All done and ordered!!

My 2006 book is finished!! and....I've got my order in...so in about 7-10 days...I'll have it in my little hands...and I'll let you know if it was worth it...I certainly hope it is!! Here are some more screen shots of their "preview"...

My days have been filled with...

my 2006 book....I'm so excited to get it published, but am somewhat nervous...I've put in a lot of time...and it's obviously not perfect, but it just seems SO COOL in my head...and maybe you can see from these screen shots, that it looks like it will be GREAT!...but then, what if I send it off, and then get it in my hands...and...well...I keep telling myself it will be better than nothing...and...I most likely will never scrap it...so...thus...I have been living in 2006....

The first shot, I tried zooming in more, but this is as large as I could get multiple spreads to be...

These next two are just what I could fit, showing the first part and the second part of my book...

I will let you know how it turns out...

Random...

Will wonders never cease?

Kaylee asked for oatmeal this morning.

Mikennaism 020909

me: Mikenna! You are getting so big! You need to stay my little girl, can you stop growing?

M: I'm not a little girl. I'm a big girl because I'm already growing mommy.

me: Right. You are going to be 4 on your next birthday, that is such a big girl!

M: (in a whiny voice) I don't want to be 4! I want to stay 3!

me: OK, you can stay 3 then.

M: (no more whiny voice) and I want my name to be "s-s-i-d-y"

me: what? What about Kassidy?

M: I want my name to be "s-s-i-d-y" and Kassidy can be Mikenna.

me: um...no, you are my Mikenna and she is my Kassidy.

M; (in a very sad voice) OK, but I don't want to be 4 years old.

Kiera...

Kiera is such a kind sister.

Kassidy has been wanting to read well for the past month or so. She is working hard at it, but she really can't read the same type of books that her sisters do. Yesterday, Kassi chose a book she wanted to read, Roxaboxin (one of Kaylee's books for school.) I explained that Kaylee could read it to her, but she refused...and started pouting. Kiera graciously said, "I'll listen to you read Kassidy!"

They sat down at the kitchen table and began. Kassi was struggling, Kiera was prompting her by telling her most of the words, a few minutes later I hear Kiera say, "How about I'll read the pages with a lot of words and you can read other the pages?" Kassi agreed.

They finished the story together, both happy.

I love Kiera.

DisneyWorld...Day 10...

(Oh, so sad...)

Well, we stuffed everything back in the van. Michael took pictures to document it...something about letting the company know that they are misleading in their advertisements...blah blah...Then off for our last partial day at Magic Kingdom. We'd asked the kids the night before what they wanted to ride...

Kaylee: Splash Mountain (which was a no go since once again we had chilly weather)..
Kiera: Thunder Mountain
Kassidy: Space Mountain (I went on this with them, I don't remember it being so dark...slightly terrifying, I don't think I'll ever ride that one again as long as I live.)
Mikenna:"My roller-coaster."

We also did the Tomorrowland Speedway, which is Tanner's favorite (He didn't want to get out of the car...luckily Grandpa took him on the ride again...funny thing is, can he even see to steer? Click on the picture below and you decide.)So, that's what we did...rode their favorite rides, plus a few more...ate lunch...collected a few more signatures...did a bit of shopping...took the ferry back to the van...and then headed for the airport.Our flight home wasn't too exciting...we all slept...we did arrive 1/2 hour late (6.5 hour flight!)...which we only had an hour layover as it was, we dashed to the next gate, which they were practically closing the door on, but since there was 13 of us to get on...we made it. Barely.

and now we are HOME!!

DisneyWorld...Day 9...

So, we got our dry weather...but I suppose we should have asked for warmth as well...we were not prepared for such chilly weather. 50 was the high! brrr....after a great nights rest and early preps...

Off to Animal Kingdom!! (47 when we arrived! We were SO COLD!!)Finding Nemo the Musical was our first stop of the day...GREAT SHOW!! The songs went right along with the story line and they did a great job of using their puppets and incorporating the puppet holders too...guess you had to be there...

