The Social Life.

Today feels like a good day for writing. A lot of changes have happened in my life over the last couple of months. Some of them I asked for and some I didn't even see coming. I didn't know a person could change so much, so quickly, but I have and I am happy with who I am becoming.

The biggest thing that has changed is that I am acting my age for the first time in pretty much my whole life. I have never been one to be overly social or do things without thoroughly thinking through the consequences beforehand. I definitely wouldn't go to parties or hang out with friends if I didn't know everyone there. And I definitely wouldn't arrive alone. I would have needed a buddy. More recently, I have become much more social. I have gone to concerts with good friends, gone to a baseball game, gone swimming, gone to parties, and met new people. I'm sure if you're reading this, you think this is something most people my age do, and you would be right. It's just something I have never really been willing to do. The entire time I was at Disney, all I wanted was human interaction. Now, I actually feel important. I am meeting people who actually want to be around me and spend time with me and who, occasionally, think I'm funny. I am spending time with people who make me feel good for being exactly who I am. More than anything, I am realizing these people were always here for me, I just didn't know how to let them in.

I have been listening to a lot of country music since I moved back to Texas. A lot of country music. I think it makes me feel like I grew up in a small town, even though I definitely grew up in a very suburban town. I don't care. I like it. I went to the Darius Rucker concert last month with my friend, Meredith. A few weeks later I went to the Tim McGraw concert with my friend, Aaron. These are two people I am so grateful to have in my life. We occasionally go through lengths of time where we don't keep in contact as much as we should, but we always pick right back up where we left off. They are two of the most genuine friends I have ever had and I am lucky I have had them in my lives for this long already. I know that they both would be there if I ever needed anything and they have definitely been so helpful recently with everything that has changed. I know I will stay friends with them for a very long time and I am so grateful for both of them.

I started dancing again. After the first two days, I was just about ready to die. Guess what, though? I pushed through it! I chose to take a contemporary jazz class with the director of the dance company I was a part of last year. The first week was so difficult. By the second week, I had my learning ability back. At the end of that week, most of my technique had returned as well. By the third week, I was going strong and I realized I am a better dancer now than I was before my year long break. I think being friends with my Disney characters and being able to do whatever I felt like with nobody seeing my face helped me to grow. I also think my new found social skills have played into it as well. I'm not worried about looking silly anymore.You have to push yourself in order to improve and 9 times out of 10, if you're just confident about what you're doing, you won't look silly.

I knew I was going to run into this problem eventually, but wasn't too worried about it at the time. I have a lot of Disney clothes. Pretty much my entire wardrobe when I returned home was Disney attire. That's not really a big deal, unless you hang out with the same people a lot. I have had to slowly rebuild my wardrobe with "normal" clothes as well. Disney t-shirts don't exactly pass off as formal attire in McKinney, Texas.

Last thing. I freaking love my cat, Bagheera. I mentioned before that I was determined to keep him. Well, determination pays off. He fell asleep on the floor while I was writing this post and has since climbed in my lap and fallen back asleep. Nobody has ever quite understood why I wanted an animal so badly, but I think I just wanted someone to love me. As silly as that sounds. Animals don't care what you wear, what you look like, or who you hang out with. They won't tell you what to do or how to act. All Bagheera cares about is that I feed him, watch animated movies, and am home at night when he is ready for bed. (That's all true. He watches Disney movies with me. It's weird.)

I guess the moral of the story here is that I am really happy. I am happier than I have been in a long time. Changes are hard sometimes, but we need them. Change challenges us and challenges make us stronger. As always, I wish nothing but happy thoughts to the world!

Getting Acclimated

It has been just over a month since Michael and I returned home. I wasn't sure I was going to keep writing when I returned home, but sitting here tonight, it feels like the right thing to do. While I do not have any fascinating Disney stories to tell, I do have stories from my life. It occurs to me that my last post was just about as short as I could make it, so let's start with the journey back to Texas.

Michael and I decided to make our departure on a Saturday. We had breakfast that morning with our favorite Australians, packed up my car, called the Programs office, and headed off. It was disturbingly easy to end our employment with Disney. All we had to do was call a number, tell them we were self-terming, give our ID number, and turn in our apartment key and housing ID. That was it. Quick, like ripping off a band-aid. Before leaving Orlando, we stopped to drop off my TV and DVD player with Lauren and Amy (the Australians). When we did that, they brought Michael and I each a little koala wearing a vest that says, "I <3 Australia" on the back. It was very sweet. I knew I would miss the two of them and I was definitely right. I have the koalas hanging from my mirror on some beads in my car. I am reminded of them every day. We stayed in Pensacola, Florida that night. The next morning, we got up and drove to New Orleans. My friend, Hayden, from the Fall semester lives there. He met up with Michael and I and gave us a very informative tour of the city, complete with both walking and driving portions. While in New Orleans, we visited the French Quarter, went into a vinyl shop, saw the Super Dome, and Michael had some authentic boiled craw-fish. (He was very excited about that last one.) It was really nice to see Hayden again. We were very lucky to have him as our guide. He not only knew where to go and what to show us, but also exactly what to say. Hayden is one of those people that learns so much about the things he is interested in (Disney, New Orleans, animation, music, etc.). It's one of his best qualities. He is a lot like my youngest brother, Alex, in this way. He is a lot like my brother, Andrew, in that once you get him talking, he doesn't stop. But that is what makes him so personable and makes him a perfect person to be friends with me, someone who tends to be a bit more quiet and reserved. It's also what makes him such a good tour guide. After spending a few hours with Hayden in New Orleans, we drove to Baton Rouge to settle in for the night. Monday, we drove home.

A couple days after being home, Michael and I had lunch at Razzoo's, the restaurant I worked at before moving to Orlando. I went there to eat because I had missed the food so much, mostly the fried pickles. While I was there, the manager asked me if I wanted my job back and when I would like to start. It was so nice to be able to come back and immediately have a job lined up, especially considering the great working environment Razzoo's had always provided to me. I have been working there for the last few weeks, both hosting and serving, and I am honestly so glad to be back. I love the people I work with and I love the people I meet there. Now that I've been away for so long (and doing such interesting things), it is very easy for me to speak to our guests. I am far more comfortable and confident as a server now and that is such a good feeling. I am very lucky that they were willing to bring me back immediately and that they are continuing to take such good care of me. It is so great to work some place where I have friends and people that are happy to see me on a daily basis.

In reflecting on my Disney experience and now being in an environment where I can speak to people whenever I want, I have learned that I love children. If a family comes in with any kids, I find myself speaking mostly to the children and making sure that they are happy, instead of focusing on the parents. Oddly enough, by not talking to kids for eight and a half months, I learned how to talk and interact with kids. I don't know how, but it happened and now anytime a kid comes into the restaurant, I immediately start speaking their language. I promise it isn't creepy. I just think kids are great. Kids and kittens.

