Drinking Around Epcot Plus Grand Marnier Slush Recipe

Yum

Did you know: Walt Disney originally wanted to open Disney World in St. Louis but changed his mind because the Anheuser-Busch Corporation said anyone who thought they could open a place without beer in that city was nuts! Those of you who have attended Disneyland in CA may have noticed that you can only purchase alcohol in the California Adventure park. Guess the Disney team wanted to preserve Walt’s wishes on the West Coast, but in Florida, Disney World has quickly become a different story.

By now, knowing my Disney obsession and all, it shouldn't surprise you that back in '08, I spent my 21^st Birthday celebration in Disney World. My parents told me I could pick anywhere, Vegas, Miami, NYC…. Nope, this girl picked Disney World. You see, growing up I was always fascinated by the different food and drink offered in Epcot and I wanted to finally be able to “Drink Around The World”. I’ll admit, I was a lightweight back then... (still am). I made it through about 4 out of the 11 countries on a 90 degree day in August before throwing in the towel.

On a recent trip to WDW for Food Blog Forum, my blogger bestie, Jessica from My Baking Heart and I took our Prince Charmings and decided we were going to Drink Around The World in an attempt to redeem myself. I’ll say, I made an impressive dent in my past record but I wasn't able to check every country off the list. While I still have a ways to go, I thought I would at least put together a guide for those of you who want to take on the challenge! I’ll do my best to update with better pictures as the years go on as well!

Starting in Canada and going counter-clockwise, here it goes!

The Grey Stuff Recipe: Cookies N' Cream Mousse

Yum

As promised in an earlier post, I’ll be continuing to recap my trip to Walt Disney World and Food Blog Forum a few more times. This post was inspired by my highly anticipated dining experience at Be Our Guest located in the New Fantasyland inside Magic Kingdom. As I’m sure you know by now, not only am I a “Disneyaholic” but I also share the name of a beloved character from Disney’s Beauty and the Beast… Mrs. Potts. That’s why it was only fitting that I find a way to eat at the new magical restaurant. Now mind you, Be Our Guest is the hardest restaurant to get a reservation at in WDW. It books up 180 days in advance! That’s why when I heard that they were doing a special walk-in lunch service, I had to try it out.

On our last day in Disney, The Mr. and I decided to try our luck and went over to Be Our Guest to put our name on the waiting list for lunch. To our surprise, the host told us that there was no list, just about a 15 minute wait if we wanted to do the quick service option. Um, YES! Within 15 minutes we had ordered our lunch and found a table in the grand ballroom and our French Dip sandwiches were brought over to us about 5 minutes later! I’ll say that for “quick service” Disney food, this sandwich was wonderful!

One thing that Be Our Guest has become known for is serving “The Grey Stuff”. Unfortunately, that is something they only serve at dinner… but fortunately for you, it inspired the following recipe!

The 3 Best Gourmet Bites in Disney World, Plus What I Learned atFoodBlog Forum 2015

Those of you who follow along on social media saw all the fun happenings from my time at Food Blog Forum held at Walt Disney World last week. I like to call Food Blog Forum the "creme de la creme" of Food Blogging conferences. If selling out in 2 seconds flat is any indication as to how popular this conference is, it's no surprise that Disney World and the other sponsors were about to go above and beyond to make our experience stellar! 

There are plenty of ways I could recap this experience and I promise you that there will be mini-recaps in my upcoming recipe posts too but for this post, I'm going to just give you a quick play-by-play followed by an "appe-teaser" of a few of my favorite dishes from the fabulous lunch the team at Walt Disney World served us. 

Early Friday morning, The Mr. and I hopped a flight from LAX to MCO. After a little over 4 hours in the sky, we had touched down in Orlando and were ready to go... maybe me a little more so than The Mr.

Thanks to Disney’s Magical Express we didn't have to worry about waiting for our luggage at baggage claim, the team at Disney picked up our bags and delivered them to the hotel within a few hours. I picture little birds and woodland creatures marching around picking up the luggage off the turnstile. Once we were on the Magical Express bus, it was about a 30-40 minute ride over to the Grand Floridian.

If you've read my past FBF recaps, you’ll know that I've dubbed this hotel “The Ritz Carlton of Disney” and it’s no secret why. The property is gorgeous, the service is great, and the convenience of being on the Monorail track is unparalleled. Upon pulling up, I quickly darted to check-in. You see, I had to make my way over to The Four Season Orlando to meet up with the rest of the FBF group for an opening cocktail reception. 

