Charlotte's Meet the Teacher

Charlotte didn't start school until the Wednesday after Memorial Day. We met her teacher the week before. Mrs. Luigs was also Nathan's 4 yr old teacher so we know each other well and she knew of Charlotte. Charlotte was a little shy but not too bad. She liked seeing all of the toys in the room and was very sweet. As I'm writing this, she's been in school for a  week and a half and is really living it. Her friend Elizabeth is in class with her which makes her VERY happy. I was praying we would get the same teacher because she is so sweet, I really like her mom, and Charlotte just adores her!

Charlotte's First Day of School

Doesn't she look so adorable?! We each got haircuts the day before...I'll show that picture in a minute. Charlotte was happy about going in and said she had a fun first day. 

Nathan's First Day of First Grade

I was nervous about the beginning of school because of last year's freak out, but everything went very smoothly! He had met his teachers (Nathan is in the dual language program so he has an English and Spanish teacher) the week before and really liked them both. When his English teacher asked if he had any questions, he thought a moment and then said, "I really like your hair." How cute is that?! 

So we met jake in the alley and all walked together. The first week was nice because parents are allowed to walk into the school and to the classroom. The next week, the kids will have to be dropped off at the school doors

Nathan loved having me walk him to his class and tried really hard not to cry. His eyes did get red and watery but he never really cried. He's my sweet boy and even though he's 7, he still loves his mommy. One of his friends did ask him if he was about to cry, and Nathan said, "No, it's just my allergies."

Disney World, Day 5, Epcot and HOME!

This was our fifth and last day at Disney World and we spent it at Epcot. When we first arrived, Nathan said that he wanted to go into the giant golf ball. So that was our first ride. It's called Spaceship Earth and is a slow moving ride that takes you through the beginning of mankind and all of the technological advances through today. Then Nathan and Wayne did Mission Space, a simulator type ride that sends you crashing onto Mars...Charlotte was too small for this one so she and I played in a splash pad area and then found an interactive exhibit that shows some of the  best inventions. Next, we all went to SOARIN' This was really cool! Once you get strapped into your seat, the lights turn off, you feel yourself raise up and then you are in front of this huge screen, kind of like an IMAX movie. This is also a simulator type ride and makes you feel like you're flying through different cities in California. We all loved this one. After this, we ate lunch and then headed to the lake to walk around and visit all of the countries. Everyone got to choose a treat and souvenir somewhere, and we even met Snow White! Nathan loved Japan the best because it's souvenir store was filled with all of his favorite toys! He chose a Japanese Transformer. Charlotte chose a jeweled comb and hand mirror from China. 

Which reminds me that I forgot to mention that they each got to pick out a toy/souvenir each day...this was their incentive to not whine or complain during the day. It worked like a charm! 

This was such a wonderful trip for our family. Nathan and Charlotte loved every minute of it, and Wayne and I loved watching them have so much fun. I am so thankful that we are able to take these vacations together, and more importantly, that we all LOVE to be together! That is the best part. It doesn't really matter what we are doing or where we go (although vacations are great) as long as we are experiencing it all together. I LOVE MY FAMILY!!!

Disney World 2014, Day 4, Magic Kingdom

This was a big, full day at Magic Kingdom. This was going to be our last day here since the next day was Epcot and our flight home, so we had to be smart about everything we did, and make the most of our time! We got there right when it opened. The plan was for Wayne and Nathan to rush to a new roller coaster that just opened, The Seven Dwarf's Mine Train. This was one that I couldn't get a fast pass for, and the lines get really long unless you do it right at the beginning. So the two of them made a run for it, and when Charlotte and I finally caught up, I thought Oh good, the line isn't bad at all. Well, that's because it was closed for maintenance. They said it would re-open in a few hours. So we did the Winnie the Pooh ride which was fun and It's a Small World. Then we went over to a new section that had a circus theme to it. This is where the Dumbo ride was. Dumbo is always crowded, but they added a second one which was nice. Plus I did get a fast pass for it, so we were able to get right on. Wayne and Nathan rode together and Charlotte and I rode together. This ride spins around but also has a lever that lets the kids move it up and down. Charlotte loved it. When we got off, Nathan ran over to me and said that Daddy owed us all a dollar because he said "What the ____?!"  Seriously Daddy? Then Wayne tells me that their Dumbo didn't work and wouldn't move up and down. He goes over to the ride attendant and tells him. The guy told Wayne you have to HOLD the lever up not just tap it. And Wayne  just stared at him for a good 10 seconds, and then told him he did HOLD it up, and it still didn't work (I know Wayne was thinking, "I'm not an idiot.") The guy said he was sorry and he'd look at it. And then Wayne told him he wanted another ride, and the guy said to go get in line, and Wayne said I'm not waiting in that line again,  we'll just hop on right here. So the guy goes and talks to another attendant, and finally they let us get in the fast pass line which was short and get back on. Wayne was not going to let Nathan miss out on the full experience! So we all rode it again, and thank goodness both of our Dumbos went up and down!

