Home Again, Home Again, Jiggity Jig

Did your mom ever say that to you?

Anyway, we are home from North Carolina. It was pretty great. I drove the kids by myself (a monstrous feat) and Gary rode his bike five days and through three states with some friends (a monstrous feat).

I will add pictures and all soon. I just got a new fancy schmancy camera and I need to download the pics so I can share them. I'm still learning how to work it! But I feel like I need a vacation to recover from my vacation. I am beat. We spent the whole day at the beach  yesterday. First with some friends, then with our cousins. It was so nice. Also nice because I could ignore laundry and de-packing.

Jack is talking SO MUCH. The best way I have to express it is a story on our trip. We walked into a store with Jack on my hip, chattering away his stream of conciousness. A woman looks at me and says, "Wow! He can really talk!" "Yep," I answered. She shook her head and with her deepest wisdom said, "You know you're in big trouble, right?" "Yep," I answered. This from the boy who didn't talk for two years. It reminds me of a story of my Grandpa. When he was little in the 30s, my great-grandmother complained that he was three and not really talking or walking. The doctor said it was because she babied him too much. They needed to refuse to carry him and refuse to understand what he said in his baby language. She decided to try it. The next day he came up to her in the kitchen and said, "Hee Hee Ha Ha Waa Waa Mamma." She said, "I'm sorry Robert, you are going to have to tell me with words what you want. "Hee Hee Ha Ha Waa Waa Mamma." She repeated herself again. He throws a complete fit on the floor and she steps around him and ignores him with all her might, ready to cave. Finally, he stands up and looks at her and says, "May I pease have a drink of water, Mamma?"

Well I've got to go change a diaper explosion. And then we are going back to the beach so I can continue my master plan of denial.

The Whole Enchilada

Sorry I have been so absent. Here's what's going on:

 I was a leader at Girl's Camp for a week. Not bad when you consider the fact we had no air, and I was surrounded by hormonal teenage girls.

 Gary is on a cycling trip to North Carolina. For real. Right now they are in north Florida. He is as happy as a clam. Tomorrow I drive my kids by myself for about twelve hours to NC. So fun for both of us! These pictures should be at the bottom of the post, obviously, but I'm too bone tired to mess with it. Just go with it.

  Laura graduated from Brownies.

 I got fifth's disease, which is supposed to be super rare for adults. I got a big rash and all my joints swelled for a week. Super fun.

 Emma broke our hearts by graduating from fifth grade. She cried as she pulled away from her elementary school for the last time. She had a wonderful experience there.

Laura graduated from her kindergarten/1st grade loop. She had a wonderful two years with her teachers. I cannot believe she'll be in second next year.

Hope you had a great June. I am starting off my July with a drive to North Carolina solo with my kids. Jealous?

I Am Thuper Thorry.

I have been a wee bit absent. I will be back tomorrow. After I take Jack to Bounce U.
(Fun Bounce U, Mommy! Thuper fun!)

Apparently I say Super a lot. Just the other day a waitress laughed because I said, "Oh, this is Super Yum." I would like to trademark that awesome phrase right now. You cannot use it without paying me a quarter.

Jack all day says:
1. Mommy, I am THUPER hungy.
2. Mommy, I am thuper tired.
3. Oh Mommy! That was Thuper thcary!
4. No Mommy! I not thuper poopy! No thank you!
5. Mommy, I am THUPER THUPER hungy. (I hear that one a lot.)

Is this picture thuper thcary?

See you tomorrow!!!

Disney Day 5--conquering Everest and obscene portion sizes

Sorry I am behind so much....but we have been down with sickness at my house this week. Don't cry for me Argentina, we're almost done.  So I am trying to quickly dash out the last of our trip.

Our last day found us at Animal Kingdom. In truth, there is really not much to do at this park. The best thing is Expedition Everest, the newest roller coaster at the park. You can easily do this park in a few hours, especially if it is PRACTICALLY EMPTY like it was when we were there.

We walked onto Everest about four times in a row. We were lucky enough to have my sister and her husband, as well as my friend Kymmie and her girls, meet up with us at the park. It did rain that day, but you can't have it all, people.

Everest is the BEST roller coaster. The forces are so strong when you go down the "mountain" that you can't even keep your arms up. The best part-- we prepped Laura for the fact that she was not tall enough to ride it. She was really disappointed. But when we got up to the measuring-point we found out she was finally tall enough after all! She looked at me, I looked at her, and we screamed and threw our hands up in the air and did a happy dance! She was a real pro and rode it several times.

After the park we went to the Polynesian and ate at 'Ohanas. That's one of those Hawaiian-style-bring-meat-around-on-skewers-eat-too-much-food-places.

Emma's pictures: (I like to include Emma's pictures because otherwise I don't make it into any. It's hard for me to prove I was actually there except for my witty commentary)

This picture reminds me that I am thinking of creating a new kit for Toys R Us called "My First Facelift." What do you think?

My Sista. We are very funny together and I like the fact that someone else appreciates how humorous I am.

My pictures:

That is me, back row, doing one of my hobbies. Making ridiculous faces for the ride-photo-thingy. Notice Emma and Kyra on the front row freaking out, and Laura in the back row looking like it's just another day at the park.

He's coolness is not marred by the fact that his glasses are askew.

Technology today, people. They both have their iPhones handy. However Emma has since had hers taken away until she CLEANS HER STINKIN ROOM.

Dancing with Em @the Polynesian

Happy Boy.

This is what I like about my husband (and brother-in-law). He's not afraid to be silly. The girls loved it.

Limbo!!

How nice of Disney to provide wheelbarrows in which to roll us home since we ate so much. Thoughtful!