Left there and those that could went on the Dinosaur ride...hmmm...too realistic...Off to It's Tough to Be a Bug...then a walkabout through Maharajah Jungle Trek where we saw tigers...then to the Kilimanjaro Safaris...it was fun to be able to see the animals so up close...elephants, lions, giraffes, rhinos, hippos...they were literally right there, next to the safari jeep...practically a true African Safari!! I would say this is Disney's version of a zoo...Looking closely, you can see what type of hold Mikenna had on Mike while riding on his shoulders. He said it didn't bother him too!! She thought it was hilarious. Tanner and Mikenna loved riding in the strollers (boy are we glad we had them too!!) They are such great friends, and above you can see them having fun, holding hands when their strollers were close enough.

Rode the train up to the Conservation Station... and then back down...again we split off, one group following the parade to Mickey's Camp for the Festival of the Lion King...lots of singing and dancing, some acrobatics and spinning in the air tricks (Mike had the camera so no pics) ...and the other group over to Expedition Everest-Legend of the Forbidden Mountain (a roller coaster/train ride to avoid the Yeti) and Primeval Whirl (major spinning.)Animal Kingdom closed at 5, so we were done early compared to our other days...It was nice to get home early...besides we were leaving the next day so needed to pack and get things ready...

If you click on the picture above, you can see all sorts of details and carvings in the tree. We are a ways off from the tree, so you can't really get a sense of how big it was...it was HUGE! It's one of those things where I would love to watch a video of how they made/created this huge sculpture!

DisneyWorld...Day 8...

I think we are finally getting used to the time change...we all slept well and were up by 8:30! We were at Epcot by 10 am as well...but then you had the forecast for rain...100%...which to begin with was just a drizzle.

I don't think I mentioned this before, but each time we entered a theme park, we would grab a map and time schedule, then try and figure where to go first, what fast passes to get and when shows were so we wouldn't miss any...I think it's funny how all of the kids also wanted a map. I think that many of them could read the maps, where we were trying to get to...but even if they didn't, they still wanted to "study" it out...we also had to have extras because inevitably, I'd loose mine...

We started of at The Seas with Nemo and Friend's...it was fun watching the dolphins, checking out the Manatees and all of the other fish swim around-the tanks were huge! We watched Turtle Talk with Crush and Finding Nemo...we could have spent even more time there, but there was a lot at Epcot to see...

Off towards...The Land...for lunch and then Soarin' & Living with the Land...we were very impressed with the research they are doing on gardening techniques...loved how they grew their squash hanging from overhead trelises, they had tomato trees and then are developing plants to grow without soil!! By the time we got out of there, it was pouring!! We RAN towards the Imgination building, and parked our strollers out in the down pour...big mistake! We stayed dry going through--Journey through Imagination & Honey I Shrunk the Audience, but by the time we got out it was still pouring...we dashed over to the Innoventions buildings...

Snow White was also "stuck" there...and the kids got to play Red Light Green light & Duck duck goose...That's when I figured out that our autograph book got wet...you can only stay waterproof so long in a down pour...Ran to the next building...and took stock...

Checked out some more displays--learned about Waste Management (almost inspires me to recycle) and safety testing...had dinner while some went off to ride Mission Space....once they were back, we rode on the Test Track...I was hoping to walk through the World Showcase, but the rains weren't cooperating...so, we ran to the entrance...thoroughly soaked by the time we got there, darn that rain! We even had a few garbage bags...Home to get warm, dry off, and just hang out...praying for dry weather the next day.

DisneyWorld...Day 7...

Well, we didn't make it to our 7 am breakfast time...we thought we would just hit the Beach Blanket Buffet at a more decent hour before having to disembark. So sad that our cruise was now over...

Got our luggage, loaded the van and headed to a nearby beach! It was somewhat chilly once we arrived, but the kiddos had fun searching for shells, digging in the sand and avoiding the water.

Tanya said that as she was helping Mikenna collect shells, Tanya would point out a shell and Mikenna would say, "O-I was looking for that one...That one is my favorite too...Oooo, I like that one!" As if Tanya was going to take them...silly goose...Mikenna was also a bit freaked out by the seagulls. Mike tried to "help" her out with that...but I don't think it worked. You can see the look of sheer terror if you click on the pic below. Why he found it so funny, I don't know. There was also some dark grains of something that blew around some from the breeze, and she thought those were spiders...she couldn't get her feet up fast enough (well you know, you have to always have a foot down) so that really freaked her out...luckily my dad saved her...

