I made a very big decision a few weeks ago. I decided to follow a star and take a chance on a dream. Maybe wishes can come true like my pal Jiminy Cricket says...

For years, I have been the "Disney go to gal" for friends and family (and even their friends) who were planning a trip to Walt Disney World, or who had questions about the parks and resorts in general. My family loving refers to me as the "Disney freak in the family" and I'm a self proclaimed "Disney Junkie".

I had started my Lady In Wonderland blog as a way to make productive use of my love and knowledge of all things Disney. It has been so much fun sharing my finds, deals, and photos with everyone. I love sharing our stories and experiences at the parks and hotels. Yet, it just didn't seem to fill the space I was looking for. I don't know how to explain it, but something just felt "off" or like it was missing.

Since my mom passed away I have been thinking a LOT about things I could have done, should have done, how life is so short, and that I'm wasting my potential and about how I wish I could have done something by now that she could have been proud of job wise.

Then, in a dream it hit me. I spoke to my husband as soon as I woke up, talked to some friends, and within days I had found my calling.

I am so excited, and proud to announce that I am officially an approved Disney Vacation Planner.

I'm an independent travel consultant for MickeyVacations.com. I finished the Disney training last week and ordered my marketing materials today.

I figured the best place to share this kind of news would be with fellow Disney lovers because you'll understand just how much it means to be "official".

If you have any questions about Disney World, Disneyland, the Disney Cruise Line, or Adventures by Disney, PLEASE do not hesitate to ask. If you'd like to book a vacation, I'd be happy to help, but if you just have questions, that is fine too. I will be sharing the special offers I receive over on my Lady In Wonderland blog as well as on my website and Facebook page. I would really appreciate it if you liked the Facebook page and told your friends and family to do the same.

Thank you for all of your support! I look forward to taking this next step on my journey and I'm glad you can all come along for the ride.

Royal Wedding Fever!

Be sure to tune in to 20/20 tonight to watch my coworkers and bosses chat about the fashion at the Royal Wedding.

My new favorite photo of me...

Taken at work, with my HTC EVO no flash.

Blessed

It's so easy to sit around and feel sorry for yourself. To sit and say "oh my, I'm so tired, work is kicking my butt, I have no time for my friends, I have no time to cook, I have no time to go see my mom. Wah, whoa is me"

I would like to take a minute and say that I am truly blessed.
2010 was a really hard year for me. My mom's cancer, losing my job, losing Tango, family drama, dealing with fibromyalgia... you name it, it sucked.
I really let it get to me. I got to the point where I just couldn't take any more, had a major panic attack and almost ended up back in the hospital because of it.

2011 is going to be different. My mom still has cancer, I still miss Tango, and I'm still bitter about what happened at my last job. The difference will be with me, and how I respond and react to my life. 2011 is going to be about positive attitudes.

Thank God, I have a job.
Thank God, I have friends. Great friends. This might be the first time in my life when I can actually say that and mean it.
Thank God, I have food in my fridge and do not need to go hungry.
Thank God, my mom is still here. I am so grateful for every minute that God gives me with her.
Thank God, I have family that loves me. Drama or not, I never have to question whether I am loved.
Thank God for my daddy. He is my rock. 
Thank God for giving me the years I had with Tango. For letting me help him know what it felt like to be loved. For giving me a little ball of unconditional love in return. For teaching me patience. For bringing me to a point in my life where I would get Jasmine.
Thank God for Jasmine. Without her, I may never have gotten out of my funk last year. She has given me a reason to get out of bed every morning.
Thank God for Petey and Bella and McDuff. My children.  Fur, or feathers, paws, or claws, my loves.
Thank God, for Disney World. For at least 8 days a year I get to just be. I get to live in my fantasy land, and be the Princess I know I am, see the world, and be a kid again.

Thank God for my amazing husband, who can always make me laugh, and makes me feel like a princess every single day.

What are you thankful for? Do you think your attitude can impact your future?

Royal Wedding Fashion Ideas for Today's Bride

As you may or may not know, wedding planning is a passion of mine and I have been lucky enough to get a job involved in the wedding industry. One of the best parts of the job is that it combines my love of weddings with my love of blogging.
Check out my latest blog post featuring wedding styles by David Tutera, St. Pucchi, Marina K., Stephen Yearick, Ysa Makino, and Erin Cole.

Bridal Reflections - Royal Wedding Fashion for Today's Bride

Workout Wednesday 9-1-10

I am so lucky/blessed to be able to bring Workout Wednesday back so soon after changing it to Work Search Wednesday.

I have not done much working out the past few weeks. However, I have lost a little over 10lbs due to stress and I plan on taking advantage of that. I have started really watching what I eat and I am trying to come up with a game plan for getting back to the gym.

I want to go to the gym at least 3 times a week. For real. I think I am comfortable enough to go alone if I have to. I will just plug in my earphones, and listen to music and then be done. I'll be fine. I can do it.

I also need to hook my Wii back up so that I can start using my Wii Fit and other "games" when/if I don't go to the gym.

I really wish I had a treadmill but we have no where to put it, so even if they weren't 8 billion dollars I probably couldn't have one anyway. I do however have a lot of stairs. Hopefully Jasmine will get the hang of walking on a leash soon and we can start going for walks.

My goal is to lose 8lbs this month. Wish me luck.

Chachacha Changes.....

First, seeing as though my follower count has gone down here as well as on twitter, I once again want to thank those of you who have stood by me in these trying times.

Now, let's move forward and see what happens, enjoy the rest of the ride folks...

