So Arielle and I spent days trying to find some bedding that we both liked that matched. Not that we needed matching bedding but we thought if it did match it would look really pretty and of course we would have the coolest looking bedroom at Cumberland. Arielle is a big fan of purple so I was trying to find something similar to what she might like. We finally came to a decision and they both came in!

          

Arielle's is on the left and mine is on the right. I think they are going to look really pretty together in the room. Arielle has even talked about putting up some fairy lights in the room. It's going to look so pretty!

So Thanksgiving came and went and I was able to enjoy the company of one of my best friends Luz! She flew in on the Wednesday before Thanksgiving and she stayed until the Sunday after! It was so much fun sharing our family traditions with her! Wednesday when she flew in I introduced her to Noodles and Company and Cocoa Dolce. I'm pretty sure she enjoyed both. :) Luz even bought some chocolates to bring back to her parents.

                     

Then Luz and I spent the day making pumpkin pies which she and I had never done before. We both tried Pumpkin pie for the first time that Thanksgiving and I think we both found a new holiday treat we like.

Wednesday night dad took us to a Wichita Thunder Hockey game. Probably the best I had seen all season! They were playing the Missouri Mavericks (their rivals) and there were a total of three fights! It was awesome! We even got to play hockey bingo which was great. Luz and I both learned more about hockey that day then we ever had before. It definitely got us really into the game.



Thursday was Thanksgiving of course! Grandma Jan decorated the table and mom made a pretty center piece for us to enjoy. Dinner was amazing as always. Thanks Mommy! I hope Luz enjoyed it. The food was a little more traditional than she was used to.

Okay everybody I am apologizing. Things have been busy these last couple of weeks but I'm back and ready to blog. Lots of stuff has been going on and I will update you on all of it but first let me catch you up on the wonderful 30 day challenge!

So my new friend Arielle and I have decided that we are going to be roommates when we move into our new apartments in Orlando.

Arielle is 22 and a senior in college majoring in Anthropology. Not sure if she is graduating in December or not. I guess that's something I will have to ask her. She is from south Florida and is going to be a Conservation Education Presenter just like myself. Arielle loves to read just like myself, and also likes different teas. We can't wait to shop for different teas around Epcot together and try them out. Not to mention we are both huge Disney dorks (I thought I was the only one.)

We are already trying to coordinate our bedroom to figure out what we will be bringing so we don't double up on stuff, and trying to match our bedding and such so our room won't look so mismatched. I just knew we were going to be friends when I first started talking to her and now I'm so excited to get down to Florida and get to know my new friend (especially with the earthquakes we have been having here in Kansas, LOL!)

Arielle and I are also going to try and make Hilaire and Kerstin our suite mates on the other end of the apartment. Both Hilaire and Kerstin are great gals and I knew as soon as I started chatting with them that I would also become friends with both of them. Hilaire is going to be one of the Vet Hospital Interns with Animal Kingdom and believe it or not, she is from Kansas too! I can't wait to share all of our animal stories. I think she could teach me a lot as well. Not just with the new stuff she will be learning at Disney, but also with everything she has done in the past. Kerstin will also be a Conservation Education Presenter and I have a lot in common with Kerstin as well. She also loves animals. She's living in Texas right now and I know that she used to train show horses, not sure if she still does. Plus we like a lot of the same movies and video games, and we both have a crush on Kovu (love that lion!)

I am so excited to be making new friends and sharing new experiences. Cross your fingers for us so that we all get in the same apartment together!

So I am asking all of you to help us! We are hoping we think of everything to bring but I'm sure we will forget stuff. Can you think of anything we might overlook that we might need while we are there?? Thanks for your help!

Yesterday I received the email that gave me a link to a site which contained information on everything I would need to start my internship. It gave me all the paperwork I would need to feel out, how to reserve my housing, and a large chunk of information on The Disney Look. Some of the rules are strict but that's understandable. It takes a lot to make dreams come true everyday.

The first thing I did upon visiting the website was jump right to the housing section. Disney housing is limited and I wanted to reserve my spot. I did immediately! I will be in a 2 bedroom with 3 other girls. My check-in is 8:00 AM at the apartment complex. Then I have to be at casting at 10:00 AM on January 12th. Not only are the apartments really nice, but the have all of these really great amenities, and Disney holds some really fun social events for us while there. I can't wait! I really hope I get to request roommates because I have been getting to know some of the girls I will be working with and they seem like they would be great to live and hang out with!

The Disney Look involves both being on stage and off stage, so I must make sure I pick up some professional clothing for the occasions when I am off stage as well. Mom and I have been looking and I think we've seen some really cute stuff.

Since I won't have very many updates for a while I thought I'd take a card from my new friend Arielle and share the 30 Day Disney Challenge with you. So here goes...

Just wanted to give a shout out to my new friends I will be working with this January. I have gotten to know them over the last couple of days and can't wait to meet them in person.

I have chit chatted with Hilaire, Kerstin, Arielle, Casey, Jay and Kelly a lot over the last couple of days and they are some of the coolest people I've ever talked to. All of them are just as excited about their internship. They also share my love of Disney as well. We thought we were the only Disney dorks out there and now we have all found each other! Yay!

Talking with them has also helped me decide that I will be participating in Disney housing. Everyone I've talked to will be living there as well and I not only want to live with my new friends, but take advantage of all the fun activities that Disney offers when you live in their housing.

Hope everyone is having a magical day!

Hi Everybody! Hope you are all well.

Today I received my first piece of information after accepting my internship. I was invited to join a private website where other interns and Disney cast members can communicate with each other. This is specifically for those involved with the Animal Sciences and Environmental teams (formally known as the Animal Programs team). Just like Facebook but for Disney Animal Science employees.

