On August 8th, 2010, I posted a blog about the 300 things (it was 300 days till we moved) we wanted to do once we relocated to Florida. To commemorate our 2 Year Birthday of the Blog TODAY- I thought I would comment on those I had listed and if we had done them yet, plan to do them, or have dropped them completely. Enjoy!
- Shop all of the Disney stores and outlets- We have done this!
- Have lunch with Lou Mongello- Well, I have hung out with him several times.
- Attend the “Food and Wine Festival” at Epcot- We did and it was DELICIOUS!!!
- Split a funnel cake- Haven’t had one yet- stupid diet.
- Ride Splash Mountain with our family- Not yet, have to gain some courage for it still!
- Meet “Mike” and the “Be Our Guest” crew at some type of event- We did- at Beaches and Cream and it was awesome!
- Give my Mom, Dad, and Brother a tour of our new home town- Mom and Bob have gotten to see our city, but still waiting on Dad and Ryan to come out.
- Buy new furniture for our new place- Done and done!
- Visit the Kennedy Space Center- Not yet!
- See the Atlantic Ocean- Saw it on my first trip to a FL Beach- very exciting!
- Get our Florida Driving Licenses- Less than 24 hours of living here we had them!
- Buy our Disney Annual Passes- Again, less than 24 hours of living here, we had them!
- Apply at Walt Disney World for employment- Not sure if this will ever happen.
- Check out Miami- Not yet, but we got to Tampa Bay and Sarasota.
- Visit Lou’s family restaurant in Naples- Hopefully in the near future
- Meet Bill from “Mousejunkies” in WDW- Not yet.
- Make friends with someone from the Disney Mom’s Panel- Hopefully some day soon!
- Go back to the Titanic Exhibit- I am excited to do this again.
- Visit Busch Gardens- No rush on this
- Go to a special event at Sea World- Saw the Polar Express Exhibit there this past Christmas
- See a band concert in Orlando- Well I got to see Richard Marx, my crush in High School, in Epcot
- Volunteer at “Give Kids the World” Village- It’s still on my TO DO SOON list
- Find every Renaissance Faire in FL and go to it- Visited the Sarasota and Bay Area Renn Faires so far
- Drink Florida orange juice- Done the minute we stepped foot across the State line
- Put Florida license plates on my vehicles- Done a couple weeks ago
- Visit “Gatorland”- Still on my list
- Flick off my first ‘lovebug’- Done and done
- Attend Halloween Horror Nights at Universal Studios- Enjoyed it with my guy friends Ken, Anthony, and Joe- such a fun night!!!!
- Have an adult beverage on the balcony of the Animal Kingdom Lodge- Had one at All-Star Movies instead- with several people at different times
- Eat at the T-Rex Café- Ate there and wasn’t a fan of the Ice Cave
- Buy lots of goodies at “Basin” in DTD- Not one item yet
- Sun bathe on a FL beach- Done this past summer!
- Ride “Soarin” with anyone who will ride with me- First family ride, and rode it with about a hundred friends since we got here
- Build a sand castle with my kids near the ocean- this summer hopfully
- Help clean up any of the oil spill- Not yet
- Dress up as princesses with friends- Um, I have acted like a Princess with friends instead
- Hang out with Craig Duncan somewhere in WDW- Not yet, but HOPE TOO!!
- Have an in-depth conversation with Beci Mankhen- Finally met her October 1st at the 40th Celebration
- Attend the “Flower and Garden” Show at Epcot- buy Dad something- Coming up- can’t wait!!
- Ride “Peter Pan” with my hubby any time I want- Many times and I love it!
- Enjoy “It’s a Small World” with my Emily- Many, many times!
- Find a house of worship- Found First Baptist of Orlando and really liked it
- Get kids ready for their new schools- Well, I did do that, the result just wasn’t what I expected for this school year
- Greet and meet neighbors- Done and I love most of them!
- Help at a local shelter- To be happening in the near future I hope!
