Spring Break Fun!

We enjoyed a quiet spring break at home this year.  With 3 kids involved in school plays, piano, one in soccer, and two in scouts, the kids were excited to just stay home and hang out around the house.  

At the beginning of the week I asked each of them to pick an activity that we could do as a family.  I offered to take them to the zoo, go on bike rides, bowling, movies, etc.  But they all picked activities they wanted to to at home.  

To start the week, Lydia was in the baking mode and made some yummy chocolate/ mint cookies.  We were all glad she wanted to bake, so that we could enjoy the rewards:)

Lydia took her cooking to a new level with Landon and they made a funny noodle hot dog lunch! 

The kids also wanted to go feed the ducks down at Mill Pond.  

There were only a few ducks, but we had fun feeding the few.  This duck above, was feisty, he wanted all the bread to himself.

Blast from the past!

It always been fun to get together with my High School/ church girl friends.  We use to get together almost bi monthly, but with growing kids and busier schedules it has become a semi annual thing at the most.  Susie (currently living in Utah) was in town for the weekend, so it was a great excuse to get together.  Zeke and I had attended a wedding reception earlier that night and on the way home he dropped me off at a local restaurant for a night out with the girls.  It was a surprise too all of us when two HS/church guy friends showed up for our girls night too.  Brooke had heard Brian (who lives in Utah) was in town, so she arranged the get together with him and Zach, but didn't tell any of us, as she wanted it to be a fun surprise.  

Brian and Zach were kind of like brothers to all of us,  Zach and I were playmates as far back as kindergarten, and Brian was the first to take me on a date.  Although it wasn't the typical girls night out conversation topics, we had a fun night laughing and catching up on each others lives.   

It's been 18 years but it was just like old times hanging out and joking around.   

We counted between the 6 of us we have 21 kids-- hard to believe.

Grateful for the friends of my youth! 

Left-Right:  Zach, Brian, Susie, Brooke, me, and Holly

Mom+Sister+Chocolate+Beach town=Bliss!

The last weekend of Feburary was fun.   My sister Melissa came into town with her husband Chris his work.  He needed to attend a show held over on the coast in Ocean Shores. We were able to catch breakfast Friday morning with them in Auburn before they had to head out to the coast.   But a few hours of seeing her was not enough for my mom and I.   Since Chris was going to be working a show most of Saturday we decided we would drive over early Saturday morning and keep her company for the day.  Being February and the Washington coast, the weather was definitively not the greatest.  When we were about 30 minutes from Ocean Shores, Melissa called and wanted to let us know the power was out in the whole town.  She didn't know what exactly we would do in the dark and rain, but we insisted it wasn't the weather we were coming for.  It's not very often that the 3 of us get to spend time together with out our children or husbands, so we were going to make the most of the day regardless! 

Even though I brought my camera with me that day, I failed to take any pictures.  Guess I pictured taking one of us with the ocean in the back ground, but it was just too darn windy to want to even attempt walking on the beach. Thank goodness for access to pictures on the web, I am able to document our day with pictures that  just don't include us with our wind blown hair.  

A favorite stop place for my family along the coast is Seabrook.  It's a cute new town 20 minutes from Ocean Shores with quaint home that give a Cape Code/ Norman Rockwell feel.  Melissa had only heard us talk about Seabrook, so she was excited to see it.  Lucky for us Seabrook still had their power and the rain died down when we were there too.  

  

We timed our visit quite right as there was a Chocolate Festival going on.  

(Can't think of a better type of festival!)

We were able to do a chocolate scavenger hunt that took us through Seabrook, and their sites.

After we went to the Elementary School in Pacific Beach where we sampled an array of chocolate!  Surprisingly enough to make us sick of Chocolate for a while. 

Our favorite part of the festival was attending a truffle class at the Iron Springs Resort.  

In the brown cabin on the right side of this picture we watched and the "The Chocolate Man" make truffles.  We sat in the cozy chairs that over looked the ocean, by the fire, eating delicious handmade truffles.  

Didn't matter the weather at this point, it was wonderful regardless.

It wouldn't be mom/sister time with out a little shopping.  However the shopping along the coast is pretty sparse.  After browsing the one boutique in Pacific Beach we hit the thrift stores.  Nothing against thrift stores, I actually get excited about finding a good deal at one every now and then.  But  this Wacky Warehouse was like shopping the dumpster.  Everything was well use, or completely worn out right down to the dirty forks that still had food on them.   It was an experience and a memory! 

