Downtown Disney!

So, this year on vacation, instead of spending lots of money to take the kids to an actual Disney park to be miserable in the July heat, and due to our lack of a "hook up" with free tickets, :) we decided to spend the day at downtown Disney instead. And I must say, it was a brilliant plan - if only it had been mine.........

anyway, the kids had a great time in the stores and playing in the water. There was a singing/dancing group that we got to watch perform while we ate our picnic lunch, and overall it was a really great day together. I'm so grateful for those kinds of days!

Here are some pictures of our day. We didn't take them of everything we did, but still, it did a pretty good capturing our fun!

The little splash pad areas were a huge hit with all 3 kids! and we were actually smart enough to dress them appropriately!!

I love that Cadence would try so hard to wait for the water. The few times that she actually timed it right to get the shot of water as she was at the hole, were amazing in her world :)

The boys had a great time too! especially once someone coming off of a bus gave them a balloon to play with. Balloons make everything better - even Disney fun!

We played in several stores - which is brilliant on the part of the Disney people - but while the big 2 had fun playing Mr Potato Head and Legos, Creed sat (or slept) in the stroller. His sister thought she would be helpful and give him a toy to play with while he sat, except she didn't tell anyone and we left the store with it! So, here is our little man with his stolen merchandise. He enjoyed it while we walked around the shops and then we took it back to the store and gave it to one of the nice Disney people who gave us stickers in return!

We loved the Mr Potato Head stations. You could just take whatever pieces you wanted to an just play. However, you're NOT allowed to sit on the tables. and when the man came over to tell us that Caleb had to get off the table, he gave us stickers as a consolation prize. We were really racking up on the stickers as a result of things you're not supposed to do :)

The big 2 had lots of fun at the LEGO store but poor Creed needed a rest. So, while he did this..

The other 2 did this.......

Caleb is at such a fun age with characters. Whether it's Veggie Tales, Cars, Toy Story, Yo Gabba Gabba, or Sesame Street, if he recognizes a character, he's immediately excited- and very loud about his excitement. He's pretty much loud about everything but that's a different post :)

I love this picture because it's exactly what Chris Andersen's son should look like in the LEGO store. Don't ya think?!?!

Cadence was all about having her picture taken with characters. Thankfully tho, when the characters are fake, the lines aren't nearly as long so she can have her picture taken with all of them! Free and no lines: Downtown Disney is brilliant and worked out perfectly for our day!

NC Zoo

Before we left for our actual vacation, we decided to take a family day and head to the zoo. So, we loaded up with the Kales and a few extra kids :) and off we went. We had been told that the NC zoo gave you lots off opportunities to walk and that was not a joke! Our legs hurt for several days as a result of the amount of walking we did in one day! It was ridiculous. But, there was lots to see and the kids had a good time - inspite of the heat - and so overall, it was good.

Cadence loved looking at all the animals.

The Polar Bears were a big hit with everyone. Not only was the viewing area underground so it was cool, but the animals themselves were incredible! Click HERE for a video of the polar bears in action.

There was a super fun playground which is always helpful on a hot day!

Sometimes heat has the potential to make someone feel like this :)

A huge (fake) geyser!

Animals - real and fake - were fun to look at, play on, and be impressed by.

The boys both held out pretty well for such a hot, long day! It's always helpful to have Mrs. Karen along - she's lots of fun! and then sometimes, you just need a nap..........