Home Journal - Bo's 2!!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY SWEET BOY!!!!!!!!

We celebrated the big day by going to his favorite place for dessert...Well, actually what the older four said was his favorite (even though he'd never been before). You know...that's what happens when you're the youngest.

We had kinda a construction birthday party for him. I used some small, clean construction toys and put them on a batch of brownies. Then I crushed up some Oreo's for the dirt. I used candy corn for construction cones to spell his name. It was pretty cute if you ask me!  He wanted his uncle to have the honor of holding the birthday boy as he blew out his candles. Or as uncle blew them out. ;)

He had a grand time opening all his gifts. E and Z were trying to get him to open this present and that and then he had to wait until someone else could get it out of the packaging for him while the others were telling him there's more presents to open. He'd yell, "No!" at them and then they'd try sweetly to lure him back to the task. Then, like he'd heard them for the first time he'd say, "Oh! Otay!" This went on for several rounds. He finally managed to get all his presents unwrapped and sent thank-yous in the general direction of the giver.

This little guy is so special to us in many ways. For being the youngest, he knows his place in the family. To Betty he's pretty much been the enemy that took up too much of mommy's time. But recently she's figured out that he can be a pretty good friend. Thank You, Lord! For the boys, Bo's the little bubba who'll try to do everything they can do. For E, he's a willing dance partner and sometimes stinky charge. During school, he's the class clown. During the rest of the day, he's still the clown! He's daddy's sports watching buddy and he's momma's morning cuddler.
He's not afraid to take a leap of faith.

There is no place too high, too low, too dirty or too small that he will not try to go.

He's all boy, but he's not afraid to show his feminine side...right down to the coy eyes. ;) (I know...he'll hate me for this when he's a teenager. Ha!)

He's a pet lover.

He never wastes his time with little messes. Big and better baby!!


I love ya Big Boy! You're mama's favorite Bo. XOXOXO

Vacation Journal - Disney World

On vacation in Orlando, we stayed at a house that had 6 bedrooms so the kids all had their own bedrooms if they wanted. WooHoo!!! The boys chose to stay in the same room anyway, but E got her own room and her own adjoining bathroom. She was pretty pumped about that. Our first day at the parks we spent at Magic Kingdom. It was a fun-packed day with rides and food and sights. The big kids loved Splash Mountain and the littles favorite was the Mad-Hatter's Tea Party. 

The next day we spent at Animal Kingdom checking out all the rides and animals there. The big kids had a blast on the Everest Expedition Roller Coaster and everyone loved the African Safari Ride. We also took plenty of time to enjoy everyone's favorite passtime...ice cream!!



The third day we stayed around the house, cooked our own meals and swam at the house and at the clubhouse. The littles especially needed a rest from the theme parks and this was just what they ordered.

On the fourth day we loaded up and headed to Epcot. The big kids had fun on the Race Track and the Soarin' rides and Betty's fave was the Land ride with all the plants growing. Bo loved riding any kind of boat.

The next day we ventured over to Hollywood Studios where we got to do a Star Wars Fight Simulation that was pretty cool even though mommy had to close her eyes through most of it to prevent any adverse effects.  We also had a blast at the Toy Story 4-D Video Game. The bigs especially liked the Rockin' Roller Coast but said they did loop-d-loops and were scared at that.

 We took a park break again the next day for some more swimming and lazing around. The girls helped me finish our Disney puzzle that we bought special for the occasion.

 Our last day the kids got to pick which park to go back to. They picked Magic Kingdom and this time they not only rode Splash Mountain, but also Space Mountain and Thunder Mountain Railroad. We also got caught on Tam Sawyer's Island in a downpour. Thankfully, that was the only rain or other bad weather that happened the whole trip. After our one-hour hiatis on the island, we resumed normal park activities and finished our Disney tour with as much excitement as we started it.

Before we started our trip, I told everybody that they were going to have to get mouse ears because I got some when I was a girl - black with my name embroidered in the back. They all whined and complained about that, but when the trip was over, they were proud to display their newly-bought mouse ears - although a little fancier than the old black ones. :) Even Bo took off his Larry Boy hat that he wore ALL WEEK to don his "Mitty Mouse" hat.

We had such a fun time and are so glad we were able to go and spend some much-needed time together as a family. We have some great memories and will be telling those when we're old and gray(er) I hope, just like when my family gets together.



Vacation Journal - Florida Beach Scene

Ter hadn't had a two week vacation since he's been a "working man," so we figured it was high time. Even though we'd been planning it for over six months before we left, it worked out that Ter was actually sort of between jobs. He had this vacation planned and then he worked for two more weeks when he got back and then he moved to a new company. It was truly relaxing since he didn't have to answer a work email or phone call.

We flew into Orlando and rented a Suburban (quite nice for this family of 7) and then drove to Sanibel Island in the Gulf near Fort Myers. It was too dark to see the beach that night but we got out there before breakfast the next morning. The sunrise was gorgeous and I tried to do God justice in these pics. It's just hard to beat the real thing.

Betty was a little leary of the water at first. She didn't even want to get her feet wet, but as time went on she succumbed to the lure of the ocean. :)

Bo was a little scared at first too, but he got his toes wet with Daddy close by.

Shells were everywhere on the island. We were doing the "Sanibel Stoop" along with all the rest of the vacationers trying to find the perfect shell. We found some really neat ones and brought a bunch of them home with us.

I was really there. Those are my feet!

Some of the shells still had inhabitants like this conch.

We took a little time to pay a visit to Thomas Edison and his laboratory in Ft. Myers. We really enjoyed his company. A man of few words though and so much taller in real life.

We spent the rest of our vacation visiting the Disney parks, so that will be my next post!