Day 2 @ Walt Disney World, Animal Kingdom, 1.18.10

The Tree of Life

Expedition Everest

brushing the goats

Chip and Dale

Dino land

Kaylee's baby giraffe, Rose

Our adventure awaits in Disney's The Animal Kingdom. We were told it is a jungle, not a zoo. The coolest thing by far is the huge Tree of Life right in the center of it all. The trunk of the tree is made of carved animals - much more amazing to see in person! First on the list to do was to ride the Expedition Everest - everyone but Grandma rode it (she is not big on riding the coasters). It was a fun one! Another fun thing to do was the Kilimanjaro Safari. You ride in an open air safari vehicle that takes you through an African style Savannah where the animals roam freely. We saw lots of animals, including elephants, rhinos, giraffes, lions, and more. We later got to meet some more characters, pet some animals, and see a sea turtle getting worked on the by Disney Veterinarians.

Day 1 @ Walt Disney World, Epcot, 1.17.10

Driving into Disney for the first time!

Our family in front of Epcot

The kids all got "first visit" buttons.

Dad and Nicholas in Mexico

Kaylee and Belle

Kaylee and her favorite princess, Ariel

Meeting Mickey

Big hugs from Donald

Bruce from Nemo is eating Kaylee!

Epcot at night - so pretty!

Disney World is like being a kid again and stepping into the world of imagination! Kevin , me, the kids, Grandma, and Papa all dicovered the wonder of Disney together. Our first day at Disney was spent at Epcot. Epcot has areas from some of the other major countries, including Japan. The boys wanted to go to Japan because they had heard you can buy Bakugan's there (and that is what they are into for now). They were so excited once we finally made it to Japan! It was neat to tour all the different countries - we went to Mexico, Norway, China, Germany, Italy, America, Japan, Morocco, France, United Kingdom, and Canada - all in one day! We also went to the Epcot character spot and got to meet a lot of fun characters all in one spot...we met Mickey, Goofy, Minnie, Donald, and Pluto. The kids bought autograph books to get all the character's autographs and when we met Goofy, he broke Kaylee's pen on accident - oops! The gift shop replaced it for us though. One of the coolest things for Kaylee we did here was to eat lunch at the Princess Storybook Dining at Akershus Royal Banquet Hall. We had a fabulous lunch that left us stuffed, well, except for Kaylee...while you eat, the princesses aome by your table to say hello, sign autograpghs, and take pictures. They come by one at a time and she was so excited that she could hardly eat! She stayed at the end of the table peeking up and down the aisle waiting to see what princess would be next. She got to meet Belle, Ariel, Cinderella, Jasmine, and Snow White. All the princesses were sweet and kind to Kaylee despite her shyness.

Happy 40th Birthday Michelle!

Ken and Kevin

Michelle and me

January 9, 2009. I helped plan a 40th birthday party for Michelle at Zona Rosa. Great mexican food, great maragritas, and great friends! A super fun party!

Ichibon ~ December 29. 2009

Mike and Bert

Amy and her hubby

Kaleigh, Clayton, and Grace

December 29, 2009. We went out to eat in Kemah with Amy Maddie (my college roommate) and her family and Bert and Mike too. It is hibachi style complete with the big flame and all the fun tricks they do with the food. The kids had a great time!

Visiting the Great Grannies

Bert and I loaded up the kids and spent half the day visiting all the Great Grannies at the homes where they now live. We first stopped by to visit Granny Maxine. She was looking good but was so lonely in there. I felt so bad for her. She is more of a people person and loves to be around others, but there are not many friends for her in her new home. She was so thrilled to see us! Then we went and saw Granny Lilly. She was in a great mood and loved having us there to visit. I was mostly excited that everyone still knew who we were!

Dunlop Family Christmas

After Grandma and Papa's we went over to Aunt Kathryn's and Uncle David's to celebrate Christmas. Great Grandma Jean was there too. The kids thought their new pet duck was so cool! It took Kaylee a little bit of courage to pet it, but the duck is very tame. Dec. 28, 2009.

Christmas with Grandma and Papa

After T Bone Tom's, we went back to Grandma and Papa's house to celebrate Christmas with them. The kids got some really fun gifts!

T Bone Tom's in Kemah, TX

Everybody

Dianna, Me, and Rikki

Lauren and Kaylee

Kevin, me and the kids met my parents and my cousins, Dianna, Justin, and Rikki and their kids out at T Bone Tom's in Kemah, TX. It was very good!

El Torro Smith Family Christmas

Our huge family :)

Our sweet family

Bobbie and Me

December 27, 2009. We met the Smith family out at El Torro for a Christmas celebration - it is one of the few places big enough to hold us all! It was fun as usual!