Since I had already missed that bus, literally, I shared an Uber with Jenny of Picky Palate and my girl Heather from Heather Likes Food. In no time at all we were reunited with our fellow Bloggers to nosh and chat! 

I have to say, there are a LOT of conferences out there for bloggers and some of them are very similar. You’ll have a session on food photography, one on monetization, and may even get to chat with a few brand reps. But, to me, the most valuable thing that I get out of a conference is the one on one time with fellow bloggers. They are the ones who have the same questions you do, deal with the same frustrations, and trying to make this passion into a full time gig. I am very grateful for the women (and men) that I have met through blogging conferences and am so glad that I have them in my virtual community to rely on.

My wonderful Blogger Buddies! My Baking Heart, Heather Likes Food, and The Kitchen Prep.

After the reception, it was back over to the hotel to meet up with the Mr. for dinner. My blogging-bestie, Jessica from My Baking Heart brought her hubby too so we had a double date over at Ohana in the Polynesian Resort. We dined on Hawaiian fare, tropical cocktails, and even had a chance to watch the fireworks at Magic Kingdom through their giant picture windows. It was great! We wrapped up the night a little early knowing that we had a BIG day of learning ahead of us!

With my trusty Kasey’s Kitchen notebook and a hot green tea in my hand, I was ready for a full day of learning, innovation, and inspiration. Here’s the Reader’s Digest version since I really could go on for hours…

The day was kicked off by a talk with Victoria Finn of Disney Creative. Her job is to create cool things for Disney. I repeat, her JOB is to create cool things for Disney. Obviously this woman had my undivided attention right away. She was captivating, talking about how to stay creative and how to brainstorm in all of her Tina-Fey-like-adorableness. I wish I could have just 15 minutes with her to pick her brain. Talk about my dream job!

Next up was a talk from Todd and Diane of White on Rice Couple. If you’re familiar with these two, you know that their food photography is out of this world. They spoke for about an hour on different techniques and tips to elevate your photography and food styling. My favorite quote from Diane was, “Take a bite, cut it up, make it real” in regards to the food that you shoot… however I think that philosophy applies to life as well.

The following session was from Bjork and Lindsay Ostrom of Pinch of Yum along with Jaden from Steamy Kitchen. They spoke to use about new monetization strategies and the concept of being “Expert Enough”, meaning that you don’t have to be the top authority on something to confidently talk about it. This all played into Jaden’s tips for knowing your worth as a blogger and negotiating.

In my opinion, we were spoiled by the next session. Enid, the Community Manager from Pinterest came in and spoke to us on how we can maximize our exposure on the site. As a blogger, you are pretty much self-taught in all aspects of “job”. You have to learn how to be your own agent, marketing consultant, branding specialist, social media manager, photographer and for me, chef! The fact that we had someone on hand from one of the top traffic drivers for blogs was so valuable! If there’s one tip I can share from Enid it’s stop posting horizontal pictures on Pinterest. It’s a waste of space!

The session after lunch (don’t worry, I’ll get to lunch in a minute) were the Expert Roundtable Discussions. They broke us up into small rooms with about 10-12 bloggers in each room. Each speaker from the conference as well as brand reps, would come into the rooms for 15 minutes each and we could just ask them whatever we wanted. It was awesome! Real, raw conversation with top bloggers, brand reps, and photographers. To me, this was the most valuable time from the conference. I’m so glad they did this, it’s what many of the other conferences I've gone to in the past were lacking. 

Okay, Okay. Now the important part, THE FOOD! We were absolutely spoiled by the Food and Beverage team at Walt Disney World, which I'm not going to lie, I was relieved after the last FBF in WDW lunch experience (serving kids meals to food bloggers...no thanks). Set in the beautiful California Grill in the Contemporary Resort, a dozen or so chefs from the top Disney restaurants from all over the resort to share their top dishes with us. It was phenomenal.

There were dozens of fabulous dishes to try but here are my favorites... in no particular order. Pardon the iPhone pictures...there was no way I was delaying my dining to fumble with the DSLR.

