KerryAndGabe.com

Something that makes me happy: The annual Christmas date with Audrey makes me very happy! This year, we went to brunch at the Umstead hotel and then to see Trans-Siberian Orchestra. I had seen them perform years ago. What an amazing show! I hope to do a write up about it soon.

Something I’m thinking: The blog has been neglected lately. We’ve been extremely busy with getting ready for the holidays and our cruise.

Something I’m hoping: I’m hoping that my family stays well between now and the end of the cruise. I’m paranoid about someone getting sick and missing the cruise.

Something happening around the house: Our annual poker tournament was on Saturday. Good times! The bonus room is still set up like a poker room with the chips as we left them late on Saturday.

Something I’m reading: I barely read this week, but I’m reading the 3rd book of the Percy Jackson series (on the kindle from the library!).

Something Gabe is reading: He’s almost finished with The Hero of Ages.

Something I’m watching: I went to see The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn, Part 1 with girlfriends. Yes, the movies aren’t great, but they are fun. We did see the trailer for The Hunger Games. I cannot wait for that one!!! It better be good!

Something I’m playing: We introduced Die Burgen von Burgund to Melissa and Jason.

Something tasty: The brunch at Heron’s was YUMMY!

Something about both kiddos: The kids are very excited about Christmas lights on our way home from work each day. I am looking forward to showing them the crazy decorated house near us, closer to Christmas. I think they are going to love the decorations on the ship as well! Cullen is already saying, “I like Christmas lights on cruise ship.” He started saying that at random once I told him that we would find lights and decorations on the ship.

Something Maddie is doing (45 months old): Most people don’t see the side of Maddie where she talks NONSTOP, but wow. That girl talks continuously when she’s at home or in the car or anywhere when it’s just our family. I swear, she doesn’t stop unless she’s in the presence of others. We don’t get a lot of silence in this household. I can’t remember the last time that she took a nap at home. Every once in a while, she will fall asleep in the car on a long trip. She does pretty well with “quiet time,” which is more of a break for us than it is for her! The down time benefits everyone!

Something Cullen is doing (22 months old): We taught him our “other” names this week, and he answers that Mommy is “Kerry” and that Daddy is “Gabe.” I tried to teach him his last name, but instead of saying his real last name, he insists that his last name is “Brudder.” Ha! I tell him, no, that’s not right and tell him his real last name, and he says, “No! Brudder! Stop saying that!” We’ve been having lots of conversations lately. It should be interesting to spend a week with him on vacation and then another week for the holiday. I always notice big developmental changes when he spends extended time with us.

Something I am struggling with: I did something to my shoulder, and it hurts like crazy. I hope it is better soon.

Something I’m doing towards my goals: Somehow, I managed to get tickets to Les Miserables AND Wicked this week for dates next year. Woohoo! I’ve wanted to see both of those shows for a while. We’re also working on the arrangements for next year’s Disney trip!!! And…we’re getting ready to go on the cruise on the megaship.

Something I’m looking forward to: ALLURE OF THE SEAS!!!

Something captured: Lasers! Fire! Headbanging violinists!

Others writing The Sunday Somethings: Audrey

It’s time once again for my “best of” list for the previous year (inspired by Cindy in 2008). I looked back at 2008 and 2009 for the categories. I also stole some ideas from Cindy’s 2010 post.

Best Restaurant: We didn’t visit too many notable restaurants this year. Most of the restaurants that we frequent these days have high chairs, grilled cheese, and a lot of background noise. Two restaurants were in the running this year: Acme Food and Beverage Company and Sitti. I didn’t have a problem picking Acme, which is where we dined on our 4th anniversary. My appetizer, in particular, was divine. I never know that tomatoes (the teeny heirloom kind) could be so tasty, and I made sure that our anniversary fell during a dairy trial so I could have the fresh mozzarella/tomato salad. YUM!

