as we prepared for a family gathering at cousin paige's graduation we started talking about everyone we were going to see...paige, cousin zachary, gigi (great grandma) aunt jan jan, aunt diane, stephanie, carol etc.... somehow he randomly started going on and on about paige and i finally decided to turn on the camera so i could capture the cuteness and send it to paige (who of course was thrilled)....
the excitement builded for days... the thought of seeing his cousin zachary who is one week older than him was so hard to wait for. it couldnt come soon enough.
we headed to columbia bright and early saturday to meet the family for a pre-graduation lunch.
paige arrived and mr asher was so very happy and ecstatic to see her.
he also almost nearly attacked zachary but it was a good chance for us to remind him about personal space prior to everyone reacquainting... asher has issues with respecting others personal space.
gigi and softa enjoying each others company
zachary got to sit next to philip and asher for dinner. it was a really special bonding time for all of the boys and im thrilled they got to be together during lunch
then the boys enjoyed some ipad viewing while everyone else was finishing eating
before we headed to the ceremony we stopped for some fun photos with the graduate
the boys played some more
asher loved on his gigi who he only gets to see once or twice a year
and they played chase with cousin paige and each other
an attempt to get a photo with both boys...gone awry
and we finally got a hug out of the boys...initiated by zach. it was precious. i love them
before we headed off to graduation we cooled off at the hotel with everyone...
amazingly asher stayed away all the way through the graduation till we got into the car at 4 pm. the kid was an absolute trooper and so well behaved. he was dead asleep in the car before we even got on the highway heading home. we were able to stay long enough to see paige walk across the stage and flip her tassel... we are so very proud of her, our USC grad...she heads to the london olympics in three short weeks for her final internship before she jumps into the "real world" and begins the job hunt.
mazal tov paigey poo... we love you.
it feels like yesterday that you just graduated high school
a much need recap of our amazing trip to disney....
our flight was earllllly but asher took it in stride. he was so excited about the plane ride and the secret trip he didnt care that we woke him up at 5 am. i scored a first class seat on the plane and the boys were set up in coach. i have ALWAYS wanted to give up my first class seat to a person in coach and this was the prime opportunity. i sat in the seat in the row with asher and philip and patiently waited for the person to come to their seat. the look of shock was priceless! she was shocked and so surprised. she even sent me a napkin thank you note later in the flight. it made my day to give it up and to be able to sit with my boys. we finally told asher we were going to disney when we were in the cab on the way to the hotel...caught on video....
we arrived with no problems and checked into hotel 1: the swan. i had starwood points so we were excited it was a free night and the hotel was really nice...although it reaked of some kind of cologne they must have pipped into the place.
we decided to hit the pools before nap time vs venturing out.
they also had a mock beach, lagoons, slides etc. all of the equipment, tubes, life jackets, floats, rentals were free. it was awesome.
we enjoyed a nice lunch pool side before we headed up for nap time. we were all exhausted from getting up so early that we crashed hard. hours later we woke up with enough time to get ready and head downstairs for our character meal at the swan. this was the best idea and required no rushing. we were a little bummed when we found out we would only see goofy, pluto, dale and chip but asher didnt care and that was all that mattered. the food was a delicious seafood buffet that included lobster. we were all in heaven and asher ate his fair share of calamari between partying with the characters...
he wanted to huge and kiss each and everyone one of them...
and of course get their autograph in his book
he was quite the character lover...
what a treat, both at the same time!
then they had a dance party...
since we ate dinner at 5 pm we decided to heat to downtown disney for an hour or two before we called it a night. we also wanted to try to snag a view of the fireworks at epcot...
waiting on the bus to take us to downtown disney
it was a friday night and downtown disney was hopping
all the local teens supposedly hang out there since its free to walk around. before it got dark we rode the carousel. still unsure how i fit into it, but i made it
asher probably wouldve stayed on for a long time if we had let him!
we walked around and visited the lego store where they had several large displays....
this one was a particular favorite.... imagine why!?
as it got closer to 9 (which is way past bed time we headed back to the hotel to see if we could see the fireworks...we made it just in time, but honestly they werent worth it. we were semi disappointed but who doesnt like to see fireworks. of course asher had to go potty about 15 minutes after we got there and 2 minutes into them starting so we had to hustle back to the hotel for a bathroom. thank goodness he has a bladder of steel.
i confess i love this photo.
the next morning we got up bright and early and headed to the parks to meet my coworkers dad who is a former disney employee. he was going to take us on to the park for free. if you have ever been you know it can be close to $90 per day for an adult so we saved a large amount of money thanks to his generosity...we snagged a few family photos at the entrance of magic kingdom..
