Apple Festival 2011

Back on October 2nd, we went to the Apple Festival for the second year in a row. We had a great time again, and were able to do lots more activities due to the great weather. We love this place!

she headed straight for the overpriced pony rides

she was put atop the biggest pony they had

As the ride went on and on she announced, "This sure is a long ride home..." and then started to sing a song about how she was done riding a horse now. That got the guy's attention and he finally got her down from her perch.

riding in a pig barrel on the "cow train"

posing with Pop

Dee rode too

I tried to keep calm when this woman put a HEADBAND on my child's head. I was mostly successful. Lice, anyone?!

not fond of the paint on her eyes...I was equally as "not fond" of the "artist"

posing again

petting a baby bunny

upset about getting scratched by the baby chick

picking her first pumpkin of the season (she has since gotten eight more...we love pumpkin seeds around here)

The Rest of September

Before we left for Florida we had to take advantage of Daddy's new schedule and go to the zoo.these two were the only snow leopards we saw that day

loves to drive the tractor

Then we had to take advantage of his return to a fire station by going to visit. We got to be there for 8 whole minutes before he had to leave on a run, but it was a fun 8 minutes!

sitting in Daddy's seat on E39

playing at Magnuson Park

action shot on the bouncy bridge

Then we took advantage of the Lowe's Build and Grow workshop to make a fire engine with a siren!

the little builder

finished product

She donned her Home Depot kids apron to bake (and eat) some chocolate chip cookies and to play in her kitchen.

mmm

Lowe's was such a hit that we had to go to Home Depot to build a rescue helicopter. Note: Lowe's products are superior to HD's, but the HD experience is much more enjoyable.

finished product

Two days after we got home from Florida Dee came over and spent the night so Mama and Daddy could go out, and the next day we took her to the zoo for her very first trip there. She loved it, and so did Jill.

you just can't get enough Egyptian Tortoise petting time

she loves the elephant ball

sweet moment with Simon the siamang

carousel

again, these were the only snow leopards we saw that day

big milker

same outfit, same tractor, different day

Final Days in Florida, the Beach

On Sunday the 18th we headed to Cocoa Beach for 2 days. We arrived, went to Starbucks until our room was ready, and then headed straight for the beach.

sand compound?

she wanted us to get her endless buckets of water to pour on the sand

sitting in the hole

with Mama and her goofy hat

she wrote her name

this kid LOVES the beach

These lovely idiots were unloading tvs at 7:35am, which is 4:35 for us since we didn't switch to east coast time. We did not pay for our room that day.

lunch poolside

On our last night the girl who went to bed late and woke every morning at 5 (or earlier) while battling a cold fell asleep watching Star Wars.

We had to wake her for dinner and she was NOT pleased. Poor baby.

killing time at The Dinosaur Store before heading to the airport

she loved Whack a Shark

gator!

After that we headed to the airport where we entered the rental car return with a kid who had been yelling for 5 minutes that she needed to go potty. I had to carry her up 2 escalators and across a terminal before finding a bathroom and returning to help Steve carry luggage. FUN! She was an angel on the flight, again. We played in a store at the airport then got on the plane where she played ipad for 4 hours. Then I told her it was time to go to sleep, so I read her a story and sang to her and she was out. She slept through the landing, being carried to baggage claim, being set in her stroller, being wheeled out to the garage, being put into the taxi, and only woke (briefly) when we got home. The next morning she had no recollection of getting home, or how we forgot to bring keys with us and Steve had to break in her bedroom window to get in the house. What a great trip with a great little traveler.

Disney World, Day 5 and Last Day in Orlando

We had a great last day at Disney. The 30 minute private audience with the princesses was the best part! We got a fast pass to see them, and walked right up to the door. After a couple of minutes we were let in, and Jill got to see Jasmine. By then the other girls had finished and we were alone in the room...but no one else was admitted. I can only assume that the princesses were supposed to have a break, but they sure didn't take one. They just kept hanging out with Jill. I have to say that the entire trip would have been worth it just for those few minutes of joy that she had. Now if I only I could harness this power she has, and make myself some money, or solve world problems....or something! The rest of the day was spent riding her favorite rides again, and seeing Mickey's PhilharMagic for the third time. We rode the teacups, Peter Pan, Winnie the Pooh, Snow White, Dumbo, the carousel, and probably more, but that's all I can think of right now. We also had a final Disney ice cream. What a great trip!

she loved Jasmine

telling the princesses the story of her birth...

"...and then I pooped all over everyone!"

our little ham

hugs all around

Cinderella gave her a kiss too

showing them a dance she made up

telling them they should do the dance too

teaching her students

one last hug

serious conversation with Jasmine

what a wonderful group of women...we are so grateful

inside Pooh's house

a little suspicious because Piglet kept asking her, "Are you a heffalump? A woozle? A backson?"

inside Eeyore's house

the carousel again

Daddy took a break after lunch while Jill and I rode "It's a Small World" again...he could see us from our lunch table

she loved riding on Dumbo, even though it doesn't look like it here

Tomorrowland Speedway

and, they're off!

building her own light saber

she chose purple, like Mace Windu

The next day was Saturday and we just hung out at the hotel pools with a trip to Target for more supplies in between. It was a very nice, relaxing day. These pictures are from the end of the day, during our second (and final) trip to the pool.

she found a beach ball

floating

the little swimmer

just hanging out in the pool