1. Braised Pork Belly with Goat Cheese Polenta and Country Applesauce from California Grill - Ok, maybe there's an order because this dish was by far my favorite. The candy-like crystallization on the pork belly was what foodie dreams are made of. Oh, and the creamy polenta was the prefect compliment. I could have eaten at least five of these bad boys, but two had to suffice.

2. Sauteed Shrimp and Scallops with Seasonal Vegetables and Mushrooms served in Puff Pastry with a Creamy Lobster Sauce from Be Our Guest - I'm now seeing what all the rage over BOG is about. The food is incredible, especially for a Magic Kingdom restaurant which in my experience has always been, meh. This dish was rich in flavor, showcasing the beauty of the seafood and pairing it with a french flair with the light Puff Pastry. C'est Magnifique!

3. Braised Beef "Bolognese" with House-made Cavatelli from Trattoria al Forno at Disney's Boardwalk. Being the known Pasta-holic that I am, it's not wonder that I fell for the carbolicious dish! What I found interesting was the spin on a traditional bolognese sauce by using a beautiful braised beef instead of the traditional ground beef. So hearty and comforting!

Food Bloggers at Work!! 

The major knowledge nugget I took away from FBF is to stop comparing myself to other bloggers. It's a vicious trap that I find myself in from time to time (I blame Los Angeles) but it's so easy to get discouraged when you see other bloggers doing things or working with brands and you instantly think that you must not be good enough or that you're not doing things the right way. In the final session led by Elise Bauer of Simply Recipes, she talked about how useless it is to compare yourself to others. Even Elise, who has been running one of the top recipe sites for years falls victim to "Blogger Burnout" and admitted that comparison is the often the culprit.

Want to see more from my trip to Food Blog Forum and Walt Disney World? Check out my Instagram feed or search #KKinDisney! 

What To Wear in Disney!

If you follow along on social media, you may have seen that I’ll be heading back to Walt Disney World to attend this year’s Food Blog Forum conference. For those of you unfamiliar with this event, it is the coming together of some of the top Food Bloggers from around the country (Check out my recap from the last time I went, here) .
To give you an idea of the brevity this conference has, if you didn't log on to register at 10:59:58 (registration opened at 11:00am) you were out of luck. Yup, it sold out in 2 SECONDS FLAT!! Clearly the pixie dust was on my side because by some miracle, I made it in to the registration page and the rest is history.

Now, it’s no secret that I have a love affair with all things Disney. I mean I've worked for "The Mouse", had a Disney shrine in my basement as a child, and there’s even rumors that I may have been conceived in Disney World, so it’s only natural that I take advantage of every opportunity that involves The Happiest Place on Earth. That being said, this will be my 36^th trip to Walt Disney World… yeah I know. A little nuts. But, again, I worked for the company for 6 years! The rest… I got no excuse :-P

Anyway! After receiving the confirmation notice for Food Blog Forum (FBF) I instantly started planning my wardrobe.What.... that's not normal?

However, I felt that this time, things were a little different. Being an Annual Pass holder here in SoCal for Disneyland, I've become very aware of how important it is to remain cool and comfortable while gallivanting around the parks but God forbid you sacrifice the cuteness level of an outfit, right!? During my past few trips to the park I've paired some of my black workout pants with Disney-esque tops and have been comfy from the time I set foot in the park until the last firework goes off. You may not realize this but you can clock some pretty solid mileage during a typical Disney trip. My record so far is 18,000 steps in one day! Thank you, FitBit!

This got me thinking… what if I put together some super cute, yet comfy outfits that are inspired by my favorite Disney characters?? I've seen tons of people in the parks wearing their “cosplay” outfits and other Disney-inspired duds, so why not? I mean we've all see the adorable outfits put together on Pinterest!

photo courtesy of Pinterest

So when I think cute, comfortable, and resilient (I mean the parks are open for over 12 hours, people) I instantly thought of my favorite activewear brand, Lorna Jane! With over 100 new styles released every month, there was no shortage of options when it came to piecing together these outfits!

Here are a few of my favorite combos:

Inspired by Frozen

Shop This Look:

Destiny Zip Up

Michie Bra

Rebellion Tights

Excel Zip Up

Archer Tank

Core Stability Tights (Similar and On Sale!)

Continue reading more and enter to win a Lorna Jane tank!

Inspired by The Nightmare Before Christmas

Shop The Look:

Destiny Zip Up (similar)

Tank

Tigress Tights

Inspired by Minnie Mouse

Shop This Look:

Mercury Jacket (Similar and On Sale!)

