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Thursday, July 23, 2009

The Rest of the Trip

Our birthday celebration/vacation was more than just going to Disney...that was only 1 day of it!

We (my mom and I, and the kids of course) left last Friday on a road trip to Fl. We stayed overnight in Summerville, SC (and we were able to see some old friends that we were stationed with at Holloman!).

We stayed a week in Fl and then 2 more nights in Charleston, SC on the way back - so I could get a look at the area and the base since we'll be moving there next year.

We relaxed, lounged, and swam at the pool each day, but we also...

had a visitor for breakfast...


spotted lizards...


picked flowers...






played at the Orlando Science Center...




fed ducks...




visited family...

We were able to spend some time with my dad, his wife, and my brother (haven't seen him in about 5 yrs!) Lucas looks so much like my brother when he was that age.




It was nice being able to celebrate Kayla's birthday with them


visited with our friends in SC again...


Mary and I were pregnant at the same time 6 yrs ago


Our girls are 1.5 months apart...


making mad faces...


and silly faces...


There is so much I want to remember about this trip - the good along with the not-so-good!

- travelling with kids is just not fun; well maybe it's just with my kids. No matter what toys I bring to try and keep them entertained nothing lasts for more than a few minutes - if even that. Everything gets thrown to the floor.

- Kayla is the type who eats when she's bored...so all we heard from her was "Mommy a snack!" countless times, over and over. Even after we stopped for lunch and 5 minutes later when we're back on the road she's asking for a snack.

- her new found ability to whine ... "Maaa-aaa Meeeeee-eeee"

- Lucas wanting each and every thing Kayla has and thinks he's entitled to it - probably because she ends up giving it to him all the time. He can be perfectly fine with whatever is currently in his hands, but as soon as Kayla gets something different he chucks his object down and fusses for whatever she has. And what is with throwing everything over on his left side so we can't reach it, and so it's all by the sliding van door and when you open the door the entire contents of the van falls out...or gets trapped in said sliding door.

- when we're in the van, Lucas sits there with a finger in each ear, as if he's saying "I can't hear yooooooooou!"

- I heart my GPS and am so glad I bought it before this trip...amazing how easy it was to get around with someone giving you step by step directions

- Lucas bumping in to Kayla on the sidewalk and using his forehead to catch himself; yeah he picked up a not so lovely looking scrape, bump, and bruise - an all-in-one fall

- the joy the kids had on their faces running around in the spray part of the pool

- Kayla sobbing her eyes out when it was time to leave the pool...just broke her heart

- the sound of Lucas giggling as he was feeding the ducks

- passing another car as the passenger was yawning and my mom saying "Yawning is just so unattractive"

- as Kayla ran ahead of us Lucas yelled "Aayla!", pulled his hand from mine and signed "stop!" to her

- Lucas playing with the Daddy Doll by putting a pair of his shorts over it and saying "nye nye"

- Lucas and Kayla playing with baby and Daddy dolls; each of them rocking one and singing "Rock-A-Bye Baby" and hearing Lucas sing "beebee"

- Lucas calling "Kaaay-la" and "Mooom-mee" in a sing-song voice

- about an hour after leaving Orlando Kayla asking "Where Disney World go?" and hearing "Go back to Disney World!" almost the rest of the way home.

- telling Kayla, when we were almost home, that Aunt Kelly would be there and hearing her respond, "I so happy!"

- after another round of endless begging for a snack my Mom caves and throws some food at the kids-turned-animals; then tells them "That's it! Nooo more!" (Not actually yelling at them, just in a fun way) and every time after that they would say "That's it! No more!" when getting a snack.

- at the hotel in Charleston my Mom telling housekeeping her bathroom wasn't clean (ie the mirror was dirty) and the housekeeper turning on the faucet, flicking some water on the mirror, then wiping it with a towel (seriously!) - she got her room free that night

- our resort was only "minutes away from Disney World" ha! By the time all was said and done it was over an hour by the time we left the resort and actually got to Main Street, Magic Kingdom

- feeling the absence of not having Joe there with us and missing him terribly

- but also so thankful and glad my mom was able to go on this vacation with us

- wishing the kids looked like this during the whole drive


(My new favorite picture of Kayla)


but it sure does feel good to be home!