Best Book: I had a hard time finishing books this year, but I still managed to finish most of our book club reads. I still read enough to make it difficult to choose one best book. Considering how quickly I read the first two books of The Hunger Games, I’m going to have to choose that as my book of the year. I still need to read Mockingjay. I’m looking forward to discussing the series with book club next month (so I guess I better finish that 3rd book). I would have finished it quickly as well, but it hadn’t been released yet when I finished the first two. I always have trouble finishing up a series when I have to wait for a book.

Best Vacation: Our day at Magic Kingdom made that trip the best of the year! I’m so glad that we decided to go at the last minute. The day was wonderful and made us excited about returning in a couple of years. We will fly next time. No way I’m making that long drive to Orlando again, if I can help it!

Best Movie: Despite the fact that we don’t make it to movies very often, I’m finding it difficult to pick just one in this category! We are very selective of the movies that we go out to see. Oh, how I miss the days when we could say to each other over dinner, “hey, let’s go to a movie!” and then we could just go to the movie. Or what about the days when I was able to stay awake through a 9 o’clock movie (and even the midnight showings!). Those days seem to be in the distant past now! This year, we had a couple babysitters and we managed to sneak off during the day while the kids were in daycare. I went to some movies with girlfriends, too. So, out of the movies that I saw in 2010, I liked many of them. The movies in the running for “best” movie of the year would have to be Toy Story 3, Inception, and The Social Network. Despicable Me would have been in that list if we hadn’t seen Toy Story 3. It’s hard to choose between the three in the running because they are so different! I can’t help it, though. I have to pick Toy Story 3. Pixar continues to be a sentimental favorite for me. It’s hard to beat. Which brings me to the next category…

Best Non-Pixar Movie: That’s right, I’m cheating and adding another movie category. It’s just not even fair for other movies to compete. The best non-Pixar movie that we saw was Inception. The Social Network was certainly good and had interesting content, but Inception was the type of movie that I wanted to own and see again.

Best Reunion: I stole this category from Cindy, and every year I almost choose not to use it. I do have a good answer, though. I think the best “reunion” this year is the start of the new Mothers & More chapter. The old chapter had been looking like it would fall apart for a while (and I thought that it had), so it was awesome to have a new chapter open up with many of the great women from the old chapter plus some new wonderful friends. The meeting locations are more convenient for me, too, so that’s a bonus. I look forward to seeing this chapter develop this year.

Best Album: I don’t acquire many new albums these days. Gabe ends up getting more albums than me. The two main albums that I got this year was Barenaked Ladies’ and Jack Johnson’s new albums. Between the two, I’d have to pick To the Sea by Jack Johnson. I enjoyed both albums (and both concerts).

Best Board Game: We actually managed to play quite a few new games since we attended That Board Gaming Thing this year. Almost every game that we played was new to us. I’m going to exclude party games from this category (see the next category). Our favorite non-party game of the year goes to Macao.

Best Party Game: The best party game that I have discovered in a while is Telestrations. We played it quite a bit since That Board Gaming Thing, and it has been a recent favorite at games nights. We’ve had some hilarious moments with it.

Best TV Show: Our TV watching declined rapidly this year. We aren’t too interested in any of our shows these days. I think that the award this year has to go to glee. We caught up on the first season (first half of the first season? when it came out on DVD and have been keeping up with it since then.

Best Toy (for Maddie): Even though the Bitty Twins are currently a big hit, they were a late arrival for 2010. I’m entitled to pick them, but I think the toy that got the most play and use in 2010 had to be Baby, the baby doll she had before Henry and Annabelle. She took that doll everywhere. It helped her develop imaginative play, and she cared for that doll and practiced things like changing diapers and feeding the doll that she saw us do with Cullen. So while Baby was not acquired in 2010, she wins for Best Toy (for Maddie).

Best Toy (for Cullen): My pick for Cullen was a toss up between the Fridge Farm and the Little People Barn. Both were hand-me-down toys from Maddie, and Maddie still gets play out of them, too. As with Maddie, I think I will have to go with the toy that got the most play out of the year. That award goes to the Fridge Farm. He started playing with the Fridge Farm around 6 months old and still plays with it almost daily. It’s great for keeping him entertained and distracted while cooking dinner, too.

