Princess Day!!!!

Well it is finally here - the day of being a princess for the girls. It started early with an appointment at the Bippity Boppity Boutique. Abby and Megan dove right in and started shopping for which dress they were going to pick out and accessories. So many choices! And the winners are......... Abby chose Snow White and Megan picked out Tiana. This is our special dressing room where it all was set out for us. Unfortunately it was as close as Megan got to her outfit, she freaked out, threw a fit, and didn't want to wear anything. So we gave it all back to the fairy godmothers and Tim and Megan went on rides while Abby continued the transformation to Snow White.

This was the closet that you got to pick from. Quite a lot of options. After you tried on your outfit you went back to the lobby to wait for your assigned fairy godmothers. Abby was very happy if you couldn't tell..

Already quite the poser - and we even haven't done hair/make up/nails.

This was our Fairy Godmother Marisol who is doing Abby's hair. She went with the fairy tale style and was busy getting pampered.

All done and ready to go - we had to do a little crown upgrade from the head band though. She has officially been sprinkled with fairy dust and made her wish to be a princess.

One of the many princesses we met today. Tiana and Naveen were very nice and Abby talked quite a bit with them.

For lunch we had our character meal at Cinderella's castle. This was quite an experience. First we met Cinderella - then Jasmine, Aurora, Belle, and Ariel! All in one spot, plus got an excellent meal and dessert! Abby and Megan were thrilled! Megan actually hugged Belle if you can believe that. I think she might be warming up to the whole character thing - or is just copying Abby.

After that we went on a mission to find Snow White - who on all days, was sick today and doing no more meet and greets. We thought we would find her over at Epcot, but it was really true - she was sick. So while we were at Epcot we met Mulan - almost as good, but not the same. We'll be returning tomorrow to take a trip around the world, and enjoy some beverages :)

Abby loved being a princess, every minute of it. Until we got home and all she wanted to do was take everything off. I'm sure I'll be trying to get it back on tomorrow though so we can see Snow White. She had many compliments from other park guests and the Princesses.

So an end to another busy day - we were at the parks for about 10 hours if you can believe that, and now it's time for bed. We're going to try to sleep in tomorrow, that is, past 630 - if we're lucky.

Animal Kingdom

Today we went to the other Kingdom in Disney World - Animal Kingdom. This is by far one of the best places to meet classic characters and have short lines. The girls saw many characters and got a lot of autographs. This park is only open from 9-6 and we spent most of the day there actually. The entryway - and the excitement builds! Our first stop was going to be the Kilomanjaro Safaris but then we ran into a couple of friends.......

Lilo and Stitch were there to greet us. Megan wasn't that happy to be around Stitch.

On to the Safari - we had a bumpy safari ride but saw quite a few animals and some were very close to the truck since they are used to them. Anything from hippos, to rhinos, to osteriches.

Abby's favorite autograph of the day by far - Pocahontas. We thought we might have run into Mulan but did not hang out or look very hard in Asia for us.

We did go to the Finding Nemo Musical - Abby, Megan and Theo loved it, and I think the adults did too. Here they are in the fish tank before Darla gets Nemo.

And last but not least - Mickey Mouse. We also met with Goofy, Donald, Minnie, Winnie the Pooh, Erore, Tigger, and Miss Bunny (Thumper's girlfriend). So quite a few characters and autorgraphs. Megan actually went up to Mickey and gave him her book and hugged him - first character ever! She was pretty friendly with Minnie as well, and Miss Bunny.

So a very busy day with outside animals and characters. Tomorrow is another day at Magic Kingdom - and yes, the much anticipated and talked about day that Abby and Megan get to be princesses!!! You can expect a lot of photos for sure. Now it's off to bed to rest for the big day, it will be hard.....because we are so excited!

Magic Kingdom - 1st day

Monday - on a mission to find some princesses!!!! Here we are on the tram - to get to the monorail that takes you to Disney World - it's a process I tell you! All excited and ready to go.

We made a potty stop and encountered our first parade - Celebrate It was the theme. The girls were happy to see some "real" characters finally.

We finally found that darn castle....I think Abby ran to it pulling her Aunt Betsy with her - she was waiting for no one!

