Happy Fourth of July Weekend!
Sugarwings
I hope you are having a wonderful holiday!
Sugarwings
Disneyworld vs Universal
family, Sugarwings, Travel 
Last week was the worst imaginable for the city of Orlando. So much tragedy, so much heart ache. But that town is such a well oiled machine of tourism, filled with professionals, that we probably saw less of what was going on right there in front of us than we would've if we'd been at home in Kansas watching the news. In person, we didn't see any signs of turmoil, or heightened security.
On our last night, the performance of La Nuba was dedicated to the victims of the shooting and that was moving, but the only reference we saw to any of the horribleness that had occurred during the week. I'm sure that the citizens of Orlando were hurt, frightened, angry, and saddened, and I have to admire their bravery in not being beaten down.
Visiting Florida and the attractions in Orlando has been one of my favorite things over the years, but now even more so, after seeing the toughness of that town and the way the people there were not going to let the terrorists win.The town has a special place in my heart.
You don't come to my blog for stories of terrorism and sadness, though. I debated even mentioning the trip at all. But my posts are also my diary, or journal, and while I feel a sort of survivor's guilt about being in a bubble of happiness while such ugliness was occurring, I still want to fill in the pages of my life with the stories of what I've done and where I've been.
So, onto happier talk?
And what could be happier than a frozen butter beer in Harry Potter Land on a hot day???
This was our first trip to Universal, we were there to visiting the wizarding world.
When I was a teenager, I went to Disneyworld the summer that it opened. After watching Walt talk about it for years on Sunday nights during the Wonderful World of Disney, and a lifetime of begging to be taken to the original park in CA, I was beyond thrilled to finally get a taste of that Wonderful World myself. And it didn't disappoint.
Maybe since I wasn't a child myself on the first trip there, I never outgrew it? Add in a few decades of not being able to afford to visit, and then experiencing it through Sugarwings' eyes, and I am as hooked now as I ever was.
But this trip, we only walked through Disney Springs to see the Cirque De Soleil with our circus performer grands. (and they LOVED the show, Kia's eyes were riveted to the stage and she applauded so hard for the aerialists that her hands must still be sore)
So, I had a "Minnie" Disney fix, not a full one. This trip was about wizards. Which were AMAZING! Everything about Universal was so well done, especially Potterland. The Hogwarts Express especially. And the dragon in Diagon Alley?? wow!
Yes, I loved it all.
And it was an ideal park for teens, the big girls appreciated the more thrilling rides.
The food was great, the park was well run and friendly.
The size is manageable for getting around, reminding me of how cozy Disneyland and California Adventure are, these two Universal parks are much like those, size wise.
The workers were so nice and friendly, going out of their way to give Sugarwings little tours of the rides if she was too leery of getting on one, since she goes more for the atmosphere than the rides.
but….
I still missed Disney.
Dr. Suessland was magical and very well done.
Do you notice anything odd here? We played in this park about 30 minutes and only saw two other kids briefly.
Another plus for Universal, at least while we were there is that it wasn't as crowded as I've seen when visiting Mickey.
And there are some breath taking views.
Here is what I think I figured out….. Universal is fantastically done, and has rides much more interesting to older kids. Less crowded, less expensive, extremely detailed, it is beautiful.
But, while there is plenty of magic and fun, and excitement, where is the heart?
Oh there are fun characters from lovable movies, but I missed the pulling of my heartstrings that I get at Disney.
Seriously, there is not one single thing about Universal that I can't recommend. It was quite wonderful and I hope to go back again. Especially if I have older kids with me.
And it could be just my imagination, or plain old nostalgia that has me so hooked on Disney.
But I don't think so.
Universal is a fun day out at a fantastic amusement park. I really did love every second of it and was soooo impressed with the park.
But Disney is a fun day into my childhood dreams and into my heart.
The quality of the park is every bit as good as Disney, and the themes, are just perfect. Jurassic Park? Yay! That T Rex at the top of the waterslide was horrifically real. I still shiver thinking about him (Sugarwings didn't go near that ride)
It also had Impact Wrestling Live.
what?
