Friend Party
Paxton got invited to his buddy, Boston's birthday party at the trampoline place. He came home hot and sweaty. Not sure why that kid didn't take off his sweatshirt. He had a blast being with his friends from school!
On our way to Florida!
We were so lucky to get to do a Florida/Disney trip with my whole family. We flew out super early Saturday morning with Trev and his family and Erika and Ben. The kids all did really well, lots of movies! It was nice to take an early flight so that we got to Florida at a decent time. We went and rented our cars, drove to the house that we all stayed in together, unloaded our luggage and then went and did a large grocery shopping trip. The kids had plenty of time to get their wiggles out before going to bed.
The next day was Sunday and we just had a relax and explore day. It was nice to not jump right into a long day at Disney after a travel day. We spent the day hanging out at the house, going for a walk around the grounds. We walked over to the club house and pool area where they had a free arcade so we stayed and played for a bit. The home we stayed in was pretty nice and it fit us all perfect! Rem and I got our own room and bathroom and our kids did too! They were excited that they got to stay in the Star Wars themed room with a TV! Some of the mornings we would find just about all the kids gathered into their room watching a show together.
We were so lucky to get to do a Florida/Disney trip with my whole family. We flew out super early Saturday morning with Trev and his family and Erika and Ben. The kids all did really well, lots of movies! It was nice to take an early flight so that we got to Florida at a decent time. We went and rented our cars, drove to the house that we all stayed in together, unloaded our luggage and then went and did a large grocery shopping trip. The kids had plenty of time to get their wiggles out before going to bed.
The next day was Sunday and we just had a relax and explore day. It was nice to not jump right into a long day at Disney after a travel day. We spent the day hanging out at the house, going for a walk around the grounds. We walked over to the club house and pool area where they had a free arcade so we stayed and played for a bit. The home we stayed in was pretty nice and it fit us all perfect! Rem and I got our own room and bathroom and our kids did too! They were excited that they got to stay in the Star Wars themed room with a TV! Some of the mornings we would find just about all the kids gathered into their room watching a show together.
Erika was teaching Yoga moves and Paxton was teaching Taekwondo moves on the back patio.
Disney World!!!
Magic Kingdom!
On Monday we went to Magic Kingdom! It took forever getting to the park with the parking and then the shuttle and then you can either take the ferry or the monorail. We took the monorail with Erika and Ben which was much faster than the ferry which everyone else took. So we had time to kill while waiting for them so we got some pictures done, walked the shops a little bit and waited for them in front of the castle to get our big family group shot.
Then we decided to hit up the longest line that we weren't able to get fast passes for, The Snow White Miner Train. It was a two hour wait, ugh. It was a lot of fun, but that was a long wait. I'm not sure Paxton would have ridden that one had he known it was a type of roller coaster, but we didn't tell him and he went. I think he liked it, but didn't really want to admit it or maybe he wasn't sure.
Luckily Jamie and I planned out and got our fast passes early which saved us a ton of time the rest of the day. We went on Space Mountain (which Pax refused to go on, but then again so did Rem), Buzz Lightyear's Space Ranger Spin (which the kids LOVED), Speedway where we got to drive the cars, it was pretty boring, this did not seem like a Magic Kingdom ride, it belonged at Lagoon. Throughout the day our group kept getting split up because it's just too hard to keep 16 people together. We ended up with Erika and my parents and decided to skip the parade mainly because we couldn't find a place to stand and see very well and Erika, Ben and my parents didn't really seem to care about the parade so we all took off to ride Pirates of the Caribbean. The kids really loved this ride! Pretty much any ride Paxton loved he begged to do it again, again! Too bad some of those lines are too long. We made it on Haunted Mansion, walked through Swiss Family Robinson Treehouse, enjoyed some icecream, went on Thunder Mountain, and had dinner with the family. As it got dark we went on the Jungle Cruise, which would've been better in the light, but it was still fun and there was no wait. We then saw the firework show and everyone else was on the other side of the park and wanted to go home after, but we took advantage of people going home and rushed after the show and hit up 3 more rides! Small World, Winnie the Pooh and The Little Mermaid.
It was a fun filled day and we were all exhausted after, but it was worth it! Magic Kingdom was a lot like Disneyland, but there were little differences on the rides and a few of the rides were different, but not much.