Speaking of kittens.... I found one last week. This cute, little black kitten was hiding under my car last week when I got off of work. So naturally, I scooped him up and took him home with me. I don't know where he came from or how he ended up with me, but I am so happy he found me. When I first brought him home, my parents said he absolutely was not staying here with us. I was supposed to take him to a new home on Saturday, but that didn't work out. We are working on finding him a new home, sort of, but I am determined to take care of him forever. He is the sweetest little thing and he makes me so happy. After having him for a couple of days, I decided he should have a name besides, "the little kitty." So I started calling him Bagheera. If you don't recognize the name, it is the name of the black panther in The Jungle Book. I thought it was appropriate. I took Bagheera to the vet on Monday where I learned that he is about 8 or 9 weeks old. He got his first round of shots and was given a dewormer. He had roundworms, but that is going away. The vet said that he is a cute, sweet, and [mostly] healthy kitten. So far, he has been very well behaved, and hasn't antagonized our other cat, Sebastian, too much. He's my sweet little baby and I love him.

There are some days where I miss Disney, but I'm mostly just grateful for the time I had there. I would love to go back and visit soon and who knows, maybe I will work there again some day. I certainly don't know right now. The good news is, I only remember the happy things, which is exactly what I wanted.

I have decided to start dancing again. I am going to take a dance class or two this summer and then audition for the company I was on during the 2011-2012 school year, Collin Dance Ensemble in August. There is no telling if I will make the company or not, but I definitely won't make it if I don't try. I am just so excited to get moving again, even if I am not on CDE. I missed dance so much this last year and I can't wait to get started!

TEXAS!

Well, ladies and gentlemen, I made a decision.I have been home for a couple of weeks now. I am honestly very happy. It is so nice to have people that are happy to see me all the time. I am back working at Razzoo's. Every day when I go in, people want to talk to me and hear what I have to say. I'm so glad to be home. I have missed everything about Texas. This is probably my shortest entry ever, but I knew there were still people who didn't know I was back at home. I'm still going to write on my blog, even if nobody reads it. Obviously I won't have any new Disney stories, but there are still fun things that happen here! Thank you to everyone who has read my blog and supported me through this wonderful journey.

There's no place like home.

Disclaimer: Please don't read this if you are hoping to read happy stories. Wait for my next post.

Right now, the only thing I am able to really focus on is going home. I feel guilty about this. Here I am working at Disney World, gaining what should be a wonderful experience, and I just want to be at home. I absolutely love what I do here. That has never been a question. But I can't shake the feeling that it is time to move on. It's a scary thing though, to leave everything behind and head home. What if I regret it? What if I can't find a job right away? What if I make it to the Florida state line and wish I could turn around? What if nobody else supports my decision? What if people think I'm a quitter? What if "home" isn't what I've made it out to be in my mind?

We all fantasize and glorify home in our minds. Home is this place that is perfectly peaceful and untarnished. It is safe and warm and the place you return to when things aren't going as well as they should. Right now, nothing sounds better than home. I miss everything about home. The apartments here never feel like homes because the residents are here such a short time. Every apartment looks exactly the same. Nobody takes time to make a place feel like home. The most we do is buy enough air fresheners to make the existing stench dull a little.

Don't get me wrong, I have had a wonderful time here. I have learned so much about life, people, and myself. I would still recommend this to anyone who loves Disney, wants to work at Disney World short term, wants to go to Disney for free, or just needs a break from school without just "taking the semester off." It is an amazing experience to work for such a large company and I would not trade it for anything.

I've had some things going on that I haven't advertised to everyone. Mostly just because I didn't want to sound like I was complaining. I am having some struggles with my role lately. I haven't been able to wear my contacts for weeks now, so I have to wear glasses. Some of my character friends allow me to keep my glasses on, but those friends haven't spent any time with me since this has all started. So I go out on set blind and tough it out because I feel like I should. I can't see the autographs in the books, so Donald has signed over some of his friends accidentally. And I can never tell which person is talking to me because I can't see exactly whose mouth is moving. I end every day with a terrible headache because I have been straining my eyes all through my shift. It is a terrible feeling to know you aren't doing your best. These are the beloved Disney characters! They should be amazing! They shouldn't just be going through the motions. I've tried several times to have this issue resolved. I even offered to change roles for my last few weeks here. Every time I speak up, a shoulder is turned and I am left feeling defeated. I hate to feel like a quitter. So I'm sitting here, stuck and not knowing what to do besides rant on my blog and hope it makes me feel better. I have tried not to let this bother me. So I'm not doing my best, oh well! I'm not here for much longer anyway, and a lot of people don't care as much as I do, so why worry? But it does bother me. This is becoming just a job, and a job that is being poorly performed. This has never been "just a job" to me and I had hoped it never would be.

I'm sure it is difficult to understand exactly what this feels like. Everyone here that I have talked to has said that going home a little early is not bad. It doesn't make me a quitter, it means I'm taking care of myself. I could always come back and work for Disney later. After all, I've been here for almost 8 months. That says something. Other people are trying to look out for me and help me tough it out for the next month and a half. I just feel stuck. I know that challenges are a part of life. I do. I understand that completely. But this challenge is really taking it's toll. I hardly sleep anymore because I'm so stressed about everything. All the anxiety makes me feel sick frequently. I feel so many nerves every time I get up in the morning to go to work, like at any moment something bad could happen. I hate feeling like this. I just don't know what to do. This is one of those times where I really wish I had a crystal ball to tell me what I was going to do and how it would turn out. I know I could be home by Saturday and move on with life and be so happy. I know that. But I also know that if I am constantly reminded of the fact that I should be regretting the decision I made, eventually I will feel bad, and I don't want that.

So now I'm left with a decision to make. Do I stay here until the middle of May and just "tough it out" because this is a resume-building opportunity and challenges are important? Or do I go home?

I apologize for my rant. Really. I just needed to write all of this down because sometimes it helps to clear my head. It has taken me a while to be okay with sharing this with anyone but my parents and Michael. I'm still a little hesitant, but as soon as I hit Publish, there's no going back. I feel like there should be some bit of good news in all of this because overall this post has been a downer. So... I got a Dopey vinylmation the other day while I was trading. And Michael got me a Lego Yoda key chain! The parks have been to insane to visit lately, so Michael and I have been visiting resorts instead. Today, as soon as our friend, Andrew, gets off work, we are heading to Cocoa Beach. Going to the beach is something I have wanted to do since before I came here in August, so I'm glad to go. As always, I hope everyone is doing well. And bear with me. I will write a happy post soon!

This Mad Tea Party.

