tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11030901426462047072023-11-16T09:33:11.271-06:00McDoniel FamilyChet and Joni McDoniel's Family BlogChet and Joni McDonielhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00893817899950003596noreply@blogger.comBlogger339125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1103090142646204707.post-65231740524943242322013-08-01T22:33:00.000-05:002013-08-01T22:33:13.198-05:00We're Moving!But without packing boxes! We are moving virtually. I will no longer be posting on this blog, but instead at <a href="http://discoveringournormal.com/" target="_blank">Discovering Our Normal</a>.<br />
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I am often told that I should get up and tell my story. Since my introverted self will <u>not</u> ever do that, I thought that I would tell a little more of our story through a blog. I know that I do some already here, but I am hoping to add a little more anonymity (as much as I can with a public inspirational speaker for a husband) as well as a bit more substance than just a blog with photos of our travels.<br />
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We chose the name, Discovering our Normal, because we were told once that it wasn't normal to go to Walt Disney World as much as we do. Yes, it may not be normal for other families, but it is completely normal for us. As I get older, I have realized how important it is for each of to discover what normal means to us individually and as a family and not to base it on society's standards.<br />
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Discovering our Normal will be an extension, of sorts, to the ministry that Chet already does with his speaking. Our new blog will still feature highlights from our trips. I will also talk about our homeschooling adventures, how we deal with Celiac disease (no gluten), and the normal joys and challenges that we face every day as well as the ones that may surprise us. It will be real. It will be us. The good, not so good, and the just plain ugly. I pray that our story will inspire, uplift, and help people know that they aren't alone. I am excited to have an outlet for me to express my thoughts and to share what I love.<br />
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Thank you so much for sticking with us! We have had this blog for six years and are excited about the new one. Please join us as we make this transition.<br />
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You can find us at:<br />
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<a href="http://discoveringournormal.com/"><span style="font-size: large;">http://discoveringournormal.com/</span></a></div>
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Joni McDonielhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08325231567010205276noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1103090142646204707.post-23663542693347125922013-06-06T12:00:00.000-05:002013-06-06T12:00:06.023-05:00Characters!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
As usual, we had a blast spending time with our favorite characters. We were curious to see how Olivia would react but we had nothing to worry about! She loved the characters! (Not so much the princesses yet, just Mickey and friends.) She could hardly wait until it was her turn. When the time came, she would run up them on her own and give them a great, big hug! She loves them, especially "Eeee!" (Mickey and Minnie)</div>
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<br />Joni McDonielhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08325231567010205276noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1103090142646204707.post-33411779034408269122013-06-05T12:00:00.000-05:002013-06-05T12:00:00.792-05:00Fourteen Days<div style="text-align: center;">
Fourteen days on a ship is a long time. Especially when the ship doesn't dock anywhere for six days. Thankfully there was plenty to keep us busy!</div>
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Tea Party with the Princesses (after three hours in the pool!)</div>
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An Olivia sized splash pad</div>
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A Character breakfast with Mickey and friends</div>
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Walking the Promenade </div>
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(Olivia was walking some when we left for our trip, but, by the end of it, she was <u>running</u> everywhere. She also figured out how to climb stairs, push buttons in the elevator, and look just cute enough that our server brought her a bowl full of marshmallows for dessert every night. And, yes, she ate every single one!)</div>
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Porthole windows are so much fun to hang out in!</div>
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Hannah spent her cruise either in the pool or in the Oceaneer Club (just for kids). She made several friends. One night, she had a sleepover in the kids' club. She spent the whole night camping out with the counselors and other kids. They had a dance party with Stitch, played with Chip and Dale, and Goofy came to tell them "Goodnight."</div>
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Olivia also learned how much fun Dad's wheelchair can really be!</div>
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<br />Joni McDonielhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08325231567010205276noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1103090142646204707.post-19326155410940044372013-06-04T12:00:00.000-05:002013-06-04T12:00:05.400-05:00Cruising the Canal<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Our ship first entered the locks around 6:30 in the morning and we entered the Pacific Ocean sometime in the afternoon. It was a much faster process than I thought it would be. We sat on our balcony most of the day to watch the process. It rained most of the day which made it so much more pleasant to be outside. The crew that had been through the canal before told us that this day is normally extremely hot.</div>
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Heading through the first set of locks.</div>
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Hannah enjoyed watching for a little while, especially the little trains that kept the ship in the center of the locks. She decided after lunch that she would much rather go to the kids' club to play.</div>
