safe Independence Day.

P.S. - For those of you who need proof that Chewbacca actually won "Dance off with the Star Wars Stars", please refer to the documented footage below. Have a great week :o)

Lazy Sundays

It's been a pretty eventful week, followed by a classic lazy Sunday. We are the epitome of sitting around and doing nothing today. But here are the updates (with gobs of pictures):

Lindsay is feeling great, continuing to be in the "glowing" pregnant phase. She admires her ever growing belly every hour, on the hour. It's fun to watch. She also thinks she has felt little Abigail move for the first time this past week.

My parents visited during the latter part of this week. We all had a great time and snapped lots of pictures during their visit to Disney's Hollywood Studios. In a huge surprise, they accompanied Lindsay to Babies 'R Us yesterday in which they were kind enough to buy us our baby stroller/travel system. I came home from work yesterday to find the ginormous box sitting in the living room. So we spent the morning playing with it, and Lindsay showing me all the features that sold her on it. Zoey had an amazing doggy morning playing with all the packaging. Needless to say words cannot express how appreciative I was when I came home and found it.

My time with Star Wars Weekends came to close yesterday in dramatic fashion. If you can believe it, the final decision of "Dance Off with the Star Wars Stars" came down to a recount between couple #1 (Chewbacca and his Jawa) and group #3 (Darth Vader and his legion of Storm Troopers, the usual winner). And with one last chant by the audience, it was final. Chewbacca pulled out his first victory of the season! What a moment, thrilling to say the least. And as if that wasn't enough, a local news station interviewed the winner in a TV spot to air later. And...scene.

Tomorrow I start the new gig as a "leader in training." It sounds like it will be a whirlwind of new experiences, new friends and new lessons learned. I am very much looking forward to it all, updates are sure to follow.

Today (June 22) is our wedding anniversary celebrating 5 years of wedded bliss. We will be celebrating this evening with a feild trip to Disney's Animal Kingdom Lodge and dining at their signature restaurant, Jiko: the cooking place. Which continues to be our favorite on-Disney-property restaurant. Once again, I hope everyone had a great week! Enjoy all the pictures from this week. Thanks for reading.

Ridiculous Commercials

Random thought: I'm no business genius but common sense would tell me that if I'm going to spend my hard earned company money on a national television advertising campaign I would make sure my commercial is effective...meaning not annoying. How do so many excruciating commercials make it through the entire production process without someone looking up and saying "Wait a minute, doesn't this commercial suck?" But I digress...

This past week has been filled with much stress, and much relief. But first, the baby. Lindsay is in her 17th week of pregnancy. Most of our evenings are now filled with her telling me every detail of her changing physique. And, in the most exciting news, I believe we have both settled on a name! Please say hello to Abigail Hannah McKinney. Enjoy the picture (if you look closely you will notice that mommy got a haircut this week).

The job front has taken many turns this past week. It appeared as if every last opportunity was drying up right before my eyes, and I was destined to make my way back to my home base. Then, at the very last minute...a phone call. This was a great phone call, for on the other end a kind voice offered me the opportunity to be a part of a brand new training and networking course for future company leaders. I am super excited to have this opportunity and am very much looking forward to meeting new faces in entertainment!

On the flip side, this means that I must hang my hat on Disney Star Wars Weekends for the season (and possibly for good). It's an unfortunate circumstance, but I absolutely cannot pass up the opportunity to be a part of this program. Star Wars Weekends has been, quite possibly, the most fun I have ever had at work. It has certainly changed my life for the better and forced me to realize a hidden talent that know one (not even myself) knew existed. And, in some strange way I will forever feel connected to the entire saga. It has been such a pleasure entertaining strangers and friends alike, the torch passes this weekend.

It's been quite a busy week as you can see. My family is visiting during the latter part of the upcoming week. So, a visit to the parks to check out everything new will certainly be on the agenda - pictures to follow. Hope all is well in your neck of the woods, take care everyone.