After a FULL day of Magic Kingdom, we had a feeling today would be tiring. We lasted 9-4 at Animal Kingdom- not too shabby! We are currently sitting in our hotel room relaxing. Next up- pool time!

Here are some highlights-

   
 
We started at Kilimanjaro Safaris. Bella got to see Elephants and the boys saw their cheetahs. 

   
    

Bella rode on her very first real rollercoaster, Expedition Everest-Legend of the Forbidden Mountain. To say it was scary would be an understatement, look at her face! The next picture has the coaster pictured behind us- she was so proud of herself, but she never wants to go on it again. She was incredibly pale at the end!

   

Treat time!

   
    
 
Festival of the Lion King- INCREDIBLE!! I forgot how much I love this movie.

   
   
Tree of life

   
    
    

Now it is time to relax, Hollywood Studios is tomorrow! Early bedtime for everyone.

   

Cooper’s favorite- Expedition Everest- Legend of the Forbidden Mountain

Bella’s favorite- It’s tough to be a bug (Cooper was able to see the 3D images- something doctors have told us he shouldn’t be able to see. He was jumping up and down that he could see the images coming towards him ☺️).

John’s favorite- Kilmanjaro Safari

Audra’s favorite- Festival of the Lion King

  
Space Mountain and Splash Mountain- Cooper’s personal favorites.

  
Buzz lightyear space ranger spin 

   
 
One of our family favorites was Monsters Inc. Laugh Floor. It was a comedy show and they use the audience by putting their picture on the svreen. Cooper had his face on the screen. They asked, “Show me what your face would look like if you broke your friends toy?” Cooper was nervous so he smiled and tried to hide behind me. These comedians were quick on their feet, the response, “he must not like his friends very much.” Cooper talked about that moment for 30 minutes straight!

   
    
 
Our first ride was Seven Dwarfs Mine train. Super fun!

  
We are wearing magicbands, they are our ticket into the park, our credit card, room key, etc. Well, we found out it is also a GPS. There were three times this magic happened to us. 

1. Seven dwarf mine train- we didn’t scan anything to let Disneh know we were on the ride but the picture above just appeared in our photos.

2. Eating at Be Our Guest. After ordering our food at a kiosk we could sit anywhere. Your food is just magically delivered to your table.

3. It’s a small world ride. We get to the end of the ride and see our names on a screen. We did not scan anything to show we were there.

Disney is tracking our every move with these bands 😨

  
  
Haunted mansion- the kids did great 
John’s favorite ride- Monsters Inc. Laugh

Audra’s favorite ride- Under the Sea- journey of the little mermaid

Cooper’s favorite ride- splash mountain and space mountain

Bella favorite ride- Pirates of the Caribbean

The Hall of Presidents was also pretty emotional because of he upcoming election- I may have shed a tear.

THIS is the day I have been most nervous about because it contains the most magic. WOW- it was an incredible day. 

We arrived at the park at 8:00 for breakfast at the castle. This was by far the most amazing experience! We were in the park before it opened so the crowds were not huge. The princesses were all wonderful but our personal favorite was Aurora. She spent extra time with Bella and made Cooper blush. When she signed his autograph book she kissed it and left a lipstick mark- he was so embarrassed. Then she came back a little later to say HI to him again and play a little hide a seek.   
 

We took SO many pictures today. I can’t even begin to share them at this point but here are a few 😉

  
Fun filled day! We were at Magic Kingdom from 8-9:30!! Totally worth our sore feet. 

Now we are off to bed. Animal Kingdom tomorrow. 

P.S. I ran into Mrs. Kathy Evans, my fourth grade teacher. And, no joke, it was when we were at ITS A SMALL WORLD. Such a small world seeing a familiar Iowa face.

I am a Disney believer. As we were walking from the plane to our bus to take us to The Art of Animation, Bella was twirling in her dress and said, “Belle is going to hug me!!”  

