Before:
After:
Daddy said she's looking older and growing up so much.
2017 Year in Review
8 years ago
Monday, April 30, 2012
A New Look
Johanna got her ears pierced today! She had received a gift certificate for her birthday, but we waited until after the trip to get it done. She was very brave and didn't even flinch. Oh, it's going to be hard to wait six weeks to put in new earrings!
Sunday, April 29, 2012
Road Trip Home
Oh, it was tough to leave Florida. As tired and ready for our own beds as we were, it was bittersweet to end our vacation. Johanna declared this our best vacation ever.
We packed up Saturday morning and made it through Florida, Georgia, and into Tennessee before setting up camp for the night. The kids have been great travelers. Of course, electronics and DVDs help. :)
I declared the camp kitchen closed and we headed to breakfast at Starbucks on Sunday morning (conveniently around the corner from the campground).
We were only an hour away from home when we came to a virtual stop and only barely crept along for TWO hours. It was cloudy, cold, and dismal, making us miss being on vacation all the more. As we were on the Interstate parking lot, we saw this billboard. Funny that we left our dreams at Disney World and that we just couldn't get home to our own beds. :)
The kids were happy to be home and to see the cats. Our woods have really filled out in just the week we were gone. The mountains of laundry made our washer and dryer get to work. We were all very happy to sleep in our own beds, too!
We packed up Saturday morning and made it through Florida, Georgia, and into Tennessee before setting up camp for the night. The kids have been great travelers. Of course, electronics and DVDs help. :)
I declared the camp kitchen closed and we headed to breakfast at Starbucks on Sunday morning (conveniently around the corner from the campground).
We thought we only had about seven hours to drive home until we hit this:
We were only an hour away from home when we came to a virtual stop and only barely crept along for TWO hours. It was cloudy, cold, and dismal, making us miss being on vacation all the more. As we were on the Interstate parking lot, we saw this billboard. Funny that we left our dreams at Disney World and that we just couldn't get home to our own beds. :)
The kids were happy to be home and to see the cats. Our woods have really filled out in just the week we were gone. The mountains of laundry made our washer and dryer get to work. We were all very happy to sleep in our own beds, too!
Friday, April 27, 2012
Disney World - Hollywood Studios
Our last day, and another park. We had originally planned to do two days at Magic Kingdom, but we felt like we had done most of what we had wanted to do there on the first day. So, with a couple of kids begging to experience the big rides at Hollywood Studios, we decided to go for it.
It was our busiest day yet as far as crowds were concerned. We read that this last week of April was the 5th slowest week at DW parks, but if this was slow, I sure don't want to see what it's like in the summer! We waited longer in lines than any other day, but we still got to see and do a lot. With a hint from my SIL (thanks Amy!), I purchased the Unofficial Guide to DW and we pretty much followed their touring plans for each of our days in the different parks. It was amazing how smoothly it made our days go. The book is super accurate and gets you through lines with as little wait time as possible by telling which rides to go on at which times. Definitely worth the $20!
First up we hit Toy Story Mania....voted by all of us as the ride with the best queue. Very fun to walk through! We were surrounded by toys and games that were larger than life.
Oh, the Tower of Terror, where you feel like you are on an elevator that goes up and drops you down multiple times. Each time is different and random. Johanna was the only one that didn't want to go. DW is great at giving you switch off passes, so one parent can sit out with a child while the other goes in, then you can switch and go through the fast pass line.
This little trooper did so well this week. She did get piggy back rides here and there, but she walked miles with us and with no complaint. So proud of her!
We watched a car stunt show, as they would do for filming. It was exciting.....and VERY loud. Then again, everything is LOUD as DW!
The Star Wars ride....lots of 3D and 4D experiences at DW. It was fun to get misted, have bubbles floating down on you, have things swipe at your legs from under the seat, get blasted with air to be made to feel like you were in a storm, etc. Again, there was so much stimulation for all the senses.
We saw a live show of Beauty and the Beast. I enjoyed all of the Broadway style shows we saw, very well done.
Ami gave a big thumbs up for Tower of Terror. She was barely tall enough to ride, but did it twice!
Waiting for Fantasmic. Wow, what a show! It was a great way to end our week at Disney World. We voted this the best of all the evening firework shows. I couldn't get any good pictures and it's hard to describe all the amazing special effects. There were fireworks, lasers, images projected onto water fountains, boats going through the water, explosions, etc. It was really incredible. We waited for an hour (at DW's suggestion), but it was so worth it.
Last family photo from the trip. What a VERY magical and fun time we had. We are thankful for the opportunity that we had to go!
It was our busiest day yet as far as crowds were concerned. We read that this last week of April was the 5th slowest week at DW parks, but if this was slow, I sure don't want to see what it's like in the summer! We waited longer in lines than any other day, but we still got to see and do a lot. With a hint from my SIL (thanks Amy!), I purchased the Unofficial Guide to DW and we pretty much followed their touring plans for each of our days in the different parks. It was amazing how smoothly it made our days go. The book is super accurate and gets you through lines with as little wait time as possible by telling which rides to go on at which times. Definitely worth the $20!
First up we hit Toy Story Mania....voted by all of us as the ride with the best queue. Very fun to walk through! We were surrounded by toys and games that were larger than life.
