Family Vacation

Last weekend we took a little trip to Omaha for a family vacation. Emma didn't have school on Friday so we left Friday morning and stopped in Lincoln for lunch at

CHUCK E. CHEESE!!

(where else??)

The kids were not interested in getting close to Chuck. They picked the table that was as far away as possible from the stage.
Luke tried to sneak a peek, but you can tell by the look on his face that he was concerned with the huge, robotic, dancing, singing mouse .


Joe had never been to this wonderful establishment before. He was having a blast, can you tell?

After a delicious pizza, it was GAME TIME!

With the 200 tickets we won, the kids each picked out 2 prizes. They each got a mini tootsie pop, Addie got a slinkie that lasted all of 12 hours, Emma got a ring that she left at the rest stop 10 minutes later (a lot of tears were shed over the ring), and Luke got a spider that he threw away as soon as he got to the hotel in Omaha.

Next stop:

Coco Key

This is the kiddie pool where we spent most of our time.

These are other pictures of the water resort. It was very quiet Friday afternoon when we first got there. But Friday night and Saturday were crazy!

The girls wasted no time getting in the water. Luke watched for a long time before he decided to get in.

But once he did, he loved it!

Especially these fountains on the side.

The girls went down these slides at least 45 billion times. Luke would climb up there, but then just play. See Joe at the bottom telling him to come down? He never did. Except for the time I pushed him. He didn't like it.

Colin and Shelley Kramer met us at the water park on Saturday morning. This is Emma with Nathan. They also have an adorable little girl named Addie.

Riding on the Lazy River.

Saturday afternoon we hit the zoo. It was perfect weather for January.

Here are the girls in front of the Desert Dome.

Walking into the bat cave. I couldn't get out of here fast enough!

Addie sharing her knowledge of the dung beetle with Luke. I'm sure it was interesting.

Emma wanted to know everything about everything.

Walking on the bridge in the Jungle.

On Saturday night our friends, Brad and Heidi, met us at Coco Key. And they brought the gorgeous girls with them.

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Zoe

and Ella.

We had pizza and played in our hotel room. This is Heidi and Zoe.

Awww.....they were asleep before their heads hit the pillows.

Emma is tired of me taking pictures!

Fun with Binoculars

We took the kids to CNPPD's hydroelectric plant on Sunday afternoon to see bald eagles. On a good day you can see several bald eagles and maybe even see one grab a fish out of the water.

Joe helped the girls with their binoculars and told them where to look so they could see an eagle.
Emma found a few way down there but the eagles weren't doing much. Just sitting in the trees. It was pretty cold on Sunday. Emma loves this kind of stuff, and she really liked it even if she didn't see any eagles up close.

She clearly was not looking for the eagles. And really didn't care!

Top 10 Reasons I Haven't Been Blogging

In no particular order....

Number 10:

We moved to our new house!!

Number 9:

Disney on Ice in Kearney

Emma, Addie, and I went to the show back in December. The girls LOVED it! If you know Addie, you know she loves everything Disney Princess. And all the princesses were there. This picture shows each one dancing with their prince.

Bruce the Shark from Finding Nemo.
It's a Small World After All

Did I mention the girls loved it?? This is how they looked the entire time:

I realize Emma is not smiling and looks bored, but she was very intently taking it all in.

Number 8:

Christmas!

Here is Christmas with my family.

Emma, Addie, Luke, Jeffrey and Samuel

Luke ready to eat with Great-Aunt Dorothy and Great-Grandma Doris.

Addie was in heaven when she opened this gift!

All of Disney Princesses in one box!

Emma had the best reaction when she opened this Webkinz from Anna.

Luke got a 4-wheeler. He has put a ton of miles on it already.

Christmas Morning at our house.

The girls love Littlest Pet Shop!

Luke loves anything John Deere.

Chirstmas with Joe's family.

Emma and Addie got these cool memo boards from Aunt Carrie.

A John Deere hat for Luke!

Emma, Addie, and Luke with Wes, Ben, and Graham

Number 4:

New Year's Eve Party

This was taken close to midnight. They all made it for the big countdown!
Steph and Nancy

Kendra and me

me, Joni, and Leigh

All the guys were there, too, but didn't get any pictures of them.

Number 5:

I signed up for Facebook a few months ago and am now putting myself through Facebook rehab. This was the most addicting thing I've ever done! It was fun to catch up with old friends, but in the meantime all of my "blog followers" (you know, the 4 of you) were being neglected.

I'm so sorry about that!

Number 6:

The Bachelor is on!

I also love watching American Idol, The Biggest Loser, and True Beauty. AND we now have DVR. Wow! How did I survive without it? I can record all my shows and watch them after the kids go to bed. I am loving it!! By the way, I'm guessing the final two are Naomi and Jillian.

Bachelor Jason:

Number 7:

School started!

Since we now live in the country, Emma gets to ride the bus everyday. This is what she was most excited about when we decided to build a house. She gets on at 7:15am and is home by 3:50pm. Second one on, second one off.

Number 8:
Luke has been writing on the walls.
Look how proud he is of his masterpiece.

Thank goodness for Magic Erasers!!

Number 9 :

Playdates
Luke and Cousin Samuel

Addie and Cousin Jeffrey
Addie and Emma with Cousin Graham

Addie and her friend from preschool, Georgia. They played dress-up all afternoon.

Can't you just see the embarrassment on Addie's face?

Number 10:

I've been decorating my house with Uppercase Living.

I promised Joe I wouldn't put this in every single room of the house.

But I did get these up last weekend.

It's hard to see, but it says "Welcome To Our" about Home. I just ordered a lighter color to replace it. This is by our fireplace and you see it when you walk in the front door.

In the playroom downstairs A picture of the girls' bathroom

This is upstairs by the TV area

In Luke's bedroom

In Luke's bathroom

I will show you more pictures of the house later. I still have little projects to do around the house - organize the store room, make curtains, paint furniture, get pictures hung, knick knacks scattered around the house, etc. I'll keep you updated and it won't take me 2 months, promise!