We made it. Finally. It took forever, we had some good adventures along the way, saw some beautiful scenery, and most of all - we made it! Montana was beautiful, Idaho was too. It's so strange, being back on the west coast after all these years. Seeing the five again, but so far north instead of in SoCal (I'd love to live there again sometime). We've only been in Washington for just over 24 hours, and we've already run into some vegans...I think as many as we met total in Cleveland ;).
The girls couldn't wait to get out of the car, the past few days have been incredibly difficult, we've all had a serious case of cabin fever. Both girls are whiny and irritable. So am I.
So now we're on to our next adventure - house hunting. Hopefully it goes smoother than Cleveland and we wind up with a bigger place that also has a yard. With a fence, naturally. Oh, and a few bedrooms and washer and dryer. That's really the extent of my must-haves. My want list is a bit longer, like a rec room, a modern-ish eat-in kitchen,, a basement, carpets, a fireplace, those would be nice, but aren't absolute necessities.
Showing posts with label travels. Show all posts
Showing posts with label travels. Show all posts
Saturday, October 6, 2012
Wednesday, October 3, 2012
More Travels
Tuesday felt exceptionally long. We left the hotel about nine and went to the grocery store to get some more snacks. The grocery store was amazing! They had so many vegan and raw options, it was incredible! If the stores near where we lived in Cleveland had had these options, being vegan would have been so much easier! So many different cheese, drinks, snacks, and they actually said "certified vegan" which meant it was easier to figure out what to get. Not as much reading the labels.
Natalia is hating being stuck in the car. I sung every song I could remember from The Sound of Music, Oklahoma, The Music Man, The King and I, Seven Brides for Seven Brothers and Mary Poppins. And then I moved on to the ABC's, the wheels on the bus, and so on. I also sang a moving rendition of "Waking Up is Hard to Do" to the tune of - you guessed it - Breaking Up is Hard to Do. Natalia had woken up from her nap in a rather grumpy mood. Wouldn't you if you were still in the car?
Leilani isn't liking the drive too much more than Natalia. She's randomly not watching movies, trying to figure out how to bust out of here, or staring out the window saying "there's a hotel, lets stop there!" I think all of us just want to be in Seattle already
The hotel, however, was pretty fantastic. There was a pool that went up to three feet, so Leilani could stand up in the whole thing, there were two big water slides and a kiddie area, all indoors! Leilani got bored with the kiddie area, so we asked the lady at the front desk to turn on the big slides. There was a 100' one and a 210' one. The smaller one we did countless times, then we decided to see if the bigger one would be too big for Leilani. I wasn't sure how much she'd like it since the first part was in total darkness. She loved it. I mean, really loved it. The first time she went down, I had to climb up the steps with her, and she had to give me and Natalia several kisses before saying " okay, I'm ready, push me down!" After that, there was no stopping her. Natalia loved being in the water, which was nice and warm. I got a few photos, but once again, they'll have to wait to be posted until I actually have a computer.
We got a later start this morning, since a semi decided to block us. He was really only in the way for about ten minutes, it just felt like forever. It's been raining/snowing almost all day. At first we couldn't figure out which it was, but later it became obvious - it was snow. Big fat snowflakes, and they were sticking, too. And then it hit me, Natalia doesn't have a heavy winter coat. She's warm enough at them moment, a nice warm sweater, socks, etc, but I'm going to have to get one. I have no idea how I overlooked that. We stopped for some gas, and - did you know there are actually a lot of "accidentally vegan" foods out there? I not saying they're healthy, but at least there aren't any animal products in them. I got Natalia some crackers, and as I was giving her one, I asked her "Tally wanna cracker?" (That's pronounced like Polly, btw). She couldn't stop grinning at that.
We stopped in the big ol' town of Billings, Montana. There were like three hotels to choose from, Cheap Inn, Pay-Little Motel, and Best Western. (First two hotels not their real names). The time change is making it very strange, Natalia was usually going to sleep around 9:30, which means tonight, she was asleep by 7:30. She usually wakes up by 9am, so that means 7am will be the new wake up time. Do you realize that means on Pacific Time, she'll be awake by 6 in the morning? I'd say I'm not looking forward to that, but I can just go to sleep earlier, I suppose :).