once we got inside he took us into the gift shop and let us use his discount to buy a few souvenirs. we didnt show asher which was probably a good thing. we also stopped by the hat store and bought him ears (he picked them out) and got his name put on them. i still have my ears from when i went as a little girl so this was a must have for us.
then we said goodbye to my friends dad and entered the park with much excitement!!!
this was big time...
and the riding began...the lines were no more than 10 minutes and in some cases you could just walk right up... you didnt even need fast pass.
asher rode just about every ride he could for his age alone and/or with daddy.
he loved them, he was fearless and he was really well behaved.
as expected this was a favorite
you cant go to disney without riding dumbo
or the roller coaster....
we got to meet buzz light year, hug him, shake his hand and get his autograph. big time...
after 4 hours on the park it was time to pick up our hat... get some mickey ears ice cream and head back for a nap...
delicious...
even better all over our face, hands and shorts...
at this point we split up. philip went back to the swan to check out and i headed to the buena vista palace. we were going to be spending the next two nights there since that is where my conference was. things spiraled at this point. philip only had one shuttle to the hotel. we had no clue what my trip would be like but we were told i could take the ferry to the transportation center and then the bus to the hotel. ah if only it was that simple. the ferry was closed. i was already really tired about 4 hours on the park 30 weeks pregnant and made it to the monorail right before it pulled away. no biggie i would get the next one. little did we know the next one had no a/c and had to go back to the station.... i waited 45 minutes in the heat with a child that was way past nap time standing up for another tram. it was brutal. i almost cried...until i saw this fool of a dad who visited the barbershop at magic kingdom and got this little ditty on his head. the things people do at disney. wow.
we finally got to the transportation center to find out that the bus only came every 25 minutes and we had just missed the last one. go figure our luck. we had to sit outside in the sun because there were no covered areas and no one volunteered to let me sit under the two umbrellas that were there. finally we got on the bus and i was delerious. i found some snacks and asher just smiled his way through it all. it was 3 pm by now. WAY past nap time. funny enough philip already got our luggage and took a shuttle to the new hotel and checked in....
asher could sense i wasnt feeling well and he snuggled up to me. it melted my heart and i insisted upon capturing the moment as they are few and far between these days...
after a 2 hour trek beginning to end we finally made it back to the hotel, got changed and napped. phew! we woke up and decided to hit up the hotel restaurant for a quick and early dinner before heading back to magic kingdom to make the most of our day. it was neat to be there during the evening...we attended a little show
rode a few rides and caught a glimpse of the fireworks as we headed back. this was the latest asher has ever stayed up... ekkk it was almost 11 pm by the time he was asleep...but he was a trooper. he never ceases to amaze me. and even better, no accidents the entire visit on the park!
the next morning we enjoyed a mickey pancake breakfast at the hotel before heading to downtown disney again and back to the playground/pool for some fun.
cheesin up with our friends...
he insisted upon riding the train with mommy....again...
after walking all of downtown disney we finally got to take the ferry back to the beginning. we were the only ones on the ferry so it was a special little treat.
finally a pose with mickey and minnie!
we headed back to the hotel for swim and nap....
i had to work during nap time to set up for the conference.
we met back up around 6 pm for dinner and decided to check out the Rainforest Cafe.
asher enjoyed the experience and we called it a night at a fairly decent hour!
sadly the boys flight left fairly early in the morning on monday and i had to be ready to work by 7 am so our trip was over... it was perfect in every way possible...other than the hotel change.
next time we will try to stay on a monorail stop if we can afford it or at a convenient hotel.
we will also make sure that i am not 30 weeks pregnant hahahah.
i am so glad this trip had a lasting impression on asher and cant wait to show him disney again in another few years from a big brother's perspective!
i am measuring right at 30 weeks, great BP, heart beat was 135 and I have gained 13 lbs total to date. that is almost 3 lbs behind my pregnancy with asher at this stage?!?! weird. i gained 2 lbs in the past 3 weeks. i was prepared for a 4 lb gain because of disney and the lack of gym time. im still carrying higher this pregnancy. i still have crazy low back pain. Baby is head down and the head is right in my right hip, just like asher was. fun times!
2009 with asher at 30 weeks...
2012 with baby 2 at 30 weeks....
by this time in my pregnancy with asher i was experiencing constant hiccups. i havent started that yet with baby 2. but i can feel body parts already which is super cool. my stomach jerks constantly and the braxton hicks contractions have picked up. last week was super stressful at my work conference in orlando and my body was definitely over it. im glad to be home with no more travel trips planned between now and my due date.
goal for the next two weeks till my next appointment: work out as much as i can so that my aches are minimal and get the nursery completed! all the furniture is in and now im trying to accessorize...find a lamp, hang the artwork we made, hang mirror, organize drawers, pick up glass top for the dresser etc...and the list goes on....