Best Children’s Book: We did a ton of reading to Maddie (and some to Cullen, too). Even though we haven’t read it as much lately, I think this award goes to Pinkalicious. She received it for her birthday, and it has been a favorite since then. In 2010, Maddie got more into longer stories and can sit through multiple books of decent length. It’s been fun reading with her.

Best Maddie Moment: This one was an easy pick for me. The absolute best moment with Maddie was when she met Winnie the Pooh at Magic Kingdom. I wasn’t sure how she would do with the characters, but she was so excited to meet Winnie the Pooh. She waited patiently in line (until the last few minutes when we were almost there), and she stood by herself with the characters for pictures. She then gave Winnie the Pooh the longest, biggest hug. It was just about the sweetest thing ever.

Best Cullen Moment: This one is harder. I could just go the easy route and say the moment he was born! I’m going to instead pick a moment that isn’t quite as specific as Maddie’s moment. I have loved the few times that I have seen Cullen interact with the music teacher at school. Little dude LOVES music and LOVES that teacher. It’s so cute!

Some days I feel like I’ll never catch up on photos and trip reports and such, and other days I feel like I might be able to do it. So, I’m a little behind.

For those of you who do not want to read my long winded trip report, here’s some links to photos from our trip (if you don’t want to read my long winded posts and don’t care for the photos, then what are you doing here at all?):
Georgia
Disney
The rest of Florida

Before they knew that we were pregnant with Cullen, Gabe’s parents had booked a condo in Orlando and invited us to join them. We hadn’t told them about the new grandchild and tentatively said we would go. Since we knew the baby would still be very young by the time of the trip, we were really not sure whether we would want to go! We knew it would be somewhat of a last minute decision. I was pretty optimistic, but Gabe was not.

We knew that it was going to be a long drive, but we thought it would be easier to drive than fly this time. I’m glad we drove just based on the large amount of stuff that we had to bring with us! While I’m sure we could have been fine with much less, it sure is nice to be able to pack little conveniences like boppies, extra pillows, and pack-n-plays.

The first leg was easy. Maddie was happy, and Cullen slept the majority of the time. It takes around 3 hours to get to my parents’ house, which was our first destination. We decided to have lunch and spend a little time with my parents on our way down to Atlanta. We spent a little more time at their house than we had intended, but it was really nice to visit with them. The rest of the day did not go so smoothly! In fact, that was the only time in the car that was pleasant. We had lots of crying from both kids and very little quiet time on our rides.

Our next stop was Atlanta for a few days, including Easter Sunday. We visited with my grandparents, aunt, uncle, and cousins. This was the first time we had stayed in a hotel since Cullen was born, and we opted for Embassy Suites so that we could have a little extra living space. We weren’t sure how the two kids would sleep in the same room, so Maddie slept in the living room and the rest of us were in the bedroom. We blockaded the door with a chair since we were a little nervous about having Maddie in the front room. We left our door cracked open, too, and we were happy to have the video monitor. The room worked out really well for us, though the free breakfast was a bit lacking at this particular Embassy Suites.

We had a very nice visit with my grandparents, and everyone was so happy to see our kids. This was the first time that Cullen met any Atlanta family. Maddie was excited about the Easter Bunny. She and I had shared some Peeps recently, so she was thrilled to hear that the Easter Bunny would bring her a basket of goodies, including Peeps. When my grandma asked Maddie who the Easter Bunny was, she replied, “The Easter Bunny is a bunny who brings Peeps!” The Easter Bunny did indeed bring her Peeps as well as some other goodies. He brought a feeding kit for her doll, some coloring books, crayons, stickers, eggs with Play-Doh and bunny snacks. She loved all of it. We then had an Easter Egg hunt in my grandparents’ back yard. This was the first year that she really understood what was going on with the Easter Bunny, egg dying and egg hunts. I loved it!

