. -->

9.02.2014

Welcome, Fall! Wait.... WHAT????!

Yeah, it's FALL, Y'all.... and I'm just not ready for summer to end!
Before we jump into ideas and inspiration for Autumn decorating here at homewardFOUND,
I thought I'd share what I was up to over my two-month 'break' from social media.
Yes, friends, I'm going to answer the eternal September question
that we all remember (fondly??) from those first-day-of-school assignments:

'What did you do on your summer vacation?' 

You had to either write about it or stand up in front of the class and talk about it.
(How many of you, like me, immediately thought 'KILL.ME.NOW.' when the teacher informed you
that you had to speak instead of write because she knew you LOVED writing??
Fortunately, I finally overcame my fear of public speaking!)

Just as I planned, I spent my 'summer vacation' doing things I love:
walking at the beach, going to flea markets and vintage shows and thrift stores,
reading books from the library, swimming in the pool, sitting on the porch swing,
seeing friends and family, and of course working at the Happiest Place on Earth!

 But the BIG thing, the ONE thing that made this summer totally awesome was that
We had a Family Reunion!
Four generations of my family - my parents, siblings, our kids AND my grandkids -
gathered in California to celebrate my Mom's 70th Birthday
and to celebrate that we are one AWESOME family - 
not 'despite' the difficulties we have faced, but in part BECAUSE of those challenges.
Love is stronger than anything - even distance that spans the continent.


26 of us spent five days together at my parent's home,
splashing in the pool, making a lot of noise, talking, laughing, 
and eating SO much good food... 
(my brother brought 100 pounds of fresh fish and King Crab with him from Alaska,
and that fish fry dinner was utterly decadent!)

It was such a joy to be in the same place with all four of my 'kids' and their families,
including my four grandchildren, 
enjoying the smiles and hugs and stories and laughter.
It's a bona fide miracle, folks,
and I could not feel more blessed to have had this time with them.

And then, on the last day....
We went to Disneyland!


We posed with my BOSS! (and isn't he the CUTEST boss ever?!) 


We posed by the Castle!


and we posed in front of the attraction that is VERY important to our family,
'It's A Small World'

We have family ties to the history of this wonderful place:
My Mom's Dad and brother, my Uncle Don, were electricians
who helped build many of the attractions at Disneyland...
Grandpa Ward worked on It's A Small World, Tiki Room, and Great Moments with Mr. Lincoln.
Uncle Don Ward worked on the Haunted Mansion and Pirates of the Caribbean.

All of my life, I have had such pride that they worked to bring Walt's dream to life,
to make the magic real
(that's a HUGE part of why I have always wanted to work there!)
and since the day my first grandson was born,
I have dreamed of riding the little boats of It's A Small World with my grandchildren.
Just like my grandpa rode it with me when I was a Little Debby.

I got that wish ;) That weekend was the best part of my summer!

I created the graphic that you see at the top of this post, 
and had it made into buttons at PureButtons.com.
My sweet friend Julia Chow, who is my fellow cast member at Disneyland,
captured our dream of a day in photos.
(See more of her fabulous work on her Julia Lisa Photography facebook page)


OK, now it's YOUR turn...
"What did YOU do on YOUR summer vacation?"
Leave a comment and share!

I promise I won't make you stand up in front of anyone :)

No comments:

Post a Comment