Disney World Trip – Day 1

WDW Day 1 - 7.25.2010
Click the photo above to see the whole album. This is Nadia and I at the airport early in the morning.

This is the first of many posts about our vacation to Disney World. We had a wonderful time despite sweating to death, but we knew that was coming. What really helped was going back to our room to nap each day and having a washer/dryer in our room. We stayed at the Bay Lake Tower which is the new building at the Contemporary resort. It’s the newest building for the Disney Vacation Club, but we just stayed there like a normal hotel. Here is a shot of the living room and kitchen. The kitchen table can easily seat 6 and the kitchen was fully stocked. There was a second bathroom also so this would be a great set up for people with multiple kids. The master had a king sized bed and the living room had a pull out couch and chair. I also loved all the Disney art for decorations.

WDW Day 1 - 7.25.2010

Here is the view from the living room.

WDW Day 1 - 7.25.2010

Once arriving in Orlando we got a ride to the Bay Lake Tower and our room wasn’t ready so we headed to a restaurant in the Contemporary called “The Wave”. The food was awesome especially the crab cake and shrimp appetizer. The waiter offered us a smoothie for Nadia that came with a light up tinkerbell or Buzz Lightyear. Of course we picked Buzz and when he brought it Nadia had the most delighted look on her face. She was also thrilled that he lit up blue and could clip on to your clothes. It was the perfect way to start our trip! Nadia was so happy.

WDW Day 1 - 7.25.2010

Our room was ready when we finished and so we went straight up to have a nap. After that we met up with Eddie, Kim, Evan, Julie, Claire and Reagan at the pool. We asked them if they wanted to join us for a quick trip over to the Magic Kingdom to at least check out the Buzz Light Year Space Ranger spin. We walked up Main Street and got Fast Passes for Buzz (one of the best inventions Disney has come up with). The kids and I went on “Stitches Wild Ride” which used to be the Alien Encounter. Stitch promptly spit on me during the ride which was pretty funny. We rode the Buzz Lightyear ride and Nadia wanted to ride again but the line was too long. We came out to the gift shop and she immediately fell in love with a plush Little Green Man who also talks and moves. I told her we weren’t getting toys on the first day, but if she still wanted him we would get him later in the week. He has now joined us almost everywhere we have gone since coming home 🙂

WDW Day 1 - 7.25.2010

WDW Day 1 - 7.25.2010

WDW Day 1 - 7.25.2010

WDW Day 1 - 7.25.2010

WDW Day 1 - 7.25.2010

We headed back to our hotel and picked up a quick dinner to eat in our room and get to sleep because the big breakfast at Cinderella’s castle was early the next morning. Getting to see the fireworks from our balcony was AWESOME!!! It really ended up being a highlight of mine each night.

I asked Nadia what she liked best about our day and she said, “The Buzz ride and the Little Green Man.”

Trying Out My New Camera

Last week I got a Canon 7D to replace my 10D, which in the digital SLR camera world is now almost equivalent to stone knives and bear skins (actually it’s not that bad…it is probably more like having a musket). It was the top-of-the-line “prosumer” camera when I got it about 6+ years ago, and I think it is still a great camera, but there are quite a few features that the 7D has that I wanted, and I figured is was finally time for an upgrade. I also got a new, more versatile zoom lens that’s pretty highly rated (an EF-S 15-85mm, just in case anyone actually cares). Although it’s not quite “pro” quality, because those lenses run about 3-5 times the price, I’m still pretty satisfied.

Several days ago I gave them a good test, setting up a white backdrop and some flashes, and did a mini-photo shoot of Nadia. I’ve never done this sort of shoot with her before. Seven months ago I did a little session for Christmas with the tree in the background, and well over a year ago I did a shoot of her at the Fort Worth Botanical Gardens, which was fantastic. But I was anxious to see how this setup with the white backdrop would turn out, because it is my favorite style and I think it’s what I do best. She was NOT cooperative at all, but I pushed through it and I think they turned out fabulous. I’m quite pleased. I ended up with 47 shots that I thought were worth saving, and I’ve posted what I think are the top 22. Below are several of my favorites. Click on the first picture to see the whole album on the Photos page.

June 29, 2010
Click the above photo to view the whole album.

June 29, 2010

June 29, 2010

June 29, 2010

June 29, 2010

June 29, 2010

June 29, 2010
This one sums up her attitude through much of the shoot. 🙂

Father’s Day 2010

Here we are at Pappasito’s. YUM!

Father's Day 2010

I had some photos taken of Nadia and I to surprise Mike for Father’s Day. Nadia did great and didn’t say anything, but she was DYING for him to wake up this morning to open it. She also got him a Toy Story Father’s Day card that played the theme song from the first movie. Here are the 3 poses I choose to have printed.

Father's Day 2010

Father's Day 2010

Father's Day 2010

Project 52

I KNOW that I am like 2 months behind on this and the thought of trying to catch up bums me out, so I am going to start fresh next week 🙂