A Fatherless Day….. A Daughter’s Loss

For the last 3 years, Father’s Day has been very hard for me because I loss a very awesome man in my life…. My dad!!!!  He was loving, funny, supportive, and one of the most difficult person you might have ever encountered; but he was the BEST DARN Father anyone could ask for in the world.

I always tell people that my father was the nurturer between the two parents.  He would stay up with me ALL night long to finish my homework in elementary school and he taught me valuable life lessons about the importance of having some verbal filtration (he made me read up on Socrates at 13 years old!).  One of the most important life lessons my father taught me was “ensure that you find a mate that can treat you better than I treated you!”  Now I must admit, that’s a rather tall order!!!  I must admit that comparing your potential mate to your dad can be a relationship disaster.  Because I don’t think that anyone could treat me better than my father since he was there during fundamental years in my life that groomed me to be the woman I am today.  However, I totally understood where my father was coming from.

 As parents, we want the best for our children and so did my dad.  I know that I’ve haven’t always made the best relationship decisions but I’ve always demanded that the person treated me with respect.  And with that, I can say, Thank You Daddy for instilling great fundamentals skills in me and making me demand more out of people in life and of myself.

 Your smile and charismatic ways lives on in your granddaughter as my looks and mannerisms of your mother resonates in me.

#FathersDay
#themomgician
#momgician

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My Disney Experience

I am what one might call a Disney Fanatic...  However, I like to call myself an avid traveler that enjoys the magical touches that Disney adds to my vacations. My Disney adventures started about 28 or 29 years ago when I was about 8 or 9 years old and I went to Walt Disney World with my mother (her friend and daughter), older sister (along with her best friend) and little brother.   This trip was exciting because this was our very first Disney vacation.  We saw Disney through the eyes of my sister's best friend because her mother brought her to Disney World the previous year.  I must admit that I was a little annoyed because I wanted to experience the adventure MINUS the narration from my sister's friend.

After this trip, we returned to Disney World the following year with my father in tow and the year after that as a family getaway that included about 20+ family members.  I must admit that after these first 3 Disney World trips I can't remember our various Disney vacations but there were A LOT!!!

However, my love for the Disney Magic seemed to really unfold in 2003 when I traveled to Tokyo Disneyland with my significant other  and college roommate. This was my first international Disney vacation and it still holds a special place in my heart as my all time favorite Disney experience to date (I'll review and rate each park in a separate blog entry). 

I've had the luxury of traveling all around the world and what has been the most exciting thing I've recently checked off my bucket list was going to EVERY Disney Park in the world!!!

This might not be the most exciting thing for many people because they hate crowds, the price of the parks, or just Disney in general, but for me, I've shared some of my most happiest life moments at these parks with my family and loved ones.

When I learned several years ago that they would be opening a Shanghai Disneyland, I knew I had to add that to my bucket list.  Now with 5 parks under my belt, I'm now looking forward to our trip to Shanghai this summer!!!   That's right, my trip is booked, park tickets are purchased and I'm also looking forward to seeing the Lion King in Mandarin. 

To ensure that we've got our parks covered, I added Tokyo to our trip itinerary after we leave Shanghai. Stay tuned for my blog entries regarding our trip....   

#wdw
#shanghaidisneyland
#tokyodisneyland

  








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A day with Michael Strahan & Meta

On 6/14/16, I had the opportunity to attend a wonderful event hosted by Meta at the Gramercy Park Hotel's Gramercy Terrace.  The day started off with a workout session by celebrity personal trainer Latreal (La) Mitchell.  This workout session was followed by mixed berry yogurt smoothies developed by dietary nutritionist Jessica Fishman.

 

Jessica Fishman facilitated a Q&A session with GMA host Michael Strahan and Latreal Mitchell.

 

The panel shared their workout routines, eating habits and ways to incorporate people in your life to help you maintain a healthier lifestyle. 

