A Quiet Sunday in Orlando

It was a good thing that Sunday came in the middle of our vacation. We really needed a day of rest after the busy introduction to Orlando that Aunt Heather and Uncle Peter gave us. We were having some trouble keeping up with them and Sunday was a good excuse to slow down and catch our breath. We started off with a nice walk (without winter coats).

Uncle Peter helped Leah with her collection. She is determined to collect one memorable thing from each day.

 We decided that a trip to see the temple would be a nice way to spend Sunday morning.

 They had some trouble deciding who was going to kiss who's cheek and we almost wound up with a very funny picture.

Orange trees are a bit less common in Edmonton and one of Leah's main goals of this trip was to see a real orange tree.

 Then we spent the afternoon in the pool. As mentioned earlier, we had some trouble keeping up with Aunt Heather and Uncle Peter, you will notice that Patrick is not in these pictures. He needed a nap :)

 Leah tried to keep up with Uncle Peter in making a big splash.

 I think she lost.

One Fiss and two Fisher's. Perfect Picture!!

Thanks again to our wonderful hosts for another great day in the sun.

Sea World

Day three was another one full of adventure! We woke up bright and early and hit the road en route to Sea World. We arrived just as the gates opened so we didn't have to fight the crowds.

Leah has been looking forward to seeing the dolphins for weeks so that was the first place that we decided to check out. On our way to the dolphins some of us got to give high five to and feed the sting rays. When we reached the dolphins, Leah was hooked so we bought her a ticket to feed them. She was given a carton of fish and she had the opportunity to feel the dolphins while she fed them.. She was in heaven! After she was done feeding them, one of them jumped up and splashed us...absolutely soaking us. I guess that was his way of saying thank you!

After we fed the dolphins, we went and watched the dolphin show. It was probably one of the most amazing shows that we have ever seen! The trainers were fantastic and the animals were out of this world! It was outstanding! Leah was determined to get wet so we sat front and center and just like the signs promised we got soaked!

Then off to see Shamu...

Then off to the sea lions, otters and walruses...

We had an INCREDIBLE time! Sea World is so much fun! Thanks so much for taking us Aunt Heather and Uncle Peter! You Rock!

It's Beach Day!

On day two we went out to Madeira Beach on the Gulf side. We were so excited to go and swim in the ocean and play on the white, sandy beaches. 

The beach was everything we had hoped for and so much more. We had an absolute riot. 

After the beach we got ice cream and took a walk on the pier. We saw the boats, and the pelicans and even a real pirate ship! It was amazing! On our way back to the car we saw a sign that said we could feed the alligators so of course we had to explore. The kids both got to train some alligators and feed them their lunch. That was definitely one of their highlights.

Orlando!!!!

We finally arrived in the land of Orlando, Florida and we are having a ball! Just to give you an idea of how much fun we have had in the last two days I have taken approximately 150 pictures. I figured I better start blogging during the vacation just so I don't miss anything!

Aunt Heather and Uncle Peter have been excellent hosts, they have ensured that we have had the most fun and seen the best sights! We are so appreciative to their hospitality and their kindness, we could not have done this trip without them!

Day one was full of adventure as we went to Downtown Disney and checked out all of the sights. we saw everything from a lego sea serpent to a water spitting Stitch to huge moving dinosaurs. We were fascinated with our surrondings!

We went out to lunch at the Rainforest Cafe with Uncle Peter and Aunt Heather and we were lucky enough to meet up with Cassandra and Scott and their family who were also vacationing down in Orlando.

After the Rainforest Cafe, Aunt Heather and Uncle Peter had booked an appointment for Leah to be dressed up like a princess at the Bippity-Boppity-Boo Boutique. Leah was so excited! She had so much fun and she looked so cute!

Dillon decided to get in on the action so he got his face painted like a dragon. Once he got it painted he convinced Patrick to do the same.

Day one was amazing and day two has been just as good (I'll blog about that tomorrow). We are having so much fun that I don't think we are going to make that plane next week!

Little Miracles

This week, five years ago was a pretty monumentous time in our home. A little miracle was born. His name was Dillon Patrick. He was born at 6:35 pm on March 16th, 5 weeks premature weighing 5 pounds 3 ounces.

It was a very difficult pregnancy full of ups and downs and much drama but as my mother in law puts it, it wouldn't be a Kim story if it didn't have drama. I anxiously awaited his arrival from the comfort of a hospital bed for 8 weeks and spent 8 weeks prior to that on bed rest. After a very eventful day he was born without too much concern.

We felt very blessed to have a healthy baby after all of the difficulties of pregnancy. Dillon had to endure my multiple seizures, toxic amount of medications to control the seizures, multiple bleeds due to placenta previa and according to an amnio his lungs were really immature so he would be unable to breathe on his own if he was born on March 16th. As it turns out he was born screaming which meant his lunges were at full capacity. He was only put on a CPAP machine for a half an hour to ensure he was breathing correctly. He was admitted into the NICU for 14 days as he was very sedated from all the medications from the pregnancy so he wasn't eating and he dropped to 4 pounds 8 ounces. He was finally released back as birth weight.

We feel very blessed to have him in our lives! He has always been such a good boy, he is a good sleeper, good eater, good listener and really good at getting into mischief! Everytime he does something really destructive like dump 10 gallons of fishtank water (saltwater) on my carpet and leather couches, I just keep telling myself 'he is my little miracle and I love him!'.

I love that kid! In fact it brings me to tears to think what would have happened if he would not have come into our family. So many things could have gone wrong but they didn't, how blessed we are!

 Here are a few photos over the years of our little miracle.

Happy 5th Birthday Little Man! We Love You!

Now we are off to Disney to celebrate!

Date Day

Patrick and I have made it a goal to have individual dates with our kids. So this week was Patrick's turn to take Dillon and my turn to spend time with Leah.

I was given passes to a private screening of 'Mars Needs Moms' from a regular participant of one of my fitness classes. Leah doesn't like the big theatre with the 'scary' dragon so the passes went to Dillon and Patrick for their date. Leah and I decided to take a trip to Micheal's and pick up some craft items and spend the morning being creative.

Patrick and Dillon returning from the movie. They were all smiles! It is pretty cool getting to see a movie before it has even been released.

Leah and I made lip gloss together. We picked flavours, made the lip gloss and then decorated the containers. We had a ton of fun.

Parent/child dates are so much fun and a great way to spend a Saturday morning!

Cake Decorating Class

The Relief Society president in my ward at church contacted me and asked me if I would be willing to teach a cake decorating class one night. Of course I agreed. I was thrilled that they asked me to share my knowledge.

We have been going through a bit of a cold spell here in Edmonton.The night of the class was an especially chilly one so I thought that it would be a good idea to decorate a spring themed cake to try and lift our spirits.  We had a great time and the ladies did a great job!