Spring Break Trip!

 We had a fun-packed spring break vacation in Orlando!  We didn't make our plans until close to the last minute, since Dan wasn't sure that he'd be able to get away while contractors were working at the school during the break. When we finally decided we could take a few days off, we found non-stop, round-trip flights to Orlando for $45/per person!  We booked a vacation for four days and spent three of them at different Disney World parks. It. was. exhausting. But SO much fun!  And the Florida weather in mid-March was absolutely perfect. I'm not sure we'll ever choose to go again during the sweltering summer months.

Hallie woke up super early the morning we left and posted this announcement to the door - so we wouldn't forget what we were doing that day!

We stayed at the Disney All Star Music Resort, which had cute Disney musical themes and fun personal touches, like a welcome message on our TV screen. 

The most important feature of the resort was their Mickey Mouse waffles, which we enjoyed every single morning before hitting the parks! 

Another big perk of staying at a Disney property is that they allow you to enter the parks a half hour before opening time. It's just enough time to ride one very popular ride quickly before the gates open and the line gets longer.

We spent our first day at Magic Kingdom.

 

The girls love driving cars at the Tomorrowland Speedway 

We also LOVE the cool new "Tron" ride. You have to get on a special virtual queue to make an appointment to ride it. 

Tron is a super-fast motorcycle-style rollercoaster. It's not the most comfortable way to sit, but it's an awesome ride! 

We also rode all the Magic Kingdom classic rides, like the Dumbo ride, Peter Pan's flight, It's a Small World, etc.

We love that the girls are both roller coaster fans! The fastest rides are their favorites, like the Seven Dwarfs Mine Train roller coaster.

Magic Kingdom always seems to be the most exhausting! The girls were fantastic about it, but they were so tired and sore by dinnertime that we didn't stay for the fireworks show that night. (Inconceivable!!) Dan and I were afraid we'd made a big mistake by planning back-to-back park days.  

After a good night's sleep, though, the girls rebounded and were ready to explore Hollywood Studios for their very first time. 

They got a big kick out of the huge toy decorations and cute rides in the Toy Story-themed section of Hollywood Studios. Dan and I loved the retro-style toys that they featured, like Tinkertoys, huge Uno cards, a giant Jenga tower, and some old familiar board games.

We had a blast on the fast Toy Story Slinky Dog rollercoaster!

We waited until this year to take Emma and Hallie to Hollywood Studios because we didn't think they'd appreciate the Star Wars themed rides when they were younger. 

They LOVED the Star Wars section of the park on this trip! They've never seen the movies, but we gave them the back story before they got on each ride. They wanted to ride everything multiple times!

We made sure to hit the longer lines early in the day before our feet got too sore. I also carried plenty of snacks to keep our energy up.  Dan and Hallie are stuffing their cheeks with grapes while we waited on line for the Millenium Falcon: Smuggler's Run ride.

We got a photo in front of the Millenium Falcon after we rode the ride. Many of the Star Wars rides have a hands-on element, where each rider gets to play a role. Disney does a fantastic job of keeping things interesting.

The only low point in the day for Hallie and Emma was the Hollywood Tower of Terror ride.  Neither of them likes anything scary, and they thought it was, well, terrifying. 

Photo evidence of how much they DID NOT enjoy the ride. 

They questioned our love for them after we took them on it, and we're forbidden to ever speak of the experience again. 

(*stage whisper* I thought it was a fun ride.)

We quickly erased any negative memories with the new 4D ride, Mickey & Minnie's Runaway Railway. We stayed late for the Hollywood Studios Fantasmic nighttime show, which the girls enjoyed, too.

Our third and final park day was spent at beautiful Epcot. 

We like riding the original rides, like Spaceship Earth. Emma created a virtual world where she could frolic through a beautiful windmill-powered land where flowers fall gracefully into her basket while she sings "...the hilllls are aliiiive...with the souund of muusiiiic...". 

Hallie's dream home overlooks a snowy winter wonderland...no wait, the sun setting over the ocean...or does she live under the sea?? Maybe she couldn't decide on only one location, but Dan looks like he's firmly in favor of going to the beach. She and Dan are snacking on a healthy salad with glasses of water, but I'm pretty sure Hallie is asking if they can go to Chick-Fil-A instead.

They had some wonderful new exhibits that the girls loved, like this butterfly pavilion!  They spent a long time there, gently catching and releasing butterflies.

There was also a brand-new water play area based on Disney's "Moana" movie.

These water fountains danced up and down as you raised and lowered your hand over them.

There were crazy mist areas where you could literally lose each other!

And a fun water "gateway" that magically opened as you walked through.

We spent at least an hour playing in the fun new water features. I'm sure it's going to be even more popular during the hot summer months!

Emma's favorite Disney character is Stitch, and we caught him walking around Epcot!

 We stopped in France for crepes and ice cream while we waited to ride the Ratatouille ride.

Our family's new favorite ride at Epcot was the Guardians of the Galaxy rollercoaster. It's unbelievably awesome, although definitely not for the faint of heart!

Our fourth and final day in Orlando was spent shopping in Disney Springs and eating at the Rainforest Cafe. 

We love visiting the shops at Disney Springs - like the huge Lego store! After being introduced to the Star Wars rides and stories, Hallie's decided that the droids are her favorite characters.

We had another Stitch sighting on top of the Disney Store. True to form, he would occasionally spit water at unwitting passersby!