At the castle - guess what - another show! And this time princesses! The girls were thrilled. So we haven't really even made it down Main Street yet and we have seen a parade and music show.

Our first character was Alice and the White Rabbit. Alice bailed on us right before we got up front. After a minor meltdown we decided to stay in line to get the White Rabbit's autograph. If you have seen our Christmas cards - that's about how well Megan is doing with the characters. Abby is loving them though.

We were going to get in line for the Dumbo ride and who should come along....Mary Poppins! So we did a little dance with her and a small quartet.

Then she let the kids follow her to the photo shoot area. It was a LARGE miracle - we were second in line and no waiting! Mary Poppins commented on how well Abby danced with her. Abby's response "I know." She was very happy about seeing her.

Our first ride of the day was the carousel and we sent Grandpa to go stand in line for Dumbo while we rode the Snow White ride after the carousel. It was a good way to knock out 3 rides pretty quickly. As you can see everyone is having fun.

Abby has been getting random autographs from "important" people. This little girl sat next to us while we waited for the 3 pm parade and since she was Rapunzel - Abby needed her autograph. It was pretty cute - then the girl asked for Abby's autograph!

Another parade - and we finally saw Ariel, Belle, and Tiana. I am sure they will be on our list for the next couple of days.

During the parade, Tim waiting 1.5 hours in line so we could see Rapunzel - the highlight of the day. Here we are dancing with Rapunzel and Flynn - Megan is attached to me as usual when there is a character around. This was really a great character greet. They got to color first before the characters came out, then did a group dance, then got to meet the characters - and not a short one. We had a good couple of minutes of photos and talking with them.

Our group photo with Rapunzel and Flynn - Abby was thrilled - Megan was beyond nap time, exhausted and ready to crash.

That was where we ended our day at Magic Kingdom. Both kids fell asleep on the way home. We're hopefully just going to have a relaxing evening with some swimming. It was extremely hot so lots of water is on our menu.

Tomorrow - probably more Magic Kingdom :)

Orlando Arrival - Saturday/Sunday

We have safely arrived in Orlando. Saturday was mostly flying as we took an afternoon flight to not be that rushed and to hopefully take advantage of nap time. The girsl instead both watched their DVD players the whole time and were quiet and good. Megan fell asleep after we landed. We got our rental car and got to our resort easily. With the time change and later arrival it was a little rough of a night, but we are adjusting. Here are a couple pictures of our resort. Tim's parents have a time share with Sheraton Vistana and we each have 2 bedroom units that have been recently remodeled and are very nice. Our kitchen.

Our dining/living room area.

We went to Downtown Disney on Sunday evening after some swimming for dinner. Abby saw her first princesses there - they were unfortunately statues. Notice she has her autograph book with her - just in case.

Aurora too fo course, she was really wanting to see some real princesses she was already tired of the fake ones. Megan wasn't sure about the whole large statue thing.

Megan and Theo doing a little dancing while we waited for fireworks.

It was a late evening with some cranky/crashing kids. Monday morning is Magic Kingdom - Happiest Place on Earth right?? We'll let you know....

Bossier City, LA

This past weekend Tim had to take a work trip to his job site in Bossier City, LA and the girls and I were lucky enough to get to tag along for the ride and get a little escape from Columbia to some warmer weather.


Rolling bags are ready to go. The girls were very excited and extremely well behaved.....we hope it continues to next weekend!



Here is our plane - yep, we drove right up to it. No security, no checking baggage, it was fabulous. Unfortunately next weekend we'll be back to flying commercial :(

Our red carpet entry.

All ready for take off and ready for warmer weather.

In flight entertainment. We just got Megan's DVD player, heaven forbid if the girls would have to share and it was the best investment ever! They watched movies the whole time and Tim and I got a nap in.

After we checked in to the hotel, Tim went to work, and I had to work, so Megan took a nap and Abby watched a movie. Finally around 4:30 we hit the Louisiana Boardwalk. There was a high school band there that the girls found entertaining. The cheerleaders and drum majors were very animated so that was fun to watch.

We ended our evening at an Italian restaurant and walked the river walk back to the hotel. Bossier City is also known for their casinos and this bridge that has lights - not sure what it's called exactly but it was nice to look at. The weather was perfect for an evening stroll.

