Vacation

I have to start out giving huge props to Addison and Connor. They did AMAZING in the car!! They were pretty darn good for our entire vacation, for that matter, but the car was my biggest worry. I still can’t believe how smoothly everything went!

Our trip was broken up over several planned stops. Our first stop was to visit the Dixie DeSantiago’s…in Dixie, GA! We left right after Addison’s gymnastics class on Saturday. It was the first class of a new session so we didn’t want her to miss it. It was a little over 4 hours and we only stopped once for lunch. It was so good to see my family and the kids had a blast together! I forget who pointed it out but there are 5 second cousins between my cousins and me ranging in ages from 1 to 5 (now that Connor is officially 5). They all got along pretty good and we visited with one another until 11 pm!

David and I

This was the best group shot I could get. From left to right:
Layla, Addie, Connor, Ian and Megan

Jessica and Brandon

Connor getting a head start on his birthday :)

We woke up Sunday morning to a lot of rain. We visited a bit more and then hit the road for Atlanta. 5 hours and 2 stops later we arrived at my friend Tracy and Rob’s. Tracy is a friend from college and she and I were preggo together. Her son, Gavin, was born just 2 days before Addie! She has since welcomed a baby girl and it was so good to finally meet her! Presley is now 6 months old and the cutest little thing! Addie adored her and still talks about “how cute and smiley” she was. Tracy had us and another couple, Stacy and Donnie, with their kids for dinner. Their kids were 2 and 4 so there was lots of fun going on between the 5 of them! I also went to college with Stacy so it was a lot of fun to catch up with everyone.

We left Atlanta Monday morning for North Carolina. About 6 hours and several stops later we arrived at Sugar Mountain, NC….to no snow :( We were little disappointed since seeing snow was the primary purpose of our trip but it was still gorgeous! We stopped at the local Food Lion to stock up before heading to our condo and they had little carts for kids. How cute is that?! Our condo was great. Nice and cozy with fantastic views. We spent the rest of the day relaxing and settling into our place and watched our first mountain sunset.

Our mission Tuesday was to find snow! We bundled up and headed to the ski resort on the other side of Sugar Mountain. We were at the top of the mountain so if we were seasoned skiers we could have walked about 100 yards to a black and skied down. But we’re not :p They had snow for the slopes but not much more. We walked around a bit and the kids got their hands on a patch of snow just outside of the resort. Not exactly how we had envisioned their first touch of snow to go but they were tickled nonetheless. We went back to the condo for lunch and naps with a game plan to come back later and go tubing.

We hit up the 4 pm session of tubing and had a blast! I was proud of Addie for not being scared and they even got to play in the snow at the bottom of the slope. It was freezing the second the sun went behind the mountain though so we took one more trip down the slope and called it a day. We got back to the condo just in time to see another beautiful sunset.

We woke up on Wednesday to 16 degrees and snow flurries! John went skiing that afternoon and the plan was to pick us up when he was done to go ice skating. We bundled up and headed back to the resort for the 4 pm session. After paying for our skates and enduring the process of bundling up even more and getting to the rink, the kids both decided they were miserable. I don’t think they got more than 1 lap around the rink before they were crying. It was cold, I’ll give them that, but it was unfortunate we had to leave.

Thursday was even colder. I think it was only 7 degrees when we woke up and super windy. We knew we weren't going to get to do anything else outside if the kids thought the previous day was miserable so we packed up and said our goodbyes to North Carolina. We didn't have any solid plans other than getting to Waldo by Friday to visit with my parents. It would have been 9 hours straight there and after the first few hours we decided we were going to make a stop in Savannah, GA for the night. We had never been and it was a good break in the trip. Plus my parents had to work Friday so there was no rush to get there. 8 hours and several stops later we arrived in Savannah. We picked a hotel from my Hotel Tonight app and settled in for the evening.

We spent Friday morning sightseeing in Savannah, all along River Street and then let the kids release some energy at Forsyth Park. It was a gorgeous day and a lovely city. We’ll have to get back there another weekend sans kids. Looks like a fun place :)

It was only 3 hours to Waldo from there and we arrived shortly after BeBe and Grandpa got home from work. The kids were so excited to see them! We were excited to see them too and all the new remodeling they just got done. The house was totally different and looked great!

We went to Gainesville on Saturday to visit Nana and Uncle Dominique. After a really nice visit we headed back to my parents for dinner. But first Connor and Addie had to help BeBe make his birthday cookie cake! Steve and Chris joined us for dinner and then Connor got to open a few gifts. He was so excited to be going to bed 4 and waking up 5!

