Disney World Trip 2013 and Halloween

October was such a fun month for us! We took our annual trip to Disney world the week before Halloween. The forecast threatened several rainy days, but we lucked out and had wonderful weather. As a matter of fact, it was rather hot while we were there. Last year it was unseasonably cold and this year it was unseasonably hot!

We started the trip by stopping and spending a great night in St. Simons Island. We ate at some delicious restaurants (including Southern Soul BBQ featured of Food Network DDD) and then took a couple of walks on the pier before setting off to Disney World.

We decided to stay at the Contemporary this time, which has the monorail that runs through it and is a short walk to the Magic Kingdom. With boy boys still napping in the middle of the day, this was just really convienient. The first night that we were there we ate at Chef Mickeys and got to have Mickey, Minnie, Goofy, and Donald stop by our table. I was worried that Rhett would be freaked out, but they both loved it!

We decided to spend three days at the Magic Kingdom this time since Rhett is still so young and Jackson enjoyed it so much last year. The first thing we did was head straight for the Goofy roller coaster, which Jackson loved last year. This year he liked it ok, but didnt feel the need to ride it again :) The lines were short and we used our Magic Bands to do a few fast passes, so we didnt really have to wait in line for anything. Jackson surprised us by wanting to ride Thunder Mountain, which he only did once. Over the course of three days, we did pretty much every single ride multiple times. I think the only one that we avoided was Splash Mountain, but me and Justin were able to break away one at a time to ride Space Moutain.

Rhett's favorite rides were: People Mover, Winnie the Pooh, Prince Charming's Carousel,Dumbo, and the Teacups
Jackson's favorite rides were: People Mover (he LOVED this one), Pirates of the Caribbean, Buzz Lightyear, and Dumbo/Aladdin Magic Carpets

During our stay, we had some fabulous meals: Dinner at the Crystal Palace, dinner at Liberty Tree Tavern, lunch at Casey's Corner, dinner at Trail's End Restaurant, breakfast at The Wave of American Flavors, etc. My brother and his family arrived for their vacation the day that we are leaving so we all had a fantastic breakfast together, which was wonderful!

We also had Rhett's first haircut done at the Harmony Barber Shop in the Magic Kingdom. He did great..no tears as we expected!! Jackson also got a haircut and as we were waiting to get haircuts, the Disney Parade started right in front of us and the boys got a great view with lots of interaction with the characters.

Funny Story: We decided to brave the electrical parade one night which turned out to be an ordeal. We finally secured a spot (right behind a drag queen!) and the parade was delayed a bit. It was cool to see, but when it was over, there was a very large bottleneck and we couldnt get out. Everyone was staying to watch the fireworks, but we and several other people were trying to leave. As we were slowly making our way out, this one Disney employee was trying to get people to keep moving and said in a very loud voice "KEEP MOOOOOVING!", but her voice sounded just like a very loud Miss Piggy. Me and Jackson started laughing and kept laughing about it for days. It wasn't just us...other people were startled by her voice as well. I feel kind of bad for laughing, but it was so funny. Even now about 1-2 times per week, one of us will blurt out "Keep Moving!" in that voice and we get a good laugh out of Jackson.

We all enjoyed ourselves so much and had a fabulous time!! The boys were happy and excited during the whole trip. I have the CUTEST video of them dancing in the Magic Kingdom that I will try and upload. We can't wait to go again next year!

The curls before the haircut

Cousins!

Once we got back home, it was mine and Justin's 7 year anniversary. We celebrated at Husk restaurant, and it was probably the best meal that I had all year! This years theme was copper and Justin got me some beautiful copper wind chimes and flowers. My gift to him was homemade and it consisted of a frame with 7 pennies of significant years for us (1978, 1981, 2004, 2006, 2008, 2009, 2012, and 2013).

Soon it was time for Halloween. Jackson was the Hulk, Rhett was a garden gnome, I was Snow White, and Justin was...well I still don't know what he was. He said it was up for interpretation! Both boys had a lot of fun trick or treating and enjoyed looking over (and eating) their candy over the next couple of weeks. Jackson also really enjoyed handing out candy. October was such a fun month for us!

Western Day at School

Rhett-18 months old

Official Stats:

Weight: 25.4 lbs- 65th percentile
Height: 33.5- 88th percentile
Head Circumference: 18.75- 57th percentile
BMI- 15.8

He had his check up and took his shots like a big boy...there were few tears this time around,which was nice! At 18 months old:

-He is a picky eater! He still will not eat fruit, except in the organic cereal bars that I give him. He will also not eat vegetables, but I have been able to sneak them in a few things (quesadillas, pizza sauce). It is really frustrating. He loves crunchy things, cheese, bread, biscuits, pizza and cereal bars. His doctor said for me to keep offering him healthy foods like fruits and veggies, so I continue to do so...but I throw a lot away. She said to expect that his eating might get worse before it gets better, and that kids can get more picky around 18 months old. I miss baby food because I could be sure to get good stuff in him. He will eat yogurt every now and then, but not regularly.

-His canines have begun coming in. They really seem to be causing him some discomfort. He had a good run at sleeping better through the night in between his molars and canines, but his sleep is more broken (again!) and I am attributing it to teething. He is definitely more sensitive than Jackson was at getting new teeth.

-He continues to be a happy but strong willed little guy. He is super affectionate and loves to give hugs and kisses. He enjoys playing with and running around with his big brother.

-He has about 20 words that he can say so far. He does not use them regularly,  though. He prefers to point and grunt at things, so we constantly have to draw the words out of him. I am not  sure if he is shy or if he just usually gets what he wants by pointing and making a noise, but  we are working with him to get him to use his words more. He seems really annoyed when we try and get him to talk more. He understands everything perfectly and follows directions so well.

-He continues to dance all of the time. He also likes to show off his new skill...jumping! He loves to try and imitate whatever Jackson is doing at the time, including somersaults!

-He loves the outdoors and gets very angry if he goes outside only to realize that he is getting in the car and not playing with his toys outside. When we do play outside, he has to drag every one of the big toys out of the garage to play with.

-Jackson and Rhett play together more every day and it is really sweet to watch. When Jackson gets really loud or hyper, Rhett will get scared and run to either me or Justin or go hide somewhere. It is hard to believe that Rhett is already a year and  a half. He is getting further out of the baby phase and more independent every day.  I cherish each and every day that I get to hang out with both of these sweet boys!!

Next up: Post about Halloween and Disney World with photos!