Friday, January 9, 2015

De Leon Springs State Park

When I was young, Christmas week meant going to my grandma and grandpa's in Florida with all of my cousins and aunts and uncles. We got together for an elaborate breakfast (restaurant far left) at the De Leon Springs State Park every year. On the way back home I took David and the kids there and we had breakfast for lunch. The best part is that I get to tell my kids all about their great grandma and grandpa and we get a little piece of them still here with us.

Wednesday, January 7, 2015

Legoland

The day after Disney World we surprised Forrest to Legoland. 
He was smiling from ear to ear ALL day long!

Disney World




The day after Christmas we loaded up the car and drove to Florida for our first family vacation. We had an amazingly fun time. We took down our Christmas tree on Christmas night. Yes, we did. All the ornaments and decorations were packed away. I didn't want to come back home with the floors full of fraser fir needles. And we knew we were coming back home after New Year's so it felt good to have a clean start.
Our first stop was St. Augustine where we stayed for two nights. Our hotel was right on the beach - heaven! We relaxed, walked on the beach and visited some friends. Our friends gave us a tour of St. Augustine then invited us to their house for dinner and a bonfire. The kids ate s'mores. So fun! The next morning, David said we were going to Daytona Beach but he drove right past the exit and we ended up at Disney World! The kids were BEYOND excited. The weather was perfect. It was crowded at Disney World but not as crowded as I thought it would be. We rode almost every ride. Forrest's favorite ride was Dumbo. It was very important to him that David rode with him on the elephant. Summer's number one ride choice was the Barnstormer. As we were making sure she was tall enough for the ride, Forrest realized that he too was tall enough. As soon as the ride was over Forrest was half-smiling, squeezing the life out of my hand and shaking a little. Summer on the other hand was yelling "again, again!" Too funny! Our family voted the best ride was the It's a Small World. The kids loved all the vibrant colors. We stayed at Disney World from the time the gates opened at 8am until 11pm! We saw lots of parades and the best of all was seeing Cinderella's Castle lit up with all the lights.
It was a magical day and I didn't want it to end.

Schultz Christmas Card 2014

photo credit: my camera & tripod

Tuesday, January 6, 2015

Gingerbread Houses & Random

Gingerbread houses in Forrest's 2nd grade class. The best part was having time with my sidekick. 
Love him.

The kids are growing up sooo fast. Forrest loves to sit on my lap right after we eat dinner. He loves building origamis and Legos, reading (he's been begging to read Harry Potter Book #4) and flying his remote control helicopter. Summer is almost 10 (!), is just a delight to be with. She's learning to navigate through 4th grade, she has made some really good friends and got in AIG. She still loves to be by my side and do whatever I am doing. These are the little things I don't want to forget. I have lots more the share and I'm sure I will get caught up in time. You can keep up with us by following me @joyschultz on Instagram.