I sure hope everyone had as much fun this Christmas as Landon did! On Christmas Eve, we went over to Landon's Godparents house. As always, the food was wonderful and the company was even better. It is so amazing to me to see the loving bond Landon has with Aunt Barbie and Uncle Tommy. He certainly is a great judge of character! Landon got to help Aunt Barbie and I set up and light the luminaries and he even got to open a few presents. His Godparents got him a year membership to The Zoo and a Thomas the Train set (his absolute favorite). He will enjoy them both very much there is no doubt! Then it was back home and off to bed so Santa could stop by. This is the first year that Landon has truly understood that Santa was coming to town and I loved seeing how excited he was about his arrival! It was one of the easiest times I have ever gotten him to go to bed! BTW, did I mention that it was 65 degrees!!! Christmas in Florida... gotta love it!
On Christmas morning, Landon awoke to discover that Santa had indeed stopped by our house and left him quite a few presents. His favorite, a remote-control monster truck. Gi Gi and I spent the rest of the day trying not to get run over by the Ford F350! Did I mention that Landon thought that was funny? Mommy might have to remind Santa of that next year! Anyway, he also got a Diego Scooter from Gi Gi, a cool walking and roaring dinosaur, a military playset and some trains from Santa. Plus a couple of DVD's and some neat stocking stuffers. Let's just say he made out like a bandit! I loved watching his expression each time he opened a gift. It reminded me how wonderful childhood is and it was by far the best Christmas present I could have received! I did get a nice belated Christmas present on Saturday when my Seminoles kicked some Wisconsin Badger butt!!
To top it all off, we went to visit Ms. Gini in her new home which is absolutely beautiful and perfect for her! (Even though we hate how far away from us she is now!) We enjoyed our visit with her so much and can't wait to see her again, as always! Then we stopped by to see Grandpa Wagner and wish him a Merry Christmas! Then Landon's Dad came over and he and Landon played with, guess what? That's right.... that darn monster truck and they had a wonderful time. Such a nice holiday! Can't wait til next year!
Merry Christmas and Happy New Year from Landon and I (Lily & Lucy too). Thank you so much for the many ways you have touched our lives and we are looking forward to a wonderful 2009. Love to all!
Some of Santa's Elves stopped by on Saturday to assemble Landon's big Christmas present from Mommy... a 12' trampoline. To George, Tony, Bill & Gail, I cannot thank you enough and thank you for being adamant that Landon have it assembled by Christmas!!! You guys are just the sweetest, most wonderful friends. Ok, some of you may be thinking I'm crazy for buying something "dangerous" for Landon, but either you were deprived as a kid and never got to jump on one or you need to lighten up! I had a blast on trampolines as a kid. Trampolines with NO safety enclosure by the way. And I won't even mention some of the crazy things we did on trampolines and I survived. Anyway, this one is awesome and Landon and I have already had hours of fun on it! I even had a little fun on it all by myself. I'm guessing we will have years of fun on it together and I'm looking forward to every second!
I may be on to something....Those of you who know me, know that I hesitate to leave Landon with a babysitter that is not a relative. And those of you who know me also know that Landon is extremely attached to me!! (I'll admit it, he's a Momma's Boy and I wouldn't want it any other way!) In 3 years, he has only stayed with one babysitter who wasn't a relative and that was Ms. Gini (whom he adores!) So, since his Dad hasn't been available for several weekends, I decided to take the plunge and try a new babysitter. By new, I mean it would be the first time he stayed with this person without me around. So, he stayed with Uncle Tommy, his Godfather, for a couple of hours this past weekend so I could go to a Christmas Party. Boy, was I pleasently surprised! He didn't fuss at all when I left and Tommy said he was "perfect" while I was gone. So, maybe this is the nudge I needed to start accepting some other invitations. I know some of you will be happy to hear that!
BTW.. these photos have nothing to do with the post but are too cute not to share!
