• Start Here
  • Blog
  • Books
  • Table
    • Together at the Table
    • Food and Such
      • Beverages
      • Bread
      • Breakfast
      • Main Dishes
      • Vegetables & Sides
      • Soups
      • Desserts
  • Writing
    • On Family
  • Happy Designs
  • Connect
    • For You
    • Instagram
    • Pinterest
    • Twitter

Happy Go Stuckey

Tethering Grace & Togetherness

What I Learned in September (Disney Edition)

September 30, 2015 by HappyGoStuckey 3 Comments

Every month we join together with Emily to share what we learned in that month. Because I know myself and I will likely lose track of time and never share about our recent trip to Disney World, I wanted to share what I learned while there. Enjoy!

DISNEYTIPS

  • To Zig when others Zag. One night, we attended the Mickey’s Not-So-Scary-Halloween-Party and it was tons of fun. However, since our girls are super “scary-stuff-sensitive” we ended up trick-or-treating for awhile (How fun is it to trick or treat in the Magic Kingdom?!) and then just riding rides all night– and we had the best time!! Because of the party, we walked- on most of the rides with no wait time and we did more that evening than a normal day in the parks.
  • Getting up early to see the Opening Show at the Magic Kingdom is 100% worth the missed sleep. (ok- so I already knew this one– but wow. So very fun. I even periscoped it this time.)
  • Sometimes simple fun is the very best. The Penny Pressing machines gave our girls just as much joy as any other attraction. We bought a little book to keep them in, and we will hopefully add to it one day. Best special souvenir ever. I hope Disney always keeps this simple little fun feature.
  • The only thing that would make the Disney’s Port Orleans Riverside Resort ANY better would be if it were on the Monorail line.

    PicMonkey Collage
    The beautiful Disney’s Port Orleans Riverside Resort… so serene and beautiful. The property itself makes for an immediate vacation-mindset.
  • A Rainy day at Disney World is still a great day at Disney World. We had rainy weather almost every day, but being prepared with rain jackets and a rain cover for our stroller made all the difference. AND, at one point, there was even a little show/ mini parade down Main Street with cast members in Rain Jackets and Boots. So cute.
  • The Electrical Parade and Fireworks show is absolutely the best way to end a day at Disney World.

    PicMonkey Collage2
    That time I rode Dumbo with Princess Snow White; Sweet Faces enjoying the Electrical Parade; Meeting Tinkerbell; and Extra Magic with Pixie Dust!
  • Stroller Rental for the Win. We rented a double stroller from Kingdom Strollers for just a few of the days we would be in the parks and the process was affordable and super easy. Even though our girlies are really past stroller age, having one at Disney World was a smart move. Kingdom Strollers dropped off our stroller (with a free rain cover) at the bell stand on the day we needed it and picked it up there a few days later. We even ended up needing it for an extra day and they gave us an extra day for a few dollars more. Easy-Peasy-Lemon-Squeezy! 
  • Favorite Non- Character Meal of the trip: Boma Breakfast at the Animal Kingdom Lodge. Seriously. The Jungle Juice, the service, the food selections for both Foodies and their slightly less foodie-children– A-MAZING. This will be a don’t miss whenever possible in the future. If you ever have a chance to do Tusker House Character Meal at the Animal Kingdom Park– it’s right up there with Boma.
  • A Disney World vacation is one of the only places where Mom gets to relax too. I know, it seems crazy– with all the planning that goes into the trip itself– Dining Reservations, Fast-Passes, and just planning-period. But I would much rather plan ahead and then relax. Being able to arrive and have that wonderful Disney service is well worth the advance planning. (And by relax, I mean get up early- stay up late- have a blast every moment in between, but you know, Relax. 🙂
  • Realistic expectations are everything. In the past, we have had marathon trips to Disney– the trips where we go everywhere and attempt to do everything causing us to be 100% exhausted by day three. This time, we purposefully did less and it made a difference. The few days that we chose to spend at the Magic Kingdom (because, that’s the stage we’re in right now– and it’s our FAVORITE park.) were long and crazy fun. The other days we swam in the resort pool, took boat rides to Disney Springs (previously Downtown Disney,) and explored our resort and other resorts. We did different things, we did some of the free things and we enjoyed every minute. However long your trip can be and whatever you have to work with: take my advice, Don’t try to do it all and BE FLEXIBLE. It will make a difference for everyone in your family. When it’s 9PM and everyone’s losing their minds with tired alligator tears, give yourself the freedom to call it a day. I completely understand that whole, “We paid $$$$$ for this vacation and by golly, we’re going to do it ALL!!” but remember, the point of Disney World is a Memorable Fun Trip Together. Don’t miss out on that because you’re all exhausted and hangry. Stop to rest. Stop to Eat. Stop to eat a Dole Whip for crying out loud!!! And have a Magical Time!!! 

