I'M SORRY!

Wow I really suck at updating this whole blog thing! but I am back and going to really update from now on!

So I'll catch you all up on the last month and a half!

February- Well this month was great! So many new friends and memories made! Lots of time was spent at Magic Kingdom going to see Wishes the Nighttime Fireworks Spectacular.  It is the most amazing fireworks show I have ever seen. Makes me cry every time! My time has also been spent at work. I work at Disney's All Star Resort. It includes three themes- Sports, Music, and Movies.  Basically it's busy ALL the time, EVERY day.  But that's okay! It keeps me busy and on my feet! I just finished my training as a concierge, so now I get to help plan people's days, sell them tickets, make dinner reservations. A big part of my job is handing out towels though.  Exciting, I know!

Other things that happened in February, started building close relationships with some friends.

Cristian, a Mexican boy from Arizona, also one of the most genuine guys I have ever met in my entire life.  He such a great person, and so much fun to hangout with. Always can keep a smile on anyone's face. We celebrated his birthday while here on the program! Jamie and me got him a Tangled 6 year old girl birthday card but we changed girl to boy and 6 to 19 :) He loved it! It came with the supplies to make a lantern! We also go him a Rapunzel poster which is posted on his ceiling so he can look at her every night before he goes to sleep and wake up looking at her in the morning! Cristian is a great guy with unconditional love to give out.  He will talk to just about anyone! If he sees someone having a bad day he is the first to go and just smile and talk with them.  It makes you feel better instantly and your day is completely turned around.  So blessed to have him apart of my life!

Nicholas, a half Asian half Italian stallion from Florida. If you want to laugh, hang with this kid.  Always has the biggest smile on his face, which is only contagious.  Also Cristian's roommate.  Whenever I am with Nick, I am sure to have a good time. He always can bring happiness to a crowd. Nick also can basically talk to anyone! That's how we met him.  On the bus on our way to Magic Kingdom he decided to strike up conversation and we have been friends ever since.  :) Nick is such a nice guy.  I can talk to him about anything and everything and he will always listen! He might get distracted for a second, but you can usually focus him again. :) Nick has a big heart and is not afraid to share the love with those close to him.  He is a great friend and I am so happy to have him apart of my life. :)

Andrew, a Colombian boy from Nevada. Where do I start with this one. He's one of my coworkers at the All Star Resort. We both work concierge.  We have been in training together since day one.  From day one of training he has always been super nice. He's definitely a special guy! Always puts a smile on my face. :) I usually have to drag him to the parks because they are not his favorite... (how do you work at Disney World and not enjoy the parks?) Once he's there though I know he is having a great time! I took him to Epcot for the first time.  That was a fun day :) I love hanging out and spending time with him because it is usually spent laughing and just enjoying each others company. I usually end up making him dinner (when I say me I mean my roommate Sawyer makes dinner) because the poor boy doesn't always have food.  All in all, so happy he is apart my life. Can't imagine being on this program and not having met him.

Mike, my best friend who is also from Florida.  Mike and I have been friends since the moment we met the first day of training at DU (Disney University).  We made toad abodes together at animal kingdom, we took pictures with Rafiki, he won me a turtle in dinoland. We are always laughing and smiling and having a good time! He listens to me and I listen to him.  He's a spoiled little brat, but I love the kid to death! I'm sad he's not here anymore, but he's only two hours away so he can come visit me anytime :)

I know what you are all thinking, Grace, these are ALL boys that you have been describing, but I promise I have girls that are friends too! That's what my 6 roommates are! We spend as much time together as we can!

                          From left to right- Jamie, Me, Ashlee, Danielle, Charleen, Sawyer <3

Charleen, a Puerto Rican beauty! She is my bedroommate.  We ALWAYS have a good time when we are together! Always laughing and smiling! We go to the mall and buy stuff that we don't need. She is a wonderful person and I lucked out on having such a great roommate! She is clean (even though I am not always...) and we always have a great time together. I always come to visit her at Cosmic Rays because she is always working! I barely get to see her :( I like when we have days off together because I can always count on her to want to go to the parks with me :) (if she's not going to Universal that is!)


