Favorite Days

We went to bed last night with the latest forecast saying we could see snow today.  I woke up this morning and heard the cold rain pounding down.  I was happy thinking that the rain I was hearing could turn to snow.....I am a snow lover.  And I was really happy because today we had absolutely nothing scheduled.  Nothing.  That hardly ever happens.  Ashlyn has therapy three times a week, Kyla has preschool and there are various other things we are involved in.  But, today was free.....and it might snow......happiness.

The girls and I took our sweet time getting going and stayed in our jammies a little longer than usual. 

And as we were having breakfast I was already loving how cozy this day was going to be.  A cold day, Christmas time and the promise of the first snow of the season coming.....well, that is a day where you have to bake cookies.  So, we got dressed and headed out in the rain to get a few things we would need.

Perfect day for our boots

All bundled up

Ready to face the elements

While we were at the store, we walked the baking aisle and talked about what kind of cookies we should make.  There are all sorts of kinds that I love at Christmas, one of those being peanut butter blossoms.  As much as I love them, my husband loves them more.  They are his favorite at Christmas.  So, we decided to make daddy's favorite.  While we were driving home from the store, Kyla said, "Mommy, can these cookies be a surprise for daddy?"  Definitely they can. 

Time to bake....working on unwrapping the Hershey's kisses

Helping with the dough

And helping herself to a taste :)

Lining them all up

And the best part....taking a bite after they are baked and cooled

After the cookies were baked and while we were eating lunch, I looked out and saw that the rain was starting to have white mixed in with it.  I told Kyla to look and the excitement began.....for both of us. Kyla decided she better go get her binoculars to get a better look at the snow that was starting to fall.

Happy about what she is seeing out the front door

And a few hours later, those little specks of white turned into this....hello, first snow of the season....

Taking it all in

Kyla checking it out from her bedroom window

And when we weren't looking out the windows at the falling snow, I got a little help with some cleaning from
a sweet little helper.

Today was my favorite kind of day.  Everything I love all fell into one day. 

Two happy sisters

And a happy man who came home to his squealing four year old girl telling him that we made him a surprise

A cozy day at home, nothing on our schedule, the joy of the first snow, making memories with my girls.....this was my favorite kind of day.

Thankful

We just got back yesterday from celebrating Thanksgiving with the Hochstetler side of our family.  Thanksgiving is definitely one of my favorite holidays and we were so blessed to be with our family.  We had a blast with them, as we always do.  The girls are getting to that age when being at Grandma and Grandpa's house is one of the best things on earth.  Kyla cries now when we leave, it kind of breaks my heart. 

I always have a blast because I have such a fun mother in law and sister in law.  We all share a love for pinterest and when we arrived they had pinterest projects waiting for us to to do.  Love that!  They even had a pinterest project for Kyla.  And, we always have fun doing a little shopping together....I am so blessed to have them in my life.

There was also a first this Thanksgiving.  I have been wondering what all the hype over Black Friday is and so I convinced my sweet husband to come along with me this year to see what it is all about.  We can chalk this one up under "the things you do for love" category, because Troy doesn't particularly love shopping on a regular day.  Also, one of the biggest differences between the two of us is that I am a night owl and he is an early bird.  Which is why I thought I would much rather do the Black Friday thing when the stores opened at midnight than get up at the crack of dawn.  He obliged and took a nice two hour nap before we left.  My overall take on Black Friday is that I was less than impressed.  I think I was going in with visions of getting high priced items for next to nothing.  Also, I didn't have a plan or a particular item I was looking for.  So, basically it was me and my tired but awesome for going along with it husband roaming the mall with the Black Friday shoppers.  I wish we could have had someone along taking pictures because I am sure it was funny to watch.

All of these things and more is what made our Thanksgiving this year really great.....

Kyla and Ashlyn in the cute Thanksgiving hats Grandma got for them

Our family on Thanksgiving day

Kyla checking out the just carved turkey

She is ready to begin the feast

And so is Ashlyn

And so is Troy

Time for pumpkin pie

Digging in....

Time for a nap....and dreaming about how much fun Black Friday shopping will be

Sisters in the chair at Grandma and Grandpa's that they love to spin in

Kyla working on her pinterest project with Grandma

Almost midnight and about to leave for Black Friday....if Troy looks half asleep, he was

With Heidi, in the middle of one of our projects

Having some splashing fun in Grandma's kitchen sink

Ashlyn loves playing the piano

Our finished projects....winter wreaths for our front doors

Kyla's finished pinterest project....a felt tree for her to decorate.  So fun!

Ashlyn laughing while Aunt Heidi gives her a ride

Loving it at Grandma and Grandpa's

Blessed beyond measure and so very thankful.  Hope your Thanksgiving was wonderful.

Thoughts on Disney

We got back from Disney World last Friday and it has taken me about a week to get "back to reality" and get us all back in the groove.  We could not have asked for a better trip.....all four of us loved it.  This was our first big vacation as a family and our first trip to Disney as a family.  Here are some of my thoughts, along with lots of pictures from our trip......

