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5.27.11

Western Caribbean (Part 1)

I thought that every Friday, until all the parts are done, I would share with you a part of my vacation.  I thought I would take it in sections, so part 1 will be the airport experiences.  Having a camera makes passing time during layovers way more fun.   We were so excited to leave the snow to see the sun.

We flew American Airlines to Fort Lauderdale with one layover in Dallas.  I had a great time in Dallas, and I have friends in Dallas so it was fun texting them from their own city even though I couldn’t see them.  I love using my other lenses, but I have to give a quick shout out to my 18-35mm kit lens this trip.  It totally made it possible for me to take pictures with my husband, especially in places where there was no one around I felt comfortable handing my camera over too.

Something I really like about the Dallas/Ft. Worth Airport is that it is really open and sunny.  I also thought it was interesting that between certain terminals you have to take a train.  It is a really big airport.  When our airplane was going to take off for Fort Lauderdale, I noticed that our airplane went over an overpass and that there were cars driving underneath.  I thought that was cool. Those things are unique to me because my home airport isn’t like that.  Also, if I am writing vacation memories I have to say we landed close to breakfast time, so I tried McDonald’s Oatmeal.  If you like Oatmeal, try it, I was pleasantly surprised.

Between Dallas and Fort Lauderdale the pilot told us what sort of things we would be flying over.  We watched for things like the Gulf of Mexico and the Mississippi River.  From what we could tell, this is where the Mississippi River ends and connects into the Gulf.  We thought it was pretty cool because neither of us had seen it before.

Fort Lauderdale was cool.  We hurried out of the airport when we landed.  We were ready for vacation to begin and we didn’t need to be in an airport for one more minute.  On the way home though we got to spend PLENTY of time at the FLL, definitely more time than a person needs to spend.  I will give a shout out to their free internet, easy to locate snack kiosks, and the Spinaci’s Pizza my husband got for lunch.  If you are ever on layover at the FLL, take advantage of those things.  Before I finish talking about Fort Lauderdale, I would like to say that there are these (see below) EVERYWHERE.  Stay off the grass. We almost learned the hard way about stepping on one of these little guys when we were walking to check out the Winn Dixie, good thing he was a little quicker than our steps!

Our last, but certainly not least adventure was in Chicago.  That is one BUSY airport.  I can honestly say I have not had the chance in my life to go to another airport as busy as that one.  I was in awe at the number of people that went in and out of that airport just in the layover time we had there.  I practically had to climb over people just to get into the airport after getting off the airplane.  People were on chairs, on the floor, sitting on laps, and trying to find places for strollers.  I was just happy to finally find my terminal, a postcard, and a place to eat some dinner.  We took Continental/United home, and as our airplane was trying to land in Chicago, I definitely learned why they call it the windy city.  I felt the wind as we boarded our little United Express plane to get home, and I couldn’t get in that plane fast enough!  It was very very chilly outside!

Check back next Friday for Part 2.  Fridays should be fun for awhile because there will probably be 5 or 6 parts!

Filed in: Personal | Travel
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5.24.11

Does Anyone Else Remember Doing This?

Does anyone else remember what it was like being a child and seeing a Dandelion as something beautiful?  I loved Dandelions.  I had no idea why anyone wouldn’t want a lawn covered with beautiful little yellow flowers.  I am sure I was even the kid who would pick them and make little bouquets in my hand.  Maybe I was one of a kind.  I also loved when Dandelions turned into white fluff.  I loved to pick those and blow as hard as I could and watch all the little white fluffs float away.  Yes, I was the kid who didn’t know that by blowing on those, I was helping more (what I thought were lovely) Dandelions to grow.  Those were magical times.

I grew up, and now I am one of those homeowners who curse the never ending Dandelions that seem to pop up around the yard and garden.  It seems no matter how many times I dig them out, the next year they come in bigger and worse.  I decided recently that maybe I need to not get so angry about them.  I may need to remember what it was like to have the perspective of a child.  What if I thought of my dandelions as a pretty little yellow flower that I get to have in my yard until the weed and feed works?  Attitude is everything right?  Dandelion fluffs are magical right?  I will be honest, it was really fun picking one and blowing on the fluff again.

(Picture taken by my awesome husband who was willing to do a photo experiment with me.  My adventures with that experiment will be another blog post.)

Filed in: Personal
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05/24/2011 - 10:02 pm

Kristiann - So I love this post for two reasons. One being that I did blow on dandelions and make wishes when I was little, and the other is the picture that your husband took of you. The effect you got with the seeds in stark focus and the rest of the background subtly blurring out is fabulous! :)

5.23.11

#20 of 52

These grow on a bush between my house and my neighbors house.  I think they are beautiful, but I will be honest, I do not like the way they smell.  I love to look at them every spring, but the smell can’t leave fast enough.  The scent of these bushes, even though I don’t like it, will always make me think about spring.

The sense of smell is so cool.  You can be doing something totally unrelated to the memory associated with a smell, but if that smell comes around, so does the memory.  My neighborhood has a certain smell in the summertime, and if I am away, and return, I know the smell.  I love to roll my windows down in the evening as I am driving around and just take in the scent of the outside.  My husband grew up in my neighborhood also, and we reminisce about summers past as we are driving around taking in that scent in the summertime.  I loved the smell of being close to my Grandpa when I was growing up.  He would give me a huge hug, or a whisker kiss, and now that he is gone, if I am somewhere and someone passes by with a similar scent, it takes me back to those great moments with gramps.

Do smells bring back powerful memories for you, like they do for me?  Are there any scents like a certain perfume, or cotton candy, that take you back to a fun memory?

Filed in: 52 Week Project | Spring
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5.19.11

My MOO Crush (Part 2)

Here are some pictures of the fantastic products I received from Moo.  I am absolutely enjoying each thing, and I have gotten really great feedback from people who have seen or been the recipients of the awesomeness.  I am especially loving my Moo Stickers, and I have always really loved the Mini Cards!  Moo just came out with rounded corner cards also, so I might try those on my next order.  If you want to read more about my Moo crush, check out my last Moo blog post!

Filed in: Preferred Vendors
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5.17.11

#19 of 52

May in _______________________________________________.

 Fort Lauderdale, FL

Cozumel, Mexico

Tortuguero Canals, Costa Rica

 Panama Canal, Mira Flores Lockes, Panama

When it is spring where I live, it is quite different in these places!  Week 19 was full of awesome adventures for me.  I went on quite an exotic cruise, and I loved EVERY port we stopped in.  I am sure I will be doing many more posts with stories and pictures, but enjoy these little previews of the places that I visited.  I may never have the chance again to sit on a beautiful cruise and read books while passing the coasts of Nicaragua and Honduras, but I sure did enjoy it while it lasted!

Filed in: 52 Week Project | Travel
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