switching gears

Since I'm not in Disney anymore, I'm going to start using my other blog for updates. I'll keep this one up for updates, stories, whatever comes to mind about Disney, but for the most part I'll use the other blog for whatever. i like blogging, so I think I'll keep it up. :) Follow me at

www.callifrog.blogspot.com

ending a chapter

Just a quick update tonight-
I'm sitting in my living room surrounded by boxes and piles of all kinds of stuff and just finished my last day of work at yacht and beach club. It's such a strange feeling! I don't even know how to handle it all. I'm feeling so many things, and i know I'll feel more over the next couple days.
Tonight ended the way these things should always end. My last guest tonight asked me if I would mind if she put me on her prayer list. How incredible is that?! We were just talking about how it was my last night and that i was going back home, and she asked me if she could pray for me. I cannot think of a better way to end my last night at work. Then we spent time taking pictures, signing photos and things, and lots of hugs. It was so incredible.

I feel so weird- happy, sad, excited, scared, probably the same things everyone else is feeling. I was describing it to a friend from work and my roommate, that i just have this feeling like anything in the world could happen right now. It's that overwhelming, exillerating, scary, and exciting feeling like the world is literally at your fingertips. I've never known what that felt like before, but it's such a wonderful feeling. i wish I could describe it better, but there just aren't words. Not sure if I'll get to write again before i leave in only 31 hours, probably not, but I'll write once i get home and settled in again. I have so much to say, but I'm just can't even find the words just yet.

Happy new year!

I was looking back at a blog i did last year about my new years resolutions for 2011, and i realized that i managed to meet all of my goals last year, but I never would have done it had i not come to Disney. These were my goals last year:
1- Allow myself to be loved- I did meet this goal because in moving to a new place, I didn't know anyone. i had to make new friends and i did, from all over the country. i have 4 roommates that I'd do anything for, and that love me for me, as crazy as I am. i let myself get closer to people than I normally do being here, and i am so glad that I did.
2-Choose to be happy- clearly this one is a no brainer. I'm in Disneyworld for goodness sake! I am extremely happy, so much more so than I have been in years.
3-Have more fun. Again, I'm in Disney. I didn't do as much as i wanted to, but I definitely had more fun than I have in a long time.
4-Reconnect with God- I knew i was right where God wanted me to be in being here. I may not have been to church since I've been here, but I feel closer to God now than i did back home. We're on much better terms right now.
5- Be Calli. Since being here, i realized that I haven't changed so much as I've realized who I am and that I am good enough. I know who I am now, and i am perfectly good enough. i didn't have to be anyone else here but me, and i was accepted.
6-Encourage others- i hope I met this one, at least i feel like i have. I tried to be encouraging to my fellow cast members, and i really hope they feel like I was.
7-Take time to be creative- this one has turned out much harder since I've been here because i don't have the room or my supplies, but I have so many ideas for when I get home. I've also done a ton more photography, so I don't think my creativity has stunted while I've been here. If anything, with the help of pinterest, it has increased.
8-Take care of Calli first- I've done much better at taking care of myself. I've been eating so much better since I've been here, mostly because i am not eating out nearly as much, but I also make better choices when I do go out.
9- Take care of physical self- I've lost a lot of weight since I've been here, which has been awesome. I walk everywhere. Loosing weight did not have the effect i hoped that it would though. i hoped it would lessen the pain in my joints, but it didn't. Kind of bummed about that, but what can you do?
10- Never grow up- I wear a costume everyday at work. I've also got to trick or treat with kids at the resort, get to play with kids everyday, and even got to wear a silly hat for new years. I was more of a kid these last few months than i have been in a while, and it's been amazing.
11- Prioritize- i didn't do what a lot of other CP's did this semester, as in I didn't really go out and party at all, but that's not my thing. i think what I did was figure out what my priorities are, and partying isn't one of them. I feel like i will be more focused this year and really do have my priorities in order, more so than I did before.
12- Get it done now- ok, this one needs work. I guess i didn't make all my goals year, but 11 out of 12 isn't bad! It's still an A. :)

For 2012, I'm not really doing goals. I follow a blog by Ali Edwards, who is a great scrapbooker. She chooses one word each year and that is her word for the whole year. I really like this idea, and for 2012 my word is open. Being opened to new ideas, new people, new experiences. Letting things happen how they are meant to instead of controlling everything. Just being open to whatever comes next.

