Holidays Around the World: Germany

I really love the architecture of the buildings in the Germany pavilion, honestly. It's one of my favorite places to hang out because it's so beautiful!

These little guys are on the way from Germany to Italy!

Here we are, just hanging out in Germany like we love to do!

I thought the holiday entertainment was wonderful in Germany! We got to meet Helga and hear about some of Germany's Christmas traditions, such as the Christmas tree and the Nutcracker. Did you know that Germany produced the very first Christmas tree? I didn't!

Germany had some tasty treats at a little kiosk called Prost!. They had stollen (holiday fruit cake), gluhwein (holiday spiced wine... I should have tried this!), some other specialty drinks and treats, and a German artisanal cheese plate. Ean and I got one of their specialty cookies! It was like a giant pecan chocolate chip cookie drizzled in delicious caramel. So tasty!!!

Some of the other specialty eats and sips were caramel s'mores, a Black Forest Cake (alcoholic) drink, caramel kiss drink, and beers and wines. I wish Ean loved caramel more!

You could find some special holiday ornaments and decor at Die Weihnachts Ecke and Christkindlmarkt, and special Werther's holiday treats at Karamell-Kuche. Ean and I bought a cute ornament as the ornament to commemorate this trip!

Germany's cute stamp is a nutcracker, since that originated in Germany as well!

Next up, we have China!

Holidays Around the World: Italy

The Christmas decorations at the Italy pavilion were just beautiful!

I also somehow missed the holiday entertainment in Italy. I guess cause we spent so much time there before we started checking out all the holiday entertainment, I didn't even think about going back later on.

I did, however, get to see this awesome street performer and these cool flag twirling guys before we had lunch at Via Napoli with my parents!

That little girl was SO adorable!!

The holiday entertainment was about a "kind-hearted witch" called La Befana. She's basically Italy's version of Santa Claus! In Italy, Christmas is a very warm and intimate time with family. They say:

"You celebrate Easter with whomever you please,

but Christmas only with your own."

I like that :)

At the Gelato Kiosk, you could purchase special Prosecco sparking wine (YUM!) and Panettone (Italian Christmas bread). I like Prosecco, so I probably should have gotten me a taste! Not so sure about the bread, lol.

Another photo from the good 'ol Disney Food Blog!

Italy had two special holiday merchandise locations. They had things in both the La Bottega Italiana and II Bel Cristallo, featuring fine fragrances, beautiful jewelry, and leather accessories. We got our stamp in one of the shops, and the guy working there wrote "Buon Natale," which is of course Merry Christmas in Italian. I loved that little personal touch!!

Aaaaand next stop! Germany!

Holidays Around the World: The American Adventure

There was a lot going on in the American Adventure pavilion, and I mean A LOT!

First of all, the ever so popular Candlelight Processional happens there. We didn't see it, but my parents did. Meredith Vieira was there, and I know my mom was excited because she's a Today Show fan. I'd love to see it someday. I've heard it's phenomenal!

You can also see Santa and Mrs. Claus, the Voices of Liberty, a storytelling about Hanukkah, and a storytelling about Kwanzaa!

We didn't wait in like to see the  Clauses cause it was always super long. Who doesn't love getting to see Santa?! :)

We did watch both the Hanukkah and Kwanzaa storytellers! I loved the Kwanzaa one. It sounds like a really fun thing to celebrate! And it begins on the 26th of December, so what better way to cure the post-Christmas blues than with another celebration?! You've gotta read both of their little scrolls. I love how diverse the holiday season is in America!

The American Adventure pavilion had a cute little pop-up holiday bakery called Sugar and Spice. Of course I had to get the eggnog, because who doesn't love eggnog? It was SO GOOD. We debated on what we should get, because Ean actually don't love eggnog (he's weird, I know). But I won in the end, lol.

Other great things you could get there were peppermint bark, gingerbread cookies, chocolate chunk cookies, holiday tree sugar cookies, hot chocolate, "Cocoa Candy Cane" (hot chocolate with peppermint schnapps), "Buffalo Nog" (eggnog with Buffalo Trace bourbon whiskey), and a selection of wine.

There was also a really cute gingerbread display of the U.S. Capitol Building inside the American Adventure building.

They also had some really cute merchandise at Heritage Manor Gifts and Santa's Village (right outside of where Santa and Mrs. Claus were at).

And why is my stamp upside down! Lol!! Oh well!

Next stop on our journey will be Italy!

Holidays Around the World: Japan

So, here it is the end of July and I realize I haven't finished sharing with you my Holidays Around the World adventure! How silly of me. Life gets crazy busy sometimes, and that's okay! This will just give us all something to look forward to in a few months! Who doesn't love Disney at Christmastime?!

I realized a little too late that I never stopped to hear about Japan's Christmas traditions. They had a person out telling the story of the Daruma doll and about the customs of the Japanese New Year! The Daruma doll is very important to the new year, as it is a good luck charm! It is a doll with no pupils. It is tradition to make a wish and then paint it's left eye, and if your wish comes true at the end of the year, you paint the right eye!

It sounds cool, yet terrifying all at the same time. LOL!

I'm sad I didn't get any pictures. But I did get this great shot of the cool drum ladies!

And here are some great words to live by! As the Japanese say, "Nana Korobi, ya oki," which means, "Knocked down seven times, get up eight."

Japan had a few specialty food and beverage options at Kabuki Cafe. You could get the grilled Kurobuta pork sausage with pineapple and onions and a delicious Hitachino ginger beer. Kurobuta pork is apparently a highly prized pork from Japan. So all you pork lovers out there- this needs to go on your must-try list!