Then we decided to hit up the longest line that we weren't able to get fast passes for, The Snow White Miner Train. It was a two hour wait, ugh. It was a lot of fun, but that was a long wait. I'm not sure Paxton would have ridden that one had he known it was a type of roller coaster, but we didn't tell him and he went. I think he liked it, but didn't really want to admit it or maybe he wasn't sure.
Luckily Jamie and I planned out and got our fast passes early which saved us a ton of time the rest of the day. We went on Space Mountain (which Pax refused to go on, but then again so did Rem), Buzz Lightyear's Space Ranger Spin (which the kids LOVED), Speedway where we got to drive the cars, it was pretty boring, this did not seem like a Magic Kingdom ride, it belonged at Lagoon. Throughout the day our group kept getting split up because it's just too hard to keep 16 people together. We ended up with Erika and my parents and decided to skip the parade mainly because we couldn't find a place to stand and see very well and Erika, Ben and my parents didn't really seem to care about the parade so we all took off to ride Pirates of the Caribbean. The kids really loved this ride! Pretty much any ride Paxton loved he begged to do it again, again! Too bad some of those lines are too long. We made it on Haunted Mansion, walked through Swiss Family Robinson Treehouse, enjoyed some icecream, went on Thunder Mountain, and had dinner with the family. As it got dark we went on the Jungle Cruise, which would've been better in the light, but it was still fun and there was no wait. We then saw the firework show and everyone else was on the other side of the park and wanted to go home after, but we took advantage of people going home and rushed after the show and hit up 3 more rides! Small World, Winnie the Pooh and The Little Mermaid.
It was a fun filled day and we were all exhausted after, but it was worth it! Magic Kingdom was a lot like Disneyland, but there were little differences on the rides and a few of the rides were different, but not much.
Animal Kingdom!
On Tuesday we did Animal Kingdom. We weren't sure we were quite ready to wake up so early and have another long day, but we did it and glad we did because Animal Kingdom was awesome and probably one of my most favorite days! It was fun to explore a new park and go on new rides.
We first headed to Everest in the Asia section, it's a roller coaster. I could not get Paxton or Rem to ride it with me, so I took advantage and got to ride it twice! It was awesome, such a thrill!! After we headed over to Dino Land and when we got there we saw Pluto and Goofy so we had to go say hi and get pictures. Then the moms took the kids on TriceraTop Spin while the dads went to ride the Dinosaur ride. Then the rest of us went on it, it reminded me a lot of the Indiana Jones ride being in a jeep and the way it moved. My boys loved it and of course wanted to ride again!
After lunch we headed over to the Africa section and went on the Kilimanjaro Safari ride. I was very impressed with this one, I didn't expect much. I've never been on a real safari, but this felt as close to real to me because the animals were not in fenced of cages, some of them of course had big ditches around their area that acted as a sort of fence. But everything just seemed out in the open! We saw so many animals such as giraffes, elephants, rhinos, flamingos, crocodiles and more. It was awesome!
Next we had fast passes over in Pandora, a new section of the park. We first took the kids on Na'vi River Journey which was a boat ride in the dark with lots of glowing lights and fun music and of course and Avatar. Then the adults and Paxton went on Avatar Flight of Passage (my parents and Erika and Ben swapped us and watched the little ones). This ride was so cool, you got to ride on a banshee and glide through the world of Pandora. Paxton was kinda freaking out and screaming on parts of the ride because it felt so real like you were soaring off the side of a cliff and such, I thought he was going to be so mad at me for making him go. There were several times that I would tell him to look behind us, we were still safely in the building even though it really felt like you were flying. To my surprise he LOVED it!! He decided he was ready to buy his souvenir and got a banshee. This was one of his top favorite rides. But there was no way we were going to wait in that line, it was over 2 hours long, thank goodness we had fast passes and stroller swap for this one.
We then got to see Bugs Life 3D show, which they have in California Adventure, but it's always a good one. And then we got to see the Lion King show! This one was really fun, great music, dancing and costumes! Finally we made our way over for our 7:00 dinner reservations and character experience at the Tuskar House. While we waited to be seated we joined in on some fun African music and the kids got to help out by shaking some maracas. It was fun to watch Graham really get into the dancing. While we ate dinner, Goofy, Daisy, Mickey and Donald stopped by for pictures and autographs. The best part of the night was when Goofy came back at the end of the night and danced around the room with the kids following behind using shakers to the song Jambo Jambo, it was a lot of fun!
When we left dinner, it was so late the park was already closed. Animal Kingdom was awesome!
