Training Wheels

We suspected back in March that Olivia may be ready for a tricycle. So Brian, doing what he usually does, has been on the lookout for a good deal. Last week he came home not with a tricycle but with a small bicycle that had training wheels. I was a little skeptical at first as I thought that it would be too much for Olivia to handle. Not so- she is really getting the hang of it. The only part that she has trouble with is turning around. This means that when she goes out to ride the bike Brian has to stand at one end of the driveway and I have to stand at the other to help her turn. I am pleasantly surprised with the progress that she is making. Maybe in a few years she'll be ready to ride in the BRAG with her Papa!

Flowers Everywhere

There is a field down the road from our house that fills with flowers each spring. Last week, Brian pulled the kids down to the field in the wagon to play. Ever since then, Olivia has been wanting to go back. So, we decided to take the kids back today after church, and we snapped a few pictures while we were there. After all, how could we resist taking pictures in such a beautiful setting? Actually, I think that half of the town has been thinking along similar lines because there have been picture-takers in the field all week. Here are some of the better photos from this afternoon.

Congratulations, Quincy!

I am so proud of my sister, Quincy. Today she received her bachelor's degree. My parents are leaping for joy because their paying-for-college days are almost over (4 children down, 1 more to go). Quincy worked very hard to get this degree, and I am so happy for her. Congratulations, sis!

Back from the Bash

Well, the school year is almost over! We are on the home stretch now. This time of the year- the time between spring break and graduation- is always my busiest. It seems like I constantly have some school-related function to attend (Prom, Honor's Night, Baccalaureate, etc...). There is one school function, though, that I always look forward to- chaperoning the Senior trip to Grad Bash (Universal) or Grad Night (Disney). Even though the event is for the Seniors, there is one unbeatable perk for the chaperones. At Grad Bash chaperones get to use the fast lane to ride all of the rides while the students go through the regular queues. So, this ends up being the best time to ride the coasters (and you all know what a coaster fan I am).

We left last Friday morning to go to Universal Studios. After a trip to the mall, we arrived at Universal at 6:30 in the afternoon and stayed until 2:00 am. We all slept on the bus and were home by 6:00 am. It made for a long day, but it was totally worth it. As a bonus, I got to buy these cute Dr. Seuss shirts for Owen and Olivia at Universal. Olivia has really been into Dr. Seuss lately and so she loves that she and Owen get to dress like Thing 1 and Thing 2.

One of the Perks of Working at a Toy Store

When the kids and I got home today, Brian had a surprise waiting for Olivia in her room. Well, five surprises to be exact. Apparently they disassembled the Disney princess display at Toys R Us, and Brian snagged all five princesses. These lovely ladies now have a permanent home on the wall in Olivia's bedroom. Olivia could not be more thrilled with the new residents.

Easter 09

We had a very nice Easter this year. The kids slept until a reasonable hour (hooray), and then got up to find that the Easter Bunny had left goodies in their baskets. Both kids received a new toy, DVD, and a little bit of candy. Although it is not normal for the kids to have sweets in the morning, I did let Olivia eat the ears off of her chocolate Easter bunny before we started getting ready for church- BIG MISTAKE. As we were walking out the door to go to church Brian noticed that Olivia had chocolate all over her Easter dress- let me rephrase that- all over her white Easter dress. I still do not know where the chocolate came from. It had been over an hour since she had eaten the bunny ears, and I had washed her hands and face before dressing her. I guess she had spit some of the chocolate back up. Anyway, a last minute dress change was in order. Here are some pictures of the kids in their Easter clothes that were taken after church.

We went to Granny Buie's house after the church service for lunch and to hunt eggs. Owen and Olivia had had an Easter party and egg hunt at their daycare the week before, so they were practiced and ready to find some eggs. When the time to hunt eggs came, they sprang into action. Both found several eggs and had a really good time doing so.

Castaway Cay

Our last day of the cruise was spent on Disney's private island, Castaway Cay. The morning began early for me as I got up to run a 5K trail on the island (which was the most beautiful run I've ever done). After the run, I went back to the cabin to get ready for a long day at the beach. We stayed almost the entire day down on the island. Here are some pictures of our day in paradise.

Who did we see while on the beach? It was our favorite pirate Captain Jack Sparrow. We also saw the "Flying Dutchman" ship- which is now a permanent fixture at Castaway Cay.

After a day at the beach, we came back on the boat to get ready for dinner and the show. Owen had had a stomach ache the day before, and could not stay in the nursery. Therefore, he came with us to the show. I thought that his presence would be a total disaster. It was not- Owen actually watched the entire show and he liked it. I really underestimated his attention span. The show on the last night was called "Dreams" and it was the story of a girl's journey through her favorite Disney tales. The highlight of the show for our kids was the musical performance of "Under the Sea"- complete with puppets, bubbles, and people dancing around in turtle costumes.

Sadly, this night marked the end of our voyage on the Disney Wonder. The next morning we got up and were off of the ship by 8am. We had such a great vacation. Maybe one day we will be able to make a return trip on the Disney Wonder. After all- on the ship they don't say goodbye; they say "until we meet again".