Nonstop November ~ NCA at Disney & Thanksgiving

Our flight had a layover in Memphis, TN = "Ooh, Elvis!"

November was a month of madness.  

The National Communication Association annual conference was held in Orlando, Florida this year. Though it was a notably more expensive conference than usual since it was held on the Disney resort property, it was a nice excuse to go a day early and spend some time at Epcot, one of the Disney parks, as well as Downtown Disney, which has a ton of shops and entertainment. I had been to Disney World a long time ago with my family but found that I had a greater appreciation for it this time around as an older and wiser adult. This was Al's first time to Florida and Disney World. His first impression of Florida went like this: "There's a lot of concrete here. Reminds me of Houston. I feel right at home here." Hehe. 

Just like the good ole days in grad school = reunited again, woohoo! We had so much fun.

A highlight = I met Masha's mini-me, Maya!

Even the hotel towels were folded magically...

Of course, the trip was centered around work so I also had several conference commitments: 2 individual research paper presentations, 2 discussion panels, I chaired 2 sessions and served as respondent to 1 session. Since I'm also an officer for the Latino/a Comm. Studies Division/La Raza Caucus at NCA, I took our minutes at the business meeting. The conference was a great, whirlwind of a time to catch up with academic friends, new and old, and make new contacts as well. The time always flies by when you're having fun and being professionally productive by sharing research, getting feedback, and establishing new directions for work. 

This was mine and Al's first time out of town since we moved to NC so we were in need of a mini-vacation. It was a bit strange to prepare for the weather from NC to FL because it has been chilly here but then 70s-80s in Orlando. Check out our photo journey in Disney, "the happiest place on Earth!"

Al stocking up on supplies at the Candy Cauldron. Man-child, oh yes!

Who says you have to be a couple with kids to enjoy Disney? Beer, jelly beans, and live music at the House of Blues in Downtown Disney = great date night for our first night in Florida!  ; )

How awesome is this = it's a sea dragon made completely out of Legos... and it's actually IN water! Mind = blown. : D

Meet Duffy, the newest of the Disney characters. So cute!

Mi Japonesa... <3

Pretending to be hanging out in Paris...

A Japanime museum in Japan...

Belle!

Cinderella!

Alice in Wonderland!

We met Snow White!

Drunken bird in Germany = Oktoberfest!

How fitting that there would be a beautiful rainbow the day we visited Epcot.  : )

We had lunch in Morocco and it was deeeelish!

Jasmine & Aladdin!

We got our fast passes for the popular attraction, Soarin'.

Mmmm, desserts in France = chocolate eclair, Napoleon, and creme brulee. We polished off every bite!

Mexico in Epcot reminded us of San Antonio... and we got a lil' homesick.

This poor guy in Norway was so *not* attractive... so I hugged him, hehe.

Opal got a souvenir from China in Epcot! She rocked her new outfit.

A couple days after returning from the conference, we were busy preparing our home for Al's parents' first visit to NC for Thanksgiving. We had a good time with them. We took them around town for a tour of Davidson and Charlotte, went out to eat at a few local favorites, and just hung out at home and enjoyed each others' company. 

Al's parents got us hooked on a new show called Chicago Fire the features firefighters and medics in complex situations. We're all caught up now and recording the series! I love the DVR function on our cable package. With our busy schedules, we get to still keep up with our entertainment of choice! Al makes fun of me because even when I see just a little bit of a show and I like it, I record the series, haha. 

One night Al's mom and I went shopping nearby at Birkdale, an outdoor-style mall, and then out for some wine at The Wine Cellar, a place I'd been wanting to check out. We found the perfect white wine - not too dry or too sweet - Canyon Road Pinot Grigio. Yumm! I'll have to remember that next time I'm restocking my home "wine cellar."  ; )   

It was good catching up with Al's parents in person and hearing all their stories from back home. We wish everyone could come up to visit us! Now it's time to round out the semester --for me and Al both-- and move on to the wonderful holiday season here in gorgeous NC!  

Awaiting the Thanksgiving day feast!

We went out for some wine after a lil' shopping at Birkdale.