Kaylee was on a quest to collect as many shells as she could find, luckily she only had a small ziplock bag that Mikenna shared with her, so we weren't too overloaded. Kassidy wouldn't share her bag...but still managed to fill it partially up. Kiera enjoyed trying to build something in the sand with her cousins.

Once we made it back to our house, Tim once again volunteered to swim with the kiddos...only it was much colder, so they sat in the hot tub instead...most of them anyhow. Aaron had this odd contraption that you put your actual camera in...zipped, rolled, and snapped it shut and ta-dah!! Waterproof camera!! That's how a lot of these shots were taken. My sisters and their hubbys had to leave by 2:30 to make their flights, the kids were sad to see them go...Then we packed up again and headed for Magic Kingdom. Checked out a few of our favorite rides, I got to go on Thunder Mountain...we all rode the Carosel, Dumbo...We caught up with a few more characters...Wendy & Little Mermaid...rode the kiddie roller coaster twice, caught the train to the entrance and then off to the store to stock up on more food.Once home, fed the kiddos, threw in laundry and took stock of the forecast for rain the next day. 100% chance...o-boy!

ok...

I only have 4 more days to go...this was a crazy long vacation!!

Another screamin Mikenna!!

Ok, on our last day visiting the Magic Kingdom, we couldn't resist getting a daylight version of Mikenna on her favorite roller coaster ride...I think it's so cute...her expressions of shear terror and joy are hilarious! I also love how she tries to put her hands up like the rest of us did, and then her little hands come back down...

DisneyCruise...Day 6...

Once again...loving that dark room...slept in again!! So refreshing! Except that we woke up to some pretty disappointing news. You see, Disney has their own private island, Castaway Cay (key) with gobs of beaches, bike trails and all sorts of activities to do. We were SO LOOKING FORWARD to chilling on the beach, watching the kiddos play in the sand, maybe taking a bike ride, eating at the cabana, watching the professional sandcastle builder do his thing, etc. etc. (This is all according to Tim & Julia)...and...

the captain couldn't dock the boat :( The boat could only counteract 30 knots in wind speed and the wind was 35 knots. I think the adults were more disappointed then the kiddos...and we were SO SAD!!

So, we spent a "day at sea" instead...but as we headed closer to Florida, the weather got worse-cold and windy, some rain. There were plenty of activities to participate in inside, but...you know...the beach...

Well, we took in another movie, Beverly Hills Chihuahua...very cute show, then we learned some fun towel oragami folding tricks (each night, when the stewards get the rooms ready for bed, there is always a cute "towel animal" to greet you), learned to draw Mickey Mouse, played a few games, did some latin dancing, and then went below to pack up. Our luggage had to be in the hall by 11 pm...so, we had to pack before dinner...Diner was at Triton's...french cuisine, very yummy. Again, Alfredo took care of the kiddos at their own table--they ordered whatever, and had the Mickey ice cream again for dessert. We adults REALLY enjoyed our desserts of creme brulee, orange crepes suzette & sundaes...Off to the last show of our cruise, Disney Dreams...much better than the night before...then a last few signings and pics with Disney Characters...

Aladdin was there again, in his "street clothes"...and he totally remembered my girls. In fact, he saw Mikenna first and asked where her sisters were....then he held out his arms for Mikenna, and she went right to him!! Just before she hopped down, she even gave him a KISS!! Wish I could have caught that one on film!!Anyhow...we LOVED our Disney Cruise experience, even if we didn't get to check out Castaway Cay...and look forward to doing it again someday!!

DisneyCruise....Day 5...

One thing about having an inside stateroom, besides it being cost effective...is that everyone sleeps in. There is little to no light, so you have no clue what time it is! I would way rather have that than a private veranda or port-hole anytime!

By the time we did get up and out for breakfast, it was 9:30 am...On the way to the Beach Blanket Buffet, we ran into Aladdin & Stitch...after getting their pics, we wandered up to for a very yummy buffet breakfast...so many selections to choose from!!

