Not-so-Spinning Tea Cup for Four

So my boys got me on the spinning tea cup soon after my mishap on the dark and backwards roller coaster. They promised they wouldn't spin it too fast:) We had a blast. I'm loving reliving these memories. I hope you are enjoying them too. Look at those smiles!
Then we had some laughs and the boys liked making us laugh so they made these silly faces while we shared a famous Pineapple Dole Whip and a Root Beer Float. Yumm.

Simple Favorites

Dinoland was a fun little area to catch some rides and play some games. The games cost a fortune but the wins were priceless. Tyler beat out Ryan at a Whack-a-mole game to score a cute little alligator that he adores. Ty walked the area so proud of being in charge of the wins while Jim and Ry went spinning in the air. We ate at Restaurantausaurus for a quick meal of chicken nuggets and double cheeseburger with an extra bun to make a meal for 2.

(Really, this part of the park looked so low budget...a little Irish Hills Prehistoric Forest could easily match this area, but the kids loved it:)

Ryan scored his "Orange Crush" turtle at the water gun race against a whole crowd of kids. Nice job buddy. You really worked hard!

Another fun past time was looking for the pressed penny machines that offered tokens of the areas best characters pressed into your own penny. You just deposit 51 cents. Really, it's a cute and fun keepsake. We ended up with about 15 of them but the boys liked making their creations.

I had quite a bit of anxiety over the meal plan as all of the blogs and Disney help desks said you should make reservations 180 days in advance. I felt really crippled doing that (plus, we only had around 30 days notice) b/c I didn't know where we would be at meal times. I did make a few and we played it by ear the rest of the time. We really lucked out when we walked right into the Coral Reef and got seated. It was beautiful and completely lined with aquarium to enjoy the scenery while eating. Jim had Mahi Mahi and I had Lobster Ravioli with sun dried tomatoes. Very delicious.

Pictured above is a little play area by Finding Nemo for families to pose with the Nemo and Friends shark whose motto is: Fish are friends, not food:)

Ohhh...so many memories...we have to get saving for the next trip.

Magical Adventure!

We just got home from a 9 day Magical Adventure to Walt Disney World and had the best time. There are so many wonderful memories that I want to remember and thought I'd give a few every day while the magic sustains.

The plane ride down went without any hitches. Ahhh. Jim and I had alot of anxiety about the flight but the boys were so good. We arrived to a rainy and dismal Florida but we didn't let it get us down. We met up with some friends who coincidentally had the same plans and acted as our personal tour guides for the first 5 days of vacation. It was fun to be with them and took a whole lot of stress off of Jim and I.

After we got Ryan through a mini-meltdown because he wanted to go to the pool:) we headed to Hollywood Studios for some roller coaster action and 3D Movie fun. I loved Hollywood Studios and we spent several days returning to this park. Of course, when you have the luxury of 9 days...you can leisurely hop between parks. I think the boys enjoyed the busrides and monorail as much as some the attractions. All of the parks were unique and spectacular. We were thrilled every time we turned around. Here are some of our favorites:

Ryan: Test Track and Space Mountain

Jim: Mt. Everest and Space Mountain

Carol: Soaring and Toy Story and Muppets 3D

Tyler: "Doofy" and Dumbo and the Playgrounds

There were a couple of low-lights for me that I won't dwell on but I will tell you that Jim's Everest ride put me out of commission and introduced me to the world or projectile vomiting:( Sorry for the graphic. The second low was losing my camera that is still unrecovered at the Buzz Lightyear ride. I was so heartbroken that the family went straight to a Kodak store first thing the next morning and bought a new camera which salvaged some great memories and is a pretty sweet little camera. The only last downfall was having to come home to a half a foot of snow and having Jim shovel the driveway before we could carry the boys into bed at midnight. (I ended up calling into work for the rest of the week too...that was definately a highlight.)

More to tell...keep watching.

Oh...we started another weight loss challenge. I put back on 4lbs. -181 lbs. during our vacation as we ate like princes and princesses:) Now it's carrot sticks and cucumbers and a snitch of Tyler's leftover ice cream. Wish me luck.

Weight Loss Challenge!

I've been in a weight loss challenge at work this month and today was the weigh-in. Lo and Behold, I'm the winner...I'll reveal results after our weigh in with R&A.

Blog Break

I know you think I've already been on a blog break but this time I'll give you fair warning...I won't be blogging from the happiest place on earth but I promise I'll come back with good stories to tell!

We saw another flick...

On Monday, we treated the boys to a movie and it was really cute. Ryan was really into it. Tyler laughed and said "mommy" alot really loud! My apologies to the crowd. About an hour into it, he switched from saying mommy to saying is it over? But I think he liked it too. Those Chipmunks are just like my boys...too cute, funny, talented....but always stirring up trouble! R Y A N! I'm not sure why it only got 2 stars b/c I thought it was really cute. See it if you can. The Chip-ettes will surely make you laugh and dance.

Jim, Ryan, and Tyler hit the bowling alley on Sunday. Tyler ran around and finally fell asleep in Jim's lap while Ryan finished up 10 games. I'm tellin ya...the kid is committed.

In other sports news....Ryan is practicing to be a UofM Michigan basketball player. He has completely demolished 2 over the door basketball hoops with his sweet loop de loop slams! Can I say GAME OVER? "But mom...I have to practice."

Did you miss me?

I've had no time for blogging lately and have spent very little time on the computer. Life is happening.

My mom has had a series of diabetic lows that are very dangerous and scary for all of us. I'm so thankful for good friends, prayers, and the talents that God gives to EMTs who are so dependable and quick to respond. I'm so sad that my mom has to suffer through illness but I am much more glad for every day that I get with her.

Ryan always looks forward to sleepovers with Granna. We often invite her to spend Friday evenings with us which Ryan refers to as "very special treats." He always asks early in the week if Grandma can have a sleepover. I know her feelings get hurt whenever she is talking to the boys and she feels ignored when they don't respond...but they adore her and I try to remind her that they are 5 and 2 and ignore everyone. Tyler jumps at the opportunity to sit by Granna on the couch or on her lap in front of some computer games. He even got her to play Mario Kart until way past bedtime the other night. Smiles.

Tyler had his first real tantrum last night. Both boys decided to be uncooperative last night and after several warnings....I put away our puzzles in progress and sent them to bed. Ryan cried and thankfully snapped out of it while watching a movie in bed. TyTy couldn't shake the grumpies though and I put him straight to bed in his crib. He wailed for about 5 minutes (which felt like 2 hours) and finally called my name for hugs. I let him lay on his mattress in my room and he was asleep within 10 minutes. I could still hear him sniffling 20 minutes later.

He woke up in a pretty decent mood but didn't want to make the 5 a.m. trek to the truck. I had to strap him in kicking and screaming. He's getting a mind of his own! Usually I can talk him into anything by reminding him that there will be no games if there is no cooperation. He usually concedes. Let's hope this doesn't carry over to our Disney trip.

Speaking of Disney...woo hoo! We are so excited for the adventure. I haven't really picked up the camera since New Year's but I'm looking forward to some really cute vacation shots to share.

Jim and I have been doing very good at our exercise routine and starvation diets:) We've had some success and the weigh in is this weekend. I'll let you know whose the victor!