We enjoyed the Chocolate Festival and the towns along the WA coast, but more than anything it was just great being together.  

Comings and goings....

So far the first two months of  2012 have had several comings and goings.  But one coming and going we didn't predict was the coming and going between doctor's office.  Our family rarely goes to the doctors except for the  regular check ups and such. Overall we are all pretty healthy, but so far this year, I have taken either myself or one of my children to the doctor for "not so well" visits 6 times!  At a recent doctor visit for Lydia the doctor even pointed out that she is never seen except for well child appointments and it was unusual to see her in the office with an ear infection at her age with such a great record.  

In January, Jacob was seen for a rash that spread through out his body.  Come to find out it was Pityriasis Rosea.  No cream or medications were prescribed for his condition just the advice to spend lots of time out in the sun.  That was pretty hard, since we were in the middle of January, but he eventually got over it and started to look normal again. 

Mason and I both caught a bad cough.  Other then a coughing attack now and then, we both felt fine and went on through life pretty normal.  Once we got back from our family vacation, it was starting to catch up with both our us.  We both saw our doctors and were both told we had pneumonia!   Thank goodness, it was a walking a pneumonia and we didn't have to be hospitalized.   Mason recovered in a few days, but for me I also had a sinus infection and bronchitis.  I hate taking medication, but found myself on so many different medicines.  One of the worst things for me was that I had a plugged ear.   For 11 days, I was partially deaf.   I came to appreciate what it was really like to hear normally.  There were several times during those days, I couldn't hear what others were saying, I burnt food in the oven because I didn't hear the buzzer, or I had a hard time having a normal conversation, because I sounded so loud to myself and the other person sounded so soft.   But thanks to modern medicine and good doctors Mason and I recovered and we are even more grateful than before our good health.  

To celebrate feeling better Mason and I went on a date to the Auburn Symphony Orchestra.  Mason started playing the violin a year ago and absolutely loves it!  It is surprising how much of a passion this 13 year old boy has for the symphony.  He had gone to a Symphony concert last spring and was anxious to go again.  I love that it's his idea to go!  The music was beautiful, and since my ear had recently popped it was truly heaven.  But even better it was nice to have some one on one time with my tall, not so little boy! 

Valentine Fun

I sure do love Valentine's Day!  

There are many reasons I love this holiday.  

1. It's the day of Love! 

2. It consists of lots of chocolate 

3. It's a cheerful holiday during what sometimes can be a long winter.

Jacob and Lydia had fun making their Valentines this year.  Lydia had to make a valentine box to take to her 3rd grade class.  She was so thrilled with it, that she finished it a week early and took it to school a week early.  Jacob made super hero valentines (thanks to pinterest).  They were perfect for him, and so easy.


Grandpa and Grandma McKinney had us over for dinner on the Sunday before Valentine's day.  We had a Valentine dinner, heart cake, decorated sugar cookies, and played Valentine Bingo.  It was a great way to kick off the festivities!

Quinn and Jacob have so much fun together. 

Lydia loves to help take care of her newest
cousin Addilyn

Our funny BINGO caller

Valentine's morning started early with pink heart shaped pancakes.  The kids in our house love pancakes, so they are always a hit!

Being Valentine's day Landon go all dressed up in his suit and wore it to school in support of the choir sponsored valentine dance after school that he was helping with.  It's not every day you see a 7th grader walk the halls of the middle school in a suit.  He looked sharp, and enjoyed helping out at the dance.

 

Zeke and I enjoyed a nice quiet lunch during the afternoon while the kids were at school.  We came home plenty full that we decided to do something fun for the kids that night a dinner.  We usually like to have a nice dinner with them on Valentines Day, but after they were able to experience several nice meals on the cruise ship earlier this month we decided it would be fun to serve them a "Mystery Dinner".  It was a 4 course meal that consisted of 13 menu items with unusual term such as: "Puppy Love" (Crush soda), Heart breaker (a knife), melted hearts (spaghetti sauce), rising love (bread) etc.  They had to choose 3-4 items for each course.  We had some good laughs as the kids ended up with funny combinations, and were even permitted to eat with their fingers if they didn't end up with a utensil.  

Livin' a dream on the Disney Wonder

Warning: Very long post... 550 total pictures taken on our family vacation.  It was hard to narrow it down to just a few.  Too many memories that we don't want to forget!  