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A beautiful butterfly that landed on our window in the canal. It was a strange feeling to see land so close on both sides of the ship as well as other vessels passing by. On our other cruises, normally we only see ocean and maybe a little bit of land or another ship way off in the distance. They are never this close unless we are docked in a port.</div>
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We headed down to the promenade deck to visit with the other guests later in the day </div>
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and found some friends along the way.</div>
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Bridge of the Americas</div>
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<br />Joni McDonielhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08325231567010205276noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1103090142646204707.post-11059428110781289442013-06-03T14:50:00.000-05:002013-06-03T14:50:21.865-05:00From the Atlantic to the PacificWe are back from our coast to coast adventure! We sailed from the port of Miami, Florida on board the Disney Wonder through the Panama Canal to the port of Los Angeles. The Panama Canal is beautiful as well as a modern marvel to admire especially when you consider that it celebrates its one hundredth year in operation next year. We made many friends on our two week voyage, ate a lot of delicious food, saw many great shows, and just had a wonderful time overall.<br />
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I took over three hundred pictures (and cleaned them down to 150), so I am going to break it up over a few posts. On our first full day, we were at Disney's private island, Castaway Cay. The island is definitely one of our favorite places to be! Sandy beaches, laid back atmosphere, good food... one day here is never enough!<br />
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Olivia decided that sitting in the sand was not for her. She sat on a beach mat most of the morning playing with the sea shells and the little bit of sand that was on the mat. </div>
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Hannah loves the beach! She had a great time playing in the sand and in the water. </div>
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The Disney Dream (right) stopped by the island to wish the Disney Wonder (left) farewell before she headed to the West Coast. It is very rare to see two Disney Cruise Lines ships together so this was definitely a special treat for us Disney nerds. :)</div>
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Hanging out in our Cabana</div>
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<br />Joni McDonielhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08325231567010205276noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1103090142646204707.post-47695709152444780232013-05-01T13:49:00.002-05:002013-05-01T13:49:09.695-05:00Almost time for Kindergarten!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Due to other conflicts, our big five year old is "graduating" from preschool about two weeks early. We have been so blessed by her preschool. She has been attending since she was 18 months old and has grown up with many of the same kids in her class. The staff has been so sweet and wonderful! They found out we needed to leave early so they dressed Hannah in her cap and gown to take a picture and will have all of her end of the year photos and mementos ready for us on our last day. This photo is from their spring program with one of her best friends.<br />
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With the end of preschool comes a new adventure, Kindergarten! As I mentioned before, we have decided to homeschool. This is a decision that we have been thinking, praying, and debating about for five years. I never thought I would homeschool. In fact, when she was first born, we were adamant that we wouldn't. But from our research and meeting with other homeschool families, we have found that many of those stereotypes simply aren't true.<br />
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I don't want anyone to think that we are only homeschooling so we can keep visiting Walt Disney World. We do travel a lot, but rarely is it simply for a vacation. Out of the four trips to the Disney Destinations that we currently have planned for this calendar year, only one of them is only for a vacation. All of the rest of them have business meetings tied to them. Chet travels even more often for speaking, and, we are blessed when we get to travel with him to those engagements. We have never liked the idea of always leaving our children behind while we travel to the necessary engagements. We want to be able to experience these things together as a family.<br />
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Hannah has already learned so much from our travels already. At five years old, she has already been to one of the Smithsonian Museums in Washington D.C.; learned how to make chocolate in Hershey, PA; made friends with a dolphin; has stood under the Gateway Arch in Saint Louis; learned about trains in Baltimore; and has made countless friends of all ages all across the country. Later this year we are traveling on a cruise through the Panama Canal and will visit the Grand Canyon. These experiences aren't the same when just read in text book. Here at home, the zoo, museums, aquariums, parks are all available as well. We are excited about the possibilities!<br />
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Another reason we are homeschooling is that simply put, our family is different. Right now, most of Hannah's friends think her dad is cool. Most have grown up with him around and don't see him as any different. We do not think that will always be the case especially in the public school setting. Hannah is our little tender-heart. She loves everybody and doesn't do well with confrontation, teasing, and bullying. We know that we can't always protect and shelter her from everything, but in these early years, we can teach her to stand up for herself, learn the value of self-worth, and help her see why some people act the way they do. Someday, she will be out in "reality," but that does not have to be today when she doesn't have all of the tools that she needs to be prepared for it.<br />
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Socialization will not be an issue. We have already found a local homeschool group in our neighborhood that is full of kids around Hannah's age. Hannah is currently involved in gymnastics and will continue next year. She has also expressed interest in piano and ballet. She is getting to an age where she can participate in more activities and church. She rarely meets a stranger when we travel with Chet to his speaking engagements and on our vacations.<br />