- See a Disney movie opening night at the Movie Theater in DTD- No opening night Disney movie, but Kyra did see the last Harry Potter movie opening night there.
- Attend a Sunday worship celebration at the House of Blues- Again, hope to do this in the near future!
- Ride a Hot Air Balloon in DTD- I have looked at it, does that count? LOL
- Meet a Disney Imagineer- I did meet one, and he had heard of our blog, so win win!
- Draw every character possible at the Animation class at DHS- this could be close to happening, we have ALOT of drawings.
- Shop the IKEA- the first couple of days we lived here we shopped at IKEA and fell in love with it.
- Swim with the Dolphins somewhere- Another one happening in the Spring.
- Drink while blogging around the World Showcase- LOL, what was I drinking when I wrote this one?
- Visit the Florida Chamber of Commerce- Nope, believe it or not, never got there yet.
- Send out my first mail from my FL address- Of course- I finally have my return address memorized.
- Make my first phone call from my FL home- It was very exciting- called my Mom.
- Find my local Redbox- Found one in Reunion, score!
- See my first Gecko- First day we lived here we saw one on the patio
- Ride the boat from Port Orleans to DTD- A couple of times now
- Finally play in Disney Quest- Oh my goodness, I am hooked on Fruit Ninja and Pengo at Disney Quest… I am going to need a support group soon.
- Check out a Cirque De Soleil Show- Still want too see one.
- Take a Segway Tour at Epcot- Yep, still want to do it.
- Buy perfume in Italy at Epcot- Once I win the lottery I will buy it.
- Have tea at the Grand Floridian- Another Lottery one.
- Find the local Wal-Mart- Clermont is our closest one
- Play at Blizzard Beach- Enjoyed it with friends this past summer.
- Burn all of my winter coats- I am sad to report that I had to WEAR one this past January IN FLORIDA- ugh.
- Take the kids to the Disney parks after school- all the time.
- Call Mark Vitek in WI and tell him how great FL is- Talked to him on FB.
- Ride a city bus to get used to town- Not a chance in hades will I be doing this, no thank you.
- Hang out at the MCO Airport- Love being at MCO, its such a cool airport.
- Enjoy a Dole Whip in “Bawb’s” honor- enjoyed several now.
- Ride “Pirates” while texting someone how cool it is- Nope, no texting on rides unless I get stuck on them. LOL
- Go Hidden Mickey hunting with the family- All the time.
- Feed the Sting Rays at Sea World- Craig has done it.
- Enjoy the Christmas décor In WDW- We enjoyed the heck out of Christmas in WDW this past year, it was amazing.
- Tell anyone I want to that I am a FL Resident- Yep, in line in the Parks I am very happy to let people know I am a local.
- Find the fastest way to cool myself off in the FL heat- Yep, I found it, stay inside when its hot out LOL
- Watch “Illuminations” anytime I want too- All the time
- Brave “Space Mountain”- I actually did it, rode it with Kelly last month for the first time.
- Drink a Butter Beer at the “Wizarding World of Harry Potter”- I did and it was delicious!!
- Have a picnic under a palm tree- I would if the crab grass wasn’t so hard.
- Taking Kyra to College- Soon enough, lets not rush it.
- Go to a FL dance club and have a girl’s night- I have done this at Atlantic Dance Hall with many gal pals, so much fun!
- Meet Disney Celebrities- Funny enough, Emily met Zendaya from “Shake it Up”
- Attend “Mickey’s Not So Scary Halloween Party”- Twice, once with Mom and Bob and second with Liz
- Run a Disney Marathon- Maybe next year, they are super expensive!
- Read our first copy of “The Orlando Sentinel”- First week we were here.
- Be a part of the televised “Walt Disney World Christmas Parade”- We were a part of the Justin Bieber song that started off the parade on tv
- Visit the campus of Full Sail and see where “The Daily Buzz” is taped- Kyra did with Criag.
- Check out Daytona Beach- Did this past summer.
