Johanna is 4

May 29, 2014 | Stacy

We woke her in the morning with a song.

We had a quick breakfast … well, not quick enough. We FORGOT her speech therapist was coming! OOPS.
We cleared out of the kitchen for that session then hurried to pack a lunch after she left. Phew!

We had a family pass to the Strong Museum I purchased last year at the LEAH convention for $20! This is a great price. To get the crew of us in would be $108.00 U.S. I am Not Kidding.

First stop was Berenstain Bears section.

We explored storybook area.

And shopped at Wegmans.

Nene had tickets for the carousel and train. Yay Nene!

We had fun. I think. Honestly, I don’t really love the place. I always feel like the place is filled with overstimulated preschoolers ricocheting around at a frenetic pace not really getting anything out of the situation. And older kids getting cranky sidelong glances from the docents. Like once they are at the ages to actually get a lot out of the experience they are no longer wanted. Just sayin’.

Nan, Nene, Ba & Poppy came for dinner. We had pancakes, sausage, and pineapple. Hanny loves two out of three of those.

Then we opened gifts and homemade cards.

The boys chipped in and bought her a slip-and-slide.

The girls gave her a few animal figures they had won at the museum that day.

Nene gave her a Bolt stuffed animal. She opened it, regarded it, and said, “You’re my good boy.”
(Bolt is one of my favorite movies.)

Ba and Poppy gave her Legos for her age group.

Nan gave her Anna and Elsa dolls. Go ahead. Look on Amazon for what these babies go for – if they are even still available. Poor Nan learned a lesson on promising she was going to get her something for her birthday (after she saw her sister get them for Christmas). Go ahead – click here…

Mom and Dad gave her her own paints and paper;

Some dog figurines (Tab got some last year and you know how cool big sisters’ toys are);

And an Ariel nightgown.

Pink cupcakes and strawberry ice cream rounded our our birthday celebration.

Happy Fourth Birthday to our Brown Eyed Girl.

Johanna’s first birthday party.

May 28, 2014 | Stacy

It wasn’t her first birthday… it was her first birthday party.

As we talked about it , she asked so earnestly, “Can I invite ALL my friends?” And then she named them: three sweet friends from CBS, and three sweet friends from church.

We ate fruit, mac & cheese, and hot dogs. Oh – and marshmallows. (Which item do you think went first?)

We played some games in the basement.

We played in the bounce house…

And on the swings.

And there was PRINCESS cake for our four-year-old Princess.

Hanny LOVES her friends.

There were a LOT of presents… Can you say pink/princess/Disney/ballerina extravaganza? WoooooWeeeeee!

Her friends left around 7PM and this little girl went to bed on her last night of being three with a Great Big Smile.

“No more pencils, no more books.”

May 27, 2014 | Stacy

See how happy we all are that it is summer?

Actually – we are still doing a little bit of school, and they have been more than agreeable to do yard work and building projects. Nigel has even drawn up building plans to turn the swing set into something of a water park. … to be continued, I am sure…

A cruise can start with…

May 26, 2014 | Stacy

rhubarb?

Since we got off the cruise a few weeks ago the kids tossed around ideas to generate income for another cruise.
Bake sale? That’s a lot of brownies.
Garage sale? Great idea – but we have no good stuff.
Mom work more? Sure – but then we’d have to hire a maid and a cook.
Produce stand? Hmmm – this one has merit.

For the last five (?) years John has had a garden. For the most part it has done very well. We’ve had plenty to eat, some to share, and a bit to freeze. With a little effort, we can expand this garden; and with the kids’ help, they can sell the additional produce.

John and the boys built a stand to ride in the tractor cart, and built a standing sign out of a plastic saw horse.

They built a box, too.

And they made $5 on their first day, and two more the second day.
We may not earn enough for a cruise in this decade, but I think it’s a great experience just the same.

Making a joyful noise!

May 25, 2014 | Stacy

Every so often (once a year?) the kids 0-5 are invited to join the choir or praise team in leading a worship song.

Praise Him, Praise Him, Let all the people praise Him.

Not sure why these iPhone pictures are so grainy… but you get the point.

Solar Powered Fan.

May 23, 2014 | Stacy

(That’s Stewart.)

Sleepy Parrot… (a must see)

May 21, 2014 | Stacy

Vacation wrap up…

May 16, 2014 | Stacy

As our vacation started to wind down, we repeated days at Busch Gardens and SeaWorld, and had one last day at “home” before hitting the road Friday evening.

Wednesday, we went back to Busch Gardens.

This ride is called Cheetah Hunt. It launches you from 0 to 30 in two seconds as it launches you out of the station. It later does a launch to 60 mph. It is a very long ride that runs the expanse of the park and is designed to make you feel like a cheetah hunting for food.

They were testing Falcon’s Fury which was behind schedule for opening. (I’m rather grateful…) It drops you to the ground as a falcon diving for food.

We watched veterinary surgery on an African bird.

Traveling the world animal and ice skating show. You had to see it. It was pretty cool.

John showing the kids how injection molding works.

Thursday we went back to SeaWorld. The weather was spotty. It was our only day to really contend with the weather. (A bit on Wednesday). We also had to deal with the dreaded… SCHOOL GROUPS. I’m so glad we had been there on a quieter day, Sunday.

It was really windy.

A habitat for injured pelicans.

She almost climbed out of the stroller trying to get to the bird! She LOVED animals!!!!

Petting and feeding sting rays.

We also did a super cool 3D, 360 degree movie called Turtle Trek. We followed a turtle through it’s life span in about 4 minutes…

A BEAUTIFUL dolphin and diving show. It was one of those things that you can’t capture pictures to do it justice.

We went back to Antarctica to see Puck and his friends.

and here’s PUCK!

The threat of thunderstorms and the spotty rain really messed with our touring. We did get to do a bunch of the smaller rides.

Friday we stayed at the house.

I took a nap from 12:00 P.M. – 3:00 P.M. so I could help with driving in the later hours of the night. We left around 5:00 P.M. on Friday which is a ridiculously foolish time to leave any southern city. It took ForEvER to get out of Florida. And it took a FULL 24-hours to get home. Far worse time that we made on the way home. But it was a super good vacation, even if I was ready to chew off my arm by the time I got to West Virginia. 😉

Rest Day

May 13, 2014 | Stacy

A day to do nothing. We did nothing with gusto.

After Daddy brought Katriel out of the pool she had a lot to say about it. She grabbed his leg and screeched and pulled on his shorts in the direction of the pool. For real. It was funny to see her so adamant to return to swimming!

Interestingly enough, she wasn’t as adamant about sharing a snack…

But she was consistent enough to get one. ♥

Then she got her big brother to take her back in.

These are the kind of photos that keep a tired mom going.

See – I DID get in the water! I also managed to read an entire book this day, as well. A WHOLE BOOK.

After Katriel’s nap.

We went to an Early Bird Dinner at Black Angus Steak House. This is becoming a tradition for us.

We also went to DownTown Disney again. Johanna still wewwy needed a lot of things.

John went into the Ghirardelli shop to get himself a coffee. The waitress paused to assess him and ask, “Because you aren’t hot enough?” It WAS about 82 degrees as 6 P.M. Every other guest in the store was ordering ice cream.