Updates

I'm going to cite crazy, busy summer as the reason why I have not blogged at all since June. And really, had you walked a mile (or over 6000 miles!!) in my shoes, I doubt you could blame me. I was looking back through previous posts, and it was so cute of me to think I could just blog everyday after chasing 3 kids around Florida. By the time we spent all day at Sea World, I switched from unwinding by blogging every night to unwinding with a glass or three of wine.

I'm pretty sure I can sum up our Disney trip in just a two words--it ROCKED!! The kids and I hit the water parks a couple more times, and then my mom arrived to play with us at the World. We moved from our condo to the Pop Century Resort, and that place was like a child's dream come true with giant Mickey statues, an enormous pool and bright colors everywhere. Just some tidbits about Disney:

1. We all loved the character meals, but I think the Pooh and friends meal at Crystal Palace remains the best. The food is great, and the characters are very interactive. We also loved Garden Grill, the revolving restaurant at The Land in Epcot. Some of the best food we had AND we got to meet Farmer Mickey. Hard to top that.

2. For her 4th birthday, Caitlyn got to go to Bibbidi Bobbidi Boutique to be transformed into her princess of choice (Belle, of course). While I admit I had some "Toddlers and Tiaras" flashbacks, it was a wonderfully over the top experience and likely the pinnacle of every little girl's dress up fantasies. The look on her little face as she was sprinkled with pixie dust was well worth the hefty price tag.

3. All of the kids had a ball, and it impresses me that the magic of Disney does not wear off, even if you go a couple of times close together. I still tear up walking down Main Street, USA.

4. The drive back to Houston was mostly uneventful, and except for a few incidents of major 8 year old attitude, the kids were really good.

Our time in Houston was marked by friends, margaritas and lots of fun things to do. We've been so lucky to be able to take extended trips back home for the last few years. Some tidbits from that time:

1. The girls love their friend Rylee, and it melts my heart to see how much they love each other, even though they do not get to visit very often. Caitlyn taught Rylee how to cross her eyes and that might be the funniest thing I saw all summer.

2. I so miss good Mexican food. I've been all over the country, and except for perhaps New Mexico (which is so different it may not even be a reasonable comparison), Texas has the best Mexican food. And the best, cheap margaritas. In fact, I wish I had one right now (6:30 in the morning be damned!)

3. The kids and I tried to go do something fun every other day. Our various VA memberships got us into lots of places for free, so we took advantage. We went to the children's museum, health museum, museum of fine art, science museum, moody gardens, downtown aquarium, jumping place, parks, pools and more. Houston may not be my favorite city, but there is a lot to do there.

4. I love all of our Houston friends, and I am so glad we have them. One family, the Broussards, have been best friends with our family since I was born, and they are some of the best people I know.

5. We held the girls' birthday party on the 4th of July. Jason got to come down for it, and it was a big success. I'm so happy Lorelei could have at least one big Texas birthday party.

6. I threw a surprise 50th birthday party for my mom. I rented a limo and took her and some gal pals out to dinner in Houston. The decorations, the cake, the candy bar in pink martini glasses, the pink and black feathered birthday hat--all of it was perfect. What was not perfect was seeing our limo break down as it pulled around to pick us up after dinner. Talk about a buzz kill, as well as an ironic situation that was not funny! Luckily we were on the road again in about an hour in the cool new Excursion limo they sent to rescue us--and then it was a little funny.

7. I hate mosquitos. And hot, humid days.

8. The fact that Steve is gone still hits me like a punch in the gut. Steve was a night owl, and I am, too. On all of my past visits, he and I would sit up late and talk, and I missed that. In fact, one night I swear I heard him walking around the living room, and I called out to him. The reality that I never get to talk to him again makes me really angry and resentful and just plain sad.

9. My mom is wonderful, and I love her so much! I know it wasn't easy to have the kids and I invade her house for a month, and we made it through our visit with minimal strife (which is inevitable since she and I are just alike). I see the stress and strain she is under, and I am glad I know I don't have to worry about her. She is the strongest person, both in terms of strengh and character, that I know, and I am proud to be her daughter.

Our move began with a 1500 mile trip back to VA. I laugh now as I think back to how sick I was of driving then. HA! That was just the beginning! Our trip was slightly complicated by the fact a big tropical strom was forecast to hit our route along I-10 on the day we left, so we moved up our trip a day. It was a good decision because the one thunderstorm we did hit reduced our speed to about 40 mph in driving rain with 18-wheelers all around. One snag hit as we arrived in Atlanta to an overbooked hotel that I had a confirmed (and paid for!) reservation at. They did send us to another hotel and picked up the tab, in addition to refunding my money, but the hassle of taking an additional hour to get to our room may not have been worth it.

In Williamsburg, our movers fouled things up when they decided they only needed one day to pack us and thus did not show up the first day they were scheduled to be there. To be fair, they did only need one day to pack, but it would have been nice to know that in advance or have some say in the matter. The downside is that my mom was already scheduled to leave, so the girls ended up with me almost the entire time both the packers and movers were working. They were fabulously well-behaved, and the movers cleared out one room first thing so they would have a place to play and watch DVDs.