Natalia is hating being stuck in the car. I sung every song I could remember from The Sound of Music, Oklahoma, The Music Man, The King and I, Seven Brides for Seven Brothers and Mary Poppins. And then I moved on to the ABC's, the wheels on the bus, and so on. I also sang a moving rendition of "Waking Up is Hard to Do" to the tune of - you guessed it - Breaking Up is Hard to Do. Natalia had woken up from her nap in a rather grumpy mood. Wouldn't you if you were still in the car?
Leilani isn't liking the drive too much more than Natalia. She's randomly not watching movies, trying to figure out how to bust out of here, or staring out the window saying "there's a hotel, lets stop there!" I think all of us just want to be in Seattle already
The hotel, however, was pretty fantastic. There was a pool that went up to three feet, so Leilani could stand up in the whole thing, there were two big water slides and a kiddie area, all indoors! Leilani got bored with the kiddie area, so we asked the lady at the front desk to turn on the big slides. There was a 100' one and a 210' one. The smaller one we did countless times, then we decided to see if the bigger one would be too big for Leilani. I wasn't sure how much she'd like it since the first part was in total darkness. She loved it. I mean, really loved it. The first time she went down, I had to climb up the steps with her, and she had to give me and Natalia several kisses before saying " okay, I'm ready, push me down!" After that, there was no stopping her. Natalia loved being in the water, which was nice and warm. I got a few photos, but once again, they'll have to wait to be posted until I actually have a computer.
We got a later start this morning, since a semi decided to block us. He was really only in the way for about ten minutes, it just felt like forever. It's been raining/snowing almost all day. At first we couldn't figure out which it was, but later it became obvious - it was snow. Big fat snowflakes, and they were sticking, too. And then it hit me, Natalia doesn't have a heavy winter coat. She's warm enough at them moment, a nice warm sweater, socks, etc, but I'm going to have to get one. I have no idea how I overlooked that. We stopped for some gas, and - did you know there are actually a lot of "accidentally vegan" foods out there? I not saying they're healthy, but at least there aren't any animal products in them. I got Natalia some crackers, and as I was giving her one, I asked her "Tally wanna cracker?" (That's pronounced like Polly, btw). She couldn't stop grinning at that.
We stopped in the big ol' town of Billings, Montana. There were like three hotels to choose from, Cheap Inn, Pay-Little Motel, and Best Western. (First two hotels not their real names). The time change is making it very strange, Natalia was usually going to sleep around 9:30, which means tonight, she was asleep by 7:30. She usually wakes up by 9am, so that means 7am will be the new wake up time. Do you realize that means on Pacific Time, she'll be awake by 6 in the morning? I'd say I'm not looking forward to that, but I can just go to sleep earlier, I suppose :).
Monday, October 1, 2012
Beautiful Drive
Yesterday, we made it to Baraboo, Wisconsin. Say "Baraboo" a few times, it's quite addictive and funny sounding. It turned into a lot of laughs in our car, "badabing, badabong, Baraboo", plus, it made Natalia giggle like crazy for a good five minutes.
The drive was beautiful. The trees were so many colors, deep reds that were almost burgundy, bright reds that were almost pink; yellows ranging from gold to bright, sunshiny yellow; oranges that were burnt orange or pumpkin-y, mixed with the greens of trees yet to change, and some evergreens, some of which were blueish. It was a truly beautiful drive.
We stopped to see Jeremy's aunt Lonette, whom I had never met. So over the past couple days Jeremy and I have both met members of each others families. It really was a pretty good day in the travel department. When we got to the hotel, Jeremy ran into the office to check in so I made up a song to entertain the girls. No rhyme or melody to speak of, but I sang that I loved them and my husband their daddy and both seemed thrilled. Then Leilani, not to be outdone, sang that she loved her mommy, sister Natalia and daddy named daddy. It was adorable. The pool has a hotel, so we went down there for a little bit. Jeremy and Natalia didn't get in, but Leilani and I did. Leilani had a blast swimming around, and I got to do a couple laps while she looked on. Natalia didn't seem too crazy about not having mama for thirty minutes, but once Leilani and I had showered and Natalia got me back, she was fine. Oh, Leilani fell out of the shower, she was saying "I can't get out!" And the next thing I knew she was on the floor looking up all confused.
This morning I bribed Leilani to get up and dressed by saying "let's see if there are any cartoons on." It worked and I discovered Natalia likes Mickey Mouse as much as Leilani.
