Father-Daughter Dance 2018

Another dance is in the books!

Andy picked out a special corsage and made a reservation for 2. 

After a nice dinner and of course, dessert, the two of them headed off to the dance!

 

These two danced the night away!  I'm always surprised that the two of them stay so long at this event but I think they are just truly having fun with their special time. 

The boys and I also had a special date with Grandma Nel.

Swimming, chinese food complete with chopsticks lessons from Grandma, and a treat from Goodies for dessert!  

 

Winter Games 2018

Winter Games was over a month ago but I forgot to take some time to post about them. 

It was such a fun weekend hosting Nate, Andrew, and Liz. 

We did not sit still!

Saturday was jam packed with tons of winter fun:

snowmobile driving, sledding, watching Papa win at the bags competition, walking around the ice, playing in the snow, snacks, burning of the greens, and much more. 

If you live in a place that is cold, icy, and snowy - why not celebrate it?!

Kennedy Space Center

Bennett has always been a kiddo of varying interests.  His current goal for his future is to become a paleontologist and an engineer so he can build rockets.

So, when we found out how close we would be to the Kennedy Space Center, we knew it would be so interesting for him and for all of us. 

Although the beach was calling, we took a morning and continued our adventure to the space center. 

We were so busy there - meeting an astronaut and hearing about his two adventures in space. 

Watching an IMAX movie and learning about NASA and their mission to Mars was fascinating.

We also go tto see the space shuttle Atlantis up close and personal.  

Watching Bennett, and all the kids, learn and process this information was a highlight for us.  It's amazing to think that we have no idea what these kids are capable of, but we know they will accomplish great things.  It's exciting to know that we can give them opportunities to nourish their interests and who knows? Maybe their dreams will come true.

Days at the Beach

After all the excitement of Disney World, we were looking forward to introducing our kids to the ocean.  We found a hotel right on Cocoa Beach and on Thursday morning we set our sights on this next adventure.  

 It was a little foggy that day, but the waves were amazing, the sun was warm, and the sand was soft.  The kids were mostly surprised at how strong the waves were as well as the salty taste of the water.
After a few hours, I grabbed some lunch from the pier and we all ate sandy hot dogs and sandy chips. 

We buried our toes, legs, arms, and yes our whole bodies. 

We body surfed - Marie and Andy almost never stopped this activity. 

We dug for shells, saving our favorites.

We fed the seagulls.

We watched the surfers.

We laid on our chairs in the sun. 

We spoke about how maybe we should sell everything, move here, and become beach bums. 

We had an unforgettable time.

Thanks for the memories Cocoa Beach, we'll be back!

Epcot

On our final full day in Disney we started out at Epcot.

We could tell right away that the kids were pretty tired so we agreed to get back to the hotel for the afternoon to rest before our final big night of fireworks and dinner. 

We saw Nemo, drove a car on a test track going close to 70 mph, ate lunch, bought a few souvenirs, and journeyed through the iconic Epcot Sphere. 

In the afternoon, Brooks took a looong nap with Dad while the older two kiddos swam in the resort pools. It was a great way to relax and enjoy the sunshine. 

That night we had dinner at Chef Mickey's right in our Hotel. After a plateful of dessert we power walked over to get our spot for the fireworks.  

Once again - a show NOT to be missed. 

We made our way through the crowds following the fireworks towards the rides.  We were lucky because resort guests had "extra magic hours" that night which means more rides and fewer lines!

We made it to Dumbo, Tea Cups, Barnstormer, Pirates of the Caribbean, and Space Mountain.  

Finally at 11:00, we said farewell to Magic Kingdom and walked back one last time to our hotel.

Animal Kingdom

I'm starting to sound like a broken record here but this day started out with a few of us running off to a ride - we couldn't be late or miss it because we knew the line would get long and we were so excited for it...Mt. Everest!!!

This ride was so much fun, it revolved around a crazy snow Yeti and a mountain trek.  At one point the ride stops at the end of the tracks and then you go backwards - such a fun way to spend a Tuesday morning with your kids!

After the ride, we ran over to The Festival of the Lion King show.  We scored some amazing VIP seats through a contact of one of Andy's cousins. This show was amazing - it felt like we were on Broadway. The kids were even chosen to participate in the show!  

This day was a full one - rides, show, lunch at Tusker House with Donald, Daisy, Mickey, and Goofy, more rides, a Safari...yes, I said a safari!  We saw so many great animals including giraffes, elephants, wild dog/wolves, rhinos, hyenas, and so much more!

We were all pretty hot and sweaty after the safari so we thought it would be a good idea to grab another Mickey Ice Cream and frozen lemonade, and then we headed to this water rafting ride.  It was another huge hit!  I really wish I had my camera for that ride because everyone's faces were priceless as we headed down the rapids.  We all got a little wet but Brooks and Dad seemed the most drenched by the end of the ride.  

Our final experience at Animal Kingdom was with the Pandora-Avatar Ride/Experience.  It was 3D and absolutely breathtaking.  The ride had a 2 hour wait but thankfully Andy's planning gave us a fast pass plus a "ride swap" which allowed the kids to go again with another adult - lucky ducks. 

After a quick meal we headed back the hotel for a nice shower - we were starting to smell like the animals on the safari!

Magic Kingdom

Our day at Magic Kingdom started with a ride on the carousel followed by coasters, splash mountain, and continued on and on and on.  

We squeezed in time with a few characters but mostly spent the day getting on as many rides as possible.

Andy & I have always been amusement park ride junkies and we are so happy our kids are following in our footsteps. 

Whether it's a coaster that has big thrills or slow and steady "It's a Small World" - we all hop and enjoy!

Brooks became starstruck when he met The Fairy Godmother at Cinderella's Castle. This was both surprising and endearing...who knows why but he blushed and definitely won that lady over. 

 

 After a full day of Magic, we headed back to the hotel to get ready for our dinner at the Polynesian Resort. This included family style Hawaiian dishes which were delicious!