Embrace The Camera

Good Morning!

Today, I am linking up over at The Anderson Family Crew for Embrace the Camera.  Its a great challenge to all of us to get out from behind the camera and snap some shots of ourselves with our family and friends.  Today's picture is from a recent football game Daniel and I attended.  We had a great time, got super spoiled sitting at the "club" level, and watched the Pirates bring home another victory.

Go Pirates! Arrgghhhhhh!

So take the challenge!  Grab your camera, snap a shot, and link up with Emily and the rest of the blogging world!

Disney World (Part One)

There has been a lot of talk about Disney World in the Pennington house lately... there always is.  In August 2011, Daniel and I were able to spend a magnificent week at Disney with his parents and I have been asking to go back almost daily!  I know its such a popular vacation spot for families, so I wanted to share a little about our wonderful week there.  I am not a Disney "expert," but if you have any questions or want some suggestions of places to eat or stay then please leave a comment!


Day One

We started our trip bright and early, hitting the road at 3:30 a.m!  Our plane left at 6:30/7, so we wanted plenty of time to get to the airport, park, and find a little breakfast.  I know this is silly, but nothing makes me feel more alive and excited that going to an airport!  I mean the possibilities are endless at an airport and its so thrilling to head out for a new adventure.  This was my first full vacation to Disney so I was pumped.  We hit the parks for a day and a half when I went on a field trip in 8th grade, but you can't do Disney in a day and a half!

We arrived in Orlando shortly before 10 am and hopped on the Disney Magical Express.  Guys, this is the only way to do the Disney experience!  You feel so taken care of immediately and its so wonderful, because your transportation to the hotel is pre-arranged and they take care of your baggage as well.  We were checking in to Disney's All Star Movies Resort by 10:30 and ready to hit the parks soon after!  I wasn't sure of the schedule for the day, but Mr. Rex and Mrs. Jan told me they wanted to start out at the park they thought I would love--- The Magic Kingdom!!  It's best place to start for a princess!

We're Here!

The day was absolutely wonderful.  We had lunch at Cosmic Ray's Starlight Cafe, watched the parade, and rode the Buzz Light-year ride.  It was nice to walk slowly through the park and take our time. Later in the afternoon we visited the Hall of Presidents, rode the Haunted Mansion ride, and had a character dining experience at the Crystal Palace.

Once we arrived back at the hotel, I had the lovely ordeal of handling the situation known as "the damaged luggage affair."  We received a call over lunch saying that my luggage and my mother-in-law's had been damaged at the airport.  Who knew that would mean I would have to say goodbye to my beautiful pink luggage.  I loved that luggage... it travelled to Europe and back with me, so disappointment doesn't even cover it!  Also, my favorite hot air curling iron was destroyed.  The lovely people at Southwest agreed to replace my luggage though and reimbursed me for my curling iron.    

Day Two

Day two was an adventure at Hollywood Studios!  What fun!  Daniel's parents had given us a wedding gift basket the night before at the hotel and so we rocked our bride and groom ears for the day.  Hollywood Studios is such a neat park, because this is the place to see all the movies that you never think about being "Disney."  Day two also happened to coincide with the celebration of the 23rd year of life for one Mr. Daniel Pennington.  We celebrated hard by riding rides, eating lots of food, and goofing off the whole day!  The Honey, I Shrunk The Kids playground was awesome!

The birthday boy chose Pizza Planet for lunch that day and it was just as exciting at Buzz and Woody promised it would be!  Okay, it wasn't quite as cool as the movie made it out to be, but the food was really good.  The Cars and Beauty and the Beast show rounded out our evening.  They are both great shows to see and I highly recommend getting to each show early, because the seats fill up fast.  If you have ever been to Disney, then you know that getting a place to sit, in the shade is a rarity so take advantage of it when you can.  

For dinner we had probably what I would consider to be the best meal of the trip.  Minus the fact that we had to wait an hour plus (past our reservation time), Mamma Melrose is the place to be in Hollywood Studios.  The food was incredible and I will go back there ever time, hands down my favorite!  I had a pasta dish (no surprises there) and homemade pound cake with fresh strawberries and whipped cream for dessert.  They even sang to the birthday boy!!

 

Check out the rest of our vacay in the days to come!  My mother-in-law and father-in-law are headed down to Disney later this week to celebrate 30 years of marriage!!  Super excited for them (but a little jealous, because I want to go)!

I Voted...

Today, is the day I look forward to every four years.
The day I get to exercise one of the greatest rights I will ever have.
A right that many people around the world do not get.
A right that thousands of women before me fought so hard to achieve.
A right that could and will change the course of American history, time after time.
A right so many take for granted.

I'm not here to tell you who to vote for, I'm just here to say educate yourself on the issues and vote.

So do your thing America!  Rock the Vote!

Stuffed Jalapeños Poppers

Taste of Home Original Recipe

Stuffed Jalapeños Poppers

what you need

• 1 pound Jimmy Dean Mild Country Sausage
• 1 (8 oz) package of cream cheese
• 1 cup Mexican blend cheese
• 25 jalapeños, sliced in half and seeds removed

how to make it

• In a large skilled, cook the sausage until no longer pink; drain.
• In a small bowl, combine the cream cheese and Mexican cheese; fold in sausage.
• Spoon about 1 tablespoonful into each jalapeño half and place in ungreased baking dish
• Bake, uncovered at 425 degrees for 15-20 minutes

Yield: 50 appetizers

Daniel and I made these Friday night and they were a huge hit with our friends!!  They are super easy to make and they were so good that I didn't even get a chance to snap a picture of them.  Enjoy!

