Easter Cookies

 

This past weekend Ryan was in San Fran for yet another work trip so I did what I do best, and called in reinforcements to come hang out with the girls and I for the weekend.  Let me tell ya, an impromptu girls weekend was just what we needed.  The girls had finally returned to school earlier in the week (after a LONG quarantine for post Disney COVID) and I couldn't wait to catch up with Erin, share a few cocktails (turns out it was one too many cocktails!) and do what we do best - make sugar cookies!

Turns out, somehow over our nearly 2 year bender with sugar cookies, we never managed to buy St. Patrick's Day cutters so we decided to just skip right over that holiday and do Easter instead.  After so many batches, we do have a pretty good routine down and the kids are pros at their parts of the process.  But, each and every time we make these, we find something else new to try or tweak.  This batch's project was operation frosting consistency.  We made two very specific consistencies and made sure to really pay attention to how the frosting reacted so that we can replicate it going forward.  We made a much thicker frosting to use for piping on top (you can see it below on the carrots) and a thinner one that spreads more easily for all over frosting sections (like the peep bunnies above).

The cookies turned out as cute as ever.  The kids love being able to take them to school to share with their teachers and I sure love having one in the morning with coffee.  The thinker cookies and larger cutters mean that one batch of dough goes just far enough for us to share the cookies and leaves just enough left over that they are gone within a few days.  

Now it's got us thinking about our next cookie weekend - and what we'll make.  I'm guessing our next batch will be for the lake Memorial Day weekend...Erin and I have a cute idea already in the works for those.  Last year we did red/white/blue patriotic theme...but I'm going to keep our plan for this year a secret for now!

Disney - Island of Adventure

 

Our second park day was at Island of Adventure - an offshoot of Universal.  Since the parks are great at one thing - making money - they figured out that if you split something across two parks it'll make people buy park hopper passes so that they can experience the full "world".  So, for example, Harry Potter is split across both Universal and Island of Adventure.  You can see Diagon Alley and ride a few rides at Universal, and then you have to get on the Hogwarts Express to journey to Island of Adventure where you can visit Hogwarts and Hogsmeade.  Smart...gotta give it to them!  But, I knew it would be unlikely that we'd want to spend enough time doing rides ands standing in line to make a park hopper pass worth it.  After a little research we decided on Island of Adventure and all in all, I am really happy with the choice.  It was clear that the parks had put a lot of time and energy (and money) into making this area of the park amazing - and it was definitely the most crowded area of the entire park.  

We upgraded our tickets to allow us to use the express lanes (worth it, though, if I had it to do over again, we didn't ALL need the upgraded tickets).  I think in the end, Dad went on only one ride for the entire day.  Dan went out a few more than that, and I was only on 5 rides myself.  So, paying for all of us to have the upgraded tickets probably wasn't worth it - I'd say "next time" but honestly, I'm not sure if we'll be back again for quite some time.  We're hoping we can check "Disney" off the kids bucket lists.  We'll see!

Since I knew the rides would likely make me sick, the three things I personally wanted to experience were:

1. Get the kids wands and help them do magic (this was really really cool and worth the cost!)
2. Have a Butterbeer (the kids didn't like it at all....surprisingly because they are basically a cup full of sugar)
3. Walk around and be able to see all the decorations/recreations etc.

While Erin, Mom and Ryan went on one of the bigger rides (Jurassic Park - Ryan said it was his top 2 lifetime favorite ride...and only because he wanted to give room in his scale for a FUTURE ride)...Dan, Dad and I took the kids to Oleanders where we watched a wand picking ceremony (did you know that the wand actually picks you?).  Unfortunately the kids weren't picked for the show, but they did promptly funnel you into the giftshop where each person could pick their own wand (or rather...the wand could pick you - LOL!).  It was really quite cool.  Abby ended up selecting a wand that is carved with vines (turns out it's the same wand Hermoione uses in the books) and Hazel picked one that had a pink jeweled handle.  The wands themselves are cool, but the true genius lies in the tips.  Each of the wands has a special sensor built in that interacts with areas of Hogsmede.  So, as you walk around the town there are window displays (marked by gold medallions in the ground) where you can use your wand to cast spells and make the windows move/change/interact with you.  Even as an adult, I gotta say, it was cool!