Let me begin by saying that when I began writing this post last night, I was sitting on the couch with the movie "Twister" playing on the TV. This was a terrible idea considering the fact that this movie scares me to no end, I was home alone, Michael was working until 5 AM, I really needed to bed, and there was a tornado in the Orlando area earlier that day. Yikes. I'm surprised I didn't have nightmares.

On that happy note, my family came to visit a couple weeks ago. I really enjoyed having them here. I'm always glad to have them visit. This time was different because my aunt, uncle, and their three daughters came with. I really liked experiencing the parks with kids. It is a completely different adventure. We were able to visit all four parks, and I feel like they saw everything they should have! I sure hope they all had a nice time. I definitely did!

Before everyone came to visit, I told my aunt, Sarah, that if the girls were ever bored, they should make pictures or letters for characters they wanted to meet. Faith, the 10-year-old, put a lot of effort into this. She drew and colored pictures with letters on the back for Rapunzel, Flynn Ryder, and Pascal, the characters of her favorite movie, "Tangled". She then drew pictures of Mickey, Minnie, Donald, Daisy, Pluto, and Goofy. When it was time to meet Rapunzel, I told her she should give Rapunzel the pictures for Flynn and Pascal also because she would be able to pass them along. (You can't meet Flynn or Pascal in the parks at this time.) Rapunzel was so excited to receive Faith's gifts. She ran around showing everyone the pictures saying, "Look! She got his nose right! She got his nose right!" For those of you who have not seen the movie "Tangled," Flynn is a wanted thief and on all of the Wanted posters, his nose is drawn incorrectly, which upsets him throughout the movie. About a week ago, I saw Rapunzel again. I asked her if she remembered Faith giving her the pictures. Her response made me laugh. "Oh my gosh! I am obsessed with those letters and pictures!" She also told me that one of Rapunzel's friends took pictures of all of them to share with everyone on Facebook and then made copies of them to hand out to Rapunzel's other friends. Too cute, right? I thought it was super sweet.

On the day my family arrived, my mom handed me an envelope. Inside was a card. It had notes from my drill team director and all of the ladies that I worked with in the office at McKinney North during my Junior and Senior years of high school. I had one hour everyday built into my schedule where I would go work in the office and perform little tasks for the office ladies. That was honestly one of my favorite parts about high school. Every person that signed that card has made a huge difference in my life. They were always there for me when I was in school. It makes me happy that they still think of me because I certainly think of them and everything they have done for me. They are definitely some of the nicest people I have ever met.



The entire time my family was here, they paid for my food. Once they left, I didn't know what to eat. I ended up stopping on the way home at Wendy's for a Chicken Caesar Salad. At Wendy's, the chicken that comes with the salad is spicy chicken, so I had to take a little extra time ordering. While I was placing my order at the drive-thru speaker, I could hear the man taking my order laughing. I figured it had nothing to do with me until I pulled up to the window and he was still laughing. I asked him what was so funny, to which he replied, "I was sure it was a BABY ordering!" Umm... Rude. I sarcastically said something along the lines of, "Sure, whatever," and pulled up to the next window. About a week later, I went back to Wendy's, this time only for a large Coke. I really wanted some fries, but thought it would be best to just eat at home. When I got to the first window, the man looked at me and said, "You seem familiar to me, but I'm not sure why." So I told him, "You laughed at me last week because you thought I sounded like a baby." He burst out with laughter and said, "I knew your voice was familiar! I'm sorry for laughing. It isn't nice." I told him it was okay and that I realized I had made his night." I pulled forward a bit, but had to wait before I could get to the next window. Some woman had confused the drive-thru window with a "walk-up-and-ask-for-a-manager-so-you-can-complain-while-people-in-their-cars-wait" window. When I finally made it to the second window, the employee asked me what I had ordered. I told him just a large Coke. When he turned around to make the drink, the guy who had been laughing at me stuck half of his body out the window toward he. He was holding an order of french fries. I was confused, thinking, "I didn't order fries. They know this," but then he said, "Thanks for making my night!" I thought it was so nice. I really enjoyed those fries. They were super good.

While my family was visiting, some of my blog readers were also at Disney! A couple from Rockwall found my blog after it was posted on the Kidd's Kids Facebook page and have been reading my entries ever since. I think it is so crazy and exciting that people I have never met read the things I write. It also makes me feel bad because I feel like a let down when it takes me a month to write a new post. But anyway. I actually met the family while we were in Epcot, and then they came to meet my friend Minnie Mouse when she and I were hanging out with Goofy at the Disney Visa location. This is a special VIP meet and greet only available to guests with the Disney Chase Visa card. It was so nice to meet their family. They were very friendly and had nothing but nice things to say about my adventures here!

Now, it is time to talk about work. In my particular role, I typically have a lot of down time. What better way to spend down time than by coloring?! I have a box of 120 crayons that I bought at Target for about $7 and several coloring books. Right now I take the Tinkerbell book to work. On my breaks, I sit there and color. This does not elicit the type of reaction you would expect. You would think that a bunch of adults would see this girl coloring on her breaks and be like, "Wow... You're coloring?" But instead, the response I get 90% of the time is, "Oh my gosh! WHERE DID YOU GET THAT BIG BOX OF CRAYONS???" When I answer them, they don't ever believe I only paid $7 for it. It makes me laugh. They are also fascinated by my Tinkerbell coloring book. If I am in the spare break room with the face spares, they all take turns asking if their certain fairy friends are in the book. It is very amusing.

Due to the heightened amount of park and resort attendance, most of the character dining locations have extended hours. Weird things happen during extended hours. The things I have experienced in the last couple days are the guests just behave very strangely, the restaurant is expected to be especially busy and then 50% of the guests cancel their reservations at the last minute, van drivers don't show up in the morning to take the entertainment cast to the resorts, break rooms are locked when we arrive, and Goofy goes out for his last set wearing his friend's shoes instead of his own. Oops! Donald was the first to finish, so he and I were sitting in the break room with the captain. Then Goofy walked in. After standing their for a moment, the captain looked down and said, "Did you really wear those shoes on set?" I looked down and realized Goofy was wearing his friend's black running shoes instead of his own black kitchen shoes. Silly Goofy!

I have one last thing to add. I was riding the Monorail the other day with my friend Hayden. We started talking to a family sitting next to us. When the wife asked us where we were staying, I informed her that we weren't actually resort guests, but instead we work here. She turned to her husband because he had been talking to us longer and said, "Did you know this?" He replied, "Of course. We go way back. She dresses up as Mickey Mouse and Snow White. And he dresses up as Gaston." I nearly lost it trying to hold in my laughter. Oh sir, if you only knew my life! Hayden covered it up by saying, "Oh no, I'm too short to be Gaston!" They never did ask us where we work. I thought it was so funny though.

