"We're Leaving On a Jet Plane" - The Sleep Whisperer??

Disney World here we come!!!!  Two and a half hours on the first flight to Denver and then three and a half hours to Orlando with an hour and a half lay over . . . not a problem.  Traveling with three kids was really not that bad for the Sleep Whisperer.  I had to entertain two of our kids throughout the flight, while Michelle only had one child to deal with.  Now, any rational thinking person would agree that two is definitely more difficult than one child . . . at one point Michelle even had her mom helping her on the flight as well . . . two adults and one child?  That is like a dream trip.   Lets just say that Emma seemed to get the best of Michelle . . . little Emma was ready to party and was not willing to take her scheduled nap . . . 

Lets just take a glimpse a few rows back in the plane where I was . . . it was like a scene out of the Brady Bunch, the boys quietly playing their DSi's so that their father could get a few minutes of shut eye . . . ahhhhh . . . "Serenity Now".  As we moved into our second leg of our trip, our flight to Orlando, Josh was intently watching the video screen, while the Sleep Whisperer was busy putting Jamie to sleep.  Ahhhh success, time for some shut eye.

Meanwhile a few rows up, Emma was busy throwing some of her tea cups during her tea party with Michelle, climbing the chairs, walking up and down the aisle (interrupting my snooze I must add), and almost causing the oxygen masks to deploy after she messed up her diaper . . . I figured it was time for the Sleep Whisperer to step in and take over.  I switched seats with green grammy, picked up Emma and held her close and within two minutes she was asleep . . . lets just say that Michelle was not impressed.  With Emma sleeping on my chest, I managed to get what else??  A few more minutes of shut eye.

I must say that even though it was a long day of travel, the kids did a great job as a result of Michelle's planning.  The boys and Emma loved unwrapping and playing with their travel giftts and tasting the many tasty treats to help pass the time. 

Summer Carnival Party - The Nothing Box???

Ahhh . . . some alone time . . . Michelle and the kids are heading over to our friend's house for their annual summer party . . . I am going to pull out the "nothing box", putz around the house, watch 8 shows on the tele all at once (you know the ones, the ones with no plot line), tinker with some tools that I really don't know how to use, and maybe even pull out some sinful treats that are hidden above our fridge.  My visions of alone time were quickly shattered by the reality of suburbia living . . . yes . . .  housework.  I think that I needed a little assistance focusing on one job today because I simply found myself floundering around a whole bunch of jobs and not really getting any one task done . . . when you have 2 to 3 hours without the kids, lets just say that this does not bold well for me as the guilt would get to me.  And when you are married to the likes of Michelle who in half the time could make healthy meals with fruits AND vegetables, dress the kids in matching clothes, pack a five course lunch to take to the park, tidy each room to completion, plan 25 activities that we will do the in the next day and a half . . . lets just say that I needed a new strategy.  That is when the lights came on . . . THE CAR . . . yes the car, the car needs some love!!!

You see the car was the perfect vehicle (excuse the pun) to help focus my wandering attention. 

1. It is a confined space that is limited to really three rooms, the front seats, the back seats and the trunk.
2. Order - wash the outside, vacuum the inside, spray windows, Armour All dash.
3. Sense of completion after each step as described above . . . important for my self-esteem.
4. No television to distract my attention for 10 minute chunks of time.
5. No fridge to keep looking into for something to eat . . . the repeated visits are necessary just in case I missed something the first 15 times.
6. Michelle really doesn't know how long or how easy, I mean difficult it is to clean the car from top to bottom, therefore, I look like a ROCK STAR!!!

Please stay tune for some pictures - not of my car, but of the carnival party.  Michelle may even attempt her first blog post since I was soooo busy at home. 

Dirt, Dirt, Everywhere - KOA Camping

We returned home from West Bank and got a chance to relax . . . for about 15 minutes, well okay maybe 10 minutes . . . who am I kidding we got to open the front door and turn off the alarm.  One thing about your mother is that she loves to pack every minute of our time with really cool experiences and I am not complaining because I love it.  As much as I give her a hard time about it, I must say that this time the turn around time was a little short.  We literally took off the bike rack from the truck and put on our Yakima top loader . . . this allowed us to transfer stuff directly from inside the truck to the top loader . . . why waste time bringing things into the house???  We basically threw our camping bins into the truck and we were ready to leave in the morning.

I have mixed feelings about camping at the Lynden KOA.  The KOA's definitely know how to make camping enjoyable for kids.  Paddle boats, miniature golf, swimming pool, playground, fishing . . . there was even a Mardi Gras craft and parade.  I must say that I did manage to avoid the crafting table this time, as I was trying to put Emma down for her nap . . . unsuccessfully.