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I have no doubt Hannah will excel academically. She has always been very bright and we will continue to teach her just like we have these last five years. We like the idea of tailoring her studies and lessons to her interests, learning style, and needs to make them even more meaningful. We are currently picking out the curriculum plans that we want to use and I already picked up a book that talks about how to create lessons around Walt Disney World! :)<br />
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This is certainly not all of the reasons that we have decided to homeschool, but just the ones that may be more specific to our family. There are many other reasons that are common among other homeschool families. Homeschooling is what we have chosen for our family. It is works best for us at the moment, but we have not made a lifetime commitment either. We will take a year at a time and reevaluate as necessary. We are all excited about what the next year will bring!Joni McDonielhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08325231567010205276noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1103090142646204707.post-23615766058250943142013-03-21T14:40:00.000-05:002013-03-21T14:40:33.487-05:00One Year Old!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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One year old! What a fast, amazing year it has been! Here are the things I want to remember about our little Livi-lu at one year old:</div>
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New thing we learned today: she does NOT like sitting on the grass! </div>
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This girl is all about the food right now. At her doctor, the one year old "just so you know" sheet said that she might have a decrease in appetite during this time. They were clearly not talking about Olivia! She has perfected the art of begging, is trying to say "bite," and is not happy if someone else has food and she does not. The only food she has ever turned down is green peas. We quit her bottle cold turkey because she wouldn't take a cup as long as the bottle was a possibility. Olivia loves her cup now and is drinking regular milk instead of formula (Yeah! Smaller grocery bills!).</div>
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Olivia may be our quiet one out in public, but she is a chatterbox at home. She "talks" quite a bit and is beginning to put syllables and consonant sounds together to make "words." I love listening to her babble right now because it sounds like she is trying to talk just like the rest of us, just in her own language. She definitely has something to say about everything that is going on, whether she likes it or not.</div>
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In the picture below, she is trying to do the motions to "Itsy, Bitsy, Spider." She just started doing them in the last week. She loves music just like her big sister and loves when we sing to her. Her other favorite songs are: "Jesus Loves Me," "it's a small world," and "Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star."</div>
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Olivia has the funniest sense of humor. This may not be so cute later on... when I call her to me, there are times where she shakes her head no and crawls off laughing in the other direction. She loves teasing us and does so quite a bit! She loves making silly noises and faces, anything to get a laugh.</div>
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Olivia loves to explore and is constantly getting into things. One of her favorite things to do is to pull all of the kid dishes off the shelf. She is always looking to "escape" from the living room and visit Dad in the office while he is working. He, of course, loves it but is not so thrilled when she helps him type emails or write code for the website. She still has no fear and is always looking for ways to be higher by climbing onto furniture. Her favorite place to sit is inside an old red wagon that now hold extra pillows and books in the living room. She pulls all of the pillows out and climbs right in!</div>
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Love this sweet smile! She is still a Mama's girl, but she loves her daddy and big sister so much! I love watching her interact with each. Hannah can get her laughing and squealing like no other. She loves to cuddle in her Daddy's lap. She is still my sweet little cuddle bug! </div>
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<span style="text-align: center;">Happy Birthday! Love you sweet girl!</span></div>
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Joni McDonielhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08325231567010205276noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1103090142646204707.post-10941407246095503342013-03-18T14:43:00.000-05:002013-03-18T14:43:33.342-05:00Party Time!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
What an exciting weekend! We celebrated Hannah's fifth birthday and Olivia's first! <br />We had such a great time celebrating with our families.</div>
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We are very proud of Hannah. We were talking in the car one day about how we are so blessed to have all that we do. After talking a bit, I brought up the idea of not asking for presents for her birthday. Instead, we asked our family to help us buy goats for families in the Philippines. She questioned it at first as you might expect a five year old to do, but the more we talked, the more excited she became to help others. We raised enough money to buy three goats! She and her dad sat down yesterday and "ordered" them. </div>
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Hannah picked the theme, Sofia the First, Disney's newest little princess. Everything was pink and purple, even the rented bounce house Mamaw and Granddad surprised her with that morning. We were blessed to have such a beautiful day to celebrate in my parents' backyard. </div>
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Fun in the bounce house... Hannah convinced Uncle Jonathan and Granddad to join her!</div>
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Nana and Olivia</div>
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We even had a little ball pit for the babies!</div>
