Adventures at Disney - In Space

We combined a family trip with the place that everyone has told us we simply MUST go to in order to complete our kid's childhood. The Gill Family goes to Disney, and we start it in style by traveling to outer space. 

Disney does what they are best at, creating magic for children. And if you ask Graham, he would tell you definitively that we actually traveled to space. It's not difficult to see why he is so convinced, this is the view from our hotel window on the ship. Notice the stars, the moon, and they were all moving as we traveled toward them. 

The kids all slept in bed pods.

And we had all kinds of activities to complete, like the time we needed to fill in for the captain and drive the ship.

We also had light saber training, secret missions to accomplish, interactions with all of the major Star Wars characters and in between all of this, we built custom light sabers and assembled our own droids. 

We ate interesting space food, drank purple Chardonnay and dressed in character. It was a wild time. The time we went to space. 

We had all kinds of adventures in space, each cousin chose a light or dark side mission and we saw firsthand one of the most unique Disney experiences there is. May the force be with you. 

The Littlest Gill is SIX

 Already six years old. Only six years old. I lean one way or the other depending on the day. This year he entered kindergarten, head held high, and loved the freedom and excitement of elementary school. We are very excited for these years that our kids are split between 2 schools and not 3.

In his six short years, he has experienced a hurricane (Harvey), a parent with cancer, a global pandemic, and the most devastating of all, a 4 day power outage due to a major freeze in one of the hottest states in the country. 

He likes consistency. He likes knowing what's next. He likes pasta for dinner. 

He can swim like a fish, he speaks some Spanish but understands a whole lot, and he can hold his own on a chess board or in any video game you put in front of him. He dislikes compromise. He wants to be a big kid, but he still loves stories at night and snuggles on the couch. He has the bluest eyes you'll ever see, and he'll use them to his full advantage. He lost two bottom teeth, he can ride a 2-wheel bike like a champ, and he is starting to read. He has nothing but friends at school, at home, and everywhere we go. 

He's one of the funniest people we know. 

Happy SIXTH birthday to our littlest big guy!

Pittsburgh With A Yinzer and A Jersey Girl

The Pittsburgh airport does it right! They have a bar/restaurant available outside of security - so we started the weekend strong with a morning snack and a catch up as we waiting for Meghan's workday to end and Kristen and my flights to arrive. I'm surprised that more airports haven't done this, considering you haven't been able to meet someone at their gate for the last 22 years.

We drove to Meghan's incredible family farm in the highest of high fall color season. We had a lovely, home cooked lunch and got a small glimpse into the world of dairy farming.  It could have been a more perfect fall day. 

After lunch, we went back to Meghan's house and spent the evening catching up with friends at their kids. 

On Friday we moved into our Air BnB on the North Shore and got ready for our fancy night out. In swanky Mount Washington. To get there we took the Duquesne Incline, this crazy looking train-meets-ski lift transport which was opened way back in 1877. The view on the way up - and again at the top - are well worth the $5.00 round trip fare. Just be sure you bring cash. At the top we had dinner at LaMont, another place with a killer view of the 'Burgh.

Pittsburgh! Beautiful!

The next day we took on Pittsburgh by foot and logged over five miles around the city. We started with coffee at Commonplace in the Mexican War Streets district, and wandered through stadium parking lots and parks and riverfront. 

The strangest and most colorful place, RandyLand, is both born from dreams and the thing of nightmares.  
RandyLand is an abandoned lot turned art installation. There are potted gardens and painted bricks. The majority of the lot is painted and repurposed trash that tells a story and causes more than one double-take.

It's certainly nicer than an abandoned building lot!

We finished touristing in the most touristy way possible, on the Gateway Clipper boat tour! With a bar and a view and a place to have uninterrupted conversation, this was a clear win to finish off our trip. Thank you Meg for touring your friends around your hometown, we'll be back!

Alex is NINE

Alex continues to be the most original, thoughtful and sensitive guy around. The way he sees the world, and the even more unique way that he expresses what he sees brings us joy everyday. 

Alex is a skilled and constant reader, goofy and sensitive and prides himself on constantly being cold. He loves hanging out with friends, playing baseball and video games. 

