Accident, Car Shopping and School Conferences.

It has been an eventful few weeks here lately.  About 2 weeks ago, I was downstairs exercising at 6:15AM when my cell phone rang. It was Thomas. Either he pocket-dialed or called and then changed his mind, but he wasn't talking to me, although I could hear his voice.  I could hear him saying, "okay, let's move the cars out of the way." Then, the phone went dead.  From those few words, I was able to ascertain two things.  First, he was in a car accident. Second, he was capable of moving a car out of the way and thus okay. I tried calling him back, but he did not answer. About 15 minutes later, he called to tell me he had been rear-ended, but was okay. He was stopped at a red light when a car drove into him, causing him to hit the car in front of him. The car behind him then swerved into the next lane and hit the car to her right.  He had no recollection of the impact or calling me. He said he felt fine, but had a bad headache (he relayed this to the arriving paramedic who asked, "well, did you have breakfast?").

Ultimately, we learned that the car was a total loss and we had to buy a new one. Thus began the great car hunt of 2015. We had several thoughts--buy a car that was close in value to the Camry, buy a "beater" car and pocket the difference, or buy a new car that Thomas could drive for 8 years and then pass on to Jack and Anna.  Our preference is always to buy a new (or newish) cars and drive it for a while, but we had intended on driving the Camry for another 4 years. Ultimately, we decided to buy a new car.

We bought a 2015 Hyundai Sonata Hybrid.  We had planned on buying another Camry, but I fell in love with the car; and after driving it, Thomas agreed.  It was a few thousand cheaper than a comparable Camry and because it was the end of the model year, we were able to get it for about 7k below MSRP.  Of course, it was still more than the we got for our totaled 2009 Camry, so we are back to two car payments. Although, together the 2 payments are still less than what we once paid for a single car (back when we were 2 incomes with no kids).

On to school conferences.  In short, our kids are all awesome little geniuses (that's the mother's slant). Jack is still a great reader, in fact, his teacher said he tested on a 4th/5th grade level and she actually cut him off because she had the information she needed.  Both he and Anna get pulled out of class for a special reading group (comprises about 20% of the second grade, so not all that exclusive :).  They are both doing fine at math. Jack still has some issues getting along with classmates and specifically being physically aggressive. It is very difficult for Thomas and me. We have tried everything we can think of to help him kick (no pun intended) this behavior, but nothing seems to work. He improves a little each year, so we are hoping that eventually he will just outgrow it.

Anna's teacher "adores" her.  She thinks Anna is very intelligent and sweet. The feeling is completely mutual, Mrs. Lowe is Anna's favorite teacher ever and we think she tries extra hard to please her. So far, this is working out: Mrs. Lowe thinks Anna is great, so Anna works hard at being great.  Kara is also doing good, she is continuing her track of perfect behavior and is testing high in most areas. She does not do well on the "nonsense words" test.  Apparently, she tries to find real words that will fit and is unable to do the exercise of just reading the sounds.  She is reading really well, so hopefully she will get the hang of it at some point (or not). She is very methodical and precise with her schoolwork, so I can see how she wouldn't appreciate a test where she is asked to read something other than real words.

I don't mean for this to be a braggy post.  I recognize that kids have different skills and develop at different ages. I also know that mine are too young for this data to be truly meaningful.  We tell them all the time that they are blessed to be smart enough to do anything they want, but it doesn't really matter if they don't put forth the effort to achieve it. Effort and determination will win the day.  But, for now, we are very proud of the progress they are making. We really hope that Jack's love of reading and history continue, that Anna keeps thriving, and that Kara always loves school and learning as much as she does right now!

Jack and Anna turn 8 Part Two

As is tradition, we went and had lunch with the kids on their birthday. Actually, the day before their birthday, since their birthday fell on a Saturday. Anna had requested I bring in cupcakes with pumpkins and Jack wanted to hand out candy necklaces. It is always fun to see them at school and to talk with their friends. I also feel fortunate that the school is bit old-school in that they still allow home-made treats (among other characteristics that aren't particularly relevant to this topic). That night, we had Jack's requested dinner of BJs pizza. It was his second year of BJs pizza, which I consider a small step up from the canned ravioli he asked for when he turned 6.