Landon got to ride in his first parade last night and I think he enjoyed it. The weather was great and the parade moved swiftly. Landon and I rode in the big Sheriff's truck and Landon threw candy and waved at everyone. Of course, most of the candy he threw landed right outside the window and one of the walkers had to kick it over to the crowd. But Landon didn't seem to care. His favorite part was probably waiting for the parade to get going. He got to stand in the back of the truck with the coolers of candy. I would like to thank all of my wonderful coworkers who were kind enough to give him candy and Coke. (Don't worry, I'll get even!) They were all conspiring, including Landon, to get him candy when I wasn't looking. But the eveidence was all over his mouth. I had a little trouble getting him to go to sleep last night but then again, how often do you get to participate in your very first parade?
... and so does Landon! We took a spontaneous trip over to Pensacola today (Since gas is so low we can do that now!) Our first stop was the big Toys R Us store. Landon has never been to a Toys R Us store and I haven't been in almost a decade. He stepped inside and said, "Wow!" I thought we would never get him out of the store. But they had some great sales and I was able to convince Landon that if he found something he liked, he could ask Santa to bring it to him for Christmas. It worked MOST of the time. I loved watching him wander around the store, saying "Mommy, look at this. Isn't this cool!" It was just the cutest thing in the world. I was able to get a few Christmas presents for him without him knowing and I found several things for the little boy we sponsored for Christmas. All in all a great trip!!!
Talk about a baby boom! Yet another little bundle of joy has arrived this week. My friend Heather and her husband Scott welcomed their second son, Carter McKenzie Powell on December 3 at 12:33 pm. He weighed 6 lbs. 8 oz. (so tiny) and was 19 inches long and is just an itty bitty little bundle of sweetness. Carter will join big brother Parker who is 15 months old (bless you Heather!!!!) Welcome Baby Carter, your Aunt Nic Nak loves you!!!
Baby Rod has arrived! My friend Cathy had a healthy baby girl last night - Jenna Ann Rodriguez! (She shares a birthday with Baby Kate!) She showed up around 10:50 last night and weighed 7 lbs. and was 19.7 inches long. Oh how I wish I could have been there!!! I can't wait to hold and kiss that sweet baby girl. I am sooo excited for her and Ken. They are going to be absolutely wonderful parents! Congratulations Cathy & Ken. Such a blessing. Get ready for the ride of your lives! We love you all so much!!!
Stay tuned... as soon as I get some photos of the new little one I will get them posted. I can't wait to see her. I'm just so happy, happy, happy!!!
I am thankful for so many things! My loving family, my wonderful friends, for the many ways God has blessed my life each and every day. As has been tradition for the past decade, we have spent Thanksgiving at Landon's Godparents house, the Britts. They live right on the water and the view from their home is gorgeous. It is always such a nice time and each year it seems to grow bigger. There were approximately 30 people there this year. It is always a pleasure to visit with folks and watch Landon interact with everyone. He was much more sociable this year. Everyone couldn't believe he was only 3 years old. Yes, I know he is a BIG 3-year old and yes, I know he looks exactly like my Dad. I heard both of those throughout the day. One of Landon's favorite people is his pediatrician, Dr. John. They adore each other and this year they got to play some kickball and even wade along a sandbar (only in Florida, huh?) The weather was a perfect 70 degrees and the skies were beautiful. So, after stuffing ourselves with Tommy's delicious turkey (he is the BEST cook) and all the goodies that everyone brings we took a nice stroll along the beach to walk off our meal. What a perfect day. The only thing missing was my father. How I wish he was still able to join us but we did get to have a Thanksgiving Day feast with him on Wednesday at the nursing home.
a little early but a happy 1st birthday to you Kate! Landon and I went to Kate's birthday party at the Niceville Children's Park on Saturday and we both had a blast! Lauren, Kate's Mommy, is so crafty. She made the cutest hats for all of the kids with their names on them, princess crowns for the girls and blue visors for the boys. They were so cute! First birthday parties are always so special and Kate sure did enjoy hers. She smashed right into her cake and loved it! She was just the cutest little birthday girl ever. Great food, great friends, great time! Thanks so much for including us Lauren and HAPPY BIRTHDAY KATE!
Most of these photos were taken by my friend Eva. She is awesome!For more photos, visit Lauren's blog!