Happy 2012! I'm bringing lots of faith, trust, and pixie dust into this year, and i can't wait to see what happens!

a disney DIY

So, I recently discovered this great website called Pinterest, which if you are not on it you would not know that this website is one that a person like me should NOT be on! There are all kinds of DIY projects, recipes, crafts, decor, etc on this site and I spend a little too much time on it already. Anyway, i found this recipe there via a friends blog, and decided it would be perfect for my friends at work for Christmas. i wanted to do something, but we certainly don't make enough money to buy presents for everyone, and you can't do some and not others, and i already spent too much money on my family for christmas, and maybe bought myself a few presents too. :) So, here's my project. Mickey ornaments:

1. Get your ingredients together. You don't need much- just salt, flour, and water. 2. Mix 1/2 cup salt and 1 cup flour.

3. Add 1/2 cup water.

4. mix flour, salt and water.5. kneed the dough a little bit to make sure everything is combined together.

6. Roll the dough out on a flat surface, I did between a 1/4 and 1/2 inch, preferably with a rolling pin and not the water bottle like i improvised with. Hey, whatever works. Cut the dough out with a cookie cutter in whatever shape you want. i chose Mickey because it's for my Disney friends.

7. Place the shapes on a baking sheet. Be sure to cut out a hole so that you can hang the ornaments after they are done. i used a pen top and it worked perfectly. The dough is very easy to cut.

8. bake shapes at 200 degrees for 4 hours. i needed to do them longer. You don't want the dough to be soft. It needs to be durable, so longer is better. ***fair warning: if you try to bake them faster at a higher temperature, they will burn. I experimented. :)***

9. Once the shapes have cooled- I let mine sit overnight- you can decorate them however you choose. i painted mine black because Mickey is black, plus I had another idea I wanted to do with them. I used ceramic paint, but you could use anything.

10. Once the paint is all dry- thanks to my roomie Amanda for painting mine while i was at work!- I wanted them to say our resort name on the ornament so everyone would remember our time together. i used a silver sharpie to write on my ornaments and it worked perfectly.

All my ornaments have CP on one ear (for college program), the year of our program on the other ear, and our resort name in the middle.

Last but not least, simply string ribbon through the hole you made before baking and all done!

i sure hope they all like their presents!

What's around the riverbend

So, in the last couple weeks i have had some really tough decisions that i have had to make. Couple that with the fact that all of papers for the semester were due Thursday, I was deployed to another resort, and we had our winter formal on Monday, and very few other things were done, like cleaning my room and this blog. The cleaning will hopefully happen as soon as I'm done here. (hey, i have my priorities. :) )

Being here in Florida has done so much for me. I've grown as a person so much. I've become much more daring, more relaxed, not quite so stressed all the time. I feel like i have changed for the better in so many ways. It's been incredible. i came here hoping for that to happen, expecting it to happen, and willing to allow it to happen, and it did. i couldn't be happier about it. I've met some incredible people, and our stories together are not done yet. I have the most incredible managers at work and i don't want to work somewhere else. I've been put on the magical moments team and was recently put on another team at work, the camera cast, and only person was chosen from each department, and that was me. I have so much going for me here.

But (don't you hate that word?) I still have two classes left to finish at Grand Valley, and to answer the next question, no they cannot be taken online. It's not worth transferring to some school here for two classes, especially when they will probably add more classes for me to take anyway to complete their degree program. Besides that, my dream has been to have a degree from Grand Valley since as long as I can remember. That is really important to me. So, what do I do? Leave this place that absolutely love and these projects I've been selected for in order to finish school, or give up the dream of GV degree and probably go to school even longer?