Yep, we went to check out the venue. My son Ryan is a big fan and I hoped he'd see us in the crowd while watching at home. We didn't stay long, although it was interesting to peek in on.
Sugarwings liked the park, even though she missed the princesses. She isn't a ride person, she goes for the atmosphere. She likes the shows, characters, performers, parades, and Universal does not measure up in that department.
When it was time for the parade, we scoured the sidewalks for a good spot to watch from. After my experience with the other parks, I knew that you had to get a seat early, before the viewing points were 15-20 people deep and you couldn't see anything.
It was surprising that there was only a scattered crowd for the parade, and we had multiple choices for watching it. Then I saw why, it was a handful of floats, and suddenly over. Not the extravaganza I was used to. But Sugarwings enjoyed it. Maybe sometimes, over the top isn't needed?
There is certainly something to be said for no crowds blocking your view, too.
Please note that none of this is a complaint about my trip, only a comparison between the two parks. Both are wonderful, I was just trying to put my finger on why I was feeling about them.
A spa day for Dewdrop?
Dew Drop, family, Sugarwings 
While I was out in the garden, Sugarwings was playing King of the Hill on the mound of remodeling dirt while Dewdrop was supposedly napping.
At least, that was the plan. I came up from the garden to find this scene. Sugarwings had woken her sis up, fixed her a snack, and decided to treat her to a makeover, complete with a foot soak in a toybox full of water and glitter.
She even brought a mirror outside so that Dewdrop could watch her transformation.
This girl is infatuated with Kitties and has been asking to have her face painted as one quite a bit recently. This is one rendition that I did for her.
Now, Sugarwings has found the face paints and has decided to do the job herself, as well as setting up an outdoor beauty salon to create in.
This week is the last day of school. I expect many more elaborate set ups to come.
Although, it won't be the same without our tiniest fairy. She'll be heading to her mama's soon. And having her own special times there.
A Mother’s Day gathering
celebrations, cottage, family, Sugarwings, We're having a party 
Last Sunday was Mother's Day and we had a crowd coming over to celebrate with us. I'd planned on keeping it simple, and using paper plates outdoors. But Sugarwings was spending the day with me and she LOVES a special occasion as much as I do. She wanted to do something nice for all the mothers, and that seemed like a good thing to encourage.
We moved the kitchen island out of the way, set up a folding table with extra chairs, got out the pretty table cloths, and I let Sugarwings set the table.
One of her special touches, was a colorful ribbon around the plates where moms would be sitting. (no that isn't Grammy hitting the wine bottle early in the day, that is actually sparkling water, although, I did switch over to sparkling wine at the dinner party)
Her Hippy Chick mama loves colorful things and rainbows, so instead of white roses, she got a fiery rose in a red vase, and an LED light stick that changed colors as it flashed in place of a candle.
Sugarwings took all of the photos after too.
Being able to set a nice table is a good skill to have. Our dishes, silverware and glasses are all mis-matched, but my grandfairy knows where each piece goes and makes it look nice even with the hodge podge we use.
It is always cute to see her use this tip, and make the a-okay sign with her hands to remember where the bread plates and drinks go.
Her finishing touch before guests arrive was to sprinkle some rose petals up the walkway.
Which was 100% her idea, she loves the over the top flourishes to make things special.
Rose petals lined the way to her mommie's seat.
Twinkle looked a bit confused by the whole thing, but will follow her girl on any adventure.
Wild Phlox
cottage, family, flowers, Sugarwings
The wild phlox is blooming out in our woods! And was blooming down in Southern Missouri where we went for the wedding too.
Sugarwings picked some for Miss Tree's bouquet.
It was a non traditional wedding and this was a last minute idea by my grand fairy. Quite a good one, too. Pretty, huh?
Over the rainbow
photography, Sugarwings
Sugarwings went to school last week, looking pretty festive. When I picked her up, I took a photo of her in her rainbow pants and it (of course) made me think of Dorothy.