Beach Day
Paxton’s birth-grandma lives in Treasure Island so we decided to go see her and the beach. It was such a great day! I loved reconnecting with her and Paxton loved it too! He thinks it’s so cool that he has this whole other family! He also got to see his birth-uncle, uncle Eric for a few minutes.
We had a great and relaxing day at the beach with my whole family. It was fun to watch the kids enjoy the waves and the sand. Then later my family left and Rem and I and the kids went back to Cindy’s place to change our clothes and then off to dinner on the beach. We got to meet Cindy’s boyfriend as well. Great food, great company and a beautiful sunset! It was a great day!
Universal Studios
Ah, another one of my favorite days. Let's be honest, the whole trip was amazing, but I sure loved Harry Potter World! Sandee and I made Harry Potter shirts for the whole group for this day. They turned out so fun and we got lots of looks through out the day. We each chose a characters name that we put on the back and put the coordinating house crest on the front, wearing a shirt color that went along with the house colors.
This park was expensive when you're basically forced to buy the park hopper pass if you want to see all of Harry Potter World, but it was worth it! If we ever go there again, I could spend at least 2 or more days here because we didn't have enough time to see it all.
We started out on the Transformers ride which was awesome, it was one of those 3D rides that felt like you were really there, my boys loved it! Then we did the ET ride, Fievel's Playland, Woody Woodpecker's Nuthouse Coaster, lunch and the Men in Black ride where you got to use these cool guns to shoot aliens, my boys really loved this one.
Then it was time for Harry Potter World!!! Everything about it was sooooo amazing! There was so much to see and it all was perfect! Jamie borrowed one of those expensive interactive wands from a friend so the kids took turns casting spells that played tricks. And then there was the butter beer... it was super yummy!! It was awesome to see the fire breathing dragon above the Gringotts Bank, we just tried soaking it all in. Then we had to wait about an hour for the Gringotts ride, but it was worth it and once you got in the building it was really cool to look around. Poor Graham was about an inch too short for this ride, we tried to sneak him on, but it didn't work. Paxton was nervous to go as it looked like a fast roller coaster, but he went and of course loved it! Afterwards we went on the Hogwarts Express train to the other park. I expected it just to be a train ride, but it was actually really cool and it felt like you were really on the Hogarts Express being in your own compartment and even a dementor came by.
Then we entered Hogsmeade, which was pretty awesome also. We went to the Three Broomsticks for a yummy lunch and then to Honeydukes to buy a chocolate frog. Even the bathrooms had moaning Myrtle in them, it was so cool to notice all the details. Afterwards we headed to Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey, the big castle. I had to talk Paxton into going with me, Rem wasn't even sure at first and of course Graham was too little to go on it. There was no line for this ride, I almost wished there was so we could slow down and notice all the details of walking through the castle. The ride was amazing and then Paxton got to go again with Rem. Graham and I got to see the fireworks and light show that they did on the castle. We skipped the Hippogriff roller coaster because none of my boys wanted to ride it, party poopers. (By this time we had split off from the large group). Harry Potter World was amazing and I could've spent the whole day here, but we wanted to see the rest of the park and we didn't have much time left.
Then we walked through Jurassic park area and went on to Skull Island, the King Kong ride. This was one of Graham's favorites and he decided he wanted to buy a King Kong stuffed animal souvenir. We were about to head to the Spider-Man ride, but we ran into Erika and Ben and they were headed back to the Harry Potter castle ride so Paxton made the choice to head back there with them. So we all got to ride it again, Paxton twice and poor Graham couldn't ride. Afterwards we tried to rush to the Spider-Man ride before it closed, but we didn't make it. Paxton was really upset and let this ruin his whole day. Luckily looking back he forgot about that and remembered all the fun stuff we did. We missed out on so many other rides, I would love to come back and spend more time here!
Ah, another one of my favorite days. Let's be honest, the whole trip was amazing, but I sure loved Harry Potter World! Sandee and I made Harry Potter shirts for the whole group for this day. They turned out so fun and we got lots of looks through out the day. We each chose a characters name that we put on the back and put the coordinating house crest on the front, wearing a shirt color that went along with the house colors.
This park was expensive when you're basically forced to buy the park hopper pass if you want to see all of Harry Potter World, but it was worth it! If we ever go there again, I could spend at least 2 or more days here because we didn't have enough time to see it all.