We got back on the road by about nine. Leilani did a few of the worksheets I brought for her. Fortunately, she seemed to enjoy them, which means she won't forget everything she's learned over the past few weeks! We stopped at a rest area that had a walking trail, which we "hiked"...it was beautiful. Vibrant yellows, reds, and oranges. Still some green on some trees, dead branches here and there. Incredibly picturesque. Leilani loved it, she and I raced, then on the way back down she and Jeremy raced. Natalia kept trying to take her jacket off. Actually, she did three times manage to get it off. She seemed to enjoy being out of the car, looking at the beauty all around. We were rewarded for our uphill hike with a gorgeous vista - looking out, over the trees right close to us, there was a tapestry of oranges, reds, yellows, and greens as far as the eye could see. So many different shades of each of the colors, some of the reds had enough brown in them to look almost purple, some of the reds and oranges looked almost pink, and the yellows ranged from yellow green, to bright sunshiny yellow, to marigold. It was restful for mind, body and soul, and I think we all felt the benefit of it when we had to pile back into the car to head west on our long trek.
We stopped at a hotel with a pool again. Leilani and I went down there for a few minutes and did a quick swim. Natalia fell asleep, and then Leilani woke her up so both girls are still awake, and all I wanna do is sleep, I'm tired :)
The drive was beautiful. The trees were so many colors, deep reds that were almost burgundy, bright reds that were almost pink; yellows ranging from gold to bright, sunshiny yellow; oranges that were burnt orange or pumpkin-y, mixed with the greens of trees yet to change, and some evergreens, some of which were blueish. It was a truly beautiful drive.
We stopped to see Jeremy's aunt Lonette, whom I had never met. So over the past couple days Jeremy and I have both met members of each others families. It really was a pretty good day in the travel department. When we got to the hotel, Jeremy ran into the office to check in so I made up a song to entertain the girls. No rhyme or melody to speak of, but I sang that I loved them and my husband their daddy and both seemed thrilled. Then Leilani, not to be outdone, sang that she loved her mommy, sister Natalia and daddy named daddy. It was adorable. The pool has a hotel, so we went down there for a little bit. Jeremy and Natalia didn't get in, but Leilani and I did. Leilani had a blast swimming around, and I got to do a couple laps while she looked on. Natalia didn't seem too crazy about not having mama for thirty minutes, but once Leilani and I had showered and Natalia got me back, she was fine. Oh, Leilani fell out of the shower, she was saying "I can't get out!" And the next thing I knew she was on the floor looking up all confused.
This morning I bribed Leilani to get up and dressed by saying "let's see if there are any cartoons on." It worked and I discovered Natalia likes Mickey Mouse as much as Leilani.
We got back on the road by about nine. Leilani did a few of the worksheets I brought for her. Fortunately, she seemed to enjoy them, which means she won't forget everything she's learned over the past few weeks! We stopped at a rest area that had a walking trail, which we "hiked"...it was beautiful. Vibrant yellows, reds, and oranges. Still some green on some trees, dead branches here and there. Incredibly picturesque. Leilani loved it, she and I raced, then on the way back down she and Jeremy raced. Natalia kept trying to take her jacket off. Actually, she did three times manage to get it off. She seemed to enjoy being out of the car, looking at the beauty all around. We were rewarded for our uphill hike with a gorgeous vista - looking out, over the trees right close to us, there was a tapestry of oranges, reds, yellows, and greens as far as the eye could see. So many different shades of each of the colors, some of the reds had enough brown in them to look almost purple, some of the reds and oranges looked almost pink, and the yellows ranged from yellow green, to bright sunshiny yellow, to marigold. It was restful for mind, body and soul, and I think we all felt the benefit of it when we had to pile back into the car to head west on our long trek.
We stopped at a hotel with a pool again. Leilani and I went down there for a few minutes and did a quick swim. Natalia fell asleep, and then Leilani woke her up so both girls are still awake, and all I wanna do is sleep, I'm tired :)
Saturday, September 29, 2012
On the Road Again
I know the next lines are "I just can't wait to get on the road again", but I really can't wait to see the end of the road. We're not going to push ourselves, just going to focus on enjoying ourselves, as much as we can anyway.
We've started doing little exercises each time we stop, and we're doing our best to keep eating healthy. We bought some vegan power bars and snacks, and we're using an app called Happy Cow to help us find vegan/vegetarian/vegan-friendly restaurants.
