Family Vacation 2012 Part II-- Fort Wilderness

To be honest, I'm a little particular about my travel accommodations. I like to stay in hotels-- the nicer the better. Camping is not often my first choice for a vacation. But, I grew up camping at Fort Wilderness. Even if it wasn't a fabulous campground, I would love it anyway.  I am nostalgic like that. But, it is  a really great campground. Daniel and I went several years ago when I was pregnant with Carver. I have always known that I wanted to take him there and this year we finally were able to. Yay!

On Sunday we checked in and got settled on our campsite. Mom and I entertained the boys (and ourselves) while Dad and Daniel set up the camper.

We spent the rest of the first day driving around on the golf cart, looking at the Halloween decorations set up by various guests (some were super elaborate), and eating dinner at the Trail's End Restaurant. We just drove our golf cart to dinner-- fun!

Side note: I can't tell you how many times Carver said, "Look a punkin, Ma" while we were driving around in the golf cart. There were so many decorations out and Carver wanted to point out every single pumpkin.

First time with a hula hoop!

Checking out the horses at the barn.

Mom and Dad left that night to head home and we went to bed early to prepare for the BIG day at the Magic Kingdom on Monday. (More on that in a separate post). But, here are the cute souvenir shirts we got for the boys while at the Magic Kingdom. Let's be honest, Mickey Mouse shirts are cutest when actually at Disney-- so they wore them the very next day.

The majority of our time at the campground was spent riding around on the golf cart or swimming in the pool. Carver LOVED the pool and threw enormous tantrums when we had to leave.

Riding on the golf cart!

That's my 2-year old, floating all alone in the pool after his Daddy sent him down a HUGE slide all by himself...

Carson's first time in a pool!

Trying to catch him as he came flying down the slide.

We grilled out at the campsite a couple of times, which is one of my favorite things to do. Maybe because Daniel does all of the work. We had a perfect campsite-- close to the dog park (Lea came along for the trip!), and one of the many playgrounds. It was also close to a small body of water which was a little stressful with Carver-- but no catastrophes happened.

Definitely the highlight of Fort Wilderness, and maybe the entire week was taking Carver to the Chip & Dale Sing-a-long on Tuesday and Wednesday nights. He LOVED it. I can't even adequately describe his excitement. He loved sitting outside at night on the bleachers. He loved clapping along to the music. He loved meeting Dale, and he LOVED LOVED LOVED going down to the front and dancing with Chip & Dale. It was possibly the cutest thing I have ever seen in my entire life. Pure joy, enthusiasm, and uninhibited dancing. The entire trip was worth it to me just for this one activity.

We also let Carver go on a pony ride. I was very impressed with how well he did!

On our last night in Orlando we went to downtown Disney to eat at the Rainforest Cafe, then headed back to the sing-a-long and to watch the fireworks.

 Carver also enjoyed the iPad-- he's obsessed.

Bright and early on Thursday morning we packed up and headed back to Georgia.

I know it will be several years ( at least) before I can talk Daniel into doing this particular vacation again-- but I can't wait. Vacationing with  the boys is stressful, and we didn't get much sleep. But, getting to experience these things with Carver and Carson is priceless.

By the way, we are super thankful to Daniel's parents for letting us borrow their camper :)

 

Family Vacation 2012 Part I- Bartow

Even though I have not lived in Bartow for the last 15 years,  returning to visit still feels like going home. In the past I have always been able to make the trip fairly regularly, but  this last year, due to pregnancy and then Carson's arrival, I have barely been there at all. This makes me a little sad. I love to go home.

We spent the first weekend of our vacation just hanging out in Bartow. Resting a little. Enjoying having extra hands and help with the boys. The drive down was pretty good. Carver is, in general, a great traveler. Carson really despises the car, but did surprisingly well for this first long road trip. We got in late Thursday night after driving for about 10 hours with only a brief dinner stop at Cracker Barrel where Carver found a new fun game to play. Too bad his little 2 year old mind just could not understand why the new toy couldn't come home with him.