 
  We are staying at the Art of Animation. It is definitely geared toward younger kids and it is amazing the amount of detail that goes into everything. Look how cute the room is? John and I have a room and the kids can decide to sleep on the pull out couch or the table that becomes a bed- they are so looking forward to changing it up each night. We also have two bathrooms!

The food has been amazing! We are figuring out our meal plan- yes it seems like a ton of food!

We tried out one of the pools, simply beautiful. Definitely for younger families.

I had my first experience with things not going as planned. Bella had an appointment at 4 and we arrived at the bus at 3:10. The bus, which is supposed to come every 20 mins didn’t arrive until 4:15. We were 30 minutes late for the appointment and in my head I thought it would have to be cancelled (this is an event many people have told me was their daughters favorite activity). BUT, Disney for the win again! They got us right in and made sure we had time to get to our dinner reservation. I am glad I learned early that Disney is very accomadating!  Look at our little princess 

   
    
    
   
Dinner at Chef Mickeys! Cooper hugged all of the characters (except Minnie)- he is much more into this than I had anticipated. Both kids broke in their autograph books.

    
 
Our sleeping beauty couldn’t make it any longer and fell asleep on the bus.

The day has finally arrived! After a year of planning it is DISNEY time!  We had good intentions of going to bed early, but of course that didn’t happen. The kids were in bed by 8 but were “too excited to sleep.” Game 7 of the World Series was on and John was not about to miss this piece of history (we all know how that turned out 😀). The 3 am wake up call actually wasn’t so bad but we will see how everyone feels this afternoon.

   
    
 Gramy and Gramps the luggage worked perfect, they both were able to wheel their own luggage in! Thank you!

  Cooper has so many questions for John about the plane.  The excitement in his voice is priceless. 

It is the night before Disney and all through the house, no one is sleeping not even a mouse.  How can we sleep while thoughts of Mickey and Disney princesses dance in our heads?

Half days are the best! Cooper had a half day of school last week so we decided to use the extra time to go to the Grand Rapids Children’s Museum (thanks Gramy and Gramps for the gift of play).  The kids had a blast playing!  Cooper continues to show his independence (tear).  Bella wanted to play in a different area than him and he was fine with it, “I will be here if you need me Mom.”  Well, of course I kept checking on him every once and awhile, I can’t help it, I’m a Smother! Well, one of the times I went to check on him, he was gone (my heart stopped).  I got Bella and we started looking around for a couple minutes and then we spot his green shirt coming down the stairs.  I waited for a moment to read his reaction; was he nervous, panicking, full on breakdown? Did I need to be strong? Nope.  He came skipping down the stairs like he had just got done with an afternoon stroll, like Andy Dufresne walking the yard in Shawshank Redemption, not a care in the world. He had a sly smile on his face as he said, “Mom, I was looking for you.”  Less than a year ago, this kid would have had a 3 Mile Island nuclear meltdown if I was out of his sight.  This is just one of the many examples I have seen of his maturity these last couple of weeks.

Hockey is a popular sport in Michigan, if you didn’t know.  Yes, it was played in Iowa but in Michigan we know many people who have rinks in their backyard so that they can play throughout the winter and Cooper has a couple of friends who play in a hockey league.  The Griffins are the minor league professional team in Grand Rapids and they had a Star Wars night. (Get out your lightsabers’ kids, it’s time to bring this arena down with the Force!)  We went as a family to our first game at Van Andel Arena (this is the Wells Fargo Arena of Grand Rapids).  We walked through the skywalk (yes they only have one really long one) and Bella made the most impressive comment, “Mom, are we walking in the sky?  We are like Luke Skywalker.”  Pretty clever for a 4 year old on Star Wars night 🙂

Basketball came to an end for Cooper this past week.  We have been more than impressed with Upward Basketball.  They start each game like MJ playing for the Bulls.  The lights go down, the Jock Jams CD kicks into high gear, then the kids get introduced one at a time through a wall of fog and a laser show playing in the background.  Oh, then there’s a prayer and at halftime they have a sermon and a Bible verse.  The kids receive stars for different accomplishments (offense, defense, effort, Christ-likeness….you get the idea) throughout the season.  They even had an end of the year celebration where the kids were announced again, they got to watch some highlights from the season with some entertainment and then finally each kid got a basketball.  We put an exclamation point on Cooper’s basketball season by going to the DeltaPlex (we would compare it to Vets Auditorium) to watch the Grand Rapids Drive play the Iowa Energy.  Upward was invited to come and greet the players as they came out onto the court.

