31¢ Ice Cream

Baskin Robbins was having a special deal today and for 31 cents you could get a scoop of any kind of ice cream in a cone or cup. The girls were good at school and finished their homework and their dinner so after they got ready for Awana at church I took them to get some ice cream. Abbi picked the Rainbow Sherbert and Bresa got Cotton Candy. I went with the classic Mint chocolate chip and together we had very pretty ice cream. Peter and I don't usually give the kids sugar so this was a very special treat for them and for all us to get ice cream under a buck was a treat for me. Talk about a sweet deal!

Thmile!

Last night after we had unpacked everything and were getting things ready for dinner I told Bresa to go get jammies for after her shower. Well, she went in her room and didn't come out for quite a while. I was about ready to go get her when she came out with her hand out and said, "Mommy, I lost my tooth!" Bresa had been working on this tooth for a very long time and I had told her to just pull it out but she was afraid so she wouldn't pull on it. This was Bresa's first top tooth that she lost and she is very excited about it. I asked her if she could still whistle which she could, then I asked her if she could make the "SSSSsss sound," to which she promptly said, "thhhh".

Packing it up

This morning Janell and Wyatt woke up first and we unwillingly got up for some quick breakfast before we started packing up. I cleaned out the tent and Peter loaded the car while the kids played around the site. Javan and Charlotte stayed in their “prison” so we didn’t have to worry about them wandering off or getting hurt. Once the tent was empty and swept out Peter and I started to take it down. Janell and Wyatt were packing up the camper at the same time; we were all trying to get everything finished in time to meet their friend at The Magic Kingdom. The tent went down pretty easy, we have done it a few times now and it gets easier every time. Once we were all packed I took the girls over to get all cleaned up and dressed for the day and Peter took Javan to do the same. When we were through, Peter and Wyatt went to get Wyatt’s car and I tried to help Janell finish some last minute things. The boys returned and after the car was packed Janell and Wyatt hooked up the camper to be on our way. Janell and I walked the kids down to the settlement and boat ramp and the boys parked the cars in the entrance lot and took the bus to meet us. When we were all together again we took the boat over to the Contemporary and saw Wyatt’s parents for a few minutes and then headed to the Magic Kingdom with Wyatt and Janell’s friend Ryan. Ryan works in the park and said he would get our girls in for us, Janell had won tickets to Disney but they have annual passes so she gave them to Peter and I to use. With Janell's tickets and Ryan we were all able to get in at no cost. It was very sweet of him to meet us and let us in and we were very thankful. The park was extremely crowded today so the lines were a little longer than we are use to but we knew we were only going to stay for a few hours anyhow. We started off with some lunch and then headed over to the Haunted Mansion, Bresa’s choice. Since Bresa got to pick we let Abbi decide and she chose Cinderella’s Carousel. After that we went on the People mover and then decided we should head out and beat the rain that was closing in. On the way out we got to catch some of the parade which the girls were very excited about. They got to see their favorite princesses and waved and laughed as they passed by. We took the boat back to the settlement and then the bus to the parking lot. Once we got to the car we packed the kids up and said good bye. The drive home wasn’t bad and we were even able to get home and unload the car before the pouring rain came down. Javan fell asleep before we were off Disney property and the girls just talked and played in the back. There was a lot of unpacking and cleaning to do once we got home but we had so much fun this weekend it is easily worth it. Peter and I are excited about going back again sometime and taking advantage of the rest of the things the campground has to offer. Maybe next time we will even catch the Chip and Dale Campfire movie where the kids can roast marshmallows. Thanks for all the fun Janell and Wyatt, we really had a great time!!

