Going, going, gone

I couldn't resist snapping this beautiful Florida sunset at the end of a long day. You just have to love that it's only mid-February and we had nearly 80 degree weather and sunshine all day!

Tyler admires the view.

After dinner, Ben collapsed in exhaustion. He didn't even budge as I changed him into his jammies. We initially planned to hit Animal Kingdom the next day, but Katie woke up with a very sore throat and refusing all food and drink, so we headed home instead. Good thing--turns out she has strep.

Winding down

Towards the end of our day at Magic Kingdom, we stopped to give the kiddos some gummy snacks. This is a rare moment of peace in our day!

Weary travelers on the ferry boat back to the car. This is after a one hour hunt for Ben's missing shoe, which we finally found (and were unable to retreive) floating in the water by a boat launch.

I was trying to get a picture of Katie, who I caught in the act of kissing each princess on her enormous balloon. This balloon is all Chris saw on the drive home from Orlando, as it took up the entire view in his rear-view mirror!

Disney Fun

While waiting in line to meet Ariel (the Little Mermaid, for those not in the know), Ben and Katie played in a mini-splash park. Katie soon tired of getting wet and sat in line with Ty (who she spent most of the time mauling). I think Ben has a crush on Ariel. The kid can hardly say "Daddy", but "Ariel"? No problem!

Ty's room

Tyler loves his new bedroom, and considers it the ultimate guy's den. =) Note the darling stuffed bear on his bed, a V-day gift from his girlfriend Madison. Forgot the camera the night they went to dinner at Carrabba's--hope to get one to post on this site soon.

Laundry room and bath room

My dream laundry room! I know it's dorky, but I am soooo excited to do laundry now. I really love my new washer and dryer! I didn't get a picture of it (mostly because there are still construction supplies piled on top--AHEM, Chris!) but we have a counter top, sink, and mini-fridge on the right side of this room. Oh, and what a difference it makes to have a window in the laundry room. I love it!

Tyler's bathroom, which he can access either through the hall or through a pocket door into his room.

Finished product - media room

Wow!! We finally finished. We've been putting on the finishing touches the last few weeks and have one more piece of furniture still to be delivered, but we are mostly done with our home rennovation projecct. Yeah!! The top two photos are the "media room" portion of the addition, complete with Chris' dream TV system and our bold red couches, which we weren't so sure of at first, but we now really love. The bottom photo is the storage area for all the kids' toys. We have a few more storage baskets coming for this unit, but now that we have it, we are managing to thin out the collection of toys located in the rest of the house.

LIttle quirks

Ben is completely obsessed with this tangle of old cell phone chargers that he found in a drawer, and insists on carrying them all around in one big ball. Naturally, he drops them often, inciting a fit of frustration each time.

Katie discovered the joy of Oreo cookies. (Notice the cup of canteloupe sits untouched next to the glass of milk...)

Ben and the paint pen

A little paint on the face....

...a little on the shirt, and a LOT on the floor. This is what happens when a toddler finds a gold paint pen.

I am happy to report that Mr. Clean Magic Erasers get out gold marker (in addition to mud, greasy fingerprints, and blood--don't ask me how I know this!)

Now THAT's a sucker!

Katie never did finish eating this sucker, but she sure had a good time trying to put a dent in it. Clutched in her arm was her most recent stuffed animal selection (we have about a million, but she just keeps INSISTING she needs more!) Since she was the birthday girl, we didn't argue.

Katie's birthday weekend @ Disney

Tyler was snowboarding in Oregon the weekend Katie turned 3, so the four of us headed to Disney to celebrate in lieu of having a birthday party. The shots from birthday morning were taken on the "fancy camera" and Chris has yet to load them, so these are the closest birthday shots I can post for now. We drove down to Disney on Sunday night and actually headed over to Magic Kingdom for dinner, a few rides, and the light parade. Then on Monday, we went to Epcot. Katie and Ben LOVED the Nemo ride. Ben was so taken with the Nemo statue that we couldn't get a single shot of him facing the camera!

Boy in a box

Our little ham enjoys crawling into the toy box just to see what our reaction will be. Typically, we grab the camera and snap away. I suppose this is also why Britney is frequently seen without undergarments...