Just because....

Just because I find myself with so much extra time on my hands these days...and I don't know what to do with it all...I decided we should FINALLY have Jessi's birthday party.
Just because Jessi loves dinosaurs soooo much...we had to paint wooden dinos at the party!

Just because she liked the first dino cake on her actual birthday (yes that would be in JANUARY!!) so much, we decided to do a repeat...though I really did like Natalie's dinosaur creation!!

Just because you have to play "Pin the something on the something" at every party, my talented husband drew this FABULOUS stegosaurus and they pinned the spike on. Don't you think it should be "Tape the something on the something"? (Don't think he was too thrilled about the coloring job...but that part was Jessi's idea!)

Just because Nathan is sooo cute we had to add this picture.

Just because I have a day off...I wanted to blog!

And...just because I miss you all...I want you to know I am thinking about you!

Nathan is a Super Hero!!

Yep, here he is...the newest Super Hero of the Olsen clan! Everyone was so excited about his new glasses they ALL wanted their picture taken with him!

The two red heads both have glasses now...isn't that ironic. It's also funny that I never could get a picture where they were BOTH looking at the camera (and in Jessi's case also acting normal!!)

Nathan to the rescue...!

Nan and Nate...he looks a bit dazed and amazed...maybe he can see better!

Baby Parker has arrived!!!!

The last thing I said to Brantly before I left was..."Don't have your baby until we get back!" That was early on Thursday Feb. 5th. It was a reasonable request...she wasn't even due until Feb. 12! So, about 8 hours into our trip guess who calls..."Torrey, I'm going in to be induced right now!". Stinker! Anyways, many long hours later...baby Parker was born by C-section, weighing 8 lbs. 12 oz. 20 inches long! Congrats Brantly and Jabbar! We've forgiven Brantly and we got to see Parker the day we got home...we couldn't stay mad because he is sooo cute! Nate and Parker...even though they are only 3 months apart...Nate looks like a giant!! (He is really only in the 50th percentile...not a big baby...just average!!)

Zach and Parker! Oh so cute!

Jessi kissing Parker! Isn't he cute??

Nan and Parker! (Nan is wearing her brand new Minnie Mouse pants!)

Nate and Parker. Aren't they cute?? I bet they will be best buds, just like their mommies!!

Grandad Mackey and Aunt Sue

On our way down to Orlando, we stopped and stayed a day in Tuscaloosa, Alabama. We were so lucky because not only did we get to see my Grandad....

....but we also got to see my Aunt Sue and my Uncle Bob. I hadn't seen either of them in years, so it was really fun! Aunt Sue was a great sport putting up with all of us and a super tour guide. And she didn't even mind when Brennon almost killed us on the bridge over the dam!

Disney World

We had a great time at Disney World! We were lucky enough to be able to visit all 4 parks, Magic Kingdom, Epcot Center, Disney Hollywood Studios, and Animal Kingdom, multiple times actually! The park hopper option on the tickets was put to great use! This is Nan, Jess, and Lex (cousin) looking across the Magic Lagoon at Cinderella's castle! We were waiting to take the ferry boat across the lagoon to get to Magic Kingdom.

We waited in line for 30 minutes to visit with the characters! We got to see a bunch of different ones in the same place! Definitely worth the wait! At the beginning of the week Zach was scared of the characters, but by the end of the week he was begging to go see them! I think visiting Donald, Mickey etc. was the highlight of his trip! Donald REALLY wanted to hold Nate...so he sat down and had us put Nate on his lap! Nate slept right through it!

Here are the kiddos with Mickey! Notice all their own Mickey ears! It was fun to have them pick out their ears...I think each set of ears represents their personalities perfectly! You may not be able to tell, but Jessi's ears are "cheetah" aka leopard print, Nan's are black sequins with a sparkly red bow, and Zach's are Mickey with his tail sticking straight out of the top...very appropriate for each child!

We never actually had a chance to visit with the princesses in person, but we did get to see them in a show in front of the castle. We had the opportunity to see LOTS of different shows! They were all fabulous! I think my favorite was The Lion King Extravaganza! It was amazing! We also saw Finding Nemo, Beauty and the Beast, a bird show, 2 stunt shows, and more! Brennon's favorite was the Indiana Jones Stunt show!

Here's the required family photo in front of the Cinderella castle! We took about 500 of these, and could never get everyone looking at the camera smiling...someone always had a tongue out or was looking away...we won't mention any names but the initials of the person who was being soooo difficult are Z.A.C.H.!!!!

This is our first day, riding our first tram from the parking lot to Epcot Center! Note the well rested and excited look on everyone's face. While the excited look remained through out the whole week, the well-rested look became extinct by Tuesday!

The kids in front of the Epcot ball. I thought it looked like a giant golf ball! It had a pretty cool ride on the inside about the history of communication around the world! At the end it took your picture and invented "your future". The kids thought that was pretty fun!

Here is a picture of Jess and Zach in Bruce's mouth (Finding Nemo...fish are friends not food...apparently he doesn't feel the same way about kids!).

This is how each day ended! Thoroughly worn out and exhausted, but I'm sure they were having fabulous dreams, about the next day which was sure to be as fun filled as the previous!! We had a great time!

Warm

Just a few short days and we will be heading to warmth. I can hardly wait. We briefly considered cancelling our trip. We told the kids we weren't going, it wouldn't be responsible, but we have already paid for most of it and set money aside for the rest of it. So, we decided to be completely irresponsible and go. We are so excited. Savannah danced for joy! Jessi jumped up and down. Zach asked us if we were going yesterday or next year. Nathan has no clue what is going on...he's happy as long as we bring formula! We are going to visit the beach, Disney World, my grandparents, aunt and uncle, and cousins. Plus...it will be above freezing!

This is where we will be staying at the Hilton Grand Vacation Club at Sea World, with shuttle service to Disney, 3 pools, 5 spas, child care, a kitchen in our room...did I mention that I'm excited?

I can't wait to forget our troubles, have no studying, and focus on the kids for a whole week! I am soo excited. Then when we come back, I get to start my new job...as a nurse! That will be exciting too.

But for now, I'm going to pack up, get the family ready and head to Florida for a whole week of fun and spending time with my family!

I can hardly wait!!

Lookin' Good!!

Look who has new glasses!! She looks soo cute and says she can see much better!! It was rather difficult to take a picture of her because she was sooo excited she was hard pressed to keep still...here are the other trys....

Silly girl!! She says "I made a funny face because I like to be funny! But aren't my glasses cute??"

Giggling....giggling...giggling! I can't STOP Giggling!!!