The Dugans Take Disney World

I have the distinct feeling, as I sit down to  write this, that this could be one of those blog posts that  ends up going on for ages.  Because let's face it, and use past history as a judge...if I can ramble on incessantly about a weekend full of trips to Target, putting away laundry and cooking for the family, I will surely go off the deep end with a major vacation like Disney World.  So, for all of our sakes, I'm going to attempt to boil this down into a reasonable list of highlights.  You can thank me later.

 

 

For starters, our air travel was pretty uneventful, considering the crowd we were lugging around.  I will say that the iPads and the kids' DS'es (how do you make that plural?) were life savers.  We also had plenty of snacks and the like to occupy them on the flight and in the airport.  We stayed the night before our flight at the hotel that is attached to the Philadelphia Airport.  This turned out to be a very good call and avoided early morning travel that would have done nothing but put everyone into a bad mood.  We arrived and made good use of the Magical Express that picks you up at the airport and transports you directly to your resort.  My absolute favorite part of that exercise is the fact that you don't have to get your luggage at the airport.  It "magically" arrives in your room later.  Luckily we had enough supplies with us to not waste any time in hitting the parks as soon as we landed.

 

 

We  spent much of our time at the Magic Kingdom because that's where the kids wanted to be.  Crowds were manageable, temperatures were only a fraction  of where they are headed in the Florida summertime, and the parks were just as magical as I remembered them being.  We were lucky enough to be able to  catch the parade in the Magic Kingdom our first night, something I hadn't banked on being able to do, but it was fun.  Lauren fell asleep JUST before it began, but Joshua really enjoyed getting his first peek at Mickey Mouse, and his spotting of Captain Hook!  Well worth it, in my opinion.

 

We were able to do some swimming one afternoon at our resort.  The pool there was absolutely gorgeous, and provided a great spot to unwind from two days at the parks.  The kids seemed to really enjoy  themselves.  Joshua and Lauren are both showing some improvement in their swimming skills.  And given the fact that squeezing time into our schedules for formal lessons seems unlikely, I was really pleased to see them enjoying the water and the waterslide at the hotel without needing to be held or caught at the bottom.

 

 One of my highlights of the trip was our trip to Chef Mickey's at the Contemporary Resort on Tuesday morning for a character breakfast.  It was amazing to be able to meet the characters up close, get pictures and autographs, and just have some fun with them without having to stand in the heat in a long line.  As you can imagine, if there were any times that the wheels fell off for our crew, it was in long lines and heat.  So we avoided them both as much as possible.

Also on my list of favorite activities was the Disney Junior show at Hollywood Studios.  The girls absolutely loved it.  And even though Joshua is starting to get too big and too grown up to admit enjoying the likes of Mickey Mouse Clubhouse, Doc  McStuffins, Sofia the First and Jake and the Neverland Pirates, even he enjoyed the show.  The girls cracked me up- dancing, singing along, and clapping like crazy when a character they love showed up on stage.

That evening, we ate dinner at the 50's Prime Time Café- sort of like going to dinner with Leave It To Beaver.  Each table has a mom who makes you set the table, eat your veggies, and mind your manners.  Joshua immediately hit it off with our "mom" and ended up telling her all sorts of jokes and showing her his knowledge of the Presidents.  She was obviously smitten with him, and kept bringing her other waitress friends over to meet her new buddy.  It was great.

This seems a great time to highlight the amazing service we got at every restaurant we ate at with reference to Joshua's allergy.  Every time we sat down, our reservation was flagged with our allergy needs.  Within  minutes, the chef was at our table going over the menu with us and telling us what would be safe choices for Joshua.  Then, each of his meals was specially prepared and brought to him.  We were even able to eat off of a buffet at one of the restaurants, which is nearly unheard of with a severe food allergy.  Disney certainly lived up to its reputation of being a tremendously food allergy friendly resort.  Even all of the snack food was either clearly labeled, or the vendors were able to show us the allergy binder that listed all ingredients and possible cross contaminants.  For a family like us who struggles to find safe places to go/eat, this was a real relief to us and took a lot of the stress out of the vacation for Jason and me.

A high point for Joshua was most definitely the Hall of Presidents in the Magic Kingdom.  I absolutely loved watching his face light up as each of the Presidents was introduced.  We had to laugh because the  show had hardly anyone in it- and our children were certainly the only ones.  The girls were not interested, but it was worth their scrooching just to watch Joshua enjoy himself.

Wednesday was definitely a tough day for the girls in the parks.  Given the fact they both got sick as soon as we got home, I now realize that that probably had something to do with their lack of patience and likelihood to burst into hysterics at the drop of a hat.  But Lauren did get to meet some princesses and get her picture taken with them, which she seemed to enjoy.

