Pre-Christmas fun

Two weekends ago, the boys and our neighbors went to a Holiday celebration at nearby Lakewood Ranch.  I did not get many pictures because it was absolutely packed and needed both hands to push Jackson and keep up with Tyler.  But one that I did get was of my little angel, Jackson, all bundled up.  Because believe it or not, it was cold here!  Nothing like Atlanta, but not our usual 75 degrees.

For Christmas, Tyler and I made some delicious goodies for some of our friends.  In this picture, Tyler is unwrapping Rolos- I think he unwrapped one, ate one, unwrapped one, ate one...., etc.  Needless to say, we did not get as many out of the recipe as we should have.

We also took our chance at the mall.  It was not bad until we tried to leave and then traffic was a mess.  This is the mall in Brandon, Fl.  It is a very nice mall and has a cool, two- story carousel that Tyler rode a few times.

My boys

We had a little impromptu photo shoot at the house so I could get some pictures for this year's Christmas card.  Here is the finalist that made it to the card... 

And here are some of the ones that didn't...

I should try and video myself during one of these.  It would be quite humorous to see all that I go through for a smile or a laugh.

But hey, whatever works, right?  I love my boys!

Mote Marine and St. Armond Circle

On Sunday, we took Stef and kids to Mote Marine.  It is a marine and lab where they have some aquatic animals and fish and such.  It is not very big and not nearly as impressive as the Atlanta Aquarium, but I think that actually makes it better. You feel so much closer to the animals and it is not crowded at all, so the staff can talk to you about the animals one on one.   I had fun and I think the kids had a great time as well.

Of course we had to find Nemo and Dori.

"Whoa- look at the shark!"

After Mote, we went to St. Armond Circle.  After a little ice cream break, we walked around a did a little shopping.

Let's go the the Beach!

While Stef was here, we had to take her to the beach.  Susan has not been- at least when she was old enough to enjoy it.  So we loaded up the cars and headed West to Anna Maria Island.  

Group photo- L to R- Will, Jackson, Tyler, and Susan.

Will driving the truck into the water.

Tyler and Will playing in the water.  They had a blast- you would have never known that the water was a warm 63 degrees!!!  Yikes!  Stef and I were just glad that we didn't have to go in after them!

Susan enjoying a lollipop  break.

"No mom, I didn't eat any sand..."

"Yuck!"

I am a man on the move and I love the beach!

Okay- so maybe the water is a little cold.

But it's never too cold for the playground!

Cool starfish!

Playing a little baseball...

We had a great day at the beach!

Disney- Day 3, Hollywood Studios

On our 3rd and last day, we went to Hollywood Studios.  They had some really cool rides for big people, but not tons for Tyler.  BUT, they did have Lightening McQueen (or as Ty calls him- Rocket the Queen) and Mater from Cars- one of his favorite movies.  SO he was very excited to see them.  They were the only characters that he would go up to- I think because they really didn't move.

They had a cool play area from Honey I Shrunk the Kids with slides and thinks to climb.  Everything was over-sized like in the movie- hence the giant Playdough can.  They also had this huge rope maze that went up at least 2 stories that Tyler loved running and climbing through.

It was a little warmer today, so we just had to stop for an Mickey Mouse ice cream.

Jack had his first taste of ice cream.. he liked it, but....

was not too sure about the cold.  I loved watching his face after he would take a bite.

They have the new Toy Story interactive ride. You shoot at the screens as the ride spins you around and try to rack up points.  Tyler and Rich had a blast!

We also went on the backstage tour which was neat.  This was an area that was set up as a tanker truck that caught on fire and then was washed off the road by a flood of water.  Tyler was a little scared as you can see from his clutching Rich, but as soon as it was done he was asking for it to turn on again.  That is what he does with most things- if it scares him, he might grab onto us or hide, but then wants to see it again. 

They also had cool scenes and props set up from different areas of the country- here we are in front of the San Francisco scene.  It looked so real.

And we could not leave without stopping at this huge McDonalds (or "fry store" as Ty calls it) that was next to the hotel.  Tyler loves french fries, so we had to get his picture in front of his favorite "fry store".

Disney- Day 2, Animal Kingdom

I love lollipops!

The Thinker

Susan loves "Baby Jack".  They were playing while we waited in line for our Safari ride.

You can just make out Tyler raising his arm in the air and calling to the elephants.  And Jackson watching his every move.

Tyler has developed a love for music and he loved playing all these drums they had set out. 

In Dinoland, they had this really cool dig area for the kids.  There were dinosaur bones covered under this small pebble/sand material.  Tyler, Will, and Susan had a great time digging, Jackson was not so sure...

It took him a while to put his feet down in it.

Rich and Jackson in the small dig area.

We went home early for naps (the only ones they got during the week) and snacks.  Tyler is trying to get some Chocolate milk out of the fridge at the hotel cafe.

This is the life...

After snacks and naps, we headed to the T-Rex restaurant in Downtown Disney.  It was really cool, kind of like the Rain Forest Cafe, but with huge dinosaurs.

Then off to Lego Land.  Tyler could have stayed here all night.  He loves to build things.