Some highlights from our move:

1. We saw my brother and his wife in Chicago. The city itself was just ok, but it was great to see them. Lorelei started laughing the second she saw Joey, and I don't think she stopped giggling the whole time. Caitlyn loved climbing on Joey, and then flipping and sliding her way back to the ground.

2. The girls continue to amaze me as to what good travelers they are. Our car was packed full, (and I am NOT one to travel with 100 different things to entertain them) and still, they were good. I put one small plastic box of toys between them (ponies, Barbies, Little People figures), and they each had some books, drawing supplies and their movies. Caitlyn also had a Leapster 2 that she got for her birthday, but that was it. The best time wasters were little journals from Target's $1 section and some twistable crayons. Caitlyn also liked coloring a map of each state we went through as we crossed the border (printed off the internet).

3. Best items I brought--an ice chest so we did not have to fast food our way across the U.S. and a little pink potty for emergencies. It was fun picnicing at parks and grassy areas, and we ate far more healthy food than we could have otherwise. It was also easier with the dog, and the girls liked running around after a meal. With Lorelei about 80% potty trained, the pink potty was a lifesaver on many occassions, and Caitlyn used it, too. It was nice, on long stretches of empty highway, to have a solution for the, "I need to go potty NOW!!!" moments.

4. Mt. Rushmore was cool, but far smaller than I thought it would be. We met a lot of bikers in the area for the Sturgis rally, and as a group, they were some of the nicest, most interesting people we met on our trip.

5. Went to a cowboy dinner and rodeo in Cody, WY. The girls danced to the band's music and became the stars of the show. Caitlyn's ballet is very . . . emotional and soulful. She twirls and spins and moves her arms in slow, exaggerated movements with sorrowful eyes during the slow songs, and she usually collapses to the floor at the end of the song, before jumping up to bow. Lorelei follows right along and does whatever Caitlyn does. It is precious, funny and slightly heartwrenching to watch.

6. At the rodeo, Caitlyn decided she wanted to be a cowgirl when she grows up. But still a palentologist, too. She also tried the calf scramble, though she thought she was going to ride a bucking horse. Lorelei cheered for the animals.

7. And speaking of Lorelei, the girl can talk your ear off. We went from a girl who said two words at a time to a little chatterbox who runs her mouth like there is no tomorrow in a matter of months. And because Caitlyn has such a big vocabulary, Lorelei does, too. It's amazing, and my favorite thing she says right now is, "I lus (love) you so much."

8. Yellowstone was breaktaking. We saw bears (including a cub not 5 feet from our car), birds, elk, moose and coyotes. It was hard to drive more than a few minutes without jumping out of the car to take a picture of something. Because of the girls, we had to stick to the easier trails, but Caitlyn shocked both Jason and I when she begged to hike down to a river. I warned her that the trail was steep and nearly a mile long. While we were hiking, I kept warning her that we were going to need to go back UP the long, steep trail once we reached the bottom. I told her I would not be able to carry her. She assured me she was fine. And you know what? She was. She even, shocking, I know, talked the whole way.

9. We hit the Museum of the Rockies in Montana. If you like dinosaurs, you need to visit this place that is right in the middle of some of the most prolific dig sites in the country. The displays were like nothing I've ever seen before, and the dinosaurs were feathered and colorful, in keeping with recent findings that suggests they were more avian than reptilian. Caitlyn insists she is going to dig up dinosaur bones one day. Steve would be so tickled by her.

10. Our next stop was Coeur D'Alene, Idaho. Listen up, Idaho: You need to do some better marketing. When I think of Idaho, I think of dusty, dry potato fields. Who knew there was a lush, beautiful lake that is so stunning it made it into our "1000 Things to Do in the USA and Canada Before You Die" book? Not me. At least not until I sat down to plan our route to Washington with said book in my lap. We enjoyed excellent fish from a lakeside patio, and we watched the sunset. Beautiful.

11. Vancouver was next on our list. Since our house closing was pushed back 2 weeks, we decided to add a couple of stops to our trip. Vancouver is a beautiful city, and the glass buildings make it look sleek and futuristic. We stayed a cool suite hotel in downtown, and we were able to walk to the ferry for Granville Island. I found approximately 537 things that I wanted to buy, and the girls had fun searching for lunch.

12. Seattle was our last stop before we got to our new city, and I really think that by this point, we were all too worn out to have much fun. We did go to the Pike Place Market, and the girls loved the flying fish booths. Caitlyn got a scare from a dead monkfish tied to a string so he could pop up at unsuspecting patrons. Honestly? The hotel pool and giant whirlpool bathtub were probably the girls' favorite parts. Although a close second would have to be spotting Mt. Rainier everyday in the distance. We've already learned to love the days when the mountain is out!

At this point in our journey, the girls and I had logged over 6000 miles since we left for Disney in June. We were all road weary and sick of sleeping in a different bed nearly every night. Thank goodness the girls are not picky about where they crash in the evenings, but at this point, even I was slightly whiney about wanting to sleep in my OWN house, in my OWN bed, with my OWN covers.

I'll leave it here for now. Our fun-filled two weeks in two different cabins at Fort Lewis is up next. Will we all go crazy? Stay tuned.