I think Leilani and Natalia are both already going stir-crazy. Natalia is doing this screech thing and Leilani's yelling back "be quiet, Natalia!" Such fun sitting between them, trying to keep them both calm and all. Natalia ate some baby food while sitting in her carseat. We have two jars and I let her choose which one she wanted to eat. She chose apples and blueberries. She then ate about a fifth of the jar (I got the 2nd step stuff), plus gnawed on/slobbered all over a cracker.
At one of our rest stops, Jeremy swung Leilani around and around. I got some really awesome pictures of that. After this trip is over, and I have picture uploading capabilities again I'm going to have several posts of just pictures.
We were going right by my uncle and aunts house, so we called my cousin and swung by to see some of my family. It was awesome getting to see them again after such a long time! Leilani got to play with her cousin for the first time in years, and Jeremy got to meet some of them for the first time, too. It made me so happy to get to catch up! We got some incredibly adorable pictures of Leilani and Klaira.
We've started doing little exercises each time we stop, and we're doing our best to keep eating healthy. We bought some vegan power bars and snacks, and we're using an app called Happy Cow to help us find vegan/vegetarian/vegan-friendly restaurants.
I think Leilani and Natalia are both already going stir-crazy. Natalia is doing this screech thing and Leilani's yelling back "be quiet, Natalia!" Such fun sitting between them, trying to keep them both calm and all. Natalia ate some baby food while sitting in her carseat. We have two jars and I let her choose which one she wanted to eat. She chose apples and blueberries. She then ate about a fifth of the jar (I got the 2nd step stuff), plus gnawed on/slobbered all over a cracker.
At one of our rest stops, Jeremy swung Leilani around and around. I got some really awesome pictures of that. After this trip is over, and I have picture uploading capabilities again I'm going to have several posts of just pictures.
We were going right by my uncle and aunts house, so we called my cousin and swung by to see some of my family. It was awesome getting to see them again after such a long time! Leilani got to play with her cousin for the first time in years, and Jeremy got to meet some of them for the first time, too. It made me so happy to get to catch up! We got some incredibly adorable pictures of Leilani and Klaira.
Saturday, August 11, 2012
Birthday
Today, I'd like to wish my husband a very happy birthday :). We celebrated by first, spraying for ants, then running by work to get some stuff he forgot, then driving around saying "what should we do?" We decided to run down to Columbus to see Jeremy's Uncle Dorr. We got to Columbus and went to Panera Bread Co, then Uncle Dorr took us to the zoo. Leilani LOVES zoos :). We didn't have a whole lot of time to spend there, so we looked at the elephants, a few other Asian creatures, and the penguins. Leilani's a bit obsessed with penguins, and kept calling one of them Skipper :). I think, though, that she expected them to do some amazing thing like the Penguins of Madagascar.
Uncle Dorr then took us to Olive Garden for dinner, then we swung by his house and saw Tim and Danielle. Natalia really took to Danielle :).
Enjoy the pictures :)
Uncle Dorr then took us to Olive Garden for dinner, then we swung by his house and saw Tim and Danielle. Natalia really took to Danielle :).
Enjoy the pictures :)
Saturday, July 28, 2012
Lazy Daze
Today was a nice, relaxed day at the apartment. Leilani was pretty tired from all the go-go-going of the past few days. Not to mention all the parents were pretty exhausted from staying up waaaayyyy late playing poker and Balderdash :). We had so much fun and so many laughs.
Gracie was introduced to Cinderella today. I'm not sure how much of it she actually watched, but Sophie and I enjoyed it! We (Sophie and I) have decided that we're going to find Pocahontas since neither of us saw it during childhood and we've both always wanted to. While the babies were all napping, Leilani opened her new Twister game and she and Uncle Matt played for quite a while. I'm not sure that Leilani fully "got" the game, but she sure had fun! We then watched Tangled. Gracie got up from her nap shortly before the movie was over, and she and I had a nice dance to the music. She was grinning and trying to keep me moving for a while.
I discovered Natalia loves her cousins bassinet - she laid in there for a while, watching the teddy bear mobile. When she started getting fussy, I turned the vibration part on, and she LOVED that!