disney2015

**We had a wonderful experience, an all around fabulous trip. Much of the ease of planning was due to my friend and travel agent at Kingdom Konsultants, Jennifer. She is a dedicated Authorized Disney Vacation Planner and offers the free service of helping you plan your Disney trip. They also helped us get the Free Dining Plan which Disney was offering at the time. I really appreciated having a professional be in the loop with all the discounts and tips and tricks! Contact her at Jennifer@kingdomkonsultant dot com.

 

**This post is not sponsored, but is my own account of our super-rad time. Yay!

Friday. Lately. Gerunds.
Bringing Lucy Home (A Book Review.)

Comments

  1. lee says

    September 30, 2015 at 12:17 pm

    I absolutely agree with your comment about a rainy day at Disney still being a great day at Disney! Although I’ve never been when it’s been a full rainy day (it’s always been rainstorms passing through), I’ve been surprised at how upset/annoyed/disappointed people are by the rain. While it certainly comes with its challenges, weather has always made for fun stories later – “remember that one time, it was raining while we waited for the parade…” and so on. At that point, I’m just happy to be at Disney.

    Also, your reminder to have realistic expectations is so important! Do I want to get a good value out of my ticket? Absolutely. But there has to be a reasonable approach, and for me, that’s choosing one or two “musts” and letting everything else be a bonus.

    Looks like a fun time!

    Reply
  2. greeroharah says

    October 1, 2015 at 9:50 pm

    As a huge Disney fan this made me a little “homesick” for the happiest place on earth. So much fun reading about your experience and intend to use some of your advice on my next trip!

    Reply
  3. Carissa says

    October 4, 2015 at 10:58 am

    This is a great post, thank you for sharing! We leave Thursday and I’m trying to figure out how to “do it all” but I need to just enjoy the things we get to do and not stress about what we missed out on.

    Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Subscribe and receive a Free copy of “Simmer: Six soup recipes and the Stories that Inspired Them.”

Your personal information is safe and will never be shared.

Hey There!

I'm Cynthia and I'm so glad you're here. I am an introvert with an extrovert's love of gathering people together. I love good books and capturing moments. Whether you visit me here or on my own front porch, I'll be the one holding the Iced Coffee for us both.

Instagram

happygostuckey

Some of the rhythms we took up in ‘20 we will co Some of the rhythms we took up in ‘20 we will continue to sigh into in ‘21.
Baking sourdough, watching it bubble and rise and fill our BlueHouse with the scent of a good, long, posture of patience— I absolutely need a second serving of this.
While we wait, and whatever it is that we wait for— may the space between be made sweeter by the knowledge that we never wait alone.
You can’t tell by their joy, but the day I snapp You can’t tell by their joy, but the day I snapped this photo was somewhat of a regular day.

What looks like a winter beach vacation was actually the tail-end of a masked lunch stop in the middle of a pandemic road trip.

This sparkling moment of sun-splashed fun was sandwiched between brutal conversations about regular life, especially the hard parts.

And this is how it is. 
These bits of life that we never see coming, they are enveloped between all that makes us tired, weary, sighing pilgrims in a world that was never really meant to be hospitable in the first place.

This photo reminds me to look again at our year, our season, our circumstances.

To look a second and third time.
To keep looking as long as it takes to see that the joy of our right now isn’t gone, it just might be hiding in the shadow of all that’s hard.

Brokenness is never vague. And we don’t have to search very long to see it both within ourselves and around us.
Sometimes the weight of that fact is crushing.
And then, sometimes it reminds us even more clearly of the light shining in darkness.

Joy is an act of defiance against despair and I don’t know about you, but I’m feeling rather defiant at the moment.✨✨✨✨

@hopewriters #hopewriterlife 
#feastingandforaging #hopelenses #getaftergrateful
Endurance can feel like standing still. Especially Endurance can feel like standing still. Especially if what we’re called to be about is the same as yesterday and last month. 
It’s difficult to meet each day with the same fervor and joy for what we are called to do, especially when at present, the progress seems small and immeasurable. 
But even then, perhaps especially so — our faithfulness matters.

When we cannot yet see the other side, the light at the end of this particularly long tunnel, we begin again.

