Motion Madness

Orlando...Day 2.

The day started early with a bus ride to Animal Kingdom, early entry and a mad dash to Asia so we could ride Expedition Everest. Word to the wise, riding a C-R-A-Z-Y forward, backward and steep sloping coaster is not the smartest thing to do on an empty stomach, especially if you are a little prone to motion sickness! I should be embarrassed to admit it, but I am telling you that I nearly cried...it was just that kind of an intense ride!

We made it off the ride and Holly immediately wanted to ride it again. Mommy loves the Schnoogs...but wasn't willing to get back on that crazy train, so Holly rode it again and I sat down at the bottom of the big drop along with all of the other un-hip parents who just couldn't handle it.

We took in several other attractions (none involved me riding anything) while we were waiting for our reservation time at breakfast - it was a character breakfast! I successfully embarrassed Holly by shouting out to Goofy (multiple times, she says that was what put it over the top for her), "Hi Goofy, come over here!" and then, in a nice loud voice, "I KNOW him!!!!" We did get some nice character photos.

We rode all of the cool rides (Dinosaur was great!), saw several shows and decided as the first giant drops of rain started to fall that it was time to go back to the hotel for a nap. We dodged the monsoon downpour(s) and enjoyed a 1-hour power nap. Back up and out the door by 3 to Hollywood Studios. The sun was shining and the clouds had cleared, the second half of our day had begun!

I made reservations for us at the Brown Derby and although it required us to double up on our Disney Dining credits, it was totally worth it! Holly declared herself in heaven more than once and the whole meal was enjoyable from the food to the company...it goes on the record as a very memorable meal.

We hit the ground running and saw lots of shows, attractions and more rides. I chickened out of nothing and even though we somehow ended up with 2 radical rides at the end (Tower of Terror and Rock 'n' Roller Coaster), I sucked it up and went on them. Holly did point out that I screamed on the entire coaster, even when it wasn't going too crazy, but I stand firm on the simple fact that I went on it and deserve many points for it.

We've got Epcot tomorrow, no radical rides, thank goodness!

The Same, but Different

Orlando observations, day 1.

We arrived without any incident, but with a plan. We walked off the plane, followed our rehearsed and orchestrated plan, walked straight onto our shuttle, picked up our resort key and packets (online check in, thank you very much) and left for the bus stop, knowing that our luggage would be dropped off soon and we could enjoy our time at Magic Kingdom hassle free.

Things were a little slow in getting to the park and getting a bite to eat, but we made it past all of the regular tourists who had to leave at 8:00pm after the fireworks show, grabbed a bite (we even have the Disney dining plan, a pretty good deal, I might add) and off we went in search of adventure. As resort guests, we have different hours in the parks each day, so tonight things stayed open for us until 11:00pm. Holly has our whole itinerary planned out based upon these Magic hours.

There is indeed an odd sense of familiarity to this park. Patterned after Disneyland, Magic Kingdom has a castle, Cinderella's Castle, to be exact (pop quiz, who's castle reigns over the Anaheim, CA location...anybody?) and many of the same rides that we know and love from our lifetime of visits to the original park. We went on several of them tonight - Pirates of the Caribbean, Haunted Mansion, Thunder Mountain, Space Mountain, Stitch's Adventure (well, that last one is not a West Coast standby, but it is cute).

The interesting thing about all of these is how at first glance they are exactly what you think of when you mention them by name. Look around a bit, or get further into the queue, and you start to see some differences, some large (Space Mountain has two tracks that run through the ride AND the coaster is set up more like a single-rider rocket so you follow behind one another, you don't sit next to each other), and others subtle, it kind of messes with your head a little bit! As our boat launched through Pirates, I leaned over and said to Holly, "It's the same..." she was right there with me, finishing my sentence, "...but different!"

Two parks, two dining reservations and less than six hours of sleep beckon, more tomorrow!

A Kid After My Own Heart

It is now official...Schnoogums and I are less than 24 hours away from our flight departure to Orlando (actually, first to Phoenix and then to Orlando, but that is just a technicality at this point) for the belated celebration of her 20th birthday!!

It is no secret that we are big Harry Potter fans, having read all of the books (more than once!) and also holding a strong tradition of standing in line for every movie after the first one. Holly is about the same age as all of the kids in the movies, so it has been fun watching them all grow up together and having our enthusiasm for the franchise grow too.

The trip was originally intended for the destination of Universal and the Wizarding World of Harry Potter, but it quickly grew to a full 5 days of Orlando and most things Disney. We are staying at the resort (with a water view room!), have Park-Hopper tickets, meals, transportation to and from the airport including bag service and of course the tickets to Universal.

Where my pre-planning ends, Holly picks up. I was greeted to a packet of papers on my desk last night including a cover-sheet with a typed agenda detailing each park that we will go to each day, based upon the extra "Magic Hours" we will enjoy as residents of the resort.

There is no doubt about it...she is my kid!!

Significant

Thank you to my fine friend Ebe for gently reminding me that one blog posting does not effectively support a return from hiatus! It was after this not-so-subtle reminder that I learned that I fell asleep at the switch because we both had a posting idea about church last week and because I have not been disciplined about blogging...she has beat me to the punch!

Not to worry. There is a lot of good stuff between the two of us and after I finish typing this, I am going to go read hers, just to compare our interpretation and take-away. This is the beauty of independent thinking, we all have our opinions and beliefs, few of which match exactly and all contribute to the rich tapestry of our lives.

