The Wonderful World of DISNEY!

Well, it's been awhile since my last post. I had good intentions...really. But it seems the end of school and the beginning of summer brought parties, projects, and activities that took precedence. So, almost two months later, here it is--highlights of our trip to Disney World.

At the end of April we surprised Little Miss (on her birthday!) with a trip to Disney World. We literally left that afternoon. Not only were we going to Disney World, but she would fly on an airplane (the first she would remember), spend the week with her grandparents, aunts & uncles, and cousins, AND get to visit the Magic Kingdom with them all! Not a bad surprise for a 6-year-0ld. (I'm not sure who was more excited, Little Miss or me!)

Here are a few highlights from our trip:

We made it to the Magic Kingdom!

The boys

Our top priority: Seeing the castle!

The kids LOVED exploring Tom Sawyer's Island

What's a trip to Disney without meeting Minnie Mouse?

Downtown Disney was awesome, too!

The Honey I Shrunk the Kids! playground was a huge hit...Little Miss
loved the fact that this giant dog nose really breathed! Gross!

The Winnie the Pooh ride was awesome...even
while we waited in line there was plenty to do

Mary Poppins!...Little Miss was so happy to meet her...and
I was so proud that my girl knew who Mary Poppins is...not all the kids
there did (such a tragedy in my opinion!)

I LOVE this picture. The expression on Little Miss's face is priceless!

New friends :)

What exciting trips do you have planned this summer?

Extreme Thanksgiving

Many of you may remember the story of Baby Zoe, my nephew who was born a couple years ago with a very rare and severe condition. My sister and brother-in-law were told he would not live and if, by chance, he did he would not have a normal life. Well, they were right about one thing, Zoe's life (and that of his family) is anything but normal!

Zoe (or "ZoBug" as Little Man calls him) is a now thriving 2-year-old. This year, he and his family will spend the first of many Thanksgivings in their new home....compliments of ABC's Extreme Makeover: Home Edition. I was able to fly down to Savannah, GA last week for the big reveal. The show will air sometime after the New Year. You'll have to check back for an exact date; I'll let you know as soon as I hear. In the meantime, here are some highlights from my trip.

Extreme Makeover's Paul DiMeo and Tracy Hutson (background) warm up the crowd
before the big reveal. Both were instrumental in the design of the new house.

The man himself...Ty Pennington


The true hero in my book...Tripp Turner of J.T. Turner Construction.
He and his team were phenomenal!

Two-time Olympic gold-medalist Shaun White helped design
8-year-old Isaac's room.
Isaac was floored that Shaun was there in person!

The bus is in place and volunteers gather to MOVE THAT BUS!

Welcome Home, Simpson family. Welcome Home.

Paula Deen was also a huge part of the entire process, including the design for my sister's new kitchen! You'll have to wait until the show airs to see shots of the inside as well as many other amazing things they did for my sister, her family, and their community. Trust me when I say, it will take your breath away!

To watch the local coverage of the build, click here.

And as they say in Savannah...Happy Thanksgiving, y'all!

Fall Is In the Air

It's taken awhile for the weather to feel like Fall here, but that hasn't kept us from enjoying some of our favorite Fall activities. Here's a peek at what we've been up to:

Corn mazes

Train rides

Pumpkin painting

Face painting

And our favorite, a trip to Big Cedar Lodge, where there is no end of activities
like life-size chess and checkers.

Amazing restaurants

And endless fall foliage that provide perfect backdrops for photo ops!

Aunt Mimi's Wedding

We made it to Birmingham and back and got Aunt Mimi married off. The kids loved their time with Nanee and PawPaw, and hanging out with their cousins.

The cousins digging into presents from Mimi.

Baby Zoe (not so much a baby anymore) with "G"

Of course, the wedding was beautiful. Here's some snapshots of the big day.

Little Miss, flower girl and Little Man, ring "bear" ROAR!!!

The bride and flower girls.

The three sisters

Time out for a snack

The happy couple

Thanksgiving Highlights

Here are some photo highlights of our Thanksgiving festivities:

Nanee and the cousins decorating "turkey" cookies.

They didn't exactly look like turkeys, but it sure was fun!

Even Little Man got to enjoy his organic, allergen-free cookie
(with a little allergen-free icing)..YUM!!

Baby Zoe...not really a baby anymore!

Hubby enjoying a few minutes with Zoe.

Little Man and me are ready for turkey dinner!

Zoe playing on Mommy's lap.

"G" with all the kids.

Little Miss snuggling with PaPa.

The Fun of Fall

It's been a little crazy...selling our house, moving, dealing with sickness, and juggling "regular" life in the process...but we've managed to also squeeze in some great family fun this Fall, and I wanted to share some of it with you.

We didn't get to sent everyone Halloween greetings,
but our little bride and Tigger had a great time scavenging for candy!

Lots of opportunities for candy at Daddy's work!

Little Tigger had so much fun going cube to cube in search of loot.

Grandpa and his princess bride.

Grandma and Tigger.

It was a long day...

...for everyone

Mommy and the kiddos at our church's October 31st party (yes, I'm dressed like a pirate).

The great weather prompted a trip to one of our favorite getaway places...Silver Dollar City.

Daddy and Little Man ride the caterpillars.

Little Miss's favorite ride...the flying elephants.

Little Miss writes a letter to Santa at his workshop.
(It was a little hard to get into the Christmas spirit when it was 84 degrees outside!)

I guess Christmas lights bring out the best in all of us. :)