My girls, wearing their new sunglasses, ready to go play out in the snow.

Of course it took us longer to get them dressed than how long they stayed outside.

We’re going to Disney World for a week over Spring Break. You know, along with everyone else on Earth?

Our plan was to fly to Fort Myers, stay at the In-law’s house for a couple of days, then we’d all pack up in their fancy new minivan and drive to Disney. There we would meet up with my parents who will be staying at the campground at Disney. All 8 of us (4 grandparents, 2 parents, and 2 kids) would then go to the parks for a few days, and spend a couple of days just at the hotels and campground. Then we’d drive back to Fort Myers, have one day to relax, and then fly home.

But for some reason, flights this year are over 4 times the price they were last year. We flew to Fort Myers last year, over Easter/Spring Break. It cost us about $600 for all 4 of us. But the same trip this year was going to be about $2500!

I figured up what it’d cost us to drive (over-estimating the price of gas, and how much we’d use, and factoring in 2 nights’ hotel stays on the way down & back). About $500-600.

Gee, can you tell which wins?

Pros to flying (cons to driving):
1. Longer vacation (since we’re driving, we’re just going to Orlando and back instead of adding in Fort Myers).
2. Less time having to listen to the kids whine and Sam talk non-stop.

Pros to driving:
1. The cost, obviously.
2. Our first “ROAD TRIP!” with the kids.
3. We can take anything we want with us: Any liquids, any foods, nothing has to be in 3-ounce containers, as many suitcases as we want, my Swiss Army Knife (very useful for cutting straws shorter for the kids in restaurants!), razors, extra clothes, and most importantly: our own pillows!
4. No having to stand in security lines, no having to take our shoes off and put them back on (not a problem for adults, but a pain for the kids), no having to carry everything like a pack mule and still hold the kids’ hands.
5. Did I mention we can take our own pillows?

We need to leave the Easter Bunny a note and tell him we’ll be at the Disney campground on Easter Morning, so he doesn’t hide eggs at home.

Sam just brought me her shoes to put on and tie.

I picked up one shoe, and pointed at her right foot.

“Which foot is this?” I asked.

“The right foot!” she said.

“That’s right!” I replied.

I put on that shoe and tied it.

Then I said, “If this is the right foot,” (tap right foot), “which foot is this?” (tap left foot).

“The right foot,” she said.

“No, if this is the right foot,” (tap right foot), “which foot is this?” (tap left foot).

“The right foot,” she said.

“No, if this is the right foot,” (tap right foot), “which foot is this?” (tap left foot).

She paused and thought about it this time.

“The WRONG foot!”

Both girls wore handmade costumes this year. Emily’s was the witch costume my mom made for me back when I was 6! She also wore this 2 years ago.

Samantha decided she wanted to be a cookie this year. So I had to come up with a cookie costume! Got some light brown fleece, and some dark brown felt. I measured her from her shoulders to her knees, and then cut circles to that diameter (plus an extra inch for seam allowances). Then I cut out some chocolate chip shapes from the felt and sewed them onto the fleece. Then sewed the fleece circles together, leaving an opening for her head and her legs. Finally she tried it on and I marked the spots for her arm slits. I just cut those and then sewed some reinforcement along the slits.

Voila! Instant cookie. Later I made up a hat, she needed something on her head too!

The scene: Dinner, in the kitchen, Friday night. We’re having a frozen pizza.

I cut the pizza into 8 slices as normal. I bring it to the table. Kevin takes 2 slices for himself. I give a slice to Emily. Kevin gives a slice to Sam. Kevin begins to cut up Sam’s piece, because she always wants it cut up. I take a piece for myself and start eating.

Kevin cuts one piece.

Sam: “No! I don’t want it cut up!” She cries. “No!” Tears.

Kevin: “OK, here you go.”

Sam: “No! I don’t want that piece! I want that piece!” (Pointing at one of the slices left on the tray.) She continues to cry and say “No! No! I don’t want that piece!” More tears.

Kevin takes the piece off her plate (with the one tiny piece cut off) and puts it back on the tray. He eats the one tiny bit he cut off. He takes the slice that Sam pointed to and puts it on her plate. Pause.

Sam: “No! I don’t want that piece (the one that she pointed to on the tray)!” At this point Emily and I start giggling. “I want that piece!” (She points at the one she originally had, with the bit cut off.)

Kevin shakes his said and says “I can’t win.”

Emily and I laugh a little more. I say, “Are we being filmed? Are we in a sitcom?”

Kevin growls, gives Sam the piece of pizza she originally had, and settles back in his own seat.

Sam: “Actually, I want it cut up.”

Emily and I lose it. I am now in tears myself, hands covering my face. Sam is yelling “Don’t laugh at me!” Which just makes us laugh more. [In fact it's 1 and a half hours later and I'm still giggling.]

Classic. I wish we really were being filmed. It was priceless.

This is a result of a conversation with my boss last Friday. I think if I tried to explain, it wouldn’t be funny.

So, after living in our new house for a year, I’m finally ready to put some holes in the walls! I’ve gotten the decorating bug in the past month. I started with the girls’ bedrooms.

Emily picked Pink and Orange.

We ordered the bunk beds last year, from Pottery Barn Kids. Yes, they were expensive. But in the end, they actually cost us less than if we’d bought something elsewhere – we couldn’t find nice white wood bunks, so we would have had to buy all new furniture for the rest of the room so it would all match. These are very sturdy.

The bedding and matching curtains are from JCPenney – and they’re on sale right now! They match nicely with the Hannah Montana sheets she got for Christmas.

The oh-so-fancy lamp with the feather trim is also from JCPenney.

She brings home so many pictures every day from school and after care. She’s a very prolific artist! So I hung a cork board for her. Now she can hang up her art and change it out whenever she wants.

Finally, the last thing we did was place the vinyl wall stickers on the walls (again, from JCPenney!). Emily placed most of them (and I adjusted to make them somewhat straight, and the high ones). I like how she put one around her light switch. We could have used another pack to really do it up right. I might get some more if I ever place another JCP order. This was one pack of the circles and one of the squares.

The room isn’t completely done. There is an angle I didn’t photograph – her dresser. It needs to be 1) cleaned, 2) stripped and repainted, and we need to get 3) new knobs. Pink and Orange knobs of course! That will have to wait for Spring though.

Took her long enough. 2 1/2 years.

Emily and I were decorating her bedroom walls this weekend (with vinyl wall stickers, in the shape of circles & squares).

Samantha wanted to help. She wasn’t very good at sticking the vinyl on the walls, so she took to her own devices.

You have to admit, those are some pretty good circles for a 2 1/2-year-old. I’m proud of her.

She also decided her own room needed some wall art.

She went with a more impressionist theme in her own room.

That, or she’s cursing me.

We had a snow day today – even my office was closed. It’s supposed to be worse tomorrow, so I’m figuring on another snow day tomorrow!

Emily & Sam tried out their new boots.

They made some “snowcastles” with their sand toys, made snow angels, and generally trudged around the yard.

Sam apparently hasn’t learned that you’re supposed to put babies to sleep on their backs.