Sophie made shepherd's pie for dinner - vegan, and super delicious! Natalia got to hang with Aunt Sophie in the kitchen and discovered all Aunt Sophie's cooking secrets (now if only I could figure out how to get Natalia to tell me *grin*). Gracie thoroughly enjoyed her helping, she smooshed some of it, then stared at her fingers as if trying to figure out WHY it was on her hands. She then proceeded to eat almost all of it :).
Natalia, Gracie and James all sat around me and played with Natalia's favorite toy - a light up star stacker. The babies seemed to like when it played music, but Gracie LOVED when the music played, dancing and grinning!
We ended the kiddos day with Esther: the Girl who Became Queen...one of Leilani's favorite Veggie Tales movies :).
Gracie was introduced to Cinderella today. I'm not sure how much of it she actually watched, but Sophie and I enjoyed it! We (Sophie and I) have decided that we're going to find Pocahontas since neither of us saw it during childhood and we've both always wanted to. While the babies were all napping, Leilani opened her new Twister game and she and Uncle Matt played for quite a while. I'm not sure that Leilani fully "got" the game, but she sure had fun! We then watched Tangled. Gracie got up from her nap shortly before the movie was over, and she and I had a nice dance to the music. She was grinning and trying to keep me moving for a while.
I discovered Natalia loves her cousins bassinet - she laid in there for a while, watching the teddy bear mobile. When she started getting fussy, I turned the vibration part on, and she LOVED that!
Sophie made shepherd's pie for dinner - vegan, and super delicious! Natalia got to hang with Aunt Sophie in the kitchen and discovered all Aunt Sophie's cooking secrets (now if only I could figure out how to get Natalia to tell me *grin*). Gracie thoroughly enjoyed her helping, she smooshed some of it, then stared at her fingers as if trying to figure out WHY it was on her hands. She then proceeded to eat almost all of it :).
Natalia, Gracie and James all sat around me and played with Natalia's favorite toy - a light up star stacker. The babies seemed to like when it played music, but Gracie LOVED when the music played, dancing and grinning!
We ended the kiddos day with Esther: the Girl who Became Queen...one of Leilani's favorite Veggie Tales movies :).
Friday, July 27, 2012
Going Away Party
Today, I have my first ever guest blogger!!! Say hello to my sister-in-law, Sophie!!! :)
Sophie here! This is super exciting. I have never been asked to guest blog before. *grin*
I have to say, it's so much fun having everyone staying with us. I think I may have to keep them here forever. It feels like one giant sleep over. I think Elizabeth and I might be having the most fun out of everyone though.
Today has been busy. This morning Leilani and Gracie went swimming with PawPaw and Jeremy, so we got to stay home and cuddle the little babies. Then when the big girls got home we put on Madagascar 2 and ate humus and crackers.
Next we went to Walmart to get Leilani and new swim swuit. It's super cute and one of my personal favorites, Hello Kitty. We also picked up matching yellow shirts for the girls to wear. We had to alter Natalias a little but it worked out great. She even had her denim diaper cover so they had matching shorts.
This afternoon was kind of bittersweet. It was Uncle Jeff's leaving party. We are so proud of him because he is going to fight over seas. It was nice to have all the cousins hanging out playing together. Including Cousins A and G. There was lot's of food and everyone seemed to have a good time considering it was a leaving party.
After the party started winding down we all went for a nice evening swim. Natalia looked so cute in her flower swim suit and seemed very happy floating around in her swim ring. Leilani is getting soooo good at swimming she practised swimming back and forth from Mommy to Daddy and visa versa. I feel very proud of my little neice :)
Tonight was also special because Natlia and James got to take a nice bath together and once we had them bathed and semi settled the big girls got home and took a nice bath together. Then I got the privalage of reading bible stories to them. Leilani snuggled in which is always a treat :)
Leilani was also VERY patcient while her little cousins where getting to sleep waiting for her veggietales. She watched Dave and the giant pickle and ate some yummy oatmeal.
Then the highlite of my night was getting to see baby Natalia in my babies bassinette. I loved watching my babies sleep in it and getting to see my little nephew use it, so it is very special that my neice now gets to carry on the tradition.
Okay that's enough from me for tonight. Handing back to Elizabeth.
Goodnight all!
- Sophie
Here are some pictures from today :)
Sophie here! This is super exciting. I have never been asked to guest blog before. *grin*
I have to say, it's so much fun having everyone staying with us. I think I may have to keep them here forever. It feels like one giant sleep over. I think Elizabeth and I might be having the most fun out of everyone though.