This is great! Now I can get to know some of the interns before I actually head down to Florida. Maybe even find a roommate or two before arriving. It also allows me to talk to not just the interns but the cast members as well. If I do this right I could get to know some of my bosses and maybe find a mentor before I even get there.

The profile picture I used for the site was one of me with a Dolphin. Already heard back from some of the people on the site and they thought my picture was cool after sending out a welcome message to all and wishing them a happy belated Halloween.

Can't wait to hear about more information. I'll tell you more when I know!

Hi Everyone! I have recently been accepted into Disney's Professional Internship Program. I noticed that there was a lack of information out there about how the program works and what it entails so I thought I'd start this blog to document my experience and let my family and friends know how and what I am doing while in Florida.

So here goes...

In 2009 I graduated from The University of Kansas with a degree in Organismal Biology and I can tell you I have been through a lot of ups and downs since then.

After graduation I moved home in hopes of finding a job in my field. I applied for a ton of them! Mostly with zoos and aquariums, but heard back from nobody. So while I was home I volunteered at the zoo (something I had been doing since freshman year of college), got a part time job at a vet (Kennel Aide, nothing glorious), and went back to working at Sonic (I had been working there on and off since I was 16).

After some time I had to take a step back and think about what I was doing. I mean I had a college degree. There had to be something more out there. The economy just wasn't helping my cause though. So I decided to make a decision.

I decided that in the summer of 2010 I was going to take some more college classes to earn my teaching license. It would take me until Summer of 2012. I guess those that can't do teach right? (And we are grateful that they do!)

In the long run I took some courses and then received a Microbiology internship during the summer of 2011. After my internship I took a step back and figured out that I love working in the science field, also the teaching field was sort of suffering right now.

I decided to sign up for one class this fall, Immunology, and try to apply for some jobs. I applied for many different types, Lab Techs, Assistants, etc., but then found after reading some job descriptions that I wanted to be involved with the Wildlife Biology or Conservation Biology field.

I then began to apply to many different entry level jobs in that field, but still hadn't heard anything back yet. This led me to start applying for internships in the field, which in turn led me to investigate the Disney Professional Internships.

There were a couple I wished to apply for but you had to already have participated in an Animal Programs Internship with Disney before you applied, so I decided to apply for the Conservation Education Presenter Internship, in order to work my way up to my desired internships.

After giving them my basic information, I received an email about a week later asking me to provide my college transcripts and give them a cover letter expressing my interest. After sending a bomb.com cover letter to Disney (with a little help from my mother, Thanks Mommy!), I got a response from Disney in less than a day to do a phone interview with them. After picking some options for an available time I received an email with my confirmation time. It also described to me some of the different things I would be doing on the job if accepted for the position:

Deliver conversations and presentations that are accurate, entertaining and that inspire conservation action in a variety of locations around the park, most importantly, the Kids' Discovery Club locations. In Africa kids track an animal by looking for clues along a pathway. Footprints, a pile of poop, etc. In Asia kids learn about siamangs (a type of gibbon which you can also see in Asia, fyi, these are an ape not a monkey), and listen to animal sounds. At Camp Minnie Mickey kids are able to reach inside a fallen log and try to identify the items from the forest that are inside. It's educational a daring at the same time. ;) Outside the Tree of Life kids get to actually see the insects they just saw in the show up close and personal. (This is the only Discovery Club that I actually remember seeing while at the park.) And finally at Conservation Station kids can go on a scavenger hunt for animals and learn about the environment and conservation in their own backyard. Be aware it's not just for kids. I am 24 and know that when I take a trip to Disney I jump at the chance to participate in activities like these.

I had my phone interview on Friday October 21st. I can tell you that I was soooooooo nervous during my interview. I actually think I was shaking, but the ladies on the phone were extremely nice and the entire process was over in about 15-20 minutes.

That night I went to a Halloween party with my friend Julie. Just a small get together, however, somewhere in the middle of the evening an iPod was plugged in and surprisingly enough they were playing Disney songs. Beauty and the Beast, Aladdin, Mulan, and some others. I took it as a sign that my interview went well. :)

On a side note, from that night on I also slept with my Mickey doll every night for good luck. ;)

On October 26th I received an email from Disney that asked me to fill out a standard form with very basic questions, most of which I had answered already about being enrolled in a college course, having transportation, etc. I think it took me about 10 minutes to fill out.

On Thursday October 27th I had a job interview with a company out in St. Joseph, Missouri. It went really well and I was excited about it. I came home that afternoon and decided to take a nap (with my Mickey doll of course). I hadn't been sleeping 30 minutes when my phone rang. When I looked at the number the and saw the 407 area code I knew it must be Disney. I immediately jolted awake.

On the phone I was asked many standard questions, mostly the same ones on the form I had filled out. I was told they needed verbal confirmation of the information I had given. After all the questions were asked I was told everything seems to be in order and that I was congratulated on receiving the Conservation Education Presenter internship. I couldn't believe it! I actually had to confirm it. I said I was so nervous on my interview and the man on the phone said I must have done well because they were impressed with me! :)

I guess I had a decision to make. I called my Mom on the phone first. She was speechless. Then I called my Dad and we talked about it a bit. After a family conference together we decided it was the opportunity of lifetime and that I was going to take it. Then I called everybody I could think of to tell them.

The next day I received my acceptance letter through a link by email, accepted and here we are.

In about 2 months I will be moving down to Orlando. The long term plan is to market myself well at Disney while I am down there to hopefully get a full time position with them. This is the start of an adventure that hope will be the start of the rest of my life!

I will have updates as they come and feel free to ask questions if you have them!