Back from the Magical World of Disney

We finished up our action-packed Spring Break week yesterday at Disney World. I wish I had posted every day as the week unfolded, but we were just too busy or too tired. So I am going to try my best to give a day-to-day recap so I can record it all for myself as much as for you guys. Some may think we were crazy to go to disney with a baby, but we took reinforcements in the form of my mom and sister as well as Alan's mom and Kit for half the week.

Day 1--Arrived in Orlando. We stayed in a wonderful 4 bedroom house in a neighborhood just five minutes from Disney World. If you are ever looking for a place, check out RomancingtheMouse.com and let us know so we can get you a discount. We had originally thought of staying on site at Disney, but decided having a kitchen and living area along with the bedrooms was crucial--not to mention a washer/dryer for baby accidents. It was well worth it. Our loving Florida/Pennsylvania grandparents met us there and had dinner going when we got there. Yum.  The kids were able to go for a swim in our personal pool after dinner. Unfortunately we discovered too late that Katelyn's ear had been hurting. So between the plane ride and swimming, she woke up crying at about 10 pm. We headed to a nighttime pediatric clinic to have it checked out, only to find out that they had closed early due to an emergency. So with a very unhappy little girl, we headed to the ER which confirmed that she did have an ear infection. The comedy of it all was that she also had a little boo boo on her arm. I asked for a bandaid, but instead, the nurse brought out antiseptic, a ton of gauze, q-tips and a bandaid. I have discovered one of the problems with health care. I am sure her one picked scab cost my insurance company $100. Not a great start to our vacation. We got home around 2 am, so needless to say, our plans for an early Disney start on Sunday wasn't going to happen.

Day 2--Animal Kingdom
Let everyone sleep in after an unexpected evening. Had originally planned to spend the day at Hollywood Studios, but chose to do a half day at Animal Kindgom instead. So began our Disney adventures.

Entering the park

The Girls had their own mode of transportation with Daddy and Kit

Grandmom Marilyn let them get their faces painted so they could be true fairy princesses.

Grandma Karen bought them Minnie ears. Ellie shared hers with Owen. 

While in Animal Kingdom, we saw It's Tough to be a Bug in 3D. We even got jabbed on the back with a stinger and felt creepy crawly bugs crawling under us on the benches. Yuck. Katelyn rode her first roller coaster--Expedition Everest. She loved it and became a roller coaster junkie the rest of the week. We got to see Finding Nemo--The Musical and ended by watching the parade. For those planning a trip to Disney, Animal Kingdom was the least favorite of our days which is why it was only allotted a half day. We didn't see any characters so the girls were a little disappointed. 

Day 3--Hollywood Studios

This was actually my favorite park. It had a much better feel to it than Animal Kingdom. It felt less crowded and rushed and was laid out very well. The girls saw characters as soon as we got there. They were excited to meet Minnie and then right afterwards ran into Pluto and Goofy.

Katelyn was invited to introduce the Voyage of the Little Mermaid Musical. She was super excited to have a role in it all. It was interesting to see a whole movie condensed into 17 minutes, but it was pretty good.  Ellie's favorite was actually the Beauty and the Beast show. They also got to play in a Honey, I shrunk the Kids movie set, saw Muppets in 3D, took a ride on the Star Wars simulator, and saw all the characters from Playhouse Disney. The Little Einstein's were a big hit. I rocked on the Toy Story Mania ride where you shoot at Targets. 

I got to see Katelyn's tenacity in line for the Rock n Roller Coaster. You had to be 48 inches to ride. She was just a hair short, so the lady would not let her get in line. Alan, Sherry and I rode it. While Kit and Katelyn were waiting for us, apparently Katelyn kept giving the lady a sulky look to the point that she finally went and got her supervisor who approved Katelyn to go on. Katelyn LOVED it. 

Day 4--Magic Kingdom (Owen turns 4 months)

Today was the day of the princesses. The girls dressed in their princess dresses for the big day. They were mesmerized by the castle from the moment they saw it from afar on the ferry over until we walked down Main Street.

Grandmom Marilyn bought the family tickets to have breakfast with the Princesses at the Royal Castle for Christmas. The girls were ecstatic. The food was pretty good and the princesses rotated around the room during breakfast, pausing to sign autograph books and take pictures with the girls. They were very personable and played their roles to a T. We saw Jasmine, Snow White and Sleeping Beauty. The girls met Cinderella when they came into the castle, but didn't get to see her during breakfast.

 At the end of the breakfast, all the girls closed their eyes and made a wish on a wishing star. Katelyn and Ellie were very intent on their wishes, but wouldn't say what they were. Ellie looked down at herself after the wish and said it didn't come true, but I am still not sure what she wished for.