Today has been busy. This morning Leilani and Gracie went swimming with PawPaw and Jeremy, so we got to stay home and cuddle the little babies. Then when the big girls got home we put on Madagascar 2 and ate humus and crackers.
Next we went to Walmart to get Leilani and new swim swuit. It's super cute and one of my personal favorites, Hello Kitty. We also picked up matching yellow shirts for the girls to wear. We had to alter Natalias a little but it worked out great. She even had her denim diaper cover so they had matching shorts.
This afternoon was kind of bittersweet. It was Uncle Jeff's leaving party. We are so proud of him because he is going to fight over seas. It was nice to have all the cousins hanging out playing together. Including Cousins A and G. There was lot's of food and everyone seemed to have a good time considering it was a leaving party.
After the party started winding down we all went for a nice evening swim. Natalia looked so cute in her flower swim suit and seemed very happy floating around in her swim ring. Leilani is getting soooo good at swimming she practised swimming back and forth from Mommy to Daddy and visa versa. I feel very proud of my little neice :)
Tonight was also special because Natlia and James got to take a nice bath together and once we had them bathed and semi settled the big girls got home and took a nice bath together. Then I got the privalage of reading bible stories to them. Leilani snuggled in which is always a treat :)
Leilani was also VERY patcient while her little cousins where getting to sleep waiting for her veggietales. She watched Dave and the giant pickle and ate some yummy oatmeal.
Then the highlite of my night was getting to see baby Natalia in my babies bassinette. I loved watching my babies sleep in it and getting to see my little nephew use it, so it is very special that my neice now gets to carry on the tradition.
Okay that's enough from me for tonight. Handing back to Elizabeth.
Goodnight all!
- Sophie
Here are some pictures from today :)
Wednesday, July 25, 2012
Fun in Florida
We've been having a fantastic time with our family! Yesterday, we went up to Jacksonville to spend some time with my older brother and his family before he deploys. We looked at some static aircraft - Leilani loved it. She, and cousins A and G had a blast running around the aircraft, unlike the adults, they didn't mind the heat. All the mommies stayed by the inside aircraft, a biplane in its own little building. From there, we went to get some lunch, then to Whole Foods - I got Natalia a super cute swim diaper that matches her swim suit perfectly, the best part? I can just throw it in the wash and keep reusing it! A super money saver :) We went back to the hotel so the kiddos could swim. Leilani gave us a bit of a scare, she knows NO fear. She just jumped right into the water (fortunately, in the shallow end). She kept bobbing up and down for what felt like FOREVER! Since she was in the shallow end, her feet kept hitting the bottom so she could propel herself upwards. It felt like full minutes, but it was really only seconds :). After that, there was NO stopping her. She floated on her back and was doing a fantastic doggy paddle!
Today, Sophie and I loaded her kids and mine into her van and had a fun time going to Wal-Mart (yep, we're mama's *grin*). Cousin James and Natalia got to ride in their Moby's and Leilani and cousin Gracie each sat in their own carts and we did "cart races" for a while. Then, Leilani decided it was time to ride in the same cart as Gracie. We got tons of vegan foods, it's so nice to be hanging with someone who shares my same dietary outlook! Tomorrow, we're planning on making scrambled tofu burritoes - super yummy :)
After we got back to the apartment, we fixed Leilani and Gracie some vegan grilled cheese, then Leilani, my hubby and PawPaw went down to the pool. Leilani was excited to get to use her new goggles. And today, she just jumped in and took off. Her swimming (according to what I was told, I was at the apartment with Sophie and the babies - I think Natalia's going through a growth spurt, all she's been doing is eat and sleep). Anyway, Leilani just took off and swam.
This morning, before we went to the store, Matt taught us all how to play Texas Hold 'Em. We had lots of laughs....apparently, I'm incredibly readable, but since I never know when I have a good hand, it doesn't do anyone any good *grin*.
