Bowlin Beige

After some more conference activities, we went back to the Magic Kingdom on Saturday. Ainsley was rested up and ready for some more Disney fun. We finished the rides that we missed on our first day, and watched one of the parades. It was raining on and off all afternoon but it didn't dampen her spirits. We had a special dinner at Cinderella's castle, and she got to meet 5 princesses. You can imagine how thrilled she was! Sassy girl! Waiting for Pirates of the Caribbean  We rented a stroller this day because she was still a little tired from being sick the night before. Plus it gave her a little place to escape the rain. Dinner in the castle! While heading out of the park we managed to meet Tinkerbell. There wasn't anyone else behind us so they got to talk for several minutes! Our hotel was starting to put up Christmas decorations.   Some snuggle time on Sunday before heading to Universal Studios. There wer

Last week I presented at a continuing education conference in Orlando. Since I was already going to be there, we decided to have Eric and Ainsley join me for some fun at DisneyWorld. Parker stayed behind with Nana - he was secretly thrilled to be the center of attention. Plus the long days at the park would've been too much for him at this age - even Ainsley was exhausted. We had a great trip, and look forward to taking both kids back in several years when they are older! After an exciting plane ride, she caught a quick catnap in the car on the way to the hotel.  Shuttle on the way to Magic Kingdom We arrived! Daddy is very serious about the Toy Story arcade ride.  Magic Carpet Ride She LOVES Cinderella's castle! We managed to get last-minute reservations at one of the restaurants that has character visits. She got to meet lots of Winnie the Pooh friends! She really enjoyed the shows and parades.  Since we were

It was the spring of 2000, and I was a junior at JMU when I found and adopted an adorable calico kitten. I named her Ally. The guy I had just started dating was allergic to cats, but who knew if he was going to be around forever? I just told him not to pet her.  After living with me for a summer at my parent's house, my dad started calling her Squirt because she loved to play with water. If you didn't keep the toilet lid down, you would find the bathroom soaked with water that she had splashed everywhere.  She returned to JMU for my senior year, and then moved with me to my first apartment in Alexandria. The boyfriend was still around, and they tolerated each other. My apartment was small, and Squirt insisted on pushing her water bowl all over the place and getting water everywhere. So I put her water bowl in my bathtub. Soon I would just plug the drain and add some water to the tub a few times a day. It kept her out of the toilet.  Every day when I'd com