Katelyn showing off her  hula hoop skills

We spent the rest of the day on rides (Katelyn loved Space Mountain) and watching the parade before heading back to the house for a nap. After naps and quick dinner we returned to the park for more rides, fireworks and Spectromagic lights parade. The girls finally got to see Mickey and Minnie in Toontown that evening and mom got her picture with Mickey.

Sherry's must ride ride was the Teacups.

It was a late night for all, but well worth it.

Day 5--SeaWorld
After our late night on Tuesday, we decided to sleep in on  Wednesday. Kit and Marilyn had to leave on Wednesday to head to Jupiter to see the other Calhoun clan. We had a leisurely morning and then went to SeaWorld for a few hours in the afternoon. It was refreshing to sit down and watch some shows at SeaWorld after being on the go most of the prior two days. Ellie loved the shows and Katelyn gravitated towards the rides. The girls decided to sit down close during Shamu's show to get wet. Their daddy escorted them to front and was a good sport about it. They bought ponchos, but near the end decided they weren't going to get wet and took them off. Big mistake--they got drenched.

Day 6--Off Day and Heritage Farms
By Thursday we were pretty exhausted. We slept in and went for a family bike ride around the complex. I have a cousin that lives in Titusville, so we visited him and his family. He lives and works on an orange grove. The girls thought that was pretty cool. They ate more than their share of oranges while we were there, picking them straight from the tree. They also fed the fish at his pond out back. Cousins Dick and Joy Hartlage stopped by to visit awhile along with Katie. We had a delightful dinner with Gene and Scott's family.

Katelyn, Owen and Ellie

Gene showing us his orchard

Day 7--Magic Kingdom
We finished the week back at Magic Kingdom, hitting the rides and shows that we had missed--Big Thunder Railroad, Splash Mountain. We watched two shows in front of the castle. One was a block party with the characters. Katelyn danced in the street for that one.

I think her face shows it all with respect to the fun they had. 

Day 8--Back to Nashville
Our flight left at 8:15 am, so we had to rise early, early, much to the dismay of the girls. The line was  a mile long at the airport and we almost missed out flight. We made it to the gate just as they were loading the first group. While the week was definitely not relaxing, we had a lot of fun. We couldn't have done it though without the help of mom, Sherry, Kit and Marilyn. It made it so that we could all enjoy the rides and attractions and have the extra hands available for Owen and Ellie. Just realizing that I didn't mention Owen at all in this post. He was the best baby every. He just laid back in his stroller, taking it all in, with hardly a fuss. We definitely made the right decision in taking this trip now, before he is mobile. I don't think we could have asked for a better trip at this stage in our kids lives. We're already thinking about when to go again so that Owen can remember it too.

Katelyn is reading

I have been a little worried about Katelyn because she has seemed slow to catch on to reading and just did not like to read herself, but tonight, she floored me. For the last few weeks, we have been reading 8-10 page books and sounding out just about every word. But when I got home tonight, she was reading just about every word out of Green Eggs and Ham. She was so proud of herself. It is like it just clicked for her and she was zipping through sentences.

She was concentrating so hard I didn't have the heart to make her stop and go to bed. So if my kid is cranky tomorrow, you know why. But is will be worth it given the look of accomplishment she had when she finished PAGE 64.

Soccer Season starts up again

Katelyn started spring soccer this weekend. Her team is a force to be reckoned with. I think the final score was 12-3 or something like that. Katelyn enjoys her team. Two other players live in the neighborhood, so hopefully we can get some friendly games going this summer. She also loves to play goalie.

 Owen enjoyed his first soccer game. 

Forgot to post first day picture

He was snoozing when I left him which made it much easier. The place is pretty cute and active.

Surprisingly, this week has been much more hectic and crazy for us. The last two weeks were a great gift from Alan as I went back to work, but we are definitely feeling the full brunt of it this week.

Purim Parade and Owen's first day of school

O.K. I am two weeks late on this, but Owen officially turned 3 months old on February 16. My mom and Larry were up the weekend before to bring Sherry's stuff. She moved to her own apartment for some peace and quiet. She will be missed, but I can understand how living with a family of five may crimp ones style.  I can't believe how fast the time is going. Owen's first three months were a whirlwind. I really enjoyed my time off with him and can't believe my maternity leave is already over. I have actually been back at work for two weeks now and feel like I never left. I do feel blessed to work at a place that I love, where people ask about my kids all the time, and where there is a true sense of community.

