Week 14, Round 2

Oh my--what a week!  It was so fun and oh sooooo exhausting, but totally worth it.  Most of this past week revolved around Corinne's 3rd birthday at Disneyland and getting to celebrate with friends and Aunt Terri and Uncle Chris.  I am pretty sure the kids sucked every ounce of spare energy out of them, and I was ever so grateful to have all the extra help.

Our Thursday started out pretty chaotic.  In the morning we had a WIC appointment, followed by speech, and then swimming lessons.  The kids were happy to be back in the water after missing last week's lesson.

Then we had Corinne's three year check-up at the doctor.  Earlier in the day WIC gave me a lecture about how Corinne was at risk of being "underweight" because she is long and thin.  The doctor confirmed my suspicions that she is perfectly normal and on a good growthy curve, and that she does not need to fatten up with peanut butter and ice cream.  Corinne lucked out and walked away from the appointment shot free! 

After Corinne's nap the kids and I made tissue paper art.  Lincoln made a butterfly and Corinne made a flower.

Lincoln had his butterfly flutter around the room and take sips out of Corinne's flower. 

Then we snuggled up together with our new "friends" for a viewing of Diary of a Wimpy Kid:  Roderick Rules.  The kids enjoyed it, but I am pretty sure Lincoln walked away from the movie full of new ideas of ways to annoy his sister.  Maybe I should start previewing this stuff???

Friday morning I had to get an oil change.  The kids were excited to play at the kids zone at the dealership.  They haven't been there since the last deployment and sort of missed it.

Linda watched the kids Friday afternoon so that I could do some last minute shopping for Corinne's birthday and Easter.  Right as I walked her out Jason walked in.  He was in town on Marine Corps business and decided to pay us a visit and tour the neighborhood and a house around the corner that they might be interested in.  He came in and said, "Hey Buddy!" to Lincoln.  Lincoln replied, "Hey where is the rest of the family?"  Nothing slips by this kid, and he is more than a little anxious to get Caden out to Cali.  After visiting with Jason for awhile, the kids got in jammies and I attempted to settle them down for bed. 

There is a scene in Wimpy Kid where one of the characters wears underwear on his head to make a video to become U-Tube famous.  Lincoln couldn't resist slapping a pair of his skivvies on Corinne.

Luckily she was a good sport about it.

They had a blast playing "Undies Monster".

We woke up bright and early for our first real sports camp lesson.  This week the kids focused on soccer.  Lincoln definitely had a good time, but I am starting to think he is going to be that overly talkative kid that just never shuts up.  When asked to say his name and favorite color he replied, "I like red and green.  But I would say that red is my favorite, but I really like a big combination of colors.  Oh and I'm Lincoln.  If I had to choose, red is the best I guess."  Then the coach had to cut him off.  Ahhh, my sweet little Chatty Cathy!

He had tons of fun running around with the other kids.

He ever learned to trap the ball.  They were asked to say "trap" and then put their foot on the ball.  Of course this was too simple for Lincoln.  Lincoln replied, "Trap!  Like a booby trap for scurvy pirates!  Arggghhh!  I love pirates, you know, and I actually have a ship with three dingies that I play with at my house in my room."

Here he is talking it up some more with the coaches.

I had big plans to get my shopping done right after practice, but what I wasn't planning for is for Lincoln and I to be absolutely soaked.  Corinne was dry from being in the backpack, but Lincoln and I had to go home and change from walking around in the dew soaked grass.   I originally picked the early slot for sports camp to get us up and moving so we could still get a lot accomplished during the day.  What I hadn't planned for was the essential trip back home to warm up and change.  Lesson learned: signing up for an 8:40 am sports camp isn't always the brightest idea.

After heading to the grocery store Lincoln and I squeezed in some time to play pirates.

Sunday morning we headed to church and then headed out for more errands.  Lincoln needed a haircut and I needed to pick a few last minute things for Disneyland.  Sunday night Lincoln discovered how to turn one of his RC cars into a "Monster Truck" with tracks--big rubberbands!  This is his "yeah, I am pretty awesome pose".

Corinne decided she wanted to take a few pictures too.  Cheese!

I still can't believe she is three!

My little baby is growing up too fast.

On Monday morning we headed up to Orange County to pick up Aunt Terri and Uncle Chris.  The drive took up most of our morning, so when we came home I quickly fed the kids lunch and laid Corinne down for a nap.  Lincoln and Uncle Chris took the opportunity to put together Corinne's big girl bike!

Lincoln was begging to wake her up early from her nap to show the birthday girl her big surprise.  He even loaded up the basket with "girl things"--lipstick, make-up brushes, and bracelets.

Corinne was a little hesitant at first, but quickly got the hang of it.

The kids spent the rest of the evening literally bouncing off the walls (and ceilings) with their Uncle's help while I packed us up for Disneyland.

After checking into our hotel, we grabbed the shuttle to the Happiest Place on Earth.  We started the day off by grabbing fast passes to Star Tours. 

Then we hopped in line for Buzz Lightyear.

This was their first offical ride in Disneyland--what a happy couple!

Chris must have caught on quickly, because he whooped the rest of our scores.  Too bad Nathan missed out a friendly sibling rivalry opportunity.

Next all the big kids headed to Space Mountain while Jessica and I stayed with her kiddos and Ellie.

Then Jessica and I took five wild ones on the Go Go Gadget Coaster. 

I threw Ellie on my back, then Corinne and I checked out the goats in Frontierland while the big kids road Big Thunder Mountain.

She hugged one of the goats a little too hard, causing him to seek shelter in the "no petting" zone where the animals go to recover from overly zealous patrons.

