Silhouettes

Can you tell which silhouette belongs to which girl?

Day 6 - Clearwater Beach, FL

On Wednesday, we drove over to Clearwater Beach, FL. We had planned to drive East to Cocoa Beach, but we heard on the news that morning that they had a jellyfish bloom, so we decided to drive a little bit furthur to avoid them.

We had a great day at the beach. It rained a little, so we sat under a pier and ate our lunch. It wasn't super hot and the water was a comfortable temperature. We saw some dolphin playing around close to shore and slapping their tails on the surface of the water. The seagulls were very agressive and tried to eat our lunch while we were away from our towels. I had to cover up our food bags with our clothes so they would stop! Reagan really enjoyed the sand but didn't want to be in or near the water. Normally she likes to be in about 4-5 inches of water, but she really didn't like the waves. The girls had fun building a sand castle and finding things to put on top of the towers.

Disney - Day 5

On Tuesday, the Oswalds headed back home to Colorado and we went to Hollywood Studios.

We started our day at Toy Story Midway Mania! This is, by far, the most popular ride at HS. We only had to wait about 30 minutes to ride, but they made standing in line enjoyable.

We didn't take very many pictures on this day! I guess we were having too much fun! Next I took the girls to Disney Junior - Live on Stage, while Mike got us Fast Passes for the Tower of Terror and the Rock 'n' Roller Coaster. The Disney Junior show was really cute and the girls all loved it. They featured Little Einsteins, Handy Manny, Jake and the Neverland Pirates, and Mickey Mouse Clubhouse, all in puppet form. Next we walked over and watched the Lights, Motors, Action! Extreme Stunt Show. It was really great! Lots of fast driving, close maneuvers, and flames!

We let the girls play in the Honey, I shrunk the Kids Movie Set for a little bit, but then it started to rain, so we took shelter for a little bit. From there, we were lucky enough to squeeze in to the next showing of Voyage of the Little Mermaid and not have to wait another 30 minutes for the next show. Reagan fell asleep while we were in there, so I took the girls to see the Pixar Pals Countdown to Fun parade.

Kathryn really wanted to go to the American Idol experience so we did that next. They bring in park guests who have auditioned earlier in the day and they are the talent. The guy who won during our show was really a great singer! At the end of the day, they bring back the winners from throughout the day and pick an overall winner. That person gets a front-of-the-line pass for the actualy American Idol auditions!

Next Mike rode the Tower of Terror and then we took turns riding the Rock 'n' Roller coaster. It is a major-fast, gut wrenching roller coaster! And it was SO FUN! Mike and the girls were laughing at me when I came out because my hair was all crazy!

Overall, we had a really great time at Disney. It seems like everyone who works there really wants to make it a great experience! I can't wait to go back! We hope to make another trip in 3 years when the girls are 9, 8, and 5.

Disney - Day 4

On Monday we return to the Magic Kingdom with Nonnie and the Oswalds. We, again, started in Tomorrowland. First we rode the Astro Orbitor while we waited for our Fast Pass time on Space Mountain. This time Sydney rode Space Mountain and loved it! While she was riding, Kathryn, Reagan and I rode the PeopleMover.

Then we waited in a short line to meet Chip and Dale. After that we rode Buzz Lightyear's Space Ranger Spin. Next we drove the racecars at Tomorrowland Speedway. We wanted to do the teacups next, but they were working on getting it running again. This time we rode It's a Small World and made Nonnie go on it, even though she didn't want to.

The girls wanted to pose in this carriage in Liberty Square.

The girls striking their favorite princess pose. We also had silhouettes of the girls cut while we were there. My mom had it done for my sister and I when we were little, so I wanted to do it for my girls.

Here is record that we were all there together! Sadly, this is the only picture I took of everyone. Well, except me! We were waiting for the Main Street Electrical Parade to begin. Then we finished up the night with fireworks!

Disney - Day 3

On Sunday we went to Animal Kingdom and the Oswalds went to Hollywood Studios.

First we rode the Kilimanjaro Safari.  We rode in a large open jeep and saw lots of wildlife.  The rhino was right next to the vehicle!  Kathryn was trying to take pictures and getting frustrated because the ride was so bumpy!

Next the girls learned how to play Mancala.  The both loved it and enjoyed playing with the African women.

After playing Mancala, Mike and I took turns riding Expedition Everest.  It is a really fun roller coaster with some surprises!  At one point you come to a place where the track is all mangled, you stop, and then go backwards for a bit.  We tried to convince the girls to ride it, but they stood their ground.  The girls spent some time playing in a play area with slides, climbing nets, and a gravel pit.

Finding Nemo, The Musical was next for us.  We got there 30 minutes early, as suggested, and got good seats.  The show was great and the girls loved all of the costumes and effects.  It started raining while we were inside, and it was still raining when we got out.  Reagan's stroller was full of water!  (It was sitting outside in the stroller parking area because you can't take your stroller into most of the buildings.)  We took shelter under a small picnic table with umbrella until it stopped raining. 

Next we watched Mickey's Jammin' Jungle parade.  Most of the 'floats' in the parade were large animals made of wood and fabric.  Each one would have people operating it making it come to life! 