After I went back to work, Alan took two weeks of paternity leave to hang out at home with Owen---well not exactly at home. He had many projects to work on and kids to chauffeur around. I was lucky enough to have him visit me at work with the O Man a few times to smooth the transition. He was able to spend Fridays at Shabbat with Ellie and be a part of her Purim Parade before heading back to work today.  For those not of the Jewish faith. Purim is a celebration of when Esther saved the Jewish people.

Which leads me to today. Owen, my baby, (I'm getting sappy aren't I) started school today. OK not really school, rather it is daycare, but daycare equates to preschool before too long and preschool inevitably leads to kindergarten which quickly turns into college. So I guess I could say Owen started the road to college today. I am starting to think that my lack of sleep is making my head a pile of mush leading to a bit too much drama. The day actually went very well. They all loved Owen and said he smiled all day at them. Not sure what else he did to burn off energy, but he crashed at 5:30 pm tonight and hasn't stirred. I am anticipating a rough night for us all.

New haircuts, Sock Hops and life at the Calhouns

We have a had a busy last two weeks as I have tried to cram in everything I can before starting work tomorrow. I have mixed feelings about returning. I am glad to get back into the mix of things at work. I have missed the people and the kids, but I will also miss my little man who I have spent the last three months attached to. He has been such a blessing to our family and is the sweetest little guy. To ease the transition, I have a wonderful husband who is taking 2 weeks of paternity leave to stay home with Owen while I go back to work. Owen will then join Ellie at the JCC at the beginning of March.

So here goes a recap of the last two weeks.

Both girls got haircuts. Ellie wanted hers short like her mom's and Aunt Sherry's. We were going to go with shoulder length, but she kept saying shorter, shorter. It turned out to be very cute. She is growing bigger every day and has pretty much lost her baby look. I am not sure what happened to my Baby Ellie, but she has been replaced by a tall, slender, little girl.

With all of the snow and ice, the Father/Daughter sock hop scheduled for the end of January was moved to this weekend. Katelyn was so excited and spoke of it every day for the last three weeks. Alan was a trooper and greased his hair back, taking his oldest daughter out for a date to CPA. Thanks to Chuck for the greaser jacket. It made the outfit.

My sister, the lovely Aunt Sherry, moved out this weekend. After driving across town to work every day, she decided to move closer to her school. We are all sad that she is gone. The guest room looks so empty tonight. Mom and Larry came in for the weekend to bring all her stuff out of storage. Saturday was moving day. Even Ellie helped out by washing all her dishes. I must remember this for when I need help at my  house with dishes. While moving her things, we discovered to brand new Christmas dresses in the closet. I bought them after last Christmas and must have put them in the closet so the kids wouldn't see them. Unfortunately, I hid them from myself and forgot them, so they were not used for Christmas. Therefore, they became VALENTINES dresses. The kids dressed up for church today in their new dresses and had a ball.

Owen continues to be my incredibly sweet little boy. He gets all kinds of love from his mommy and daddy, along with his two big sisters. There is often a fight over who gets to hold Owen in the evenings. On Tuesday, he will be three months old. The last three months have flown by and we have loved every minute.

Sledding and penguins

After a VERY long weekend, the kids went back to school today. But they had blast in the snow while it lasted. I'm posting a couple of their sledding videos along with Katelyn posing as a penguin. Don't laugh. It is my first attempt at costume making. You always hear about those moms who lack any sort of sewing, crafty, etc talent staying up all night making a last minute costume for their kids. Well that is ME. OK I didn't wait until the last minute, but I am woefully inadequate in the creative costume making department. So thanks to Sherry for her ideas, we have put together Katelyn's Penguin attire for Penguin Day on Thursday. We hear that there will be a special guest. . . . could it be Snow Bird. We'll have to wait and see.

Amy and Ellie sledding

           Katelyn sledding in front of our house

Ellie and her daddy sledding video

                                                                                 Katelyn sledding video

Ellie was sledding down the hill with her big sister following, giving directions all the way.

Katelyn loving on her brother

She really takes her role as big sister seriously. 

Cheer Girl and Snow

Katelyn's basketball cheer girl debut was moved to Thursday with the threat of snow on Friday. She had a blast, cheering on the basketball court with the other elementary girls as well as the "Big" girls. She was in heaven. Even after their cheer girl job was over, Katelyn hung out down on the sideline with the real cheerleaders and kept cheering. She loved it. 

Snow fell all day Friday, so the kids were home with their mommy and Aunt Sherry for an official snow day. We got about 4 inches of snow--the most the kids have really ever seen. After about 40 minutes of dressing, we were ready to head outside. The snow was not wet enough so our attempts at making a snow man were in vain, but the girls enjoyed making snow angels, throwing snow balls and sledding down one of our neighbor's driveways. Ellie lasted about 20 minutes before she was too cold. (That is less time than it took her to get dressed.) Katelyn, on the other hand, had to be drug in she was having so much fun. Her poor toes had to be unthawed, but she survived with a warm bath and some hot cocoa. 