I'm not ignoring everyone's blogs - I just didn't read any for over a week; so I'm hopelessly behind on commenting!

post signature

25 comments:

Karen said...

What a wonderful trip! The kids look like they had the time of their lives.

Izzy, Emmy 'N Alexander said...

I am so glad you had such a wonderful trip full of fabulous memories. I love the car photos of the kids, adorable smiles.

I am also glad you were able to be out and about and on a road trip. They are the best, even with all of the toys thrown, snacks dropped and kids needing entertainment. lol, It's the same for us too.

Nichole Fisher said...

I'm glad that for the most part your road trip was fun. How was Charleston? It's one of those places that I really want to visit and just haven't made the trip. The pics are great - I love the one of Kayla and Lucas watching the duck through the glass door.

Tina said...

Sounds like fun!! My kids aren't much fun to travel with either, so I feel your pain.

Unknown said...

Sounds like a great time. Even if the kids were bored while on the road. I think both pictures of the kids in the car seats are GREAT!

datri said...

What a wonderful birthday trip! Love the pics!

Tausha said...

Looks like so much fun. I love your little guys PJ's in the first few pictures.

Lacey said...

What a great trip. I love that last pic of Kayla too.

Mommy to those Special Ks said...

SO glad you got a GPS!!!! I knew you'd love it! :) The pics are great, especially your new fav of Kayla! LOVE her smile! :)

Bonita said...

Michelle, they are so precious together!

Ria said...

What an awesome birthday trip!! Memories like these will be cherished forever. I love the photo of the girls making silly faces. That cracks me up!

Rachel said...

How did you get kayla's celiac diagnosis? My mom is certain that Sam has it but it seems sooooooo hard to live gluten free. have you blogged about this...could you or just email me. Rachelbbaxter@gmail.com thanks, Rachel at thebaxternews.blogspot.com

Nancy M. said...

We drove from SC to Disney with 5 kids this past spring and it was harder with the 19 month old and 6 year old. The other kids were old enough to keep themselves busy.

Those are some wonderful memories! Even the bad ones aren't so bad because all the good ones are better! I love the pictures where the kids are smiling!

Danyele Easterhaus said...

what a great time and wonderful trip! so many memories...and that's what it's all about. love the shots of the kids and you guys are just too cute!

Cammie Heflin said...

I think if everyone switched kids for vacations they would go much better!

tara said...

I love so many of the things you posted about: Lucas signing to Kayla to 'stop'! How cool is that? :) and I think it's crazy that Kayla is always asking for a snack....that is Payton to a 't'. She always thinks she should be eating. Drives me crazy! :)
So glad you all had a great trip (and I'm like you - traveling with kids is not fun!)

Anonymous said...

Looks like you had a really nice trip! Lucas is getting so big! He looks so much like you! I love that last picture of kayla! She looks so good in pink!You have 2 beautiful children! we will be taking a trip up north again.I'm glad my kids are older does make it a little easier. I remember trips with your godchild they were always eventful.
love ya,
mimi

grandma said...

It really does sound like even with the bad it was actually a wonderful trip. I love the pictures!! Makes me wish I could have been there too :-(

Brandy said...

Sounds like a great trip. Sorry Joe didn't make that one tho!! I didn't know you knew where ya'll where going next. That is a beautiful area.

chelle said...

Wow despite all the normal kid stuff, sounds like a fantastic vacation!

The Girls' Mommy said...

Oh I love it! I'm so glad you did it!

AZ Mommy said...

My mom lives a 4 hour drive away, and in May 08 when C-man was not quite 2 yet we drove from Phoenix, AZ to Dallas, TX. I swear the only thing that saved my sanity was a DVD player for him to watch movies. I think that's where is love for Dora started!
We also had great fun throwing goldfish at dad while he was driving ha ha ha ha ha
I love the pictures!

Kim said...

Oh the joys of a road trip! We are getting ready to hit the road in a week. A 7 hour drive to the mountains. I can't say I'm thrilled about the driving part but am looking forward to the destination.

Glad you had a nice time. You got some great shots!

Unknown said...

Looks like you guys had a great time filled with lots of memories! It is really great that even though Joe is gone, you are making the most of it and creating great memories for your kids! Keep the great posts coming! :)

Jann said...

Such a great trip!!!!!!! I now proclaim you are the bravest person I know for traveling with 2 kids on your own!