On Friday we headed to Lakeland to feed the ducks-- a first for Carver. He LOVED it. I, however, was a nervous wreck. The ducks/geese/swans/storks etc. just swarmed us-- some bolder than others. Carver liked to throw down a large chunk of bread then grab it back up to tear it into smaller pieces. I was terrified he was going to get attacked. He also liked to run to the water's edge to throw bread into the birds that stayed in the water. Fine in theory, but he came very close to tumbling in on several occasions. This led to his 4th episode of nursemaid's elbow (thanks to me trying to keep him out of the gross lake water). I immediately reduced it myself (insert pat on my back here) and we went on our way.

Friday night was date night. Yay! So thankful for grandparents (both sets) that are willing to keep the boys so Daniel and I can have some time to spend just the two of us. This night was particularly special because we were celebrating Daniel's birthday at one of our favorite restaurant's, Harry's in downtown Lakeland.

I think Mama and Daddy had a pretty good time with the boys, too :)

This was actually Dad's first time meeting Carson. I think Carson liked him :)

On Saturday we headed to the park in Lakeland and then back to feed the ducks one more time.

Saturday afternoon the guys (Daddy and Daniel) headed to Gator's Dockside restaurant for wings and a little Gator football. I think Daniel was super excited to have someone to watch the game with! Mom, the boys, and I headed to Red Lobster-- Carver was great thanks to my entertaining phone :)

We got home in time to hang out for a bit before the little boys went to bed.

Sunday morning we headed to Orlando to get checked in at Ft. Wilderness. After a short delay for a new tire on the camper, we were on our way!

Carver wandering around in the school parking lot where we stopped to change the tire.

Carver "helping."

We watched from the back of the truck :)

Carver with a hammer-- scary.

"No, don't hit the truck. No, don't hit the camper. Here, hit this tree..."

Sweet baby always smiles. My heart is full. Even when sitting on the side of the road changing a tire. Well, watching Daniel change a tire.

Stay tuned for Part II-- Fort Wilderness!

Carson-- 5 Months

It is amazing how quickly Carson has become so much more like a baby than a newborn or infant. He changes weekly, and every single day I fall more and more in love with this boy. He absolutely melts my heart.

Stats:
Weight: 17.5 lbs
Height: Not Sure

New and noteworthy stuff...

1) Carson is an extraordinarily happy baby. He is happy all the time. Unless he is hungry or riding in the car. He has an enormous smile and an adorable chuckle. He loves to be held and to cuddle.

2) He has recently "found" his feet. He holds them and pulls socks off and in general, finds them fascinating.

3) He's (fairly) mobile! Not crawling yet, but he can roll and roll and roll and propel himself across the floor. I think he'll be crawling before too long. He also LOVES to climb up whoever is holding him. It's a little scary how active he already is. This has also made him a little more difficult than he was a few weeks ago. He wiggles and squirms and has trouble sitting still.

4) He still refuses to take bottles, though he did take one for my dad while we were in Bartow-- Dad must know a secret that I don't know. We've recently tried a new kind of bottle and still no luck. This is really, really, frustrating.

5) Sleeping-- still in our room, for naps and bedtime. He wakes up between 1-4 times a night. Very unpredictable. He is easy to put to bed (unlike  his older brother at this age), but I just never know what to expect on any given night. He goes to bed around 8:30 or 9:00 p.m. and usually is up by 6:00 or so, though I think he would sleep later if Carver didn't come and wake us up then :) I'm hoping to start putting him down for naps in his room sometime very soon.

6) He is starting to really like his toys. He gravitates towards them when he is on his play mat. He LOVES Sophie the giraffe. He reaches for things I am holding (cup, cell phone, etc), and he even steals pacifiers out of Carver's mouth when he can reach them. It is nice to be able to distract him a little by offering him various toys when he is fussy or squirmy. But he also gets really frustrated if something is out of his reach :)

7) EVERYTHING goes directly to his mouth these days. Possibly teething based on the copious amounts of drool that is always soaking his shirts and running down my arm, neck, etc.

Carson is such a sweet boy. He loves to smile and he watches us constantly when we are in the room. He finds Carver completely fascinating and he is the absolute perfect addition to our family. Watching him learn and grow and develop and seeing him in all of his perfect innocence gives me hope for the future. And an excitement for all that life has to bring for us in the coming months and years. I can't wait to see a relationship develop between Carver and Carson, and I can't wait to see who this little boy will become.