Courtney

Courtney's dance recital is quickly approaching. I can't wait to see my little princess up on stage. I don't care if she does anything besides standing there looking pretty. I love her costume this year and she looks precious in it. I will try to post video of the dress rehearsal, but it won't be for a couple of weeks. Here are some pictures...

MacArthur Beach State Park

We decided to hit the beach yesterday. I had a meeting up near our church so we decided to find a place nearby. We went to MacArthur Beach State Park. It was very nice. There's a nature center there as well. It's kind of hike to get to the beach from the parking lot, but we walked it on the way out there. The kids were hungry and tired so we rode the golf cart tram on the return trip to the parking lot. The kids had a blast. Benjamin and Zachary love body surfing in the waves. Courtney was having a great time too.

Third grade trip to Epcot

I still cannot believe that 8 and 9 year olds go to Epcot on a field trip! Of course, that probably explains why Ben's class had 14 chaperones for the 17 students that went from his class. Other classes didn't have quite the parental turnout. It made for an interesting day. We went around Epcot in a group of 14. At some points, we added other groups and were up around 20 or so. It was a very long day. I was up and getting ready at 4:45 am. Ben and I left the house at 5:45 am and the bus pulled out of the school parking lot before 6:30 am. We got to Epcot around 9 am and had a full day ahead of us. We started out at Test Track, which the kids loved. We then headed to Soarin and some of the other rides they wanted to do. Everyone got along great and it was an enjoyable day. We were back at the school around 9:45 and home before 10 pm. It was a mess trying to back out of the parking spots with the line of parents there to pick up kids. Here are some of the pictures of Ben and his friends.

Ben's final soccer game of spring 2010 season

Ben's final soccer game of the spring season took place on a Wednesday night. This team wasn't as successful as the team he was on in the fall, but he had fun.

Trip to the Keys!

Andy really wanted to go to Key West for his birthday so after soccer on May 8th, we got in the car and started driving south. We stopped at Sombrero Beach in Marathon to eat lunch. The kids loved the Publix chicken tenders, rolls, and sub. We didn't spend much time there since we were trying to get to Key West. We got to Key West late afternoon. We walked the kids throughout Key West. They were ready for a cool treat before we even got to Duval Street. We took them to Margaritaville for nachos, ice cream, and smoothies. They had a great time at the Margaritaville store too. We went to Mallory Square where they got to see some street entertainers and then we finally walked back to Turtle Krawls for dinner. We got in the car around sunset and started the drive to Miami. We got there about midnight. After about 2 hours of sleeping in the car, the kids were wide awake. Courtney was still awake at 2am. Andy was very happy though. He stocked up on Key West t-shirts and will survive until the next trip to Key West. Of course, if he had it his way, he would be there every weekend.

Courtney's parents tea - May 6

Courtney's class held a parents' tea on May 6th. It was so cute. Each of us got a short book in which they interviewed her about us. It included our names,ages, favorite foods, etc. It was so cute. They sang a couple of songs and then they served us snacks. Courtney brought me a plate first. She had the teacher give her 4 grapes for me. It was too funny. She went up to get Andy food and came back with crackers, cheese, fruit, and M&Ms. Her plate was full of goldfish and M&Ms. We loved every minute of it.

Andy's 36th Birthday

Andy turned 36 on May 4th. Of course, it was during the week and life was crazy. Tuesdays are dance class and soccer practice days so he spent the dance class watching the boys and the soccer practice on the soccer field. After practice, they met us for pizza. Of course, we had cake and ice cream when we got home. We ended up going to Key West the following Saturday to make his birthday wish come true!

Mom's 60th Birthday trip to Disney!

My mom turned 60 this year so the family went to the Disney area to celebrate. We stayed at Disney's Animal Kingdom Lodge. The kids had a wonderful time looking out the windows for giraffes, zebras, antelopes, ostrich, etc. The hotel also has night vision goggles set up so it was neat to see them at night. The kids love every pool that has a water slide and would have been content to spend an entire day going down the slide. We spent May 1st at Animal Kingdom with my parents. After our visit to the park, we met my brothers and their families for dinner at the House of Blues restaurant at Downtown Disney. Everyone had a great time and it was very special for my mom.