lake pics

We spent a week at the lake a couple of weeks ago.  We had absolutely gorgeous weather and made lots of memories.   

Monday was spent painting fingernails with the new nail art kit that Grandma had bought with Amelia on the way up to the lake the day before.  Now, let me tell you that I'm not a fan of little girls painting their own nails.  I completely understand that they need to practice to improve, but it makes this Mama a bit crazy to have them all wanting to do it all at the same time...at your parents' lake cottage.  

This may have caused me a bit of stress.  I told Josh that I was not having fun on this particular morning, and (after everyone's nails had sufficiently dried) he ordered everyone to put on swimsuits and jump in the lake.  This improved my sanity greatly.  And on a side note, I'm going to beg my mom to go with the hula-hoops next time. :)

We ended the day with ice cream from the local ice cream shop and a pontoon ride (or "contoon" as Olivia calls it...she also calls her swimsuit her swimsoup...and popsicles hotsicles)  

Tuesday was another swim day along with an all-family wave runner ride.  Claire, Josh, and Amelia ended up in the water at one point.  After Amelia finished crying, she thought she might want to fall in again.  The girls and Josh also went tubing.  

Grandma and Grandpa came back on Wednesday, but we were gone most of the day enjoying some time with friends.  

Thursday was spent playing and preparing for more friends and family.  Josh's parents came for a visit and a pontoon ride on Thursday.  

Amelia and Eden can finally sit next to each other without fighting at mealtime. :)  Eden is currently OBSESSED with Meredith.  Anytime Jill asks Eden what she would like to eat, drink, do, etc., she responds, "Well, what is Meredith having/doing/etc.?"  Every. single. time.

The breakfast crew...where are Grandpa's smiles?!

 Amelia caught a nice catfish:

Claire hooked a soft-shell turtle:

Meredith and Carter are inseparable when they're together:

This Meredith/Carter relationship amazes me each and every time we're together.  Our families get together 2-3 times per year, and they play together (almost non-stop) for several hours straight.  I have a picture of them together from 2009 (when they were 4), and I distinctly remember them not leaving each other's side that day either.  They eat together, swim together, play together, talk to each other, and wait to do anything while the other one is in the bathroom.  It's awfully sweet.

Lake days have always been some of my favorite days and continue to be.  Looking forward to spending more time up there before school starts.    

disney: day 6

Since Day 6 was such a long day, I didn't email home about it.  Not that I'm making it up as I go, but this post might not be as detail oriented as previous ones!

It was a lot of fun to return to Magic Kingdom for a second day.  There was still so much that we hadn't experienced!  The girls were also able to choose their favorite attractions that we could visit again.  

We started our morning visiting Rapunzel and Snow White.  The girls were amazed by the glass slipper.  

 

 

 

 

 

 

Meredith was up for riding the tea cups, so we packed ourselves into a single tea cup and held onto the spinner for dear life.  Thankfully, the ride didn't last too long, I was about 20 seconds away from beginning to feel a bit too sick from the circular movement (Meredith comes by it honestly).  

Appropriately, Alice was signing autographs and posting for pictures just outside of the ride, so we caught her on our way by.  

The girls wanted to ride Winnie the Pooh again, and Amelia insisted I take her photo in Eeyore's house.  On a side note, one of the girls commented that whomever designed the Pooh ride was really thinking...there are several spots to play along the wait. :)   

We rode the magic carpets again and climbed up the Swiss Family Robinson's tree house.  We had recently listened to the (13 hour!) audio book, so it was fun to see.  

We had spent virtually no time in Tomorrowland on Thursday, so we hit it hard on Friday.  Amelia, Claire, and Josh rode the Buzz Lightyear ride (which they loved), and Meredith and I ran into a talking/dancing/singing trash can.

We rode the People Mover which is kind of like an elevated train that runs through Tomorrowland.  In my guide book, the "frightening level" stated that it was NOT FRIGHTENING IN ANY RESPECT.  This is not true.  It wasn't overly frightening, but for a certain someone in our party, there was a heightened level of fright when we entered a pitch black portion of the tour.  Yeah, not so good.  Thankfully, we were all in the same "car", and Josh and I were both holding her hands. :)

We took another spin at the Speedway to lighten our moods, and I'm pretty sure that Meredith and I had the slowest car on the track.  It was borderline dud-worthy.  

 

 

We spent a ton of time at the Barnstormer!  The kids wanted to ride again and again.  This worked well because the wait was usually about 10 minutes or less.  