Gotta use a Disney Food Blog pic since I didn't get my own. Gotta love them!

The holiday merchandise could be found at the Mitsukoshi Department Store. You could get all your favorite Anime merch, Totoro plush, Ghibli merch, kimonos, and even try a sake tasting!

And here is the super cute stamp from Japan. It looks like a little dragon! Aww!

Next stop is The American Adventure! Wee!

Holidays Around the World: Morocco

I don't think the Morocco pavilion gets enough love. We never spend a lot of time there! It's just one of those countries we just sort of pass through without stopping to enjoy it in all its beauty.

We did stay and enjoy the entire holiday show! They call their holidays and festivals throughout the year the "spice of life." Many of the people that live in Morocco are Muslims who share Islamic traditions, but no matter where you are in Morocco, you'll see the Moroccan people celebrating in ways that truly reflect the diversity of its people.

Though we heard about many different celebrations, I really enjoyed hearing about Ramadan. It is one of the holiest celebrations not only in Morocco, but also worldwide. It is 30 days of fasting, prayer, and refection, ending with a great feast! I think this is something we can all celebrate no matter what our race, religion, or background is!

Ean and I had a tough time finding the place to get the stamp in Morocco. We could not for the life of us find the Gifts of Morocco! It wasn't on the map! After going in and out of every little shop in the area and having no clue what each place was even called, we eventually gave up and went to get a stamp in Tangerine Cafe. I walk in there and go up to the counter and they sent me to a little dessert stand in the corner that featured their special holiday Chocolate Honey Baklava. Talk about an adventure just to find a stamp!

We did later find Gifts of Morocco! It wasn't in the main Moroccan shopping area! Who knew…

And here is the cute stamp I almost gave up on trying to find! I was getting very impatient with this one. Lol!

Next stop is Japan, so stay tuned!!

Another Disney trip?!! Yes!! One week to go!!!

Ean and I are SO excited to get to go on another Disney trip together!! Neither of us have ever been to the Flower and Garden festival, so we are totally pumped for this trip!! (Actually, we're totally pumped for all the trips… lol!)

I'm leaving on Friday to go to an It Works training event in Ohio on Saturday. So I'm a little stressed because I have even LESS time to get things prepared before the Disney trip! But, this event is going to be SO GOOD for my business, so I can't stress TOO much.

This week's list of to-do's includes:

• Finish the last few loads of laundry (we got started earlier this time!)
• Pack!!! (I wanna be packed for Disney before I leave for Ohio)
• Pay off the final balance
• Get all the checks in the bank
• Pay all our bills (they're ALL due the week we're away!!)
• Clean the bathrooms
• Pick up the clutter in the office
• Purchase our snack food
• Reserve FastPasses

Well, that's not so much!! I think I can handle all this! Now that I work from home with both my It Works business, and my Open Chord stuff, I can get chores done WHILE I'm working!! How great is that?! What a blessing!!!

Holidays Around the World: United Kingdom

If you know me, you know that the United Kingdom pavilion is my absolute favorite. I HAVE to go in all the shops every single time we visit Disney, even though I've seen the same exact merchandise inside a million times. But I have to, because I love it so much.

My favorite shop, The Tea Caddy, had my favorite Christmas tea from Twinnings. If I didn't already have more boxes than I could drink, you know I would have bought more. Their display of Christmas teas and accessories was selling fast. When we came back by about an hour later, a team of cast members were rushing to make a display of non-Christmas things on the empty table because they had quickly sold out of all their special holiday merchandise!

Father Christmas was in the back providing a fun and entertaining show for everyone. We sang traditional Christmas carols with him and learned a little bit about Christmas in the UK. We actually stayed for the whole show because we were standing in the front, and we were having a really good time!

Cute girl helping out with the show!

Did you know that the tradition of Christmas cards began in the United Kingdom? So did the tradition of mistletoe! So cool!

At the UK Beer Cart, you could get Hot Applejack Cider. Doesn't that sound amazing?! It is mulled hot cider with whiskey and a blend of seasonal spices. Mmmmm! If it wasn't sooooo hot in Florida, this would have been perfect! Back in Tennessee, I would probably enjoy this drink daily! Haha!

I love the cute UK stamp. How cute is it?!

Next stop is France, so stay tuned!!

Holidays Around the World: Canada

I always get really excited when we are in the Canadian pavilion of the World Showcase because the shopping area is just so beautiful! I don't know, it just really makes me happy!

The Northwest Mercantile had some cute Hatley sleepwear for the holidays!

In Canada, you can explore the holiday customs on a musical tour of the Great White North with the Canadian Holiday Voyageurs! We only caught a little bit of their show one day. We, unfortunately, were trying to see like 6 shows in 30 minutes, and they all started within 5 minutes of each other, so we had to continue running around the world. That's what happens when you wait until the last day to see all the shows. Oops! Hehe!

They had their special holiday food at the Popcorn in Canada stand. It was a Pecan Maple Bark. How good does that sound?! Unfortunately, we didn't get to try it. But here is a great picture of it from my most favorite site ever, Disney Food Blog!

Pecan Maple Bark from Disney Food Blog <3 td="">

I love reading the little scrolls with some Holiday traditions listed out. Canada shares some of the same traditions as we do in the US, but they also have other cool traditions! In some Canadian homes, Santa will get the help of little devilish creatures called Belsnicklers to determine whether children have been naughty or nice. If Belsnicklers enter the home, that means the children have been naughty, and they go in to cause mischief!

Canada's cute little stamp in my book was a little ornament with a maple leaf. So Canadian!

I'm excited to keep sharing these adventures with you! The United Kingdom is up next!