Disney Photos

Finally, I have had a little down-time today to upload photos and get my Disney stuff organized...the snow day threw a kink in things! Cute photos from that already up! Our boys were sad to wake up and see all of the snow had melted, and are already praying for more!

Here are some photos from Disney. The kids had a blast! I'm glad we went, and thank goodness for the Fast Pass. What a great invention! You simply insert your ticket into this ATM like machine, and it spits out another ticket that is like an appointment card for when to come back to the ride. When you come back, you stand in a different line that may have only a 5 minute wait. On Saturday, AJ took the younger boys back to the hotel to rest, and Jack and I stayed at the park. He had fun being in charge and decided just what he wanted to do. Jackson wanted to get his face painted, and of course, chose the tiger (like the mascot for the Clemson Tigers) and looked so cute! We rode the Tea Cups again for the 4th time, and my favorite part of the whole trip was watching my little boy simply enjoy the moment and scream with excitement. When AJ came back to the park, we rode a few more rides and then watched the night lights parade and the fireworks. What an amazing show they put on every night! The kids didn't quite make it back to the hotel that night. By the time that we left Disney, all three boys were asleep. Jackson even had to sleep with his face paint on. Two days of Magic Kingdom, and one day at the Animal Kingdom was enough for this family! When the kids are older, I'm sure we'll go back and have a totally different experience. This was magical and fun for them, and just what we had hoped for.

Snow Day!

We woke up this morning to about an inch or two of snow on the ground and more coming down. That doesn't sound like much, but here in the south, this is big news! We only get about one snow a year, and just about everything shuts down, at least for a little while. I got the phone call from the Superintendant of Schools that school had been cancelled for today by 6:00 am. It wasn't but a few minutes later when Jackson appeared in my room telling me that it must have snowed 4 feet! "There is so much snow out there mommy!! Did daddy get a new car, because his is ALL WHITE!" It was so cute, and amazing how just an inch of snow can be so exciting to a six year old. By 7:00 this morning, the kids were dressed and headed out the door with sleds! What fun to have a snow day. Shortly after, they were in to warm up and get some hot chocolate, and AJ and I were off to work in our offices and get things done. It was a nice suprise to come home from Florida to SNOW!

Tired little boys!

We are getting ready to pack up tonight and leave Orlando in the morning. Our kids are so exhausted and worn out, but have had so much fun! The trip was amazing and the kids had so much fun with their cousins and experienced way more than I thought that they would. Jackson and Davis both turned out to be thrill seekers and rode Big Thunder Railroad and Space Mountain, two of the big roller coasters! Davis was scared after Space Mountain, but as time went by, he has now decided that Space Mountain was his favorite part of the vacation!! We spent two days at Magic Kingdom and today we went to Animal Kingdom. The kids loved the Water Rapids ride today, which proved quite wet for Uncle Jay and Davis. Lots of pictures to come once we get home...here's to safe quiet travels tomorrow. The kids are sure to sleep after the weekend that they have had!!!!!

Disney World, Here We Come!

For Christmas this year, our gift to the kids was a trip to Disney. I haven't been since I was a child, and Ashley hasn't been since he went with his buddies in college for a school project. The kids have never been, and although we are so excited for them, they have no idea what to expect. It's a little comical that we have had to "tutor" our children on the world of Disney before our trip, so that they will get the most out of it! We borrowed several Disney movies from friends, and Davis loves Cinderella...especially the pretty princesses! To think he already has a crush on Cinderella is hysterical! We also have done some research on the computer, and read lots of books and even watched the free Disney DVD from Disney World. Now the boys know the names of many of the rides that they are hoping to ride, and can't wait to try Splash Mountain. Davis is even tall enough to ride everything that Jackson can! I am glad that we didn't tell the kids until Christmas, because inevitably, everyday, one of them asks "are we going to Disney today??" We leave in the morning, and are hoping for a peaceful drive (I know, that will never happen!). It will be fun and magical for the kids, and I'm thrilled for them!

Georgia Aquarium

On our recent visit to Atlanta, B and B'pa took us to the Georgia Aquarium. Let me just say that it is AMAZING! We enjoyed it just as much as the children!! There are so many neat things to do and see, and because we went very early on a Saturday morning, there were very few visitors and plenty of volunteers ready to answer questions and get us involved. The kids loved that the divers who were cleaning the tanks would wave to them. Our favorite part was the big tunnel that you walk through where you are surrounded by fish, and the kids could watch the huge sting ray and 4 whale sharks swim overhead. We also got to hang out at the touch tank and touch baby sharks and sting rays. So cool! Here are some photos and video. Drew just kept trying to touch the fish and was so excited about all of the "fishies" that he could see!

Videos finally uploaded!!!

Finally able to get the videos uploaded from Drew's Birthday!!! YEAH!! Welcome to two years old sweet baby! Only 2 temper tantrums today, and he decided to write all over himself while we thought he was quietly coloring! He was coloring all right, all over his body with purple marker!!! On his legs, clothes, face, neck, hands, and arms. Even the bottoms of his feet were purple!! I am just loving that he is talking more too! When I went to get him from his crib this morning, I asked him if he was ready to get up, and he said "No thank you mommy" and rolled over. I just love him!

Birthday Boy

So I am having a little trouble uploading the video from tonight, and that will come later. Here are a few photos from today. Drew was very excited once he realized that the cake for HIS birthday! All smiles!

Drew is 2!

