Happy Birthday Mickey Mouse

 

We all want to know Mickey Mouse's secret to looking so youthful after 96 years!  He was born on November 18 with the debut of Steamboat Willie.  I can't believe he has been making people of all ages feel like a child again for nearly a century!

Mickey Mouse is probably my first love.  I've been a fan as long as I can remember . . . and I still am.  Back in the day, my first husband JR and I would plan a mini vacation to Disney World  every month.  We both worked many hours a week at our long time jobs and had over a months' worth of vacation, so we planned long weekends once a month.

It felt like such a luxury to be annual passholders.  As passholder members, we got awesome prices at Disney hotels.  Our favorite destination was Fort Wilderness where we would pitch a tent and camp when the weather was cool.

We spent so any hours through the years waiting in line for a meet and greet with Mickey.  And it was well worth the wait! 

Wishing I could be at the Magic Kingdom to celebrate Mickey's birthday, but I am there in spirit!

I'm back!

 

Where do I start . . . so much has happened in my life!

The good news is after Hurricane Irma in 2017 it was nothing but one bad thing after another that just took the life out of me, but the numbness has subsided and I am starting to feel close to normal again.

The worse of the bad news is I'm a widow for the second time.  The Captain passed away in 2023 and I've pretty much shut down for a long time.  Just as my grief was tolerable, my precious fur baby Kiki got sick and I had to make the horrible decision to put her to sleep.  She was my little partner, especially after we lost The Captain.  Dogs grieve too and she was right there with me, we were together in our sadness.  I wasn't expecting the bad news when I took her to the vet for a normal yearly visit that she was so sick, she needed to be put to sleep.  I didn't even suspect it.

So it has been 8 years of stress of one type or another.  That was a long time!

All I can say is I'm so grateful for everything I have been blessed with.  From all the bad stuff, I've grown stronger and have learned so many lessons.

Living in Florida this time of year is so joyous!  The intense heat of the summer is gone and has left many crisp, non-humid days that are so pleasant.  We recently had a few cold days, but it was fine although we were so close to freezing.  I really hate the cold!

Most of all, I have grown closer to God and with faith I got through it all.

Looking forward to exploring the joys of living in Florida!