A Christmas to "Shout" About!

As I mentioned here, we celebrated Christmas with our Shout church family last Sunday.

When the "family" was a bit smaller (circa 2006-2008), we were able to purchase presents for all the kids, but as we quickly multiplied (hey, doesn't the bible say go forth and be fruitful and multiply? :-)), we quickly realized that our bank accounts were not multiplying at the same rate as our offspring.

So, last year we decided to do the Secret Santa name exchange with the kids, and it worked well so we did a repeat.

The kids had a great time at our party, and with two kids' bedrooms, a playroom, and toys in our house ranging from age 1-10, we pretty much had every kid entertained (and sequestered upstairs- holla!).

We enjoyed a great lunch of baked spaghetti, salad, garlic cheese bread from Great Harvest (yum), and an Oreo cream cheese dessert (double yum!).

Truly a fabulous time of fellowship and fun with our church family.






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It's a Carolina Christmas!

This is most definitely not the first time we have discussed my Carolina Girls. They are also mentioned here and here and probably a dozen more places on this blog, but you get the idea.

This year, we had a genius plan. A rented clubhouse + all the kids together for some of the time + babysitters for the evening + a catered dinner + fabulous presents + a hilarious new game = One of the greatest nights ever!

At, surprisingly, a very affordable price.

We started the day with lunch at an apartment complex clubhouse. We were able to rent the Clubhouse for $50 for the day. Perfect and no one had to stress about cleaning/decorating their house. We are in Pinterest-avoidance mode.

The kids were able to run around freely, play with each other, eat a picnic lunch on a tablecloth, and even do crafts!



The Nativity Gingerbread Houses by Aunt Loryn were a hit with everyone!







We had an electronic Secret Santa name generator email us names in November, and that afternoon, we had the kids do a gift exchange.


We broke up the kids' party around nap time (they pretty much let US know when they were done with the party). We cleaned up lunch and snacks and all headed home for quick rests and to drop the kids off at their various babysitters.

Then, Chad and I picked up our Italian take-out, and we all met up again for a very yummy dinner of baked ziti, chicken parm, salad, and bread (that no one had cook- holla!).

We also did a gift exchange at our adult party. Each girl purchases 5 gifts- the same 5 gifts- but something(s) (valued around $5) that they consider their "favorite thing(s)" for the year (a la Oprah). The guys do the same thing in their group. Then we take turns "presenting" and all get to go home with fabulous gifts! It's super fun!

And of course we took our requisite girl pic.
And attempted a group picture.

I swear taking one of the 9 kids was easier.

We ended the night playing "Cards Against Humanity." It's very similar to Apples to Apples.

But more PG13/R rated.

My question for these cards: "Years down the road when currency is no longer the same, how will people pay for goods and services?"

My two favorite answers (and pretty much the only two cards suitable to post on this blog):

I'm already in post-party withdrawal. I need to see these people again soon but 6 families' schedules are hard to organize.

We are already planning a summer time "group birthday party" for all the kids. :-)

Vacation Re-Cap

No tips here...just a few final pictures from our Family Vacation. [With a bit of description that my Facebook album doesn't offer.]

My father-in-law took his VERY FIRST PLANE TRIP. It was very exciting and he was very brave. :-)

Our family all rode the Figment/Imagination ride together in Epcot, and I think I pretty much died with how awesome it was to have us all on a Disney ride together.

Jake loved the "It's A Small World" ride and was just in awe the entire ride.

...And Brooklyn loved the teacups with her Daddy and Gramma.

Jake met Mickey for the first time and Brooklyn met him for the second. Neither kid was overly excited, but they indulged their mama and took the pic with little whining.

Gramma gave me the BEST PICTURE EVER when she rode the Rockin' Roller Coaster in Hollywood Studios.

Jake started quite a collection of stuffed animals...and this was just mid-week. I think final count was around 11 or so for him.

Brooklyn and Jake loved the resort arcade and we spent a nice $30 on some endless fun over 2 days.


