I normally HATE January, strike it from the record in my opinion. Not so this year. I seriously predict 2013 will be a really good year. In a brief overview, we are expecting two more babies in the family (a girl and a boy), we have several fun trips planned and, drumroll please...we are finally getting a puppy! I've been asking for years and the man of the house finally caved. More on that later. But I win, I win, I win.
We started the year with a super fun trip with good friends to Destin for New Year's Eve. All 14 of us descended upon Nanie's cottage for a fabulous dinner at Cuvee Bistro and more importantly quality time with some great people. We are so blessed to have such a great group of friends. I have always placed high importance on good friends and I'm so happy to have found them in Andalusia. Sylvie enjoyed time with Papa and a slumber party at Halle's house (could this be any better for a three-year-old?), so she was thoroughly entertained while ushering in the new year.
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| All the girls. |
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| Someone just made me laugh. I think it was Hunter. |
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| Sweet friends. |
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| Ollie's mom, aka Lynsey. This one keeps me entertained, I tell ya. |
Our next event pulling January out of the proverbial trashcan was an AMAZING trip to Disney World, courtesy of Nana and Papa. This was the best kind of Christmas gift...a completely planned and paid for trip to somewhere so difficult to maneuver I had no idea where to start. The more I read, the more I realized how serious people are about Disney. There are entire sites dedicated to strategy and basically "winning" the Disney game. If you know me at all, competition is my least favorite thing about life. So getting to follow along after someone else's itinerary is my idea of heaven. And it proved to be one of the best trips we have ever taken. I truly wouldn't change a thing. Sylvie was so well-behaved. I was honestly surprised. Five days doing non-stop activity can be tough on a three-year-old, but we had virtually no fits or whining from her...can't say the same for me. I was exhausted by day two and had left my heating pad, Biofreeze and sleeping pills at home. Better luck next time with the granny packing. Sylvie had a precious Disney wardrobe, courtesy mainly of Nannie and Aunt Tara. She was so cute each day, getting herself dressed from her ziplocked selection and patiently waiting for me to do her hair. She'd then select her snacks and beverages for the day and help pack the backpack I made Parrish carry with all of our super necessary items, not.
We hit the road Thursday afternoon and drove to Wildwood to spend the night, about an hour from Disney. "We have our own bathroom!" she says. "Look! Soap!" Like we never take her anywhere. On to the Magic Kingdom the next morning after dropping our luggage off at the Wilderness Lodge. This was a great resort...very convenient, comfortable and the food was great! Our first day was rainy but no matter...we forged on and conquered Tomorrowland like champs. Aside from the Stitch ride (oh so horrible) and a tummy ache right before the teacups (apparently from the self-inflicted milk chugging contest at lunch), we had a great time. We watched the parade on Main Street and I think I was the most excited about seeing all the characters up close. The princesses really are so pretty. I think I could do that for sure. Or be a dancer.
That night we had dinner at the Wave in the Contemporary hotel...very yummy and super service. Then it was on to the first treat of the week...a pirate voyage to see the fireworks from the water. This was hilarious...our pirate guide could not have been funnier. Seriously I wish I could remember all of this jokes. He was worth every minute in the rainy weather. Unfortunately we couldn't see a single firework due to the low lying clouds around the castle, but we did see Tinkerbell fly, which I've decided (I think) would be my job of choice if given the opportunity. She wears a lighted suit and rides a zip-line from a castle turret to the ground, all while posing in a very pretty and fairy-like way. I could totally manage that.
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| Three generations. |
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| Starting off our adventure, wet but happy. |
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| Sweet girls at the parade. |
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| Our hosts got called out on the pirate cruise and got to dance to "Kiss the Girl." And he did. |
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| Hook & Smee. |
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This one was tuckered out. One minute she was singing and the next she was passed out.
Disney=magical melatonin without the melatonin. |
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Is he not the cutest thing you've ever seen? It was like he was really Peter Pan.
For real, I think he actually thought he was Peter Pan. |
The next day we headed to Animal Kingdom for the character breakfast at the Tusker House. This was with Donald, Mickey, Daisy and Goofy and thus began our hunt for autographs. This restaurant had really good juice and a huge buffet. The weather was perfect. We really liked this park aside from the "It's Tough to be a Bug" show. That was just kind of creepy. But I did ride the Everest roller coaster and had heart palpitations. So that was fun. Lucky for me I was with a surgeon, two dentists and an soon-to-be anesthesiologist. The best part of this park was the Lion King show. We just made it and were ushered to the handicapped seating on the front row. Ok, so maybe I want to be in the Lion King show. It was so good. Like Broadway quality. And Sylvie got to be in the finale and shake a shaker on parade. I almost cried it was so cute. Ok, I did cry. A lot on this trip. There is just nothing like watching your child experience new things and truly believe in magic. This time is so short and magic in this world is so rare. She will realize how hard life really is soon enough and I really enjoyed her joy during this trip. Whoa, that was deep. Who wants a Dole Whip to lighten the mood?
