Tusker House

We had another chance to visit the most magical place on earth over Mardi Gras break.  This was Watt's 1st trip to Disney World, and Cille's second, but probably the first one that she will remember.  Damon and I carefully planned out our itinerary,  together this time.  Last time he did all the planning solo, but I helped out this time and we attempted to learn from the mistakes we made last time.  Our biggest mistake last trip was not staying long enough, and we actually overcorrected a bit this time, but we still had tons of fun.  So, without further ado, let the memories begin! 

We started on Saturday in Animal Kingdom.  We followed Tour Guide Mike's advice and tried to avoid parks on their most crowded days.  Animal Kingdom had a green flag for Saturday and we knew we could probably knock it out in one day, so that's what we did.  On our way into the park...

We started our day with a yummy breakfast at one of our favorite Disney restaurants: Tusker House! Stella was a little shy when we first met Donald...

But she warmed up...

The whole gang...

After our photo op we waited a while for a table...

It was early in the morning so some of us were still a little sleepy...

Once inside we chowed down on a delicious breakfast and got to visit with some old friends...

It was a little too much for Watts...

We were having such a good time that we ate very slowly, and ended up helping them close down the restaurant...this will kind of become the theme of our trip...

Blackhawk Down

A couple of days after the Mardi Gras parade, Stella had a special treat at school.  In order to help the kids learn about emergency responders and our armed forces, a Blackhawk helicopter landed at the school for the kids to see up close and personal.  Several ambulances and other first responder vehicles also stopped by.  Here is Stella's Pre-K class in front of the Blackhawk...

I should mention this was for all the Parkview Baptist School kids, not just the preschoolers...

I think the coolest thing that ever happened at my school was when the weather man spoke in chapel once, so Stella is already trumping my rural upbringing...

Baton Rouge Mardi Gras

So...the blog.  Yep, it's been a while. Turns out the "full-time job and three kids" kinda got to me last semester, so I spent most of my "free" time just trying to make sure there was clean underwear in our house and a few things fell by the wayside, starting with the blog.  Don't worry; I'll backdate the catch-up posts and except for this little confessional, no one will be any wiser...

Moving on: back in February we had to celebrate a pagan South Louisiana tradition and take our children to see at least one Mardi Gras parade.  We chose a small one in Baton Rouge, saving ourselves a drive to New Orleans and also avoiding the crowds.  Watts sat this one out, opting to spend some private time at home with Mawmaw instead of witnessing the spectacle that is a Mardi Gras parade... 

In spite of their unwillingness to leave their stroller, the girls were pretty much bead magnets, as usual...

Izzy attended the parade with us...it was her first...

You may notice Stella still sucking her thumb in these pictures.  Take a good look, because soon after her 5th birthday Stella kicked that habit to the curb! (Now it only happens sometimes when she is sleeping.)

The poor guy next to us got recruited by Cille to retrieve all the items that she did not catch.  Did I mention her catching skills are NOT great?  He probably had a back-ache by the time he left...

Got it!

Cille was eager to yell, "Throw me something, Mister!" and quite miffed when people did not respond as she thought they should...

Stella caught this crown but sweetly gave it to her sister since she already had one at home...

She was born to wear a crown, huh?  Very regal...

Here is what the parade looked like...

Ooooh....

The girls with their loot...