Storyland

We headed to Storyland in New Hampshire and met up with the Chazanoffs for one overnight.  Beatrice had such a wonderful time.  We visited this park at just the right age and she ate it right up.  Here's our little Heidi:

Pretending to milk this cow fits in so well since we're now on book #5 of the Little House series and she's just obsessed with anything to do with farms, prairies, and big storms!

These cutouts were all fun, and Bea was just the right height to stick her head into each of them:

                                                    

On the way home, she declared this raft ride as the number one thing she wants to do again if we return some day:

Here come the drowned rats:

The first sighting of Cinderella was oh so dramatic:

Bea and Rachel raced up to her castle to get a glimpse of the magic wand, the glass slippers, and to get a chance to sit on her throne:

Here are the ballerinas posing outside the entrance:

 

And here's Queen Bea sitting on her throne:

And holding the princesses's hand!

Fitting so well into the pumpkin coach:

Back at the hotel, the girls enjoyed a swim in the pool, and Rachel gave Anthony a lesson in how to make Ryan giggle:

                                               

This was the third-ever sleepover for the girls, but I think the first that really truly qualified in that they stayed up until nearly midnight gabbing and didn't leave for parent rooms all night!  The first of many, I suspect:

On the second day, we ran into Tink and Red Riding Hood:

The Cinderella tea party was a huge hit.  The guests got a tea party etiquette lesson, had a conversation with the princess, had "tea" with fruit and a cookie, and listened to a story. A dream come true!

How old are you????

The last thing we did was ride the antique cars, and with Bea at the helm....let's just say I was glad to be in the back seat.....Thankfully we have eleven more years to hone these skills:

For now though, she meets the criteria to get this official driver's license, authorized by Humpty Dumpty himself:

The Chazes followed close behind!

Bye-bye Storyland.  We may just see you again next summer!

Then & Now

Referral Day:  7/11/08

Ocean City, MD:  7/5/13

Few more photos from the beach

I thought I'd consolidated all the photos from vacation, but I missed a few good ones from Anthony's cell phone.  Here were the three kids pig-piling in the living room.  It happened dozens of times and miraculously there wasn't a bumped head or tear!

We were fortunate to catch up with cousin Joseph one afternoon and went out for sushi and ice cream:

Wrastlin' Gators at Thunder Lagoon!

Bea and I have been on this carousel together in Rehoboth every summer.  This year she picked the bench:

The boardwalk at dusk:

This girl knows how to flash the pearly whites for a camera!

My sister-in-law Kathleen, me, brother Dan, sister Louise, and the three little cousins:

Maryland Vacation

Just back from ten days away from home.  And just put my daughter to bed after she was crying huge crocodile tears about missing Maryland and wanting to move there, so obviously we had a blast.  Here are some highlights from the trip, selected quickly from over a hundred photographs.  Road trip to Lolo and Lola's house:

Ninth hour in the car:

We spent two days at Anthony's folks' main house and visited his sister and family on her 41st birthday.  The girls headed out to catch fireflies and here's Bea with her first ever catch!

                                        

                                                    

                                                         Crazy girlies jumping with joy!

                                                     

                                       Lucy & Matt, The Forondas, and us:

After a sleepover with the girls, and destroying Lola's living room with some awesome blanket forts the next morning, we then  headed to the beach house and spent 24 hours just the three of us.  Mini-golf was one of the first things we did:

The next day, Lolo and Lola, as well as my sister, and my brother and his family, joined us.  Sula had her first vacation in a couple years, and enjoyed chasing rabbits, getting some long walks, eating lots and lots of handouts from many a hand, and trying on my sister-in-law's flip flops:

Here are the three musketeers enjoying a dessert called "DIRT."  

Crazy Elton John glasses are around yet another summer!

This picture represents three things that shocked and frightened me. A) My daughter is a carnie wanna-be...she loves those ridiculous games,even more than rides! ; B) She chose this redneck "Pirate's Booty" game at Rehoboth beach as a must-do; C) She picked up that rifle, aimed, and shot four for four. Dang!

Here's the only pic I got from the water park Thunder Lagoon in Fenwick Island.  The kids had a blast, but Bea wouldn't go near the big slides.  And my cautious girl was the only kid in the park with floaties!  

She fit just right under the Dumser Dairyland ice cream ordering counter:

                     We visited the beach a few times, and the fun for Bea consisted of digging holes, filling holes, refilling holes,  avoiding waves, and posing ridiculously for cell phone pics with cousin Hankie:

     She is going to go through some serious withdrawal after all this fun cousin time!

Here she is at Assateague with Daddy:

Making sand angels:

Out to lunch with Lola and Hank:

On the Fourth of July we rolled around this ice cream ball for 30 minutes making some delicious, albeit incredibly soft, vanilla ice cream.  Fun!

Lolo and Lola posed for this picture before heading back home:

My sister treated the three kids to a pirate's adventure boat ride and they had a blast:

Bea forewent the patch/sword/costume and chose this random princess crown necklace instead:

On our first night, she did her first ever go kart ride with Daddy:

And after nearly giving up, we were treated to a visit with seven wild horses at Assateague:

Can't cope with the long ride home!  (in all seriousness, both she and Sula were awesome crammed in the back of the Civic.  We still have yet to pull out any electronics for car trips and Bea entertained herself today  for hours with a stuffed mermaid in a shell bag that she bought with her own money at Candy Kitchen. She had her eye on it from day #1 and finally was able to get it on the last day.)

Card games, late nights, movies, constant entertainment and attention, ridiculous amounts of junk food, loads of laughs, surrounded by loving family...no wonder there were tears.  See you next year beach house!!!