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The wind was a little crazy but we did finally get the candles to light. Hannah still won't let anyone sing "Happy Birthday" to her, but we did get to sing to Olivia.</div>
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The princess in her throne.</div>
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She loved her cupcake and kept it smushed against her chest so no one would take it! <br />She devoured every bit of it!</div>
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<br />Joni McDonielhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08325231567010205276noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1103090142646204707.post-75441219013320424662013-03-18T09:53:00.000-05:002013-03-18T09:53:00.237-05:00Keeping it Real<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
We headed to the Dallas Arboretum this week with some friends. I thought it would be a perfect place to grab some new pictures of the girls together. The arboretum was beautiful, the weather was beautiful, but, the girls were not thrilled with the idea. This was the one of two shots that I managed to grab that day. We'll try again later!</div>
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<br />Joni McDonielhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08325231567010205276noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1103090142646204707.post-92190104755638803872013-03-10T14:38:00.005-05:002013-03-10T14:38:59.821-05:00Five Years Old<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Wow! Five years old. That makes her sound so old! Here are some things I want to remember about our big five year old:</div>
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Hannah is Miss Independent! She is all about doing things herself and, even more so, doing it <u>her</u> way. This week, we had to work on that even five year olds still have to listen to their mom and dad. She decided to test out, "But, I'm five," when she was corrected. Of course, she will do anything to help out others. She loves helping around the house and we even created a chore chart so she can see what needs to be done, but still do them in her own time. Her favorite things are dusting and sweeping. She gets so excited when they pop up on the board.</div>
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Hannah is very excited to be starting Kindergarten in the fall. She is even more excited that we will still get to travel and see the world since we have decided to homeschool (more on that big decision later). Hannah is always very eager to learn. She is already reading and writing basic words (and some not so basic). She loves to skip count, spell, and is very inquisitive about the world around her. Hannah started gymnastics this year and is doing very well. I love to watch how proud she is when she finally accomplishes a specific trick. She can't wait to try new things and is already asking about learning to play piano and take ballet.</div>
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Hannah loves to travel and can't wait for our next big adventure, no matter where it takes us. She gets stir crazy just like we do. She loves meeting new people, exploring new places, and just taking it all in. She rarely meets a stranger and will talk to anybody about almost anything! Her favorite, of course, is still, Walt Disney World or any of the Disney Destinations. She is finally getting a little braver and will try some of the bigger rides like Splash Mountain and Big Thunder Mountain, but they are still not really her favorite.</div>
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Hannah still loves music and sings <u>all</u> day! She makes up songs about what she is currently doing even if she is just picking up her toys. When she sings actual songs, she does very well at matching the note progression and can even sing on pitch at times. Her music selection on her iPod randomly shuffles daily between Disney classics, contemporary Christian, (clean) pop music, and Broadway soundtracks. She definitely has a talent and we can't wait to see where it takes her in the future!</div>
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When she grows up, Hannah wants to be a ballerina and a cowgirl.</div>
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Hannah is a terrific big sister and loves Olivia so much! My favorite sound is to hear the girls laughing together. Olivia loves her big sister and is so excited when she sees her. Hannah likes to help Olivia practice walking and they have so much fun playing together. </div>
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Hannah has a very active imagination. She loves playing "Doc McStuffins" with her stuffed animals complete with stethoscope and white coat, coming up with various "ailments" that she needs to fix. She acts out entire plays with her toys. There is rarely a day where she isn't dressed up in some sort of costume. The question, "what if..." comes up a lot in our house!<br />
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Hannah is a very affectionate, loving person. She loves her family and friends! She is very passionate about everything and everyone around her. Everything right now is "the best ever!" </div>
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Happy Birthday, sweet girl! We love you so much!</div>
Joni McDonielhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08325231567010205276noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1103090142646204707.post-54499240673093244612013-03-10T13:42:00.002-05:002013-03-10T13:42:48.997-05:00Sea World SurpriseHannah turned five years old this week! We are having a combined birthday party for the girls with our families in a few weeks, but wanted to do something special on Hannah's big day. I had in mind a special dinner somewhere but Dad had bigger plans. Tuesday morning, we woke up and got ready for school just like we do every Tuesday morning. Except this time, the car was loaded with suitcases and Hannah's backpack contained books and activities for the car as well as a clue as to where we were going. We headed down to San Antonio to play for two days at Sea World!<div>
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She was so surprised when she figured it out and told us that it was the best birthday surprise ever! We had a wonderful two days. The week before Spring Break is an awesome time to be there. No crowds and beautiful weather!</div>
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So, having a fully charged battery camera doesn't really matter if you forget it <u>both</u> days in the hotel room. I am very thankful for my camera on my phone so I could document our special time!</div>