January 6th I will be coming back to Grand Rapids. I've really struggled with this decision, but I do think it is the right thing to do. i have the option of staying on at yacht and beach club as seasonal, so I would still be a cast member and could come down during spring break or long weekends and work a few hours. Before i leave, i will be setting up a meet and greet with convention services through a manager i met about a week ago. We were talking about what i wanted to eventually get into and i told her meeting and event planning, and she gave me her number and said that she would love to set up a meet and greet with me and convention services because she thinks I'd be a great fit there. Me! She, having talked with me for less than an hour, thinks I'm good enough! I've never had someone say things like that or feel that way about me until I came here. Here, I'm good enough, just as I am. Back home i don't feel like i am good enough. i feel like i am constantly having to prove myself to everyone, my family, my friends, my church, my job, and even then I'm still not good enough.

I think that's another lesson I've learned here. I am good enough. Back home I feel like no one sees my potential even when I am busting my butt doing and being everything to everyone. Here, I don't have to work as hard to impress people- they see me for me. They love me for me. I'm worth it. Damn it, I'm good enough!

Coming home will be tough, but I will get through it. I always do. I will finish my classes and then hopefully be able to come back to Orlando once i graduate. At least that's the plan. Knowing that there is the option to come back makes this decision so much easier. It isn't all or nothing. I still need to find an internship back home, and that will be my mission this week (that and getting my christmas presents wrapped and shipped and my cards mailed- oh boy...). Coming home will help me though because i'll be able to save up some money, work on getting a car (anyone care to help me with that?) and get my debt paid off from the irresponsibleness of being young with a credit card (again, if anyone wants to help with that, I'm not too proud!). If i can get my debt paid off, which is going to be tough but i can do it, then I can move back to Orlando with only my student loan debt. I'm so glad to know that i can come back.

Home is going to be different though. Be forwarned: I am not the girl that left in August. I have become much more outspoken (believe it or not). i feel more comfortable in my own skin, which makes a huge difference. Don't expect to talk to the same passive Calli that just takes whatever people through at her and doesn't say anything back. I'm not her. i've learned to stand up for myself and say what i mean. I'm not going to be walked over anymore. I'm learning that "no" is a complete sentence. i feel like I'm more fun too, more willing to just go and do whatever, be silly. I hope that you can see the differences in me when i come home.

I'm not really looking forward to the next couple weeks. Christmas without my family will be hard. Saying goodbye to this place will be even harder. In the mean time, I'm going to enjoy this short time i have left to the fullest. i have to! Disney wasn't coined "the happiest place on earth" for no reason afterall.

For these, I am truly thankful

This thanksgiving, i have so much to be thankful for. i almost don't even know where to start!
1. I am thankful for my mom and brother who have been so supportive of me and moving to Florida. They supported me even when everyone else thought I was crazy.
2. i am thankful for my family. It's so weird not being with them this thanksgiving, and i will definitely miss family dinner and all our interesting, and completely inappropriate, dinner conversations.
3. i am thankful for my wonderful job that i enjoy doing every day and that has led to more opportunities than I thought possible with the magical moments team I was put on.
4. i am thankful for my managers who are simply the best. i got really lucky.
5. i am thankful for my amazing fellow cast members who i love to see every day at work and who make me laugh all the time. Again, I got really lucky.
6. i am thankful to live in Florida and being able to go to Disneyworld whenever i want. :)
7. i am thankful to have 4 amazing roommates who all get along and who I want to hang out with. Not everyone likes their roommates and mine have become my family here.
8. i am thankful for my friends back home who have been supportive of my move here.
9. i am thankful for my professor who has been so patient with me and getting my assignments turned in much later than the original due dates. :)
10. i am thankful for the chance to prove people wrong. i know that one sounds kind of mean, but i know some people who read this blog who were not supportive of me when i first applied to this program and who didn't think I would stay. I am glad that i was strong enough to prove those people wrong.

I could probably go on and on of things i am thankful for today, but those are my top choices.
I hope everyone has a wonderful thanksgiving and enjoys the time spent with friends and family.

we interrupt this broadcast...

I know I've been slacking on blogging lately, but things are crazy busy here in good old Orlando.

I promise to catch up soon.