Our flight home didn't depart until 9:00 pm, so we also had time for a snack and play time at Orlando's enormous two-story McDonalds before heading to the airport. By the time we flew home, we were absolutely beat!  This was one of the most action-packed trips we've ever planned as a family.  Dan and I love staying busy on vacations, and we were proud of our girls' endurance.

At least until we drove home from the airport that night! Heh!

We love making memories together at Disney!

Spring Fever

I'm not sure if it should be called "Winter Fever" or "Spring Fever," but it seemed that both our girls spent half of February and March battling sickness.  In between their viruses, fevers, and rashes, they did a great job carrying on with their regularly scheduled activities.

Emma's class kicked off February by performing the story of Esther in chapel. Emma was a narrator and had several speaking parts while her classmates enacted the story.

Hallie was invited to a classmate's birthday party at Funville, an indoor playground. Emma joined the fun, also, and they both had a blast playing with their friends. Hallie was even brave enough to fly off this slide a few times!

Unfortunately, she got a small, deep cut on her elbow at Funville, which didn't get washed well until we got home hours later.  (Major mom fail!!) Fast forward several days later, and she had contracted strep throat and a horrible rash on her elbow. The doctor wasn't sure if the rash was caused by the germs at Funville, or if she had scratched her cut after she contracted strep throat. Apparently, you can easily transmit strep to an open wound.

I have never wanted to be a nurse because I don't want to see things like this. 

Hallie took a strong course of antibiotics to help her heal, but we had to bandage and clean these pus-filled sores for a while. And wash everything she touched with hot water. We're still traumatized by The Diseased Elbow of 2024!  

We celebrated Valentine's Day with the girls, and they received their traditional chocolate roses and cards. 

They exchanged Valentine's treats with their classmates and came home with a ton of loot! Their school also had "Valentine Grams" that were available for parents to purchase for their students. Emma and Hallie both received teddy bears and heart-shaped balloons from us. While the Valentine Grams are optional in theory, you don't want your kid crying at school on Valentine's Day because everyone else's parents loved them more than you love your child. Heh!

Just as Hallie began to recover from strep and her elbow infection, Emma came down with a virus that kept her out of school for a couple of days. 

While both girls were sick, they decided they needed a spa day. They soaked their feet in warm water filled with Orbeez (gel spheres that swell in water).

  

Hallie and Emma made homemade spa soaps and scrubs from kits they received for Christmas.

Hallie, soaking her feet and sipping juice at the spa.

Unfortunately, Emma still had a fever on StoneBridge School's Liberty Day. Each year, they honor students' relatives who serve or have served in the military.  My dad is a Vietnam War Army veteran, and he always walks with the girls during the Liberty Day ceremony.  This year, he and Hallie carried the torch on their own.

Although Emma hadn't quite recovered, she needed to make a presentation for her final President project. She dressed as Sarah Polk, James K. Polk's first lady.  I took her to school for a couple of hours just to give her speech, and she wasn't the only kid on stage who sounded sick.

A photo of her beautiful hair, which I forced her to endure until the presentation was finished. 

Each 5th grader dressed as a different President or First Lady, and presented facts that they learned. Fun fact, we're related to James K. Polk through my dad's side! Apparently Emma's (many times) great grandmother was Polk's cousin, and she attended his Presidential inauguration.  

Thankfully, both Emma and Hallie were feeling well enough to enjoy a sleepover with their cousins, Naomi and Miriam, the following Saturday.  They had tons of fun jumping on the trampoline, making up games and songs, and playing with water balloons even though it was too cold for that!

The day after their sleepover, Hallie developed a rough, red, itchy rash all over her torso and legs. We think it may have been scarlet fever, which can be a side effect of strep, but it was strange that it occurred after a full course of antibiotics.  

Oh, I thought you said you wanted to see another weird rash. Sorry.

We kept an eye on it, and it seemed to gradually get better with topical ointments, so we didn't go back to the doctor. 

Through all of her sicknesses, Hallie still qualified to perform in her school speech meet. 

She recited John 14:1-6, and she received first place! We're so proud of her!

Hallie's class read the novel, "Heidi," this year, and celebrated with Heidi Day.

All the kids dressed up as characters from the story. 

Hallie was an adorable goat. 

I volunteered to help at one of the Heidi Day craft stations. We painted flowerpots, and each child received a bag of soil with seeds for them to plant.

Hallie's pretty rainbow flowerpot.  The kids also learned to speak German, made a goat craft, cut paper snowflakes, made paper mâché flowers, and tasted Swiss chocolate and goat's milk.

Hallie was invited to another student's birthday party at an obstacle course gym. The kids tackled the obstacles and played "The Floor is Lava."

I attended a big field trip with Emma and her classmates. The 5th graders took a charter bus to Mount Vernon, George Washington's home and plantation.

I was one of the parents who rode the charter bus with the students and teachers. It was about a three-hour ride, and they played movies on the way which helped the kids enjoy the ride.

We finally arrived at beautiful Mount Vernon. It was a little chilly in the morning, but it warmed up and was a gorgeous day later on.

Emma standing in front of the Mount Vernon model.

With her best friends, Remy and Diana.

The 5th graders seemed to really enjoy our tour through the house and grounds. They worked so hard this year learning about the Presidents, and it made their research come alive.

The students got to present a wreath at George and Martha Washington's tomb site.

We ended the month of March by celebrating our nephews, Aaron and Josiah's birthdays!

Josiah with his cousin crew.