We started out on the Transformers ride which was awesome, it was one of those 3D rides that felt like you were really there, my boys loved it! Then we did the ET ride, Fievel's Playland, Woody Woodpecker's Nuthouse Coaster, lunch and the Men in Black ride where you got to use these cool guns to shoot aliens, my boys really loved this one.
Then it was time for Harry Potter World!!! Everything about it was sooooo amazing! There was so much to see and it all was perfect! Jamie borrowed one of those expensive interactive wands from a friend so the kids took turns casting spells that played tricks. And then there was the butter beer... it was super yummy!! It was awesome to see the fire breathing dragon above the Gringotts Bank, we just tried soaking it all in. Then we had to wait about an hour for the Gringotts ride, but it was worth it and once you got in the building it was really cool to look around. Poor Graham was about an inch too short for this ride, we tried to sneak him on, but it didn't work. Paxton was nervous to go as it looked like a fast roller coaster, but he went and of course loved it! Afterwards we went on the Hogwarts Express train to the other park. I expected it just to be a train ride, but it was actually really cool and it felt like you were really on the Hogarts Express being in your own compartment and even a dementor came by.
Then we entered Hogsmeade, which was pretty awesome also. We went to the Three Broomsticks for a yummy lunch and then to Honeydukes to buy a chocolate frog. Even the bathrooms had moaning Myrtle in them, it was so cool to notice all the details. Afterwards we headed to Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey, the big castle. I had to talk Paxton into going with me, Rem wasn't even sure at first and of course Graham was too little to go on it. There was no line for this ride, I almost wished there was so we could slow down and notice all the details of walking through the castle. The ride was amazing and then Paxton got to go again with Rem. Graham and I got to see the fireworks and light show that they did on the castle. We skipped the Hippogriff roller coaster because none of my boys wanted to ride it, party poopers. (By this time we had split off from the large group). Harry Potter World was amazing and I could've spent the whole day here, but we wanted to see the rest of the park and we didn't have much time left.
Then we walked through Jurassic park area and went on to Skull Island, the King Kong ride. This was one of Graham's favorites and he decided he wanted to buy a King Kong stuffed animal souvenir. We were about to head to the Spider-Man ride, but we ran into Erika and Ben and they were headed back to the Harry Potter castle ride so Paxton made the choice to head back there with them. So we all got to ride it again, Paxton twice and poor Graham couldn't ride. Afterwards we tried to rush to the Spider-Man ride before it closed, but we didn't make it. Paxton was really upset and let this ruin his whole day. Luckily looking back he forgot about that and remembered all the fun stuff we did. We missed out on so many other rides, I would love to come back and spend more time here!
Hollywood Studios
Everyone was so beat after Universal Studios and Trev, Sandee, Rem and I were all kind of regretting that we had bought 3 day tickets to Disney World. Everyone else only bought the 2 days so while we forced ourselves to go to the park everyone else had a free day. Well it ended up turning out great and we were so glad we went even as tired as we were. It’s not very often you go to Florida we figured so we might as well make the most of it!
Hollywood Studios I would say was mostly about Star Wars which my boys love so it was worth it to go. We started off by signing the kids up for Jedi Training and then headed over to ride Star Tours, which of course the boys loved. They all wore there Star Wars shirts today. It seemed like every time we were walking you would also see a line of Storm Troopers or Star Wars characters walking through the park, everyone would stop to watch and take pictures.
Then we headed to Toy Story Mania which was a long line, but such a fun ride! This park only had 4 rides in it. I was surprised that we were able to still have a fun filled day. After we went to go meet some Star Wars characters and saw the short film they made of the new Star Wars area that was being built, it looked amazing! Then we rushed over for Jedi Training. It was so fun to see these boys in their robes and with their light sabers learning the moves to fight Darth Vader. They loved it and we loved watching them enjoy it!
Then we went and relaxed and watched the Indiana Jones show and afterwards went and met some more Star Wars characters. We then had dinner and all of us went to ride The Tower of Terror while Rem and Paxton stayed back and bought some Star Wars souvenirs. I was proud of Graham for going on the ride with me, but he did not like it! Those drops were scary to him and I was holding on to him pretty tight. Then it was the end of the night and we went and saw the Fantasmic show, which was fun. And on our way out we saw tons of people gathering around for one last Star Wars and firework show, so we stuck around and it was awesome! We had a great day!