So, I gussied up the photo a bit with PicMonkey.
Here is the before. Weren't those bricks just calling out to be yellow and to be followed?
Until next time, Dewdrop!
Dew Drop, family, Sugarwings 
Dewdrop, AKA Arabella Cinderella, had a slew of farewell parties before hitting the road and heading back to North Carolina for some much desired momma time.
One of our goodbye parties was a trip to the Topeka Zoo.
And to the park next door where all the concrete animals to climb on had fresh coats of paint.
Over the years, that zoo has just gotten better and better. This time, we saw lots of improvements and remodelling that had occurred over the winter.
After going to that park for well, decades, I noticed for the first time that there was a children's theater in the parking lot. How did I miss that? I love to take the grand fairies to shows, but in Kansas City and Lawrence, they are often sold out and hard to get tickets. For this little playhouse, we called a day ahead and for ten bucks each, got to see a group of kids put on "Aristocats" and Sugarwings was thrilled with it.
The only bad thing about it was that Dewdrop had already left and we didn't get to take her with us. She'd have loved it too.
But I'll take her next time.
At the Hotel Del Coronado and some Sugarwings time at Disney
family, Sugarwings, Travel
Before I went to the arty girls weekend on the island, I spent some time with Sugarwings and my handsome husband. She had school conferences a couple of days that week, so we snuck her out a couple more, and flew her off to Cali with us for a little Disney getaway.
Yes, I'm becoming a Disney freak. Mouse addict? Princess stalker? I don't know what you call it, but I caught a serious case of it. And while my husband the rest of the adults in the family are over the place, the girls and I are not. My husband does say he has one more trip in him to take Dewdrop, since she couldn't come this time. Then he is free and never has to go back with me.
But he does have moments there that he loves, like dancing Downton Disney with his grand fairy.
She and I don't get tired of any of it, and we try to soak up as much as we can. We decided that we would never leave the hotel without walking under the wizard's hat, even if going another way was quicker. You just have to walk under a wizard's hat if it is available, don't you?
The highlight of our girl's day at Disney (my husband went to visit friends and the beach, he didn't come to the park) was seeing Ariel.
We rode her ride too. We actually spent our extra "magic hour" before the park opened, trying to break our record of how many times we could go around and around on that. We hit five times in a row without having to get off, since there were no lines.
Sugarwings had her art journal with her and drew a frame on pages for the princesses to sign.
At the lunch in Ariel's Grotto, all the princesses stop to chat and while I didn't hear all of the conversations, a few were pretty involved, and the ladies were very nice about spending time with her. Many of them told me what a great kid she was, and had some laughs.
Sugarwings was very animated while telling Tiana that she admired her because she was a princess who took care of herself and worked hard. Their conversation turned to Rapunzel and Merida after that.
It was all pretty cute.
Sugarwings is about 9-1/2 now. And looks so grown up. I'm hoping this isn't our last visit to the grotto for lunch, I'll be sad if she is ever too cool to hang out with her grammie there. I know I don't outgrow it.
Neither of us got tired of hunting for Hidden Mickeys and we even found a few.
We certainly picked the right day to be there, a Monday in late February. We never even needed a fast pass, there were hardly any lines.
When there was a little wait, we had a system. I'd read a book on my phone, and she would listen to a book on Audible with headphones hooked to my phone. We were a pretty good team, and it was an ideal day. Great weather, no crowds, no rush, we did what we wanted, when we wanted to.
That is pretty much how the whole trip went, we stayed at Disney a couple days, then at the Hotel Del Coronado a few more. Our poor girl came down with a fever and we missed the San Diego Zoo, and even with that, we had a wonderful trip.
She and I had lazy mornings on the balcony watching the water, wrapped up in hotel robes and reading our books.
The Del gives each kid a backpack with scavenger hunt tools and hints, so we played that game for a while.
We explored the hotel, ate fancy dinners, and watched the Sandcastle Man with his masterpiece. Yes, quite a trip, and all building up to my artful girls getaway. I really felt lucky and blessed.
