Magic Kingdom

We're home! Our vacation was wonderful! Disney World truly is the happiest place on earth. Will told me that numerous times... "Mom, this is the best place in the whole wide world!" He sees everything as a superlative contained in the whole wide world.

Florida is a fabulous place to visit in January. We traded our coats and mittens for shorts and swimming. We did miss DC's first snowfall of the season, but we're fine with that. Grin.

My camera was giving me problems. I have a big black spot on many of my pictures and I can't find the source of it. Here are a few that are (thankfully) spot-less...

Our first night in Orlando - Downtown Disney.

Day 1 : Magic Kingdom

This was Hannah and Will's favorite character sighting... a very believable Mary Poppins. Actually, I think she may be the real Mary Poppins.

Grandpa loved the Mad Tea Party. Hannah took this one and said... "It's really cute. You should put it on the blog."
Peter's getting tired of lines.
After a rest at the hotel, we headed back for the parade. (This was my favorite thing about Disney when I was a kid.) Here's one very happy five year old.
A few moments later.Day 2 : Magic Kingdom

Grandpa liked the speedway, too. See the spot... I want editing software. Almost time to go.Thanks Mom and Dad!

Guess where we're going...

Before the sun is up tomorrow, we'll load up still pajamaed kids, stop at Starbucks - 2 Grande Americanos a must, and beat morning traffic out of here. My parents will greet us 13 hours later at their house in Florida. And early next week, the whole crew of us will spend two days at Disney. The kids first time there. My husband's second. My... 18th or so... but first time since high school.

Just checked the weather... Sunny, mid-70's. Hmm... I may not come back. Grin.

Big Day

It's an exciting day around here. The big event in our home... Peter is THREE today!

DC is buzzing with the enthusiasm of a gazillion people. Roads and bridges and schools and all other regular life is closed for the day. We'll be staying in, where it's warm.

Celebrating Peter and watching History.

And tonight, we'll pass on the Balls. For us it'll be take-out pizza and birthday cake with good friends. : )

Opening gifts this morning.

Hannah sewed this stuffed dog especially for Peter. So sweet.

We had a little party for him yesterday.

I can't believe my youngest is 3!

Baby Fix

Hannah has talked a lot recently about wanting a baby in the house. She got her fill this weekend.

Our dear, dear friends are going to be separated for six months (his work). We took their two little boys for the weekend, giving them some much needed time together.

Hannah is a natural nurturer. While her brothers don't always want to be cared for, this little guy happily received all kinds of lovin'.

And these two... well, they were cracking us up all weekend.

Winter

It's cold. January has sent us inside.

And we are learning to be thankful for these sweet days.

Our homeschool has been filled with bright winter sun pouring in the windows, hot chocolate breaks, the constant hum of space heaters, lots of reading on the couch wrapped in blankets, wrestling-jumping jacks-running in circles, listening to Mozart - January's composer study, Hannah on the piano, more crafts, more puzzles, more games.

A few scenes from our week...

Here is Hannah waiting for her piano lesson to begin. This is after she dusted the piano, swept the floor around it, and had me light a good smelling candle before her teacher arrived (all her own ideas). And yes, Mom, that is the Little Red Riding Hood skirt you made me for Halloween 30 years ago.

I'm glad someone has time to read the paper.

Peter makes us laugh all the time. And he knows he's funny.

2009 Booklist

I'm sure some will be added and maybe taken away, but for now these are few books I hope to read in 2009...

Deconstructing Penguins: Parents, Kids, and the Bond of Reading
Lawrence and Nancy Goldstone

Evening in the Palace of Reason: Bach meets Frederick the Great in the Age of Enlightenment
James R. Gaines

Last Child in the Woods: Saving Our Children From Nature-Deficit Disorder
Richard Louv

The Little French Girl
Anne Douglas Sedgwick

Animal, Vegetable, Miracle: A Year of Food Life
Barbara Kingsolver

Good and Angry: Exchanging Frustration for Character in You and Your Kids
Scott Turnansky and Joanne Miller

Emma
Jane Austen

Charlotte Mason Series

The Total Money Makeover: A Proven Plan for Financial Fitness
Dave Ramsey

Family Matters: Why Homeschooling Makes Sense
David Guterson

A Little History of the World
E. H. Gombrich

Gilead
Marilynne Robinson

Update on The Skirt

Sorry to not get back to you all. : ) Thanks for all the great advice and encouraging comments!

After being dropped off from Ballet, Hannah walked in the door and immediately asked if she could get the skirt, stating, "There were only 2 other girls without the skirt." Whew... latecomers.

Then she turned it into a modesty issue. "If I had the skirt, you wouldn't be able to see my underwear." She's right... the cuts don't match up perfectly. Now this is a new issue. I don't want my seven year-old worrying about her underwear showing during class.

She hasn't mentioned the skirt since that night, but Thursday is coming quickly.

My decision...
I am going to buy her the skirt, explaining it is a gift from me and I used my Christmas money to get it for her.

I thought about having her work for the money or part of it, but there are a few problems with that. $26 dollars would mean weeks and weeks of work... which she doesn't have for this particular item. When she is paid for extra jobs, it's with small amounts... not $5 per job, more like $1 or less, so $26 seems a little hard to climb when there is a time constraint. Also, there are just not that many indoor (it's stinkin' cold) jobs around here other than her chores. So, a gift it will be.

This has spurred good conversations about money with Hannah. Up until now, the only income she has had comes from gifts/grandparents, the tooth fairy, and odd jobs. We hadn't started an allowance... no good reason, it just hadn't happened. So, we will begin giving her a weekly allowance. My plan is to have 3 envelopes - SPEND, SAVE (with the item/event saving for listed on the envelope), and GIVE (maybe I will grab some church offering envelopes for her). She's excited about getting started this week.