Turning 7 Is Oh So Exhausting!

Jack had the longest day of his life, and that's saying a lot considering he is now the ripe old age of seven.  He was invited to play in an indoor soccer tournament at the US Cellular arena where the pro indoor team plays.  That's him in the dress-length pennant over his orange jersey.  He played his heart out in two games with Milwaukee Wave players as his coaches, which was pretty cool.  We were so proud of him and I dare say he was proud of himself.

Jack never stopped running and loved every moment of it.

Paddy came to cheer and to celebrate Jack's birthday, a special treat for Jack.

So, we decided to couple the tournament with the birthday party and invited four of Jack's friends to join us for the Wave game following Jack's tournament.  They had pizza and cake and prizes and lots of run around time.  The actual game was just, dare I say, icing on the cake.

One of the best parts of the night, according to the birthday boy was receiving a medal for playing in the tournament.  Jack claims he, "placed second, because I saw other kids had kind of goldish medals and they got first.  See, I got second because mine is kind of darker."  I left out the fact that there were hundreds of kids lining up to get medals, all of which were the same color.  Once the Wave put two and two together that Jack's b-day and the tournament co-incited they generously offered him the title of "captain of the game" which meant he walked out with the players, stood with them for the national anthem, and handed the referees the game ball.  We were all revved up for this grand entrance when the lights went off, the smoke machine turned on, and flashing lights spun around the tunnel where the players come running onto the field, and the music started pounding.  I panicked.  He went over and over his "job" with me with great uncertainty and I could see the worry in his face that he wouldn't know what to do or where to go.  I started praying that Jack would not be terrified running onto a huge field with screaming fans and flashing lights.  I may have even grabbed the arm of the ticket usher standing next to me when the lights went off.  Silly mother.  He was, of course fine, but thrilled to get back up to the nosebleed seats with his friends.  It really was a great night for him, but boy was he exhausted!

Charles was a trooper, but just couldn't last that late.  He demanded to wear this football jersey because he saw the other boys in soccer gear and he wanted a "soccer ball jersey."

Jack and the gang.  He had the time of his life.

Daddy Turns Thirty-Something

Christian can never remember how old he is, which I suppose is a good thing.  At 34 I think he looks as fabulous as he did at 24 (can't say the same about myself).  Wow.  10 years of marriage!  That's a long time, but when I think I've only know him for 11 years of his life, it seems like nothing.  What a good man.

More socks!  It seems Christian's parents and I had the same thought...

The boys wondered why there were so few candles.  I wondered how a cake mix could turn out so badly!  Seriously, it was the ugliest cake I've ever made.

Real Men Wear Aprons

Thank you, Storheim cousins for the darling aprons!  The boys decided to make cookies one Sunday and felt very official in their aprons.  Now Charles asks daily as I make dinner, "Can I be a chef?"

Pirate Girl

Yes, those are hot pink skinny jeans.  I can't wear them, so she might as well!

Ahh...the Texas longhorns.  Those fingers sure come in handy...pun intended.

Christmas and Beignets

We started a new tradition: a fried turkey for Christmas Eve dinner and beignets while we wait.  We had so much fun doing it, and it's a good thing because we all smelled like oil and fried food.  Christian was completely sold on the turkey frier after tasting fried turkey at a friend's house on Thanksgiving.  So, we decided to get the most out of the oil and first fry some doughnuts, or beignets as they call them in New Orleans.  The only problem with this is that December in Milwaukee is cold, and usually snowy.  Christian had the answer: fire up the kerosene heater to keep an eye on the roaring fire already going in the driveway.  He loved it!

Kerosene heater.

Excited for beignets!

Braving the roaring turkey frier with tiny dough triangles.  (yeah, I cheated and used Pillsbury crescent dough.  Worked like a charm!)

Christmas morning - with a bow from the wrapping paper.  So cute!

Yet another Christmas with Legos on the top of the list.

The AT AT Walker was the envy of all the boys.  When they crowded around the walker, begging to play with it Jack told Winfield and Charles, "be grateful for what you got!"

Sleepy girl!

The only things Charles wanted for Christmas were "a digger and a dump truck" and he got them.

The Christmas Tree

Goodbye Walt

We stayed a week and truly enjoyed ourselves, but were ready to head home.  Suffering from Disney overload we decided we'd wait at least 5 years before heading back.  One last look at the magnificent castle, all decked out in Christmas lights:

The Yearling

While we enjoyed Orlando, Christian and I needed a little breathing room from the Mickey and pals, so we headed two hours north to the historic property of Marjorie Rawlins, the woman who wrote The Yearling.  Cross Creek was small town in every sense of the word - one restaurant (and it was closed of course), a few big homes hidden behind huge trees, a couple trailer parks, and some swampland.  But for some reason it was magical.  I've never seen Spanish moss like this before and the palm trees (Or are they bushes?  Someone please educate this desert-grown girl) mixed in with every other kind of living thing made our nature walk feel like the jungle.  It was quiet and warm and delightful.

At her home sat neglected citrus trees and a backdoor to a national park - it was incredible.  We happened upon a few old gentlemen who come periodically to tend the house and pick the fruit then drive it 100 miles back to their town and become Robin Hood, doling out fruit to the poor.  Quite a lovely arrangement and quite lovely men - old, southern, country folk who loaded us up with oranges and memories.

 We asked the boys what their favorite part of the trip was and Jack said it was picking oranges and spending time with Gammy.  So much for the $$$ we spent on Disney!  I was happy to hear it though.
This is some homemade orange picker - a wire hanger bent in a loop and duct taped to a pole.

 Kumquats!  They were incredible - right off the tree and you eat the whole thing, peel and all.

 Just look at this park.  I've never seen anything like it.  Georgia stayed tucked inside - warm.

 It's amazing to watch children enjoy a standard playground as much or more than the roller coasters and show that Disney puts on.  I suppose in the end kids just like room to run.

Charles was in heaven - sticks everywhere!  Disney World was pretty low on sticks.

Characters

Oh we loved the characters!  Charles especially seemed enchanted by them.  

Winnie the Pooh was, in my opinion, the softest and most cuddly of all the creatures.

We had lunch with the characters from Winnie the Pooh and although the food wasn't stellar, the boys thought it was pretty awesome.  Georgia?  Well, I wonder what I would think if a giant orange and black animal came up to me and kissed me on the head, which is exactly what Tigger did.

Wonderful Walt Disney World

 Disney World - the magical realm where all your dreams come true, except perhaps warm, balmy Florida weather.  Despite the wind chill (really? wind chill in Florida?) we had an exceptional first experience at the great Walt Disney World.  Janet and Genevieve (filling in for Mark who stayed home with a very sick and injured dog) upped the adult-to-child ratio and made our trip so much better.

 Ah Dumbo...it really is a great ride, especially when you don't have to wait in a line.   Because we went in early December the park was rather calm and slow and we never waited longer than 20 minutes for a ride.  Christian and I vowed never to come back in the summer.

In the Swiss Family Robinson treehouse - a must for our boys who watch that movie nearly every Sunday afternoon.

Georgia was a dream the entire vacation.  Christian kept her warm and snug zipped up in his jacket.  I don't think she ever cried.

Charles thoroughly enjoying his Mickey waffle while we waited for a parade to start.

Jessie and other characters stopped to shake hands with the boys who were standing at the edge of the parade.