Merry and warm

My post on Disney will have to wait until I copy some pictures from Jason. But for now ... Merry Christmas from Florida where it's 80 degrees and doesn't exactly feel like Christmas. We still managed to find some Christmas cheer though.

Posing by the tree after meeting Santa and one of his elves

Riding in Santa's sleigh. Ready for another latte Molly? (Just kidding, it's hot chocolate :))

It wouldn't be Christmas without Christmas PJs! A rare pic of all 3 cousins together and looking in the same direction

We had a fun morning opening gifts, and now we're back to normal Florida life. Pool, beach, tennis, eat, rest, repeat.

O'Griswolds on vacation

We're officially on our way to Disney World! It's day 2 of the drive and we have about 6 and half hours to go. I feel like we're almost there, even though this last part is as long as a drive to Cincinnati. Hopefully the worst is behind us.

Molly has been a trooper so far. We left after work on Friday, so even though we had to fight through Chicago rush hour traffic, the first half of the drive was at night and Molly slept through almost all of it in a sleeping bag on the floor of the car. I know it's not exactly safe, but remember doing the same thing as a child. History repeats itself.

I drove the first 3 and a half hours yesterday, getting us to Lafayette, Indiana. Jason got us past Nashville, listening to Serial podcasts to stay awake. We slept from about 2am to 8am and were back on the road shortly after 9. Molly did not do as well this morning, with the sun shining through the window on her face and she even got car sick right before lunch. Ew.

So now she's back on the floor and attempting to nap. I can see the Atlanta skyline in the rear view mirror and the open road before us. Disney or bust!!

Can you feel the love tonight?

Well, we're rethinking the whole surprise thing now. Holiday surprise #1 was dinner at a fancy restaurant (Italian Village ... not actually as fancy as we remembered) and tickets to The Lion King. Molly was pretty excited when she found out what we were doing. She loved dinner and the first half of the musical. But then when she didn't get a snack at intermission (lines were too long), she started pouting and practically ruined the night.

It didn't help that the show was long -- over 2 hours -- and she was already tired from the weekend. Jason and I also had high expectations for the night. WE were excited, so it just added to our disappointment when Molly started acting like a ... spoiled only child. She earned herself a lecture on the ride home, which ended in tears, and was still kind of out of sorts this morning during breakfast.

I think we're back on track now. We're enforcing a "no treats, no videos" rule until the drive to Florida. She seems to have snapped out of her bad mood and we've been doing a lot of talking about making people feel good, being grateful, and dealing with disappointment. Tough lessons for an only child who doesn't often have to share.

She's still a sweet girl ... and she's still probably going to get all of her Christmas gifts (I seriously thought about returning the Barbie camper van though!). But we're rethinking the whole Disney surprise. We're still planning to go, but think we're going to tell her about it ahead of time. I think it might be better for all of us if she has time to think about what's coming and knows that she has to act the right way to earn it!!

The night started out well

Being fancy at a fancy restaurant

Excited for the show

NOT happy that she didn't get a snack during intermission

Even though Molly spent the second act pouting, I still thoroughly enjoyed the show! The costumes were amazing and the dancing was wonderful. I highly recommend going ... just leave your sulky five-year-old at home!!

A season for surprises

The Christmas tree is up, we've been shopping, addressing envelopes, and listening to holiday music. You could say we're feeling pretty festive. Molly had a few very specific requests for gifts -- a Monster High doll and a Barbie camper van -- and I plan to deliver on those gifts. But she has no idea about 2 very exciting things we have planned for December.

First, we're taking her to see The Lion King musical downtown next weekend. Molly looooves The Lion King movie, she loves the music, and she's spent hours poring over the program her great-grandmother brought her after seeing it on Broadway. Jason and I bought Molly a new dress and tights and hope she will be as excited as we are to dress up and do something fancy downtown.

The second big surprise is that we're going to Disney World for a couple of days before Christmas. We've had this trip planned for so long, I don't know how we've kept it a secret. But we have, and I'm fully expecting her mind to be blown when she figures out what we're doing. I don't know if she'll recognize the hotel (it's the same place we stayed last time), or if she'll spot the Disney signage from the car, but I kind of hope we can get to the gates before she fully realizes where we are.

Two weeks to go ... let the countdown begin!

Full of thanks

I think Thanksgiving might be my favorite holiday. Bold claim? I love that it's all about family, friends, and food (and football), not about the stuff, though we did get each of the kids a new toy to keep them entertained :) I also love that we don't have to travel. We've hosted most of the last 7 or 8 Thanksgivings at our house, and last year, only had to go one mile over to B's.

We had another excellent Thanksgiving this year. We we lucky to have both Jason's parents and my parents in town. Betsy, Archie, James, and George came over as well. We had a pretty full house, but still missed everyone else who couldn't be there to celebrate with us.

Betsy, Archie, and I started out the day with the Evanston Flying Turkey 5k. It was a pretty nice day for a run -- in the low 50s with just a teeny tiny bit of rain. I think we earned our Thanksgiving dinner! And then we spent the rest of the day cooking, eating, and hanging out with everyone. It was a good day from start to finish.

Two turkeys about to run the Evanston Flying Turkey

Kids table

Post Thanksgiving snuggles

Winding down with Magna Tiles

Pre-Thanksgiving -- watching Paw Patrol with Grandpa

Happy Thanksgiving!! Next up ... my other favorite holiday! Time to turn on the Christmas carols and get shopping :)

Mini me?

Molly used to be the spitting image of Jason, but I think she is looking more like me every day!

Obviously, I wasn't quite as picky about my clothes ...

Also, as an update to an earlier post, it seems Molly has started to turn things around at school. She said her teacher whispered to her in a quiet voice the other day that she was doing really well with her listening. That's what I like to hear!

An interview with my daughter

Answers to 15 questions (because she lost interest before I could get to 20).

What is your favorite...

• Color? Pink (still holding strong with pink ...)
• Song? Shut Up + Dance - Walk the Moon (we like to sing this at top volume in the car, it takes me back to the 80s)
• TV show? Star Wars Rebels (a cartoon set in the years between Episodes III and IV)
• Movie? Star Wars Episode VI: Return of the Jedi
• Thing to do? Play at the park
• Sport? Swimming (she's definitely more comfortable in the water now)
• Book? Lucky Duck (recently checked out with her very own library card)
• Toy? Good old Barbie (I must admit, I do like the latest Barbie commercial)
• Friend? Larry (a friend from soccer who is also in her Kindergarten class and the before and after care program)
• Food? Mac and cheese (stock answer)
• Dessert? Popsicles
• Restaurant? Trattoria D.O.C.
• Place to go? To a castle (good timing for a Disney trip!)

What do you wish you could do?

• Learn to read (we're working on it!)

Final question ... what do you want for Christmas?

• A Star Wars bike with lightsabers on it (Good luck with that one, Santa!)