Then we headed to Toy Story Mania which was a long line, but such a fun ride! This park only had 4 rides in it. I was surprised that we were able to still have a fun filled day. After we went to go meet some Star Wars characters and saw the short film they made of the new Star Wars area that was being built, it looked amazing! Then we rushed over for Jedi Training. It was so fun to see these boys in their robes and with their light sabers learning the moves to fight Darth Vader. They loved it and we loved watching them enjoy it!
Then we went and relaxed and watched the Indiana Jones show and afterwards went and met some more Star Wars characters. We then had dinner and all of us went to ride The Tower of Terror while Rem and Paxton stayed back and bought some Star Wars souvenirs. I was proud of Graham for going on the ride with me, but he did not like it! Those drops were scary to him and I was holding on to him pretty tight. Then it was the end of the night and we went and saw the Fantasmic show, which was fun. And on our way out we saw tons of people gathering around for one last Star Wars and firework show, so we stuck around and it was awesome! We had a great day!
Our Last Day
Saturday was our last day, but our flight wasn't until that evening so we had time to play. We first had to pack up because we had to be out of the house early. Then we headed to the pool where we had lots and lots of time to hangout. It was a fun pool with a lazy river and a playground. Not everyone wanted to swim because they were worried about showering after. There was a shower in the pool bathrooms, but it was freezing cold! So we didn't really get a much of a shower after all. Oh well, it was worth it to be able to play in the pool most of the day.
Then later we drove to the temple to take some pictures and then went out for a treat. We finally made it to the airport and ate dinner while we waited for our flight. It was a late flight, but at least it was non stop. The kids just watched movies the whole time.
We had such an amazing time with everyone, we want to go back!
It's Great to be 8!
We took Paxton to his baptism preview where he learned about what was going to happen at his baptism, what it meant and that he would get to join scouts! I can't believe this kid it turning 8! It was a great evening focusing on Pax and one other girl, Chloe.
I helped Paxton make a poster all about him for Student of the Week.
Galentines Night
My cute friend, Maren always does a Galentines night every year. This year she added a craft to our treats and chatting, it was so much fun! We made these cute flower head wreaths. I made mine small so give away to one of my friends daughters since I don't have any little girls to give it to. It was really fun making them though!
Valentine's Double Date
The day before Valentines we went on a double date with our friends, Jill and Bobby. We stopped at the Lego store and did a mini lego build and then played around building flowers and then we went out to dinner. It was a good time!
Happy Valentine's Day!
It's always tradition for the kids to wake up to red yard tied up all over the house which they follow the maze to find their Valentines present. Paxton got some Minecraft Lego guys and Graham got some Cars, one of them being Jackson Storm, his favorite! They were super excited!
I made heart pankcakes with heart cut strawberries, which they thought was fun.
They boys gave me some pretty flowers (I told Rem that red roses are over priced and I didn't love them on Valentines day, these ones were perfect). I also got red tulips from my dad.
Later Graham and I went to Paxton's school to help with his Valentines party. Graham got to join in on the fun and make these cute crafts, play some games and I provided the treat. I loved getting to spend time in the classroom.
After school we went to visit both GG's and heart attack their doors with Jamie and her kids. We got to see GG Soderberg, she loved our visit. But GG Moss wasn't home.
That evening for dinner we did Zupas take out and watched Alice in Wonderland. The kids love eating dinner in the basement while watching a movie. I usually do a fondue dinner for Valentines, but this year our kitchen was torn apart and packed in boxes for the remodel so we had a change of plans and it was a lot of fun. It was a great day!
Snow!
We had another snow day so we went sledding with cousin Jake. I could not find Paxton's coat anywhere! Luckily I had this hand-me-down in his closet, it was a little big but it worked. Too bad we didn't have more sleds because that's all the kids wanted to do.
Updates with the kitchen:
Rem finished putting the shiplap up on the ceiling and put in new canned lighting, now we need to find some pendant lights to hang over the island.
The painters came and did their thing. It was fun to see the progress. It sure was a pain packing up the whole kitchen and making an area that we could still access breakfast, lunch and snack items with no oven, stove or microwave. But we survived and it only took them 5 days to finish!
Even though we struggled some with our painters and had to make them do a bunch of touch ups, we really love how it turned out! Next up, backsplash!
Paxton's teacher chose him for Student of the Month and he got his picture in the hall for being kind to everyone and always willing to help others. So proud of how far this kiddo has come with school!
Another crazy hair day at preschool for Graham!
And crazy sock day!
The Zoo
It was free zoo day so I took Graham and his little friend, Nyssa. It was a little crowded, but not too bad since it was February. We had a good time!
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