We have the BEST LIFE! :)

We had such a FUN weekend, and the fun just keeps coming this week!! On Friday, Whitney and I got to hang out with her cousins Kyle and Dean all day. The boys were in the pool for over 5 hours, and they were so well-behaved, as always.

Unfortunately, a TON of wasps had decided to make their way into our pool screen and tried to spoil our fun. Thankfully, our hero Eric came home from work and got all the nests down off the neighbors' houses :)

These were HUGE!

Thursday night the boys slept over so they could swim bright and early the next day. So that night, we went to see the new fireworks show at Magic Kingdom. I just love all the fun people we meet each time we go to the Disney parks. One nice couple sitting near us commented on how smart and cute Whitney is, and of course we ate it up. :) They were asking us how she was doing on vacation and were pretty surprised when we told them "we just came down for the fireworks tonight." Living here has such major perks that we love to take advantage of while we can. If Whitney didnt LOVE Disney and all things Mickey and Minnie, then it might not be AS fun, but its still pretty awesome that we get to bring our family and friends into the parks whenever we want. We wont have these special passes next year, so we're using it as much as we can this year and are definitely getting annual passes next year, instead of seasonal. Whitney lights up when she sees the characters, and if its nap time or if she's fussy, we can just leave and be home in less than an hour.  No vacation planning or packing or driving for days or flying or drama. Just a fun day spent in the happiest place on earth, and our own beds at night :) We are so blessed!

Kyle and Dean thought the fireworks were "AWESOME!"

About 15 minutes after the last firework went off:

On Saturday we had Framily (friends who are family) over to grill out and swim, and one of the most relaxing days. I love days like that. No pictures. No frills. No running around on errands.  No need to make the house spotless before they get here. No need to go out and spend a fortune on fancy foods and entertainment.  Just nice, happy friends who love us for who we are and who make us laugh. TRUE friends who just happen to be related to us :) And it helps that our Whitney ADORES her Uncle Eddie and her Aunt DeeDeeDee :)

On Sunday, we took our first family trip to the beach this year. Eric and I went to the beach at the beginning of the month while Whitney stayed with my parents. The whole time we were there we were saying how much Whitney would LOVE it and how much fun she would have been having with us. She was at the beach last year for a weekend, and we are going back for a week in August, so it was SO FUN seeing Whitney RUN to the water and jump right in this year! She absolutely LOVED it! The sand, the water, the waves, the seagulls...all of it. :)

She would laugh and laugh every time one of her cousins would boogy-board past us :)

She didnt even wimper when she accidentally slipped under a tiny wave and came up with an ear-full and eyes full of teeeeeny tiny shells and rocks! Mommy panicked a littttle bit, as the rocks were caked in her eyelashes, but she just wanted to get back in that ocean!!

Yesterday, Whitney had a fun morning with her Mac and Gramps while I went to a doc appt. She loves spending time there, but was wiped out when she came home napless. :)

And today was a day I have been waiting for :) Whitney and I went to our first My Gym class this morning! I am sure that I was more excited than she was, as she had NO CLUE what I was talking about on our way there, but she had SOOOO much fun! She had exactly the reaction I wanted her to have. She was a littttle timid at first, sort of hovering around my knees and taking in the whole scene as I pointed out all the things she can play on and explore. Then, after about 1 minute, she was OFF! RUNNING from station to station, climbing and bouncing and tumbling and balancing and enjoying every second! We were both SO happy :)

Here she is at the bottom of the pic on the left, climbing up a ramp..

She kept saying "Up! Up! Up!" the whole time! :)

And then she laughed so hard when she slid back down...

She was having fun jumping on the trampoline, and was soo happy when a nice little girl shared a purple ball with her :) She watched as her new friend ran away to get more balls from the giant ball pit :)

Whitney has the perfect reaction to strangers right now. She looks to me to make sure Im okay with it, and after some encouraging words, she will take their hand with a tentative smile. I dont want her to jump right into a stranger's lap, but I also dont want her to be the kid who SCREAMS when she meets new people.("That kid" was there today, and Whitney stared at him for a while, as if to say "Dude...we're SINGING here...can you quiet down the drama? thanks.")

This nice instructor knew just how to handle a tentative Whitney, and Whitney felt safe and was HAPPY to swing from some bars with her :)

Ta Daaaaaa!! :)

More ramp climbing.....

Gross.

They have these ropes that hang from the ceiling with hooks on the ends. At one point during the one-hour session, the instructors pull out about 7 or 8 swings of all sizes. The tire swing was the most popular, but Whitney was loooooving this swing....(and another fun new instructor friend!)

...and this swing :)

I thought this was hysterical. They plop the kids in this big "dish-type" saucer on top of mats. Its on wheels, so they ROLLLLLLL them across the tile to the instructor on the other end.....Whitney belly laughed and didnt want to stop!

there she rolllllllllllllls!!

And this was probably my favorite part (if I had to choose..it was all so fun!). Towards the very end of the hour the instructors toss a bunch of stuffed animals in the circle and they start blowing bubbles to get the kids' attention. The mommies and daddies (and grandparents!) are asked to go sit on the wall near the door. They call it "Separation Time" or something like that. Its important for kids this age (14-24months) to learn that its okay when Mommy leaves, she always comes back. Whitney plays independently at home and she loves to play with other kids at our house, but I was sooo proud to see her adapt in a public place with unfamiliar faces. She looked around for me once, but was fine when I waved to her and told her to go have fun. She was enjoying her new friends and especially loved the bubbles.

I know that I am a great teacher for Whitney, and I know she is an awesome "student" who LOOVES to learn new things and is constantly looking to me to teach her and guide her. Hello, the kid knew the entire alphabet at 12 months.  But I am her mother. That is my job. To teach our child and give her the best opportunities to excel in school and in life (and to brag about how smart she is when she knocks our socks off!).  People are continually commenting on how smart she is and how happy she is, and that is an amaaaazing compliment that I dont forget or take for granted. But  I was so proud to see her take direction from other teachers and adults without getting scared or falling apart.

And this is what our beautiful girl looked like when we pulled into the driveway :)

Seriously folks....life does not get any better than this. Its not always glamorous or perfect, but we learned a long time ago that the tough times make these AMAZING times even better. We are so grateful for all the blessings we have been given and we know that nothing is guaranteed, but we are surely taking the time to thank God and our family and the best friends a couple could ask for...because right now, we could not be happier.