Originally, we were going to try and get back to Williamsburg to go to Busch Gardens. But, thanks to more bad weather, that was out of the question. Instead, on Saturday morning I took Jack and Anna to Walmart to pick out supplies for Anna's requested dinner--cheese fondue. Then, we picked up Thomas and Kara and went to K-Mart to browse their going-out-of-business sale. We bought some gifts for an upcoming friend's birthday party and not much else. After a quick lunch we were off to the indoor pool in Prince Frederick.  Some friends were kind enough to meet us there, which made it even more fun for the kids.  The pool is really nice, it has 3 diving boards, a little kids area, and on the weekends it has an inflatable obstacle course. I was proud that all 3 kids tried the obstacle course and the girls jumped off the smaller diving boards. Jack jumped off the high diving board and kept everyone laughing with his silly poses. I think my favorite was his "zen," where he crossed his legs and held out his arms with his index finger and thumb together.  I have no idea where he saw that, but it was funny, even the lifeguards were chuckling. We stayed for about 2.5 hours and had a really good time. From there, we took the kids to Sonic for ice cream. We were trying to make the day special for Anna, who was understandably upset that Busch Gardens was again cancelled. The ice cream was the crowning jewel for her and she declared that she didn't care if we never made it to Busch Gardens because she was having the best birthday ever!

After cheese fondue, we finally got to cake and presents. This year the kids agreed to one cake and they wanted a fall theme with pumpkins. So I made a haunted pumpkin patch. They loved it! And, those monsters were delicious! All the presents were a big hit. Jack got a small arcade game, a lightsaber, and a toy gun (something he is always asking for). Anna got shopkins and a v-tech watch. They also received cards and cash from extended family, which they spent on books.

This was one fun-do!

Probably not my best looking cake, but very tasty. 

She finally got her Shopkins! To me, they are one of the dumbest toys out there, but I am not their target audience, so whatever.

This past weekend (October 11), we officially declared Busch Gardens a no-go for the year. We told Anna that we could do it, but we would have to drive up and back in one day, due to a lack of affordable hotels. It is tough to find hotels that can accommodate the 6 of us and the few that were available were booked or over $400. Five hours in the car did not appeal to Anna and she asked if we could go to Kings Dominion instead. We were joined by some neighbors and everyone had fun. They had trick-or-treating (non candy items, thankfully) in Planet Snoopy and even let the kids pick and color small pumpkins. It was by far the most crowded I have ever seen the park, including Memorial Day weekend. But, since we have gone so often, we didn't feel pressure to go on everything, we just made sure the kids got to ride their favorites. Thomas and I had thought about going up for Haunt, but after seeing the crowds, we have decided to skip it.

Hanging with friends and the talking pumpkin 'Patch'.

Family Photo time!

Luke on his favorite ride

Thomas finally got to ride the Dominator, can you find him? I just noticed that I also captured someone losing their hat. 

And that concludes the birthday of Jack and Anna. It was quite drawn out this year, but lots of fun.

Jack & Anna Turn 8: Part 1, Yorktown

On October 3, Jack and Anna turned 8.  Jack wanted to go back to Yorktown.  Anna thought that said that sounded like a good plan and asked to repeat her 7th birthday request--Busch Gardens. We settled on Fair Weekend and I made reservations. Last year, we stayed at Cheatham Annex in a 2-bedroom, insect infested cottage. I didn't want to repeat that experience, but I remembered that their 3-bedroom cottages were new, so I booked one of those.

The weather forecast was not kind. We had a clear forecast for Thursday, but rain the rest of the weekend. Our optimistic plan was to go to Yorktown and Yankee Candle on Thursday, Busch Gardens Friday, Jamestown Settlement & the Yorktown Victory Center Saturday and Kings Dominion on the way home Sunday. I was very excited about these fun plans. Unfortunately, most of it never happened (curse you mother nature!).

We kept the kids out of school and headed straight to the Yorktown battle field Thursday morning. Jack and I watched the film in the visitor's center, and then we explored the battlefield. From there we went to lunch at our favorite spot--the Carrot Tree Inn.

Luke and his buddy Kara walking to the redoubts.

We sat outside to eat, which was nice because the kids could explore while Thomas and I finished. Here's Jack with a statutes of Washington and DeGrasse.

