Week 28 (almost)

It has been a little over two weeks since Courtney entered the hospital with contractions. The staff has been great taking care of her. Of course, to remind her of how much her family loves her, she has some fun wall decorations. Also, the girls just finished a one week trip to lavish some lovin' on mom. They returned to Missouri with Grandma today.

Time Ticks By

A Nice Reminder

From Olivia, To Mom

I GIVE YOU THIS

SWEET SUNSHINE

FROM OLIVIA

TO: MOM

Our Family

DSC_0092 edit, originally uploaded by counsel14.

I am Woman

Mitchell Family Reunion 282, originally uploaded by counsel14.

Is there any question why I love my wife?

Fourth of July

DSC_0137, originally uploaded by counsel14.

Growing Too Quickly!

2010 June 179, originally uploaded by counsel14.

Sea World

The girls only have about a week left in Orlando. We are heading north for a family reunion next week, and they will stay with the grandparents through the rest of July. Thus, we are trying to squeeze in a few last fun activities. Wednesday = Sea World. It was blistering hot and humid, so the kid's water area was a treat, especially when followed by the Wild Arctic. Both girls rode several rides, and Olivia was quite proud to ride a kid's roller coaster all by herself. All in all, it was a good day of fun!

Thelma & Louise II

P6120054 edit, originally uploaded by counsel14.

At the birthday party, the girls found a new favorite toy -- a battery-powered jeep. They went off-roading all over the yard . . . clearly enjoying themselves!

Sweet Looks

P6120085 edit, originally uploaded by counsel14.

The girls enjoyed a birthday party today. We were fortunate to snap this cute picture. Enjoy.

When the Cat is Away

Courtney left town on Thursday to find us a new house at our next location. Thus, she is enjoying the wonderful 100 degree heat of New Mexico. Meanwhile, the kids are enjoying dad time.
Day 1: Dunkin Doughnuts
Day 2: McDonald's Play Place
Day 3: Dog Park
Only 2 more days to play!

We have also started letting Olivia and Katelee sleep together. Katelee hasn't quite got the knack of staying in her big bed, but she is improving. Last night, when I went to go check on them, I found them cuddled together. I think they miss their momma!

Never Let a Crisis go to Waste

Courtney's purse was stolen last week, along with her identification in the purse. This meant we had to make a special trip over to Patrick to get a new ID card. Well, if you are on the coast, you might as well enjoy the beach!

So, after pretty pictures and lamination was complete, we grabbed lunch, found a new purse for Courtney, and headed to the beach. Katelee is still freaked out about the waves and won't go near the water. Olivia actually dove into the waves with her mask. The wave won, sending Olivia tumbling. The girls dug holes, made mermaid tails, made sand angels, and watched the pelicans plunge into the water. We were done after about an hour and a half, and showers and bedtime waited for us at home.

Alligator Angels

Our Memorial Day was spent partly by enjoying this great land -- the Everglades of Florida. We headed over to St. Cloud to Wild Willy's Airboat Tours. The folks there were very nice. The girls donned their life jackets; we all put on our hearing protection; and off we shot across the lake. We managed to see a momma alligator and her babies, various birds, snail kite hawks (endangered), an eagle, flowers, snails, and swimming rabbits (although they were on dry land at the time). We even got to hold, pet, and kiss Thunder (the "pet" alligator) when we were all done. The girls loved it. They were able to bring home flowers, snail shells, and one of the boat captains even drew pictures for the girls.

School's Out, School's Out!

2010 May 466 edit, originally uploaded by counsel14.

Olivia had her last day of school this week. We celebrated with a fun lunch at her school. We will truly miss Miss Elaine, who made Olivia's first school experience great. She is ready to tackle Kindergarten next year!

Head of the Class

Olivia's class photo. She has thoroughly enjoyed going to school (most days). Hopefully, that will continue as she starts Kindergarten next year!

Cat Days of Summer

Yesterday was a relaxing day of church, Japanese grill for lunch, hanging out at the pool, and an early bedtime. Ahhhhhh, good times.

Sisters

Pet the Belly

I could get used to this.

I could get used to this, too!

Final Mission -- Atlantis

We decided we needed to watch the space shuttle launch since we are so close and will not likely have the opportunity again. We were warned the traffic would be horrific. They were right! We left Orlando a little before 10:00 a.m., and we reached the Space Coast about 3 hours later. It is normally about an hour. We really weren't sure where to park or view the launch, so we just kind of followed the crowd for the most part. We ended up in front of a hotel or retirement home with a packed lawn of spectators. The crowd cheered as the shuttle started its ascent, and another cheer went up as the rumble of the rockets reached us. Of course, then we jumped back into the flow of traffic heading back to Orlando. All in all, it was a fun family adventure of historical proportions!

Happy Mother's Day

Courtney enjoyed a good Mother's Day, complete with gifts, good eating, great pampering, and gobs of love. She was immediately showered with a homemade gift from Olivia -- a lovely hand-painted sun catcher. It is currently hanging on our patio door. Then, we went to church. After church and starving, it was time to introduce mom to Five Guys Burgers! She was a light-weight and only ate half of one, but I think she ate a full cup of fries! Then, time for some pampering at the Salon next door -- pedicures and paintings for all the girls. Courtney was treated to a pedicure while Olivia got her fingernails and toes done (a beautiful blue). Katelee opted for a powerful pink. Of course, the Vietnamese women loved the girls. How to you top off a pedicure? Ice Cream! (Cold Stone to be specific) Finally, we made it home, where gifts awaited Courtney, and the rest of the day was spent basking by the pool.

Out of the Mouth of the other Babe

Courtney had a new story for this morning. It goes a little something like this:

Katelee brought Courtney a baby doll. Then, she proceeded to play for a while. Before long, she returned to Courtney to express her frustration toward her big sister for not moving over in the chair. Courtney explained to Katelee that Olivia did not have to move since Katelee got down from the chair and was playing.

At this point, Katelee took the baby doll back from Courtney and declared, "Baby is mad at you! Baby does not want you anymore."

Then, she walked away with her baby in tow.

Out of the Mouth of Babes

Courtney tells the story of Olivia asking one of her typical questions.

She asked, "How big is the baby now?"

Courtney showed her with her fingers.

Olivia continued, "And where is it?"

Courtney showed her by pointing to her lower belly.

Olivia responded by aking, "Then what is all this fat up here?"

A Trip to Dinosaur World

Today, we went to . . .

DINOSAUR WORLD

Dinosaur World is about 30 minutes from our home, and we bought tickets around Christmas. Unfortunately, we weren't able to go until today (and we lost the original tickets). It was a fun half-day outing. We packed a lunch, put the dog on a leash, and loaded everyone into the truck.

One of the activities available is a Fossil Dig. The kids (and mom) got to dig through the sand and find fossils (shells and shark's teeth). They could keep three of the fossils they found.

The park was packed with every dinosaur, and it was quite educational to read about a bunch we didn't know. For example, the Packasaurus was a military dinosaur who went extinct after too many PCS moves! That one wasn't really at the park, but I'm sure he existed. Here, the girls put on their best scared faces as T-Rex towers above them.

And really, what good dinosaur outing is complete until someone is eaten?