Magic Kingdom- Day Two

We were excited to take Kylie to the Magic Kingdom. She knew that we were going to different parks but when you think of Disney...Magic Kingdom comes to mind. She was SO enthralled with it all. Again, some Christmas decorations were still up. We went on the classics...It's A Small World, the Jungle Cruise, Big Thunder Mountain, Pirates of the Caribbean (with no wait!)...Kylie did not want to ride Space Mountain and Splash Mountain was closed for cleaning. We really enjoyed watching the parade with all the characters. The park was open later that night and then fireworks ended the day. Being there brought back so many childhood memories for me. I spent 10 years worth of summers in Florida with my grandparens and a trip to Disney was one of our regular outings.

Animal Kingdom- Day 1

The first day of our vacation was spent at Animal Kingdom. We stayed there and it was amazing! So cool to wake up and look out the window and see animals. The park was fun and a good start to our week. We went first thing to the safari. JD did an awesome job at taking pictures of the animals. We saw the Finding Nemo show and the Festival of the Lion King show. There were not a lot of thrill rides there but we did ride Expedition Everest. I am not a roller coaster person and I liked it (although I had my eyes closed through most of it). Kylie had her first experience meeting Disney characters and getting autographs. That was an experience...waiting in line...but it was worth it for her. Even though we were there in January, all the Christmas trees were still up.

Short and Sweet

ONLY TWO THINGS...


HAPPY ANNIVERSARY TO US! 9 YEARS TODAY


AND....


ON VACATION UNTIL JANUARY 12!!



MUCH BLOGGING TO DO UPON RETURN!!!!!!

Christmas at home

It was just us this year...my brother was working and my mom had flown to Florida to help my Grandma.

The kids actually slept in on Christmas morning (which I was thankful for since I was up helping Santa wrap presents until 2:15 a.m.). They were super excited but were cooperative during my picture taking!



Close up of the boys...I thought they were too cute!


Gavin


Me and the kids...straight out of bed!


Landon liked playing with the Glow Station



My brother, his girlfriend Megan and her daughter Raegan came over after he got off. I cooked ham, mashed potatoes, homemade macaroni and cheese, green bean casserole, rolls, and stuffed mushrooms for dinner. Everyone knows that I always take a picture at the table...and my husband and my brother chose to make faces at me this year...thanks guys!



Kylie got Carnival Games for the Wii and they started playing just after dinner. Kylie was good at just about all the games. I was cleaning up dinner and only played one game. She also got another sports game for Wii and a Nintendo DS to take in the car on the way to Florida.


Landon playing Wii


Kylie playing Wii


Jared and JD being themselves


Gavin playing Wii

Changes...and Christmas Eve

This holiday has brought several changes for us.

The first being our tree. I have NEVER had an artificial tree my whole life. And, I never thought I would. We had a horrible time finding a tree this year (I am picky and only like short needled trees). We finally decided to get a fake tree and save ourselves money in the years to come. Real trees are more expensive each year. I didn't think I was going to like it but once we got the ornaments and lights on...I did like it. Our tree is not at all fancy (although I secretly would like a more "put together" tree at some point. Our ornaments are ones that the kids have made or we have gathered that have some meaning to them.


Here is a picture...



This is not a change but it has affected our holiday...my grandpa passed away Christmas Eve morning. He had cancer and was in pain and while I feel extremely guilty for not making time to call him I am at peace that he is now pain free and walking in heaven (he hasn't been able to walk for several months). Without going into too much detail we were going a few days early to Florida before our actual vacation started so I could spend some time with him and my grandma. I didn't get the chance but my grandma will be moving here soon.

We went to my in-laws for Christmas Eve. We had a wonderful dinner and a good time visiting. Here are a few pictures...

Landon





Gavin


Kylie


The kids before opening presents

Random Ramblings...

Just some random ramblings on this Friday afternoon...

First, it is Kylie's last day of school until January 13. Wait, everyone else goes back January 6. Not her...we are going to Disney World and on a Disney Cruise. She doesn't know we are going...We are leaving on Jan 2 and will be back Jan 12.

Christmas is less than a week away and I have not finished shopping...not by a long shot...I work best under pressure...I hope.

I have TONS of housework to do. Somehow I end up playing with the boys or running errands and it is not getting done. I need to get busy...it needs to be done.

UCA ticks me off. Yes I work there but is it really THAT hard to get things right? I have one graduate class left to take in the spring...yes I did say ONE!...and I received a scholarship for the fall and the spring. Only, I got my bill and the scholarship isn't on there. No joke...I talked to 7 different people from 7 different departments and no one "handled that". Geez...

Christmas Parade

We went to the Christmas parade on Saturday night. Both boys were in bad moods and decided to throw a fit before the parade started. All was well once they saw the first part of the parade. It wasn't too cold but we all had hot chocolate and the kids had popcorn.

Gavin and daddy


Brooke and Landon


Whew...Gavin was NOT happy!


They all loved playing on the train in the park before the parade started


Kylie




Landon and Gavin sitting in the back of the truck waiting for the parade