This has been a year of growth for him, not just in height, but in independence. He is now allowed to play at the neighborhood "fort" with other kids, no adults. He can ride his bike to friend's houses, though he hasn't mastered the art of coming home at the agreed upon time. He still sleeps more deeply than anyone else in our family, I can only think of one time that he woke up on his own for school. Even though he has an alarm. This is probably because he is constantly in motion. Hopping around on the couch, tracing invisible patterns on the kitchen floor tiles or dancing on second base while he waits for a chance to run. 

 

He loves music and chess, he joined choir and started piano lessons. He had a blast at the Imagine Dragons concert over the summer, singing along loud and proud. 

We still get to see moments of little-boyhood from him, but his patience, maturity and emotional awareness are more aligned with those of a *big boy*. We love this goofball and it's hard to believe he is nine!

Labor Day in Savannah

Savannah, Georgia. The trip that almost never happened. Julie, Sarah and I planned this trip two years ago, intending to go over Labor Day weekend in 2021. Three days before the trip, Graham tested positive for COVID and all plans were off. We delayed to Labor Day 2022, which was almost deferred by my dad becoming suddenly very ill and all of us considering calling the trip off. At the urging of my husband, my mom and even my dad, we decided to go anyway, and it was a much needed recharge with my wonderful friends from MSU. 

  

We stayed right downtown in the historic district. 

We were proper tourists and ate at all kinds of fun and delicious restaurants. We started our trip at The Grey, a repurposed 1930s Greyhound Bus station. It was fun and interesting inside, with the most bizarre menu that I still don't quite understand. But the food and drinks were great, the company even better and the ceiling light art installation is worth a stop in if reservations are full. We shut the place down, leaving with the staff that night. 

Our trio is notoriously bad at remembering to take pictures, luckily our house was so close that I accidentally ran by the restaurant the next day and got this photo.

This city was so awesome to run in! The mornings were less humid, cooler and had a constant breeze. There was a sidewalk right along the water, and when you ran through the streets, each house was more beautiful than the next! 

I took a slight detour and was able to pass right by Juliette Gordon Low's birth home. The founder of Girl Scouts was born, and eventually also passed, in Savannah. There were Girl Scout troops walking through the city and visiting this house throughout the weekend. 

The Girl Scout crest is the gate to her home

We walked the city on Saturday, including shopping in City Market, the pedestrian street that runs through the heart of Savannah. There were bachelorette parties aplenty, and the open carry laws keep everyone well lubricated during the day. According to our visit to the American Prohibition Museum Savannah's history with alcohol is long and bumpy, but they seem to get along just fine now. 

That night, we ate at Cotton & Rye, another hip, interesting spot. They are known for their desserts, so even after we were all nice and full we had to try their poppyseed lemoncake (meh) and homemade Twix bar (yummm!) desserts. 

A ghost tour was a fun extension of our day. We got some spooky pictures, and had a fun ride around town, but no one saw any ghosts in real time. We did get to see some very loud, very inebriated ghost tour patrons, which was entertainment enough for the night.  The tour walked us through the married home of Juliette Gordon Low, which is also where she died. It is a museum by day, spooky stop on a ghost tour by night. Go figure. 

Brunch at B Matthews was a hit! This corner spot was a recommendation from my parents, and ended up being just one block from our house! Another morning run allowed me to add our name to the dining list early and skip the over TWO HOUR wait by the time we were ready for food. 

We jumped back on the trolley for the hop on hop off tour and got to see even more of the city. This police station keeps a car out front reminding people to find a sober ride home. There is a sign out front that simply says "Choose your ride home", clearly a taxi to your house, or a police car to the station. 

My favorites!!

Julie and I toured Forsyth Park and the super cool Colonial Park Cemetery. We were even approached by a young girl that couldn't find her mom. We either appear very friendly, or very mom-like, we chose to take it as a compliment. 

We finally remembered to photograph our cheers like kids these days do. If only we could figure out the boomerang video feature. These lovely cocktails were the beginning of our dinner at Husk, a lovely restaurant, but definitely better if you are a seafood lover. 

We spent our last night together returning to the Olde Pink House. We had a meal here earlier in the trip, and the house itself is a sight to see. We returned to the basement bar that had fun live piano music all night. This nice piano player and a solo traveling woman joined our crew for a final night of stories and updates. 

Until our next adventure together, my dear friends!