Addie taking pictures for BeBe

The birthday boy did not want to leave so we hung around later than we originally planned. It was after 2 pm before we headed back to Tampa. Funny enough the shortest leg of our trip was the least enjoyable. Addie was whiny and I think we were all just bummed it was our last day of vacation. Connor perked up a bit when we got home and had a few more birthday gifts to open. He even let Addie help him which made her a happy girl.  Connor asked for steak and corn muffins for his birthday so that’s what he had for dinner. He also got to sleep on the top bunk for the first time.  He’s been eyeing the top for a while now but we told him he had to be 5 before he could sleep up there.

The BIRTHDAY Boy!

 

Overall we had a very good vacation! It was nice to be away from the house, chores, work and just relax and enjoy all the family time. We took a million pictures so click here if you have some time to spare.

❤ Valentine's Day ❤

The kids have been sick so we’ve been laying low lately. We did have some fun with Valentine’s Day last week though. Connor’s homework assignment was to create a box for his Valentines to go in. He, of course, wanted his to be decorated like a trashy. I say ‘of course’ because he loves trashies right now. You may not know it but I do ;) It’s even the theme of his 5^th birthday party next month! He picked out the trashy he wanted to model, Oozy Noodle, and John helped turn his vision into reality. They did a great job! We also made valentine caterpillars for the grandparents and Aunt Nancy. Connor cut out the hearts and Addie glued them!

His class invited the parents to The Wedding of Q & U but unfortunately I couldn't make it. John went and took some pictures and videos for me and from what I could tell it was an adorable event! I tried to upload the videos but they are too big. They went all out for the event creating bow ties and boutineer's for the boys and head pieces for the girls. They even made cute VIP (Very Important Parent) passes for the moms and dads. Later they all exchanged valentines and had a small party. Addie’s class exchanged valentines too and they made their treat bags in class. 

Addie got to attend the wedding too :)

John spoiled me with roses and wine but also got me a couple of rose bushes for Valentine’s Day. I love getting flowers but I love them even more when they will last. He also got Addie sunflowers, a balloon and a stuffed doggy which thrilled her. Connor also got a balloon and a stuffed bear but wondered where his flowers were :p We had  a yummy steak dinner at home and then went to a movie (Nancy watched the kiddos). We saw Jack Ryan: Shadow Recruit. It was pretty good! After dinner we had a glass of wine and a shared a slice of cheesecake at the Wine Studio before calling it a night.

Last weekend I took the kids to see the new Lego Movie. It was pretty good and the theme song is very catchy….”Everything is Awesome!” Kids had a good time too :p I never see movies in the theater and saw two in one weekend! When we left for the movies it looked like it was going to be a dreary day but it turned out to be a gorgeous weekend. John planted my rose bushes and I have already started reaping the benefits and having fresh flowers at work :) 

In other news Addie has been officially potty trained for almost a month now. Her first full day was on my birthday which was the perfect gift! :p She was still wearing diapers at night but mostly because I still had some. She has been 100% diaper free for over a week now and no accidents yet!

Connor and Addie are just growing up too fast for me. We attended Connor’s Kindergarten Roundup a couple of weeks ago and the boys are already fighting over Addie! John dropped her off at school last week and one of her girlfriends said “There’s my Addie!” when they walked in. One of the boys said, “No, that’s my Addie!” and then another boy exclaimed "No, that's my Addie!" and both boys got up and started fighting! And I’m in the middle of planning their 5^th and 3^rd birthdays!!!

We are taking our first family road trip/vacation to North Carolina next week. We leave tomorrow morning and will stop to visit family and friends all along the way. I’m excited and nervous at the same time. I’m excited to see family and for the kids to see snow for the first time but a little nervous about the long days in the car. If you have been keeping up with me over the last couple of years you know that Addie is not great in the car. Wish us luck!

The next time I blog I will have a 5 year old...crazy! Have a great weekend!

Wordless Wednesday

Monster Jam

We attended our third Monster Jam this past Saturday. The appeal is not as high for Connor as it used to be but he still had fun. We all did for that matter. We normally hit up the first show (they have two in Tampa) but opted for the second one this year so we could go to the Gasparilla kids parade. We also had a bigger crew this year so tail gating was more fun but I personally think we missed the better show. You live and you learn :)

Connor has pulled out his monster trucks since the show and Addie is right there with him wanting to play. Even though she enjoys his trucks and would have probably liked the show we didn't think she was quite ready for the loud noise and staying up late. She has watched enough of our videos to know what they are all about though and she says she wants to go next year. Thanks you, Aunt Nancy, for taking care of and spoiling her while we were at the show!

Click here to see all our pictures.