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We splurged a bit and got a room at this hotel. It was a beautiful, old building and our room had two balconies that overlooked the San Antonio RiverWalk. </div>
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We got to San Antonio just in time for dinner on the RiverWalk. The girls loved eating right on the river and we even got to watch a duck and her (almost brand new) baby ducklings swim around.</div>
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Checking out the view of the river.</div>
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We got to meet Shamu as soon as we arrived in Sea World the next day!</div>
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This is probably the highlight of our trip. Our first stop of the day was at the dolphin tank where you can purchase fish to feed them. Hannah was so excited to feed the dolphins until we actually paid for them and she saw what she had to give them. There was no way she was touching those things. </div>
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We stayed around a bit and got to watch the trainers work with the dolphins. One of the trainers brought his dolphin over close to us and offered to let Hannah feed it some ice that was in his fish bucket. Since that is much better than fish, she jumped at the chance and within a few minutes, was feeding all nine dolphins ice. Such an awesome experience! She talked about her "ice friend" for the rest of our trip!</div>
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Some of the education guides remembered Hannah preferred ice over fish and let her feed ice to the seals and sea lions, too! They weren't quite as excited about it as the dolphins but she still loved it!</div>
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Sea World is home to some old friends from Sesame Street!</div>
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Feeding the very friendly ducks.</div>
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Hannah loved getting to pet the dolphins, too! </div>
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Watching the Shamu show</div>
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Joni McDonielhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08325231567010205276noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1103090142646204707.post-79303608590581391892013-02-24T13:47:00.001-06:002013-02-24T13:47:18.781-06:00Eleven Months<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Eleven months old this week! Olivia is growing fast and we have started planning that big one year birthday party! Lots of new changes this month!</div>
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She is eating all table food, no more baby food for this girl! And, she is quite the little beggar, too! She is eating everything in sight. The only food she will not touch is peas. We can't get her to try any cups. I have tried several types and several different drinks off and on for months, but she is <u>extremely</u> attached to her bottle.</div>
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Olivia is standing alone. She can go from sitting to standing all by herself in the middle of the room. No help is needed from furniture. She thinks she is "so big" and claps her hands every time she does it! Olivia is also walking along furniture and can walk with someone holding her hands. It will be just a few short weeks until she takes off on her own! Then we are really in trouble! That is because this girl has no fear! She has no problem with throwing herself headfirst off of furniture. She tries to climb on and over everything, especially trying to get what she wants. She tries to climb out of her high chair and the grocery carts. She is our little daredevil and will be the one standing on her toes so she can ride the roller coasters at Walt Disney World!</div>
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She has started putting together a few syllables to make meaningful "words." Mama and Da-da are definitely said quite a bit. We hear "uh-oh" a lot! She will even say "ee" for Mickey and Minnie Mouse.</div>
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She is such a blessing to all of us and we love her so much!</div>
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<br />Joni McDonielhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08325231567010205276noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1103090142646204707.post-55093463626097606332013-02-07T17:28:00.002-06:002013-02-07T17:28:33.678-06:00Disney Cruise Line in Texas!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
The Disney Magic® is currently sailing out of Galveston, Texas. That means Mickey Mouse is only a five hour drive away instead of nineteen! We just got back from a quick four night cruise. We took six of our top agents from our agency, Off to Neverland Travel®. Hannah loved having six "aunts" around and we loved getting to know each of them a little better. We also got some work done, too! :)</div>
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It was a quick trip but definitely a blast! This cruise was just a teaser for our longer one in a few months. We are already counting down the days!</div>
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Love that Daddy! Absolutely love this picture!</div>
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Little Princess Cinderella</div>
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Pirate night</div>
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Hannah looks so old in this picture!</div>
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<br />Joni McDonielhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08325231567010205276noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1103090142646204707.post-31353384961563403982013-01-19T08:00:00.000-06:002013-01-19T08:00:06.813-06:00Ten Months<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<span style="text-align: start;">It is hard to believe that we will be celebrating Olivia's first birthday in just two months! This year has flown by. She grows and changes everyday. Olivia is such a little ham. She is always making silly faces and sounds especially if she knows it will make you laugh. She loves her big sister and gets so excited when she sees her. Of course, her first word is da-da and it isn't just babbling. She purposely calls Chet, Da-Da, when she sees him. She loves her Da-Da and tries to "escape" the living room multiple times a day to visit him in the office. Hannah is trying so hard to get her to say her name, and, of course, Ma-Ma only comes out when she is mad.</span></div>