We also went to a character meet and greet and saw Goofy and Donald Duck. Next, we went on a little kid roller coaster called the Barnstormer. Nathan thought it was great, but Charlotte was not that happy with it. She had her legs and arms totally spread out like she thought she was going to fall out and was holding on for dear life. And it was really a pretty mild ride, but she had never been on anything like that so she was really in shock! She never cried but she did tell us that she did not want to go on another! Then we went back to check on the Mine Train, and it was up and running... with a 45 minute wait. Nathan really wanted to do it, so Wayne decided to wait in line. Charlotte had her heart set on getting her face painted, so I took her to do that. She chose the Frozen ice princess look, and LOVED it. She was so cute because she kept asking me every 10 minutes if the paint was still on. And if she ate a snack or a drink, she was very careful to try not to mess up her lipstick. 

Charlotte also rode the Prince Charming carousel again and went to visit Belle in her castle. This was neat, and I was kind of sad Nathan wasn't with us because he would have liked it. The kids got to act out the story of Beauty and the Beast...each child got a special part (Charlotte was a tea cup), and then they acted it out for Belle in her special library. Afterwards, they got to meet Belle and have their picture taken with her. The day before, Charlotte had gotten a glittery Mickey Mouse necklace that she wore on this day, and Belle told her how much she liked it. That made Charlotte so happy!!!

On our way back to meet Wayne and Nathan, we saw that the Brave princess, Merida, just opened her line, so we got to meet her too! When we finally saw Wayne and Nathan, Nathan went on and on about how scary the roller coaster was but that it was so much fun. He is going to be my roller coaster partner! Although, now that I'm older, I don't have the stomach I used to have! We also did the Runaway Mine Train, which is a mild roller coaster. Charlotte did tell us that she didn't want to do another one, but when we got in line for it, I told her that this would be like the Barnstormer, and that if she didn't want to do it, I would get out of line with her. Her response was, "Well, I'm already in line so I guess I have to do it." She said it with a smile so we stayed and rode it. She kind of liked it but said that she SERIOUSLY did not want to do another one. No worries Charlotte, we already did all the ones you're tall enough for! Ha!

Next, we went to Tomorrowland where we did the Tomorrowland speedway, which is like a go-cart track, Stitch's Great Escape, Buzz Lightyear's Space Ranger Spin, and Monster's Inc. Laugh in. Then we rode the train to Adventureland and did the Aladdin Ride, Swiss Family Tree House, and the Jungle Cruise. We were about to do the Pirate's of the Caribbean ride, but it ended up being out of order too! Although, this ended up being a good thing because we happened upon a pirate show in which they were asking kids to be part of. Nathan and Charlotte both volunteered. So these pirates got all of the kids to hold onto a rope, and they led them around in a parade and then stopped in front of the Jack Sparrow Pirate Tutorial show. Jack Sparrow is the pirate from the movie Pirates of the Caribbean and was Johnny Depp's character. Anyway, this show was an interactive one. So all of the kids are sitting right at the front and then Captain Jack asked for volunteers to come up on stage to learn how to fight like a pirate. Of course, all of the kids (including Nathan and Charlotte) were raising their hands. He picked 6 kids but not Nathan or Charlotte. I was so sad for them because I could tell they (especially Nathan) really wanted to do it. Then Jack said he needed one more brave soul, and searched the area. He pointed right at Nathan and said he was just the one he was looking for! Nathan ran up on stage, and Jack asked his name. Nathan spoke right up and was smiling the biggest smile you've ever seen. To Nathan, this was the REAL Jack! So they taught the kids a few moves and then had each of them practice their sword fight with another pirate. Nathan was last and was getting ready to fight the pirate when Jack Sparrow stepped in, and said that he could tell Nathan was the bravest one and wanted Nathan to fight HIM! Nathan was the only one that got to fight Jack! It was so cool and completely made his day!!! 