Tomorrow promises more fun - we got Balderdash while at the store :)
Today, Sophie and I loaded her kids and mine into her van and had a fun time going to Wal-Mart (yep, we're mama's *grin*). Cousin James and Natalia got to ride in their Moby's and Leilani and cousin Gracie each sat in their own carts and we did "cart races" for a while. Then, Leilani decided it was time to ride in the same cart as Gracie. We got tons of vegan foods, it's so nice to be hanging with someone who shares my same dietary outlook! Tomorrow, we're planning on making scrambled tofu burritoes - super yummy :)
After we got back to the apartment, we fixed Leilani and Gracie some vegan grilled cheese, then Leilani, my hubby and PawPaw went down to the pool. Leilani was excited to get to use her new goggles. And today, she just jumped in and took off. Her swimming (according to what I was told, I was at the apartment with Sophie and the babies - I think Natalia's going through a growth spurt, all she's been doing is eat and sleep). Anyway, Leilani just took off and swam.
This morning, before we went to the store, Matt taught us all how to play Texas Hold 'Em. We had lots of laughs....apparently, I'm incredibly readable, but since I never know when I have a good hand, it doesn't do anyone any good *grin*.
Tomorrow promises more fun - we got Balderdash while at the store :)
Monday, July 23, 2012
Florida at Last!!
After 2 days of driving...we're finally here! We had a great drive, really, we took very few stops, the girls both did fantastic, and, at the end, we got to see our family!!!
Tomorrow, we're going to go up to Jacksonville to spend some time with my older brother and his family before his deployment.
Todays blog is rather short, since it's gotten late as we've been catching up, laughing, and enjoying everything :)
Enjoy the pictures!
Tomorrow, we're going to go up to Jacksonville to spend some time with my older brother and his family before his deployment.
Todays blog is rather short, since it's gotten late as we've been catching up, laughing, and enjoying everything :)
Enjoy the pictures!
Saturday, June 30, 2012
Visiting
Yesterday we headed up to see Jeremy grandma in MI. We were going to try to leave somewhat early, but that didn't exactly happen. Since Jeremy's aunt and uncle live on the way to grandma's we stopped off there and had a lovely visit.
From there we headed to the nursing home. Grandma was very alert, but didn't make much sense - she kept talking about having bad combinations and a bad political situation because of two names. She was really cute, though :). She got to meet Natalia and see Leilani again. There was also a little old man in a wheelchair who was blind and determined to get across the street (mind you, we're in the nursing home dining room) to get to a building and wait for his daughter. I "helped him across the road" and back to where he was supposed to be. He was happy then. After helping him, Natalia and I went back over to grandma, Jeremy and Leilani. At one point, grandma said "what's in a name?" so I responded with "a rose, which by any other name would smell as sweet" and she grinned hugely. Then Jeremy started telling her goofy poems
I shot an arrow in the air
It fell to the earth I know not where
But I saw it from afar
In the radiator of my neighbors car
and
I sneezed a sneeze into the air
It fell to the earth I know not where
But hard where the looks of those
In whose vicinity I snoze
and she giggled like a schoolgirl - really adorable.
On the way home, I discovered Natalia LOVES Baby Einstein...but in order for her to see it, I have to hold the DVD player for her. But at least she wasn't screaming about being in the carseat! We got home rather late-ish and Leilani didn't get to sleep until 10, but it meant she slept in until 8 today! We ran errands today (thank goodness for Super WalMarts! get everything done at one place!) They actually had a nice little bath seat for Natalia, so now she and Leilani can take baths together. Leilani is super excited!
From there we headed to the nursing home. Grandma was very alert, but didn't make much sense - she kept talking about having bad combinations and a bad political situation because of two names. She was really cute, though :). She got to meet Natalia and see Leilani again. There was also a little old man in a wheelchair who was blind and determined to get across the street (mind you, we're in the nursing home dining room) to get to a building and wait for his daughter. I "helped him across the road" and back to where he was supposed to be. He was happy then. After helping him, Natalia and I went back over to grandma, Jeremy and Leilani. At one point, grandma said "what's in a name?" so I responded with "a rose, which by any other name would smell as sweet" and she grinned hugely. Then Jeremy started telling her goofy poems
I shot an arrow in the air
It fell to the earth I know not where
But I saw it from afar
In the radiator of my neighbors car
and
I sneezed a sneeze into the air
It fell to the earth I know not where
But hard where the looks of those
In whose vicinity I snoze
and she giggled like a schoolgirl - really adorable.
On the way home, I discovered Natalia LOVES Baby Einstein...but in order for her to see it, I have to hold the DVD player for her. But at least she wasn't screaming about being in the carseat! We got home rather late-ish and Leilani didn't get to sleep until 10, but it meant she slept in until 8 today! We ran errands today (thank goodness for Super WalMarts! get everything done at one place!) They actually had a nice little bath seat for Natalia, so now she and Leilani can take baths together. Leilani is super excited!