I am so excited to have the next two days off! I am very much looking forward to sleeping in after 5 AM. Such luxury! I shouldn't complain. Yes I have to get up at 5 every morning, but at least I'm not working until 4 or 5 every morning like Michael. He now has to sleep during the day because he usually doesn't work until 6 or 7 at night and then he is there until 3, 4 or 5 AM! It's so crazy. I am hoping we will be able to go to the parks tomorrow or something. Who knows though? The parks have been super crowded lately. Regardless, we both have a day off! Everyone have a magical evening!

71 days left.

71 more days. Can you believe that? 71 days left in this crazy adventure. I have a countdown on my phone. I'm hoping it will serve as a reminder that time is precious and should be appreciated and enjoyed. I have been here for 199 days and I have 71 to go. I'm finding this so hard to wrap my brain around. I can't believe my journey is ending in a little over two months. I remember when that was how long I had before I came here. I remember being excited to reach the "100 days left until Disney" mark. I am going to do everything I can to enjoy every moment I have left. No more spending time in my apartment unless it is because all of the parks AND Downtown Disney are closed. Even if it means I am going to go wander around by myself. I need to fill up my camera again.

The end of this journey is going to be very bittersweet. While I know I will be very sad to leave this magical world, I am also very excited to go back home. I'm so excited to have a chance to really start fresh. I honestly don't think I will be returning as the same person I was last August. I am so much more motivated now. I sit around and pretend I'm not, but I really am. I really want to hit the ground running when I get home. I have been fortunate enough to have had the opportunity to play for the last six months and get paid for it. But enough of that. I'm ready to go home, get a job, and go to school everyday like a normal 20 year old. I'm a little worried about being able to get a job when I get back home. I loved my job at Razzoo's before I left, but I made no money there. I can't go back to a job where I'm lucky to make $25-30 a day. I'm never going to be able to get anywhere with that. As soon as I get back I'm going to have to search everywhere to see who is hiring. I MUST FIND A JOB! Also, no offense Mom and Dad, but it's going to be strange to go back to living at home. Right now I live with only one other person, I take care of my stuff, eat cookies for dinner, and come and go as I please. It will definitely be different living with 4 other people again and needing to be conscientious of what they are doing and when they will be doing it. This may take some time to adjust to. But that's okay! I love my family very much and know we will all adjust to me being back easily. Maybe if I can find a good job, I could get an apartment! (If anyone has any suggestions, please let me know. I can't go home and not work.)

It's dorky, but I'm really excited for the drive home! I don't know why. I just think it will be fun to make random stops and enjoy a nice little road trip!

I didn't get approved to be friends with Tinker Bell. I was disappointed at first, but I got over it pretty quickly. I'm a very strong believer in things happening for a reason. I think if I had gotten approved, Tink would have tried to keep me here at Disney at the end of my program instead of letting me leave to go be productive. When I graduated high school, I wasn't excited to go to college. It just seemed like something that was expected. Now I feel like I have a choice in everything I do, and I am choosing to go to school. I can always come back to Disney in a couple years or after I finish school all together.

I am excited for the 71 days that I have left here. I am enjoying my time with friends (actual people) and my character friends as well. I have been so lucky while I have been here and know I am truly blessed to have been given this opportunity and experience. I could not have asked for anything to go any better. Even though I have had some challenges here, I wouldn't trade them away. Challenges make us stronger, even if we don't see it at first.

Characters!

About a month after I moved to Orlando, I began taking notes each day of anything interesting that happened in case I wanted to write about it later. I have not been doing this lately, and I feel like I should return to it. I sit down and try to write a new entry and I suddenly forget everything that has happened recently.

Michael and I have been able to go to the parks quite a bit recently. Tuesday night we went to Magic Kingdom. The park is open late all this week, so we were able to do a lot of different things. We met Ariel, Donald Duck, and Goofy, and rode the Little Mermaid ride, Pirates of the Caribbean, It's A Small World, Mickey's Philharmagic, Haunted Mansion, and Peter Pan! It is always so much fun being able to go to the parks with Michael. He had never been on the Peter Pan ride because the line is always forever long, so he was excited to ride it. When we met Ariel, she asked me if I wanted to join her in the Redhead Club. I love meeting face characters. They always make me laugh.

Speaking of face characters, I went to the face audition last Friday. Earlier in the week, I received an email from Disney saying that current Disney Performers were not invited to attend this audition. I was really disappointed when I saw this, but some friends and fellow cast members told me not to be discouraged and to go to the audition anyway. It was such a strange experience. The audition was scheduled to begin at 9AM, with sign in starting at 8. I arrived at around 8:30 at the Animal Kingdom costuming building and rehearsal facility. When I arrived, the line was wrapped around the outside of the building. After standing in line for 2 hours, I learned that the line wrapped around the building and then inside the building it wrapped around costuming, down a long hallway, turned the corner toward the rehearsal studio, wrapped around the studio, and finally led you to a table where you signed in, received a number, and were measured for height. While waiting in line, I spoke with the people in line around me. They all said I was definitely going to be friends with Tinkerbell, but I tried not to get my hopes up. I didn't comment on whether or not other girls would get picked. I don't think it is fair to put ideas into people's heads. We saw large groups of girls leaving at a time and quickly learned that after you were signed in, you were taken in groups of 50 to the audition room where a Casting Director turned on some music and did nothing but look at everyone in the room. From there, less than 5 girls from each group made it to the next round. In several of the groups before me, no girls were selected to continue. In my group, 3 girls were chosen. I was lucky enough to be one of them. I could tell she was going to call my number, only because she kept looking at me and then looked directly from my face to the paper in her hand and circled her number. It was very exciting. The other two girls and I were asked to stay in the room while everyone else left. While the other girls were leaving, several told us "Good luck," and "Congratulations." From there, we were taken into a smaller room where we joined about 6 other girls who had already been pulled. Apparently people had been discussing throughout the morning who they thought would make it through. When I walked into this room, I learned that I was one of the girls people had been talking about. I didn't realize I stood out in such a big crowd. One of the other Casting Directors came in and asked if anyone was already working in Entertainment. I raised my hand, along with one other girl. We were told we would be skipping the next portion of the audition. The next part was dancing and animation. Since we had both already done this part, there was no need for them to see it again. After the last group had been looked at, we all went back into the larger room together and joined 3 other girls. In total we had 11 or 12 girls. One of the girls from this last group of 3 was also in Entertainment already. The Casting Director came to us one by one and asked us a few questions while looking us over and making small talk. She seemed pleased that I have been here longer than everyone else. I forgot to mention, this audition was strictly for girls in the College Program. Most of the people just got here sometime in the last month. There were girls who hadn't even begun working yet! After talking with each of us, the Casting Director told me and the other two girls that we could wait in the hall until Cosmetology was ready for us. I didn't realize we were going to go straight into a fitting. All three of us got pretty excited. One of the girls was going to be fit for Alice, the other Mary Poppins, and me Tinkerbell! I imagine my face looked pretty stunned when they told me this. Tinkerbell is one of my favorite characters. It was so cool. I can't go into too much detail about the rest of this, but basically we all got our hair and makeup done, put on our dresses, had some pictures taken, and read some lines in front of a camera. That was it! It was super easy, but kind of chaotic. I never saw myself in front of a mirror, so I have no idea what I looked like. The other girls with me kept telling me I made a wonderful friend for Tinkerbell though. It was all so exciting. When I was done, the Casting Directors told me that I should hear back by Wednesday. I would like to point out that it is now Friday and I have still heard nothing. But apparently when they say Wednesday, they mean Monday. So I guess I just have to be patient. Even if I don't get approved, it was still so wonderful to be able to do it once! All together, 730 girls showed up for the audition and less than 30 remained at the end of the day, so either way, it is insane that I made it that far!

