Carolina Blue Ridge (Teaser Clip)

2 Years, 22 Weeks.



Here is a short preview of our trip to North Carolina last week.  I hope to post the long version real soon!

I Like To Move It Move It...

2 Years, 21 Weeks.


No, I'm not talking about the party dance mix, made famous by those kooky characters from the animation movie Madagascar.

I'm talking, instead, about the Grodack family, formerly of Winter Park.  It's official: they have moved across the state and have made residence here in our subdivision in Ocoee, thanks to finally having better luck with a second lender and appraiser 2 weeks ago.  They closed last Friday afternoon and immediately moved in over the weekend, since they had been staying at a vacation rental after having to move out of their old house the week prior.  Your remember the debacle.

It's so very nice to have them as neighbors; they are a friendly bunch.  And it feels surreal, having to go visit them and it only taking less than a minute's commute.  We look forward to a lot fun having them so close!

Here are this week's highlights:

• On Friday Tangie and some colleagues went to do a team building event at Farris and Foster's, a chocolate shop that allows people to create and design their own chocolate pieces.  She had a lot of fun, and brought home tons of that sweet stuff.  As the Grodacks were starting their moving process that day we hosted dinner for them and Duncan's parents, and opened up a special bottle of grape juice to celebrate with them.

"I'd like to call this chocolate meeting to order..."

A toast to the new homeowners!

Braelyn wanted in on the celebration! 

I think the grape juice made her konk out!

• Sabbath we attended church, and then hosted lunch back at our place with the Grodacks and Bergherms.  We would hang out that afternoon, while the kids took their naps.  Later that evening Duncan, Bruce, and I loaded up the big U-Haul with their large furniture in storage and then unloaded it all at the Grodack's new house.  It was very fun and exciting, and it almost seemed as if all three families were moving in together into a very large apartment!  My forearms would be screaming at me by the end of the night. Thank God for Icy Hot!

Going to church, Braelyn wasn't willing to put up her hands with the other two.

The twins supposedly as farm animals.

Brae and Calleigh play dress up while waiting for the dads to arrive with the goods.

We originally planned to do the move early Sunday morning but it was much cooler Saturday night.
We awoke the next morning to rain.  Good call on the switch! 

We tried to keep the kids pre-occupied with a movie on Corey's laptop while all the parents were unloading.

• Sunday morning Lala came to help us with the kids, as we continued to help the Grodacks in their move.  Tangie took the twins to a birthday party midday, before zipping down to Boca Raton for two days for training.  I spent the majority of the afternoon helping Duncan paint the living room, with the Bergs coming to help as well.  We were all tired puppies at the end of the weekend.

Fun ride with Mommy to the birthday party.

All the kiddos eating lunch.

Abbie and her cake.  Her mother Jackie and I attended Forest Lake Academy together.

• Lala stayed with us until Tuesday morning, with Tangie arriving later that evening.  We hung out with the Grodack girls at the pool Monday morning, me taking Brae to school early both days Tangie was out.  We introduced Corey and her crew to one of our favorite parks on Wednesday, which, she pointed out via GPS on her iPhone, was located not 3 blocks away from where a break in and murder just happened a few weeks ago.  Great, just great.  

Aubree joins the twins on the seesaw.

I recruited the Grodack girls to push the twins on the swings!

Brae and Calleigh and part of their Eager Beaver class at Adventurers.

Working on their shape craft.

Lookin' cool at Costco!

Washing up before dinner.
Kohl is on tippy toes which makes him look much taller than Maddy.

Random:

Brae was student helper one day last week and had to bring a "Me Box" to share
some things about her with her class.

Quotes:

• Maddy and Kohl were arguing over a toy mermaid.  This was how the conversation went:

          Maddy:  "I want dolly."
          Kohl:  "No, is princess."
          Maddy:  "No, it's Barbie!"
          Kohl:  "No, is princess!"
          Maddy:  [getting agitated]  "No, IT"S BARBIE!"
          Kohl:  "No, is Ariel."
          Maddy:  "[pause]...No, it's princess..."

          Just make up your minds already!!

• Although a model student, she still has her moments, as noted by her teacher last Friday:

Should we be worried?

• I felt like I was the chaperone Dad, taking our teenage daughters to a concert or something, when  I took both Brae and Calleigh to Adventurers on Wednesday evening.  We were driving on Bear Lake Rd when I had to stop because a driver several cars in front of me was making a left turn and was waiting for a gap with the oncoming cars on the other side.  That's when the girls became SO dramatic:

          Calleigh:  "Ugh.  This is THE WORST!"

          Brae:  "I hate traffic!"

          Calleigh:  "This is A DISASTER!"

          Such divas.  We were practically stopped for less than ten seconds.

Best buds.  And now, neighbors too.

Have a great weekend!

Pools Rush In

2 Years, 20 Weeks



There is something Florida doesn't have a shortage on:  swimming pools.  Public, private, community, residential, water parks and resorts.  There are pools everywhere! And we were given a chance to take advantage of some of them this past holiday weekend.

I mean, what's Labor Day without getting in some kind of water recreation, right?

