Disneyland!

I made myself sit down this morning and get our Disneyland photos in order and blogged. My life feels SO busy right now (I know, I know, wait until JUNE!) and I can go days and days without ever even coming in my office which means the blog could definitely fall by the wayside. I don't want that to happen so here we go... DISNEYLAND!

We visited the happiest place on earth in early February and we had a great time! My little sis came with us too which was a lot of fun and we were also joined by Sean's mom and sisters and the Swaffield family (old family friends). We stayed at the Disneyland Paradise Pier hotel which was awesome and very near the parks which was great. It was great to enjoy a few days of California sunshine (though we are enjoying such a beautiful spring so it didn't feel too different!).

Some thoughts about Disneyland ... things I want to remember, pros, cons, advice, however you want to take it...

1. It doesn't matter what ages your kids are... it doesn't matter what age YOU are... there is FUN for everyone!
2. Three and Five (and ten and eleven and twelve) year-olds think the hotel pool is just as cool as Disneyland.
3. There is A LOT of walking (glad I wasn't any further along pregnancy-wise than I was!).
4. On that note... if you go to Disneyland pregnant and are 22 weeks along, you will not look pregnant in the photos. Just fat. Tell yourself it doesn't matter and that in one year from now you will back at the photos and think you looked SO cute. Also remind yourself that by then you will DEFINITELY have your pre-baby body back. Just tell yourself that. It's better that way.
5. Rent a stroller... it was the best $70 we spent. They delivered it to our hotel and picked it up. We didn't have to drag it through the airport. A-mazing. And we could pile all of our crap on it as we walked through the parks.
6. Everything is expensive. Expect it. Plan for it. Enough said.
7. Downtown Disney is awesome.
8. The old part of Disneyland where the parade takes place is my favorite. Very nostalgic.
9. The parade is wonderful.
10. If you go in February, the crowds are definitely better. BUT several of the big rides are closed- all of the water rides and the castle was actually being remodeled :(
11. FROZEN is all the rage.
12. If you have little girls, the Bippity Boppity Boutique is SUPER cute and fun for them.
13. Watching little girls hug the characters - pluto, goofy, princesses, etc. is ridiculously cute!
14. Mara wore her pink sunglasses the majority of the trip.
15. Kennedy had three missing teeth and hugged every single character she met.
16. Kennedy gave a little wave to every character in the parade.
17. Mara ate her own weight in macaroni and cheese. #addicted
18. I wish I could have had a cold beer every afternoon... and a cocktail every evening. #nexttime
19. We made great memories with my little sister and Sean's little sisters who are all slowly turning into a pre-teens on us. Time goes fast, I will always be glad for this trip with them.
20. We celebrated Kennedy's 6th birthday on this trip!
21. Balloon animals are all the rage at Disney restaurants.

Until next time Disney... can't wait to go back in a few years with our little guy in tow TOO!

Now for the pics (in no particular order and in large quantity and taken with my phone, point and shoot and fancy camera!) Enjoy!

 

Days with Mara

Mara and I spend a lot of great time together while Kennedy is at school during the day. 

We go for walks with Cooper, read lots of books, run errands, etc.
She is definitely my little sidekick. 

I feel lucky to be able to work in her preschool classroom every couple of weeks and I know I will always cherish this special time I have had with her once she is off at school like her big sis.

 Love my Mara-girl! 

Pottery Painting

For Kennedy's birthday activity (instead of a party), she got to invite two school friends (and Mara) to go do something fun. She decided painting pottery sounded pretty fun so Sean and I took Kennedy, Mara, Stella and Becky out to lunch and to paint pottery the Saturday after her birthday.

 After lunch, Becky and Stella came back to our house to play for a couple of hours. 

It was a lot of fun, easy, and the perfect amount of kids. 

And the best part... I didn't have to clean my house afterwards! Ha! Big parties may be over for us! :)

| Kennedy is 6! |

Our big girl turned 6 this week!

Time sure does move fast, doesn't it?

 

One of my favorite quotes about raising kids - "the days are long but the years are short" holds so much truth and I think of it every time one of my kids has a birthday.

But while I miss the baby she once was, I so enjoy the little girl that she is.

And that's how it works right?

We love and cherish the past and we enjoy and live in the present.

Pretty cool really.

 

We had a little family pizza party for her on her real birthday and this weekend we are taking her and two of her little school friends to paint pottery and out to lunch. She is so excited!

 

 

| Leavenworth 2014 |

I am a little delayed with this post but I finally just got all of these photos uploaded and wanted to make sure they were included in my blog book this year.

 

We spent the week after Christmas and over the New Year in Leavenworth with Sean's side of the family. We had a great time and the girls had so much fun playing with all of their cousins. We all shared one big house ... with 9 kids and 9 adults, it was chaotic and busy but great fun all at once!
Our week consisted of lots of eating, lots of visiting, lots of ping-pong, lots of snow play, an evening in town, an awesome sleigh ride, some skiing, some snoeshoeing and a fun New Years Eve.

Amy did most of the photo taking this year but here are a few that I took over the week.

I know these are photos that we will look back on with great fondness as all the kids grow up.

Cousins really are the best!