This is random, but all of the princesses are getting makeovers in the parks and in merchandise. I don't really understand why, but a lot of people are really unhappy about this, and for the silliest reasons. The princesses are receiving new hairstyles and new dresses. They still have the same look, it's just being made more modern and more flattering. Cinderella was the first to receive her makeover, back in October or September. Her dress is lovely and her hair is still in a bun, but she now has side swept bangs instead of the straight across ones she had before. Belle was next. Her look just recently debuted. Her dress is a softer yellow and her hair is more curled. It looks beautiful, in my opinion. So many people are throwing fits though. People are saying, "It isn't right to change how they look. This is what we grew up with." or "They look like strippers now with their new makeup," or "They look to skinny now. The girls before looked healthier," or my personal favorite, "What would Walt have wanted?" I find this all very funny considering the fact that A) Their makeup didn't change, B) Walt changed the look of Mickey Mouse several times, C) the princesses are thin in their movies, and D) Walt didn't even have anything to do with most of the princesses. He was really only involved in the early princesses, Snow White, Cinderella, and Aurora because all of the other movies came to be after he had passed away. I don't understand why people get so worked up about something so minor. These new looks are more flattering for the princesses and easier for young girls to recognize because they are more modern. And not only that, but Belle's hair used to shadow her face in pictures and now it doesn't. I wish people would think before they say such harsh things about people they've never met.

People are also upset about the changes to some characters personalities. For example, in the Disney Junior show, Mickey Mouse Clubhouse, Donald Duck has mellowed out quite a bit from his earlier days. He is still irritable, but he doesn't throw a huge fit like he would have before. Same with Tinkerbell. She is much nicer now that she is in the Disney Fairies movies. I'm so happy about this. If Donald Duck still threw fits like he used to, think of how many kids would walk up and punch him or kick him or try to make him mad. Not only would it endanger the Disney Characters, but it would also be teaching the young children that watch these shows to not be level headed and to freak out over every little thing. With Tinkerbell, she still gets upset, but she isn't a diva like she was in Peter Pan, and she hasn't tried to shoot down any Wendy Birds. When she gets upset, she recognizes it and apologizes later. In my opinion, this sends out a much better message to children. Even if they don't realize it, it does make a difference. Children imitate what they see their older siblings do, what they see from kids at school, and what they see on TV.

All that being said, Donald Duck had some of the sweetest little girls meet him at the Beach Club Resort the other day. When he walked up to their table, he knelt down because they were small. They both hugged him immediately and then when they backed away, they said, "Donald, do you want to go home with us, too?" I couldn't help but smile when I heard this. Donald told them yes, he did want to go with them and he stayed with them as long as he could. The younger girl knew that he had other people to see though, so she just started telling him, "Bye, Donald! Goodbye!" while waving both of her hands. Too cute.

Also, Tinkerbell has a star on Hollywood Boulevard and I think that's just about the coolest thing ever. I have to go see it. And with that, everyone have a lovely day and a lovely weekend! And cross your fingers that I hear back about the audition soon!

One ticket to Disney World, please?

I don't know how I got so lucky, but by some miracle, Michael and I have the same days off every week. This makes me especially happy considering the fact that we have completely opposite schedules. And I'm not exaggerating. Yesterday, I clocked out fifteen minutes before Michael clocked in. It is kind of funny that we get to see each other at work. That is taking some getting used to. It would be even more strange if we worked in the same area.

I am really excited to have my family visiting in a few weeks. My parents and brothers are coming, along with my aunt and uncle and their three daughters. I really just like when people visit! It is very amusing to see people in my world that I know from somewhere else.

I have been having so much fun lately. I feel a thousand times happier now. I really like Michael's roommates and I am making more of an effort to make friends on my own. I have the face audition this Friday which I am really excited for. I'm not going to lie, I don't even know if I am eligible to attend this audition because I have already extended my program, but I don't really care. The worst they can do is tell me no, and that wouldn't be the end of the world. It would be absolutely wonderful to be able to perform a face role though. I can't pretend it isn't something I want to do, because it really is.

Last week, Michael and I were able to go to the parks on our days off. We went to Magic Kingdom and to Hollywood Studios. I really like that this is something we can do together. I'm super excited for my family to visit soon. I'm even more excited that there will be someone to go meet characters with me! I don't think Michael really cares about it too much, but he does it if I want to because he knows it will make me happy. He's definitely a keeper, if anyone was unsure before now. Oh, and guess what else? He cooks for me!

My fairy obsession is only growing. I have now seen every Tinkerbell movie, and own several fairy dolls, a fairy blanket, and Disney trading pins of almost every fairy. This is totally normal.

No, it isn't.

I'm friends with Lilo now. She is more fun than I expected her to be. Minnie and Vanellope are still my favorites though!

I am rambling 100%, so I'm sorry if any of this has been difficult to follow. But I have one last thing. Donald had some super cute kids visit him today. My mom's best friend growing up brought her family to see him today! It was great! Her kids were very well behaved (which I was so thankful for) and they seemed to really enjoy spending time with Donald. A little while later, a boy handed Donald a pen and a single piece of paper to sign. Since signing a single sheet of paper is difficult, Donald walked over to the trashcan nearby to use it as a hard surface. Before returning to the boy, Donald pushed the lid of the trashcan so it looked and sounded like he had thrown something into the trash. Then, he turned around, keeping the autographed paper behind his back. The photographer looked at Donald and then said to the boy, "Uh oh! I think Donald threw away you're paper. He's always messing around." Donald laughed and gave the boy the pen back. After a few seconds, he revealed that he was in fact still holding the piece of paper and handed it back to the boy. The family found this amusing. A few families later, a mom and her little boy came to meet Donald. The mom was holding her son. He was probably around three years old. When he saw Donald, he started giggling, which made Donald shake his head, laughing. This only made the little boy laugh harder. So Donald kept shaking his head back and forth to keep the boy laughing. It was really fun. All of the guests around us couldn't help but smile because this little boy had the cutest laugh ever. It really brightened my day. He was definitely a cutie.

