Disney World 2014

Like lemmings to the sea, we marched off to Orlando in January for what has become our annual visit to the House of Mouse.  This trip was significantly shorter than past visits.  With Henry in Kindergarten, we’ve had to limit our travels to school breaks.   A teacher in-service day tacked onto the long MLK weekend provided a four-day window for our yearly Disney fix.  We could visit during spring break or summer, but as experienced WDW travelers, we knew to avoid those high crowd seasons.  As an added bonus, Mimi and Paw Paw joined us for the long weekend.

The weather was unusually cold for Orlando, which made for some chilly mornings at the resort bus stop but also helped keep the crowd levels down (MLK weekend is a popular time for Floridians to visit).  Despite the compressed time frame, we hit all of our favorite attractions/restaurants: Cinderella’s Royal Table, Pirates of the Caribbean, Bibbidi Bobbidi Boutique, Soarin’, Maelstrom, and Oktoberfest in Germany.  We also returned to the Be Our Guest restaurant for dinner and were lucky enough to be seated in the mysterious West Wing.  Henry graduated to the grown-up roller coasters on this trip and tackled both Expedition Everest (Animal Kingdom) and Big Thunder Mountain Railroad (Magic Kingdom).  The former proved a bit too scary—not so much the coaster as the Yeti that jumps out at the end.  However, his favorite ride remains the Barnstormer in Magic Kingdom (check out the video below).  Vivian was fortunate—very fortunate—to meet two of her favorite princesses: Anna and Elsa from Frozen.  We heard the wait to see them could be as long as five (5) hours!  Miraculously, the line moved faster than anticipated, and it only took about 50 mins for Vivian’s turn.  She was the last visit before Elsa went home for the day—we were that close.  Mimi and Paw Paw gamely joined us for what they figured (between visits with kids and grand kids) to be their 20th+ trip to WDW.  We packed a lot into those three days.  On our last night in the park, we stayed until 9pm and saw Main Street Electrical Parade—something we have never done before.

 

 

 

 

 

 

And check out these videos from our trip:

New Year's in Huntsville

Morris cousins photo-op

We flew to Huntsville at the end of Christmas break to visit with Uncle Kevin, Aunt Templa and the girls.  Mimi Joanne drove up from Mobile to be with us.  We discovered that Baby Regan is no longer a baby and is very fond of her uncle; she climbed right up into Bryant's lap.  As always, Henry and Vivian enjoyed seeing their older cousins.  While we were in town, we visited the local children’s museum and all went to the movies one afternoon (Walking with Dinosaurs for Henry, Micah and Rylan and Frozen for Vivian and Regan).  Mimi bravely agreed to watch all five grandchildren one evening while Bryant, Elise, Kevin and Templa went for dinner and drinks with their cousins Carrie and Quitman Turner.  We are especially grateful to our Alabama peeps for introducing us to the Nook, which we later learned is ranked as one of the best bars in the country.  Below are some photos of our brief visit to Huntsville.

 

 

Scenes from a Bowling Alley

Keeping the kids occupied over Christmas break can be a real challenge.  This year we visited the ICE! exhibit at the Gaylord Hotel at National Harbor and also went bowling one afternoon.  The lanes near us have gutter bumpers and a small ramp for junior bowlers.  It’s hard to say which the kids enjoyed more, bowling or horsing around with the ball return machine.  In any case, Elise proved that she is far and away the best bowler in the family, with Henry and Bryant bringing up the rear, in that order. 
 

 

Henry bowls a spare.

Vivian's Favorite Things

To get you in the Christmas spirit, here's a short clip of Vivian singing "My Favorite Things" from The Sound of Music.  Note the Hello Kitty necklace proudly displayed.  This girl is just too cute.

Christmas 2013

Henry was smiling on the inside.

A late Thanksgiving holiday made for an unusually busy Christmas season.  We kicked things off with the St. Mary’s Christmas Bazaar, where the kids decorated gingerbread men and designed homemade ornaments.  Then it was time to decorate our tree (purchased from the St. Mary’s tree lot—somehow Bryant escaped working at the lot this year, but his time is coming).  We’re starting to amass a nice little collection of Disney ornaments.  We purchase a few each time we visit Orlando.  The only trick is convincing the kids not to play with them.