Landon had a great weekend! On Saturday, we went bowling with his Cousin Ray Ray. He didn't quite get into it like he has in the past (he was more interested in the arcade room). But it was still fun. Then we all went to the mall for some lunch and he and Ray Ray rode the carousel, which he always loves. On Saturday night, some of my friends from work had a BBQ and it was so much fun. They had two big fires going and the food was spectacular. Thank goodness for the fire because it was a rather chilly night. Landon liked the fried fish, mainly because we all told him it was chicken. He will try any kind of meat as long as he thinks it is chicken. And his favorite was the chocolate cake, naturally. There were quite a few other kids there and he enjoyed running around the back yard with them. He enjoyed some kick ball with Mr. Keith also. We only stayed for a couple of hours because he was so exhausted and bedtime was calling, for both of us. It was an exhausting Saturday, but a great one!
Landon got his flu shot today and loves showing off his band-aid covered battle scar. He did really well. He cried for a whole 4 seconds and then he got a toy from the treasure chest and all was right in the world again.
I love me some Bobby Bowden. Who doesn't (except for some of you Gator fans!!) I can't think of a sweeter, more down-to-earth human being. Yes, I speak from personal experience because I have been lucky enough to meet him on several occassions. He is just awesome and good or bad season, I love him! So, Happy 79th Birthday to Bobby Bowden. And what a dad-gum great birthday it was!! The Seminoles defeated Clemson today 41-27. Even though it wasn't the "Bowden Bowl" it was still an important game. Way to go Noles!
Landon's fall school photos turned out very well! (I had to scan this one but it still turned our pretty good). The last couple of years he hasn't been interested in taking any at school but this year he did great. Of course, that means it cost Mommy some money because I just had to order some. Isn't he just precious???
Halloween is one of my favorite Holidays!! And Landon just makes it more fun! My neighborhood is great for trick-or-treating and very kid-friendly. So, Landon and his cousins, Ashley & Desiree (AKA Ray Ray), got dressed up and headed out to get some yum-yum candy. Ashley and Desiree were dressed as spooky brides and Landon was the most adorable little pirate - again. The same one from our Disney World party. He was just as cute the second time! Landon really got into trick-or-treating this year. He RAN from house to house and had an absolute blast. He didn't even get scared at some of the haunted houses. Needless to say he was completely exhausted at the end of the night, even after all the candy. We were so glad that his Dad was able to join us also even after having some car trouble. It was a fun time for all and we have soooo much candy. Don't worry, Mom will help Landon eat it!!
So sorry it took a while to post these but I had so many to go through. Where do I begin??? I put together 5 slide shows of each of our different adventures and tried to pick out some of the better photos from each. In all, I think I took about 300 or 400 pictures! The weather was perfect and October is definately a great time to visit Disney World as the crowds are soooo much smaller than most times of the year. Our trip to Disney World was truly magical. I will try my best to put into words how much fun we had. Here are some slide shows and summaries in chronological order:
Day 1 - Travel and Resort hopping
After a 7 hour drive down to Orlando, we met Miche and we started our resort hopping at the Animal Kingdom Lodge. I have always heard how great the lodge is and that the animals literally walk right by your hotel window. Well, when I checked on staying there it was like $499 a night and lets just say that is way out of my budget. So, we decided to check it out and as you can see from the pictures it was pretty cool. Then we went over to Saratoga Springs which was beautiful. We walked around the resort and found a really neat playground which Landon loved. Then we went back to our hotel and Landon has some fun in the arcade room. Then it was off to bed so we could get plenty of rest for the next day's journey to the Magic Kingdom.