That afternoon, the girls and I headed back to the Wilderness Lodge to rest while Daddy and Josh rode some bigger rides.  That day was special for Joshua because Daddy took him to get made up like a pirate.  He really seemed to like that.  Somehow we missed a picture of that on the big camera, although I do have one on my phone that I'll have to see if I can upload.  Our strategy to divide and conquer wasn't what we had intended to do, but when the girls were melting down, we saw no good reason to penalize Josh, so it just worked better to let him have some special time with Daddy while the girls decompressed a bit.

After a long day of travel on the way home starting at 6:45 am and ending at 5:15 when we pulled into our driveway, we were all glad to be home with lots of memories to cherish from this trip.  I absolutely loved the family time together without interruptions.  Although this trip was a lot of work for Jason and me to coordinate and plan for and work to make happen, it was well worth it in our opinions.  The kids had a blast, and so did we.

See you in a few years, Disney!

A Kindergarten Graduate

I wish I had more time to fill in the details of Joshua's Kindergarten graduation last night.  But given the fact that our Disney trip begins tomorrow afternoon and I still haven't finished packing (not even close), I had better be sparse with my words. Suffice it to say that we were beyond proud of Joshua in his performance last night, just like we always are.

 

Tent City

I had to laugh last evening as I stood in the kitchen preparing supper, as the kids were all giggling about the fun they were having in their tents.  Joshua had pulled his Spider Man tent (the gift that keeps on giving, Aunt Libby!) to the landing and had constructed quite a campsite up there.  Bless his heart, he always takes the tent to the landing because Mara isn't allowed to play up there, and he knows that I watch her like a hawk to make sure she doesn't climb the stairs!  The girls wouldn't be outdone and asked for the fire truck tent to be brought up from the basement so that they could have a tent too.  So we had our own little tent city.  But it kept them occupied and happy while I was making our spaghetti and meatballs, and really, what more can a mom ask for at 5:00 after a long day at work?

I am noticing a really sweet relationship developing between Lauren and Mara.  Frankly, I think Lauren is sick of Joshua bossing her around.  So she has moved on to greener pastures.  I love seeing the girls playing happily together.  I know there will be rocky days....like from about age 12 to 18 or so....when they would rather take a beating than be together, but my prayer is that they'll be the kind of sisters who are always there for each other.



 Mara was so happy about playing in the tent that I couldn't even get her to stop for a smile!

I love this big boy....getting bigger by the day it seems right now.  I am still trying to wrap my mind around the fact that he is finished with kindergarten next week.  Just where did that year go?

We have a huge weekend planned.  Today, Joshua is hosting his friend, Luke, for a play day at our house.  He has been begging for this since the beginning of the school year and I was running out of time to keep my promise.  Now hopefully, amidst their excitement, they will hold up their end of the bargain by not ripping the house to shreds.

Tomorrow morning, the girls and I are headed for Lewistown for our (sort of) annual Cousins Day fun!  I cannot wait to see everyone.  This serves as a great little get together since we don't see everyone much anymore except for Christmas time.  So, this gives all of us a chance to be together, and for our kids to play together.  I'm so happy. 

Then, tomorrow evening, Mom and all of the girls (all 7....4 of whom are 4 and under!) will be gussied up to head to the Mother/Daughter banquet at the church.  Let's just hope we can avoid creating a scene at the dinner table with little people who prefer not to sit still.  I'm hoping to make the trip back home on Saturday night provided I can keep my eyes open.  I'm betting two little ladies will be fast asleep in the backseat after a long day of playing, but that's OK.

And then Sunday we'll head to church and hopefully get some great family time in the afternoon to celebrate Mother's Day.  There's nothing I'd rather do than be with Jason and the kids on Sunday, so who knows what we'll get into, but I'm sure it will be wonderful.

What's new?

We seem to be in a pattern of chasing our tails lately.  When I sat down to see what treasures I could find on my camera, it was obvious why I've been feeling like I've been in a tailspin lately.  Goodness--- I don't think we've had much downtime in the past few weeks.  Ever since we got home from Dallas, we've been running from activity to activity.  But I guess that's what the end of the school year is supposed to be like.

Last Thursday evening, we had Joshua's soccer game to attend.  They seem to be having a good time, and that's all that I care about.  Joshua could be seen (and heard) giggling all the way down the field.  He's doing pretty well dribbling the ball, but wasn't able to connect with any goals this time.  Maybe this week...if it doesn't rain.  Which it's supposed to.

After the soccer game Thursday night, we started prepping for Preschool Field Day at the school on Friday morning.  I've come to really look forward to this day because of how much the kids absolutely love it.  Since it involves nursery school, K4 and K5 classes, the activities are pretty low key, but even the kindergarten kids had a great time.  This was our little group.