Jamie, my big ten partner in crime.  Jamie and I spend way to much time together! We get in to trouble (not really) and just always have a great time.  We spent the day at Blizzard Beach and admired cute boys, raced on slides, awkwardly rode with other families on the family slide, and tanned ALL DAY! It was great :)  Jamie is one girl that will be apart of the rest of my life. I love the girl to death! We are always laughing and having a good time.  She and I have some pretty crazy adventures. I can't wait for whats in store for the rest of our program <3

Sawyer, my little Illinois friend! This girl always can make me smile! We have SO much fun together! We went to Magic Kingdom the other night and saw the new Fantasy Land together. We rode the new Dumbo and Barnstormer together. We are always laughing and smiling and just having fun together.  She is like my personal chef! Sawyer is the best when it comes to making food! She has a gift :) She made cinnamon roles and sausage for breakfast today! We went to typhoon lagoon today and she made my lunch! She is the best! :)







Danielle, the beautiful Texan.  We don't get to see each other a lot because our schedules are really different. I am super jealous of her because she gets to work at two different places! She started in Magic Kingdom, but now she works at Typhoon Lagoon because it opened again.  She has two super cute costumes and she is so adorable in both of them.  She is a super sweet girl and I wish we could spend more time together. :)

Ashlee, my Penn State ____! I sometimes call her a bad name, but it's all joking and she knows that :) Ashlee is one of the most beautiful people I have ever met! I love the girl to death. She is a blonde and you can definitely tell at times :) This girl makes me laugh every time I am with her. I barely see her either, but when I do see her, we just have the greatest time together <3

March has been a great month so far.  St. Patrick's day we went and got Shamrock Shakes, and then we went to the mall. Later that night we went to Wishes at Magic Kingdom.  Today we went to Typhoon Lagoon and it was a blast.  I got burned but it will turn into a tan :) I needed some sun! All in all everything here is going great! I am having the best time! I can't believe it is almost done! I can't imagine the day when I am going to have to go home.  It is going to be a sad day when I have to say goodbye to all these amazing people I have met. 

Peace and Blessings, Peace and Blessings.

Visting the Parks...well basically just Magic Kingdom

So I have had a few days off this past week which has been really nice!!! On Thursday we went to Magic Kingdom.  It was absolutely amazing! We met a really nice group of guys, Nick, Cristian, Titus, and Kevin.   We ended up spending the entire day with them at the park and we all had a lot of fun.  It was Nick's first time, so we got to show him basically everything! His excitement only fueled my excitement to show him the place I love so much! We basically rode everything. Even rides I had never been on! Which is crazy to even think about.  We ended the night sitting right in front of the castle watching Wishes, the fireworks show.  It was so much fun.  We laughed, I cried, we made memories! It was a great day! We even met Buzz Lightyear! 

Wishes was absolutely beautiful! I already know the song, and I can kind of direct the fireworks for when they will shoot off :)

On Friday, I had my resort orientation.  I got a tour of where I'll be working, and met some other people I'll be working with! It was really sweet! I finally got my costume! It is not as bad as some others.... I am just fine with it. haha Friday night, Jamie wanted to go to Downtown Disney because she had never been, so we decided to go, and the boys came too! They hadn't been in a long time.  We had a blast just walking around. Looking at all the stores, again. We just enjoyed each others company. It was great! 

On Saturday, I had a day off.  Me and Danielle decided to go to Epcot. We were going to see Sawyer, and watch her show that she is in, but when we got there she was training somewhere else.  Danielle had never been, so I got to show her everything! It was fun! We went on Mission Space and Test Track.  We were running out of time because we were meeting the boys and Jamie and Charleen at Magic Kingdom for wishes, so we walked the World Showcase and left.  That night we met up with everyone for Wishes, and the park was open till midnight so we watched wishes and then rode on a few rides. It was a great saturday night!

Sunday was nice. I had work at 8:30, but I was done by 12:30.  We went to walmart to get more groceries... I hate being an adult. It's to expensive! We just hung out together.  I got to hangout with my Uncle Rob and his family.  He is here for a conference. So I went to there condo and met there baby Cory, and watched the superbowl with them. It was great! I was happy to see some family.  I was starting to get a little homesick... They have the cutest baby girl! I fell in love with her!

