Wash the children

Erin asked me to wash the children... (I do good!). Just kidding. Uncle David and Aunt Mandy came in for a visit and he was able to get AK into the washer.

Christmas day and our last little adventure at D town

I thought it would be nice if I finally posted some pictures from Christmas morning.  Problem is, it's very early in the morning and lets just say not all of us are photo shoot ready, tee hee.  I picked out just a few photos to show the joy of our Christmas morning.  Elizabeth was brought a Hannah Montana karaoke machine by Santa.  I am proud to say it's being used quite a bit. 

Santa brought Anna Kate her very own big girl bike!! She had a little trouble getting started, putting her weight down on the peddles to move forward but once that happened she started flying around.  We've only had one very bad crash.  As you can imagine when a bicycle with training wheels falls over it's more like the titanic going down than a quick fall to the side.

Among the other cool presents the girls got was the racing horse jumping balls.  They are a little hard to see in this picture but they are soooo adorable.  Anna Kate has red and Elizabeth has the blue.  The best part is that Elizabeth's best buddy that lives next door was also given a jumping ball, but no horse cover for it.  It's cute to watch two horses and a plain red ball galloping through the house.  And no the helmet is not necessary but Anna Kate puts it on for one thing and keeps it on for hours...who am I to argue, it must be safe, haha.

So early in January our Disney seasonal passes were going to expire.  We wanted one or two more days of going to the park and playing.  It was sort of bitter sweet to think about not being able to go in anytime we just darn well pleased.  So we tried out new things and I think really appreciated it more than any other time we went.

This ride is the Astro Orbiter.  I had always seen this ride and never been on it.  You have to take an elevator up over the people mover in tomorrowland.  It's basically like Dumbo but in a rocket and super high.  The problem for me was that it was just going around in circles and I could feel my motion sickness coming on...I survived but we didn't ride it again.  This is Anna Kate and I sharing the ride.

Since we not coming back soon Lewis wanted to ride Space Mountain.  Disney has an awesome program for parents with small kids that can't ride these rides where you just ask for a fast pass to get on and off the ride quick.  It's pretty cool.  So this is what Anna Kate and I did, she played on my phone in a quiet little area.

We rode our favorite rides several more times, including my personal favorite, Peter Pan.  I love it so much, the colors and experience are just beyond amazing.  Elizabeth is extremely happy to be in her ship getting ready to fly over London to Never Never Land!!!  We also rode the Haunted House three times but Elizabeth decided the scariest ride was Pirates of the Carribbean...so I waited outside with her while Lewis and Anna Kate rode it.  Go figure the three year old says "I'm not afraid of Pirates"  haha.

Night out with AK

Last night, Elizabeth was out with Erin and "white grandma", watching the Wizard of Oz. So, I took Anna Kate out to the movies. She was a perfect child as long as I kept the popcorn flowing!

My little girl is growing up...

Walt Disney World

As 2012 begins, we said goodbye to a gift from 2011 - seasonal passes to Walt Disney World.

This wasn't a normal trip, we became tourist's and stayed the night.

We spent the night at a Disney property and had a blast - closing the park on Saturday and opening the park on Sunday. We played both days at Magic Kingdom and had a blast. After every ride, Liz would says let's ride it again. (She was on a roll.). AK was a big girl because she rode Pirates without Liz because she was scared. We went on rides we normally skipped and ate a inside the park! Many memories that we will not soon forget.

We even took the camera and actually took some photos! (I only have a few on my camera.)

2012... It is going to be a great year!

Well, most people make a new years resolution on January 1 and then after the first week they break them or just forget them. So, I (state your name) am taking a different approach... Sharing and setting my goals on Jan 5! This year the goals are easy, yet hard for me. 1) run 1,000 miles in 2012. 2) help my wife with the family blog page. (repeat from 2011 - which was not completed) 3) start using free time for good not evil (ha ha) 4) listen to my children better (this one seems backwards) 5) listen to God's wisdom no matter if it's what I want to hear or not 6) love my wife for the great person she is and remind her daily how lucky I am to have her and 7) enjoy life to the fullest.

This is my 1st post and many more to follow.