- Take a drive down International Drive- Did and found it wierd now that we live here.
- See palm trees when I wake up in the morning- Every morning since we moved here.
- Have Sunday breakfast after church at a Character Meal- Ohh, I love this one and haven’t thought of it until reading it again. LOL
- Get picture with Mickey and my FL License- Oh, another good one I have to do.
- Make lots of FL friends- Done and done.
- Drive under the Walt Disney World arch every week- Love that I get to do it all the time.
- Celebrate Christmas in WDW- We did that week and it was great.
- Graduate from FIT and walk across the stage to get my diploma with hubby- Didn’t go back for a 2nd semester, wasn’t liking it. Onto new things.
- Find a new character each week to get our picture with- Every month I would say I have done this.
- Go to garage sales in my area- I have unfortunately- not a fan of them here yet.
- Get a Marketing job with Disney- I would love that, but I feel that the blog has bigger opportunities for me right now.
- See Craig get an IT job with Disney- all in good time.
- Go to Victoria and Alberts for my Birthday- Hmm, this could still happen this year. Last year’s birthday I would like to do over.
- Renew our wedding vows in the Disney Wedding Pavilion or on the beach- We hope to do this for our 25th Wedding Anniversary.
- Have professional family pictures taken in front of the Castle- Not yet, but I have a friend who says she will take our family’s photos when she comes.
- Collect sea shells by the ocean- I did this past summer!
- Camp at Fort Wilderness- Not yet, but hope too!
- Collect more Disney pins for our collection- Have collected lots of fun sets.
- Finally eat at Le Cellier in Canada- Did for my 37th Birthday.
- Take the “Behind the Seeds” tour at Epcot- Once my Dad comes, we are going to do this.
- Learn how to garden- Maybe some day on this planet I wil learn how.
- Go on a Disney Cruise- one day, but in no hurry, not a huge Cruise fan.
- Spend a night in a room at Concierge Level at WDW- again, one day
- Retire in Florida- Ummmm Im about 30 years from this.
- Walk around Caribbean Beach Resort after work- Lots of date nights we have.
- Read in a hammock on one of the beaches- I see it in the near future.
- Lose weight and fit into a tiny bikini- Again, some day, maybe on this planet.
- See a Broadway play in Orlando- Eventually, no hurry
- Perfect my score on Toy Story Mania- I am getting better, lots of practice
- Enjoy a Mickey bar in the shadow of the Castle- Done and done.
- See something launch from Kennedy Space Center- Craig saw the last shuttle launch from our back yard.
- Visit a Disney spa for a massage- In the future.
- Play with Emily in our first FL public park- Done and it was awkward with the Spanish moss trees.
- Watch the 4th of July fireworks in the Magic Kingdom- Well we watched the 4th of July fireworks from the Poly beach on July 3rd.
- Enjoy New Years Eve on top of the Contemporary Resort- Nope, we enjoyed them in Epcot instead, front row and center.
- Buy into DVC- No, no thank you.
- Find the best local restaurants- We have found some fun places to eat.
- Bike around town- Need bikes for that… sooo, until then..
- Eat dinner at ”The Crystal Palace” in MK- Ate breakfast there with Kelly instead.
- Try school bread at Norway in Epcot- Did and LOVED it- now Im craving it.
- Dress up for Star Wars Weekends- No thanks, not interested anymore.
- Open up a bank account at a bank in FL- I did !
- Adjust vehicle insurance- Done before we got here.
- Find a family doctor- Still looking for one.
- Eat a yummy Mexican lunch on the water at Epcot- Done and enjoyed it, but the shells aren’t the best anymore.
- Play video games at Pizza Planet with my kids- ate there, no game playing yet.
- Shop at “Mousegears anytime- I do and I love shopping there.
- Sit by the “Fountain of Nations” at night and just relax- Done and it is as great as it sounds.
- Ride “Test Track” with my hands in the air- Yep and yep.
- Walk slowly though the Nemo queue… I love the music and atmosphere- Many times now.