Everything has been going great! I have been having the greatest time! Miss you all! Love to you all!

Peace and Blessings. Peace and Blessings.
xoxo

Training...

So sorry I haven't updated since last Saturday.  It has been very crazy around here!

I have had training for the last 4 days.  From 8:30 am until 5 pm.  It was very intense.... I have met a lot of great people! Today I finally have a day off! I slept in! and now I'm going to get ready and head to Magic Kingdom with a couple of my roommates and another friend!

A couple nights ago we had a welcome event.  It was called "You've Got a Friend in Me." It was so much fun! All the college program newbies got to meet one another. It was free food, dancing, a DJ, Buzz, Woody, Jessie, and Bullseye were there! It was a lot of fun! After the party ended we decided to go to Downtown Disney.  We just walked around Pleasure Island, and listened to all the music and danced.  We got ice cream :) It was a fun night. 

Last night 3 of us went to Buffalo Wild Wings.  It was SO  much fun!  They had karaoke and an outside dance floor! We didn't get there till about 11:45, and left around 1:15. It was a blast because all the college program kids go on Wednesdays.  Everyone just had a lot of fun dancing and watching other people sing.

Today is my first day off. I am soo happy. These last four days have been quite intense.  I have been so tired. I wake up at 6:30am everyday to make the bus in time to be at Disney University on time.  I finally finished my first part of training. Now I will go to my resort and start my on the job training. Once I complete that, I will have a final check, which I have to have a perfect check-in, and then I go back to Disney University.  I then take the concierge classes for two days, and then return to my resort and train on the job for concierge. Hopefully by the end of February I will be working concierge for the rest of my program.  It is so much information that I have to know! Very intimidating at times! The fun thing though, is our computer system is called Lilo, from Lilo and Stich :)

All in all, my experience so far has been amazing. I have met some awesome people! I love where I am and I love what I am doing.  Missing everyone back home, but I know I did the right thing.  This is the company I WILL work for once I am graduated from school.  I love you all and thank you for taking the time to read my blog!

Peace and Blessings. Peace and Blessings.

The First Few Days

Well it's been a couple days since I last wrote! I figured I would try and write every couple days :)

I have been experiencing SO much magic! This place is just incredible! I can't believe everything that is being shown to me.  So much I never knew about!

On Thursday, we didn't have to get up early. We only had a welcome session meeting. It was pretty interesting.  It just explained all the rules of our housing complexes. It also told us about the housing events we have for just Disney College Program Cast Members! They all look like a lot of fun! One thing I am looking forward to at the end of my program is formal.  It will be so much fun to go dress shopping again and do hair and makeup :) Thursday night my roommates, Jamie, Danielle, Sawyer, and myself went to play putt putt. We had a blast just getting to know each other and become more comfortable around each other.  Jamie won. She was like a pro putt putter.  Danielle lost and I came in second to last. It was a lot of fun! Once we got back, we all just hung out together. Then we remembered we had traditions the next day and needed to get out our business clothes.  We all showed each other what we were wearing to make sure we thought it was appropriate. We had to iron our clothes! I accomplished that task for the first time! :)

Friday was going to be a LONG day.  Charleen and I had to be up at 5 am because our Traditions class started at 8, but we had to be at the bus at 6:30am.  Traditions was incredible! The class introduced us to Disney past, present, and future! I pretty much cried through the whole thing. I can't believe I am apart of such a life changing company.  This class only fueled my passions for Disney and accomplishing all of my goals.  I will work for this company for the rest of my life. 