And with that, I leave you all once again. I have to get up early tomorrow. I'm spending the day with the lovely kitty, Marie! Yay! Now I can get back to watching High School Musical 2! Goodnight!

Michael is here!

I'm always so disappointed every time I take forever to write a new post. A lot has happened in the last couple of weeks, which is great! After my last post, my mom and her friend from work came to visit me. It was really great having them out here! I only had to work a couple times while they were here, so I got to spend a lot of time with them. I'm not going to lie, I don't remember every single thing we did, but I do remember most things! We went to all of the parks, watched Wishes and Fantasmic, walked around the Boardwalk, explored the Animal Kingdom Lodge, ate at Planet Hollywood, and I got a Duffy Bear! They were even able to come see me while I was working! I was hanging out with Marie that day. I always enjoy when people I know come to visit me! It was sad when she left, but she will be back again very soon!


Michael arrived the day before Mom left. I was so thrilled to finally have him here with me. I still am. His roommates are great. He is living in a two bedroom apartment in a complex called The Commons. Ordinarily, College Program people can not live in The Commons. It is reserved for the International College Program. Somehow, Michael and his roommates got lucky and they are able to live there! It is kind of fun because all of the people who live around him are from other countries. Great people watching! His three roommates are really nice. They let me hang out over there or tag along when they go places, so I'm happy about that. I can't remember if I have said it before, but Michael is working merchandise while he is here. He will be at the Emporium in Magic Kingdom. It is a huge gift shop. It makes a ton of money every day. He will be very busy, which is perfect for him. And he gets to pin trade, which means I get to pin trade!

Since Michael has been here, we have mostly just taken the time to get him all settled in. We have also watched a lot of movies. We finally got to see The Hobbit and Les Miserables. The Hobbit was very long and very slow. It was a beautifully produced film, and I feel that it laid the groundwork for the films to come, but it was slow nonetheless. Les Mis was incredible. I had never seen the stage production, so I didn't know entirely what I was getting into. I just knew a lot of people were going to die. It was a very good movie though. I would love to see it again.

On the day of Michael's check in, we had dinner at Chef Mickey's. I've worked there several times, but had never been able to go as a guest, so I was really excited to experience it from the other side of things. Right off the bat, Pluto and Goofy came and sat with us. They were very excited to see me. They sat with me instead of going into the kitchen like they were supposed to. It made me really happy. It was so much fun to see all of the characters, but Goofy and Pluto made the night special. It really makes me happy when the characters remember me. Everything is more fun when that happens!

Last night, Michael and I went to a housing event. I think he and I should try to go to them as often as we can. Free food is always nice. Last night's event was a "Winter Wonderland" so they had fairies! I was really excited about this. I just love the fairies so much! The free food last night was pizza. So Michael and I got our allowed two slices and went to find a place to sit. We found a table with several open seats and Michael decided he should show me how to make friends, since I'm apparently not very good at it. After asking if the seats were taken, we sat down and he began talking. He asked the two guys already sitting there what their names were, where they were from, where they live, where they would be working. It was like watching the gears in a clock all rotating together. Those two guys ended up sitting there, talking to us and any new people that sat down for the whole night. The other half of the table went through three different groups of girls before we actually made some new friends. Three girls from Australia and one guy from New Zealand sat down and talked to us for a long time. By this time, two of Michael's roommates had joined us. We all sat there and talked to at least 45 minutes before deciding to migrate over to the fairy line. There were ten of us total. We waiting in the line to meet the fairies for at least an hour. It was insane. When we got in line, Tinkerbell and Periwinkle were out. While we were there, they switched with Rosetta, Vidia, and Terrance, and by the time we actually got to the front of the line, Tink and Peri were back out. Our interaction lasted about 5 seconds because the line really needed to get moving, but I was still really happy to get the picture! Sometimes I wish I could grow wings and fly away to Neverland. Maybe one day!

Tonight Michael is making dinner. It is so nice that I have people to keep me company now. I just need to learn to use my camera more often! I haven't gotten a single picture of just Michael and I since he arrived. I need to work on this. In two weeks I am attending a face audition. Everyone please cross your fingers for me. I really want this to go well. But for now, I'm going to go have some dinner! Everyone have a magical evening!

Reflections.

Time really is flying. I will never understand how sometimes, it feels like time goes by so slowly and other times a year feels like one day. One of the nice things about time is that it gives us the opportunity to learn and grow. In some cases, the growing is noticeable. A baby grows his first teeth, a bird grows feathers, and a bear grows thick fur to keep him warm in the cold winter months. In other cases, the growth is more internal. That's the kind of growing I have done over the last few months. I have learned so much by being here. Some things are difficult for me to put into words, but I will do my best.

I have said this several times throughout my program, but human interaction is so important. It may not be as important to everyone else, but for me, it is one of the most important things in life. There have been so many days while I have been here that I have just sat in my apartment and done nothing. Because I live in a one bedroom, I am home alone a lot. I don't have much opportunity for making friends at work because I am in a different location every day with different people, and once we leave for the day, we never see each other again. The people I see the most frequently are full-time, so they are in the same place every day. More commonly than not, cast members that are not on the college program do not want to be friends with college program kids. We are only "temporary," so there's no reason to waste their time getting to know us when another wave of temporary cast members will be around in a couple months. I think this is so sad. Not even for myself, but for the people that don't take the time to get to know other people from all over the world. I am so fascinated by all of the different cultures that make Disney such a diverse company to work for, that I really enjoy talking to my fellow cast members, even if I never see them again. I may work with someone for an entire day, spend the whole time talking with them, and not even get their name. If I see them again, we look at each other and say, "I think we have worked together before..." That's enough for me. If just one person remembers working with me at some point, I have done my job right. I don't mind that I see different people every day, as long as I see people. The days that I stay in my apartment all day are nice, but they are usually the most sad. Sometimes I need these days. I need to be able to sleep until noon and then lay around all day doing nothing. I need time to recuperate after working several long days in a row. But if I have two days in a row where I do this, by 3 PM on the second day, I'm ready to burst. I feel like if I don't talk to someone soon I might go crazy. That being said, on the days where I get a little bit of interaction, I feel a thousand times better. When I came back to Orlando after being home for a week, I was not doing very well. I just went through the motions each day and did as little as possible to make the time pass. This is very out of character for me, but it is the truth. I really missed my family and friends from back home and I wasn't excited to be back here where I had only a few friends. On my second or third day back, I talked to my roommate, Sarah. Just normal chit-chatting. Nothing too exciting. But the fact that she took time out of her day to talk to me made such a difference in my attitude. I felt so much better after that. We only talked for about ten minutes, but from then on, I was a lot happier. I started getting excited for work and not just going through the motions. I went out of my way to be happy instead of out of my way to be sad. I still missed my family, but I just thought about all the things I had to be excited for instead.

