You asked for it...

Hannah wondering what all the hubbub is about.

All of the kids passing the time before we leave. I love when they play like this.

Hannah "helping" pack.

Joshua kept running by with the suitcase and the whizzing back by again and again. I finally figured out why when they stopped and Leah's head popped out. It was a blast. We all took turns!

Vacation Day 1 we spent driving down to Cinci, about 4 hours with a quick lunch stop. Sadly the DVD player in the van quit working so the kids had to rough it for the drive. Poor things.

Vacation Day 2 we headed to the Newport Aquarium. We are aquarium junkies and so if there is one near our destination, we will always put it on our agenda.

Hannah visited in style!

Frogs.

Everyone signing with the scuba diver in the tank.

Proof that I was there too and that I need to get serious about my eating habits again....anywhoo.

Speaking of eating habits, after the aquarium, we hit Johnnie Rockets.

We all loved the dance show by the wait staff.

Nope, no mini-me here. I don't know what ya'll are talking about.

Vacation Day 2

We visited the Creation Museum. Loved it all over again.

They are alot bigger this year than they were last. I'm hoping to have a comparison pic up soon.

Those dinosaurs are scary up close.

For the Frye Guys. This is what it looks like before all the snow melts. Remember our lovely picnic last year?

Relaxing in the garden of Eden.

Joshua hanging with Adam and Eve.

Story time.

We are from Texas, and so when we see a dinorsaur, of course, we saddle it and hop on for a ride!

Hannah wants to know what happened to just riding horses.

Ahhh, this is much better.

The Rest of Vacation

We spent at Great Wolf Lodge. We loved loved loved it. Can't wait to go back. Actually, Leah asks every day when we are going back. I had some problems getting my camera adjusted right, so most of these are awful quality shots, but they are the best I have and it is just too cool a place not to share pics.

Doing the Cub Club craft after the Wolf tour. We were the only family that did that tour so it was the Joshua and Leah show, they loved it!

Coats and boots GOOD BYE. Waterpark. Here we come!

Big waterpark, little girl.

Ready, set....

GOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!

Guys, this is what warm water feels like. See you can swim in it and it doesn't turn your lips blue.

You can do it...just a few more steps.

Leah has spotted her home for the rest of the trip. The SLIDES!!

Hannah decides to check out the scenery first.

Joshua lived for the basketball water court.

Hannah is pretty sure that this wet stuff is NOT safe!

Joshua and is friends, BBall 1 and BBall 2.

Yup, this stuff is great to look at.

The only thing better than basketball.....WAVE POOL!!!

Slow relaxing lazy river....nope, still not safe.

Everyone else loves it though.

Tree show and story time before bed.

Wylie came out for the bedtime story.

Alot of the kids come down in their pj's.

Leah does not do big scary over stuffed, over sized furry creatures.

This was the coolest floor ever. You can step on and chase these little balls around the image. Our kids would spend as long as we wanted here. So Robert and I would sit at a little table to the side and enjoy cheesecake and coffee.

CAN'T WAIT TO GO BACK!!!! Saving our pennies now!

In case you were wondering......
Yes I am still keeping and have kept my new years resolution to change. I haven't missed a single day, although my most awesomest husband in the world has helped a few nights and I have been up at midnight doing dishes a few, I have gone to bed every single night this year with a sink with NO DIRTY DISHES IN IT!!! Ah huh! That's right! Who's bad!!! Oh yeah! That's me!!!!



yup yup yup


*************************************************************
FAMILY ANNOUNCEMENT
(non family readers might not get the full intent in this little drivvle)
To my beloved Grandpa Kelly (yes, you know I love you even if I don't ever call and return your HYlarious voice mails) and all other Texas family members and those who call themselves family members and ESPECIALLY those who live like family members and wish they really were family members and also to those that pretend they are family members but aren't really and to those that we all assume are family members and have long forgotten that they aren't really,
I realize that ya'll call me "The General" and for good reason. I can be pretty powerful/bossy/demanding/orgazationally brilliant/pushy/loud/bossy at times....only when needed, of course, like when the outhouse gets blown over and no one has picked it up and put it back in use and other such emergency situations. I also do realize and openly acknowledge that Sweetie has brought me and our beautiful children up to the land of snow and ice to live and shiver, far far from you. And I also do hereby acknowledge our fond and frequent memories of our beloved family and state afar to the south and our intense jealousy of fabulous weather in afore mentioned state.

