Flag Football

Trace was super excited to play flag football on the intramural team at school. Unfortunately, it didn't end up being quite as much fun as he had hoped. He had hoped to be the quarterback, but another kid was chosen instead. As a result, Trace hardly got to touch the ball. Life lessons...

Trace and Caden O'Brien

Aunt Stacie

We're excited to spend another weekend with Aunt Stacie. We're grateful that her job brings her to Florida so often and that she takes the time to visit us while here. She took Kaylee shopping today and Kaylee bought this new jean skirt.

Funny story about the shoes that Stacie decided to wear. We went to dinner in West Palm and planned on doing some walking. Well Aunt Stacie's shoes ended up not being the most comfortable and were beginning to cause blisters. So, Kaylee and I decided to take turns wearing Aunt Stacie's shoes so she wouldn't have to go barefoot. It was pretty funny, since neither of us are used to wearing heals. We definitely took one for the team!

New Car

We decided to purchase a third car for Kaylee to learn on and for our company to use when here. After some research, Trevor decided on the Honda HRV. Trevor liked it for its safety features and Hands Free links to keep the kids off their cell phones while driving. The kids are excited about their new car.

Christmas Decorations

We got our Christmas decorations up. It's always tricky putting things up in a new house for the first time. We had fun reminiscing over all our Christmas tree ornaments. The kids are really good helpers! Bring on Christmas...

Thanksgiving

We decided to stay home this year and have a little staycation after getting back from Disney. We made a full meal and invited our friends Kelly, Brian and Camryn over to join us. Kaylee made her first apple pie, which she was very proud of. Kianna made deviled eggs and Trace helped with the green bean casserole. The meal was delicious!

We have are so blessed and have so much to be thankful for!!! Here's my top 10 list:

1. My LORD and savior, Jesus Christ. I can't imagine living life without the love, grace, peace and forgiveness he offers me on a daily basis.
2. My family- I love my husband and three kids. We have our ups and downs, but we always forgive. They are my safe place and I love them with all my heart.
3. My house- We have moved more than I would like but God continues to bless us with beautiful homes along the way. I especially love our beautiful backyard and pool.
4. Food- I love good food and am thankful that we have full bellies.
5. Extended family- I'm thankful for my parents who despite being divorced early in my life loved  me enough to create a loving atmosphere for me to grow up in. I'm thankful for Sue being a great stepmom over the years and loving me as her own. I'm thankful for my many brothers and sisters and that we continue to grow closer as we get older. I'm thankful that I have two grandmas still living and that my kids know them too.
6. My job- I love being a PT and am so thankful that God laid it on my heart when I was 16 years old. I love my patients and am passionate about helping them get relief from their pain; physically, mentally and spiritually.
7. Our church- We love our pastor and his bible based preaching. I have grown to love my mom's small group and the way we pray for each other during the week. They are a great group of ladies.
8. Jupiter Christian School- I'm thankful that my kids are able to attend a Christian school. It's not cheap, but they are getting fed biblically based curriculum and a Christian world view, which is so important in our culture of "do whatever makes you happy" mentality. 
9. Our dogs- I love Bella and Rizzo so much! I love how they sleep with Trevor and I each night and cuddle with us during the day. They make me happy!
10. Exercise- I love getting outside and enjoying the beauty of God's creation. I love walking along the beach and in our neighborhood with Trevor or at Riverbend park with friends. I love paddle boarding with Kelly. I love biking with my kids and/or friends. 

Thank you God for all that you've blessed us with. Help us never to take it for granted!!!!

Disney

Star Wars

Frozen Sing-A-Long

So embarrassed!!

Pandora

Dinosaurs

Festival of Lion King

Simba pretzel

Trace pretending to be in my belly like last time.

Safari ride

Animal Kingdom

Poor Mom

Epcot

Trace cracking himself up...

China

Brats in Germany

On our date walk

Yummy desserts from France

Kianna hoarding macaroons and her chocolate tarts

Rizzo

Bella

We spent three nights in Orlando trying to experience the Disney parks. Our first day was spent at
Hollywood Studios. One of the highlights was the newly opened Star Wars rides. Trevor especially was in Star Wars heaven. They did a great job of recreating the exhibit. Trevor and I also loved the Frozen Sing-A-Long. We embarrassed the girls and had a blast doing so! Another highlight was the Tower of Terror. The ride involves getting in an elevator, while strapped in chairs, and then the floor drops out from under you. It was super fun!

The second day was spent at Animal Kingdom. We got there nice and early and immediately headed towards the Avatar Flight of Passage ride. We weren't able to get a fast pass for it, so wanted to do it first thing. However, as we were speed walking there once the gates opened for Early Magic Hours, a worker redirected us away from the line. By the time we came back around, there was a four hour wait. Ugh! We ended up standing in line at the end of the day for two hours. Part of the fun is waiting in line and seeing the amazing world they recreated. They really bring the movie to life. As for the ride itself, my family loved it and well me, not so much. The ride involved riding on an avatar simulator and flying through Pandora. Lets just say it didn't end well for me...

Other highlights at Animal Kingdom were the Festival of the Lion King, where Kianna loved belting out the Lion King songs. We also enjoyed the Kilimanjaro Safari where we saw giraffe, elephants, flamingos, rhinoceros, etc., The last time our family was at Animal Kingdom was in October 2008 when I was very pregnant with Trace. I wasn't able to ride it at that time, so it was fun to experience it this time. We also bumped into the Hass' and had lunch with them. They have season passes so they were able to give us some Disney tips.

Our last day was spent at Epcot. We decided the rides were pretty lame, but loved the food. We ate ourselves around the world sampling things from various countries. We had poutine in Canada, lefse in Norway, brats in Germany, churros in Mexico, tiramisu in Italy, tartes and macaroons in France, hummus and kabobs in Morocco, and Trevor had beer from around the world. We actually let the kids go on a ride by themselves and had ourselves a little date walking around the park on our own. It was a fun day.

We can now say we've been to all the Disney parks and still prefer Universal Studios to Disney. The lines are shorter and the fast passes are better. Disneys fast passes have to be booked 60 days in advance and you only get three for each park. You can't book more fast passes until you've used up all three. Whereas at Universal, you don't have to prebook fast passes. Every ride has a fast pass line, which is much shorter than the other lines, so you spend less time waiting in line. We also like the rides better. It's hard to beat Harry Potter world. We ended out time in Orlando by visiting our favorite restaurant from last year, Cow Fish. We had burgerushi and yummy shakes. What a great end to our mini vacation!

PS- Our Rover lady takes the best pictures of our dogs! They love her house and were on their own mini vacation with her family.

Harborside Tree Lighting

This year Trace's 5/6th grade choir sang at the tree lighting ceremony. It was a nice evening as we begin to get in the Christmas spirit.