A Day of Fun

The children woke up with the sun (as usual) and since we were all in the same tent Peter and I were woken up too. We got the kids up and to the bathrooms and dressed for the day and when we returned Janell and Wyatt were up too. The boys started cooking bacon and eggs on the grill while Janell made toast and handed things to the girls and I to set the table. The babies ate first of course and then the girls followed by the rest of us. We didn’t really have much in the way of plans for the day so we took our time getting ready and cleaned up after breakfast and then decided we would take one of the boats over to some of the resorts and go through the shops and do some pin trading. On our way over to the boat ramp we stopped at the horse stables again and let the girls go on pony rides. Bresa and Abbi both got to ride their own horse that was lead by Peter and I and we walked along the trail around the fenced in outdoor stables. Bresa rode Chip and Abbi rode Cloud. They both did really well and rode those horses like pros. Once the girls were done showing off their riding skills we headed over to Fort Wilderness Lodge via the boat. Bresa was really afraid that the boat was going to tip over on the first ride and clung to me to keep her safe. It wasn’t a small boat and the water wasn’t choppy but she hasn’t ever been on any boat smaller than the WDW Ferry before. Javan enjoyed watching the water as we sailed through it and once we got to the Lodge we all enjoyed going through the shops. The girls found a few good pins worth trading and really wanted to go in the resort’s pool but we had more to do and no suits with us. We left there and headed over to the Contemporary Resort where we stopped and had some lunch and did some more pin trading and window shopping. There was to be a pool party at the campgrounds pool so we wanted to get back to the site to get ready for that. On the way back in Javan fell asleep and Charlotte got really sleepy, when we got to the site Abbi said she wanted to take a nap. We thought the party was to start at 3 but turns out it started at 2 and it was already 2:30 so we figured we would skip that, let the kids take a nap, and then head to the pool afterwards. When Javan woke up, Peter and Abbi were still sleeping but the rest of us were up so we headed off to the pool to do some swimming. The pool was really crowded but there was a lot to do. I took Bresa and Javan to the kid area where Bresa went on the slide a hundred times and Javan played in the shallow area and splashed a lot. Peter and Abbi eventually joined us and Bresa went with Janell on a huge rounded slide in the big pool. I figured Bresa would get to the top and then be too scared to go down but after Janell went she followed right after her. I was standing clear on the other side of the pool watching and I could hear Bresa screaming all the way down. It was pretty humorous. Janell said that after Bresa came off the slide and Janell was able to get her above the water again Bresa was shaken but by the time she got to me she was really excited about having done it. It was really cute. After all the swimming and playing we headed back to the campsite and did a little lounging around. The kids got ready for bed and I tried to get things in order to be packed up easily tomorrow morning when we headed out. For dinner Wyatt grilled up some BBQ chicken and Janell made beans. We made a garden salad and we also had potato salad and chips. The babies had sandwiches and peaches so that we wouldn’t have to fight with them to get enough to eat (I know Javan isn’t always in the mood for meat). Once dinner was done and the table was cleaned off the kids went to bed early and fell sleep fast and us four adults stayed up and talked for of couple hours. The weather was really nice with a constant breeze all day and when we slept at night we were actually cold in our tent. Just before we go to bed tonight we are going to pack up a few things so that we don’t have to do it all in morning.

A-Camping we will go

Today I worked a short day and came home early to get everything for our weekend together. Janell and Wyatt had reserved a campsite at Disney’s Fort Wilderness Campground that was big enough to accommodate both our families. We had attempted to go camping there towards the end of last year but there were no sites available when we wanted to go so we had to wait. Peter and I had made the plans with Janell and Wyatt a while ago but we didn’t tell the kids just in case something were to happen and things fell through. Anyhow, when I got home I started packing up everyone’s clothes and Peter pulled all the camping gear out of the attic and loaded Oscar up. Once we couldn’t think of anything else we needed or forgot we jumped in the van and headed over to pick up Bresa as she got out of school. Straight from there we drove over to WDW. When we got there Janell and Wyatt were just checking in so once that was settled we headed to our site to set up. Peter and I set up the tent and Janell and Wyatt set up their camper while all the kids played around the site. Things came together fairly easily and once everything was ready Wyatt grilled up some hot dogs and the girls made dip for the chips. After our yummy dinner we decided to take a walk around the campgrounds and see what they had. Charlotte and Javan got to ride in the wagon while the rest of us walked along side them. We walked out to the lake and saw some people fishing and Abbi got really excited that she could see “her” castle across the way. We walked over to the settlement and went through the Outpost Store and then around the restaurants. On the way back to our site we went through the horse stables and saw a couple of the huge horses that live there. The girls were really excited to see the horses but they really didn’t like the smell. Once we got back to our tent Janell got out stuff to make grilled bananas with marshmallows and chocolate chips. The girls were very excited to help and then pretty much devoured them once they were ready. After our long days of school, work, packing, and setting up everyone settle in for the night looking forward to what tomorrow has in store.