Today is Drew's second birthday!!! (but he will tell you that he is three! " I three mommy!". I think he just wants to catch up to his big brothers. I got him a Nemo balloon today at the store, and he is loving carrying it around the house and playing with it. So cute! Can't wait for cake tonight, which will surely be a mess and picture worthy!

Christmas Update

Ok, so things have finally settled down, all the company is gone, and the Christmas decorations are taken down...well, for the most part. I am finally getting a chance to update the blog and look at the pictures we have. Amazingly, not many! Oh well. We had a nice visit with all of our family, and our children are thoroughly overwhelmed with all of their new toys! They especially loved hanging out with all of their grandparents!

On Christmas Eve, we made cookies for Santa, which Drew enjoyed eating before they were baked! Davis did a super job of rolling out the dough and cutting out the shapes. That night, the kids spread reindeer food out on the front lawn. It was SO cute to watch them looking at the sky for Santa's sleigh. They even heard the jingle bells from Santa and rushed inside to get to bed! I think all of the excitement kept them up for a while though. Here are some highlights from the week. I hope you all had a nice Christmas!!

All I want for Christmas are my 2 front teeth!

So in keeping with the well known Christmas carol, Jackson lost is 2nd front tooth this afternoon! He looks so cute, and has that BIG gap in the front now! Davis likes to sing the song to him...so for now, all we want for Christmas are 2 front teeth for Jack!

The Moon

Jackson has been studying the night time sky and doing a "moon study" at school every week where he has to observe the moon and write down his observations and draw a picture of what he saw. About a week and a half ago, Davis and he went to look for the moon and decided it was a "banana moon" because of it's cresent shape. Last night, Davis noticed the full moon and told Ashley "look daddy, the moon is fixed it is whole again. Someone must have fixed it. I hope that it doesn't fall to the ground again and break in half again!" So cute!!

God will fix you!

Last night, I was using scissors. Davis came up to me very concerned and told me to "BE CAREFUL MOMMY! Scissors are SHARK ( Sharp!). I asked him what could happen, and he said I could cut myself. I was trying to see what he was thinking so I asked him what would we do if that happened. He told me that we would need to got to the hospital and that God would fix me there, because that's what God does. He fixes people! I just thought that was so cute, and I guess he's right!

Elf Yourself!

Send your own ElfYourself eCards

Last year, we discovered "Elf Yourself" by Office Max. It is this neat website where you can go and add your photos the the face of elves, who then dance really funny! The kids were so excited to try this again this year. They chose the disco as their dance. Click on the link on the right to see their video! I really did try to find a photo of me to add...too hard when I'm the one taking all of the photos!

Send your own ElfYourself eCards

Christmas Claus

So we went to see Santa last week. Davis kept asking if we could go and see "Christmas Claus." It was so funny!! When we pulled up to the mall, he wanted to know if we were at the North Pole. Kids are so literal!

There was no line, and we got to spend at least 15 minutes with Santa. It was great, and Santa was WONDERFUL! He spent so much time talking with each of the kids, hugging them, and asking them about what the wanted and how they were this year. Even Drew got excited...until it was time to sit on Santa's lap! No hope for a smiling picture with Santa...seven years of crying kids in Santa's lap. Oh well, there's always next year, and here at the Berry house, we BELIEVE in Santa. Merry Christmas!

Choo Choo!!!!

Ok, so I haven't had time to update since Thanksgiving! Sorry! We had a nice time in Augusta with my sister's family and my mom and stepdad. We went to the Clemson game too, which was an adventure with the cold rain! Last night, we went to see Santa too. It was great, and the kids got to spend a lot of time with him....pictures to follow on all of that.

Tonight, however, we set up the Lionel train set that the boys got from their B and B'pa last year. They were so excited to hear it run and haven't stopped playing with it since we set it up an hour ago! Drew was also too little last year to enjoy it, but has gotten right down on the floor clapping and "Choo Chooing" with his brothers. He is getting to be such a big boy, and I can't believe that he will be two in just a few weeks! I couldn't resist sharing these photos from tonight!

Deck the Halls

I LOVE Christmas. I love the songs, decorations, cheer, and all the chaos that comes along with it. My neighbor's nine year old daughter told me I was a little creepy because I have 3 Christmas trees! I just can't help it, I love Christmas! Because of that, and the fact that we are traveling for Thanksgiving, I like to enjoy my decorations early. The house seems so cozy and inviting with the tree covered in ornaments and all the lights on. On Sunday, we decided to get a start on the decorating. I had seven little helpers, including several of our neighbors kids. They had a great time, and my tree is VERY heavily decorated, from about 4 feet down! Too cute! I haven't had the heart or the time to re-decorate the bottom, and they think it looks perfect!

On Monday, I took pictures of my niece in front of the tree, and Drew was my helper. He decided that he wanted to be silly with the Santa hat and was SO cute! I had to share his silliness in these photos! I am going to have at least one, probably two, little clowns on my hands! Merry Christmas, Happy Holidays, and Deck the Halls!!! Now lets get ready for Thanksgiving!

Homecoming

Last weekend was Ashley's 10 year college reunion at The Citadel. We rented a beach house with 8 other adults and 6 other children. The house was perfect, and there was tons of room to spread out. The kids had a ball playing together! Here are a few photos from the weekend.

Photos

Last weekend we tried desperately to get some good pictures of the boys together. Jack was very cooperative, but the other boys were not. Drew was tired and did not want to have his picture taken. Davis was silly as usual!

Jack's new glasses

Today we picked up Jackson's new glasses. They are so cute, and he said that everything looks big and bright now! I'm so glad that he can see now.