Even Emma got into the golfing action.

Lets just say that we didn't play all of the holes or in the right order.  Each kid seemed to have their favourite hole.

We caught a lot of seaweed

Lets just say that I prefer a motorized boat on holidays . . . Jamie was doing his part by pedaling with his hands as his feet could not reach the pedals.

Josh was working hard and was determined to bump into everyone.  He was sweating buckets by the end of this 30 minute excursion.

The masks were put on the kids to hide the dirt!!!

Emma liked wearing the mask backwards

Wow!!  Look at those shirts.

The kids had a blast, as their days had a great balance of taking advantage of the KOA's services and simply hanging out at the campsite getting their hands dirty . . . and their feet . . . and their arms . . . who am I kidding they were covered from head to toe in dirt.  Now I am not adverse to my kids getting dirty, but this was a little much . . . I swear they managed to find the finest dirt in the world and gently sprinkle it, not pack it down at our campsite, but gently sprinkle it so that with every step the dirt that was kicked up would create a new layer of dirt onto the old layer of dirt on their bodies.  Even Josh, who generally does not like to be dirty, simply gave up and got down and dirty with the rest of them.  One the kids was nicknamed "Pig Pen" as he decided to roll around in the dirt and then proceed to dump a bucket of dirt onto his head and into his open mouth.  Lets just say that any aggressive hugs would result in a puff of dirt from the kids' clothes and hair.

No that is not chocolate or pudding . . . look at that face . . . lets just say that the baby wipes were kept nearby.

Boyz in the Woods . . . chill'n at the campsite.

Smores a camping tradition

More snuggles by the campfire

 Another great Schwakida trip.  I know, I know traveling with another family has its challenges, but I must say that it is nice when the kids get along so well and when the parents aren't so bad either.  We all have our role when we travel together and I must say that my usefulness is sometimes questioned . . . starting fires, taking the kids fishing, playing at the park, taking the kids to miniature golf and of course making the latte run in morning . . . I think my skills are being extremely underestimated.

I love how the rainbow is captured in the background.

Josh even found an owl pellet that he dissected.  He learned how to do this last year in his class.

I would like to thank Captain Canada for capturing our first KOA experience as I had some technical difficulties with my camera . . . I forgot to recharge the batteries . . . oh well.

West Bank - Five Star Camping

Can we really call it camping???  I like to think of it as Beverly Hills camping because there is not much that I have to do to get our "camp" site set up . . . basically we pull in and unload our stuff and we are good to go.  Personal shower, nachos baked in an oven, satellite t.v., are just some of the conveniences that we must endure when we go to the trailer . . . I might need to take a break from blogging because my vanilla latte is almost ready!!

"Papa trailer . . . Grammy trailer"

Lets just say that I lost the battle for the chair . . . "My chair, I relax"

It was great watching their confidence grow as we spent each day by the water.

Emma started out the week scared of the waves . . . she soon was scaring us as she ventured further out into the lake.  Lets just say that the life jacket calmed our nerves.

Ahhhhhh, me Tarzan.

We fit so nicely together.  Hey, I made the blog!

The myth about the Ogopogo brought with it many interesting questions

Hanging out at the Kelowna park for the day.

 One of the highlights of the trip was going to H2O, which is an indoor water park with water slides, a mini wave pool, spray zone, river run, and the Flow Rider.  The Flow Rider is an ocean wave surf simulator.  The boys tried boogie boarding on it which surprised me as I thought they would be a little scared.  They both did a great job dropping in, riding the waves and having fun . . . a definite must visit for the next time we return to this area.

We had to do a little bribe to get them to take this picture . . . there is a reason for their excitement . . .

I think Emma's face says it all.  Apparently, a medium frosted malt was a little large according to Michelle . . . come on, we are on holidays.

West Bank With Our Cousins

We managed to plan it so that we could be up at "Papa's Trailer" while their cousins were here, which was a nice treat for all of us.  The kids had their older cousins to play with and we had full time babysitters at a great rate.  Their older cousins, once again, were amazing with our kids . . . they were water taxis taking them out to the floating dock, helping them play pool (poor Jamie could barely see over the table top), introducing playground dodgeball, and of course sharing the latest in toilet humour.  Michelle especially enjoyed the boys "pressing ham" on the shower window, thanks guys and sorry Grammy!!!  (There might have even been a sighting of a "squished lizard" - boys you may have to do a little explaining to Grammy the next time you see her).

Freedom on the water

"I go skateboarding"

My little surfer girl

Jumping off the floating dock

My little surfer boy

As Emma would say, "My boys".

More snuggles or human jungle gym?

We look forward to the next holiday together.  The boys were really sad to see them leave.