Day 2 - Magic Kingdom
We got to the Magic Kingdom bright and early and were just in time to be welcomed by none other than Mickey Mouse himself as they opened the park. Then we hopped on a train and rode over to Frontierland. Our first ride was the Thunder Mountain Train Roller Coaster. Landon easily passed the height requirement but decided he didn't want to ride when we got inside. So Miche and I did the "baby swap" and each took a ride on Thunder Mountain. Landon loved watching us! Then we watched the folks riding Splash Mountain but decided against getting wet so early in the day. So, we headed over to the Haunted Mansion and we made it all the way to the door (there were absolutely NO lines that morning) and when Landon heard the spooky voice coming from inside, we high-tailed it out of there real quick. So, off to Fantasyland we went and hopped on "It's a Small World" and Landon did enjoy the boat ride through the diffreent cultures. Then we rode Peter Pan's Adventure and then on to the Mad Hatter's Teacups which Landon really enjoyed. Miche and I couldn't believe we were actually dizzy while riding the teacups. Boy how things change, huh? We spotted Tigger and Pooh there also so we hurried over and got autographs and pictures with both. It took Landon a while to warm up to the character greetings (as you can see form some of the photos) But by the second day he was loving it and taking his autograph book up to the characters all by himself. So, after greeting Tigger and Pooh, we headed to Mickey's Toontown Fair which is a part of the Magic Kingdom I haven't had much interest in... until now! Mickey's Toontown Fair is where Mickey and Minne live and so we went to Mickey's house and were lucky enough to get a private autograph session with both Mickey and Minne after waiting a whole 5 minutes. I couldn't believe it. I also was a bit surprised that Minnie was over at Mickey's house... hmmmm!!! So, then it was off to Tomorrowland where we met Buzz Lightyear and Stitch (from Disney's Lilo and Stitch). Ok, I must mention something about all of the character sightings and autographs. My friend Miche has what I like to call "Character Charisma" because she is an absolute character magnet! I've never seen anything like it. They were all about Miche! Every one of the characters fancied Miche and some even got a bit touchy feely! Anyway, we then rode the Tomorrowland Speedway Cars which were naturally Landon's absolute favorite ride in the Magic Kingdom. We rode it 3 separate times. And we did the Tomorrowland tour on the expressway. And our last stop for the day was Adventureland where we rode the Jungle Boat and one of my favorites, the Pirates of the Carribean. Then we went home to get ready for the evenings Mickey's Not-So-Scary Halloween Pary at the Magic Kingdom.
Mickey's Not-So-Scary Halloween Party
Mickey's Not-So-Scary Halloween Party is an event that is held at the Magic Kingdom after the park closes for the day. Of course, you have to purchase additional tickets but they are so worth it! Throughout the park the kids (and adults) can go trick-or-treating and all of the rides are still open so there were absolutely no lines at all. Landon was dressed as the cutest little pirate and Miche and I purchased a couple of shirts from the Pirates of The Carribean shop for the evening so we would match our little pirate. We got to see Mickey again and got a great picture with him in his really cool Halloween costume. We met several other characters as well, such as Captain Hook, Mr. Smee and Baloo from Jungle Book. Then at 9:30 we caught the "HallowSpooks" fireworks and light show at Cinderella's castle. It was spectacular. They dim the lights throughout the entire park for the show and it was real spooky. Landon wasn't too thrilled with the show but Miche and I loved it. We went home completely exhausted and with bags of good candy!
Day 3 - Animal Kingdom & Hollywood Studios
The Animal Kingdom has always been one of my favorite parks. I love seeing all of the animals and it has the Festival of the Lion King which was our first stop. We had front row seats and the show was awesome! Landon didn't really like how loud it was and he wasn't too sure about some of the characters but after it was over he said he liked it. When we left the show we saw a bunch of characters, including Puto, which is Landon's absolute favorite. We were lucky enough to see him twice and Landon hugged him both times. Pluto was the only character Landon would approach all by himself and definately the only one who got 2 hugs! Then we took a ride on the Safari and got to see a lot of animals up close and personal. Then we headed to Dinoland and Landon played in the Boneyard for a while before we decided to head over to Hollywood Studios.
Hollywood Studios was also a hit! That is where we found Landon's favorite show, Playhouse Disney which included Mickey Mouse Clubhouse, Handy Manny, Little Einsteins and Tigger and Pooh. He absolutely loved it and we were in the front row for it also. And Miche and I took turns riding Tower of Tower and Aerosmith's Rockin' Roller Coaster which was awesome. I haven't ever ridden the Rockin' Roller Coaster before!! We also got to ride Toy Story Mania which is a 3D game where you shoot and aim at different things while riding on a rotating carousel. We all liked that one and I must admit, Miche was more accurate than Landon and I.
So, there you have it! I know I left a ton of things out but I know Miche, Landon and I will always remember almost every detail. I can't remember when I have ever had more fun, really! We will most definately be going back every year if my budget allows and we certainly hope Aunt Miche will join us. We will cherish the memories... ALWAYS!