Once we had our fill...they had FRESH strawberries that Mikenna gobbled up...we went on shore to walk a bit in Nassau. It was warm and sunny...the people were friendly...found some cute necklace's for the girls...there was one shop that had signs everywhere that said, "you break it, you buy it." which I totally agree with, except that I saw a lady, pick up a mug to look at more closely, and then seconds later, she is just standing there holding the mug handle, with the remainder of the mug shattered on the floor, definitely NOT her fault and they still made her pay for it!!Anyhow...we re-boarded our ship, just in time for lunch!! (yes more food already!!) So, we grabbed a quick meal and then headed down to watch Bolt in 3D...unfortunately the 3D glasses didn't accomodate Mikenna's small head, so she and I snuck out near the beginning and wandered the boat together. We went up top to watch some ice sculpting, met Captain Hook--which she wasn't too excited about, but she shook his hook...and then we entered the "Toad Races", she got a cute ribbon. Once everyone got out of the movie, we hit the pools. The kiddos enjoyed the afternoon swimming in the Micky pool...they had this huge slide going in that they gladly stood in line for to go down over and over again. Near the pool area they had the Goofy Grill...where you could order burgers, hot dogs, chicken fingers, fries and etc. whenever you wanted--which we did, now we weren't hungry yet, but when the food is there... There was also an ice cream station nearby that I checked out a few times. It was a nice way to spend our afternoon, relaxing and hanging out.Once we got them cleaned up and changed, we checked them into the kids club so the adults could have a nice fancy meal together. The kiddos had supper with their club group and then got to make flubber while we were at dinner. The girls also got to prepare for the Pirate's Party that evening by having their faces painted and then bandana's on their heads.

The adults, we headed to the top of the ship for some fine-dining at Palo-an Italian restaurant. The food was very delicous. It's very different to be catered too in such a fashion. It was fun to see how they plated and presented all of the dishes. Very fancy!Once we finished, off to gather the kiddos to see Toy Story the Muscial...which was a bit of a disappointment...o-well...then up on deck for the Pirate's Dance Party...My kiddos typically like to dance, but for some reason we could not get them to do anything!! (had the same problem at the launch party too!) They were teaching us all sorts of "Pirate" moves like...the Pirate Hustle-swab the deck, salute the captain, point to the stars...--then Captain Hook hi-jacked the party and taught us some more moves....after that Mickey zipped onto the scene to take back control...and then the fireworks...Somehow, amongst all of the noise and dancing, Mikenna managed to fall asleep on Mike's shoulders, so no-we didn't catch her with her eyes closed...she's falling asleep!Once that was all done, we checked out the buffets, loaded with all sorts of pirate food..you know that cruises are all about food right? Again we stuffed our faces and then below deck for another night's rest!

DisneyCruise...Day 4...

Woo hoo!! We were all so excited to see our ship and to finally board!!After a long 1 1/2 hour drive, and several tolls (hello!! way too many!!) we were able to check in and then chill as we waited for our boarding number to be called...Once on..."Disney Wonder Welcomes the GALE FAMILY!!" we headed off to Parrot Cay for a most delicouse buffet lunch. After we had stuffed ourselves, we were able to wander the ship, checking out the kids club areas, the swimming areas, top decks and then finally our rooms.Had our madatory safety instruction and then the launch party!! Tim was asked to help demo the YMCA song...Totally yummy dinner...filet minon & halibut...scrumptious desserts...the kiddos all got to sit with each other, Alfredo (Kaylee: "A-Fraid-Do?") took over and made sure the kids got what they wanted to order, so we adults could enjoy our own dinner and conversation. He did a fabulous job of entertaining them...especially with his magic tricks...Then off to the Golden Mickies...where we saw many Disney characters...most memorable was Tarzan...with his very real Tarzanish physic :)

Once we got the kiddos tucked in and asleep, Mike and I headed down to my sister's rooms to hang out and eat some room service...oh boy...are we going to be stuffed when we get off this boat!!

DisneyWorld...Day 3...

It was a bit easier to get up this morning. Well, kind of :P You can see that some of us didn't even try...they just rolled out of bed and into the van...(I guess you'd have to click on the picture to fully appreciate Tim's bed head...)