Disney Day 3--Attack of the Brazilians

Sorry for the delay--it's been a crazy week. Girl Scout campouts, church meetings, honor roll lunches, oh what a wild life I lead.

So our third day we thought we would jaunt off to Hollywood Studios (formerly Disney-MGM Studios). We assumed it would be another day like the first two: easy, comfy, not crowded.

Fail.

Instead, this happened to be winter break in Brazil. And Thursday is Fantasmic day in Hollywood Studios. The result is a nuclear class five combination as every single Brazilian tour group led their students behind orange flags into the park.

Now let's back the truck up a little bit here. Beep beep beep. A long time ago in a wrinkle-free portion of my life I worked at Disney while in college. The bane of every Disney cast member's existence was the Brazilian tour groups. They are typically the most wealthy kids from Brazil and used to doing whatever they want. They chant and yell through the shows, they skip in lines en masse and then pretend they don't know what you're talking about, I even had one come up to me on a dare and kiss me full on the lips. I was in such a state of shock he ran away before I could do anything about it! Anyone who says Americans are the worst tourists have never encountered Brazilian tour groups. Or lived in a tourist area--I've met people from everywhere and no one is really that spectacular. Being tired and cranky and constipated and feeling like you've spent too much money is a universal experience.

So anyway the BTGs took all of the fast passes, banded together in certain areas and made sure no one could get through to certain rides, crowded the characters and wouldn't let anyone near, refused to stand in lines, you know, the usual. I was miserable. The crowd level was intolerable, so we left. Props to the guest service cast member who felt our pain and gave our family fastpasses to Toy Story Mania (the BEST ride at WDW right now). Basically, I was so miserable and crabby I took almost no pictures. Sorry.

Instead we headed over to Epcot where we WALKED onto the fast rides over and over again. We ate a great dinner at The Land and walked out together hand in hand (ahhhhh). Crowd levels were so low at Epcot they didn't even have the parking lot tram running. Perfection.

The "Lights! Motors! Action! show at Studios. Really cool.

Jack about to go down the slide in the "Honey I Shrunk the Kids" playground. Actually, he is about the throw a hiss because they wouldn't let him go down on his belly.

And then that night, Laura lost a tooth! She got $2 instead of $1 since she lost it at Disney.

Disney Day 2--It's Mullet-tastic!

Day 2 means Epcot. Some people don't like Epcot because it's more of a thinking place and less of a thrill zone. But being the brainiac I am, I fit right in. 

I have to tell you, it took everything I have to complete that sentence with a straight face.

Actually, good ol' Epcot is not so bad anymore. It has a lot of fun thrill rides, and we personally love to eat our way around the world. 

These are Emma's pictures of our room. Fascinating, isn't it? She wanted me to include it.

It's hard to tell in these pictures, but Jack adores Mary Poppins. Watches her movie all the time. He kept walking around her, kind of shocked that she was standing in front of him, and not in the TV.

We never did master the art of getting Jack to look AT the camera.

Waiting in line to see Alice

Remind me to tell you the story of how I was rejected by Disney at a formative age to play Alice. Scarred me for life.

Right now I am resisting the urge to yell, "I COULD HAVE DONE IT BETTER!"

Here I took a picture as we walked by because there was no way we were standing in another line.

 This is the part where I make fun of a nice family. Forgive me ahead of time, but Gary made me do it. This was a nice family of a Mom, Dad, and kid. They all had matching mullets, bless their hearts.
 The interesting thing is that they had their son on one of those toddler leashes. What is he, six?? So we were kind of giggling about that. At Disney you see all kinds of people. Many obese people. Sometimes obese people in obscene outfits. Poor English people who don't know how to dress in humid Florida weather and usually end up in a black sneakers and short running shorts with white, hairy legs in between. Not good. Often elderly Indian women with these beautiful two piece gowns (saris?) but these awful flabby stomachs hanging out in the middle. Lots of Americans in mom jeans. But this was a first. But I have to say they were a really nice, happy family. And they obviously loved their kid and didn't want to lose him. Hence, the leash.

 Oh, and the stroller the mom is pushing? That's for him. There's no baby inside. We saw him riding in it later. Maybe he's really a toddler and he is just big for his age. Although he is bigger than Laura. Oh well, on to other things. I realize I am a terrible person since I spent most of this post making fun of a nice family. I feel a great deal of shame over that. But not enough to delete the pictures, unfortunately.

Jack got a drum set for Christmas (Thanks, Mom!) So, he was right at home here.

Playing the Kim Possible game in Norway

Finally.

Marie, in France. We ate an awful lot of pastries here. Yum. 

 

 

 

 

 Jack kind of looks like he's praying here. Probably to get away from all these princesses.

 This was kind of funny. Here colonial people came out to do a fife and drum thing. Above they are doing the pledge. They sang "God Bless America" and asked us all to join in. We were kind of looking around at each other when we started like, "Are we allowed to sing about God in public? Aren't we going to get in trouble?" I think we're all so used to having to be quiet about God that we were kind of nervous to express ourselves outside of a church. Kind of funny, and kind of sad, I guess.

So that's the last picture I took at Epcot because we then proceeded to the THRILL RIDE section! Laura is so pleased as punch to be tall enough to ride most everything. Bless Disney for having the baby swap program, and Gary and I took turns taking rides with the girls. We did Soarin' (so much fun),  Test Track, Mission: Space, and some other things. The other thing I am grateful for is the fact my kids are not scared to ride roller coasters, etc. I am a terribly selfish person, and it would be hard for me to skip one due to their fear. I'd  probably tie them to a tree, tell them not to talk to strangers, and then go ride it myself.

We fell in bed at about eleven. Of course then I picked up a library book, Paranormalcy, and stayed up until one. Not so smart.