We were all kind of tired after the parade but Sydney really wanted to see the Festival of the Lion King.  Mike and Kathryn didn't really want to see that show so they were going to find something else to do, but changed their minds at the last minute.  I am SO glad we all decided to see it.  It was FABULOUS!  When we entered the theater, a hostess asked how many were in our party.  She led us to the front row (which was marked Reserved) and asked if we would like to sit there!  Not long after that, another worker asked the girls if they would help her teach the Hand Jive to the audience.  Before the show began, they went around and demonstrated the Hand Jive for the entire audience!  The show was really great.  The characters come in from all directions and there were singers, acrobats, characters, and lots of music and dancing.  Mike was asked to stand up and demonstrate the sound of a warthog.  I'm sure he didn't love the experience, but the girls LOVED it!  They also got to march around during one of the songs and play an instrument. 

Here they are demonstrating the call of the warthog!

Disney - Day 2

On Saturday, we went to Epcot. We arrived just as they were opening and there were very few people there! The Oswalds and Nonnie were able to join us on our trip and arrived late on Friday night. They met up with us at Epcot later in the morning.

We were able to find a Characted spot with Mickey, Minnie, Pluto, Donald, and Goofy and the line was only 10 minutes! The girls were very excited about getting as many autographs as they could.

Minnie came over and gave me a kiss! How sweet!

Next we rode The Seas with Nemo & Friends and Turtle Talk with Crush. We loved this ride. You get to ride in a 'clamobile', and try to find Nemo. When you get off of the ride, they have a huge aquarium with sharks, rays, dolphins and sea turtles. The girls loved watched the sea life. Then we attended Turtle Talk with Crush. Crush talked to Sydney, asking her name and where she was from. He requested to talk to the girl with the white "shell" (shirt) and since she and Kathryn were wearing the same thing, he went on to clarify by saying the one with the light fur on top (blonde hair)! It was funny.

Here are my girls ready for their Princess Storybook Dining in Norway at the Akershus Royal Banquet Hall. We are really enjoyed our breakfast and the entire experience! There is no way we would have been able to meet all of the princesses that we did. Belle, Cinderella, Snow White, Aurora, and Ariel all came by our table, signed our autograph books, and posed for a picture. Then after the meal, the girls followed a princess around the restaurant on a little parade.

After breakfast we met up with the Oswalds in Mexico to hear the Mariachi, but we couldn't ever locate them and later realized we had read the schedule wrong. Bummer. Next we rode the Test Track. Kathryn and Sydney rode it with Mike first and loved it! I rode it again with Kathryn and Liam. Kathryn got a kick out of putting me in the seat that is closest to the big truck that looks like it's going to hit you!

Next everyone except Reagan and I rode Mission Space. Kathryn did not like it at all, and Sydney loved it! After that we headed over to look for Chip and Dale. We didn't find them, but we found a fun Piggy Bank game in the Innoventions building. Reagan fell asleep and we let her sleep while the girls played and then I took the girls to ride Soarin'. After Reagan woke up, we ate lunch and headed to the World Showcase.

We had intended to hear Japanese Taiko drummers, but again, we read the schedule wrong, so they weren't performing. So we just checked out a few of the countries and decided that we were done for the day. Our cousin, Emma, was ready to head home too, so we brought her with us. On our way out, we did get to hear a fun Canadian and Celtic rock group (Off Kilter) in Canada.

Disney - Day 1

On Friday, we woke up and went swimming. There were multiple pools at our hotel, so we checked them all out. Kathryn had fun going down the water slides. Then we went and bought our tickets and drove to Magic Kingdom. We ended up going in a back way (accidentally) and bypassing the booths where you pay for parking! That's what I call a happy accident!

We started in Tomorrowland with the Astro Orbiter and Space Mountain. Then we moved on to Fantasyland and rode the Mad Tea Party and watched Mickey's Philharmagic.

Then we ate our lunch we had packed and moved on to Frontierland. Kathryn and Mike rode Big Thunder Mountain first and they both loved it. Sydney did NOT want to ride it, but we both knew she would love it, so we made her. Kathryn wanted to ride again so I took them both. Sydney cried the whole time we were in line. At one point she asked me to say a prayer so she would feel better. We got her on and she held on to me tightly the entire time. I'm not entirely sure that she even opened her eyes! As we were exiting the ride, she said that it was fun, but that she didn't want to ride again.

We finished up in Adventureland and rode the Magic Carpets of Alladin and Jungle Cruise. To finish off the day, we all shared a turkey leg!

The Day is Finally Here!

On Thursday, September 15th, we pulled the last ring off of our countdown to Disney chain! Here are the girls in their Disney shirts before leaving for school. We picked them up from school around 3:30 and went straight to the airport! Our flight was delayed an hour, but we knew ahead of time so we adjusted our timing. The girls did great on the flight. Kathryn thought it was going to be super loud, so she plugged her ears for a long time. Once she realized that it wasn't going to be as loud as she expected, she was happy to unplug them. We arrived in Orlando at 10pm, rented our mini-van, stopped by Wal-Mart for food, and got to our hotel around midnight.

Brendan's Playground Community Build

This past weekend was the Community Build day for Brendan's Playground. Here they are installing the engraved bricks. Each of our girls has a brick with their name on it.

This is our friend Zach and his girlfried, Gracie.

Here is Reagan with Zach. Zach is one of the first names that Reagan has learned to say. They are good friends. One time we were over at their house and Reagan saw Zach out of his chair and didn't recognize him!