We left Atlanta to drive about halfway to Orlando. Once again, we had a rough ride both to the hotel and then to the condo the next day. Whew! Of course, we knew that this was a possibility since Cullen had not proven himself to be a good car rider in his life so far! It didn’t help that we were off schedule, we discovered Maddie doesn’t nap comfortable in the car anymore, Maddie was constipated, and the kids alternated in some kind of secret pact who would be the loudest at any given moment. Good times.

We did have a nice time while in Florida. We went to the pool, played ping pong and horseshoes, lost a little money at Bingo, and took it easy around the condo. We decided as we were driving into Orlando that we couldn’t be this close to Disney and NOT go.

So, we went to the Magic Kingdom for a day. It was a wonderful day, and I’m so happy that we decided to go!!! I thought that Maddie would be too young. I wasn’t sure how she would react to the rides or the costumed characters. She loved everything! Every time we rode a ride, she wanted to go on it again (with the exception of the carousel…she did not like it!). She loved Dumbo’s Flying Elephants, Aladdin’s Flying Carpets, and the Winnie the Pooh ride. She enjoyed going through Minnie’s House (which I thought was crowded and not terribly interesting, so I was surprised she wanted to do it again!). The highlight of the day was when she met her hero, Winnie the Pooh. She posed nicely for the photos, shook Pooh and Tigger’s hands, and hugged Pooh for a really long time. It was awesome. It was a little hot and at the height of Spring Break, but we still had such a great time. Next time, we will likely plan ahead a bit more (and pick a time of the year that is not so popular). Maddie did great with the lines and learned a thing or two about “taking turns.” She has been talking about how she met Winnie the Pooh and Tigger since then and how she gave Pooh a big hug. It’s about the sweetest thing ever!

The ride back was not smooth by any stretch of the imagination. The plan was to leave as early as we could and drive about halfway home. What actually happened was a flat tire on the van. We discovered it just as we were about to pull out of the parking lot of the condo. Fortunately, Gabe’s parents were staying one extra day. This was a very good thing since we had a place to be with the kiddos while we sorted out the tire issues. We called AAA and were excited to use the auto services for the first time (we mostly get AAA for the discounts on hotels). Unfortunately, AAA was worthless to us. They would only come out and change the flat tire, but they couldn’t even call us back for over an hour. The only thing that they could do is change the tire to our spare and could not do any diagnostics on the tire nor were they able to direct us to a service station that could help. Gabe and his parents decided to change the tire themselves while waiting for a call back from AAA. Gabe was already on his way to a service station by the time that AAA got back to us. Worthless!

By the time we had the tire inspected and back on the van, we had lost 3-4 hours. We now had a very wound up toddler who desperately needed a nap and was acting out in ways that I had never before witnessed. It was a very stressful morning and afternoon.

We finally got on the road over 5 hours after our scheduled departure, and ran into a massive traffic jam before we were even out of the Orlando area. That traffic jam took us two hours during which time both kids were extremely cranky. We canceled our hotel reservations midway as we weren’t sure how far we would be able to make it. Turns out that we should have kept our reservations in Savannah. We ran into another traffic jam after dinner. I’m not even sure we were out of Florida at this point. That traffic jam took us another 2 hours to clear. Now we have two cranky children and two cranky adults. By the time we cleared the traffic jam, it was around 10 or 11pm, and we could not find a hotel for over 100 miles. We called many hotels before finding a Hampton Inn in Santee, SC (about 2 hours from where we were at the time). We got the last room. Fortunately, they were true to their word and held the room for us. They had to turn away several weary travelers.

We brought in one pack-n-play, but we could have just left it in the car. We ended up each taking a bed and a child and got some sleep. The complimentary breakfast was the best that we had out of all the hotels on this trip. All of the staff that we ran into were extremely friendly. I can highly recommend the Santee, SC Hampton Inn! I had stayed in a few sub par Hampton Inns a while back, and this particular hotel has changed my opinion of the chain for the better.

The rest of the ride home was long, and we were extremely happy to be home again.