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Olivia is pulling up and beginning to walk along the furniture which means a new level of the house must be baby-proofed! She loves to climb and can pull herself over small boxes and obstacles. She is always on the move! Putting her in the chair is the only way I could her to stay put for a few minutes! Her new favorite game is taking a small ball, throwing it across the floor and chasing after it.</div>
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She still doesn't have any teeth but is currently cutting the four front ones! Olivia has suddenly decided that she loves table food and is quite the little beggar. She would much rather have what is on someone else's plate than her own and isn't afraid to go after it if it is within reach.</div>
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Such a sweet, precious girl!</div>
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<br />Joni McDonielhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08325231567010205276noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1103090142646204707.post-61397592655584577782013-01-17T08:27:00.000-06:002013-01-17T08:27:34.610-06:00Christmas Morning<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
The weeks since Christmas have been a bit crazy between traveling to Midland and the other three people of this house passing the stomach bug around! We are all finally well and beginning to hit our groove this new year.</div>
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We had a wonderful Christmas! Santa came to visit the girls, bringing Hannah an American Girl doll and Olivia received a baby-sized play house. We even had a white Christmas by the end of the day. The second white Christmas in four years. Crazy Texas weather!</div>
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Olivia loves her playhouse and plays in it almost every day! </div>
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She didn't hesitate to check it all out Christmas morning.</div>
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<br />Joni McDonielhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08325231567010205276noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1103090142646204707.post-48799026951937069782012-12-25T07:00:00.000-06:002012-12-25T07:00:08.381-06:00Merry and Bright!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<br />Joni McDonielhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08325231567010205276noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1103090142646204707.post-19426862626939829432012-12-20T13:51:00.001-06:002012-12-20T13:51:55.197-06:00Nine Months<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
Little Livi-Lu turned nine months old this week! She has grown a ton this month and thinks she is as big as her sister! Her face is beginning to look more like a toddler than an infant although she still doesn't have any teeth. Hannah was about the same age when she got her first tooth so I am not too concerned.</div>
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Within a few days of crawling, she decided that wasn't enough and started pulling up. She is everywhere and into everything. She loves to explore and hide under our kitchen table. Olivia loves to chase after our robot vacuum, but isn't too thrilled when it bumps into her. </div>
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Olivia has decided that she is much too busy to take naps during the day. Most days, she'll only sleep for no more than an hour. She is generally calm and easy going until she gets hungry or sleepy. She is still very much a Mama's girl, but is doing much better at entertaining herself at home and not needing to be held all day. Olivia is finally at an age where she and Hannah can entertain each other for awhile!</div>
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We are excited about her first Christmas next week!</div>
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This expression reminds me so much of her big sister!</div>
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<br />Joni McDonielhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08325231567010205276noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1103090142646204707.post-69175060515532803562012-12-20T11:10:00.000-06:002012-12-20T11:10:23.460-06:00More Christmas Fun<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
Christmas is less than a week a way! This month has gone by so fast! In some ways, I am ready for it to be here, and in other ways, I could use a few more weeks. We have been having fun each day celebrating the season. One day, Hannah took a list of items from our church's food pantry and went shopping for others.</div>
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Hannah has also asked multiple times when it is going to snow. Unfortunately, living where we do that most likely isn't going to happen! So, we had a snowball fight with giant campfire marshmallows!<br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiwryFQOlFoLyDicdPVV_lwsD0XsQUql3jtWSBGS30xZCfDX_-qiKYbWpPDKb2EvnjR_KMO31PBf0Fmoh452MjPpGq5F4BC-h28hCd6fyV61kOphG4rg_ds29ii38ihz80iSwZQRdwABM8-/s1600/IMG_1268.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiwryFQOlFoLyDicdPVV_lwsD0XsQUql3jtWSBGS30xZCfDX_-qiKYbWpPDKb2EvnjR_KMO31PBf0Fmoh452MjPpGq5F4BC-h28hCd6fyV61kOphG4rg_ds29ii38ihz80iSwZQRdwABM8-/s320/IMG_1268.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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Hannah also had her class Christmas party and program at school last week. She did a great job at the performance. Definitely a ham dancing and singing! She has come a long ways since she cried if she saw us from the stage.</div>
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Yesterday, we met some friends at the Gaylord Hotel to walk through the ICE! Exhibit. It was a lot of fun and freezing! The room is kept at 9 degrees. Thankfully, the provide the big blue parkas since we aren't really prepared for that kind of weather! </div>
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Hannah loved the exhibit since it was themed to the Madagascar movies and loved the big ice slides. Olivia thought it was great, too! She spent the entire time snuggled against my chest in her Ergo carrier with the parka wrapped around us both. She was so cozy and warm that she took a nap!</div>