We walked around this cute little windmill and didn't notice that there was a no entrance sign until after we left.  Sorry!

It was early enough that we figured we could squeeze in another fun activity (Busch Gardens isn't open on Thursdays, so that was never an option). Since it was Jack's day, we let him choose and he picked Jamestown. We drove across town, unsure of what to expect. It was the only "new to us" place on our itinerary. It had an extremely large visitors museum, with lots of historical information and exhibits and a living history outdoor area. The kids weren't particularly interested in the indoor information so we didn't get to spend much time in there. The outdoor area had three parts: a Powhatan Fort, a 1607 colonial fort, and 3 ships that were recreated to show what the ships looked like that delivered the settlers in 1607. The kids loved the outdoor exhibits!

Here they are their armor.

In front of one of the ships. 

In the Powhatan fort.

Never one to be left out...

From there, we went to Walmart to pick up food to bring back to the cottage. Our key was waiting for us at the gate (by the time we got there, it was after hours) and we excitedly drove to our cottage. Thomas and the kids were thrilled when they saw where we had been placed: the VIP cottage! I was less thrilled. I really wanted one of the newer cottages and was apprehensive about the insects that could be present in the older unit. But, the view quickly won me over. It was beautiful! When we stood on the deck, we felt like we were floating on the water. The furnishings were fine and it was moderately clean. Of course, there were lots of daddy long legs and other spiders. But, the coup de grace presented itself after dinner when a very brazen mouse came out to see what we had left of the floor.  Seriously, there were still lights on and we aren't exactly a quiet family! I was the only one that saw it and I managed to contain myself, since I didn't want to scare them. After seeing me, he scurried back in the kitchen, where I henceforth refused to go (well, at least for the rest of that day). Right before bed, the mouse appeared again and this time Jack saw him and screamed, "a rat, there's a rat in the house!" The kids were afraid to go to sleep after that, but we managed to settle them down after checking all their beds to reassure them no rodents resided beneath the sheets.

Looks cute enough, right?

The million dollar view.

The forecast never improved and it became clear that our outdoor weekend plans were out of the question. The home forecast was better and we decided to just leave on Friday, so the kids could participate in their sporting events on Saturday morning. It was a bitter pill for all us, but especially Anna who didn't get her promised Birthday outing. We told her we would try to come back and that we would still do something special on her actual day. She was moderately appeased.

We checked out early, but still had to pay the 2-night minimum (we were booked for 3). I don't think they were surprised to hear about the mouse, but she made a good show of putting a note in her notepad.  1990s style.  It was overcast and drizzling, but we decided to go to the Yorktown Victory Center. The girls were not pleased by this, so we had to bribe them with the promise of a treat from the gift shop if they managed to behave and have a good attitude. We hate doing that, but didn't want their sour mood to spoil it for the rest of us. Especially Kara--she is stubborn and can definitely carry a grudge when "forced" into an activity.

The Victory Center is a sister attraction to Jamestown Settlement and had the same large gallery area, however 90% of it was still under construction. So, fortunately, for the kids, we spent most of our time outside. They were also doing construction there, so the area was a bit compressed, but it was still very neat. They have a recreated Continental Army Encampment and a colonial-era farm. We enjoyed exploring. Jack participated in a cannon demonstration and learned more about muskets. Then, we sat and listened to the camp "doctor," whose treatments were definitely more harmful than helpful. I enjoyed hearing him talk about how the doctor was chosen (if you could read, you were a good candidate) and the practices of the day. After that, the kids enlisted! They signed their paperwork, collected their enlistment pay and agreed to stay for the whole war to get a bonus. They probably had no idea it was going to last 8 long, hard years. We all got in a tent together, which was perfect since they were 6-man tents and there were six of us. Definitely not comfortable living quarters.

On stage, in one of the only open areas. 

They had this neat contraption that showed how profile drawings were created. Anna took this  picture of me. 

Would you trust that kid with gun powder? Neither did they ;)

Signing their lives away for a few shillings.

From there, we went into one of the movies. Luke made it approximately 3 minutes before I took him out and Kara gratefully followed. So, we browsed the gift shop, bought the promised treats, and left for home. It was not the weekend we expected, but I feel like we made the best of a not-great situation.