Tuesday, June 19, 2012
I Wanna Get Away....
I'm really wanting to go on vacation - somewhere Disney would be nice *smiles*. I've been entering the HGTV Summer Memories sweepstakes. *fingers crossed*. But since I never win sweepstakes, we'll probably NOT be going to Disneyworld anytime soon. Hopefully we'll be able to do some fun vacation-y stuff soon - my dh is going to be taking the paternity leave he couldn't take before, so we'll have 10 days to pack in the fun. Of course, we still have to figure out what that fun will be (and where), but whatever it is, it's guaranteed to be fun!
Thursday, June 14, 2012
Fun, Full Day
We've had a nice, busy day! We first walked over to Public Square to watch the Martial Arts demo, which was followed by the bomb dog demo. Before the demo, Leilani got really friendly with one of the dogs and his handler (who was AWESOME, by the way...great with Leilani!)....Leilani got to hold Goodwin's leash and walk him, then just hang out with him :)
There are distinct advantages to being related to the lead planner for Marine Week. After we saw the Martial Arts demonstration and dog demo, my husband picked us up in a government vehicle and we drove over to Burke Airport, which is just a few blocks away from the hotel, but with two little kids, that's a long walk :). And that is where the big advantage showed itself...we got to go out onto the tarmac (since the airport is being used, people can't go out there, so that was pretty awesome *smiles*). We got to get up close and personal with the helos, ospreys and F-18 Hornets. Leilani met almost all the pilots and crew, too.
After the airport, we went to Voinovich Park to see the traveling Vietnam War Wall....incredibly sobering!
Since my husband knows this police officer, Leilani got to meet (and pose with) his attack dog!
After that, we watched the changing of the guard at the Wall, then went to see the Osprey on public display. Leilani loved getting in it - she even got a shirt (her daddy loves spoiling her *grin*).
We're going to try to go see the lowering of the colors and playing of taps tonight. Hopefully we'll be able to make it!
There are distinct advantages to being related to the lead planner for Marine Week. After we saw the Martial Arts demonstration and dog demo, my husband picked us up in a government vehicle and we drove over to Burke Airport, which is just a few blocks away from the hotel, but with two little kids, that's a long walk :). And that is where the big advantage showed itself...we got to go out onto the tarmac (since the airport is being used, people can't go out there, so that was pretty awesome *smiles*). We got to get up close and personal with the helos, ospreys and F-18 Hornets. Leilani met almost all the pilots and crew, too.
After the airport, we went to Voinovich Park to see the traveling Vietnam War Wall....incredibly sobering!
Since my husband knows this police officer, Leilani got to meet (and pose with) his attack dog!
After that, we watched the changing of the guard at the Wall, then went to see the Osprey on public display. Leilani loved getting in it - she even got a shirt (her daddy loves spoiling her *grin*).
We're going to try to go see the lowering of the colors and playing of taps tonight. Hopefully we'll be able to make it!
Wednesday, June 13, 2012
Downtown
Leilani woke up super excited (Natalia just woke up early *smiles*)...today was the day to go stay downtown!!! I finished packing the car - you wouldn't believe how much stuff is necessary for even a tiny jaunt like this with two little kids. Natalia did great in the car until we got downtown...she hates stop and go traffic almost as much as I do :). Thank goodness for valet parking and bell boys to help get everything to the room. I may've over-tipped, but my keycard was demagnetized, so we had to go to the lobby - which meant getting off the elevator again, and then we had so much stuff it kept causing problems, so I thought he deserved a little extra for all the trouble we were *grin*. Natalia was extra fussy, too, nothing was making her happy. I did get a couple cute pictures of the girls:
kinda looks like she's using the computer, no?
In the afternoon, we went to go look at the display:
Then we hung out in the hotel room - Leilani played Reader Rabbit, I worked on Natalia's birth record, and Natalia slept :
)
We may be going to the flag lowering and taps later. If we do, I'll have pictures tomorrow :)
kinda looks like she's using the computer, no?
In the afternoon, we went to go look at the display:
Then we hung out in the hotel room - Leilani played Reader Rabbit, I worked on Natalia's birth record, and Natalia slept :
)
We may be going to the flag lowering and taps later. If we do, I'll have pictures tomorrow :)
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