Of course on our way back we made a stop at the carousel. We had to ride that the following night as well. The girls were given the choices of the carousel or ice cream - Abby's first answer was both, then when forced to pick one chose the carousel.



Saturday morning Tim was at work early so the girls and I got up and were out of the hotel by 7:30. Little did we know that nothing is open or available until 10 AM!! So we walked to the IHop and we were the 2nd group there at 8 AM! We wasted as much time as possible eating there then found this playground connected to the Joe's Crab Shack (that was closed). Sneaky Papke that I am, we found a way in so the girls could play until the stores opened for some shopping.


All this playground to play with and they preferred to play in the rocks and bury themselves and make "rock angels".

They are cute sometimes!

After a little shopping we headed over to Tim's work site to check out the job. They had poured concrete that morning so we stayed out of the way until later. Had to get all geared up with our hard hats!


Can't forget the orange vests - Abby was pretty excited - at least at that point.



Ready to cross the railroad tracks and see the job.


Here are some of the concrete forms they poured earlier.

After lunch Tim was free to spend some time with us so we went to Gators & Friends alligator park and exotic zoo. What else are you going to do while you are in LA? Plus Tim's new favorite show is Swamp People.

Yes I am holding an alligator. It is about 3 ft long and that is my "take the picture fast because if this thing moves I will throw it" smile. Megan and I had waited in line for this picture opportunity and she bailed/bolted as soon as we sat down so I sucked it up and held the alligator. I would prefer them on luggage, boots, or a purse.


On to the "exotic" zoo portion. There were some white deer. We purchased some food to feed them. Tim would hand feed the animals and Abby would throw some through the fence about a foot away from the animal.



The closest you'll see Tim to a live buck!


The Shetland ponies were adorable and there was a baby one as well. Megan finally got closer to the fence to see them. She was not that thrilled about the live animal aspect of this trip after the alligator experience.

The nicest camel we ever met.

The closest Megan will get to an alligator - at the gift shop. It took her a while to actually hold these. Abby was holding them like I did with the live one and saying how cute they were.

And what trip wouldn't be complete without a trip to Bass Pro Shops. They actually had alligators as well but we were there to late to see them. We had gone swimming after the Alligator park, then ate dinner at the Salt Lick Steakhouse (delicious!) then Tim wanted to check out Bass Pro. It was still a gorgeous evening and we were out walking past 9 pm but the girls were fading and we had an early flight in the morning.

We had a great time and it was a very nice escape from reality for a short while. This weekend is the beginning of our DISNEY WORLD VACATION!!! Yes that is how Abby says it every time, apparently DISNEY WORLD must be a louder word than everything else. I am sure we'll have plenty of photos and updates along the way as it's going to be a great trip with many memories. Maybe a couple of princesses too!

St. Pat's Survived

This past weekend was our annual St. Pat's party. It has changed dramatically since the first 3 parties we had and that has to do with the photos below. We think we have had 6 parties, with 2 years off, one for the Rolla 100th and one year off after Megan was born. Parenting has definitely changed the agenda a little bit of the festivities, but we're still having a good time with our extra attendees!


The weather was decent on Saturday - a lot warmer than when we actually got to Stephens Lake Park, but it was good for the kids to get out and play and burn some energy. We actually got them all to hold still for about 15 seconds and this is what we got.


The two newest babies, Reagan Resnik (on left) and Allison Cowan (right). They were sleeping in their car seats for the other photo so here's some tummy time back home. The babies are only 1 day apart and while at the house they each rolled over from back to tummy for the first time - 1 day apart! They are both very good babies and were very happy the whole weekend despite all the different people and things going on at once.

We did manage to get a boat race in on Friday night, it was slightly pitiful, but it was done. No rematches though, one was a enough. Between all the food - both fried on Friday, then in the "buffet of crock-pots" on Saturday it was an aroma filled weekend. I'm still trying to air out the house.....

So until next year....another St. Pat's is survived and complete in the books.

Happy St. Patrick's Day (delayed)

Our festivities will begin this evening for St. Pat's but just wanted to share a shot of the girls looking cute in their green.