Luke is 18 months!

All about Luke:

-He still runs roughshod over his siblings. They are very anxious to stop his cries, no matter what the personal consequence.

-He talks constantly and gets frustrated when we don't understand what he is telling us.

-His favorite toys are his shape sorter and his blocks, he can stack 9 blocks!

-He has truly perfected the somersault.  It is amazing to see (at least to us).

-His favorite thing to say is "stop it" (staaa iiiiit). He shouts this at anyone who does anything he doesn't like.

-For words, he can say all of his family member's names.  He also says: hi, bye, water, tower, night-night, no, yes, all done, thank you, ball, book, you're welcome, and others I'm sure.  He likes to sing Twinkle Twinkle Little Star, which according to him goes "baaa baaa little star".

-Luke only thinks he likes books.  He will bring you one, position himself comfortably in your lap, allow you to read a page or two and then flip to the end and pronounce "all done."  He has been doing this for months and we keep waiting for the day when we get through an entire story (we came close on Brown Bear once).

-He has a bizarre fear of bugs.  I say bizarre, because how many 18-months old are scared of a caterpillar?  He will let out a little scared cry whenever a bug comes near him.

-He will drop whatever he is doing to answer the door or the phone.  

-The highlight of his day is still greeting people when they get home.

-When he brings you his shoes, it means he wants to go outside. NOW! Ignore this "request" at your own peril.

-When angry, Luke hits or throws himself on the floor in protest. Or both.

This particular fit was after I incomprehensibly refused to let him play with the toilet brush.

-He loves to feed himself and has gotten pretty good with a fork and spoon. However, he prefers to eat 20+ snacks throughout the day rather than whatever I have prepared for a meal.  He will often refuse to eat much at meal time, only to go the cabinet and grab whatever is in his reach. He still doesn't understand that the box of Bisquick does not contain pancakes and gets angry (see above) when we won't allow him the contents of the box.

-He loves to accessorize.  Sunglasses, hats, headbands and bike helmets are among his favorites.

Cruise Part 2

On Day 3, we found ourselves in Nassau.  We had signed up for another beach day, mainly out of fear that Coco Cay would be cancelled due to weather.  I had read that Coco Cay only happens about 50% of the time during late summer due to weather concerns, the perils of a tender port.  Somehow, we found ourselves with a 7:45 muster time. We, and about a dozen other people, mustered on the pier bright and early. The boat to The Blue Lagoon arrived promptly at 8 and we were off! It was a 30ish minute boat ride. The Blue Lagoon also offered a sea lion encounter and dolphin swim. After reading about animals in captivity, I am unwilling to participate in those type of excursions (no judgment on others), so ours was just a plain beach day. 

Our day was supposed to include a floating mat and/or tube. However, there were exactly 5 tubes available and 1 mat. For everyone. That was pretty frustrating. We did get 1 tube, which I put to great use. The water was amazingly clear, although I would have called it the “Aqua Lagoon.”  Regardless, the color and clarity were stunning! At one point, Thomas was out swimming when I heard a loud yelp. I turned and saw him swimming quickly toward shore. It turns out that he was viciously attacked by a crab! Apparently, he put his foot in the wrong place. The crab put a nice little puncture in his big toe, but Thomas is tough and we were able to continue the excursion. There were some awesome hammocks and it was a cute little island, but since we had spent the previous day at the beach, we were ready to try something else after a couple of hours. We caught the next boat leaving, which was actually perfect timing because that boat must have released 500 people to the island. Thomas joked that it was a prank and people must be getting off and circling somewhere to get back on, because the line was never-ending. I hope they weren’t too disappointed when they learned that all the mats and tubes had been claimed.

Beautiful aqua water

A view of the beach, great with a couple dozen people, maybe not so much with hundreds

On the ride back from the beach, the tour guide pointed out some celebrity homes, this one is Oprah's.  Michael Jordan's was the most impressive, but I didn't get a picture. We also saw Jay-Z and Beyonce, Barry Bonds and Tyler Perry's homes and Eddie Murphy's island.