On our way back Corinne got to meet Pocahontas.

 Afterwards she told me, "Pocahontas is sooo, sooo, sooo beautiful Mom."

Next we hit up Pirates where Lincoln became Uncle Chris's peg leg.

Ahoy Mates!

After Haunted Mansion, we took a quick break to regroup while Chris, Terri, and Lincoln did Star Tours.

Then we met up again for Jungle Cruise and to decide plans for dinner.

Before we left I snapped a shot of this very brave couple who took on Disneyland with six crazy kids--all four years old and under!

Then we headed to the Jazz Kitchen in Downtown Disney for good food and good company.

After a long day a few drinks were in order.

Ava being sassy!

The moms and kids headed back to the hotel while Chris and Terri soaked up a few more hours of Disneyland magic.  By 9:30 pm all the kids were in bed and asleep--not bad!

Corinne woke up early the next morning and happily opened up her big gift--a Sleeping Beauty dress-- before her birthday breakfast with the Disney Princesses!

Getting everyone showered, dressed and ready for an early breakfast wasn't easy, but things went rather smoothly.  We arrived with plenty of time to spare--perfect for taking pictures!

Here is the overnight gang.  One of these days I will invest in Photoshop so I can get one good shot of everyone looking at the camera and smiling!

Ariel greeted us...

And planted a big smooch on Lincoln's cheek!

More friends and moms joined us for a total of 10 kids and five moms.  Breakfast was yummy and  convenient.  We have done character dining before, but it was always a buffet.  Buffets are great, but when you have to make mulitiple plates resulting in multiple trips, it gets a little exhausting.  I was happy that the restaurant was family style and both the food and the princesses came to us.
Here we are with Snow White.

Then Princess Aurora.

Belle was not to be missed.

And we wrapped up the morning with Cinderella.  I was a little apprehensive about planning a breakfast with the princesses with so many of our kid friends being boys.  I thought they might think it was a bit lame and only for girls.  Boy, was I wrong.  Our little charmers went on and on about how brave they were and how they would protect the princesses from the bad guys (the Witch, Maleficent, Gaston, and the Evil Stepmother).  Lincoln and a few of the other boys were covered in lipstick by the end of the morning.  I think it is safe to say that Corinne and all of her friends had a great time dining with royalty. 

We met up with Chris and Terri so Lincoln could ride Tower of Terror with them and I could take Corinne around the rides in Bug's Land.

After catching a few more rides Lincoln and Corinne caught a picture with Goofy before Lincoln rode Goofy's Flight School with Chris and Terri.  He was so happy to finally be tall enough!

Then Corinne took Aunt Terri and Uncle Chris on Ariel (her second trip for the day). 

Chris took Lincoln into the Brother Bear obstacle course while Terri and I hung out with Corinne.  With his extra inch of growth Lincoln got to do the zipline and rockwall and walked out one happy camper.  While the boys were having a blast, Corinne slipped off of a bench while snacking on

pistachios and wacked her head and face pretty hard.  Luckily, I had packed some tylenol and Aunt Terri ran to get a frozen lemonade to sooth the pain.  After grabbing some dinner in the park, we settled into a prime viewing spot for World of Color.  It was the first time the kids and I had seen it.  Corinne slept through most of it, but still enjoyed what she was able to catch.  We are definitely dragging Dad there when he gets back because it was awesome!  After fighting the crowds out of the the park and shuffling all of our stuff back to the shuttle, we made it to the truck and drove home. 

 

Corinne had a wonderful 3rd birthday, and it would not have been possible without the love and support from everyone who helped make it special!  Thank you friends and family!  And a very special thanks to Aunt Terri and Uncle Chris who helped lighten my load and keep both of my children happy on our crazy two day Disney adventure!  I am sure they feel like they need a vacation from their vacation after all dealing with all of our chaos!

 

 

QUOTES OF THE WEEK:

Quote 1:  After their butterfly and flower craft.

Lincoln:  As the butterfly, "I'm so hungry, I need a drink."

Corinne:  As the flower,  "No, don't drink from there.  That's my belly button." Meaning the center of the flower.Lincoln:  "Well, actually that is where I drink from."

Corinne:  "Okay, have a drink from my belly button."

I love it when they play well together.

 

Quote 2:  While settling in for snuggie and tv time.

Lincoln:  "I want to watch Infected!"

Me:  "You mean Infested!"

Close enough.

 

Quote 3:  While putting in the DVD--moments after his request for "Infected".

Me:  "We are going to watch Diary of a Wimpy Kid."

Lincoln:  With a super confused face of concern, "We're watching diarrhea?"

Thank God, no! 

 

Quote 4:  While Linda was watching the kids, her son Ryan came by the house to grab something.  Corinne helped answer the door. 

Corinne:  "Hi Ryan.  I'm almost a teenager you know."

Ryan:  "I think you still have a ways to go."

Oh she is trouble!

 

Quote 5:  While eating lunch with Chris and Terri.

Corinne:  "On the way to the airport my mom said my dad was chubby."  Snickers.

Me:  "I did not!  Lincoln asked if he was done growing and I told him he was done growing tall and if he grows any more it would be out not up."

Lincoln:  "Yes, then I said that would be no good because then that would mean he was getting chubby."

Corinne:  "Yep, you called Dad chunky!"

Oh how she twists my words!

 

Quote 6:  While building Corinne's bike.

Me:  "Lincoln why don't you go to the garage and get your new tools to help Uncle Chris."

Lincoln:  "It's okay Mom, you can do it.  I am busy here.  I trust you!  They are strong and metal, I trust you to carry them and not break them."

Glad I have the honor of being trusted with the tools!