At Traditions, we got separated into groups.  We then went to classrooms and sat at tables with other CP's.  Once class started we were there for about an hour and a half.  We then went to Magic Kingdom for some "behind the scenes" training! It was sooo cool! I cried when we first walked into the park! The girl who I was sorta partnered up with was just as excited as I was, so it made the experience that much better! We walked back to the Mad Tea Cups, and just as we were getting there, Alice in Wonderland and the rabbit showed up! They picked a little girl, and then they went on the ride with her! It was such an incredible sight to see. It made me happier than a few mere words on this blog can describe.  Disney Magic Moments are like nothing else in the world. They make you feel so good inside.  It was so beautiful! We went back to the class room and did some more work on past, present, and future Disney :) It was so much fun! My boss even came and visited! MICKEY MOUSE! If we answered questions correctly we got little Disney figurines.  My question was answered when Mickey was in the room, so he gave me mine and gave me a big hug! It was SO great! I answered another question after Mickey left, and I got the  Minnie figurine! So my collection consists of Mickey and Minnie :) At the end of Traditions, we got our NAME TAGS! Everyone was so happy and excited!

Friday night, we decided to go to the park :) We went to Magic Kingdom! We arrived during "Wishes" which is the fireworks show! It was very exciting! We went straight to Space Mountain, but then it ended up breaking :( So we rode Peter Pan and then saw PhilarMagic :) It was a fun way to end the night! We left the park and went to Downtown Disney! It was crazy there! Lots of people! We ate dinner at a little chicken and burger place.  Sawyer's food got lost, and the chef came and gave her her food. It was funny! We walked around there for awhile in the big Disney store, and put funny hats on and took lots of silly pictures! It was great bonding time for us. We had a lot of fun!

 

^^^^^I took this last night :)

That's all for now! I'll update again soon!

Peace and Blessings, Peace and Blessings!

The Beginning

Wow, I can't believe I am here. This post is going to cover from Sunday all the way up until today, Thursday.

Sunday-  This was my going away party. It was sooo much fun. So many people that I didn't expect to come showed up! It was so wonderful to see all my loving family and friends there all for me.  My best friend Joe even showed up, and he was supposed to be at school! My Aunt Goldie and cousin Lisa were there too! Just so many people I didn't expect to see, but was so grateful that I got to say goodbye to before I left.  I also got a couple presents:) (wasn't expecting those either).  It was such a wonderful night full of laughs and smiles :) To the right is a picture of my Grandma Sally, Dad, Me and my mom.  This was taken at my going away party.  The minnie mouse ears are little clip ins! I love them! My cousin Laurie gave them to me :) I will definitely wear them while I am here!

Monday- All I did today was pack. Oh and I spent time with my best friend Rachel. She took me out on a date! haha We went to panara (where she works, so that doesn't count as a date because she gets a discount!) and then we went to the movies (her old work...) and saw Joyful Noise. It was awesome! I absolutely loved it! Then I came home and continued packing for the rest of the night.  My mom was freaking out and yelling that I should have done it the week before.... that's not how I operate. I always leave everything to the last minute. That's just how I roll! Went to bed early, because I had to be up for my flight the next day!

Tuesday-  TODAY WAS THE DAY! I woke up and cuddled with my dad for a little bit, and then my mom came and cuddled with me :) My sister was getting ready for school and I laid in bed till she was out of the bathroom.  I said goodbye to her.  We left for the airport around 8:40 am and arrived there around 10:30.  I'm pretty sure we took the longest route possible to get there.  We were following Phil... BUT we made it :) got my bags checked in and then sat together for a minute.  Finally I figured it was probably time for me to get to my gate. I said goodbye to my parents. There were many tears.  Mom and Dad watched me through security and then I waved and kissed goodbye as I walked to my gate.  It was hard. Something I've never felt before.  I knew it was going to be good though.  This was going to be an experience I would never forget. The hardest part was getting on the plane.  Flight went very well.  A little girl watched the end of Monsters Inc and the beginning of Beauty and the Beast with me! I had already started making Disney Magic Moments, and I wasn't even there yet! Uncle Tom, Aunt Mary, and Uncle Bobby picked me up from the airport.  Aunt Mary had a sandwich waiting for me once I got in the car. Uncle Tom had his famous chocolate chip cookies too! We arrived at there beautiful estate in Heartland Estates Mobile Home :) We sat down together and had a glass of ice cold tea. Uncle Bobby picked a lemon from their lemon tree in the back yard. We sat and caught up on life. Showed each other pictures.  It was wonderful.  Uncle Bobby made me laugh so hard! He is such a funny man! We went and had dinner at a place called Beefs. We shared wings and onion rings! It was yummy! Next we ran to the grocery store to pick up a few things! I got Uncle Tom into Walmart for the first time!!! He said he was getting a rash the whole time we were in there. He was just fine and made it out alive with nothing wrong with him! Once we got back we watched American Idol, and then I went to bed.  Wednesday was going to be a big day!