1. Getting there can be fun too

I think the reason I can say this with confidence is because we flew and did not drive.  If we lived closer, we certainly would have driven there, but making the trip from central Indiana to Florida with a two year old and four year old sounded like a recipe for disaster.  And, it turns out, that airplanes can be pretty fun.

Ashlyn is settled into her seat and ready to go.  She did a great job.

Kyla thought it was all really cool, including that they brought you a snack and you could pick a drink.

Ashlyn decided a little nap might do her some good on the plane ride

Peeking back to say hi to Ashlyn in the row behind her

2. Disney really is magical

I think no matter how old you are, there is a magic in the air at Disney.  At least this 31 year old thinks so.  And to see the magic through the eyes of your children is really special.

We were so excited to see the castle and to see that Disney was all decorated for Christmas.

First time visitors to Disney get these pins....Ashlyn wearing hers proudly.

Kyla seeing Minnie Mouse for the first time in a parade

Pure happiness

The joy of Ashlyn on the kiddie rides at the Magic Kingdom

Kyla riding Dumbo for the first time.  This ride was one of their favorites.

3. Almost five years old is a perfect time to go

We debated on when to go to Disney and when the perfect ages would be.  I don't know if there is ever a "perfect" age, but for Kyla just about to turn five, it was so special.  Everything is still so real to her.  Every princess she met was the real thing to her.  I wanted to go at an age when it would all still be magical to her and this was it.

Kyla and I got to eat breakfast in Cinderella's castle and meet many of the princesses.  Kyla wore her Cinderella dress for it and we had such a fun time.

Meeting Snow White

......and Aeriel.  Kyla started squealing when she showed up, because she is one of her favorites.

With Belle on a different day

She had an autograph book to get the princesses signatures.

Her face of joy riding the Winnie the Pooh ride at Magic Kingdom

And another face of joy while on a safari at Animal Kingdom

3. Florida in November is beautiful

We weren't sure when to go, we just knew we didn't want to go in the heat and crowds of the summer.  We picked the fall and are so glad we did.  It was sunny and in the low 80's while we were there.  Beautiful.

Warm enough to get our toes in the water

and swim

and splash

and wear shorts

4. Disney makes everything special

I guess they don't call it the happiest place on earth for nothing, because how can you not be happy when all of a sudden at three o'clock in the afternoon there is a parade and at night there are fireworks?

Here come Mickey and Minnie during an afternoon parade

Kyla making sure that Cinderella sees her waving.  There was one meltdown when Kyla was waving her heart out to Aeriel and she didn't see her.  Luckily, everyone else seemed to wave back.

The castle all lit up at night.  Kyla loved it!

And so did little sister

We got to meet Minnie (and Mickey) at Animal Kingdom

And they certainly go all out for Christmas.  Here we are at the big Christmas tree at Hollywood Studios.

5. Disney can wear you out
We were blessed to be able to be there for a week, so we purposefully planned a couple of rest days into it.  On two days we just took it easy and stayed at the pool.  Other days were at the parks all day and it made us tired as evidenced here....

and here.....

and here.....

6. Ashlyn hates being stuck in her stroller

This girl loves wide open spaces and every picture where she is the happiest is when she is out of her stroller.  The thing is that Disney is so crowded with people that it is really hard to just let a child out of their stroller to walk around.  But Ashlyn got a few chances and she made the most of them.

Loving her freedom at Magic Kingdon

With big sister by Aeriel

at Animal Kingdom

at Downtown Disney

and the airport

7. It really is a small world
One of the girls favorite rides at Disney was "It's a Small World", but it turns out that it really is because we ran into several people we know at Disney.  Such a fun surprise.

We were blessed to meet a very kind family who were staying at the same place as us, who have a 10 year old son with Down Syndrome.  When we first arrived, Troy was getting us checked in at our resort and the girls and I were just walking around.  I saw a boy who I knew had Down Syndrome and his mom and I smiled at each other.  Soon after staring at each others children we started talking and getting to know each other and discussing the very special thing we have in common.  Here we are with Tyson at Magic Kingdom.

Another huge blessing and surprise was finding out that at Disney the same week as us were our friends from college, Ben and Angela LaPlace.  They are also a fellow pastor and wife and it was a joy to visit with them and meet their sweet boys.

One night while strolling through Downtown Disney, Troy thinks he sees someone who looks a lot like one of my sisters close friends, Meg, who was a bridesmaid in her wedding just over a month ago.  So, I started running after this person to find out that it was in fact her!  She and her husband were there on a trip.  Such a fun surprise.

8. Being together on vacation as a family is priceless

Troy and I were certainly excited to be with each other for a week and very much looking forward to being with our girls and experiencing Disney with them.  This was our first week long family vacation together and it was so special and I look forward to many more.

The girls and I

Daddy and the girls ready for the safari ride at Magic Kingdom

Ready to make some memories

At Downtown Disney

I love him so much and a week with him was such a gift.

At Epcot

Ready to enjoy a delicious treat from Ghiradelli's at Downtown Disney

This trip was such a blessing to us and memories we will always have.  Could not have asked for a better time at Disney World with our family.....and Mickey and Minnie.