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We also purchased the pass for Hannah to go sledding down the snow hills. The picture is a bit blurry since I was using my phone that day. Hannah is on the end. She sledded ten times, each time with a big grin on her face!</div>
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After ICE!, we headed over to Rainforest Cafe to eat with our friends. Such a great day!</div>
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<br />Joni McDonielhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08325231567010205276noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1103090142646204707.post-38134538758489321192012-12-07T14:08:00.000-06:002012-12-07T14:08:12.010-06:00Kicking off the Christmas Season<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
Christmas is in full swing! We put up our tree a few days after Thanksgiving and have been having fun ever since! Hannah loves decorating the tree each year, placing the ornaments in the perfect spot. Chet received the monorail set last year for Christmas and we couldn't wait to have it circle the tree this year!</div>
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As you would guess, our tree is mostly Disney ornaments. Every year we pick one new ornament together on our Disney trip closest to Christmas. Some years the ornament celebrates a big milestone like a new baby and other years, we just find one that we really like for the year.</div>
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Our elf, Buddy, is back! We are taking a new approach this year. Instead of Buddy reporting to Santa each night if Hannah is naughty or nice, Buddy is the one making bad choices. Hannah has to help him learn to make good choices by being a good example and helping him clean up any messes he makes in the morning. Santa will still deliver presents to her on Christmas morning, not because she has been good, but because he loves her.</div>
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We are taking this approach to help Hannah learn about grace and unconditional love. It also helps enforce being good, not just to get presents, but because that is how Santa (and Jesus) would want her to act.</div>
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Buddy has already been in quite a bit of mischief with zip lining across the dining room, making a snack of all sugary treats, and climbing in all sorts of crazy places.</div>
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We started our Christmas Advent Calendar again. Each day reveals an activity to do that day that has to do with Christmas. Some days it is pure fun like building a gingerbread castle, painting a Christmas tree, or watching Christmas lights. Other days, we are more service oriented like buying food for our church's food pantry, donating old toys, buying a new toy for Toys for Tots, etc. We are definitely having a blast and it is only a week into December!</div>
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<br />Joni McDonielhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08325231567010205276noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1103090142646204707.post-63784340259847093672012-12-05T12:37:00.003-06:002012-12-05T12:37:18.563-06:00Love that Mickey and Minnie!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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More pictures from our Walt Disney World trip! There are so many that there will likely be many posts in the weeks to come!<br />
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We were blessed to be able to have Mickey and Minnie join us for a few minutes during our meeting time with the agency. What made it even more special is that they just fell in love with Olivia! Hannah was off riding Toy Story Midway Mania with her Uncle Bobby. Between pictures with the agents, Mickey and Minnie just gushed, waved, and played peek-a-book with Olivia. Once all of the agents were finished, we had a few minutes left of our reserved time. I asked if they would be okay with me putting Olivia on the floor so she could take a picture with them. They, very excitedly, said yes and plopped down on the floor with Olivia. The next few minutes were so special and we loved every minute of it! These are just a few pictures from that time:<br />
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Hannah ran back to join us after finishing her ride!</div>
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Minnie insisted that we get a family picture with them as well!</div>
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Thanks so much to Aunt Jennifer for taking pictures so I could enjoy those precious moments not behind the camera!</div>
Joni McDonielhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08325231567010205276noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1103090142646204707.post-54125993443932434012012-11-26T13:13:00.000-06:002012-11-26T13:13:58.911-06:00Eight MonthsTaking our monthly growth picture this month was not an easy task! Between getting home from our trip, laundry, colds, and Thanksgiving, we had to find a time to squeeze it in before she turned nine months. Of course, once the chalkboard and everything was set up, Olivia thought it was much more fun to sit until the camera was ready, and then take off towards the camera. So we managed to get a couple pictures to mark this month and we'll try again next month!<br />
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Olivia is definitely crawling now. She started crawling on our cruise and would go a few steps at a time. She really took off last Monday, crawling fast and all the way across the room. She loves to climb over any one who is sitting in the floor.<br />
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She is teething but none have pushed through just yet. We started her on some table foods such as Cheerios and small pieces of bread. She is still not too sure about them just yet and makes very funny faces!<br />
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Olivia has quite the personality and loves to make silly faces. She has the sweetest grin, but will let you know (loudly!) when she is unhappy about something!<br />
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<br />Joni McDonielhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08325231567010205276noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1103090142646204707.post-56035746995178348492012-11-24T16:18:00.002-06:002012-11-24T16:18:39.536-06:00Disney's Castaway CayDisney's private island, Castaway Cay, is probably one of our favorite places in the world. I think we would spend an entire week here if we could! We decided to rent a family cabana for the day and enjoyed the peacefulness of the island. We played in the sand, chilled in the hammock, enjoyed the island food, and just loved doing nothing for an entire day!<br />
