So this is Christmas

It's finally here, Christmas 2012 - for those of us who work in retail we have been building up to the big day since about .....erm May; so you could kind of say I am sooo over it.

I had a fantastic day with my family yesterday; mum and dad were gracious hosts as always and mum, dad and Emma cooked an incredible meal but with all that fabulous food it was a little windy in our house last night.

Our day included:

• Presents - fabulous and spoilt as always
• Eating too much
• Rubbish on TV
• Eating too much
• Bad jokes in crackers
• And eating too much

As always I did manage to sneak a bit of Disney magic into the day and persuaded my parents that we needed to watch Tangled on TV - this is Rapunzal at the Disney Princess Parade in London

I would have to say this is one of my favourite Disney films - it doesn't take itself too seriously and contains enough jokes to keep adults entertained; my dad has decided he wants to rename himself Maximus (do you see where I get it from?)

During the day I kept an eye on Facebook for updates from Phil, Ben and Emma who are out there now (for those of you who don't know who they are I mentioned them in a previous blog as they make the best holiday videos ever!). And I wasn't disappointed when they posted an amazing picture of the castle all lit up with the dream lights.

Of all the park icons the castle has to be my favourite, no matter what the weather or how busy the park is the castle still has the ability to make me smile.

There is definitely a must have photo - in front of the castle is the hub; basically a wheel and spoke arrangement that leads you off to the different lands in the park. In the middle is a beautiful flower garden with small bronze sculptures of Disneys best loved characters but the highlight has to be the partners statue which when framed by the castle looks magical.

This is a large sculpture of Walt and Mickey holding hands because after all; it all started with a mouse. I am sure if I looked back through all the photo's I have taken over the years there would be one from each visit.....so here's to next time and adding more familiar memories

All I want for Christmas.......

There are only 8 days left to complete this years Christmas shopping and I am seriously beginning to think that I need to start next years on December 27th as I can't be doing with all the crowds

And sometimes even though I am in the most magical place on earth at Walt Disney World there are definitely times when I just need a break from the crowds; so where can you find peace and quiet in a theme park? If you promise not to tell a soul I will share some of my special places

To my favourite park first Magic Kingdom although it is not your traditional spot for peace and quiet there is nothing better than taking a time out on the TTA, its a chance to get away from the hustle and bustle and people watch and even better if its not too busy you can repeat ride.

At Epcot, World Showcase is full of great spots including the outside seating area of the Katsura Grill or the garden behind the UK pavilion, I spent a very relaxing half hour there this year catching up with everyone at home while eating my chips from the Yorkshire County fish shop

Animal Kingdom is a bit harder and we didn't discover this spot until a couple of years ago but we always head there now to either eat our lunch or just stop and drink a frozen coke; there is a lovely veranda overlooking the tree of life opposite Flights on Wonder just be prepared though to share your space with ducks, lots of ducks (fingers crossed that by the next time we go they have fixed the overhead fans as it can get a bit steamy!)

And finally Hollywood Studios, I would say this is my least favourite park as far as attractions go - Indiana Jones and Lights, Motors, Action bore me to tears so whilst James goes and gets his hit of testosterone I can be found chilling out with a frozen drink in the Writers Stop; fingers crossed this is not the spot that Disney have earmarked to become one of their Starbucks locations otherwise I can kiss that one goodbye

With no xfactor tonight I will be found fighting with the wrapping paper and Sellotape, bah humbug!

Customer service or hard sell?

Yesterday I decided to join the masses and try and do the majority of my Christmas shopping ( oh, and presents for the birthday boy); which meant a shopping trip for me and my lovely sister Emma.

So off to Lakeside we went, I honestly thought we were going to be queuing for everything, the tolls, the car park and to pay but as we went early ( well before lunch) it wasn't too bad and we managed to achieve loads in a short space of time.

But I am sure you are wondering what this has to do with Walt Disney World, I love shopping at WDW the level of service is outstanding and I never feel that there is the element of hard sell that is creeping in over here.

I know we are in a recession but I just don't expect to be subjected to 20 questions when I go up to pay just with the aim of squeezing some extra money out of me:

• Would you like that gift wrapped? No, thanks
• Do you want the box flat so you can wrap it later? No, thanks
• Would you like a princess bag for it? Um, no thanks ( yes I was in a Disney store)
• Would you like a carrier bag, it's going to be 5p? Yes, please
• Would you like the Minnie Mouse for £7? I politely responded no while thinking if I did want it I would have picked it up from the 20 other places you have strategically placed it around the store instead of waiting to see if you were going to ask me if I wanted it at the till!

When I shop I just want to wander, take my time, pick what I want and for there to be no stress which is why holiday shopping appeals to me - its not that I need anything but more that I want things and there is definitely no hard sell

There are so many amazing places to shop at Walt Disney World, but the biggest and best just for variety is The World of Disney at DTD Marketplace. It's the biggest Disney store in the world (so I am told) and is split into sections - it's a fab spot to shelter from a shower but expect to come out with your purse feeling a whole lot lighter.

A great thing about shopping if you are staying on property is that you can send your purchases back to your hotel to save you carrying them; especially helpful if you have just purchased a massive cuddly toy ( not ever done this myself but have been amused to see people carrying them onto the plane as hand luggage; like that's ever going to fit in an overhead locker!)

I will admit to having a random collection of merchandise at home, including vinylmations and a good selection of aeriel toppers ( we don't put them on the car as they get pinched - and are now called nickits in my house)

So the question of the week is......is it too early to start my shopping list? I have a few things on my Walmart list already and keep thinking of more everyday; at this rate I will need to leave James there to get everything home. With that thought I am off to add some more stuff to my list

Baby it's cold outside!!!

It's a cold December day there are Christmas films on tv ( not just any film but my favourite miracle on 34th street) my thoughts should be on present lists after all Christmas is only 3 weeks away and I also have my significant others birthday to think about but instead I am thinking about my favourite way to spend an evening at Walt Disney World.

My certain someone:

But back to today, in the hope of ticking a few presents off my list we went to Bluewater, while we were there we found that Pinkberry have brought their chocolate hazelnut flavour over here - is it wrong to want one of your Christmas presents to be a big tub of frozen yoghurt? If you haven't tried Pinkberry yet I highly recommend it.

I said I was thinking about my favourite way to spend an evening at WDW and I am sure you are wondering what this is, if you have read my previous blogs you may think its food related but no I just love the evenings at Magic Kingdom.

You cannot argue that Disney knows how to do parades and fireworks, so the perfect evening is an electric parade; I don't mind either Spectromagic or the Main Street Electrical ( if there are 2 showings of the parade and you can stay around for the later one I would recommend it as there are far more viewing spots available)

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Next up is the castle projection show, I wasn't sure what to think when I first heard about it; I mean how good can some images projected onto a castle be but after seeing the magic, memories and you I was sold; seeing the castle appear to take off like a rocket is truly incredible - this year Disney have updated the show and I am looking forward to seeing the new version when we go back.

And then there is Wishes, I can honestly say I don't normally do fireworks but I make an exception here. There is no more perfect end to a night than standing on Main Street with James hugging me and watching the amazing show; we have a tradition now that we see this on our first full day there and also on the final night ( and maybe a few times in between if I can wangle it).

The music is uplifting and has helped me through many a stressful day at work and while watching it I will admit to maybe shedding the odd tear or two - if you love classic Disney music this is the fireworks show for you.