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She was not sure about Donald. I think it was too early for her to be excited about a large,
silent duck dressed for a safari. |
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| I think Daisy is a favorite. |
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| Hugging Mickey. |
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| Goofy! |
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| Blowing kisses. |
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| Fun on safari. I will not bore you with the 50 pictures Parrish took of the animals, much like he did with the rocks in Curacao. A sleeping lion on a high rock just doesn't make for exciting reading, right? |
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| Kissing Pluto and a quick-change Goofy. |
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| On the Triceratops-Spin, her favorite kind of ride. |
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We finally found Minnie! She told her about her
Minnie Mouse birthday party. |
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| Munchkin had no clue who these characters were, but we got their autograph anyway. |
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| Patting Pluto. |
I took a nap that afternoon, hoping Sylvie would too. She played and played until I realized it had gotten very quiet. I looked at her bed and she had taken off her clothes and climbed in by herself. She was that tired. Even Energizer Bunnies need to recharge sometimes.
That night we joined the Harden's at Narcoosee's at the Floridian resort. It was fabulous food with slow service, and we'd heard that the staff was snotty but our server was super sweet. Luckily Sylvie had Mickey Mouse mac 'n cheese and an iphone to keep her occupied. We went back to Magic Kingdom after supper to catch the fireworks, this time with no clouds, and ride a few rides before bed. We rode "It's a Small World" in Nanie's honor, the Peter Pan ride, as well as the carousel (Sylvie's fav) and saw Mickey's Philharmagic (so cute). She also got to ride the teacups with Cole and the girls and thankfully not me (they're not throw up cups, Mommy, they're TEA cups!).
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| Small World...I think the ride is exactly the same as it was when Nanie rode it the last time. |
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| Gorgeous castle at night. |
Sunday was a full day at Magic Kingdom, starting with breakfast at the Crystal Palace with Winnie the Pooh and friends ("Mommy, you said poop!" "No, Sylvie, I said Pooh"). Here was a monstrosity called Breakfast Lasagna which Parrish and Jared loved. A concoction you'd think I'd have dived headfirst into...layers of pancakes, waffles, poundcake, bananas and strawberries. Hurling just thinking back on it.
We again had perfect weather and a ball. Of course...what three-year-old wouldn't want to live in Fantasyland? The only disappointment was the new Belle attraction...b-o-r-i-n-g. And such a long line. And then Sylvie wouldn't participate. Disney fail. This was also the day we got treated again by our hosts to lunch at Cinderella's castle and got to meet every single princess. Little girl heaven, I tell you, complete with magic wands and a wishing star. I think I'd choose to be Cinderella. In fact I think if we start now we can groom Sylvie be actually be Cinderella. She is so pretty. I love her. I kept telling Sylvie to "Give her a hug! Blow a kiss! Tell her you love her!" Now that I'm home I realized that those princessed must've hated me for encouraging a three-year-old to smear germs all over them at the height of flu season. Ah well, live and learn. My picture is probably on some bulletin board entitled "Mothers to Avoid" in the underground princess lair.
On Monday we headed to Hollywood Studios. First stop to see Buzz & Woody! They were precious. Their ride also wins the prize for the whole trip...it was so fun and definitely worth the wait. Of course Parrish tried his darnedest to beat the high score, and I let Sylvie "win" each time. She said we could both win. Such a generous toddler. Awesome lunch at Pizza Planet, great stunt show and a little shopping...Parrish couldn't resist a Minnie Mouse dress (not for him, of course). It will make a great Valentine's treat for the munchkin. Highlights of this park were Tower of Terror and the Rockin' Rollercoaster, although Parrish found Tower of Terror to be anticlimactic. How disappointing as I find it the scariest of all. Sylvie loved the Little Mermaid show, but definitely skip Jack Sparrow and Disney Jr. Thought I'd come out of my skin I was so bored.
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| Getting her face painted. Thought she was a unicorn like Caroline, but alas, she was a butterfly. |
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| Toy Story...Sylvie "won" every time but said I could win too so we could both be winners. |
That night was another treat provided by our hosts, the Hoop De Doo Revue! I've seen the show before when my friend Jacob performed in it and it was as good as ever. Sylvie loves a dinner show. Great food and a very funny show. Plus a light-up Tinkerbell and draft beer...who could ask for more? And then, the most exciting, the thing we'd all been waiting for, better than every ride put together, more fabulous than a Dole Whip...the NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP GAME between the Bammers and the Leps. Ugh. Actually, this provided the best rest I got the entire week. That is until I heard a bunch of wild banshees squealing down the hall. Get 'em!
Let's see...Tuesday? Parrish thought it a great idea to go back to Hollywood Studios to ride the Toy Story ride a few more times. This was fine save the fact that transportation between parks wastes time. Drives me crazy not being in control of my fate. We did really enjoy the drawing class they have there. Parrish's Tinkerbell was better than mine which kills me because he's a dentist and I'm supposed to have the market on the artsy stuff. Jerk.
We then headed to Magic Kingdom to one of the cutest things I've ever seen. The Bibbidi Bobbidi Boutique. Another gift from our hosts. The girls got to pick out princess outfits and then have a day of pampering from a fairy godmother. Sylvie chose Snow White. I really can't tell you how precious it is for a room to be full of little girls literally being turned into their dream. Of course, the day before Sylvie got to make a wish on a wishing star and she said, "Popcorn!" Not much of a princess dream, but easy enough to make come true.
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Before.
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Katie
