Citrus Parade

We went last year and had such a great time, that we decided to go back again this year. Again, the weather was just beautiful! We found a great spot to set up with lots of room to run around and an empty water fountain that doubles as a playground

Christmastime

This is our year to travel to Georgia for Christmas... So, we actually opened gifts 4 different times! We started on the 12th of December to exchange with Jarrett/Jaime before they left for PA.

My mom, grandma and sister made all these pj's by hand. They are so talented and the pj's turned out too cute!

Then, on the 22nd, we had the gift exchange w/ my Orlando family. This year, we let the 4 big kids take turns and read a portion of the Christmas story.
There was lots of cotumes... including a couple doctors :)
Then, on the 23rd, we had the gift exchange with just our family before we got on the road to Georgia. We always have a picture of all the kids on the couch holding their stockings before we begin.
Jordan said that opening the stockings is more fun because there is more stuff in them :)
We headed to Georgia on the 23rd and had our final gift exchange on Christmas morning with Cory's family.
Here are some pics of my kids playing with some of their favorite things.
This is Avery's doll that you can dye the hair and color on the clothes. How fun is that?!
Jordan loves the Leapster. His sisters have each had one for several years now and he is so excited to have a Red one for himself.

He was so excited that he couldn't contain himself and he ran and jumped in her arms.Morgan loves this "Liv" doll. I still don't really know what it is, but she sure does.
Sydney now has her own American Girl doll. Both her sisters, her cousin and her friend all have one and she has been wanting one for about a year now. She was very excited.
Nothing like a toasty fire and cold toes.

Merry Christmas!!

From our Family to Yours

Girl Scout Christmas Party

Our Girl Scout Troop joined another one and had a Christmas Tea Party last Friday. We had so much fun getting all dressed up and then dancing the night away.

Camping

This is how our weekend started. We got there after dinner time... 6 hungry kids... 1 tiny flame.
Don't worry, it did get better after that.
The kids had so much fun. They thought we were roughing it because we slept in tents. Nevermind the blow-up mattress, the fully functioning bathroom within 100 yards and coke machine glowing on our plot. Oh ya, we were like Survivor :)

We did several fun "campy" things. We went to the nearby spring and went on a nature walk.
These are the ones I said yes to. See all the sticks on the ground? He wanted ALL of those too. What a boy :)We turned pancakes and eggs with a paper plate... Oh, wait, that's not "campy"? Right, just stupid. Yes, we forgot the spatula and had to make due. Not to worry, the plate flipper worked out just fine. Like I said... Survivor.Everyone enjoying their freshly flipped pancakes and eggs :)We made S'Mores. You can't camp without S'Mores, can you ?And we lit the Hanukkah Candle. Yes, it was the first night of Hanukkah. No, we are not Jewish. Yes, we think the celebration and the meaning behind it are just that cool.And like I showed in the first picture, we cooked hotdogs over the fire. That was certainly an adventure.All in all, we had a good time and the kids loved every minute. We are looking forward to heading back out into the "Wilderness" again soon.

ICE

This year, my brother/sister-in-law decided to take us to the local attraction of ICE! For those of you not familiar, it is at the Gaylord Palms and it is a walk-through attraction where everything is made of, you guessed it, ICE. They have elaborate carving and an ice slide. In order to keep everything frozen, the entire exhibit is a chilly 9 degrees. So, we borrowed and bundled in our best Florida winter gear and headed out.

It only takes 45 minutes to walk all the way through, but we wouldn't have been able to last any longer. Everyone was cold and ready to go by the end. Fun times! Thanks Jarrett and Jaime!