Kody Bra

Amy Tights (Similar)

Tieks

Inspired by Disney's Animal Kingdom

 

Shop This Look:

Feline Biker Jacket

Feline Tights (Similar)

Quilted Cheetah Top (Only Available in AUS)

Cheetah Tieks

Inspired by Sleeping Beauty

Shop This Look

Daria Hoodie (Similar)

Mika Bra

Skillful Tights

To see more Disney Inspired Looks I created along with my blogger bestie My Baking Heart, follow along on Pinterest here:

Follow Kasey's Kitchen's board Foodies Shedding Booties on Pinterest.

Score a Lorna Jane Inspiration Tank by entering the contest below! 

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Disney World MUST Eats!

As some of you might know, I was lucky enough to get into this year's Food Blog Forum in Walt Disney World! In anticipation, I've been doing some research and checking out things I might actually not yet know about my favorite place, ever (this will be trip 36 to WDW :-P )

During my research, I stumbled upon this post from Disney Food Blog that totally got my tummy rumbling! It made me think back to all the yummy treats I love in the happiest place on earth and I decided to share a list (read: to-eat list) of my own! Oh and don't worry West Coasters, lots of these are in Disneyland too!

Croissant au jambon et fromage at Boulangerie Patisserie inside The French Pavillion

It’s about as French as you can get without a passport. This buttery, flaky, pastry houses tender slices of ham and gooey, melty cheese that will leave you saying, Sacré bleu! Don’t forget to grab a few sweets for later. Nothing curbs a sweet tooth while you’re in line for Test Track quite like a macaron! 

Mahalo to my blogger bestie Jessica from 

My Baking Heart for snapping this photo. 

Dole Whip located at Aloha Isle and inside Disney’s Polynesian Resort

A standard treat that has gained a cult following. This pineapple soft serve is one of the most sought after sweets in the whole Disney corporation (might be a slight exaggeration). You can find this treat in both WDW and Disneyland (Adventureland) but be sure to check the hours of operation for the stands, they don’t always coincide with the park hours. Oh, here’s a tip – Disneyland’s version is a bit creamier than WDW so if that’s your kind of thing, ask for the swirl in Orlando! 

Grand Marnier Orange Slush outside The French Pavillion

This treat has been a favorite of mine since I tried it for the first time on my 21^st birthday as I “Drank Around The World”. This drink is not for the lightweights out there. It goes down WAY too smooth on a hot Florida day and will leave you feeling a little Dopey if you’re not careful. Granted, that may have been the other 6 countries talkin’. 

Bahn Mi at The Land Pavillion in Epcot

This is one of the most unsuspecting finds in WDW. I actually stumbled upon this delicious Bahn Mi during my last trip to WDW for Food Blog Forum. Though it strikes out on the bread category (would much rather have a traditional baguette) the flavor is amazing! The fresh cilantro and pickles carrots are perfection. A tip on this one… try to go to The Land during the off-lunch hours. Seems everyone and their mother (literally) now know that The Land has awesome food. 

A good friend will let you take this photo... 

a best friend will let you post it on your blog. Thanks Swifty!

Turkey Legs - Magic Kingdom and Animal Kingdom in WDW, Liberty Square in Disneyland

Just follow the scent… you’ll find them! And don’t believe what you hear, they are not Emu or Ostrich legs or whatever other crazy nonsense that’s going around. These giant hunks of poultry are smoked, giving them the taste of ham more than turkey. Be prepared, they are messy and super salty. You’ll want to hydrate. 

Butternut Squash Soup at Wolfgang Puck Express

This has been one of my staples for as long as I can remember. If you head over to Downtown Disney for some shopping, don’t bother waiting the 2+ hour wait for the big restaurants. Stop by Wolfgang Puck Express for the Butternut Squash soup and a side of the Mac & Cheese. As you can tell from my chats with old Wolfy, Mac & Cheese is his go-to when he serves celebs, so why not try it for yourself while in Disney!

Mickey Pretzel

As my cousin (who doesn't know I posted this... this will be proof if he reads my blog or not) so eloquently shows, the Mickey Pretzel is the perfect “hold you over before dinner” snack. Super soft and chewy with just the right amount of salt and depending on where you get it from, you may even be able to score some dipping sauces!