So many photo ops at the Pop Century Resort...

Jake loved the "Nemo, the Musical" show at Animal Kingdom, despite its "loudness." It really was an impressive show, and I encourage anyone who visits Animal Kingdom to put this on their "must see" list.

He also loved the safari at Animal Kingdom, saying "the Jeet Ride" (Jeep Ride) was his "favorite ride all week."

And Brooklyn grew braver and braver each day, riding more and more rides. Her favorites were the Dinosaur Primeval Whirl in Animal Kingdom and Soarin' in Epcot.

And she also added to her stuffed animal collection...

We made two evening trips to Downtown Disney where we ate the best dinners at Wolfgang Pucks Express (quick service with counter service quality) and the Kids and Pops had a blast at the Lego store.

And the kids gave me so many good pics I think I may just have to change my Facebook profile and cover pictures weekly. They were too cute and really got into the Disney spirit.

 

Goodbye, Disney! We hope to "see you real soon!"

Bonus Tip #11: Have Kids That Aren't Scared of the Disney Characters But Don't Really Care to Meet Them

My kids are awesome. While most parents were waiting in lines for hours and hours to meet countless characters, dine with Princesses, and hug Winnie the Pooh and Tigger, too, we were riding rides, eating cheap meals with no wait time, and just cruising through the parks at record speeds.

Granted, if your kids like the characters in the theme parks, that's awesome. And I know it's well worth every minute of waiting to see the joy on their faces when they meet these "kiddie celebrities" and get their autographs. I truly do think it's awesome, kidding aside. Disney is all about the kids, and I know anything that makes our kids happy, makes us happy.

 

But my kids just aren't into that, and instead of dwelling on the fact that I would never have that "perfect picture of Jake hugging Sully" or "Brooklyn gazing adoringly at Sleeping Beauty," I had a fabulous time as the kids willingly posed with as many inanimate objects as they could.

 

(not really inanimate, but Jake loved the hundreds of "Nemo's" in the fish tank at Epcot)

 

Now, I did play the Mom Card ONE TIME and saved it for the Big Guy himself. But, I didn't make them wait 40 minutes- 2 hours at the Magic Kingdom to meet the one that talks to you. (I mean, Lord, the kids would have peed their pants.) We waited just about 20 minutes at the beginning of the day at Hollywood Studios, met Mickey, got a great group picture and went on our merry way. No kids (or mice) were harmed in the making of this photo, and I was a happy, satisfied Mouseketeer the rest of the trip.

 

How to gain only 2.6 pounds in a week (and other helpful Disney vacation tips)...

We are back from a fabulous vacation to sunny, warm Orlando, Florida! I'll tell you what...hitting up Florida in late October, right when the weather in NC is getting cold and dreary, was the best thing to give me one last bit of "spring/summer" before fall and winter hits us hard.

We traveled for 6 days with 8 people. I'm sure it's no surprise to you all that I have some words of wisdom for you. Especially if you are planning a future trip similar to one we just took.

Keep in mind that there are a million and one ways to take a Disney vacation (and a million and one websites and blogs to read about this). This is just one way. But since it worked for us, I thought I would share. :-)

1. Fly: We've done the driving thing in a 12 passenger van that took 2 days, an overnight in Jacksonville, and multiple tanks of gas. It is so worth the teeny bit of extra cost to fly. We drove one hour to a nearby airport to get a direct flight.

Which leads me to Tip #2...
 2. Get a Direct Flight: It's only 1 hour and 40 minutes of flying (translates to just two episodes of a show on the portable DVD player or a few bracelets made on the Rainbow Loom). Make sure your flight is direct. No changing planes, no rushing to get to a gate that is at the opposite end of the airport. Less chance of lost luggage. No connection in Atlanta- need I say more?


3. Have Low Expectations for Pictures: The kids are excited, they don't wanna sit still, but you are all together in one place with someone else to take the pics. Just take plenty of them and one is bound to come out. And bribe with money, as needed.