Bella and I go to story time at our local library every Tuesday afternoon.  She has to pick the Rr-rainbow carpet square each week. See what happens if you try and claim that spot first….just try it.  Bella loves the songs, listening to the books, bubbles and the craft.    Her favorite library songs are 5 Little Froggies and Lady Bug.

“5 little froggies hopping on the log, one jumped off into the pond and the big alligator came swimming along and CHOMP! Yum, yum now he’s gone.”  Repeat 4-3-2-1.   There are actions that go with this song- ADORABLE when she sings it. She’s got a bit of a Blues riff that goes with this, like she’s a lounge singer in a smoky room.

I absolutely LOVE our library because they have a whole room of toys for the kids to play and be loud.  They rotate toys so there is always something new to play with.  You can see a picture of Bella playing with the Dinosaurs.

When they play together it is the sweetest thing. This night they were making Mommy some donuts.

Best find at a consignment shop= Polly Pocket dolls. It came in a cute bag with 10+ dolls and tons of outfits.

Oh, and what about John you ask? Well, he was in Washington DC for a National Sales Conference.  He stayed at a large hotel just on the outskirts of DC that was hosting 1000+ employees from Principal, but also had the CPAC convention going on. Not sure exactly what it stands for, but I’m pretty sure it’s something like Conservative Political Action Committee.  Either way, it had almost all of the potential Republican Presidential candidates.  John got a chance to talk quickly with Sarah Palin, Chris Christie and Ted Cruz.  Apparently when you mention you are from IA, you become their best friend. Speaking of friends, John extended his stay in DC for about 2 days by staying with one of our High School and College Friend who lives in DC, Tyler Baldwin. Tyler works at the Pentagon, so he gave John a tour of the largest office building in the country and then acted as a tour guide to John for the weekend. Here are some pictures from his trip.

Written by: Audra

Enhanced by: John

Okay, so I have been very bad about posting.  Do I have an excuse, well I could come up with many but truly I should be better and I am going to make it a priority.  It seems like so much happens and I want to remember it.  Plus, it is moments like Birthdays when I can’t be with my family that makes me realize how bad I am at sharing what goes on in Michigan.

Bella turned 4 Friday, Feb. 13!  She celebrated her day starting at the Kids Zone at the YMCA playing while Mommy worked out.  She still has days where she doesn’t want to go (I have those days too) but when she is there and playing with all of her friends she is happy.  Mommy and Bella went to McDonalds for lunch (she could choose any place and that is what she decided) and Peachwave for a little frozen yogurt dessert.  We then came home and baked some sugar cookies for Cooper’s class Valentine party and cupcakes for her Birthday. She was my helper (she always is) at Cooper’s Valentine Party.  Then she went to Paddington the movie in the evening.  She is a pretty lucky lady!

We celebrated with a few friends on Sunday for a tea party.  She invited Allison her best buddy from preschool and dance.  And Sydney and Lauren, her two best buddies from next door.  We had such a blast planning and decorating for this party! Cooper even got involved and set up a little food station.  He refilled the “tea” and dished out the ice cream.  Bella decorated the placemats and the girls decorated their own hats and bracelets.  Anna and Elsa joined the fun as well!

I should also make a big THANK YOU to; Gramy and Gramps, Grandma and Grandpa Crandell, Aunt Jenna and Uncle Barry, Aunt Krista and Eric, Uncle Chris and Sarah, and Uncle Eric!  They all sent Bella a wonderful surprise in the mail.  You made her feel so special!