Buckethead

A couple months ago Javan decided he really likes hats. I gave him the one I got from Disney with Mickey on it since it was a youth size and had boy colors. If you put it on his head he just wears it until it falls off somehow. If you put it on him backwards he will wear it and then stop occassionally, reach up, make sure it's still there, and then carry on with what he was doing. He always tries to put the hat back on when if falls off but he usually ends up making it impossible to see or it isn't really on at all and falls off again as soon as he moves. Since he is still just a baby and doesn't really understand what is and isn't an actual hat you can put just about anything on his head and he will be happy to wear it around for the rest of the day. I found this soft basket in Bresa's room when we were all in there playing "school" (Bresa was the teacher, of course) and thought it was just Javan's size. Sure enough, once it was on he didn't want to take it off. It was just too cute not to snap a photo and share!

Making a Splash

I hadn't made any plans for this weekend and was looking forward to not being on the run like usual. However, when I got up this morning I couldn't help but feel like I wanted to do something fun with the kids outside of the house. Peter had to work like usual so I was trying to figure out what the four of us could do without having to go too far. After checking the weather Peter suggested we go to the zoo so the kids could run around in the Slpash Pad there. Sounded good to me so the girls got dressed and we lathered all the kids up with sunscreen and headed off. When we got there Javan wasn't really sure what to think of the place. He was excited about the water but didn't know what to do with it all. The girls both took off running and were already soaked by the time Javan got it figured out. He liked being able to touch the water but he didn't like it when the water raised up and got in his face so he couldn't see. There were a couple times when he was running around and two of the buckets up high dumped on him in a row, he didn't like that because he didn't see it coming. He was so cute though, he would run a little bit then just stand there and look around. He wouldn't move at all and just stare out, finally he would see me and get so excited and come running over. He fell down a few times but after someone helped him up he was happy and would run off again. His favorite part of the pad was the big frog, he kept going over to it and petting it and giving it kisses. So sweet! Abbi had fun dancing around the water and climbing on the frog and sliding off. She liked sticking her hands and feet in the water but Bresa loved running through it all. She liked getting soaked and standing under the water that got dumped from above. Once all the kids were done playing we sat and ate some lunch while they dried off. I have deteremined that the best time to enjoy the splash pad is in the morning, there was hardly a person there when we got there but towards and after lunch it filled up pretty quick. I like it when there aren't many people and I can easily keep track of all the kids. Afterwards, Bresa wanted to go see some of the animals and Abbi wanted to see the butterfly garden that was being renovated the last time we came. In the shade the weather was great so we stayed along the boardwalk under the trees and walked around. Driving back home I kept looking at the kids in the back, they were so quiet and peaceful because they were tired from all their running around and playing. In these moments I know I am truely blessed. Watching baby Javan falling asleep and the girls trying hard to stay awake. God must really think a lot of me to trust me with such wonderful treasures! To think, this love that I feel for the children is but a glimpse of the love that God feels for each of us!

Oscar gets a bath

Oscar really needed a nice scrub so when I got home from work I asked who wanted to help. The girls were very excited to help and Javan just likes to be outside so we gathered our stuff and out we went. Javan was in charge of aggitating the water, which he did a wonderful job of and the girls helped me by scrubbing. Javan liked it when I sprayed him with water and kept trying to get in front of the hose when I was trying to rinse Oscar off. We had Oscar all clean and shiney in no time and then it was time to clean the kids.