Abby did amazing at this park.  There were quite a few big rides that she was big enough to go on (unfortunately Hazel was a few inches too short for many of the rides even WITH the cute hairstyle I gave her for the day trying to make her seem taller).  But Abby was so brave that she went right alongside Ryan, Erin and Mom on nearly every ride.  I think last year's few trips to Great America were good for her and she's slowing getting more and more brave and more excited to try out the big rides and roller coasters.  She's not quite ready to do the upside down rides, but I bet it won't take her long to be willing to try.

Man I love these stinkers so much!  

Our final ride of the day was a water ride.  The grandparents decided to sit this one out and while I knew we'd end up soaking wet and cold, I figured I'd live with whimsy and join them on the ride.  Turns out I was right....wet (really wet) and cold, are exactly how to describe it.  It probably wasn't QUITE warm enough for this ride (low 70's) but we were headed home so I figured what the heck.

Disney - Magic Kingdom

 

We did it!  A FULL day at Disney from the moment the gates opened through the final firework that night, we officially traipsed around a theme park for a full 13 hours.  Miraculously there wasn't a single tear or a "will you carry me" (that I can remember).  At 9 and 6, I think we found the magic ages where they were old enough (and tall enough) to go on all the rides, their "Disney Legs" were strong enough to carry them without needing strollers and us adults somehow had the stamina to make it through a full day without needing naps.  LOL!

On Monday, which also happened to be Valentines Day, the group of 10 had a blast at Disney.  It was Joey's family's first time (including Andy) so it was very fun to show them around the park.  Having been to Disney 4 years ago, we felt more informed and comfortable getting around and it was fun to see it all through their eyes too.  Hazel was only 2 when we last went, so she remembered very little from the last time we were there.  Back then her favorite ride was the Winnie the Pooh ride, which, we didn't manage to squeeze in this year.  

Honestly - I don't know if we could have asked for a more perfect day.  The weather was cool, mid 40's at it's coldest and 60's in the afternoon, but that made standing in line bearable (much better than the high 80's when we went in 2018).  The crowds seemed much less too.  I'm not sure if that had to do with the time of year (we specifically picked mid Feb to try and avoid the crowds) or because of COVID, but either way, it made our experience more enjoyable for sure. 

Disney just released a new line management program called Genie+ less than 6 months ago, so we were some of the first to start using it.  Our experience was really quite good - but I will say that to get the most out of it, one person from the group should take point on running the app and whomever takes that job will spend a good part of their day on the phone.  My battery was totally dead by 5 pm...so bring a backup charger!

But, honestly, we rode every single ride we wanted to ride (with the exception of Peter Pan) and 90% of those rides were using the Lightening Lanes.  We waited less than 20 minutes for any ride we used the LL on...and, for the rides where we did wait in the normal line, I'd say we waited 45 minutes max.  It really was a much more enjoyable experience than when we went in 2018.

We rode all the rides, saw some parades and met Mickey.  We did some 3D/4D movies, ate unlimited popcorn, we rode the Seven Dwarfs (our last ride of the night), we ate dinner in Tomorrow Land....and we went on the Carousel of Progress - which, as an adult, can I just say, is a lovely ride!  In 2018, this was a welcome opportunity to sit down and be in the AC.  Us adults loved it just as much in 2022 as we did back then...though, I know the kids had no idea what it was talking about and found it boring.  Ryan even snuck in a nap (I'm jealous).

It's too bad that they no longer do the big light-up parade at the end of the night.  I remember that being pretty magical from when I was a kid.  But, the fireworks did not disappoint...and in a true sign of our age, I do have to say we picked a pretty good viewing location for the fireworks.  We stationed ourselves right inside the exit so we were out of the park and on the tram to parking before most people had even packed up their stuff.  By that point we were all pooped - the kids included!  Hazel feel asleep in the car on the way home (bless her heart).  

I'm kicking myself for not actually buying this picture.  Dad and I both get sick on the rides but we did this one together and it's a moment I'll remember forever.  It was fun to be a kid again right alongside him.  A memory I won't soon forget.