Today we were off to Disney Hollywood!! There was Mickey's sorcerers hat right in the middle of the park! So...we started off this day with Beauty and the Beast. It was fun to see how entranced the girls were, even their cousins eye's were glued to the show. (Perhaps because they'd never seen Beauty and the Beast. Gaston was especially funny, with his head swaggles, face pulling and "fake" muscles.
Then, those who were brave enough entered the Tower of Terrors, which, again, the girls loved! While they were there, the rest of us (mom, me, Julia, Mikenna, Tanner & Dallin--he was smart, once he heard the screaming he was out of there...) we went to look for more characters to sign our books. I haven't watched Disney Channel too much, but Tanner and Dallin instantly recognized Handy Manny...then there was the Little Einsteins....We took off to the other side of the park to check out the Jedi training...Dallin was lucky enough to be chosen for the training session and got to "battle" Darth Vadar, he did SUPER!

Lunch, then wandered some sets...they were so realistic looking too!...we split again, some heading to Star Tours adventure, and the rest, back over towards Animation where we caught up with more fun Disney Channel cartoonees...danced at the block party and then gathered back for another show...Playhouse Disney. Afterwards, split...some to the huge roller coaster, and others to HSM3, which was loud and crazy...checked out Monsters' Inc and then the a set for Honey I Shrunk the Kids, I made sure to have the girls watch the show so they would understand the set...as we searched for the entrance, Mikenna asked, "Are they going to shrink us mommy?"
We all enjoyed Indiana Jones Epic Stunt Spec...Dad and Allison even joined the show...here are some funny clips of that... ;P





Our last ride for the night was the Toy Story Mania...huge line...great props though...so, Mike and my dad took the older girls off to the roller coaster, while the rest of us stood in line. Just as we were getting on the ride, Mike called to see where we were. I said, "We are in the ride right now!" He thought I said, "We're still in line now." So, he sent Kaylee and Kiera in to find us. Well, by the time we got off, I called him and he asked, "Did the girls find you?" AHHH!!! Julia and I waited and watched, for what seemed like FOREVER...I was nervous and a bit scared...then I saw them...peeking and looking for us...luckily we didn't get in trouble and the attendants let them us jump on with them for the ride...Kiera immediately started crying as soon as I put my arms around her...but then she regrouped and was able to smile again. Definitely couldn't let that happen again.

Home again, where the kiddos enjoyed another swimming session before dinner and then bed time! Tanya and Andy also got in, all ready to cruise for the next few days!!

DisneyWorld...Day 2...

After dragging ourselves out of bed, eating breakfast, & packing food for the day...we were off!!

The weather was WONDERFUL!!

Allison had a great idea of taking pics of the kids in what they were wearing in case anything were to happen...so here are my girls, with their DisneyLAND hats, ready for their day!!Magic Kingdom!!

Started off in Tomorrow Land...got our first sig for our autograph book (that I wouldn't allow the girls to help me "create" and a BIG THANKS to Sis. Weighall for helping out!! Maybe I'll let the girls do their own next time...) BUZZ LIGHTYEAR...some fun rides...Buzz's Spin & Splash Mountain: which I was surprised that the girls all loved! Worked our way to the MadHatters Teapot, sigs from Pooh and Tigger, and then lunch at an out of the way spot in ToonTown. The kiddos had fun watching the train go by as we snacked away. Checked out Minnie and Mickey's house, rode the Barnstormer: which Mikenna loved!! (All my girls are so daring!) Wandered to the Pooh ride, another Mikenna favorite...then the Carrousel and Dumbo (Mikenna also loved this one)...and Snow White's Scary adventure (not Mikenna's fav) we split off after this.Julia couldn't ride the "crazy" rides and my mom didn't especially like them either...we three and the two "babies" hung out...we checked out It's a Small World, Alladin's Magic Carpet ride, and the Jungle Cruise, found Jasmine & Aladin as well as Donald.

The bigger, more daring set hit Splash Mountain, Thunder Moutain Railroad & the Haunted House.

Once we caught back up with each other...we all flew through Peter Pan & then the last ride for the night Pirates of the Carribean!

After arriving home, the kiddos all jumped into the pool with uncle Tim and Mike while the rest of us fixed some dinner...then off to bed...and boy were we tuckered!