Evening Gardening

Since the sun stays out later in the day now I decided to take advantage of it this evening and do some gardening after the heat wore off. Peter had worship team practice at church so I put Javan to bed and then the girls and I worked hard in the yard. After we first had the house built we expanded the garden quite a bit but it is proving to be more work than I can keep up with these days with the kids, work, the house, and church so I decided it was time to do some downsizing. The girls helped move all the bricks that outlined the garden and I transplanted a few plants that there were no longer going to be in the flower beds. It was a lot of work but we got a good bit done and the girls helped a ton. Now that the garden is smaller I am going to have to get some seed for the old bed area so that we can grow some grass there instead. Hopefully by this time next year we will have a beautiful, managable garden with a nice thick and healthy lawn.

Back to Reality

Well, for some of us. Usually when we take a trip I work the day we leave and then go back to work the day after we get back. This always proves to very stressful and exhausting so this time I planned a bit better. We left last Monday which gave me the weekend to prepare and we returned on Sunday but I don't go back to work until tomorrow. The last two days have been a collection of laundry, child taxying, and meal making. My mom had already made my house spotless for our return so that was a huge headache I didn't need to endure. The only problem I have now is the longer I take off the less I want to return to work. Oh well, at least I only have a three day week this week. After Bresa was home from school and everyone's homework was completed I decided to take the kids out in the front yard to play on the slip'n slide while I tried to get some gardening done. I ended up mostly watching the kids play and taking some photos more than I did weeding like I had planned but we all had a good time. There were a couple collisions on the runway but everyone recovered quickly. Bresa actually got a bloody nose from hitting Javan's foot but I didn't tell her it was bloody and just made her rinse it off, she was over it within a minute and then back to running around (had she known it was bleeding she would probably still be crying from it). Javan seemed to be having the most fun in the beginning but he was also the first one done. After a little drying off he walked around on the sidewalk for awhile and then shortly after that the girls quit too. I do enjoy being back home but Peter and I started missing Tina and Noah pretty much the moment our plane landed on Sunday. Thankfully, they will be moving down to Orlando in a couple months and we plan on seeing them a lot more often.

Happy Easter!!

Peter and I got on our flight this morning after getting up early. We arrived in Orlando just after 10 AM and Mike met us at bagagge claim to take us to mom's house where mom was going to be with the kids. When we got to mom's Javan was very excited to see us, it was really cute! The girls were more afraid that we would take them home right away than they were happy we were back. We got love from all the kids and they showed us the baskets they recieved this morning for Easter. We took the kids out back for an egg hunt and then came back inside to see what they found. Jim had made a wonderful Easter dinner so we all enjoyed the nice meal. We packed up Oscar and got all the kids strapped in and then headed home. When we got the tickets to go to Ohio we didn't realize that we were returning on Easter until a few days later. Peter and I were very sad that we were going to miss church and our Worship Pastor was really upset because that meant Peter couldn't play at both services. Lucy greeted us at the door and talked and talked and purred and purred. Mom said she hid under the bed all day and then slept on the bed at night. I know she was happy to see us. After I left the room I heard her crying and she wouldn't stop until I came back in. My mom had cleaned our house up so beautifully and it is so nice not to have to worry about all the little things right when you get back from a trip. The girls really wanted to dig into their baskets but while we were waiting for daddy to finish up something I fell asleep and ended up taking a decent nap. Once I woke up the kids finally got to see what their baskets held and had a great time going through them. The girls spring break is now over and they have to go back to school tomorrow. We got all the kids cleaned up in nice warm showers and got them ready for bed. Javan is sick with a cough and congestion so I wanted to make sure to put him down to get a good night's sleep. He was a little spoiled while we were away so it may take a while to get him back into routine. Before the girls went to bed Daddy got out the gifts we brought them home from Ohio. We had a great yet, untradional, Easter but no matter what we do or how we celebrate, it all revolves around Christ and Him being Risen! Praise God for all our blessings, especially His son who died for each of us!