With that fine preamble, let's talk about being significant. Craig challenged us on January 2nd to make a difference in the Kingdom of God. Not in 7 decades, 7 years or even 7 weeks but in 7 days, as in this week. A daunting task, but as I listened to his message and thought about how we put so much emphasis in being successful vs. significant, I really felt as if all at once I had a crystal clear picture of what I need to think about each and every day when I get up in the morning (or the middle of the night, depending upon what 4 am feels like to you).

It is really quite liberating, really. Successful is trying to live or measure up to someone else's expectations. Significant is using your gifts and talents to make a difference in the world. Some people get the flashy tasks, but for the large majority of us, significance is found throughout the ins and outs of daily life...being fully present and fully engaged.

I like this living significantly approach; let's watch the difference unfold in the world around!

The Sabbatical

It has been a year since I last did any work around the blog and while the break may have been something that was needed for a variety of reasons, it is certainly good to be back! I have heard from the whole group of 5 of you following the Newton Family Adventures that you have missed not seeing regular entries, so thanks for the shout-out and support!

I am indeed back with a new look and photo for the blog, and of course a whole new perspective on life and what is happening in our world. It is always an adventurous ride, thanks for coming along!

Happy New Year and here is to a truly blessed 2011 for us all.

Oh, Israel!

Greetings! It has been some time since any entries have been posted, the reason of late being because we are in Israel! I will be back to the daily postings soon enough, but until then, check out the photo blog site that I have set up to easily share and journal our journey - Israel Pilgrimage 2009-2010.

See you in a couple of weeks and Happy New Year.

Veggie Delight

The Schnoogs and I were happy to return to our Wednesday night dinner routine this week, celebrating with a Vegetarian Chinese find...a location that is a whopping 4 or 5 blocks away from Holly's dorm.

Touting all vegan/vegetarian options, Veggie Delight had a huge menu that took us some time to peruse. I must admit that I was a little distracted by the funky green decor with pink accents, combined with mirrors, wood carving and blue twinkle lights. I would like to identify the look with some intelligent-sounding name, but perhaps it is best to just leave it untitled or drop it In the larger bucket of "eclectic and almost tacky."

The design of the restaurant aside, Holly and I settled on some orange veggie chicken (described on Yelp as a must-have), lemon veggie chicken, broccoli, brown & white rice and wonton soup. Everything was extremely flavorful. We weren't wild about the texture of the lemon veggie chicken, but the sauce more than made up for it AND the portions are generous, which means that Holly and one of her roommates will be enjoying leftovers for lunch on Friday.

Not a bad deal for a starving college student!

3 on a Leash

David takes on the task of walking our dogs - all 4 of them - twice a day. Admittedly, Shadow does not cover the distance she used to so it is really the equivalent of a 1/4 mile or so with all 4, back to the car to let Shadow relax and then off with the crazy pack for another 2-3 miles.

We like the weekends when I am along for the walks, as it is nice catch up time for David and I, and we can each handle 2 dogs - 1 leash in each hand - without too much craziness. The pups love it and certainly make the most of their time cruising the great outdoors.

Walking 3 dogs, all on retractable leashes is no easy feat. I can hold my own, but must admit that if the pack ever decided to make a break for it on my watch, they could probably orchestrate it between Scooby's strength, Daphne's clumsiness and Fred's deafness.

Don't let on to my weakness with them!

Perseverence

After blogging it up about the 3 crazy dogs on their leashes, it seems only fair to share this shot of Shadow, following loyally behind on her 1/4 mile "victory loop" at the start of our morning walk.

She is 15 years old, arthritic, aching and the sweetest, most tenacious pet we have ever had.

Every once in a grand while she opts to stay home when we gather the pack for a walk, but for the most part, she shuffles along to get up, slowly walks out to the truck and patiently waits to be lifted up and in.

Her portion of the walk is fairly functional as she tends to business and slowly makes her way along the route. She certainly isn't fast, but she always keeps going. That dog perseveres, period.

As Elizabeth is no doubt saying right now, God bless Shadow.

Team Lucille

The lack of postings of late is in no way an indication that nothing is going on. Quite to the contrary, as a matter of a fact!

I will be blogging about things from a month ago at the rate I am going these days, but for today we have to only look back a few days...to Saturday...to enjoy a nice morning in beautiful Huntington Beach with some of my favorite peeps, a very cute dog and a worthy cause.

The Memory Walk is an event introduced to me by my fine friend Elizabeth, who leads a team each year in honor of her mom (named Lucille, hence our team name!) to help raise money and awareness for Alzheimer's, a disease that sadly affects many people - either those who suffer from the illness themselves, or their families who sadly watch the deterioration (and eventual loss, as was the case with David's Dad last month) of the people they love.

Elizabeth has been coordinating walkers and donations for several years now, inviting me to join her this year. After checking out the event on the website, I realized that they encouraged dog participation too, so we decided that it would be a nice event for Fred Fairbanks IV. All dogs were given a purple memory bandanna to sport, which Fred did willingly. The dog costume contest however, we politely declined. Fred is not into dressing up, even if it is Halloween.

We had a great time on the course (we opted to do the longer 4-mile jaunt). Elizabeth, Kris, Terri, Brandy, Jim, Gay, Fred & I all trekked along the boardwalk in support of the cause and the perfect So Cal day. It was one of those events that was just special...it made me think of David's Dad a lot, so I was kind of quiet, but it was a very positive and uplifting experience, especially with all of the volunteers along the course, cheering us on.

Fred did very well in his debut outing and celebrated his walk with a bit of breakfast on the beach after the walk, followed by a long snooze in the car, his fur blowing in the breeze created by the open sunroof.

It was a good day for Team Lucille indeed!