Fall Fun

Eight is great indeed! Since Gray's 8th birthday fell during Fall Break this year, we celebrated a week later with a game truck at the neighborhood clubhouse.

I had worried there wouldn't be enough to keep the boys occupied, but we had to end up forcing them out of the truck to do pizza and cupcakes.

Gray chose a Minecraft theme and I really enjoyed doing all of the little extra things to make it special since I know it could be his last "real" party.

Now that he's 8, we finally let him have his first sleepover too! I was convinced it would be an all-nighter, but the boys actually fell asleep a little before 9:00. What? Kinda thinking maybe we won't be known as "the fun house". Oh well....

Speaking of birthdays, my parents came in town on the way back from an Ole Miss game and we did an early celebration for Aunt Mal's 40th birthday.  Dad cooked shrimp au gratin and we had some yummy desserts from Gigi's in her honor. I can't believe my big sis is about to be 40! That also means I'm not too far behind....eek!

The forecast for Halloween looked like a complete rain-out, but fortunately our neighborhood rescheduled for the Friday night before. We went to the annual cove party to see everyone's costumes and then headed out with some friends for a little door-to-door action. After about an hour and a half, the kids were begging to come home, which I was not about to deny.  But doing it a day early meant we got to spend the real Halloween making chili, watching semi-scary movies, and handing out candy. Best Halloween ever!

Hayes's first season of cheerleading ended with a cheer-off competition, which panicked this perfectionist parent beyond words.  But after working so hard for so many weeks on perfecting a routine that included tumbling, dance, cheer, sideline, jumps, and a pyramid, they not only pulled it off but took home the award for "Best Cheer"! It's amazing what they can do at this age and I am looking forward to watching her learn to love it as I did in the years to come.

Gray had his last soccer game and Papa came to cheer him on!

Hayes' girl scout troop had group pictures and I loved seeing them in their cute little uniforms....

We celebrated Aunt Lala's birthday at Lovie's and I tried my hand at a flourless cake....not bad for a non-baker, right?

Farmington's annual Falcon Fest took place a couple of weeks ago and we had a great time showing our support for our awesome school, as always.  I absolutely love that we see so many neighborhood friends when we go to school events and I couldn't be more thankful for this sweet treasure that is just down the street and completely free! What a blessing!

Adam is out of town at a conference and the kids are out today for Veterans Day.  We spent the day at Chuck E. Cheese's and then went to see the movie, Minions. Not relaxing, but overall, not bad.

It has been uncommonly warm for November and it's tough to believe the holidays are just weeks away.  My tennis is winding down and Staxtacular is gearing up. It seems like I was just in this same spot a few months ago, not a whole year ago already. Where does the time go? Sigh....

Until next time,
The Pattersons

Fall Break Staycation 2015

Since we'd just gotten back from Disney a few weeks before, we decided to forego our usual trip for Fall Break in lieu of a staycation. I thought the kids would be disappointed, but I think they were still pretty exhausted from the big DW trip and thrilled to explore our home turf.  We Memphians, and that includes those of us in the burbs, complain a lot about our city....the crime, the politics, the racial tension, the subpar education (I could go on and on....), but we don't always recognize the positives in this city (and there are many!).  Aside from sports (Go Grizzlies! Yay Redbirds!), we have some major culture here, far beyond the barbecue and Elvis that others give us credit for. Memphis is oozing with indigenous music, unique art, eclectic food, and some truly interesting people. So for Fall Break 2015, we decided to spend some time enjoying it.

On Monday, the kids and I packed a lunch and headed to the zoo in midtown.  I have been to many a zoo in my life, and I have to tell you, ours ranks pretty high up there. With the weather starting to cool, the animals were particularly active and we had a great day walking around and watching them play and interact.

Tuesday we drove to East Memphis to an old favorite we hadn't visited in a while: My Big Backyard at the Memphis Botanic Gardens.  I worried that the kids would be too grown up for some of the activities now, but either they weren't or didn't care, because they ran from cottage to cottage, rolled down the hills, crawled through worm holes, swung on swings, and chased butterflies with the best of them!

 On Wednesday, we made the trek down to Hernando, Mississippi to visit Cedar Hill Farm with our neighborhood friends. We did this last Fall Break and it's become sort of an annual tradition. Despite the girl drama, hangriness, and multiple lost child incidents, we had a great time and are looking forward to going again next Fall Break.

Thursday, the kids were dying to go see Pan at the theatere and since it had been a while since we'd been to the movies and we all truly love the story of Peter Pan, I was game.  It was a nice, quiet break from our busy week and I'm glad we took the time to be low-key, even if it was only for one day.  That night, I took Hayes to her first Broadway musical at the Orpheum with some other moms and daughters from her class. Rodgers & Hammerstein's "Cinderella" was playing, so the girls got all dressed up for dinner at The Majestic followed by their first "real" play.  They did great during the show but crashed on the way home. I wish I would have gotten a picture of them laying with their heads on each others shoulders! Too cute!