 The potato sack races always flash me back to my Buchanan Elementary School field days when I was younger, because this was the one activity I absolutely loved.  I found it funny that Mr. Baughman (the school administrator....really the principal) always jumps (literally) right in and plays with the kids.  They love it and hopped their little hearts out to try to beat him to the finish line.

 I don't know what the deal is with the goofy smile here, but Joshua seemed to like the romper stompers.

 After the field day activities, all of the classes give their end of the school year gift to their teachers.  The K5 class decided to make Mrs. Case a scrapbook with individual pages made by each of the children with notes to Mrs. Case or pictures from the year.  She seemed to really enjoy it.  And if you can't tell how loved this teacher is by the way the whole mob of kids surrounded her, believe me, she's loved!  She's a special teacher and has really blessed each of these children this year.  I had a really nice talk with her in line for lunch and she was telling me how hard it is each summer when she is at home missing the kids.  She says it takes her a month or so to get over how much she misses them each fall when the new school year starts.  But she says she makes frequent trips to first grade to visit with them and make sure she is continuing to support their learning.  God bless you, Mrs. Case!

 Each of the kids got a medal...which Joshua wore for the rest of the afternoon while he was working at the office with me.  He felt so special.

We were exhausted by the end of the day on Friday.  Like fall down on your face tired.  Suffice it to say we all slept well.


Saturday was a busy running around day and we actually had the divide and conquer strategy going between Jason and I.  He took Josh and headed for the barber shop and to a few other places where we needed things.  I took the girls to take Lauren for a haircut (or a beauty as she called it).  Then we had an extra special treat of taking the girls to Dunkin Donuts for the first time ever.  Joshua can never have anything to do with Dunkin Donuts or any donuts because of peanuts, but I am getting more and more brave with Lauren, knowing that I need to do a full peanut test with her before she starts school in August.  So, she thought she was pretty hot stuff.  Mara loved her donut too, but that apple didn't fall too far from this tree in the way that she adores sweets.  I sat with the girls and enjoyed my cup of coffee, but opted not to blow all of my points for the day on the donut or bagel that I really wanted.  Only 8 pounds to go to my 40 pound weight loss goal, and I am still hanging on to the miracle that I might possibly get there before we leave for Disney in .... 12 days.  Yeah...I know.  But I'm still working on it.

We spent the afternoon playing at home and then ran out for a Rita's run (a summer treat that is really the only one that Joshua can enjoy) and a discovery of a beautiful local area for fishing, walking, and picnicking that I am hopeful we'll make time to enjoy this summer.  Montour Preserve is literally about 8 minutes from our house, and absolutely gorgeous.  I can't wait to pack a picnic and take the kids over there.

Sunday morning we went to church and then were so happy becuase Nana and Pap made a flying trip to our house to see the kids.  We all played outside together, blew lots of bubbles, shot some hoops and my Dad helped Jason prep their fishing rods for their hopeful first fishing outing this weekend.

Well...more to come tomorrow, I hope.  We're on major Disney countdown here....absolutely cannot wait!

We Are!

Although I usually fill the blog with stories about the kids, I just had to share these pictures.  Jason and I were lucky enough to be able to get tickets to go to see the PSU Coaches Caravan this afternoon in Williamsport.  It was a lot of fun for Earl to be able to go along, but we sure missed Emily!  I wasn't sure what to expect, but as it turned out, we had a chance to actually meet Coach O'Brien and take some pictures and get autographs.

Last night, Joshua wrote Coach O'Brien a note, and even drew a football play for them to try.  The first picture  is when Jason gave it to him.  He laughed and said he appreciated it, and that maybe they would have to try running his play.  Then he said, "Wait a minute...we already do that one!"  He was very gracious and kind.

Several PSU coaches talked, all leading to Bill O'Brien's comments about PSU Athletics and the pride of so many alumni, fans and supporters who have helped to lift the university through a dark and trying year.  He urged all of us to pack the stands this fall for the games, and promised that he would continue to lead the team to perform at its best while focusing on keeping the academics strong at PSU.  I was especially proud to hear reference to THON as one of the things all of the coaches are proudest of at Penn State.

 

It was a very fun afternoon.  And it made me even more excited to start looking forward to PSU Football in the fall.

In the morning...

Just a quick glimpse into life this morning at our house after Josh left for school. We had a visit from Supergirl whose transformation completely...and I do mean COMPLETELY...trashed the playroom. We had a giggle fest with the baby that had Lauren and I both in stitches, and capped it off with a donut for Mara. My goodness was she ever happy about that.

Just a normal morning.