 

Michael discussed how he utilizes Meta Appetite Control and nutritional bars to maintain a healthy eating lifestyle. 

 

The panel was very candid about their obstacles of staying fit but stressed the importance of staying consistent and utilizing all of your resources (dancing with your kids, swimming, utilize hotel gyms while traveling) to work out on a regular basis. 

 

The day ended with photo opportunities with Michael and Q&A's with Jessica and Latreal.  All in all, it was a great start to my day!

 

#Crushcravings

#Metawellness

#MichaelStrahan

#Latreal_Mitchell

#Gramercyhotel

#GramercyTerrace

#themomgician

#momgician   

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Flying Tiger Haul

Flying Tiger Haul

 

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My Next Disney Destination..... #ShanghaiDisneyland

For those of you that don't know me and my family, we LOVE traveling to Disney theme parks!!!!  As a matter of fact, as of August 2015, I've been to EVERY Disney theme park in the world.  For the past 8 years, I've gone to a least one Disney park a year.  Within the past year, my family has gone to Walt Disney World, Florida (January 2015), Disneyland, California (February 2015),  Hong Kong Disneyland, Hong Kong (August 2015), and Disneyland Paris,  Paris (February 2016) [Full review of all the parks coming soon].  Initially, when I planned to go to Hong Kong Disneyland,  I was hoping that Disneyland Shanghai would have been open by that time, but unfortunately it was not. Which meant I would have to wait a little longer to experience Shanghai Disneyland.

  

Recently, there has been a lot of buzz surrounding the biggest Disney Castle which is currently being built at Shanghai Disneyland, and that has me really excited!!!  I have a hard time passing up a Disney adventure and I look forward to adding this to my bucket list.  Hey, I might even squeeze going to Hong Kong Disneyland during that time as well (it's been over 10 years since I've gone there).

I do hope and pray that the staff at this Disneyland park is much friendlier than at Hong Kong Disneyland (my experience at Hong Kong Disneyland was the worst Disneyland park experience I've ever had in my life, I'll share that in a future post)....    

I have high hopes for Shanghai Disneyland and I'm looking forward to the Disney magic but Shanghai style!!!!  

#ShanghaiDisneyland 
#waltdisney 
#disneyworld

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Sorry, No Refunds.....

Imagine if parenting was just like going shopping, you could pick out just what you want, in the perfect size, color and style...  Wouldn't life be great?  Well, parenting is like going shopping, well, sort of....  We pick out our mates, in the size, color and style that we wanted.  Then we get a finished product, our little bundles of joy!!!!

There are some items in which we purchase that seem like the best investment ever and then there are items in which we wonder, what was I thinking when I purchased this?!?!?!

Well, parenting can feel pretty much like this on a regular basis.  Some days you feel as if you could not imagine life without your child(ren) and other days, you start to rethink your life choices....

 A few months ago, I was having a really hard time with one of my children.  When I say a hard time, I mean the kind in which you cry and ask yourself, "What did I do in life to deserve this?" I was at my wits end and didn't know what i was going to do.

On days in which I start to rethink why the heck did I decide to be a parent, I try to utilize an outlet to relieve my stress.  My outlet is crafting!!!!  I love paper crafting and digital designing for parties.  I like to think outside of the box and create unique things.  This takes me to a happy place and helps me get away mentally from my day to day stressors.  Even if its for a few moments, it make all of the difference in the manner in which I respond to my children on those VERY stressful days.

Since resources might be scarce for some people to have child(ren) free moments, finding an outlet is essential for survival.  Whether it's reading, music, watching TV or hanging out with friends, we all need HEALTHY outlets in life, otherwise we can lose control faster than a tantruming 3 year old. 

Just like everyone, The Momgician has both good and bad days.... However, I am grateful for the resources I have in my life and my hobbies.

Thankfully, I have more good days than bad.  I've dreamed of being a parent since I was a little girl and I wouldn't trade being one for ANYTHING in the world! 

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