We did catch up with the Dumbo ride on Friday since the wait was virtually none.  They have a great new play area while you wait for the Dumbo ride.  It works kind of like waiting at a restaurant.  They give you a buzzer, and when it's your turn to ride Dumbo, your buzzer buzzes.  Pretty brilliant.  

Of course, we couldn't go to Disney without meeting Tinkerbell.  Terrance was there as well.  We ate Dole Whips while we waited in line (super YUM!!).  We did wait for a bit to see Tink and Terrance, but they did spend several minutes talking with the girls.  

 

Claire, Josh, and I took turns riding Space Mountain a couple of times.  This is an interesting ride.  Even though I knew it wouldn't happen, I couldn't get past the feeling that I was going to smack my head on something above me!  (Space Mountain is pitch black other than some stars that you can see overhead).  We caught the Merry Go Round, Peter Pan, and It's a Small World for a second time on Friday as well.  

After so many turns on the Barnstormer, we almost convinced Meredith to ride Thunder Mountain, but unfortunately, we were running out of time.  Mickey's Not So Scary Halloween Party was starting at 7:00, so we had to make our way out of the park.  It was fun to see all of the kids and adults dressed for the party.  There were a lot of really good costumes!

We ended our time at Magic Kingdom day with a few last trips on the Barnstormer.  During the last few rides, we all made it our goal to keep our hands in the air for the entire ride.  What fun!  The kids just had a blast with this!!  It was the perfect way to end our trip.  

A couple of different nights, we had intended on going to Downtown Disney to let the girls pick out souvenirs, but we hadn't made it.  This was the night.

If you haven't ever driven to Downtown Disney, let me give you a little piece of advice:  where you park completely matters!!  We were looking to shop, but we parked near all of the restaurants.  Thankfully, while the girls and I were shopping, Josh hiked back to our van and moved it.  

Claire chose a bracelet, earrings, and a coffee mug (for hot chocolate).  Meredith chose three pairs of earrings and a necklace.  Amelia chose a baby Mickey wrapped in a blanket.  Josh and I chose a plush Eeyore for Olivia.  We also picked up some personalized ornaments at the Disney Christmas Store.

We arrived back at the hotel around 11:00, sent the kids to bed, and packed up.  We wanted to wake up at 4:00 in the morning and be on the road by 5:00.  I'm tired just thinking about it. :) 

disney: day 5

What an exhausting and fun day we had at Magic Kingdom!  We headed out early around 8:00 (since they opened early that day).  

We rode the Winnie-the-Pooh ride, which was a hit for all.  Although, Meredith didn't like the rain storm in the ride.  On a side note, on this trip, I've learned that Meredith hates the dark, surprise anything, and loud anything (which I knew...but this trip has sealed that deal).  

We walked to the back of the park to get our fastpasses for the Peter Pan ride, and then go on It's a Small World. While we were walking past Peter Pan, I noticed one of my mom's co-workers in line for Peter Pan.  We talked for a few seconds before our family boarded It's a Small World...seemed appropriate enough. :)  

The kids really enjoyed It's a Small World, and we enjoyed walking right onto the ride with no waiting.  We got off that ride and walked right into rain.  We didn't think it was going to rain at all, but we had packed our ponchos just in case...this was the wisest decision of the day.  We used them on and off a few times during the morning.

We headed over to the Country Bear Jamboree which I found a bit lame.  The kids supposedly enjoyed it, but I was completely unimpressed.  This is obviously an older attraction that is around because of the nostalgia it provides.  It was nice to be inside for a few minutes, though, while the rain passed.  

We hoofed it back to Peter Pan, which was loved by all (Meredith didn't ride...too dark).  It was fun to feel like we were "flying" over everything!

Thunder Mountain Railroad was next.  Claire and I rode first; Josh and Claire second.  Just before getting on the coaster, we stopped at the bathroom and noticed Woody and Jessie signing autographs and taking pictures nearby.  While Josh and Claire rode the coaster, Meredith, Amelia, and I stood in line to get Woody's and Jessie's autographs.  Claire and Josh caught up after their ride in plenty of time, and we all ate lunch while we waited in line.  Perfect timing!

We spent some time on Tom Sawyer Island.  Everyone enjoyed this, and we ran into a guy that Josh used to work with.  "It's a small world after all..."

And then it POURED for about 5 minutes...and then stopped. :)  Thank you, Florida.