HOWEVER, I want to clear up the misunderstanding/misconception/misinterpretation/delusion/authority misplaced...etc etc etc et al, of the recent weather events in said beloved state. Even in my blusteriest state, I cannot nor would I subject my beloved familial persons to snow....and especially not multiple times in one year. Really! I declare, I DO NOT know why anyone would ever think I'd send snow to Texas! It wasn't me!

Love,
The General

Friday Kid Update

I haven't done this in a while, so let me jog my tired little brain and see what I can remember write about.

Joshua- His reading abilities astonished me this week. We do lots of school throughout each day and thru the week, but I haven't been sitting down and having him read to me alot lately. I had checked out some level 1 readers for him from the library and have noticed him grabbing random books and reading them to himself alot lately. So just to check in the other day, I asked him to read me a page from the book he was currently reading. I was amazed. He flew right thru the page, no problems. This isn't some basic Dick and Jane kind of book either. I was just so impressed and excited for him. I love love love books and I hope to pass that onto my children. Seems the bug might be biting baby #1. (Smith family, thank you for Tombo's book. That was the one he was reading!)

Leah- Leah leah leah. She's a challenge right now. She decided this week that she wanted to play the picky eater card again and see how it went. We don't do picky eaters in our house. We have a rule that we are all to be grateful for what the Lord has provided to nourish us, whether we care for the food or not. So Tuesday morning she got to eat her food from Monday night she didn't want. Then, Thursday night she decided to give it a go again. She skipped eating it at breakfast and lunch today. After nap time, her plate was mysteriously missing. She got up and threw it in the trash. So, you better believe that I picked it and the food up and put it right back on the table.* She finally ate it about 45 minutes before dinner time. You'll never guess what the VILE, AWFUL, NO GOOD, NASTY offending foods were! Grassfed, organic steaks off the grill, creamed spinach with lots of fresh garlic, and mashed potatoes. Serious!

Hannah- A little toot to be sure, but she is too stinkin cute for me to crack down on her and train her any better right now. You just CANNOT get past those big blue eyes! So, here are some Hannahease for you, because with this one, you need it!
Juice really means water.
Milk really means a juice of any sort.
Actual milk is not spoken of because she doesn't understand why anyone would drink that nasty stuff, lol.
This means I want what you have or anything within a 5 block radius and you better figure out what it is on your own because I'm giving you no other clues.
If This repeated over and over doesn't work, she will give you a "please" a few times and then right before she loses patients with your failure to comply she will say "good girl".

Pictures soon. hopefully this weekend!

*I did make sure that the food wasn't laying on any rotten salmonella laiden food, but I can't promise I wouldn't have given it to her either way.

More randomness...
-We compromised and did both a Dave Ramsey vacation and a relaxing one. See, we had the money saved to relax and do nothing the whole vacation, but we've DR'd it for so long that well, spending frivolously is just repulsive to us now...most of the time ;-). So we had breakfast buffets every morning at our hotels, then ate veggies and dip and hummus and crackers for lunch in our room. Much healthier and cheap. Then ate dinner out. It worked out well. And Hannah was excited to see her beloved broc broc at lunch.
-It is sunny and 40+ degrees here all week. The snow is melting!!! Praise God. Spring might just show up on time here this year!

Hold On To Your Hats

Whirlwind, comin through.....
-Had a whirlwind leading up to vacation, busy busy busy.
-We took off for some down time. We spent two nights at the Embassy Suites (best hotel chain of all time) south of Cincinnati and visited the Newport Aquarium and the Creation Museum. We give the aquarium 2 stars, we give the creation museum 5 Lachpach stars...our highest rating. Then we checked into Great Wolf Lodge and loved every minute of it. Joshua's favorite part was the wave pool, Leah LOVED the slides and rode them over and over and over and Hannah loved the water, as long as she didn't have to get in it. She and I stood with our toes close but not in the water alot. Sadly, Leah and Hannah got pretty sick and ran a high fever the last night we were there, so we cut our last day in the waterpark and headed home.
-We got home and my friend Erin was admitted to the hospital and so we went and picked up their six children. They stayed with us for three nights and we all had a good time. Things were really smooth and pretty easy, but no matter how it shakes up, 6 babies 5 and under is just exhausting.
-Tomorrow, I will prop my feet up and pretend that I don't have to miraculously whip this house into shape to start hosting a small group in our home on Friday after Robert is out of town on Thursday and Friday.
-Hannah is now 18 months old. She's a hoot.
-Tomorrow is day 14 since our pox party. I'm hoping to wake up to three poxy kids.