Jack's Future Plans

Jack has been talking a lot about his future lately. He tells us he is planning to:
-live in Disney
-live in the Outer Banks
-live in South Dakota (not sure where this one originated)
-work at Thunder Mountain Railroad in Disney
-live with mama
-sleep with mama and daddy (in the middle)
-sleep on the sofa
-own a Ford Mustang
-own a Honda Odyssey
-own a Mini Cooper
-own a guinea pig and a hamster


Also, I have to include this picture of Jack. We made cut-out cookies this week for refreshments following Maddie's class play (they were cute little ladybug cookies, and Maddie did all the rolling and cutting!) Anyway, I let the kids cut out and decorate their own cookies after we had enough ladybugs, and here is a picture of my Jacky about to chomp into his creation which has about a half inch of various sprinkles on it.


Right after the picture was taken, he bit into the cookie, and most of the sugar broke off in one big slab and landed on the floor. Jack didn't seem to mind, though. I think he enjoyed decorating more than eating!

Summertime?

It's May 26. We've been to a parade, had a cookout, gone sleeveless, opened the pool, eaten our first popsicles of the season, spent an entire weekend swimming our little hearts out, and today we're back to rain and temps in the 50's. I had previously put away all the kids' pants, sweatshirts and coats. This morning I dug 'em all out again. I turned the heat on in the car today, for crying out loud! Hmph.

Here are some pictures of our great Memorial Day weekend. I'll look at them and dream of August, when, maybe we'll be able to get back in the pool again.

Here are Papa Wolfe and Grandpa Heilman in the Memorial Day parade. Papa is above in the gray t-shirt, marching with LVC veterans. Grandpa is on the right playing the tuba!

(Below)We had some friends over for a cookout on Monday (notice the complete lack of mittens and snow boots):

The Dads had fun jumping into the pool and splashing everyone (from left, Mike, Dave, and Dane):

Here is Jack executing a very fancy jump into the pool.

Be Extra Nice to Maddie Day

This Monday, May 18, we will celebrate our 3rd annual Be Extra Nice to Maddie Day. Three years ago, on May 18, Maddie sat on her windowsill and leaned back against her bedroom window screen, then fell (from the second floor) to the driveway below her.

We're so happy to still have our girl, completely intact, except for a jaw that needed initial surgery and now needs to be watched as she grows.

Even the boys are happy to Be Extra Nice to Maddie on this anniversary. Jack doesn't really remember it, but Ben does, and he still skips the pages in the photo album that show her hospital homecoming.

This is the time of year when everyone starts opening their windows to let in that fresh spring air, and it's also the time of year when hospitals see an increase in window falls. Open your windows from the top (which is what we do now) or hammer a nail a few inches up so your window can't open further than the nail. The screen warning is not kidding when it states "Screen will not stop child from falling out of window."

Disney!

We surprised the kids on Easter morning with a surprise announcement: "Pack your bags! We're heading to Disney!" Here is Jack enjoying the view. He thought we were flying over the North Pole because the cloud cover looked like snow.

Speaking of Jack, I allowed each of the kids to pack his or her own carry-on bag....Maddie and Ben packed the usual: stuffed animals, blankies, etc. Jack's included: a black magic marker, 3 beanie babies in a sealed Tupperware container, a snorkel, a matchbox car, a swimsuit, and a picture of his mama.

Thanks to Dave, our vacation was practically free. Hotel? Thank you, Dave, for all those Marriott visits. Our rental car? Thanks for all those Hertz points. Our airline tickets? Thank you USAir for sending Daddy cross-country so often. Even our Disney tickets were on the house, thanks to Dave's Marriott reward points, which we used as we paid for our Disney tickets through our hotel with all of Dave's hotel points. We miss Dave when he travels, but wow, does he rack up the rewards!

Our first stop was Animal Kingdom. It used to be our favorite, thanks to the Everest ride. Ben was old enough to ride it this year, and he loved it! We enjoyed breakfast at the Tusker House and had a jump-start on the crowds. Here is a picture with Donald Duck (who appears to be eyeing up the bacon on Ben's plate):


Magic Kingdom was next, and we hit our favorites first: Splash Mountain, Big Thunder Mountain, and Pirates of the Caribbean. See if you can find Ben, Dave, and Maddie on the Big Thunder Mt. RR.:

Disney has redone Spaceship Earth, and it is terrific! I tried getting a picture of all three kids in front of it, but, as is usually the case, two out of 3 kids cooperate for a picture at any one give time. In this picture, Jack has decided to do a dance.


This year our favorite park was Disney's Hollywood Studios. We were all entertained by the shows, the rides (we sneaked Ben on the Rock'N' Roller Coaster by sticking napkins in his shoes)--very -un-Davelike to allow broken rules, but we could all see how Benji wanted to ride this one sooooo badly!), and the food...we ate at the Prime Time 50's Cafe (where the restaurant theme is a home in the 50's--tacky decor and all-- and your waitress is your mom). The kids were delighted that our waitress admonished Daddy for wearing his hat at the dinner table! Maddie and Dave also got stickers from our "Mom" for cleaning their plates. Here are Maddie and Ben in the "Honey I Shrunk the Kids!" playground.

Our hotel was lovely and included a water splash area, a huge water slide and a pirate ship themed play area.

I usually spend the plane ride home sighing with relief that our Disney trip is over, (and by the way-Dave was upgraded because of his elite flying status, and he gave me the upgrade: I sat in first class for the longer leg of each flight while Dave enjoyed the children's company in coach--what a guy) and we can get back to normal ( I am, if nothing else, a creature of habit...) but I'm already thinking about our next trip, thinking, planning, hoping, dreaming... For all of its hype and commercialism, its craziness and expense...Disney really is the greatest place on earth!