- Craig will take Emily to see the Nemo Musical anytime she wants- Done.
- Ride the TTA at night while SpectroMagic parade is on- Done many times.
- Dress up for “Mickey’s Not So Scary Halloween Party”- I wore my special Halloween Mickey ears that Mom bought
- Watch Kyra get to enjoy “Grad Night” at WDW- None this year, she may go to Universal instead.
- Attend the DIS parties at DHS- Not yet.
- See the newest Pixar Character each year in the Animation Building- Opening soon- can’t wait!
- Get to know Cast Members by name- I am happy to say I know several I know by name now.
- Help out any Disney Podcast or Magazine- I have been on podcasts and in a Disney magazine and 2 books.
- Invest in sunscreen- Yep, you have to in FL.
- Buy our Christmas ornaments each year from the Disney Christmas store- Bought our first ornament from Germany instead this year.
- Attend the Candlelight Processional at Epcot- Did to see Michael W.Smith narrarate.
- Do a character breakfast at Universal Studios- Not interested yet.
- Go to a WDW Radio Meet- Have attended several.
- Enjoy an entire morning of watching the Gorillas at AK- one of my favorite things to and I have lots.
- Get used to FL drivers and tourists as well- LOL Well, people drive insane here.
- Start a new hobby- Not yet, just keeping adding to my old ones.
- Have a big dinner with my friends at “Boma’s” at the AKL- Not yet.
- Hold our first “Relocated Tourist” Disney Meet- Some day soon, I would love that.
- Eat at Joe’s Crab Shack anytime I want- I got to eat there with Craig and my best friend Kelly when she came to visit.
- Visit Celebration, FL- I did, cute town.
- See the opening of the Fantasyland expansion- Next month it starts, I will be there!
- Ride the Ferry over to the Magic Kingdom- Best at night or early in the morning, a great view of everything from the Ferry.
- Eat yummy rotisserie chicken with sautéed mushrooms and onions at Cosmic Rays- All the time, I love them.
- Try riding “Mission: Space” again- Good grief, maybe never on this one, no desire.
- Do every Kim Possible Mission- Eventuallly.
- Enjoy a Hot Fudge Sundae at DTD- I did first night we got here with my family.
- Try a Carrot Cake Cooke at the “Writer’ Stop” at DHS- One of my favorite desserts here.
- Go to any special event held inside “The Great Movie Ride”- I am there when they have one again.
- Finally ride the “Tower of Terror”- Done.
- Learn to surf- Heh, maybe, not really interested anymore.
- Shop “Tren D” with Kyra- many times.
- Stay in Cinderella’s Castle (somehow)- Again, the lottery would need to be involved.
- Vote for the first time in FL- Still need to register, Kyra too now.
- Take the Backlot tour- I did and I really enjoyed it.
- Meet a Disney Animator- I have, he worked on Mulan.
- Play cell phone tag- not interested anymore.
- Four Square myself everywhere in FL- Don’t care, and not interested.
- Show Kelly and the family around Walt Disney World- I did get to show Kelly!
- Have the girl’s birthday parties somewhere in WDW- Kyra celebrated in Via Napoli!
- Make up my own WDW Scavenger Hunt- Some day when we have our Meet.
- Get all prettied up and go on a night on the town in Orlando- Done several times.
- Locate the nearest Sephora- Found it at the Florida mall
- Find the local Barnes and Noble for the girls- Found one and a Books-a-Million
- Bottle sand from the first time I visit a FL beach- I will when the kids visit for their first time.
- Get to complain about traffic on I-4 with everyone else- Done LOL
- Spend time with my Dad in WDW- Hope to some time in the future.
- Dance down Main Street with my kids- Done so many times, so many different dance moves.
- Write a book about our story- Hmmm, we shall see.
- Scrapbook our journey- Its called the blog.
