Saturday, December 6, 2014

disney part one.

It's so hard to believe we're at the end of our vacation already! We've had our ups and downs, but it has been a great trip over all. Our trip started off a little rocky because of traveling on Thanksgiving Sunday alongside what seemed like every other Floridian ... which meant our drive to Orlando took over 6 hours ... which made for really late bedtimes by the time we unloaded, unpacked, and ate dinner ... which then resulted in cranky kids [mainly the boys] @ Hollywood Studios Monday morning. BUT thankfully we decided to cut our morning short & went back to the resort for lunch, naps and rest time. It was just what everyone needed, and we ended up having a wonderful afternoon/night when we returned to Hollywood Studios for the Anna & Elsa Sing-a-Long and an amazing light show.

Gus & I were thankful for this little light when the boys' attitudes were challenging :)

She was so excited to see Sophia!



Fuzzy, but here we are waiting for the Anna & Elsa sing-a-long to begin. It was FANTASTIC!

This was the "Frozen snowground" the kids enjoyed ... of course Eli is eating the snow - yuck!





Fun seeing the army men in character walking around...

This is what's known as the "The Osborne Family Spectacle of Dancing Lights" show. Just incredible to see in person!!





Matthew & Hudson building Star Wars droids as their one toy to take home... money well spent for sure! They LOVED it.

Tuesday we hit Magic Kingdom early, and everyone had a lot of fun. Matthew & Hudson LOVED the race cars, "people mover" and Buzz ride the best. Eli loved those too except for the Buzz ride ... we discovered both Eli & Hollis do not like the indoor rides where it's mainly dark. Hollis' favorite was meeting Cinderella & Rapunzel. The two of us stood in line to meet them while the boys did their thing, and I kept thinking how much I'm going to love experiencing more "girly things" with her. This is just the beginning :) On a side note, there were huge portraits of princesses on the walls in the room where we waited to meet them. I knew most of them, but Hollis could name every single one. She never ceases to amaze me.

After our lunch & nap break, we returned to Magic Kingdom. This time things didn't go as smoothly. Our first clue we were in for some challenges was when we arrived, and the monorail wasn't running for some reason. We had to ride the super-packed ferry instead, which made us miss our fastpass on the Jungle Cruise. The good in that though was we had time to grab coffees, so we were happy :) Right after Gus walked into Starbucks, out of nowhere, music started blaring from the speakers. It was a "dance party" ... Here came the chipper Disney performers down Main Street, and it was LOUD. Hudson immediately covered his ears and started crying. We could not get out of there quick enough :( Poor guy. After he calmed down, we rode a couple of his favorites and all was well. But just after we finished riding in the race cars, Hudson saw fireworks in the distance and he LOST IT. We couldn't even hear the fireworks because we were so far away, but he went nuts. It really was to the point where I'm surprised Disney employees didn't check on the situation because he was screaming so much. Gus and I didn't know whether to be thankful we were in such a crowded place that the noise helped to mask his screams a bit ... or wish we weren't in such a place where tons of people could witness what was happening. It was definitely a humbling experience :) Thankfully, Hudson calmed down, we enjoyed the lighting of the castle, and we were back to our villa in time for the kids to watch a Toy Story special and Charlie Brown Christmas on TV ... in bed!

Magic Kingdom, here we come ...

Riding on the "people mover" ...







"It's A Small World", Buzz & Peter Pan rides [where Hollis is covering her eyes ... when she said that she didn't want to see Captain Hook, Hudson told her to cover her eyes!]



Meeting Cinderella & Rapunzel :)







Around the park ...



Riding the ferry back for lunch and naps ...

Waiting on Anna & Elsa to "ice" the castle ...

[BEFORE and AFTER]

Enjoying Christmas shows in the bed :)

















Wednesday was our "off day," and we all appreciated sleeping in, no agenda, and lots of pool time. This resort is amazing, and has the perfect pool set-up for kids ... and adults :)



















Next up ... Legoland, another day @ Magic Kingdom, and one of our favorite breakfast spots :)


Friday, December 5, 2014

four friday faves.





[2] Old Navy pajama top ... So true. Want it.
[3] To go along with fave #2 ... Multiple Non-fat Lattes with milk & honey
have been such a treat this week :)
[4] The Barnstormer @ Magic Kingdom ... fun fun ride I rode with Matthew,
who LOVES a good roller coaster!

Monday, December 1, 2014

surprise!

Yesterday we surprised the kids with their early Christmas present from us, Mama Anne & Daddy Nick. We can't say it was the reaction we completely expected, but it was an honest kid reaction ... so it's pretty funny :) The link to the video is HERE.

Friday, November 28, 2014

four friday faves.





[1] Dancing With the Stars ... This is the first time I've gotten into this show, & now I can't wait for next season! Alfonso [aka: Carlton] was an amazing dancer & deserved that win, big time.
[2] DisneyWorld ... Little do our kids know, we are surprising them with an early Christmas present trip to Disney soon!!! Cannot wait.
[3] Brookside chocolates ... amazing + addictive.
[4] "A Baby Changes Everything" by Faith Hill ... I first heard this a few years ago and immediately added it to my long list of favorite Christmas songs.

Thursday, November 27, 2014

thankful.

I love Thanksgiving. I love our traditions ... the boys and Gus going camping every Thanksgiving Eve with Daddy Nick & others on the family farm; taking Hollis to Mom & Dad's to have our own slumber party; having Thanksgiving lunch with my side of the family at Mom & Dad's eating the famous turkey, gravy and dressing that Grandma [my mom's mom] always cooked growing up; going home for quick naps & heading to the farm to be with Gus' side of the family for the remainder of the day ... that's how we always spend Thanksgiving, and I love every minute of it. 

As much as I look forward to our family traditions, I appreciate this day just as much for forcing me to ponder all that I have to be grateful for ... to be intentional in my thanksgiving. Here are just a few things I am thanking my Creator for today:

1. my husband who makes me laugh all the time
2. our healthy and happy children
3. grandparents who adore their grandchildren
4. family & friends who bless our lives more than they know
5. for being born in the United States of America
6. heat & hot water
7. clear nights when the sky is filled with stars
8. seeing excitement on the faces of our kids
9. Sunday naps
10. coffee & dark chocolate [not together though!]

HAPPY THANKSGIVING!!


"Enter his gates with thanksgiving and his courts with praise; 
give thanks to him and praise his name." [Psalm 100:4]