After a quick souvenir hunt, we were back on the ship by 1. We planned to change, have lunch, see a movie and go back into Nassau. However, during the movie (Avengers: Age of Ultron, which they showed inside this time so the screen was visible) I fell asleep. Thomas gently woke me when I began to snore and we decided a nap was in order. We slept until dinner and had another average meal in the main dining room. I ordered a seafood “mashup,” which turned out to be a fried platter that looked like something from Long John Silver’s, with 2 fish planks, 2 shrimp and a hushpuppy. It wasn’t bad, just not what I was expected. After dinner, we called the kids and then went to the evening show. 

The evening entertainer was Sideshow Bert.  He put on a fun variety show that we enjoyed. He juggled, threw cards, told jokes, etc. It was good. Even though it was just yesterday, I can’t recall exactly what we did after the show. Probably went up to the Windjammer for a late-night snack. At 8:45, we played a majority rules trivia contest. We did not win, but we had fun. Finally, at 10, we went to the Love and Marriage game show, which is run like the Newlywed Game. I found it really funny. They chose 4 couples, one married less than 6 years, two between 7-24, and one with 25+ years. The first couple were newlyweds (there were 24 honeymooning couples on the ship!). For the middle category, the audience was equally divided between two couples (anyone interested in being chosen had to “audition” by saying a silly phrase and the winners were chosen by audience applause), so both got to play. I think one was married for 13 and the other 16 years. The final couple had been married for 49 ¾ years. It was funny and cute. However, I am pretty sure the longest married couple were ringers. I would be willing to bet that they had seen the show before and knew what would be asked. Also, there was no love lost between one couple. The host asked the husband to name one thing about his wife he would make bigger and one thing he’d make smaller.  For bigger, he said her heart and for smaller her said her mouth, and that wasn’t even his meanest comment! Ouch! But, it was still a really funny show and thankfully, the other 3 couples were very much in love.

After that, we called it a night!

Our final day was a sea day.  We woke shortly after 7 and were excited to start the day. We did some more trivia and came in 3^rd place in a Name that 80s/90s T.V Theme Song (out of over 50 groups!).  Thomas did the rock climbing wall and played in a Texas Hold ‘Em tournament. We watched a cake decorating contest and played “Name that Tune.” One of my favorite parts of the day was the Belly Flop Contest. They had 7 guys, who were weighed in and arranged from smallest to biggest. They had them dance before the flop and the flops were replayed on the large screen in slow-motion. The audience got to rate them on a 1-5 scale. It was just really fun to be poolside on a cruise ship in the middle of the Atlantic watching people bellyflop in slomotion.

He rang the bell!

Dinner was the best food we had on the ship (chicken marsala for Thomas and steak for me). We saw the evening production, which was an old-school Broadway Revue. They did songs from Westside Story, Chicago, Hairspray, Little Shop of Horrors and a couple we didn’t know. It was a very relaxing, entertaining day. Oh, we also booked another cruise for 2017. This one is for the whole family. We aren’t sure we will keep it, but figured we could lock in the price and decide later.

It was a wonderful, calming, much-needed vacation. As much as we love being with our kids, not having to tend to anyone but ourselves for 5 days was pure bliss. We kept in constant contact with Summer, who sent us lots of texts and pictures, so we knew the kids were in good hands. And, although I am ready to go home, I am also ready to plan another adult-only vacation (unfortunately, I am guessing it won’t happen again for a few years). 

For me, the highlights were probably the snorkeling in Coco Cay, the belly flop contest, and the times we just sat and listened to the band.

Customary shot with the ocean view

No cruise blog would be complete without a picture of a towel animal!

No Kids Allowed: Cruise Vacation, days 1-3.

Thomas turned 40 this year?!?!?! As is our tradition, I had to do something big.  And, by tradition, I mean we did big celebrations for each other’s 30^th.  But, a tradition has to start somewhere right?  And, it’s not our fault that we didn’t meet until after we had already turned 20.  For his 30^th, I planned a trip to Detroit to see the Baseball All Star Game, and associated festivities.  I knew there was no way I could top his favorite team hosting an all-star game in his favorite sport. But, I was determined to try; I decided a vacation with just the two of us was the way to go. The planning began in earnest in the Spring. On our Disney cruise, Thomas said his ideal vacation would be a cruise with just the two of us.  Of course, he has no recollection of saying that.  But, my mind is like a sieve, err steel trap, so I booked a cruise.  A cruise for two, but not until well-after his birthday.