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<br />Joni McDonielhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08325231567010205276noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1103090142646204707.post-74023283584155733272012-11-24T16:11:00.000-06:002012-11-24T16:11:00.331-06:00Bibbidi Bobbidi BoutiqueHannah decided that she wanted to visit the Bibbidi Bobbidi Boutique. The boutique is a mini-salon and spa for little girls (and boys, too). There are two located in Walt Disney World, one in Disneyland, and now one on the Disney Fantasy. <div>
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There are several packages to choose from. Since this was Hannah's first time, we splurged and got the largest package. It included the dress and shoes. She chose to be First Mate Minnie, a dress only available on the ship. The shoes are red glitter which made her VERY happy! </div>
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Hannah also had her hair fixed, nails painted, and even a little bit of make-up. Olivia spent the afternoon in the nursery, so this afternoon was all about Hannah. She loved every minute of it!<div>
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The Reveal. I just love her expression!</div>
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Joni McDonielhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08325231567010205276noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1103090142646204707.post-74754400589965695762012-11-24T15:59:00.001-06:002012-11-24T15:59:53.256-06:00Longest Disney Trip Yet...Twenty one days away from home. Some of those days were driving days, but it is now our record for our longest Disney vacation yet. Part of it was vacation and part of it was our annual meeting for Off to Neverland Travel. Both parts were fantastic!<br />
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We started our trip off with a cruise on Disney Cruise Line's newest ship, the Disney Fantasy. Seven days unplugged from the world and the agency. No email, no phones... it was definitely a needed vacation. So much of our time away is not really "away". Our phones make it possible for us to travel the way that we do and still be connected to the agency and other obligations. However, that blessing can also be a hinderance to much needed time away as family and from the stress of the world. The cruise forces us to do just that!<br />
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We arrived in Orlando a night early to trick-or-treat at Mickey's Not So Scary Halloween Party with two little Tinker Bell's.</div>
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It has become a tradition to eat with Mickey, Pluto, Lilo & Stitch at Disney's Polynesian Resort, the morning we head out on a cruise.</div>
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We always have a blast exploring the ship on the first day!</div>
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Olivia spent much of the trip in her Ergo Carrier, especially on the ship since we didn't take a stroller. I snapped this picture in the elevator mirror since it is a little difficult to take pictures of her when she is on my hip!</div>
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We spent a lot of time relaxing on our verandah.</div>
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And helped Mickey and Kermit solve mysteries on the ship with the Midship Detective Agency. This is Pepe's (the King Prawn from the Muppets) room on the ship.</div>
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Sweet girls before dinner one night.</div>
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We also got to dress up for Halloween along with all of the characters! </div>
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Both girls were Rapunzel on Halloween night.</div>
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Strategizing with Peter Pan on Pirate Night.</div>
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More pictures to come!</div>
Joni McDonielhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08325231567010205276noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1103090142646204707.post-18935066429517298952012-10-19T15:26:00.003-05:002012-10-19T15:26:51.596-05:00I've Been Everywhere...<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<span style="text-align: start;">We just returned home after being on the road for two weeks. Staying in eight different hotels made it a whirlwind tour! We first headed to Minneapolis where Chet was invited to speak to the FDA for an awards banquet. We left a day early so we could spend one day at the Mall of America. Hannah loved the indoor amusement park and spending time at the Disney Store and the American Girl store. Of course, we had to play mini golf... Hannah's favorite!</span></div>
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We were very excited that the amusement park inside the mall was very accommodating and let Chet ride almost every ride there. Other than Disney, there aren't any other theme parks that will even discuss it with him. Hannah was very brave and tried several types of different rides. She rode this bus that went up into the air and kiddie bumper cars (twice at each!).</div>
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After Minnesota, we headed down to Glasgow, Kentucky for Chet's cousin's wedding. The ceremony was held outside the bride's childhood home. Such a beautiful setting and a beautiful ceremony! We loved getting visit with several of Chet's family!</div>
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After the wedding, we headed down to Nashville for the CareNet conference that we have attended for several years. It was held at the Gaylord Opryland Hotel right next to the Grand Ole Opry. We had a great time at the conference visiting with friends. Chet's business manager lives in Nashville and we loved getting to see him and his family! They have two boys about the same age as our girls.</div>
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We had some time one evening, so we walked around the hotel taking pictures since the girls were dressed alike. This is my new favorite picture!</div>
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We are glad to be back home and are getting ready for our next big trip!</div>
Joni McDonielhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08325231567010205276noreply@blogger.com0