We headed to the Magic Carpet ride...loved by all.  Then, we rode the carousel...loved by all as well.  Claire, Josh, and Amelia rode the tea cups (Meredith and I don't like spinning rides).  We did notice that your cup doesn't HAVE to spin...we might try tomorrow.   

The Disney Train was calling our name, and we went all the way around the outside of Magic Kingdom...this was a nice break and filled our fastpass time for the Barnstormer.  

The Barnstormer is a 53 second roller coaster for young kiddos who don't want big drops, but still want to go fast and make some quick turns.  Meredith and Amelia weren't so sure about it while we were on the ride, but they both wanted to go again.  Meredith said during the ride, "I think you're enjoying this more than I am!!"  And then when it was finished, "Why is it so short?"  My response:  "So that it's over quickly if you don't like it!"  

We considered riding Dumbo (supposedly one of the most popular rides at Disney), but the wait was 50 minutes.  Ummm...no thank you...especially considering that it is the EXACT SAME RIDE as the dinosaur ride at Animal Kingdom and the magic carpet ride that we already rode.  

We went back to our hotel for a swim and dinner.  Since MK closed early the following night for Mickey's Halloween Party, we could only watch the parade and fireworks on Thursday.  We had missed the parades and fireworks at all of the other parks because of rain (or warnings that a certain someone in our party would be scared), so we didn't want to miss our opportunity!  

We did both and had great seats for both!  

Of course, the photos don't even begin to do the parade justice.  At one point, Captain Hook's pirate ship arrived, and it blew cannon smoke right into Meredith's face.  She just couldn't catch a break on this trip!  Josh had watched Pete's dragon blow some smoke out his nose.  He told Meredith that it would just come out the front (not right in her face), but she didn't take any chances.  She was standing next to us in record time. :)

Unfortunately, once the parade was over, we had to trek to the other side of the park to get a good spot for the fireworks.  There were people EVERYWHERE...and that's an understatement.  

At one point, we almost got puked on by a 3 year old.  Poor little guy was puking everywhere.  It was pretty disgusting...I felt sorry for his parents.  Anyway, we found a great spot for the fireworks, and Tinkerbell soared right over us from the top of Cinderella's Castle all the way to the other side of the park...it was pretty amazing.  

The fireworks were probably the best we've ever seen.  Amelia kept saying, "That one is my favorite!!  Oh, that one is my DOUBLE favorite!!"  Over and over again...

Since half of the park was heading home at that point, we decided to do one more ride (the speedway cars) while the first wave of people left.  We had ridden the bus to the park that night, so we knew we were definitely going to be fighting crowds on the way back.  It wasn't too bad, though, and we made it home before 10:30.  

Magic Kingdom was nothing short of amazing for the kids...which is why we spent Day 6 there as well!  There was still so much to do!

disney: day 4 (also known as beach day)

We decided to take a break from Disney and make a day trip to Daytona Beach Shores.  How lovely.  It turned out to be a beautiful day.  I will admit, though, any day at the beach is a good day in my book. :)

We all slept in on Wednesday morning.  It was wonderful.  We packed up and left our hotel around 11:00.  The drive was just about an hour.  On the way there, Amelia said, "Mom, did you pack my swimsuit?"

"Ummm...no...I asked you to put it on before we left."  Tearing up, she replied, "Well, I forgot.  I thought you were going to get it."  Being the mean mom that I am, I let her sit there and chew on the idea that we were going to the beach and she didn't have a suit.  

The pouty lip appeared with this tearful question, "Do you think we can go back to the beach another day?"

Of course, we stopped and picked up a new suit which totally made her day.

The kids and Josh spent a lot of time doing this...

...and they made a sand castle...

...and Josh filled his Tinkerbell bucket over and over and over again...

...and everyone worked together on that sand castle...

 

 

 

 

...and Meredith was having the time of her life (other than when salt water got into her mouth...welcome to the ocean, girls!!)...

Amelia was pretending to be a crab...

...because we caught one.

The finished product.

The beach was amazing.  The girls loved collecting shells and playing in the water.  We walked up and down the beach and just had a wonderful time!  

We ate dinner at a great little pizza place called Panheads Pizza.  I had read reviews online, and it did not disappoint.  We ordered wings as an appetizer, and they were some of the best we've ever had. Our waitress was great, and we received a really nice comment on our "beautiful family" and "well-behaved children" from another table of guests...warmed my heart. :)  

It was a great break in the middle of the week, and I would definitely do this again!