Most of what I have learned is about people. In my line of work, I spend 90% of my time people watching. I do not plan on having children any time soon. However, I have become very fond of children since I have started working here. Kids have such fresh minds. And they are very much a reflection of their parents. In most cases. Not every case. There's that expression, "The apple doesn't fall from from the tree." Well sometimes I sit there thinking, "I'm pretty sure it was a grapefruit that fell off that apple tree." Sometimes I really don't understand how the parents and kids can possibly be related. Then there are the times that I look at the parents and think, "Yes. I know exactly why your kid is acting that way. Thank you for the confirmation." The sweetest, most loving kids are always the ones that are torn away too quickly by their parents saying, "Come on, honey. It's the next family's turn." Of course it would happen that way. The best kids have to leave too soon because their parents are actually considerate of the fact that the people in line behind them waited just as long as them. They understand that it is more fair of them to take their turn and move on instead of lingering. But those are the kids that I enjoy having around. The ones that want to hug and play instead of push and tug.

It is important not to judge people too quickly. Everyone deserves a fair opportunity to earn an opinion. In almost any situation, two people should be able to find some kind of common ground. It may take some digging, but eventually they should find something. Taking the time to dig is important. It gives you a chance to learn something. Even if that lesson is just about accepting people for who they are. Not everyone is going to be just like you. That is what makes everyone unique.

Being physically active can make a huge difference in a person's day and life. Since I work at Disney, I walk a lot. Plus, my wardrobe for work is fairly weighted. So I am in decent shape as it is. Recently, I have started going jogging in the evenings after work. It is so nice to be able to run without being too sore to move the next day. At Animal Kingdom, there are bicycles backstage for the cast members to use because the parking lot is so far away. The best part of my day is riding the bike back to the parking lot at the end of my day. I feel so good about myself when I come back to my apartment to take a shower, knowing that I worked hard.

I do not do well with early mornings. This is not new. I've always known this. The days that I have to be up before the sun are so difficult. I just move so slowly in the morning. It is a real challenge for me. I have to be at work at 4:15 AM on Sunday. Nobody would take this shift or trade anything with me. (Shocking, I know) I have learned, the hard way, that I have to set multiple alarms when I have to work early in the morning or I will not wake up. I will sleep straight through my alarm and wake up hours later thinking, "Whoops! Guess I'm not working today." I will have to wake up at 3:00 in the morning on Sunday. I am not overly sure how well this is going to work. I might have to have some night time medicine at 6:00 PM tonight, so I can sleep before work. 

I am so excited that the next chapter of my college program has begun. I am not sad that the last semester ended. I do miss the people that have gone home. I wish they were still here, but I know it is time for all of us to move on. Everything happens for a reason. I am already starting to make some new friends. Now I just need to get a new memory card for my camera! The last one is full, but I don't want to delete the pictures!

I know there are so many more things I have learned in the last five months, but I can't think of anything else right now. I'm off again tomorrow. If the sun is shining, I might go hang out by the pool for a while since I have yet to do that at all. There is only one more week until Michael gets here. I am so excited, I might explode. Words can not express how much I am looking forward to having him here. I feel so complete when we are together. That might sound childish, but I don't care. I have always been very mature and I work at Disney. I'm allowed to say something remotely childish every now and then. 

I would like to also add that today is my mom's birthday! I'm pretty sure she's 29 or something. This is getting awkward because we are both in our 20's now. Not sure how I feel about that. Regardless, I hope her day is magical. And I hope she knows I love her very much. I could not have asked for a more loving person to be my mother. She has always done everything she could for me and goes above and beyond for everyone she cares about. I can't wait to see her on Wednesday. I'm so excited for her to come visit. She might even get to see me working!

Everyone have a magical weekend!

The start of something new

Hello everyone! Everything is finally starting to slow down. The parks are less crowded, I'm not getting stuck in traffic everywhere I go, and work is getting easier. All of the Fall College Program people have gone home. Only the International CP's and people who extended their program are still here. Yesterday, some of the Spring CP's arrived. It's kind of exciting that new people are getting here, especially since all of my friends left last week.

I had to say goodbye to Sarah on Thursday. That was not fun. She has become one of my closest friends and I knew I would miss her a lot. I'm very lucky that she and I ended up living together. I couldn't have picked a better person to share an apartment with. We both cried a lot when she left, but I know we will see each other again! Plus, we make sure to talk every day, so that is nice. After she left, I stayed up pretty late packing and then spent all of Friday packing also. I learned that I have a lot of stuff. Sarah my roommate and Sara Robbins both left me a ton of food, so there was all of that, I have quite a bit of movies and clothes and shoes, and I also really like Disney Merchandise. While I was packing, I found myself really hoping my new roommate and I would get along.




Saturday morning, I got up early to start moving my things into my new apartment. I briefly met my new roommate, but we were both really busy running up and down the stairs, so we didn't talk much. She had to go to work in the afternoon, so I didn't get to talk to her that day. I finished unpacking everything so I wouldn't have to worry about anything on Sunday, and also so that my things would be out of my new roommate's way. Side note: She's taller than I'm used to. Yesterday, my roommate and I finally talked a little. She seems nice. I met her boyfriend too. They left last night and she said she wouldn't be back until late today. That being said, I have had the apartment to myself all last night and today, which was nice, but boring. I was off today and I really wanted to go do something, but had nothing to do and nobody to go do something with. I thought about going to see Les Miserables alone, but figured watching a depressing movie by myself wasn't the best idea. So I settled for a Pretty Little Liars marathon leading up to the season premiere!

I have a couple more days off before my mom gets here, but for the most part, I will be working which will help the time go by faster! Only 8 more days until Mom gets here and 11 days until Michael gets here! Yay! I am so excited. Time is going by so quickly. I can't wait to have Mom here to visit. I think she even might be able to come see me at work! And then after that, Michael will be here for good! Yay! Everyone cross your fingers for me that I will start to make friends. It would be nice to not spend my days off alone!