So after this, we went to the Tom Sawyer island. This is where a little boat takes you to this island and it has all sorts of trails, tunnels, and pretend villages to explore. We let Nathan and Charlotte lead the way. After this, we did the Haunted House. I felt bad about this one because I was thinking it was a funny haunted house, but I was thinking about the one in Magic Springs. I kept telling Charlotte it wouldn't be scary. But I was wrong. In their minds, it was VERY creepy and scary! They liked it though but Charlotte kept telling me I was so wrong about it being funny. 

By this time, we're into the evening. Which is funny to me because we had the plan of taking an afternoon break, maybe going back to the hotel for a nap, and then coming back to the park and staying through the night. But we were so busy going from one thing to another that there wasn't any time for a nap! So far, we had done everything except for the Pirates of the Caribbean ride and Splash Mountain. And these were two that Nathan really wanted to go on. As luck would have it, Pirates was up and running so we did that and then went to check on the wait time at Splash Mountain. The kids were starting to get tired at this point so we thought that if the wait was under 30 minutes, we'd stay and do it...if not, we would probably go ahead and go home. The wait was 50 minutes! At first, Nathan said he didn't want to wait, but then he changed his mind. So Nay Nay and I waited 50 freakin minutes for Splash Mountain. But it was so worth it because Nathan loved it and was so happy he did it. When we got off, we found Wayne with Charlotte sitting on the ground, and Charlotte was asleep laying on Wayne's backpack! We were all done! But we totally did every single thing there was to do at Magic Kingdom!

Disneyworld 2014, Day 3, Animal Kingdom

Animal Kingdom was one of the parks we were all looking forward to because Nathan couldn't wait to do the rapids! The first thing we did here was head over to Dino Land. We went on the spinning Triceratops (like the Dumbo ride but with triceratops). Charlotte LOVED this one. Then Nathan wanted to go on the Primeval Whirl which is kind of like a roller coaster. Charlotte ended up being too small for it so Nathan and Daddy did it first while Charlotte and I did the Triceratops ride again. When Nathan got off, he said it was so much fun and wanted me to go with him. So we switched and I rode the Whirl with Nathan, and Daddy rode the Triceratops AGAIN with Charlotte. Then we went on the big Dinosaur ride. This one was actually really scary. It was dark, a little fast, and had very real-looking dinosaurs jumping out at you. Nathan and Charlotte weren't too sure about that one. We also saw the shows Festival of the Lion King, Finding Nemo, and rode the Kali Rapids, the Kilimanjaro Safari, and went on a jungle trek. Nathan and Charlotte loved the shows, and I think the favorite ride here was the Rapids ride. The last time Nathan went on this ride when he was 4 (Charlotte's age), he HATED it and cried all through it. This time, he absolutely loved it. Charlotte did too. Which reminds me of how brave she was this whole trip. She wanted to try everything. The only things she didn't do were the things she was too small for. 

After we completed everything at Animal Kingdom, we went back to the hotel for a dip in the pool and ate dinner there too. They thought this pool was so cool because it had a lazy river and two water slides. This might have been one of their favorite parts!

Disneyworld 2014, Day 2, Hollywood Studios

All four of us slept very well last night. We got up early and headed downstairs for breakfast. This is one of their favorite things to do...eat breakfast at a hotel. They eat so many things they would never eat at home, just because it's fun to have all of these choices. Today, we went to Hollywood Studios. We only had one small mishap here. We got here early and were ready to rush into one of the first attractions as soon as our tickets were scanned. Nathan, Charlotte, and Wayne scanned their tickets. I scan mine and start to walk in, but am stopped because it didn't scan correctly. I try again...still not working. You scan your card and put your finger print in. So I wasn't sure if it was my card or my finger print. So they have to call someone over to type in my number manually. That works. Apparently, I wasn't using the right finger for my finger print. I didn't know it mattered. So Wayne's comment to me is, "Is anything ever easy with you?" Nope, but at least life isn't boring with me!

 There was a lot to do here, but not as much as Magic Kingdom. We knew this wouldn't be a late day. We met Buzz and Woody here. Nathan was happy to meet and talk to them, but Charlotte wanted no part! Which is funny to me because they are really nice and fun looking. But they are big and aren't "real" people. Charlotte said that she will talk to the characters that aren't so tall. We saw several shows like the Muppets 3D, Indiana Jones, Star Wars. Beauty and the Beast Live on Stage (Nathan and Charlotte got front row seats), Honey I Shrunk the Kids Movie Set Adventure, Legend of Jack Sparrow, Disney Jr. Live on Stage. Plus, lots of character meetings. 

Our plan was to get a cheap stroller while we were there, but we ended up not needing it. Charlotte was such a good girl. She walked the WHOLE time!The only time I carried her was if we were racing from one thing to another. But other than that, she was a good walker!