Not because we will always wake with fresh energies and bright, sparkling hope for what comes next, friend. But because the God of Endurance (Romans 15:5) dwells within us.

“It is the grace of endurance granted to you by the God of endurance that provides you with everything you need to continue to be what he calls you to be and do what he calls you to do between this moment and the moment when you cross over to the other side. When difficulty exposes the weakness of your resolve and the limits of your strength, you do not have to panic, because He will endure even in this moments when you don’t feel able to do so yourself.” — Paul David Tripp, New Morning Mercies

#hopewriterlife
Stuckey, party of two. Always ready to run out for Stuckey, party of two. Always ready to run out for paper towels... especially if the store is in convenient proximity to a quick date for croissants and dirty chai for two. Love my forever coffee companion even more at the start of this new year. Wherever he’s going, I’m riding shotgun.
We have learned... The inestimable value of a goo We have learned...

The inestimable value of a good camp chair, for they have been used for everything from soccer benches and coffee dates to theatre seats and church pews.

What our neighborhood streets can offer in the way of an outing—from the colors of spring to the sparkle of Christmas.

To hold plans with the loosest hands possible.

To rejoice in things found. Time. Margin. ...and enough toilet paper to share with a neighbor.

To give grace and accept it for ourselves.

The hilarious joy of a group text complete with “have you seen this meme yet?” 

To pivot. And then pivot again.

To find more joy in candlelight closer to home, instead of the bright lights of traveled cities.

To perfect our pizza dough recipe and truly learn to prefer it over dinner out.

To work with yeast and flour again and again— until the message of waiting for something really good dusted our apron fronts and kitchen floors.

And in our house, we learned how to be unexpectedly unemployed. We learned how to honor that new found space with needed grief and desired hope. How to be grateful for true friends who prayed with us, held questions with us, and hoped with us. We were reminded of our true identity and that it will never rest in a job. 

In a year in which we’ve all lost quite a lot, you and I have been given so much as well. Some of what we’ve lost we have learned to be without. Some, we won’t go looking for again.

In 525,600 minutes and in all the things, found and lost and found again— there is far and away more to be grateful for.

And we choose joy.

✨Happy New Year, dear friends!✨
Not rushing too quickly into a new year over here. Not rushing too quickly into a new year over here. Though the one in our rear view window is one we wouldn’t choose to repeat, still it was one full of God’s nearness.

One day I’ll write it all down.
But for now I’ll just say,
we were not alone. 🕯
“Once in our world, a Stable had something in it “Once in our world, a Stable had something in it that was bigger than our whole world.”
C.S.Lewis, The Chronicles of Narnia

Joy to the World, friends.
Behold. The most apropos Christmas Eve 2020 desser Behold. The most apropos Christmas Eve 2020 dessert ever. Made from a wonky gingerbread cake that did not cooperate.
We shall not go quietly into 2021.
We will fight back with beauty and joy and candles... and fresh whipped cream made by an eleven year old with sparkly green eyes. 🎄❤️✨
Merry Christmas from the Fam! { 👉🏻 swipe for Merry Christmas from the Fam! { 👉🏻 swipe for Stuckeys in their natural habitat.) 🎄🕯❤️✨
Load More... Follow on Instagram

Categories

Featured Posts

On Waiting & Moving

(And a Recipe for Italian Tortellini Soup) Later this month, our family will celebrate the 10th … [ Read More ]

Five Good Things

Hi. How are you, really? If you're anything like me-- you have moments of complete gratefulness for … [ Read More ]

Winter Favorites

(and why it matters to pay attention to the little things.) "For you are the sunshine-maker in … [ Read More ]

Loving Lately in November

"...all creation's revealing his majesty. We're invited to join with all nature in manifold witness … [ Read More ]

Feasting & Foraging (free for the weekend!) 🍊🌿

I wrote a book, called Feasting & Foraging, and I would like to tell you why. About a year … [ Read More ]

Miss Something?

Please be kind and give proper credit if you share! © Cynthia M. Stuckey. For personal use only, not to be copied, distributed, altered or sold.

Privacy Policy

Full privacy policy may be found HERE.

Want each post to magically appear in your email box?

Your personal information is safe and will never be shared.

Cynthia@happygostuckey.com
xo Cynthia
  • Start Here
  • Blog
  • Books
  • Table
  • Writing
  • Happy Designs
  • Connect

© 2021 · Pretty Creative WordPress Theme by, Pretty Darn Cute Design