A few weeks ago we were invited to join the Bergherms at Wyndham Bonnet Creek Resort down in Disney World where Jennifer's mother is a points member.  We had never been or even seen the resort during our infamous resort hopping adventures, so it was a welcomed invite.  That and the place was supposed to be massive, with plenty of water fun for the families.  I'm talking 5 separate swimming pools, 2 lazy rivers, and 2 water slides, a kiddie pool and spray zone, and numerous hot tubs, not to mention a miniature golf course and playground.  This resort had it all!  And what was really cool was that all the pools and activities were spread out around the large lake in the middle of it all, which meant an hour or so in each one as we made our way around the place. It felt like we were going to a different hotel/resort each time we changed pools, essentially pool hopping!  We were joined by the Grodacks and Jennifer's mother and sister with her 2 kids, so it was a nice sized group, and we enjoyed the fun, company, and food throughout the entire day.  It was a very tired crew when we got back home close to nine that evening.

Wyndham Bonnet Creek [stock photo]

Mommy keeping an eye on the twins...

while I watched Braelyn go down the big water slide, wearing Calleigh's goggles.

Kohlden loving the pool.

Brae and Cal hugging it out.

A quick break for lunch!

Back to the pools again!

Afternoon snack break...

and then on to yet another pool!

Tuckered out!

The following day was Monday, the actual holiday, so Tangie and Braelyn were both off from work and school.  We made plans to meet the Bergs down at Disney again, as they had to be checked out from Bonnet Creek by 10.  We took them to the Animal Kingdom Lodge, as that was one of the resorts we hadn't brought them before when we introduced them to resort hopping.  The kids got to see the animals and we even participated in an "animal tracking experience" where one of the guides hid a stuffed Mickey Mouse somewhere on the grounds and the kids had to find it using a tracking device with an antennae.  Afterwards we were given polished stone pendants as rewards for participating in the activity!  All for free!  Then we drove down to Disney's Boardwalk where we had lunch at the ESPN Zone, before hooking up with the Grodacks at their temporary living establishment.

Looking out to see the animals.

Kohl joins the girls for a photo op.

Following the guides on their trek.

Brae held the device while Blake and Bruce held the antennae.

Maddy hangs around the playground...

and has a quiet moment on the Boardwalk.

Kohlden running on the hotel grounds.

Now that's a big chair!

So, the Grodacks have had quite the experience over the past several weeks in regards to their new house, thanks in part to a very parsimonious lender and, let's say, some inadequate appraisers.  Anyway, I'm not going to divulge more of their unfortunate dealings, so if you want to read more in-depth about it you can read Corey's post(s) on that situation on her blog by clicking here.   In the meantime, they had temporarily relocated to a vacation rental Corey had found online, at the Vista Cay Resort down near I-Drive.  They are staying there for only a week, as they found out just before booking it that they finally were going to be able to close on the 7th of September!  We are so very happy for them!

The pool at Vista Cay Resort.

Kohlden takes the first leap!

Just an absolutely perfect day.

Duncan, in repose.

But with them staying at a vacation resort, we couldn't let the pool or opportunity to hang out with all the British tourists go to waste, so they had us come over after lunch and join them for the afternoon and supper.  The pool was great and the kids had so much fun; I took it upon myself to play camp counselor for a good half hour for some organized activities so that the other adults could lay out and relax in the sun.  Corey cooked up some mean homemade pizzas, along with mac 'n cheese for the kids, salad, chips and dips, and brownies for dinner.  We had a blast, and it was another late night heading home.  Fortunately we took advantage of their bathtub and had given the kids baths after the pool, so we didn't have to worry about it when we got home.  Thanks guys!

Pulling the kiddie chain.

Getting them all lined up and situated. 

They always have fun hanging out together, just like their parents!

Here are the other highlights of the week:

• I forgot to mention that we spent Friday evening and Sabbath at Lolo and Lala's in Avon Park.  You may remember that they had taken the twins for us last Wednesday, and so this was part of the plan to pick them back up. We attended Sabbath School AND church service (although I had to leave halfway through the sermon as Kohlden was just a bit too loud with his ramblings) and then had lunch and naps, before heading back up to Orlando that evening.  The grandparents enjoyed having them for a few days, but boy were they exhausted!  Thanks you guys!

Don't drop the baby!

Rough housing with Cousin Lyka.

Kohlden's turn for a ride.

•  And the other days...

She wanted to wear her princess outfit...

and then Kohlden's fire truck costume...at the same time!

Picking up big sister is a favorite part of the day.

We missed Costco last week!

Randoms:

You need a van this big...

to accommodate a family this big.  Good grief!

Now why would you want to camouflage your Porshe?  You might lose it!

Dish of the week:

Sautéed Tilapia, Roasted Beets, and Steamed Baby Squash.

Quotes:

• Brae was taking a shower with Mommy and was inquisitive of her razor when Tangie was shaving her legs.  Tangie explained that it was to help make her legs soft and smooth.  A couple nights later, while getting tucked in for bed, Brae made a quick swipe on Tangie's leg and exclaimed, "Ooh! You need to shave your legs girlie!"

• I was blow drying Brae's hair after baths one evening.  She just had her underwear on, and was intently looking at herself in the mirror:

          Brae:  "Daddy, my boobies are getting bigger."  (Yes, we call them that at our
                     house)

          Me:  "Really?"  (Trying so hard not to laugh)

          Brae:  "Yup.  That means I'm growing."

          Me:  "Yes, you are."

          Brae:  "Soon they'll be as big as Mommy's.  Maybe bigger."

          Me:  "Yeah.  Maybe..."

          Oh.  My.  Word!

 @ Disney's Boardwalk.

Have a great weekend!