Friday was Gray's 8th birthday and he woke us up at 5:45 to celebrate.  He was so excited about his new Disney Infinity 2.0 set and the microscope he got from P and Pop.  While Hayes went to a playdate, Gray and I ran errands for his birthday dinner that night with the rest of the family.  Gray got to pick the menu, so fried chicken, mashed potatoes and homemade mint chocolate chip ice cream cake it was!

To wrap up the week, we went back to the Zoo Saturday night for our first-ever Zoo Boo with our friends, the Efkemans.  Since we'd just come back from Mickey's Not So Scary Halloween Party, it was a little lame, but the kids had fun with their friends and it was a nice October night to be outside.  We finished with dinner at a midtown fave, Belly Acres, and then spent Sunday recovering from all the fun and trying to get back into the swing of things.

It was a long, but fun week and I am thankful for the chance to have spent that time with the kids.  

Until next time, 

The Pattersons

The most magical trip

I went to Disney when I was four (don't remember it), 8, and 17 (was forced into it), which is more than enough for any one person over the course of their lifetime, right? So when my friends with kids started asking "When are y'all going to Disney", I looked at them with utter disbelief. Taking my then 4 and 3 year old to Disney was akin to self mutilation, and I am no sadist.  It wasn't until my own children started asking "Are we ever going to Disney?", that I started to cave....slowly at first, but ultimately entirely.

So when my parents, whose vacations have involved villas and butlers, offered to take us all to Disney World, I thought, "If they can do it, so can I!".  Who cares if they don't serve alcohol in the Magic Kingdom. Who doesn't like 16 hour days with no breaks?  How bad can it truly be? With the help of a certified Disney planner, we spent a year and half vying for dining reservations based on yelp reviews and best dining plan values, planning itineraries on the days with the lowest crowd rates and with the shortest wait times, and of course, planning coordinating outfits for each day. I created a Disney binder (oh yes I did!) and scoured Pinterest for ideas on how to properly tease prepare my kids, but nothing could truly prepare me.

We arrived in Orlando and checked into our hotel with minimal issues. The staff we encountered along the way were suspiciously cheerful and surprisingly helpful, making any real issues completely manageable. After we surprised the kids with what we had hoped would satisfy them enough to avoid ogling all the overpriced souvenirs, we hopped aboard a river cruise to Downtown Disney for our reservation at T-Rex Cafe.

 After the first of many mediocre dinners, we wandered around Downtown Disney, ultimately giving in to those must-have mementos the kids have already lost interest in. We wrapped up the night with large amounts of sugar at the Goofy Candy Company before finally calling it a day and heading back to the Port Orleans French Quarter where we were staying that night. Port Orleans was nice and clean, but small, and I worried how any of us would have slept in 2 queen beds for the rest of the trip. The kids liked the "Mardi Gras" theme, which was present at every turn, and the pool seemed to be a highlight that lots of people were taking advantage of. I'm not sure I would choose it again, but it was certainly more than adequate.

The next morning, we arose bright and early, anxious to board the shuttle for our first day in the Magic Kingdom.....along with what seemed like the rest of the entire hotel. Our stroller was delivered from Kingdom Strollers without a hitch, and the kids didn't even seem to mind riding in it!

We started with the Dumbo ride and upped the ante with the Barnstormer, which clearly was a bad idea.  Gray, our usually tentative, motion-sick child, loved every minute of it, but Hayes, our resident daredevil, began screaming the moment it started up the track.  Fortunately, she's a resilient one and gave it another go, quickly coming around and proclaiming it at as her favorite ride at the park (thank goodness).  Wouldn't that have made for an interesting trip? Not so much!

After exploring Fantasyland in its ENTIRETY, even managing to snag a last minute FastPass to meet Anna and Elsa (no lie!).....

we made our way to Frontierland, hoping to capitalize on Hayes' newfound courage and ride Splash Mountain. Clearly, as you can tell from the picture of me in the fetal position, everyone enjoyed it immensely (except me!).

We had lunch at another mediocre restaurant, explored the rest of Frontierland, and ultimately rode the dreaded Thunder Mountain before heading to the Contemporary Hotel to meet up with my parents.

We had dinner at Chef Mickey's and you guessed it, it was mediocre! Fortunately, the food was of little consequence once we realized that since the kids were getting personal greetings and autographs from each of Mickey's "main gang", we could avoid stalking them for the rest of the trip!

 After dinner, we walked over to the Magic Kingdom to try and catch the nightly parade. Little did we know, you have to secure a spot hours in advance, so we ended up walking around and catching bits and pieces of the parade before finally opting to walk home among the fireworks. Not a bad ending to the day, if I do say so myself!