Corn Dogs

I’m just gonna put this out there… but these are probably the best corn dogs you’re ever going to put in your mouth. The batter is perfection and the dog inside is substantial enough that you don’t get that awkward layer of air in-between the shell. In Disneyland you can find them on Main Street and in California Adventure. As for WDW, you can find them at Herbie’s Drive-In at Disney’s Hollywood Studios, the Beastly kiosk in Animal Kingdom, and Westward Ho Refreshments in Magic Kingdom. 

Ghiradelli Sundaes

You don’t have to be in the Bay Area to enjoy this San Francisco treat! Grab a sundae (or two) from Ghiradelli at Downtown Disney. My personal fave is the Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough with Hot Fudge and Peanut Butter Sauce. NOT #FoodiesSheddingBooties approved but oh so good. In Disneyland? Find Ghiradelli on the wharf in California Adventure.

              

Pulled Pork Sandwiches from Flame Tree BBQ

It has come to my attention that Flame Tree BBQ at Animal Kingdom is currently under renovation. Hence, the devastating images above. When I tell you that this place has the best stinkin’ barbeque sauce, I’m not messing around. The combination of sweet and tangy sauce on the slow roasted shredded pork and topped with a vinegar based coleslaw… heaven. Clearly, you must be able to understand my devastation. Sources say the new and improved Flame Tree will be open in Spring 2015. We’ll see about that. 

So there's my top 10... in no particular order. What are your favorite foods in Disney?! Comment below! 

A Bit More Disney! FBF Recap Part 2

So as some of you know, I had the chance to spend last weekend in Walt Disney World at the Food Blog Forum 2013 Conference.

Take 100 of the most talented Food Bloggers from all over the country, stick them in the happiest place on earth and what do you get? You are about to find out...

You can read about my journey getting to the conference here.

I had spent the night prior to the conference at another Disney hotel with Heather of Heather Likes Food. She and I hit it off right away, which is a good thing because she was in store for "Kasey's Disney Whirlwind Tour". This is an event that can easily make or break any friendship.

We raced over to Disney's Grand Floridian first thing Friday morning (with the Jefferson's theme song in our heads). I mean, can you get a load of this place. As I like to call it... The Ritz Carlton of Disney World.

Does anyone recognize that piano?? Hint: Think TGIF!

After we received our official FBF 2013 badges it was up to the monorail to hit up Epcot. A land of rides, innovation and food from around the world. Yeah, this is pretty much the number one park for a foodie. 

After a spin on the new Test Track, lunch at The Land and a Grand Mariner Slushie in France, it was time to head back to the hotel and freshen up before the Welcome Reception.

Heather and I playing in "Paris", Lemon Tarts, Grand Marnier Slushies and Mrs Potts!

We bolted back to the hotel in time to get situated in our rooms and I had the chance to meet my new roomie. Alicia (Alicia Carlson Photography) and I were assigned to room together and come to find out, we both majored in Broadcast Journalism at Emerson College and had plenty of stories to share about one grueling professor. I guess it really is a small world after all! Sorry, couldn't resist.

Alicia and I at the conference. Making Marsha proud!

We enjoyed a brief reception in the Convention Center lobby which felt like a Meet and Greet of all the wonderful people I've been chatting with the few months leading up to the event. We were presented with a selection of intricate dishes that are offered at Disney's Grand Floridian. I wish I had a bit more time to enjoy the food but it was hard to chat and chow down at the same time.

Shortly after, it was time for me to hop on the Disney Transportation bus to MGM (Disney Hollywood Studios - but I refuse to call it that) for an intimate dinner hosted by Glam Media and Foodie.com at The Brown Derby. It was wonderful to have the chance to talk to a group of bloggers on a smaller scale and learn more about the opportunities that are out there for us. We enjoyed a number of elaborate appetizers and I even had my first bite of Bison!

Jessica (My Baking Heart) and I enjoying our specialty cocktails up top and of course a fun group shot!

The Conference Day started bright and early at 8am and was non-stop until 5:30. It was PACKED with information and inspiration from FBF founders Jaden and Scott Hair (Steamy Kitchen), Todd Porter and Diane Cu (White On Rice Couple). We were also brought up to date with the latest technology for food bloggers thanks to Elise Bauer (Simply Recipes) and Babette Papaj (Bake Space). Conference coordinators Julie Deily (The Little Kitchen) and Lindsay Landis (Love and Olive Oil) joined a panel with David Leite (Leite's Culinaria) and Jeff Houck (Tampa Bay Tribune) to discuss building a community with your blog and keeping your authentic voice. 