Game Board Party

Tina and Noah had planned a game board party for while Peter and I were here so we could experience one. They have these parties quarterly with a bunch of friends and whenever I come they always talk about it. After we were all up and ready we finished getting the food stuff situated and then waited for the guests to arrive around 12:30. We played a couple of warm up games while we waited for some of the stragglers to wander in and then we set up a couple different types of games for the different personalities. It ended up that all the guys wanted to play the strategy game and the girls wanted to play faster paced games that involved more social interaction. Us girls played a good 10 games or so while the guys played just the one. We weren't sure how long the party would last, it really depended on how long the game lasted but it ended around 9:00. After the last guests left Tina, Noah, Peter, and I played a few games of Apples to Apples which was halirous. I actually made Peter cry because he was laughing so hard! Peter and I fly out around 7 tomorrow morning. We have had a great and relaxing time and really enjoyed every minute of it but I definitely will enjoy my love'n from the kids tomorrow afternoon, I sure do miss them!

Girly Things

After a wonderful breakfast of scrambled eggs and chocolate chip pancakes we all headed back to the Air Force Museum to watch the IMAX film Hubble. It was a really cool documentary about the last repair made to the Hubble satellite. I had never been to an IMAX movie before so it was quite the experience and I really enjoyed it. We made a short trip to Target to pick up a few things and then Tina and I dropped off the guys at the house and we went out to get manicures and pedicures. I had never had a pedicure before so that was a new experience too, and as it turns out, I have, "amazingly soft feet", who knew? I hadn't had a manicure in probably 3 years or so since the last one I had was so terrible so it was a nice little treat to be pampered again. After we made it home and ate some lunch Tina and I starting making some desserts and dips for the game board party that Tina and Noah are throwing tomorrow afternoon. The boys were playing a board game while we cooked but then it was time to switch places so that Noah could make the pizza dough we needed for dinner tonight. Once the dough was set to rise we pretty much just played more games until we needed to finish making dinner, eat dinner, make dessert (chocolate s'more lava cakes), and eat those too. As you can tell, we are all about the board games, we like that we can be entertained and still talk at the same time (as opposed to something like movies). Anyhow, time for bed now so that we can get up and do it all over again tomorrow!

A Full Day

We all decided to get up a bit earlier today so we could do a lot of running around. After our homemade blueberry coffeecake with sliced fruit on the side I called mom which I do each morning to check on the kids. Peter had set up iChat before we left so we were able to see the kids via the computer's webcam and they could see us. We played with a bunch of the effects and the kids thought we were very silly. After we said good bye to the children we all headed out to the KitchenAid Factory where we took a tour. We learned all about how the small appliances were made, painted, and assembled. It was really fascinating and there was a lot more to it than I had ever given thought to. After the tour we headed downtown to the KitchenAid store and museum. We walked around a bit and even had a sample but didn't find anything we couldn't live without so there were no purchases made. KitchenAid discontinued my favorite color, the cobalt blue, so I was not really impressed with much of the stuff for sale, I was really hoping to find some utensils in the blue. On the way back to the house we stopped at Wegerzyn Gardens. Javan and I had gone last year when we visited but it was a little later in the year and there was a lot in bloom. This year they were doing a bit of work on the area and really only had the daffodils blooming. It was still a nice walk around and Peter had fun in the musical garden. After a quick stop at the house we drove over to Young's Jersey Dairy Farm where they have a small petting farm and make their own ice cream. We went in and got some of the ice cream that we enjoyed outside in the beautiful weather. On the same property they have a putt putt golf place called Udders and Putters. We did this last year also but they have two courses and Peter loves putt putt. We all did fairly well and were all neck and neck throughout the whole game. Noah and I got one hole in one and Tina got two but it was Noah who took first and the rest of us all tied for second. At this point it was getting late so we headed back home once again to make up some delicious Kofta Pitas (greek burgers). After dinner we ended the night with some Mario video games and hanging out. All in all, another great day.