- Buy a wand at “The Wizarding World of Harry Potter”- Emilys wand chose her, we didnt have a choice! LOL
- Sing along to the Little Mermaid Show- Did tonight with Wendy
- Have dinner at Planet Hollywood- No interest
- See the “Blue Man Group” at Universal Studios- Hope to eventually
- Do nothing but tube the Lazy River one Saturday- Did with the family
- Watch the Cloud Writer- Saw him and he always makes me smile
- Shampoo a squirrel- Yeah, again, I had to have been drinking when I made this list. LOL
- Watch the “Tour de France” at the EPSN Club- Craig will eventually
- See how many Brazilian groups I can upset- LOL Easy one
- Eat at “Via Napoli”- Kyras 18th Birthday dinner was there
- Take an air boat ride through the Everglades- in the future.
- Have family pic taken in bug glasses at “It’s Tough to be a Bug”- Done.
- Find every animal on the “Tree of Life”- Haven’t spent time on this one yet.
- Ride the tea cups seeing how many times I can spin- LOL nope, no thank you.
- Attend a pin trading event- Have been to several, they are fun to see.
- Walk into the All-Stars Movie lobby anytime we want- We do and it’s the best feeling.
- Attend the Campfire movie at Fort Wilderness- Some of us did with the Aiken Family.
- Take the kids to “Hoop Dee Doo”- Not yet.
- Don’t ever have to hear Brett Favre’s name again- Thankfully, this has been spot on here.
- Attend a Comedy Club- Well, I went to a Improv one at Studios.
- Ride the monorail anytime- All the time.
- Enjoy a Diet Coke on the Poly beach- Done and done.
- Ride “Journey into Imagination” with my girls- Check.
- Watch Emily play with the jumping fountains- yep, still enjoy that.
- Taste every soda at Club Cool- Except the Beverly, I am not up for that.
- Take Kyra on the “Keys to the Kingdom” Tour- in good time.
- Enjoy a dessert with my Craig at the Kona Café in the Poly- Nope, haven’t been there with hubby yet.
- Eat a yummy salad at Cosmic Rays on the balcony- Many times, love it out there.
- Sing along with the Pooh ride as we ride- done
- Dinner anytime with friends- blessed to have had so many wonderful meals with new and old friends.
- Sit in Tomorrowland and just listen to the awesome music- its the best.
- Have lunch with Justin- Um, I have to meet him first.
- Meet Lisette Torano- Still want too.
- Shop the Test Track store for something new for our vehicle- Em bought me the people stickers for our car.
- Visit the Swan and Dolphin fountains- Done.
- Eat at Wolfgang Pucks- kids and I shared pizza there.
- Go back to the Sizzler we ate at on vacation- Ate at a different one near home.
- Just wake up any day and go to a Disney park- Done
- See WDW Billboards when driving around Orlando- Check.
- Do “Pick a Pearl” in Japan- Not yet.
- Eat at “Coral Reef”- Hope too.
- Learn how to scuba dive- In the future.
- Try on different Mickey ears- All the time.
- Buy new art at the “Art of Disney”- Bought a Goofy print by the artist who was there to sign it.
- Collect more WDW candy tins- Have enough.
- Buy more monorail pieces- Nothing new yet.
- Drink hot chocolate on Main Street during Christmas time- Just drank Diet Coke instead.
- Buy Florida oranges to send back to WI- Do they really want them?
- Purchase a new Disney sweatshirt ever year- Eventually- its usually hot here.
- Have photopass pictures taken anytime we want- I have a stack of photopass cards to prove this one.
- Listen to my iPod as I walk through Epcot- Not yet, Im usually using my phone for pictures instead.
- Enjoy “The Kitchen Sink” at Beaches N’ Cream- had ice cream with Shelley Jones there, no sink yet.
- Get to swim in the pool at the Beach Club- Not yet.
- Kyra and Craig ride “Rockin’ Rollercoaster”- not yet.
- Chase a monkey- all in good time. LOL
- Ask Crush if he has ever been to WI- haven’t asked him yet.
- Watch the divers in the “Nemo and Friends” Pavilion- Done.