Since this is a Food Blog conference, you didn't think they were going to make us starve, did you?? Disney presented us with a whimsical spread of their revamped Kid's Menu. For someone who was born with an elaborate palate I'd be lying if I said I wasn't disappointed but I can see what they were going for. The presentation was fantastic, 100% Disney all the way, but the bland flavors on each dish made me wrinkle my nose. The one standout for me however was the Turkey Pot Pie which can be found at Cinderella's Royal Table. That was packed with flavor and made me want a second helping!

How adorable is the presentation of these dishes from Disney!?

After the conference sessions wrapped and all the prizes were raffled off (Thanks Kitchenaid and Oxo!) it was time to dart back over to MGM for a private dessert reception and Fantasmic. I had the pleasure of hanging with these lovely ladies for the night!

Diana (The Kitchen Prep), Jessica (My Baking Heart), Yours Truly, Alicia (Alicia Carlson Photography), Heather (Heather Likes Food), Annelies (The Food Poet)

Of course Disney put out a wonderful spread of sweets and treats.... and a cordial bar. Amaretto on the rocks please!



Now I do have to confess, a few of the girls and I decided to ditch the Fantasmic show (I've seen it dozens of times) and hit up a few rides. I opted for my favorites, The Great Movie Ride and Rockin' Rollercoaster before the park closed!

Since I knew Magic Kingdom closed at 1am (!!!) I rounded up a few troops and made our way over there on the hunt for Dole Whip! We were able to hop on It's A Small World, The Haunted Mansion and Space Mountain before closing down the park a little after 1:30 :-)

 

Our group with our coveted Dole Whips! Thanks NoshOnIt for the pic!

The following morning I dragged my exhausted behind out of bed and made my way over to the brunch that was being hosted at Whole Foods Market Orlando. You could tell that the staff at WF put so much time and care into each dish! My favorite would have to be the pulled pork on habanero cornbread! YUM!

After brunch I was faced with the difficult decision... spend my three remaining hours at the hotel pool... or hit up Epcot. If you know me at all, you know what my answer was! I hit up Epcot with Alicia, Vijay and Charles for the quickest tour around the World Showcase I have ever experienced in my 35 times at Disney World. If you can believe it, we had time to hit every country, stop and eat in France and get stuck in a torrential downpour, all within 45 minutes! THAT was a record!

Even a downpour in Epcot could keep us from having fun!

In the end, the event that seemed like it took forever to happen was over in a flash (like most good things) and I made sure to savor every minute. I am so grateful for the knowledge I gained and the friends I made. I hope you all enjoy seeing the tips from the conference put into action over the next few months here on Kasey's Kitchen! To see all my photos from the trip, click here!

A Foodie Fantasy: My Time at Food Blog Forum 2013 [Part 1]

See all my Instagram Photos by searching the # above!

Once upon a time in a far away land filled with fancy cars and shining stars lived a girl who had a food blog. She would whip up recipes with a dash of this and a bit of that, creating magical spells for your taste buds.

One day, she opened up her trusty MacBook Spell Book and asked, "Google, Google on my Mac, show me events that of food, will not lack". In an instant, the perfect event was revealed, the Food Blog Forum Conference was being held in Walt Disney World. Now this was quite the perfect combination for this young lady for she has been in love with the "Happiest Place on Earth" for as long as she could remember. She thought to herself, "If this event doesn't scream, 'ME', then I don't know what does!?"

With that she set multiple alarms to insure she did not miss out on registration. When the fateful day came, she propped up her laptop to the event page in anticipation and the minutes were counting down... 3...2... Then, a beckoning call from afar, "Kasey, can you come help me with something?" her colleague exclaimed. She rushed through the task only to return to her computer and see the dreaded words, "SOLD OUT". Her heart was crushed and tears came to her eyes. "I never cry! What is wrong with me?" she thought to herself.
With her fingers crossed, she added her name to the wait list and carried on her day, feeling more deflated than a Macy's Parade balloon on Black Friday.

A few weeks later, a cartoon bird flew to her window...ok, it was an email... With a notice that a spot had opened up and it was here's if she wanted it!

Ok, now back to reality!