Thomas turned 40 in July and we left for our vacation on August 30^th.  Why the delay you might ask?  Well, we could have gone in the summer, but that’s when lots of kids cruise.  And, who wants to cruise with other people’s kids when your own are at home?  Perhaps more importantly, we figured it would be easier for someone to watch our kids if  ¾ of them were in school.  We had our trusty sitter, Summer lined up for the job.  To keep Luke fully acquainted with Summer, we did date nights twice a month until the month before the cruise, when we bumped it up to once a week.

Finally, after months of anticipation, Sunday was the day.  Our cruise left from Port Canaveral and we decided to fly down the day before to avoid any major travel issues.  The week before we left, a tropical storm (Erika) threatened to thwart our plans, leading me to watch hours upon hours of the Weather Channel.  But, the storm dissipated, the clouds parted, and we left as scheduled.

It was hard to leave the kids.  I expected it to be hard to be leave Luke.  After all, he’s the only one who couldn’t understand what was going on, but it was also really hard to leave the older three.  On Saturday, Jack said, “If I had just one wish, I would wish you weren’t going on the cruise.”  Kara voiced concerns about our ship sinking and on Saturday night said, rather pitifully I might add, “at least we have tomorrow morning.”  Anna tried to convince us that parents aren’t meant to vacation without their children.  But, we left as planned.

Our flight to Orlando was relatively uneventful.  The remnants of Erika lead to a longer than anticipated flight path, causing us to arrive about 20 minutes late.  We grabbed our bags, jumped on our shuttle to Port Canaveral and were off!  About 15 minutes later, Thomas’ phone rang.  It was the airport.  One of the bags we had grabbed?  Not ours.  Back to the airport we went.  Our shuttle, which fortunately, only contained us, had to be somewhere else, so he let us out and we had to wait for the next shuttle.  The bags were completely identical—same unusual color, same cheap brand.  What are the odds?  Well, pretty good apparently,

It was an embarrassing mistake, but could have been so much worse!  Our next shuttle had 4 other people, I don’t imagine they would have been very happy if we had created the delay for them. The mistake cost us about an hour and we arrived at our hotel at 730pm.  We had a quick dinner and called it a night.

Our hotel was on the beach, so the next morning, we decided to watch the sunrise.  We did a 3 mile walk along the beach, had our free breakfast and left for the ship.

We had fun watching these little birds race the surf

A butterfly shell in the sunrise

We walked onboard Enchantment of the Seas (Royal Caribbean) around 12.  We had lunch and enjoyed walking around the ship.  Our immediate impression was that it did not appear as clean, well-kept, or friendly as the Disney Magic.  Although, in fairness, the Disney Magic had undergone a complete renovation the month before we sailed.  We really enjoyed sitting on the deck and watching the Ocean in front of us. We talked to the kids.  Dinner was next, the service was good and the dining room was nice, but the food was just okay.  The welcome aboard show was also just okay.  Overall, it was a good day and a nice start to our vacation.

Saying goodbye to Port Canaveral

Day 2 of the cruise (3 of our vacation) was a stop at Coco Cay, Royal Caribbean’s private island.  We had an early kayak excursion so we had to be on the first tender off the ship. We were both up by 7, dressed and ready to go. Breakfast was buffet style and we both enjoyed it.  They told us to muster at 8 for the excursion.  But, we didn’t get off the ship and onto the tender until almost 9, which was a bit frustrating (it got crowded and we were in a small, windowless space).

But, all of that was forgotten when we stepped onto the beach.  The kayaking was really fun.  We had a guided tour and learned a little about the Berry Islands.  We saw lots of fish and many huge stingrays.  One of the people in our group fell out of her kayak.  The guide spent tons of time helping her, so we got to have an extra-long trip.  After that, we got some snorkel equipment and saw even more fish.  The water was clear and it was really enjoyable. We had lunch on the beach, did some more snorkeling and got back on the ship around 2.  

We thought this would be a fun picture for the kids

It seemed like a good time to visit the casino.  I immediately lost $40 (I’m not going back!) and Thomas immediately won $15.  We thought a lot about Thomas’ grandmother and her love of casinos and the penny slots (which aren’t really 1 penny). We called the kids and were happy to hear their voices.  Summer has kept us up to date with lots of pictures and I swear Luke has grown.  As much fun as we are having, it will be nice to get home to the rest of our family.