For Christmas this last year, Zeke and I gave our kids a trip on the Disney Wonder Cruise Ship.  We don't usually give large gifts like this for Christmas, but this was a trip that we had wanted to go on for sometime, We thought it would be perfect to surprise the kids with it as a gift for Christmas.  

We had an amazing week traveling down to the warm sunny skies of Mexico!  

We loved every minute of it and wish we could go back again soon! 

Our home for 7 days, January 29th-February 5th

We didn't want to risk any chance of missing the boat, so we flew down one day early and enjoyed a sunny day exploring San Pedro, CA. 

80 degrees in January was simply WONDERFUL!!!

 

 San Pedro, is mainly know for the cruise terminal.  But it had this very cute trolley that took you up and down the water.  We rode it, and stopped and enjoyed a water show fountain show, and then went for a walk in this LA marina.

On Sunday, we walked to the closest church and attended a Spanish Branch.  

Grandpa and Grandma McKinny joined us.  It was fun to have them with us. 

Then it was off to the ship.  We were soooooo  excited.  With this being a Disney Cruise, we knew it would be magical.   Upon boarding all we could do was smile, because we were going on a
CRUISE TO MEXICO! 

They sent us off in style with a Bon Voyage Party.

The ship was beautiful and we were excited that we would be calling this home for a week.

This vacation was packed full, from morning to late at night we were doing, eating, going, playing, exploring.  

Here are some of the highlights: 

Eating with The Characters

 We enjoyed a character breakfast the first morning we were on the boat.  Our waiters made silly hats out of napkins for all of us.  The kids loved it and we were able to see many characters.

 Being out in the middle of the Pacific! 


There is something very cool about being out in the middle of the ocean.  The sun felt warm and the water blue.  Days at sea were great!

Mason feeling on top of the world!  

Eating, Eating, Eating and More Eating......

 Cruises are known for lots of food, and we certainly took advantage of all the eating opportunities.  We certainly never felt hungry, just fought the full feeling all week long.  It's really kind of embarrassing how much we did eat, but it was oh....so good!!! 

A four course meal every night with the option of steak for two 13 year old boys was a dream come true! 

 And Mickey Mouse Ice Cream bars or Mickey chocolate pudding every night was magical for Lydia!

Zeke also took advantage of all the yummy treats.  There was a self serve soft ice cream bar that was open all day long.  Zeke was often caught with ice cream in hand, and it really became ridiculous how much dessert we all consumed each day.  But eating meals out in the sun in late January was a treat in it self. 

A normal site, Zeke with ice cream in hand on deck 10

 For dinner each night we went to a different dining room.  Our favorite was the Animator's Plate.  It was like being in a cartoon that would come alive.  Made for a fun dinner hour!  

Another restaurant was Tritons.  It was the formal dining room.  We aren't so formal in this picture, because it was taken at breakfast right before we were leaving the boat on our last day.
Pretty much our last meal before back to reality.  

We had fun waiters each night.   Ozsar from Turkey and Ipu tuu from Indonesia spoiled us with magic tricks, cutting Lydia and Jacob's food, and pretty much helped us stuff ourselves each day.
They were great! 

Hanging around on the ship

We had 3 1/2 days at sea.  These days went fast as there was lots to do on the boat!
Lydia and Jacob loved Mickey's Pool and slide. 

The sport's deck was a great place to burn off calories.
There was soccer, basketball, ping pong, and fuss ball.

A family favorite was shuffleboard.

Kids Clubs! 

Being a Disney Cruise there were many things planned for the kids.  Every day Lydia and Jacob would spend some time in the Kids Club.  They always had fun activities planned for the kids.  One day they made flubber with a mad scientist.  Another time Lydia learned dancing skills with Snow White.  There was face painting, crafts, games, character visits, and  much much more.

 Tween Club "The Edge":   Landon and Mason only spent a little bit of time here as it was mostly video games and movies, and pretty much a middle school hang out.  They were both content just hanging out with either Grandma and Grandpa or their parents.

Boat Activities: 

There were several family activities on the boat to do together.

Landon, Mason, Grandma and Grandpa played Family Feud.

 And board games in "Diversions"

 There were current movies being shown daily in the Buena Vista Theatre.
Some of the movies we enjoyed on the boat were: War Horse, The Muppet's, Cars 2 , Beauty and the Beast 3D,  and African Cats

Cooking classes for adults

Lydia, Jacob, Mom and Dad participated in the Mickey 100
(vegetable pinewood derby)

Unfortunately we didn't place, but our  'Pinocchio" car did make a good show.  