Owen didn't venture out into the cold. I didn't want to freeze his little cheeks off, but he got to pose for the camera just anyway.

The kids ventured out today for Day 2 of the snow with their daddy. The hill out front of our house turned out to be an excellent hill for sledding. All the neighborhood kids took a turn. It is 9:30 pm and I can still hear people outside squealing as they play and sled in the snow. We are hoping to get out of the house tomorrow. I am beginning to feel a little closed in. Hoping that the roads clear up a bit first. 

My chunky monkey

Owen had his two month appointment yesterday. He is a healthy little boy weighing in at 14 pounds (95th percentile) and 23 inches long (75th percentile). The doctor said his color looked good and he looked healthy. He is a beautiful little boy (I know I am biased), but he has so far managed to avoid the cradle cap crud and the baby acne. I have less than a month of maternity leave left, so I am taking all the time I can to love on this little guy.  He is such a sweetie. I can't believe how fast the time is going.

Owen turns 2 months during 1st trip to DC

Owen took his first plane trip over the weekend when we went to visit the Calhoun grandparents in Washington, DC.

While in DC (actually Bethesda, Maryland), Owen turned 2 months old. Wow how time flies. I can't believe we have had this little cherub for two months already.

The girls had a great time. We spent one day at the mall, going to the museums. The girls especially loved the Museum of Natural History where they got to spend some time in the butterfly garden. Katelyn could have spent hours in there. There was a moth as big as her face.

We saw the Washington monument (from afar) and the girls got to ride the carousel.

And on Sunday when it rained, the whole family came together as engineers to build a marble contraption. Surprisingly, it occupied the kids for a good hour.

Overall, it was a great visit. We were so glad that Owen got to meet his Granddad Tom, Thelma and Uncle Geoff. Geoff was a great sport and played the punching bag for the girls who thought he was just a big kid. Thanks Uncle Geoff.

Snow!!!! What Snow????

We went to bed excited about the snow we were suppose to have today. Unfortunately, when we woke up, there was nada, none, zilch on the ground and the girls were slated to be home all day for a SNOW DAY. Luckily, by lunch time a few flakes had landed so we got about .5 inches if that--not enough to cover the grass, but enough for a little sledding. We don't have a big hill near us and even if we did, there wasn't enough snow to cover the grass, so we improvised. Fortunately, there is a driveway across the street from us that has a pretty hefty slant to it, so the girls, along with the neighborhood boys, were able to do some short sledding down the driveway. They actually had a blast. Hopefully we will be in Pennsylvania or Boston one Christmas for a real snow, but for now, this will do. And. . . we just found out school is closed tomorrow. Apparently, it is due to black ice on the roads because it is certainly not due to snow.

Family exercise

In an effort to get this baby fat off, I have been trying to exercise most days. Surprisingly, my kids are also enjoying it, especially Ellie. Wednesday night the whole family was working out. Ellie likes to repeat what the instructor says and is very cute saying up, down, up, down and then stops for a million water breaks. We ended up having to take the weight away from Katelyn out of fear she was going to throw it straight through the TV.

Notice the kids with weights in hand--probably not recommended.

Delayed holiday singing

We had a girls night at my mom's house during Christmas break. Katelyn, Ellie and their cousin Katie decided to perform Christmas songs for us along with a couple of Hanukkah songs. Turn the music off down on the right in my playlist before playing the videos.

Ellie's rendition of "We Wish You and Merry Christmas"

Katelyn's "Jingle Bells"

Late Christmas pics

The not so glamorous photos pics are below along with a brief recap of our holidays. I know I am way late, but am hoping the newborn excuse still works. We had a wonderful week in Louisville visiting lots of family. We attended Grandma Karen's annual Christmas party. The girls had an exciting sleepover with Aunt Joyce and Allison, took a trip to the Puzzle Fundom, visited with lots of cousins, spent time with the grandparents and the GREAT grandparents and were simply spoiled rotten. We love you guys!

Christmas Eve at the Bibelhauser's with 20+ relatives

Opening their first Christmas gifts of the season--Red sparkly shoes which they LOVED from Aunt Stacy.

Christmas morning after Daddy received an invitation inviting him and his guests to dine with Cinderella at her Castle over spring break.

Owen's first Christmas--taking it all in

Christmas Day at Grandma Libby's, wearing some of Rebekah's belly dancing attire.

A surprise visit by Santa Claus at Grandma Libby's

Learning to play the drums at Grandma Libby's