Our Disney Adventure

Quite some time ago, we decided that it would be fun idea to celebrate Macy’s 5th birthday in Disneyland…and we’ve had this vacation idea in the back of our minds for several years. By the time we realized that we were going to have another child born in the month of December…(meaning two birthdays, within one week of each other – did I mention that this was in the month of DECEMBER??)….the idea of two birthday parties and everything that goes along with that….just seemed a little overwhelming. Therefore, we decided that celebrating both birthdays at Disneyland would be the perfect compromise – and it worked out just as we had hoped. With two birthdays and three first-time visitors (I had never been!) in our party – we had pins galore and all sorts of attention for the girls – “Happy Birthday!” was heard everywhere we went – it was fantastic and every bit as magical as we had dreamed. The entire park was decorated for Christmas – and when I say “decorated” – I mean DECORATED. It was gorgeous – everything was lit up, HUGE Christmas trees everywhere, all of the characters in their holiday outfits – the night-time parade in full holiday swing with Santa Claus at the end – oh my! That was the one thing I learned – Disney does nothing halfway – everything is full out – and that is definitely part of the magic!

Honestly…there was SO much that we did while we were there, I was a little overwhelmed at the prospect of blogging about it….so I thought I would just tell the story through pictures, highlighting some of our favorite memories while we were there…to say that we had fun would be an understatement!

One of the most favorite rides for both girls? The tea cups. They LOVED them. They wanted to go again. And again. And again....until Mommy couldn't take it anymore and decided that the best spot for me was off to the side, taking pictures of Gregg and the girls having fun:

The castle looked so magical at night, all lit up with the holiday lights:

The nighttime parade was wonderful, with the characters all in holiday costumes, and complete with Santa Claus at the end. They must have speakers in the ground there, because the music, singing, and everything about the parade was just magical. Our eager little parade-watchers eventually ended up on our shoulders in order to see everything:

And probably the most magical part for the girls? Meeting the princesses. Oh my. I believe I have dozens of pictures just of them meeting the princesses, including lunch with all of them at Ariel's Grotto. I have to say that I was equally as awestruck as the girls - I felt like we were meeting royalty. :)

The look on Macy's face in this picture really says it all...she loved every minute of it....and Aurora (Sleeping Beauty) was one of her favorites:

And while the line was HUGE to meet her in Pixie Hollow, it was worth every single minute for the girls to have their time with Tinkerbell and have their picture taken too.

We weren't sure if she would make it to Ariel's Grotto, but low & behold, she was able to meet Belle (Beauty & the Beast) as well:

And one of our most favorite rides? For all 4 of us? "It's a Small World" - worth the long line for this spectacular 10-minute boat ride around the world! Loved it so much, we rode this one twice:

The entire trip, while exhausting, was absolutely wonderful and we can't wait to do it again (well, in a couple of years :) I believe the girls have looked through the Disneyland pictures approximately 100 time since arriving home...and for myself, I now truly understand what the "Magic of Disney" is all about. For the complete album of picture from this trip, click here.

Winter Wonderland

As anyone in the Northwest knows, snow is rare. Snow is exciting. Snow is an “event”. Snow pretty much shuts down our entire region. So…take some extremely cold temperatures, ice, and snow accumulations….the week before Christmas….not just once, not twice, but three times….this has been an interesting week!

When the snow first fell about a week and a half ago, it was SO exciting. The girls were jumping up and down, Macy was running around screaming “SNOW!!!” and Morgan was following close behind, yelling out like a crazy child, simply because her sister was doing the same thing. Morgan has never seen snow in her lifetime….but that has certainly changed over the past week. I took a few pictures of the girls outside in the yard – frolicking in our one-inch of snow – happy as can be. But, being ill-equipped with snow gear in our household – along with the wind-chill factor, our time outside was brief.

As usually is this case in this region, we expected the temperatures to warm up and for the snow to quickly melt away. However, Mother Nature most certainly had another plan this go-around. By mid-week, the temps stayed low and the snow started falling again….and by this past Saturday afternoon – a winter storm warning was issued. Gregg left on a trip that morning, and the girls and I hunkered down inside this house with our blankets by the fireplace and watched the snow begin once again. It started to snow, and snow, and snow, and they actually cancelled Gregg’s flight back into Seattle. The next day, we thought the snow might be over….but it started snowing again by early afternoon on Sunday. It started snowing heavy…and it just didn’t stop. I started sending Gregg pictures from my cell phone every few hours and he couldn’t believe how much was coming down. Meanwhile, he was stuck down in California, with no planes or flights available to get back home. Wonderful Grandma Miller ventured out shortly the Sunday snow started again, and joined us in our “snowed in” venture. Given the rarity of storms like this in our region – I have to say that I loved it. All of it. That night, after the kids were asleep and everything was quiet….I went outside to try to capture this winter wonderland.

The next day, Grandma and the girls made a snowman out in the front yard, and when Gregg finally made it home later, they all went out and went sledding down our hill. We invited all the kids in the neighborhood to use our hill for sledding as well, and it was so fun to watch the snow ramps that were built and paths that were made….so much fun.


On Christmas Eve, the temperatures finally started to warm up and we knew the end of the snow was near. So, I ventured out onto the deck to build one last big snowman…in an attempt to keep the snow here as long as possible.

Some more snow fell on Christmas Eve….and the ground was still thoroughly covered by the time we woke up on Christmas morning – it is such a rarity for us to experience a white Christmas – which was just icing on the cake for this wonderful & magical day – Merry Christmas everyone!

Five!

 

Oh sweet Macy....I cannot even believe that you are FIVE. Where has my little baby gone? You're just growing up so fast...and it's such a joy to watch you. To hear your thoughts, watch you form friendships, to see your confidence grow, and begin to watch you venture out on your own - I can't begin to express much I love watching you take these steps. As little as these steps may seem right now, I know that they are truly huge steps for my shy, thoughtful, and sensitiive first born. Something about turning 5 - it has really been a big turning point for you.

You have been waiting for SO LONG for your big day to arrive - and you were literally exhausted tonight from all of the excitement leading up to it. Not to mention that you were still recovering from our week long celebration in Disneyland. It has been a special week for all of us.

Happy Birthday sweet girl - we love you!!

Two!

 

Sweet Morgan turned two today, and I can hardly believe it! Where in the world has two years gone?? It just seems like yesterday that I was stumbling around the house, very pregnant, desperate for Morgan's arrival, and now my little girl is running everywhere, talking up a storm, and doing everything to follow in her big sister's footsteps.

Morgan, you are such a light in our lives - your funny little looks, big belly laughs, desire to dance & twirl, and your developing sense of humor keep us smiling & laughing every day! :)

Happy Birthday sweet girl - we love you!