Both Vivian and Henry had separate Christmas concerts this year.  Vivian and the rest of 4A performed for their parents at the St. Anthony’s Christmas Party.  Henry’s class and the other Kindergarten and 1st grade classes at St. Mary’s performed a Christmas concert in the school gym.  It was quite a scene: there were some 200 students on the stage and a standing room only crowd of parents and grandparents, all vying to snap a picture or shoot video of their child(ren) performing.  Fortunately, we arrived early and got seats upfront.  As you can see (below), Henry looked quite dashing in his blue blazer and festive red tie.  The kids weren’t the only ones celebrating.  Elise and Bryant also attended some grown-up holiday parties, including open houses at the Powells and DeLormes.

Before we knew it, Christmas was here.  Mimi Pauline flew down from Michigan to spend the holiday with us.  As has been our tradition for the last several years, we went to the children’s mass at St. Mary’s on Christmas Eve and had dinner at Clyde’s afterward.  With Mimi Pauline’s help, we managed to snap a few family photos (see below).  On Christmas morning, the kids found much to make them happy: Vivian received Anna and Elsa dolls (from her new favorite movie Frozen) while Henry received a rainbow loom (the latest craze among the grade school set).  While the kids played, Bryant got started on Christmas dinner: Beef Wellington, mashed potatoes and strawberry tiramisu (see Christmas 2014: Beef Wellington).  As a final treat, with Mimi Pauline in town to babysit, Bryant and Elise slipped away for dinner and a show in downtown Washington.  We enjoyed margaritas and modern Mexican cuisine at Rosa Mexicano and then caught the evening performance of A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum by the Shakespeare Theater Company.  Overall, a good—if hectic—holiday season.

 

 

Henry's Kindergarten Christmas Concert

  

 

  

  

Vivian's 4th Birthday

We held Vivian's fourth birthday party after the Thanksgiving holiday at JW Tumbles, an indoor play gym.  This turned out to be a good choice because the weather was nasty that day (freezing rain and wet snow).  Despite the mess outside, the kids had a blast climbing, jumping and running in circles.  In between free play, the instructors kept things interesting with freeze dancing, an obstacle course (check out the video below), and a zip line. Afterward, we all wished Vivian happy birthday with cake and treats.  We were relieved when Vivi requested an Alice in Wonderland party—it was nice to take a break (if only temporary) from princesses.  However, organizing Alice-themed decorations and refreshments took some effort.  We ordered playing card plates and napkins for the table.  For the cake, we re-purposed a princess sheet cake from Giant with Alice figurines from the Disney Store.  We also served edible tea cups (from an idea we found online), white cheddar bunny crackers and grapes on flamingo toothpicks.  We're not sure folks got all the references, but the kids enjoyed the food.  Bryant also made Vivian a special Cheshire Cat cake to enjoy at home.  It turned out surprisingly well and, most importantly, Vivian loved eating it!  Below are pictures from the party.  As you can see, Vivi was proudly sporting her new Alice in Wonderland dress for the occasion. 

 

 

 

 

 

Thanksgiving 2013

We finally bit the bullet and attempted a family road trip to Michigan this Thanksgiving.  We had contemplated driving before but weren’t sure how the kids would handle the 12+ hour trip.  Faced with steep airfares and limited time off, we decided to give it a try.  Our original plan was to depart Tuesday evening and drive to Pittsburgh, and thus break up the trip.  However, an early winter storm delayed our departure until Wednesday, and we drove the entire 555 miles in one day!  Overall, the kids did fantastic.  We rigged up a portable DVD player for the back seat and bought some lap desks for coloring.  Despite everyone being in the car all day, there was remarkably little whining or squabbling.  The last hour proved to be the most challenging, but the “Guess What Animal I’m Thinking Of” game saved the day.  Once in Michigan, the kids had fun playing in the snow and checking out the Labrador puppies.  On Thanksgiving Day, Mimi Pauline made a delicious roast turkey with all the fixings.  The next day we picked out Mimi’s Christmas tree and stopped in downtown Howell for hot chocolate (see photo below).  Later that night, we all went to see Frozen at the movie theater.  This quickly became Vivian’s new favorite movie, and she has been singing the Elsa song (“Let It Go”) ever since!  Before heading back on Saturday, we let the kids burn off some energy at the nearby Castaway Play Cafe. As we sat in the leather recliners watching the kids climb, slide and moon bounce, we couldn’t help wondering why there wasn’t a place like this in Alexandria!  After dinner, we packed up the car and headed home.  We made it as far as Akron, Ohio and then completed the return trip on Sunday.  We managed to just avoid the worst of the post-holiday traffic but still felt plenty tired by the time we arrived home.  Overall, our first long haul drive was an unqualified success, and of course, it was great to spend the holiday with Mimi Pauline and the puppies!