Family Time at Reviewers Retreat/Great Wolf Lodge Poconos

This past weekend, I attended a blog conference called Reviewers Retreat in Pennsylvania. It was part of a blogger network that I have been working on in regards to my website My Four Monkeys. Besides the conference part of Reviewers Retreat, my favorite part of the whole trip was the location. Not only did it allow me to bring the whole family along for the trip, but Reviewers Retreat took place at Great Wolf Lodge Poconos. Now, you know we LOVE Great Wolf Lodge, but have never been to this location. Even the kids were excited to see how this location differed from our usual Great Wolf in Williamsburg.

Right away we noticed that the Great Wolf Lodge in the Poconos is a bit larger, with a roomier lobby and a larger 'treehouse' section in the waterpark. Over all, there wasn't too much of a difference, as it still featured the fabulous food (we're talking syrup fountains at breakfast time, and everything you could possibly dream of at dinner), great amenities (like the Northern Lights Arcade), well-trained and caring lifeguards (John David got a boo-boo that had to be tended to), and the ever present and helpful staff. Apart from the blogger festivities and sessions, I really enjoyed getting to spend some fun time with Jeremy and the kids, and take advantage of the fabulous location to get some family time in. It was a much needed getaway with all the house craziness that's been going on here (we are finally closing next week), and I'm so glad we went!

So glad we got to stay indoors! It was yucky and dreary outside the whole time we were there!

4th floor please!

The large fireplace in the lobby is always an attraction for the kids. Super warm and comforting atmosphere.

Whose got muscles?

I do! I do!

Eating dinner at Loose Moose Cottage. Where else can you go out to dinner still wet from the waterpark?

Gotta love the smiley face fries!

Our ingenious swimsuit dryer. :)

I think somebody is wore out from playing so hard!

Caitlyn taking a rest while the boys nap. She read through two whole books while we were there, and we ended up taking a trip to the store to get more!

We of course found time to be silly!

So close!

So much to choose from!

Time to go, but we'll be back!

Happy Birthday to ME!

Yes, I know... I'm getting old! But nothing makes it better than hearing "happy birthday" from your two year old. :) He kept singing it to me this morning and then when I got the camera out he got quiet, of course.

If my birthday is today, that means in TWO days it will be my dad's birthday! So, Happy Birthday Poppy!

Easter Pics - We Are Moving!

I know I'm late, but I wanted to share a few pics from Easter. I was looking at pictures from last Easter, and seriously... how do kids grow so fast?!! The kiddos all got new bikes for Easter, and I have some fun pictures and video of that I'll share tomorrow. Enjoy!

Also, for those of you who haven't heard - we are moving! It's only about ten minutes away from where we are now, but we are super excited! More to come on the moving process soon. We are supposed to close this week, and will be working on both houses a ton over the next few weeks. I will be sure to post some pictures of the new house and the work we'll be doing. Seems like our lazy summer is off to a busy start!

Caitlyn Dancing a Jig - Plus Luke and His "Nebbit"

Last weekend Caitlyn participated in a St. Patrick's Day performance at a local nursing home. It was kind of funny watching her class, because the floor they had to dance on was less than half the size of their normal stage. They made do though, and I thought they did great! Caitlyn is really enjoying her Irish hard shoe class, and has her recital coming up the first weekend in June.

Here's another short video. This one of Luke. He has really been talking more and more, and this morning I caught this short clip of him naming the parts of his face. For some reason he keeps calling his neck his "nebbit". Not sure where that came from, but it's super cute!

Wordless Wednesday - My Love, My LIfe

Catching Up....

It's been a busy week (I've had two fighting a stomach bug), but I just wanted to post a quick "catch up". :) Luke's surgery last week went fabulously! We were in and out of the surgery center faster than we ever have been before. Luke did great, and once we arrived back home he wanted to play. I expected him to nap for awhile, but he lay down till that afternoon. Then he slept for almost five hours though! He has healed well, and is finally done with all the meds from the surgery. Hopefully, this will be our last trip to the surgery center with him. :)

The Friday before Luke's surgery, the girls' had their annual birthday sleepover. There were twelve little girls ages 6 to 12 here that night. This year, I enlisted two teenage girls to help! Everyone had a blast, but we were all pretty tired the next day. Here's a couple pics I managed to snap during the festivities. I made some lavender cupcakes with a chocolate mousse filling. They were delicious, and it was my first try at using fondant. But they turned out really cute!

The girls got lots of fun gifts, including some craft kits that they have really enjoyed....

Most of all, they just had fun being with their friends! It's hard to believe they are growing up so fast, but I am glad that they both have a great set of friends.

**PS: My camera is really giving me trouble. I seriously need a new one so I can take pictures that aren't fuzzy and weird looking! Anybody got any recommendations?**

Big Firsts: A Lost Tooth & Getting Dressed

In the last twenty-four hours, I have gotten two big reminders that my boys are growing up fast! First John David lost his first tooth last night. He has been dreading the pulling, and didn't realize that it doesn't hurt. Jeremy talked him into just letting him "look". ;) He barely touched the tooth and it fell right out. John David didn't even know it was missing! It was one of those that was so loose that it barley even bled. Now he hasn't the cutest little smile, but somehow it makes him look older.... humph :)

This morning, Luke asserted his independence with a surprising accomplishment. He not only managed to undress himself (which he's been doing for a few weeks), but managed to dress himself as well complete with shorts and pants! I tried to help him, just assuming that he needed my help, but all I got was a emphatic. "NO!" I left the room, thinking surely he would call me back shortly to help. A few minutes later, he emerged completely dressed, and this mommy was a bit sad and very proud at the same time!