Disney 2013

The Bunches headed to Disney World for spring break this year. Brian's mom and extended family joined us, so there were 16 in all in our group. We did a lot separately, though, as some came without kids and some with older kids. Since we were the only ones with three kids under 4, most people wanted to stay clear of us! Grandma Deb on the other hand, stuck with us for everything and seemed to enjoy every minute.

We had a great time, and Gavin took in his first Disney experience like a champ. He was fabulous and so laid back. The other two had so much excitement it was contageous. Some highlights from the trip:

• During Mickey's Philharmagic 3D show, Conner and Lexi kept reaching out their hands to try and grasp the objects flying at them. They didn't quite get the concept of 3D!
• Lexi's favorite ride was Winnie the Pooh (despite that being the one character that mom absolutely hates)! She wanted to go on that ride over and over and wanted her stuffed animal from Disney to be Tigger (at least that was a step up from Pooh!)
• Conner's favorite ride was Toy Story, we think (and hope) more for the characters, since he loves that movie, than the fact he got to shoot at things. 
• We were randomly selected by Tinker Bell to receive the world's largest sundae. It consisted of 4 cookies, sponge cake, 6 scoops of ice cream, chocolote, strawberries, whipped cream, ice cream cones, and could have fed an army (or the Con-man who put a pretty impressive dent into the sundae). The workers just handed us this special treat with several spoons and napkins. 
• We did a couple character meals, including 1900 Park Fare and Hollywood and Vine. Hollywood and Vine was definitely a favorite, since the characters were all from Disney Junior and they got the kids up to dance with them. Even Grandma Deb enjoyed parading around the restaurant dancing!

Baby Swim

Gavin got to go in the water for the first time in Florida at Disney. He finally turned the magic 6 months old, so got to go for his first dip. He wasn't sure what to make of it at first, but eventually thought it was fine and even started kicking some. The other two were fishes the entire week and wanted to do nothing but swim. With life jackets, we let them swim on their own, and Conner thought "swim by myself" was the best thing ever!

Disney Prep

We have been trying to prepare the kids for our upcoming Disney trip. We have been watching lots of Disney movies, so they are familiar with all the characters. Although Lexi may get us arrested for showing kids inappropriate content in the movies, we are really just watching things like Princess and the FROG. As you can see from Conner's video, he is very excited about all the Disney characters he will see!

St. Potty Day

We had a great St. Patty's Day, or "St. Potty Day" as Lexi and Conner called it. It started with green eggs and milk and continued with coloring pages and mini St. Patty hats. Potty day seemed fitting as well, as Conner has been interested in pooping in the toilet lately. However, he has not been interested in sitting on a toilet without a little seat on it, as he thought he would fall in. It didn't help when he expressed this fear that I told him how his dad fell in the toilet as a kid, and he survived. Neither Conner  nor Brian were too impressed with this story and my attempt to have them bond. It also didn't convince Conner he wanted to try this feat anytime soon.

After offering to switch him to pull-ups if he sat on the big toilet for the last week, I finally reduced myself to bribing him just to sit on the toilet instead. I started with offering 2 M&Ms, went to 3, then 4, and finally 5, but Conner was too smart for that. Next, I offered a potty prize without having to get stickers...a prize for just sitting on the toilet. Conner drove a hard bargain, though, and denied this as well. I finally just asked him if there was anything he would sit on the potty for, and he responded, "Mommy's phone?" So, he willingly went on the big boy potty and was very proud of himself for doing so. Therefore, our potty day ended with Lexi being dry all day, Conner pooping all day in the toilet, Conner sitting on the big boy potty, and both kids in pull-ups. We thank the Irish for good luck and helping us get from three in diapers to hopefully one at some point!