Oh, the Tower of Terror, where you feel like you are on an elevator that goes up and drops you down multiple times. Each time is different and random. Johanna was the only one that didn't want to go. DW is great at giving you switch off passes, so one parent can sit out with a child while the other goes in, then you can switch and go through the fast pass line.
Ami's photography, while we waited for the others to ride the Tower. The other great ride here was Rock 'n Roller Coaster.
Autographs from "The Green Army Man" of Toy Story. Loved his costume!
One of Ami's favorites, Ariel. She was rapt with attention and singing along.
This little trooper did so well this week. She did get piggy back rides here and there, but she walked miles with us and with no complaint. So proud of her!
We watched a car stunt show, as they would do for filming. It was exciting.....and VERY loud. Then again, everything is LOUD as DW!
The Star Wars ride....lots of 3D and 4D experiences at DW. It was fun to get misted, have bubbles floating down on you, have things swipe at your legs from under the seat, get blasted with air to be made to feel like you were in a storm, etc. Again, there was so much stimulation for all the senses.
Blue dudes waiting for Star Wars:
Ami, loving that Mulan warrior pose:
Outside Star Wars, notice Ami's princess pose. :)
Another stunt show, Indiana Jones. If only that were really Harrison Ford (sigh).
We saw a live show of Beauty and the Beast. I enjoyed all of the Broadway style shows we saw, very well done.
Ami gave a big thumbs up for Tower of Terror. She was barely tall enough to ride, but did it twice!
Waiting for Fantasmic. Wow, what a show! It was a great way to end our week at Disney World. We voted this the best of all the evening firework shows. I couldn't get any good pictures and it's hard to describe all the amazing special effects. There were fireworks, lasers, images projected onto water fountains, boats going through the water, explosions, etc. It was really incredible. We waited for an hour (at DW's suggestion), but it was so worth it.
One last photo op:
Last family photo from the trip. What a VERY magical and fun time we had. We are thankful for the opportunity that we had to go!
Thursday, April 26, 2012
Disney World - Epcot Day 2
After seeing much of Epcot yesterday, we had a more leisurely day there today strolling around and hitting the few things we had missed before. It finally turned warmer and we were able to shed the sweatshirts and enjoy the Florida sun that we were expecting.
We went up in the Epcot ball on the ride and enjoyed a review of some history of inventions. Did I mention that this week has been a great field trip?!
Ami being goofy with Goofy while we waited for the big kids to ride Mission Space.
All the older kids and Chris became astronauts on this ride twice. They loved it! Ami wasn't quite tall enough and Johanna didn't want to ride. I volunteered to stay with them, as I knew my claustrophobia might not allow me to enjoy it much either. (Actually, I've done quite well this trip, thankfully so!)
We discovered Cool Cafe where you could sample sodas from around the world. This was a dream come true for our kids. A soda fountain with all you wanted. :)
So this is Duffy, Mickey's teddy bear. Who knew? I didn't! I guess he's been in Japan for the last six years.
Ami and Johanna are big Disney fairy lovers, having read pretty much all the books they can find at the library. They were excited to visit the Fairy Gardens.
We ended the day at Epcot with a ride on the monorail. It was faster to drive our van and use our AAA preferred parking than to use the Disney on-resort transportation. We had to ride the monorail just to do it, though.
Back at camp we had dinner, then let the kids enjoy swimming for a LONG time. I can't believe they still have energy after four busy, busy days. Chris enjoyed cooling off with them while I've caught up on blogging. Hurray! It's been so fun, a trip we'll definitely remember for a long time. We have one more day and are going to cap off our time with another visit to the Magic Kingdom.
At one of our neighboring campsites:
We went up in the Epcot ball on the ride and enjoyed a review of some history of inventions. Did I mention that this week has been a great field trip?!
Ami being goofy with Goofy while we waited for the big kids to ride Mission Space.
All the older kids and Chris became astronauts on this ride twice. They loved it! Ami wasn't quite tall enough and Johanna didn't want to ride. I volunteered to stay with them, as I knew my claustrophobia might not allow me to enjoy it much either. (Actually, I've done quite well this trip, thankfully so!)
We discovered Cool Cafe where you could sample sodas from around the world. This was a dream come true for our kids. A soda fountain with all you wanted. :)
Our main countries today were Mexico, Norway, and more of China.
Mulan taught Ami a warrior pose. She loved it!
So this is Duffy, Mickey's teddy bear. Who knew? I didn't! I guess he's been in Japan for the last six years.
Ami and Johanna are big Disney fairy lovers, having read pretty much all the books they can find at the library. They were excited to visit the Fairy Gardens.
We ended the day at Epcot with a ride on the monorail. It was faster to drive our van and use our AAA preferred parking than to use the Disney on-resort transportation. We had to ride the monorail just to do it, though.
Back at camp we had dinner, then let the kids enjoy swimming for a LONG time. I can't believe they still have energy after four busy, busy days. Chris enjoyed cooling off with them while I've caught up on blogging. Hurray! It's been so fun, a trip we'll definitely remember for a long time. We have one more day and are going to cap off our time with another visit to the Magic Kingdom.
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