- Find the Neenah Foundry Man Hole Cover outside Nemo Ride- Done.
- Wear every Disney World T-shirt I own to WDW- Check.
- Find every pressed penny machine and collect the rest- No interest anymore.
- Fight Captain Hook and Jack Sparrow at the same time- LOL Not yet.
- Hug Stitch- Several times.
- Find all of the Hidden Mickey’s at the Conservation Station- Not yet.
- Swim in our pool- All summer long, Em was our little fish!
- Get new cell phone numbers- Check!
- Visit our Relocated Tourist fans while they are on vacation- Over 100 meets now.
- Attend Jedi Training Academy- I have several times, cute show.
- Visit the Gulf of Mexico- Not yet.
- Check out the Florida Keys- In the future.
- Batten down the hatches during our first hurricane- Thank God, not yet.
- Watch the Penguins at Sea World all day- Watched them several times.
- Hang out with Shamu- Well there are many Orca Whales now, so I may have seen him, not sure.
- Attend “Night of Joy” at the Magic Kingdom- So mad I missed this, this year I am going!
- Watch ‘Yee Haw Bob’ at Port Orleans Riverside- Did it with Maureens group, lots of fun!
- Go to our first Dessert Party at WDW- Hope to soon.
- Get a “Tables in Wonderland” card- Again, need to get this.
- Plan Disneyland trip- Down the road..
- Find a new hidden Mickey for Steve Barrett- LOL I met him, thats all that matters.
- Have Fish and Chips in the UK at Epcot- Not yet.
- Hang out with my brother, Ryan, in Epcot- Hope to in the future.
- Celebrate when the Stitch ride is someday replaced- LOL Amen and not yet.
- Go to “Philharmagic” after dinner anytime- Done.
- Attend Lou’s 24 hour show- I was there!
- Make a wish at the Snow White Fountain- Done.
- Put Christmas lights on our palm trees- Done.
- Attend the opening night of the Osborne Lights- Watched the opening night of Castle lights for Christmas instead this year.
- Play with Emily in the “Honey I Shrunk the Kids” Playground- Done.
- See Captain EO for the first time- Done.
- Take the Sunset Safari ride from Animal Kingdom Lodge- Hope too still
- Be the family to open the Magic Kingdom- Not yet.
- Ride an attraction with a Disney Character- Not yet.
- Make our own Boom Dee Ya Dah Video at WDW- Soon.
- Try something new every time we walk into a park- Every time.
- See the “Kiss Goodnight” at the Magic Kingdom- Check.
- See the Main Street Electrical Light Parade- Check.
- Shop the Main Street Emporium- Too many times to count.
- Enjoy Walt’s presence at “One Man’s Dream”- I do and did and love it.
- Get pictures taken with our hands in the cement in DHS- Not yet.
- Update our blog with our daily adventures- All the time
- Wake up every morning and realize we aren’t dreaming- Every day.
- Send postcards as often as we can- Done.
- Help others who wish to relocate as well- Done.
- Start up official website with chat forums- In the works.
- Extend the monorail track to our home- I have tried LOL
- Dig in the Boneyard with Emily- not yet.
- Ride “Dinosaur” over and over again with Kyra- DONE
- Give our fast passes away each day- have done it, just not every day.
- Offer to take family pictures around the park with their cameras- all the time.
- Take a sleigh- ride through Fort Wilderness- Did carriage ride for Valentines Day instead.
- Be thankful every day we live there that we made this decision- Done, done, and done.

It is surreal to think that we started this journey 2 years ago… sometimes it seems longer, and other times I feel like its only weeks old. I have met so many wonderful people and it has been a true blessing in my life to get to know you all. No matter who has crossed my path, or what we have done, I have learned from every experience which has helped the success of this blog. Bigger and brighter things are coming our way, and it’s exciting that you are all a part of it. A sincere thank you from the bottom of my heart, love to you all, and God bless you for your loyalty and support. Have a great day!