Unfortunately, P was having severe back pain and had retreated to her bedroom for the duration of the trip.  She jokes and says she needs a t-shirt that reads "I went to Disney and all I rode was the hotel elevator". Poor thing!  The kids missed her terribly and were extremely worried, but we pushed through, knowing she wouldn't have wanted us to waste this opportunity that we had all planned so long for.

We stayed the rest of our trip in the Bay Lake Tower at the Contemporary. It had 3 full bathrooms, 2 bedrooms, plus two sleepers in the den.  We loved having a kitchen, where we made breakfast and prepared snacks, and having the groceries delivered was a nice convenience.  I am so thankful that we stayed where we did, particularly since my Mom never left the building. It was extremely comfortable, roomy, and easy, especially with it being within walking distance of the Magic Kingdom and the first stop on the monorail.

The next day, we took the shuttle over to Hollywood Studios where our primary mission was to sign the kids up for the Jedi Training Academy (along with 300 of our closest friends).  Fortunately, we got a good time slot and my Dad joined us to watch the young Padawans perform, as well as for the Star Tours ride, and a quick, albeit mediocre, lunch.

We enjoyed some classic shows like Indiana Jones and some newer ones like the Frozen Singalong before heading over to, wait for it.....another mediocre buffet!  Unfortunately, the rain interfered with our plans to attend the Fantasmic show that night at Hollywood Studios, but I think even the kids were secretly thrilled to get back to the hotel before 9:00 pm that night. Overall, it was a fun experience, but not sure we'd do it again if we went back.

Animal Kingdom was on our agenda for the next day and though we had low expectations of this attraction, we were pleasantly surprised. The safari was amazing and the Dinsaur ride was both incredible and terrifying. My Dad joined us for a few rides before heading back to tend to my mom, and we cut the day short to head back to the hotel to get ready for Mickey's Not So Scary Halloween Party. Again, it's not something I'd do a second time, but we enjoyed our time there.

For Mickey's Not So Scary Halloween party, we dressed up as characters from Monsters University and headed back over to the Magic Kingdom for early entry.  We were stoked to take advantage of shorter lines and fastpasses for some of our favorite rides like The Barnstormer, Seven Dwarfs Mine Train, and Thunder Mountain before the party started. We also attempted the Haunted Mansion, but had to use an emergency exit to get Gray out of there after he completely panicked!

Unfortunately, the rain interfered yet again, causing us to miss the Villain Spooktacular Show, but we opted to ride the indoor rides in Tomorrowland instead.  We loved the people mover, even though we had been told to not bother with it, and Gray got interviewed on camera for the Monsters Inc Laugh Floor, which pretty much made his whole trip.  We trick or treated a few times and even enjoyed the monsters inc dance party before heading back to the hotel for the night, completely worn out.

The next morning, we woke up ready to take advantage of our last day in Disney and take on Magic Kingdom one last time.  Since Pirates of the Caribbean had been closed for 6 months, we made a beeline to it along with everyone else. Unfortunately, when we arrived, we were told that it was STILL not ready for the public, so we opted for some  lamer tamer rides in Adventureland.  We also squeezed in a FastPass for Space Mountain, which I quickly remembered why I hadn't done in 28 years.

Once our stomachs returned to their proper positions in our bodies, we had lunch at "Be our Guest".  The preorder made it super easy and I don't know whether it was the air conditioning or the food, but we actually had an enjoyable lunch here for a change. Afterwards, we were finally able, after a 35 minute wait, to check out he new Pirates ride. Gray, of course, was totally enthralled, making it worth all the waiting and inconvenience we'd encountered earlier.  We also successfully completed the Haunted Mansion ride, after a lot of cajoling, and even though Gray spent the whole ride with his eyes closed and hands over his ears, he survived and hasn't shown any signs of PTSD to date. Afterwards we caught the tail end of the Festival of Fantasy parade with a Dole Whip and a mickey bar in hand.

We had timed it perfectly and were able to go straight to our appointment at Bibbidi Bobbidi Boutique where gray was transformed into a knight and Hayes into a princess. They truly got the royal treatment and were primed and ready when it was time for our dinner at Cinderella's Royal Table next door. Even though it took two meal credits, I totally think this dinner is worth it if you have a girl. Not only is it decent food, but each princess stops at your table and allows for a picture and autograph. Gray was a really good sport and ended up with his first kiss, and from a princess no less! How's that for your first time?

We watched the parade from the balcony at city hall before heading back to our hotel for one last night.As the fireworks burst in a multitude of colors all above and around us on our walk home that night, I would have loved to say that we were happy to leave knowing we had done all that we would ever want to do.  But I'd be lying if I said we don't want to go back. That's right, you heard me.....we were infiltrated with the magic and are already thinking about the next time. They got us. Game over. Sigh.....

Until next time,
The Pattersons