There were several character sightings every day.  Our kids didn't have a need to take pictures with them, so we only got pictures of Jacob's favorites.  (No princess this time;( 

Evening Entertainment! 
Every evening we enjoyed a live show.  It was like going to a Boardway show every night.  Done Disney style no detail was left out.  

One night the entertainment was Micheal Harrison a Comedian /Vaentriloquist
He had all of us belly aching laughing he was so fun!  We went to 2 other classes of his the next day we enjoyed him that much.


One night Lydia and Jacob got to dance with Mickey and Minney on the big stage. 






Celebrating Birthdays
While on our cruise our family celebrated 3 birthdays.  It was a great way to enjoy a birthday.  No worries about everyday life (chores, school, responsibilities).  Instead it was enjoyed by being in the sun, being with our family all day, as much food as we could eat, and plenty of entertainment.

Celebrating my 37th birthday at  the Tuesday night dinner. 

Landon and Mason turned 13 on Thursday.  

For each birthday we were privileged to hear the Happy Birthday song sung to us by our waiters all their very tick, loud accents.  We loved it an got a kick out of it every time.

The boys birthday happened to fall on the pirate theme night.  We found it fitting that as part of Landon's costume he had a mustache. It was a little disturbing especially since he was now entering his teenage years.  Hopefully (for his mom's sake)  we don't see real facial hair for many more years.

Unforuntantly, Mason was not feeling well on his birthday.  He was very tired and  had no appetite and didn't even make it to dinner on his real birthday.  He was a trooper and still wore a smile and never complained about not feeling his best on his birthday.  The next night we pretended it was Mason's birthday and he got sung to.  It was the first time in the boys life that they haven't shared an actual birthday.

It's hard to believe they are both 13!  I kept looking at Mason at his birthday dinner, he looked so much older all of the sudden.  I think his childhood theory of growing overnight on your birthday really did happen to him this year.  Hard to believe this tall son of mine is 13 year old.  Wasn't he just a 5 pound newborn 2 years ago?   

Pirate Night


Thursday night was pirate night.
We had heard ahead of time that Disney has a pirate theme night, so we came prepared with some costumes.  All of us (minus Mason- this was the night he was sick) got dressed up.

Later that night we enjoyed a pirate party on the top deck.  Captain Hook and Jack Sparro were there and of coarse Mickey Mouse saved the day by flying through the air.  Followed by an amazing fireworks show at sea and a full pirate buffet (a second dinner for the night:).

 

Dancing in the Promenade!  
Jacob is a funny boy, he loves to dance.  In fact he considers himself a pretty good dancer and we think he's a pretty good dancer too.  On the boat every night after dinner he just had to dance.  We became friends with a singing couple called "Midtown" and every evening they were performing in the Promenade Lounge.  We were their biggest fans, because we danced with them every night.

Sunsets!

Puerto Vallarta

We loved being on the boat, but we did enjoy getting off and exploring Mexico.  I was a little nervous about traveling to Mexico with my kids due to recent news, but once we were down there and off the boat, all those fears seemed to go away and I felt pretty safe for the most part.  Our first stop was Puerto Vallarta.  Together with Grandma and Grandpa we rented a Taxi van for the day.
The kids were a little out of there comfort zone as they loaded a van with no seat  belts and traveled foreign streets.  It was neat for them to see  how people live in Mexico and how it is different.  It was also fun for them to imagine what it was like for their dad when he served his mission in Mexico several years ago.

We had to fit a lot into the 9 hours we had in Puerto Vallarta
We firsts drove 30 minutes into the jungle.  It was very pretty.

While in the Jungle the little kids rode horses.

Second we stopped at the beach!  

The boys and Grandma kicked back in the sun! 

We couldn't believe it was the first day of February and we were hanging out at the beach!

We swam!

We shopped! 

We relaxed! 

Last stop was the town!  

Cabo San Lucas
We spent two days in Cabo San Lucas, and fell in love with it!
We really only spent those days hanging out at Pelican and Lovers beach, but that is what we enjoyed the most!  The water was clear, the sand white and the sun warm.  We want to go back!

The snorkeling was amazing!  Since there was so much salt in the water you practically didn't have to swim.
Below, Zeke out of the water after snorkeling around this Pelican Rock.

In Cabo with live Golden Pirate!

Our Fish!! She lived in the water! 

Each day we would take a glass bottom taxi out to the beach.  The sand rock formations were amazing and we would even see seals on occasion!

Lydia with seal in background

Window to the pacific in the back ground.