What we have been doing. Sort of.

 We have been pretty busy.  For us.  Which means last week we had 2 activities a day and Mitzi came to visit.  And we had dentist appointments.  I'm telling you.  It has been C.R.A.Z.Y!  But, all of that for another post.  This is just catch up from the pictures prior to last week's adventures.  Which I really don't have many pictures of.  But, Mitzi does, so I have that going for me.  Which is nice.

 I decided quite impromptuishly during the first week of June that we were officially on summer vacation.  Yeah! Which means I have a list of activities my children will ideally complete each day prior to tv watching or video game playing.  Though, they are free to play all day outside if they so choose.  Because: Summer.  Turns out, it is pretty hot here, so even if they want to play outside, it is really hard to get through even an hour without becoming drenched in sweat.  But, the days do go by pretty quickly.  They read a lot, play a lot, fight more than usual, watch more tv than usual, but overall, we have a pretty good time together.

 One of our family activities is dancing in the kitchen.  One evening, John channeled his inner Gene Kelly.  Particularly fitting as one of his middle names is Eugene.

 We purchased a cabinet in order to keep our outdoor activities more organized.  Actually, just so that we could close the door on the mess and appear more organized.  Molly and John immediately took up residence and were pretty disappointed to discover towels and kinetic sand in their former beds. But, to give them a sense of normalcy, there is not organization whatsoever.  Just like their actual room.  Which also has a door that I can shut often.

 At the end of May, the kids and Eric took part in the Gate to Gate run activities at Eglin.  Molly ran a half mile, and the boys each ran a mile.  This was the week after their illnesses, so we did not expect super fast times.  But, I'm always impressed with their endurance.  And Dom actually came in pretty early in his group.  Definitely faster than I would have completed the same distance.  Oh, and Eric won the inaugural 10K event.  Also in a faster time than I would have completed the same distance. (Note: There is a lovely picture of all the Buschelman runners and John...but, it must be on Eric's phone and I do not have it currently at my fingertips).  This is Eric's second win in an event.  Coincidentally, the first was an inaugural 5K for our church back in Ohio.  He likes to be the first of the firsts. 

 When Molly's Godfather, Jeff, visited at the beginning of April he brought several gifts for the kids and for John's Birthday.  One of which was this Bobby Hat.  One morning, John rediscovered it and was just walking around the house in it.  I didn't get a picture of that, but I did get Molly during her turn.  It got a lot of wear that day.  I don't remember if it was Dom or Will wearing it while reading the Narnia series.  Maybe both.

 On Memorial Day we headed down to Orlando again to visit Universal.  This time around, we were going to try out all of the other rides we'd skipped on our previous trip/pilgrimage to Hogwarts.  My great scheme was that we would go the day after everyone elses day off.  No crowds, right?  Turns out I was wrong.  Something we realized immediately as we saw the first wait time of 55 minutes.  We were told that a lot of people from Europe were now visiting.  Something Eric confirmed as many people complimented or sneered at his Tottenham jersey.  Though the compliments on his new cap were appropriately Universal.

 But, you know where there was no lines?  The ball factory in the kids area.  We spent a really fun hour there as the kids ran around and shot balls across the room.  I wish I could have seen John as he entered his little version of heaven.  But, I was having a mommy timeout brought on from having to wait in a line for longer than 20 minutes.  I am the worst. 

 My sons waiting for the Hogwarts Express.  Eric's favorite ride I might add.  He enjoyed speaking to some British visitors who commented that Kings Cross Station in Orlando is much cleaner than London's version.  We helped make it more authentic by spilling a coke on the floor.  You're Welcome.

 By the afternoon, we were all smiles.  We were on our way to Islands of Adventure which is the park I prefer.  It has Hogsmeade and Seuss Landing.  And Jurassic Park.  And a fun raft ride that Will and Molly and I got soaked on.  After which, Will gave me the ultimate compliment: "Mom, when we come back, I'm just going to do what you want to do because you pick the best rides"

It started to pour rain about 7, which shut down all the outdoor rides.  We lucked out and a gentleman gave us his speedy pass so we could bypass the 55 minute line for one last ride: Despicable Me's Minion Mayhem. It's a movie that gives you the sense of movement and your chairs do move a bit (many rides are this way at Universal). I got terribly motion sick which lasted the rest of the evening.  On the other hand, all of my children loved it (I had my eyes shut for most of it, but would hear their gales of laughter and want to know what I'd missed...which just made me more sick).  They rode it twice in a row thanks to the child swap program.  Molly and Will utilized this option always and got in 17 rides during the day.  Dom is much more leery about the rides.  I'm pretty sure he wants to make sure no one dies the first go round before he gives it a shot.

 Side story: He was pretty mad at Eric for making him go on the Jurassic Park ride that had a nasty drop at the end.  But, the rest of it was so neat and calm, I really wanted him to experience it.  I mean, you get to go through the gates of Jurassic Park as the music swells.  I'm not a huge fan of the movie, but that was pretty incredible.  I rode it initially with Molly and Will and it was fun to hear Molly's commentary throughout about the dinosaurs.  At one point as we entered the restricted area where raptors escaped she observed that she didn't think we were suppose to be in there, and despite my assurances that the dinosaurs were not real, she was pretty sure at least one or two might be.

At any rate, I convinced Dom to try Despicable Me the first time and it was fun to see how excited he was and proud that he conquered a little of his fear.   We'll see how our final trip this Fall goes.  I just hope there are no lines.  Life, much like my patience, is too short to be waiting in a line for more than 20 minutes.