Wednesday-  I arrived at Disney around 9 am. Checked in, got my room key, took my housing id picture, met a new friend and roommate Sawyer, and then unpacked the car and loaded it into my room! I have 5 roommates from all over! Sawyer is from Illinois, Ashlee is from Pennsylvania, Jamie is from Maryland, Danielle is from Texas, and Charleen is from Puerto Rico.  I share a room with Charleen.  We had our casting meeting where we all got our jobs and turned in our paperwork. I am working at Disney's All Star Movies Resort as a concierge! I am very very excited! After casting we got back and went and had some lunch at Chik-fil-a. It was full of awkward silences, and get to know you questions! Once we got back we made a grocery list and headed to the store. We got lost probably 3 times, but we now know pretty much every where in Orlando!  We spent a total of $150 and split it  6 ways. It wasn't to bad actually. Then we each bought our own individual stuff :) Ashlee made dinner for everyone, and then we had arts and crafts! We made name tags for our bedroom doors and little Disney princess door things.  Everyone went to bed after that.  So far everything is great! We are all getting along and just getting to know each other. 

I am so excited for what God has in store for me. I know He has an incredible plan for me and my future.

Time for this new day! I'll post again soon!

Peace and Blessings, Peace and Blessings

One Week!

Well, today I realized I leave a in exactly one week! It is so hard to believe that it is so close.  It was just in October I was applying for my dream, and now this dream is becoming a reality! People ask me how excited are you, and I just reply with "I am beyond excited, but so nervous.  It's scary when you have a dream that you never imagine coming true, and now it is.  I never in a MILLION years thought I would be working for the company that has provided me with so many memories, inside jokes, laughs, smiles, friendships, and love. I am so honored to be going and living out my dream. It's something I never thought would happen, and it is the GREATEST feeling knowing that it is."

I remember my first time do Disney. It was with my Girl Scout troop. I was with my "sisters," and we were about to embark on one of our greatest trips together.  What more could a girl ask for, the happiest place on earth, with the girls that I have grown up with and love so much. I remember the night before we got on our plane.  Laying on Sherry's floor giggling till all hours of the night. 4 am came really fast haha and we did not want to get up when it was time to head to the airport.  (Luckily my flight is at 11:30 am this time) The trip was incredible.  The memories I made there with those girls are ones that I will NEVER forget.

I haven't done a single thing yet to prepare. Well, I guess I did two things, I got some business clothes ($150 at New York and Company :/ ) and printed and filled out my Disney paperwork. I will probably start making a packing list and things I need from the store tomorrow. 

My mom and dad are having a going away party for me on Sunday, which I am very excited about. I can't wait to see our family and friends and have a chance to say goodbye to them before I am gone.  As many people know my family and friends are my everything. They are what keeps me going every single day.  As I have stated in probably every post, it is going to be so hard to leave them. They are my everything. 

Peace and Blessings. Peace and Blessings. 

Flight is Booked!

Well, yesterday my flight was booked! I fly out the 24th! Can't believe it. It is actually happening! I am so nervous as the days pass and Disney approaches.  I know I  need to do this, but those nerves seem to get in the way a lot! I've just been hanging out with as many people as I can before they all go back to school and I get to stay home a little longer.  One of my best friends, Kristin, is leaving for France on Friday for the semester, so I guess I shouldn't be to scared, she is going out of the country! It has been pretty cold here in Michigan, so I am SO ready for the warm weather! Currently I'm listening to the tangled soundtrack :) I have been helping at my high school for there spring musical auditions, and they are doing Mulan.  I hear the music, and I watch the kids perform different scenes, and I just get so excited! Nerves may be present, but the excitement is starting to take over all the nerves.  This is quite the random post, but I haven't uploaded one in a while so that's why I am a bit random.  I haven't even started packing, or even thinking about packing... oops. 20 more days!!!!!