We had big news on Saturday…COOPER MADE HIS FIRST BASKET!  We have enjoyed watching his team play for the last 6 weeks of practice and 1 game each Saturday.  Cooper has a great coach who encourages Cooper and understands that we all learn at a different pace.  Cooper was the point guard and was very carefully dribbling the ball down the court, two of his teammates created a pick and Cooper went to the basket. He shot it and it rolled around the rim and WENT IN!!!  We all cheered like it was the game winning point!  Way to go Cooper!

I’m going to blame my lack of adding to our blog to all the snow we had this winter.  130+ inches was quite a shocker for us!  The piles were so high that our mailbox,  which sits about 4′ off the ground at the end of our driveway was literary buried. So much so that sometimes we didn’t receive mail for days.  John would clear our the mailbox and then the plow would come right back through and pile it back on.  We are happy to say the snow is all gone and has been replaced by beautiful green grass.  I am not going to complain about the winter though because it will always be a great story to share about our first year in Michigan.  I remember before moving out here how John mentioned that, “it’s just like Iowa.”  Ha- he is eating his words now because it was nothing like IA!!!  Cooper enjoyed it very much though.  He got to go on a snowmobile for the first time, build snow forts with John and sled down the hill behind our house more times than we can count.

I can’t believe we have let this much time pass since our last post. I was almost just going to call it quits but I might as well give it a shot…  Instead of writing a novel that Leo Tolstoy would be proud of (War and Peace author) to try and catch everyone up on our lives, I thought it would be better to just bullet point a couple of the highlights.  Maybe John’s business acumen is starting to rub off on me.

Cooper:

• Loves kindergarten
• Can read (he is at a mid year 1^st grade level- I am so proud)
• Favorite thing about school is PE
• Likes math
• Is very good at gymnastics- he goes once a week still
• Played 2 sessions of basketball- he made his 1^st basket and has lost his fear of the ball
• Started TBall and looks adorable in his uniform
• Loves playing with all the kids in the neighborhood (brings a smile to my face everytime)

Bella

• Turned 3!!!
• Loves to sing (Twinkle, twinkle little star and every song from the FROZEN soundtrack are favorites)
  • Try going to the bathroom and she will knock on the door singing the song; “do you wanna build a snowman?” J
  • She is becoming a diva-she has told me many times to stop singing (for those that know me well you know I don’t take this easily)
• Enjoys Kindermusik every Wednesday
• Goes to story time at the library every week
• Likes to shake it at Tap and Ballet and looks adorable in a tutu
• Loves playing with our neighbor girls and friends in KidZone at the Y
• Is signed up for 3 year old preschool that will start in the fall twice a week for 2 hours (tear)

John

• Working his butt off
• Did WatchDOG Dad at Cooper’s School- such a great way for Dad’s to get involved at school (I would be happy to share the details if anyone is interested)
• Enjoys playing pickup basketball at the Y when he gets time (not as often as he would like) He misses his Tuesday night softball buddies
• Is so excited to golf again
• Is assistant coach of Cooper’s TBall (check one of his bucket list)
• Met Jim Jones (rapper who sang “we fly high no lie”) in FL when there for work

Audra

• Is cherishing every moment being home with the kids
• Still got the exciting rush when every snow day was called!
• Enjoys kickboxing, Step, WERQ, Total Body Sculpt, Interval Training at the YMCA
• Is on the MAPS Board for next year (basically the PTA at Coopers school) because I just couldn’t stay away from school
• Loves/Hates Facebook because it can make me feel happy and sad all at the same time (I love our life currently but still deeply miss our friends and family in DSM)
• Trying to find the creative/arsty side everyone else in my family has inherited (check out pictures of the china cabinet I redid)

Like I mentioned before, the snow is gone so our house is ready for vistors!!!!  My family will be visiting Memorial Day weekend.  We will be going to Traverse City and Mackinaw with them and then have a day or two at home.  When looking for homes here in MI one of my musts was that we have space for family and friends to visit so please come so I don’t feel so silly in this big house!

We hope that these past few months have been good to you and your family.