My life seems to be changing very quickly. My head is spinning, it's all a little overwhelming, okay, a LOT overwhelming for for a change, some of it is actually good.

As you know I was told a few weeks ago that I would be out of a job come September. 2 weeks ago I had an interview at a local upscale bridal salon, a week later I was offered the job. It's official, and I start September 13th. This is awesome. The wedding industry is something I have always had an interest in but had no idea how to really break in. I began to start my own wedding planning business with my cousin and we'll continue to work on that in the future, but for now this is a great step. It's not glamorous, it's emails and behind the scenes kind of things, but every day I'll get to look at gorgeous gowns and know that somehow I'm helping someone feel like a princess. I'm very excited about this.

Tango... my heart and soul aches for him all day, every day. I can't believe he's been gone for a week already. The only time I found the air to fill my lungs and the ability to stop crying was when a man handed me a tiny puppy and told me to just play with her, to find a release, to cry, to laugh, to heal. The next night, Lord Hill surprised me with her with a little red bow tied around her neck. I did not expect to be one of those people who got another pet right away. In fact, over the years I always silently judged the people who did. It wasn't until I felt a darkness, a pain, so intense, a hole that needed to be filled that I understood why/how they did what they did.
She will never take the place of my Tango. He was the light, my baby, my world. She is not here to fill his place, to replace him or even completely seal the whole that he left in my heart the night he was taken from me. She is simply here to love me, and to give me something to love.

This is my new baby girl....

I've been missing for a while...so tell me, what's new in your life?

Work Search Wednesday 8-11-10

Like the new twist? I thought so. I have not worked out this week. I have however spent quite a bit of time looking for a new job.
I have an interview tomorrow at a local museum and an interview on Monday at a well known, high end bridal boutique. I'm excited about both opportunities.

I got my eyebrows threaded today in preperation. That deserves it's own post though.

The story of the disgruntled flight attendant really hit home and highlighted how important it is to enjoy what you do. While I think it was silly to do what he did I totally get why he did it.

What has been your least favorite job? Do you have an interesting "I quit!" story?

To Do Tuesday 08-3-10

As you may have read in this post I will be out of a job in September. This came as a big surprise and has required some reorganization of my priorities. This week's to do list will be more about keeping my sanity than keeping my apartment clean. Thank you to those of you who have emailed and tweeted and blogged your support. I really appreciate it.

1. Stay Calm. You still have a job for the next month, unemployment will kick in after that, and everything will be okay.
2. Have faith and trust that everything will be okay. It might be hard, it might be scary, but in the end it will be okay. Let God take the wheel on this one. Read Footprints often, pray, and be thankful for the things you do have instead of upset about the things you don't.
3. Rewrite your resume and send it to everyone under the sun. 
4. Create. Use this negative energy and turn it into something positive. Make jewelry, take photos, open an etsy shop.
5. Lean on friends and family. They care about you and are here for you.
6. Try not to take out the frustrations and anger on Lord Hill. Just b/c he works for the same company does not mean he IS the company. We need his paycheck now more than ever. 
7. Remind yourself that you did nothing wrong. Your boss will write a letter of recommendation, you were not fired due to poor performance. This was a relocation thing more than anything else. You have nothing to be ashamed or embarrassed about. 
8. Write. blog. Focus on the things you love
9. Don't forget to throw Tango a birthday party. 
10. RELAX. 

Have you ever been laid off or lost a job due to no fault of your own? How did you cope? Were you angry? Do you have any tips to help me through this?

Welcome to the world of Unemployment Lady Hill...

I was just laid off. Fired. Whatever.
I was told that it's not that I'm not good at my job, and that I am the company's #1 choice for the job, but that the current situation just isn't working out and they have found someone to replace me.
My replacement starts in September which gives me another 4 weeks of paychecks. Which is a good thing. It's also horribly uncomfortable.

It looks like you might start seeing more money saving tips, cheap recipes, and other frugal ideas popping up in my writing.

I will try to keep my head up, and my spirits high, and not let it affect the humor that I know many of you appreciate about this blog. Please keep in mind that for the next few weeks/months it will not be all puppies, sunshine and rainbows around here.

Monday Mopes

mope (mp)

intr.v. moped, mop·ing, mopes

1.

a. To be gloomy or dejected.

b. To brood or sulk. See Synonyms at brood.

2. To move in a leisurely or aimless manner; dawdle.

n.

1. A person given to gloomy or dejected moods.

2. mopes Low spirits; the blues. Often used with the.


Okay, so honestly today wasn't really that bad.
I went to bed last night some time after 3am. I spent HOURS digging my way out of the tshirt jungle and it was totally worth it at the time. However when the alarm went off (or rather, when the dog licked my face to wake me up in time to shut the alarm off before it drove me mad) I realized what a bad idea it had been to stay up so late. I was exhausted. Add to that the fact that all of the trees are blooming and the yellow bushes of doom (seem below) are EVERYWHERE my allergies are trying to kill me.
I took some meds, drank some pepsi and carried on. The weather was gorgeous so I was in pretty good spirits aside from the sneezing.
The workday was different for me today. Every monday for the next 6 weeks or so I will be teaching to classes at a local rec center. I work for a children's educational entertainment company and this is one of the after school programs we do.
I didn't get done till 6:30, didn't get home till after 8 b/c we stopped for dinner.

I am exhausted and my pillow is calling my name. Alas, my cranberries on farmville are 98% grown and if I go to bed now they will sure expire before I can harvest them.

How was your Monday?