I'll leave you with a few more pictures of the week. And here is a favorite song from my youth, so dreamy and sweet. And about Disney, too.
A sea shell “Farewell Fairy” at Coronado Beach
sea shell fairies, Sugarwings, Travel 
For the last few years, every time I go to a beach, I leave behind fairies made from the shells I find while walking the shores there.
I've been told that Coronado Beach can be shell heaven or be totally bare. And I caught it on one so-so day then a few days of bareness. So I was lucky to have found enough to create this little sprite, my beach treasure hunt didn't yield many shells. Lots of sand dollars though. My husband was a champion sand dollar finder, he even found living ones that we couldn't pick up. They were everywhere he looked.
I never break or alter a shell for my fairies, so I was happy to have him find this 3/4 sand dollar that made a pretty skirt with the ruffled conch shell topper.
The shore was a bit rocky, lucky for me, one was just right for the fairy's head, because I couldn't find a shell that worked anywhere.
There might have been a lack of shells, but the sand itself more than made up for it. There were GOLD FLAKES OF GLITTER throughout on my first day there!!!!!!!!!!
Real GLITTER!!!!!!!!!!!
Apparently, the waves are filled with Mica flakes that wash up on the shore. When the surf is light, they are big, fat, flakes of gold glitter. On rougher days, the mica is pulverised into a shimmer of stardust. Every day, the sand along the water is different, but it is always sparkling.
I was in love.
I just wish the sparkles had photographed better. The glitter (and that is what real glitter is made of, MICA flakes) was one of the most unexpected treats I've ever come across on a vacation.
Well, beaches each have their own personality and specialness, like the quartz crystal on Siesta Key that keeps cool to the touch no matter how hot the sun is. And the heart shaped pieces of coral that wash up on Kaanapali in Maui. Or the shark's teeth fossils all over Venice Beach.
Why oh why do I live in the smack dab, middle of the USA, as far from any beach as you can get?
Of course, I really can't complain. We have made it to the ocean quite a bit in the last few years for Kansans.
Which is why I make all these sea shell fairies to leave behind, I want to show my love of the shore, and my gratitude for the opportunity to be there.
I treasure each moment I get to be by the water. And thank my lucky stars that I had a chance to be there.
Every day should be considered a gift, but a day by the beach is a true treasure.
Kansas is too cold
cottage, dogs, Sugarwings 
As I wrote this before I left on my trip to Florida, we had a major cold spell. Our pipes didn't freeze up over night, but only because I know the drill. When temps plunge into single digits, the curtain comes off the cabinet under the sink, to let the warmer air in the house circulate through there to the pipes.
Of course, every time that I forget to do that, we wake up to no water in the kitchen.
Honestly, I shouldn't be such a wimp about the cold, this has been a remarkably mild winter so far. And here I am flying off to the land of guncles and sunshine right when it is at its worst.
But I cannot get warm! And I feel like my skin is made of ancient tissue paper that is disintegrating. No matter how much cream I slather on, no matter how many pots of water I set to simmer on the wood stove to put moisture in the air, nothing helps.
And my poor toes. They can't remember what it feels like to be pink and warm.
Sugarwings has had the opposite of the complaints that I've had. She wants SNOW and LOTS OF IT. We had this little dusting of flakes and she was so happy, she couldn't wait to get out there with her dog and show her how to catch snowballs. (While dressed in a fashionable scarf)
If this is the only snow we get, I'll be pleased as punch, myself. Or maybe there will be enough snow to satisfy these two while I am away this week. That would be ideal. They get to chase snowflakes while I soak up some sunshine, and we are all happy.
I plan on returning from my time in the South with a much better attitude, once my toes have been reaquainted with sandals and sun. My plan is to soak up enough rays of light to get me through the rest of this dismal time of year. And to remind myself that for some odd reason, I do enjoy living in Kansas.
Boy, am I glad to be getting a break from it right now, though.