We grabbed a quick dinner because we wanted to see an early pool side movie: Avengers, Age of Ultron.  Unfortunately, the glare on the screen was too bright, so we had to skip it.  We spent some time listening to an amazing band and some more time sitting on deck.  Finally, it was time to see the evening show.  During our muster drill on the first day, our muster captain was really enthusiastic and happy.  Thomas and I joked that he was in the wrong position.  We felt he should be on a Disney ship, cheerfully greeting the children with his overly peppy attitude. Lo and behold, he was one of the ships dancers!  It all made so much more sense. I felt like I was watching an old friend on stage. The show wasn’t great, but it did have some really good moments.  There was a female singer who sang some Whitney Houston songs and was absolutely amazing.  The theme was a walk through movie history, but most of the movies referenced were very old (Love Story, The Graduate, Body Guard, To Sir With Love, Beach Blanket Bingo, some Jazz movie, etc.), so it got a bit tiresome for us.  But, it was still a wonderful day!

That essentially summarizes the start of our vacation.  

End of Summer

I feel like I should get a shirt made: I survived Summer 2015!  It was a long, busy, fun, frustrating summer.  Although we didn't do any big vacations, we spent lots of time at Kings Dominion.  We also went to Mount Vernon (three times), George Washington's birthplace, Fort Washington, baseball games, and many outings here in St. Mary's (library, pools, parks and museums).  My goal was to stay busy and I think we accomplished that.

As is our tradition (at least for the last two years), we let the kids choose their activities for the last week of break.  Anna wanted to go to Kings Dominion one more time, Jack asked for St. Mary's City and Kara wanted a trip to Dairy Queen.  For Anna's day, we had a babysitter come stay with Kara and Luke so we could do a "big ride day" at Kings Dominion.  Kara was thrilled with this arrangement, she loves our babysitter and was happy to have her (almost) all to herself.  Thomas and I joked that we have never seen a kid so happy to be left behind.  While we enjoyed our day at KD, she went to Ann Marie Gardens and had a hotdog/s'more cookout.  Meanwhile, at KD, the 4 of us rode all the rides that Kara and Luke can't (or won't) ride.  We raced on Rebel Yell, saw the Dinosaur Movie, rode the "scary" stuff in the waterpark and enjoyed riding everything together (i.e. no one waiting by the ride exit with Luke and Kara).  We had to pull the kids out at 8.  As we walked to the car, Anna said, "I wish it was the start of the day, when Jack left his flip-flops in the car and we had to run back to get them."  We were all sad to see the day come to a close.

On Friday, we went to Mount Vernon to try out the Spy Master app. We had a good time with the clues. They also had a 3-D picture display, which was interesting. It is a such a beautiful place to visit and we always have a good time. On the way home, Kara changed her mind from Dairy Queen to Cold Stone Creamery, so we checked off her request as well. Sunday, we will fulfill Jack's St Mary's City request.

By the ice house, getting our next spy master directions

Saturday, we went to Children's Day at St. Clements.  It was okay, but there was a long line for the boat (40 minutes).  There was only one boat running and we were worried about getting stuck on the island for an extended period of time waiting for the return. So, we skipped it. We'll have to go back when there are no special events. The kids were disappointed, but we still had a good time and it was a really pretty drive. To help alleviate their sadness over the island,we went out for lunch. Then, it was a trip to Dick's to get all their t-ball/soccer stuff for the season.  I am not looking forward to activities starting again. It has been really nice to have our evenings free all summer.

As mentioned, it has been a long summer. I have spent a lot of time feeling frustrated. I know it is common for kids to fight, but I feel like there has been way too much discord in our home. Particularly with the girls. They share a room and spend almost all their time together. I know it isn't easy, but so much is self-inflicted. I worry about what the teenage years will be like. They fight over ridiculous slights and are the best of friends and the worst of enemies. Thank goodness Jack is a boy, I can't imagine having 3 girls 16-months apart!

To conclude, a few random pictures from the summer:

Human foosball at a local playground

Calvert Marine Museum

Give the boy a button to push

Backyard fun

On one of our weekly library trips