A couple random stories before I get back to my Pretty Little Liars marathon: Sunday, I was friends with Mickey in Town Square Theater. Mickey met a blind guest while he was there. This guest was with his whole family. With him, was a seeing-eye dog. The man walked up and held out his hand for a hand shake. Mickey shook his hand and when he did, the man said, "Hi Mickey, this is Peyton. And you may pet him." I thought that was so cool. Mickey would have spent more time with him, but he had a whole family with him, and Peyton was between them, so he divided his attention among everyone. Mickey was very honored to have met that family. The attendant told me later that he heard the man in line say, "You know what? I think I'm going to let Mickey pet my dog. I think he is important enough for that." Yesterday, I got to be friends with Vanellope finally! Vanellope is the little girl from the movie Wreck-It Ralph. She is sassy and hilarious and most people don't know her name, but I don't care! We had so much fun together. One lady walked up to her and said, "Vanellope, I think you should be considered a Disney Princess." Vanellope loved that! I had so much fun yesterday and I hope I can spend more time with Vanellope!

Alright everyone! I don't really have anything else to say, so I'm going to get back to wasting away in front of the TV! Have a wonderful night!

Minnie Mouse rang in the new year with class...

Everyone is leaving me. It is very sad. My best friend, Sara Robbins, left yesterday. Tomorrow, I work all day. Friday, Sarah and Hayden leave. Saturday I move into my new apartment. My new apartment is going to be in the same building, just one floor up, so it's not like I am going through a drastic relocation. I do have to pack up all of my things though because I only have three hours to empty my current apartment and I will be doing this completely alone. I still don't know who I am living with. I am trying not to be too worried about this. The fact is, Michael will be here soon and I can always escape with him if I need to, and since I will have someone here to hang out with all the time, I probably won't be home much anyway. But still, it would be nice to have a roommate I get along with. I was more than lucky this time around. Sarah has been the best possible roommate. Honestly, I couldn't have asked for anyone better. We have gotten along great and are able to talk and hang out any time without forcing anything. I have made a great friend in her and I am so grateful. I am sad to see her go. She is leaving a ton of things here for me because she is flying back home. She even packed up all the food for me so I wouldn't have to worry about it. She also packed up a couple boxes of toiletries for me. Such a sweet girl. Obviously she couldn't take all of this stuff back home, but she didn't have to give it to me, so I thought it was really nice that she packed it all up for me. Sara Robbins and her roommate also gave me quite a bit of food as well. Good news guys, I'm not going to starve next semester! Sarah is even leaving me her coffee maker and all the coffee, just in case I randomly start drinking coffee! I hope I get this lucky again. I didn't realize it at the time, but yesterday was the last time I will get to hang out with her while she is here.

Yesterday, Sarah and I went to Epcot because that is her favorite park. Hayden met us there after a little while and then Sarah went to Magic Kingdom to see some friends and Hayden and I headed over to Hollywood Studios to watch Fantasmic one last time. On the way, we made an impromptu stop at Art of Animation Resort because he had never seen it. We walked around there for a little while and then went to Studios. We were hungry when we got there, so we went to the Sci-fi Dine In Theater. You are supposed to have reservations to eat there, but we decided to give it a shot. They ended up having space available, so we decided to stay. This restaurant is so cool. I had never been inside before, so I didn't know what to expect. Basically, you are at a drive-in theater and clips from old Sci-fi movies play on the screen while you eat your food at your table which is actually a car. It was too dark in there for me to get any good pictures, but you can take my word for it. It's really cool. I would like to add that almost every single cast member I have spoken to in the last two days has either asked me if I am friends with Snow White or friends with a princess. It isn't important, but it's a nice confidence booster. Each time I told them no, they were shocked and told me to keep trying. I won't lie, it made me happy. One lady even told me to stuff things in my shoes so I would be taller. While this wouldn't help me, it was still funny. I have almost accepted the fact that I will never have a face role, but it's still nice when people tell me I should.

Today, while I was driving home, I realized how quickly time has gone by since I arrived here. If I had not extended my program, today would have been the last day of my program and then I would have either played in the parks tomorrow and blown almost all my money on things I don't need, or I would have begun the drive home. There are still so many things I want to do while I am here. I haven't even been to every attraction, or every resort, or the beach! I've lived in Florida for 5 months and I haven't gone to the beach! How sad. Michael and I will definitely be making a trip while we are here. I seriously can't wait for him to be here. I feel like I will get to experience everything over again through him and I am so excited. I have definitely gained a new appreciation recently for the opportunity I have been given. So many people want to work at Disney. I do. So many people wish they could be friends with the characters. I am. And so many people wish they could have their boyfriend or girlfriend here with them. I will. I know this next 4 months is going to be so wonderful. I am very excited for the day he gets here. There are only 17 days left! And only 2 weeks until my mom gets here! I'm excited to see her again!

I haven't told any stories recently about my character friends, so I will share this one. I was hanging out with my friend Minnie Mouse on Sunday night at Pete's Silly Sideshow. This is in Storybook Circus, which is part of Fantasyland. I have posted a picture of Minnie before from this location. She has a tiara and pink feathers on her ears and she is wearing a pink, sparkly dress that is really fluffy. She looks adorable. I love hanging out with Minnie here. So anyway, Sunday was December 30. Magic Kingdom showed the New Years fireworks Sunday and Monday night in order to get some guests to go to the other parks on New Years Eve because it is always packed on that night. My last set began at 11:55 PM. The fireworks began at 11:50. When we got onset, the Captain looked at all of the characters, attendants, and photographers and said, "Hurry! Go outside to watch the fireworks!" So everyone, including Daisy, Goofy, Donald, and Minnie make their way out the doors. Unfortunately for Minnie, she didn't noticed that before you walk out the door, there is a single step up. So she tripped. and face-planted. Right in the doorway. In front of all the attendants, photographers, managers, and even her other friends from earlier that night. Thankfully, there were no guests around. Minnie sure rang in the new year with class... Everyone's initial reaction was to just laugh, but then they realized Minnie might be hurt, so they ran over to make sure she was okay. She was fine, so one of her favorite attendants offered her his arm and they walked outside together to watch the fireworks. The show was amazing. There were perimeter fireworks, which means the fireworks are all around you, instead of just behind the castle. It was incredible. I have never seen so many fireworks in my life. After the show ended, we all went back inside and we were done for the night. Minnie was fine. No bumps or bruises. I, however, am still very sore. I think it has a lot to do with the fact that I have been spending a lot of time with Mickey and Donald, but also the fact that I completely wiped out in a way I'm not used to. I definitely need to be more careful next time. Hopefully my back and shoulder will heal soon. I feel like I did back when I was friends with Pooh everyday and that is not good at all. I'm sure all will be fine though! I sent in a request to scheduling for me to be able to spend more time with Minnie. Hopefully they listen!

Well, there's my story for you! I'm going to go finish my laundry and then probably get some pizza with Hayden! Tomorrow I'm hanging out with Mickey all day and then I have to say goodbye to Sarah. Wish me luck!