We can’t wait to take the kids to Disney within the next couple of years, though we will NOT be driving!! This trip was quite an adventure, though it will be a while before we try to tackle driving of that magnitude again. Whew! It was great to see family and positively magical to visit Magic Kingdom. We were glad that we went on the trip!

I wasn’t sure how often that I would write these letters after her 2nd birthday, but she is still changing so much that I feel like there is more than enough material for letters every 3 months. We are amazed at the things that she is learning and the little girl that she is becoming. So here’s my next letter to Maddie. (more…)

I can’t believe my sweet baby boy is already 3 months old. Babies sure do change fast, and I know we’re going to see even more changes and milestones over the next few months. So, here’s the next installment in the letters to Cullen series. (more…)

Something that makes me happy: Our day at Magic Kingdom was incredible. I’m so glad that we decided to go at the last minute. It was an amazing experience! Photos coming soon, I hope.

Something I’m thinking: I’m thinking that the next time we go to Florida, we are absolutely flying. I’m not driving that distance again with small kids.

Something I’m hoping: I’m hoping to enjoy my last week of maternity leave. I can’t believe I have to go back to work next week. So sad!

Something happening around the house: We’re home!!! It’s already a disaster, but I don’t care. I’m so, so glad to be home.

Something I’m reading: I read a little bit of The Sugar Queen.

Something I’m watching: We started catching up on our shows last night. We watched American Idol while we were in Florida, but we missed two episodes of Survivor, an episode of Lost, and an episode of Amazing Race. Somehow we managed to avoid spoilers, thank goodness! We missed a lot of our other shows, of course, but those are the ones we were worried about getting spoiled.

Something tasty I ate this week: Hrm, we didn’t exactly eat gourmet food while on vacation, but the burgers by the pool at the resort were pretty darn good!

Something Maddie is doing (25 months old): She met one of her heroes, Winnie the Pooh. It was one of the best moments of my life! I wasn’t sure how she would do with the costumed characters. She wanted to meet Pooh and Tigger after we saw them from afar, so we waited in line. It was the longest line of the day, longer than any of the rides. And she did great! The worst part was when we got near the front of the line and she started to meltdown a little. She was just getting impatient once she saw we were so close to Winnie the Pooh and Tigger. When it was her turn, we really thought we’d have to stand with her but she did it all by herself. She was so excited. She held their hands, posed for the photo, and she gave Pooh the biggest hug I’ve ever seen. The staff was great to let her linger a little bit. It was so sweet. This was the highlight of everyone’s day.

Something Cullen is doing (11 weeks old): Cullen completed his first ever road trip. Sadly, he hates being in the car. I’m hoping that this improves as he gets older. Otherwise, we’re going to be staying home for a long time.

Something I am struggling with: The long drives on our road trip were awful. The worst was the first leg from the Orlando area to home. Our day went something like this: flat tire, two 2+ hour traffic jams, no hotels with a vacancy for 120+ miles at 11:30pm, screaming kids probably 80% of the time on the road, toddler who hadn’t pooped in 4 days, toddler who has trouble sleeping in the car, and a 2.5 month old who hates being in his car seat. I think that about sums it up!

Something I’m doing towards my goals: The Five Guys fundraiser is tomorrow! Come by Five Guys across from Cary Towne Center and help support the National MS Society! The event is from 4pm until closing at 10pm. You can also donate to Team B-Patrol directly.

Something I learned: I learned that we are flying next time…we’re just not a driving family! I also learned that driving late at night is not for us. The kids don’t sleep as well as we would hope. That could change as they get older, I’m sure.

Something from last week: I had hoped for smoother travels, but that was not in the cards for us. Have I said that I’m glad to be home??

Something I’m looking forward to: Not driving long distances with two screaming kids!

Something random: We kept track of the license plates that we spotted while on the trip. In the end, we saw 37 states plus Washington, DC and 3 Canadian provinces.

Something captured: Our family at Magic Kingdom!!!

Others writing The Sunday Somethings: Audrey