Magic Kingdom

The last day we went to the Magic Kingdom. It was a great day with hardly any lines. Grandma was a sport and agreed to take #1 a second time on Space Mountain. She did everything she could to make sure each of the kids got to do what they wanted.

#1 thought that this looked like he was being trampled, what do you think?

Our cousin threw a fit when required to get off of Dumbo. Solution, go again!

Lunch with Winnie the Pooh and friends was our last character experience and it was great! We had such a fantastic week! Thanks again Mom and Dad.

This is what happens after a week of non-stop fun!

Epcot

Day 4 was Epcot, we had breakfast with the princesses. There was a ton of really cool stuff to see. I for one really enjoyed the country pavilions, they were very detailed. This may be the closest I get to being in Europe!

This was a great show, I could hardly watch!

Jolly Old England! Quite right!

#2 wanted her face painted from day one. She finally got her wish!

Day Three

On day three we went to Animal Kingdom, which was incredibly beautiful. The safari was so great, and we saw two spectacular shows The Festival of the Lion King and Finding Nemo the musical. Both were unbelievably well done. The best ride of the trip was there too, Expedition Everest, it was amazing!

That night we went to Mickey's Very Merry Christmas Party. The higlight by far was the Christmas parade.

Here are the kids dancing with pluto and goofy.

Universal Studios

We also went to the Wizarding World of Harry Potter at Universal Studios. We had a few Harry Potter fans (Me, my mom, and #2) it was cool, but butterbeer is overrated!

The shops were amazing, the best one of course was Honeydukes. Unfortunately for us, Dupree consumed the Chocolate Frog and Every Flavored Beans shortly after our arrival home.

Luckily for #3 and Polly's #1 there was also Seussville, which was pretty great. We got to meet the Cat in the Hat and Thing One, and Two.

Hollywood Studios

We just got back from an amazing trip to Disney World. Thanks to Grandma Emilee and Grandpa Val! Matt had to stay home and work, he missed us so much he painted a bathroom! Thanks! Day one we went to Hollywood Studios. The most impressive thing we saw was the Osborne festival of lights, it was mesmerizing!
Aunt Polly and her #1 were part of the gang too. It was so great to see the cousins spend some serious time together. The main thing to do here was see shows, The Little Mermaid, Beauty and the Beast and Fantasmic!
The Extreme Stunt Show was great, we saw a lot of car jumps, chase scenes and a man jump from on top of a building. #1 also enjoyed The Tower of Terror and the Rockin Roller Coaster.
#3 enjoyed her lollipop the best, no surprise there.

Turkey Trot

The whole family participated in the Turkey Trot this year. Matt, #2, and #3 did the kids 1k and Libby and #1 did the 5k.
By far the most enthusiastic competitor was #3. She had been talking up the event for months.
We deserve medals! #3 spent many hours afterwards polishing and re-polishing the shiny metal surface and the cute turkey legs.

Trick or Treat

Here is the gang pre "trick or treat"...What a great night it was!

(Yes those pumpkins are real. They were hand crafted by finest pumpkin craftsman in all the land).

This one was a Skunk, but not a stinker! Her joke of the day -"What do you get when you cross a Skunk with a jelly Bean...a SMELLY BEAN!"

This one was a pirate. She single handedly put together her costume. Quite well, might I add. Joke of the day for her was "Why didn't the Pirate go to the movie?...Because it was rated AaRRRgg".

This one was something, but we are not sure what. I think he was Grandma Dixie circa the late 1970's (known in common circles as "the Barbara Streisand years") with a grid strainer on his head. His joke for the day..."2 guys walked into a bar...the 3rd guy ducked".

Stuff. . .

#1 had his 10th birthday! It was his "best birthday ever." Grandpa Val and Grandma Emilee came and surprised him, he won his football game, and got a ton of loot! He is such a great kid, he works so hard at everything he does.

Here is a shot from the first day of school.

#3 got glasses last week. Isn't she adorable?

American Girl Store

If you didn't know they just opened up an American Girl store in Seattle. Well, not quite Seattle it is about and hour north, in traffic longer. We decided to go before school got started and the girls had a blast! We ate dinner in the restaurant and their dolls got a seat right at the table.

Here they are posing in the girl of the year display.

#3 got to pick out which doll she will be asking Santa for this Christmas. I think she will go with Kit. As long as someone springs for the outfit that comes with a skateboard.

HELLO CAMPING!

Hello Camping! It has been a long time between camping trips for the Jacobs family. In fact it has been nearly a decade. So, with a little prompting from the kids, we went camping. Washington is full of great places to camp. None greater that Whidbey Island.

Whidbey Island is a small island in the Sound. Aside from being able to camp near the water, we selected Whidbey because you get to take Ferry to the island. This is a short ride, unless (as we found out) you are traveling on a Friday. Then the line to get on the Ferry is a two hour wait. What was to be a 2 hour trip quickly turn to a 4 hour trip. However, the views were worth the wait.

Now, Libby and I have always considered ourselves experienced campers and during our 10 year hiatus we viewed camping as though it were like riding a bike...once you know how you never forget. We were wrong.

We made many rookie mistakes. Including forgetting many essential items. Such as: a hatchet, a pocket knife, a flashlight, and forks. Now forgetting forks may not seem as essential as the other items unless you have ever attempted to eat a tin-foiled dinner with a plastic spoon. We also forgot how big our family has gotten. which meant we forgot to bring a tent big enough for all of us. This meant someone had to sleep in the van with Dupree. I drew the short straw and I was up all night listening to Dupree lick his balls, all night...literally all night. (It is true that he no longer has balls, so I'm not sure what he was licking.)

However, Libby was the 1st to rise and informed me that no matter what my night was like, her's was worse. She was sandwhiched between August and Sophie, while Eden was within striking range. Instead of listening to Dupree she listened to a baby from the camp next door cry all night...literally all night. In addition to the crying baby there was the sound of the buoy floating off shore with a sounding bell to warn ship they are approaching the cliffs. The sounding bells were charming when we arrived. At 2am the were like a chinese water torture.

Despite the sleepless night and all we forgot, the kids smiled the entire time. Which made the trip the greatest camping trip ever. After all, we remembered the marshmallows and the "nicorice"!

Fair well Camping! We'll see you next year...or in ten years.

Bear Lake

We celebrated Matt's 35th birthday while we were there. The only thing he wanted was a raspberry shake.

Eden got to go early and stay overnight with her cousins before we got there. Thanks Mason, Janelle, Zach, and Erika!

The Godzilla Brothers taking no prisoners.

Who knew water skiing could be so relaxing.