4. The Smart Phone is Your Friend: When waiting in lines, waiting on others riding rides, waiting for meals....did I mention there is a bit of waiting in Disney?

Speaking of waiting....
5. Go "Off Season": There will be waiting no matter what time of year you visit, BUT there are definitely times that are less busy than others. Late October was awesome both weather-wise and crowd-wise.

6. Invest in a Stroller: In our normal life, my 8 year old and 4 year old do not use a stroller. However, in our normal life, my children do not start their day at 7am and end at 9pm with about 7-8 miles of walking, ginormous meals, a few live action shows, thrilling rides, and ice cream treats in between. I was all about "meltdown prevention" this week, so it was well-worth the $31 a day for a double stroller rental that the kids could use at their leisure (and a few times that I mandated). They were happy, and we were happy. And Brooklyn was not the oldest kid rolling around in a stroller, so I felt better as a parent. I wised up Day 3 and got the "multi-day pass" that saved me about $18 over the last 3 days. By having the stroller in the park it definitely allowed the kids to have enough energy to be able to walk back to the bus stop and then back to our room at the end of each of the long days.


7. Use Afternoon Ice Cream as a Bribe...In the Stroller: Want to sneak in a few adult rides? Visit a few counties in Epcot? Promise Disney ice cream for later in the day. Play that card too early and you are screwed for the rest of the 10 hour day.

8. Trust in the Disney Magic that is the NEW "Magic Band": It's your room key, your park pass, your FastPass ticket, your charge card, and your photo pass all in one. It pretty much does everything for you except tell time and knock that piece of cheesecake out of your hand. Disney has it going on, ya'll. I will always recommend booking your trip through a Disney resort. (We love the Pop Century resort, which also happens to be the cheapest. Fantastic room, great commissary, and extra exercise because your bus stops are the farthest from the park entrances.) We did the Disney package with the Quick Service Meal Plan, and because of the dates we traveled, the meal plan was actually included free this time around. Saved us around $500-600 for our family of 4- which was awesome, needless to say. The meal plan is good anyway, even if you pay for it, because food is paid for up front, and I didn't have to play the daily game of "how hungry are my children and will they share or will they waste food?"


9. Speaking of Food....: I wasn't kidding when I said in the title I gained 2.6 pounds this past week. Despite walking 7-8 miles a day (thanks, Fitbit!), I did pack on a few due to eating out for 6 1/2 days straight and enjoying desserts and snacks that I don't ever see in my normal life. But, it actually could have been a lot worse, and I am confident that things will "level out" this week and I should be down again by next week. So my first "food tip" would be to share snacks so you aren't indulging alone. Though I put a good hurting on this funnel cake below, I did make sure everyone in our party took a piece (or two). I also resisted the "free soft drinks" and focused on mostly drinking bottled water and my one morning coffee. We packed "breakfast type" snacks so we didn't have to have a full breakfast meal, and I really enjoy these "Breakfasts to Go" packets. The desserts/sweets were my weakness, especially since a dessert came with each of our two meals a day. But sometimes I would get one dessert and one fruit cup for Chad and I to share. Or, I would have Brooklyn choose the dessert, and we would share since the kids meals did not come with a dessert. No afternoon ice cream for me either. And I tried to limit fried foods to one meal a day, too. Nothing fool proof, and I really didn't stress too much about it (which was a success in itself), but little things do matter and every little bit helps.
...like even getting two cupcakes for 8 people to share for Jake's birthday.

And my final tip for you all....

10. Bring Grandparents: I know this may not be possible for everyone, but I have to say....Grandparents are the BEST. Having 6 adults to 2 kids was by far the best ratio ever. And it really was a fantastic trip with little to no stress. We didn't rush, we didn't scramble, we didn't worry. We were all able to just BE (you know, my new mantra for this fall).



I'd do it all over again....and we will. I can't wait to plan our next trip for 2016!