My two favorite "F" words....

Well, now that I have your attention and hopefully a few more readers I can get to my post.

My two favorite "F" words.... Fall and Fridays!!

Let's just start with the fact that I LOVE a Friday like no other day of the week.  It's the day of the week that every teacher in America looks forward to... the quick pace of the day, the jubilation of 3:00 and the sound of the bell, and the finally the promise of a night with friends (adult interaction!) to bring you out of that teenage cloud you've been living in for the last five days. 

The second "F" is a given for anyone living in the South, with our Summers being so hot and humid.  They leave you thinking "Why did a I even bother to shower today?" the second you walk out the door.  So when the cool breeze of fall finally strikes our faces, we are the first the declare that is time for boots, scarves, and hot chocolate.  With the first frost of the season on the horizon though, Fall may not be here for long.  But that is okay by me, winter=snuggle time ;)

Happy Fall from (some) of The Penningtons!

I have to admit that I was missing the blogging world like crazy, but the demands of being a new teacher is more than I can bare most days.  I have finally started carving out some "me time" in my day by joining the gym about a month ago.  Its been a great way to wrap up my afternoons and feel better about myself.  I think I'm back in bloggerville though and hopefully to stay, but unlike the unwise politicians of the day I will not make any promises that I know I may not be able to keep!

So to keep with the "F" word theme of this post I am super excited to say that its First Friday at church tonight!  We get together with the other cool "young adults" of our Sunday school class to hang out, stuff our faces with pizza and grow in fellowship. I hope you have a great weekend and I'll see you guys real soon!

Summer :)

13.1

13.1, miles that is.  Yes, I am crazy and I have taken on the task of training for a Half-Marathon.

Now that Daniel and I are settling into our lives back near our hometowns I began to check out some 5k races in the area and I stumbled upon the Heart & Sole Half-Marathon sponsored by the YMCA.  I looked at Daniel, said "I'm going to run a half-marathon."  He replied, "Oh really?"  That is his usual response to the many great ideas that I come up with on a regular basis.  So naturally I had to prove him wrong and I begin training today!  I have even convinced him to run with me!!

The race is not until early next year, however I noticed that most of the training programs have you running 3-5 miles the first week, so I decided to start training immediately.  It might take me some time.  I haven't ran too much since I conquered my first 5k last December.  You may remember my desire to simply finish the race and how I surprised myself with running a pretty decent time considering I didn't train at all.  A half-marathon might be a little different.  Like 10 miles different.  So I am sticking with just completing the race this time... still breathing.

I'm not sure what it is about running, but it just makes me feel so much better.  I think its the fresh air and the pounding of the pavement.  Getting the frustration of the world out one step at the time.  I have been really looking at training plans, blogs, and running gear since I have been more and more interested in running.  Peanut Butter Fingers is one of my all time favorite blogs and she has some great advice on training for a half and for fitness in general.  She also gives great tips on running gear and convinced me to invest in some good running shoes.  I got this beauties for my birthday :)

Mizuno Wave Rider

I am currently drooling over a Garmin Forerunner 405.  These watches are seriously amazing for outdoor running, because they are GPS-enabled and can be programmed with multiple running programs.  They track heart rate, calories burned, average mile pace, distance, and much more. 

Finally, a run isn't complete without some awesome tunes.  I think Ipods are amazing and I am particularly fond of my very old, but incredible Ipod Shuffle.  I love how they clip on to your clothes and the songs are easy to change.  A good playlist is just as important.  I have used a great site called Rock My Run for a while now and they make running playlist that vary in length and bpm in order to get the most out of the type of run you want.  

So have any of you guys every ran a half-marathon?  I am looking for advice on the best training plans.  I know Hal Higdon has a good basic program, but I am looking for information from anyone who has actually tried a program.

Daniel and I are off for a Happy Anniversary Day Date... so excited to see where we are going 

One Year

Happy Anniversary to Mr. Pennington

I love you Daniel!

Here's to many more years of bliss!

Moving

We moved into our new place and we are neck deep in unpacking, painting, carpeting, cleaning, sorting, etc.  We are thrilled to be back home and once everything settles down we are looking forward to having family and friends over! Also, once its all said and done you will get to see some fabulous before and after photos of our new place. Oh and I started new teacher training this past Monday!  Wow this summer went fast!!!  New teacher training... you heard me right.  I got a job! Can I just say how thankful and excited I am to have a job after spending the last year in school.  God is so good to Daniel and I.

Apartment 254... you were awesome... even though you were tiny

home sweet home

As I write this post, I am thinking back to exactly a year ago today.  We were shaking our booties at Walnut Creek and celebrating our wedding rehearsal.  Its so hard to believe that tomorrow will mark one year since we said "I do."  Tonight, in a panic I asked Daniel were we still newlyweds???  I'm not sure I'm ready to give up that title.  Happy (early) Anniversary Daniel!

I know this is short, but lesson plans are calling my name.  I am such a procrastinator.