Camping and Such

The last Saturday of my spring break included a visit to the Easter Bunny.

Genevieve let him know that she wanted anything with a unicorn on it, and marshmallow bunny chocolates.

We met Meghan and Li'l Robby.

He's balding a bit, but that hasn't affected his preciousness.

 The precious cousins nailed the bunny picture.  

I mean, have you ever?

I want him for my very own.

Seriously, I do.

I think I could pass him off as my own.

I don't think his parents would like that.

After bunny shenanigans, we met Marinda and Camille for some sweet stuff at the Cake Bake Shop.  

Sweet Camille was a sport as my child sang, colored, and did anything but sit quietly.

Marinda was helping G decide what to eat, and I photogged the glorious hair that Camille has.

It is the most beautiful hair I have ever seen.

I settled back in to work that week and then the very next weekend we went for an overnight camping adventure with Katie, Chip, and Caroline.  

Our friend from IU, Melissa, came with her husband and her daughter.

Mel set up egg dyeing.

Hadley and Genevieve spent a lot of time playing Anna and Elsa in the camper.

We did a lot of eating.

Papa Bear, Mama Bear, and Baby Bear dined by the campfire.

 We camped in Sullivan, near my parents' house.

Now I'm not an avid camper but even I knew that the campground was terrible.

It was like camping in a trailer park.

There were no trees and we had a primo view of what appeared to be a mental hospital.

Bob and YaYa came for dinner.

Todd had smoked pork, so naturally I ate potato chips and pineapple.

We played yard Yahtzee.

Genevieve and I reenacted the Kate/Betsy Indiana University Alpha Gamma Delta Teeter-Totterthon of 1999.

Our weight wasn't too even.

Kate and I signed on to teeter and totter for an hour representing DG for that philanthropic event.  We didn't take into account our large weight/height difference.  I thought my thighs would burn off and Kate just wiggled around in the air for an hour.  When I told this favorite story years ago, someone asked why one of us ( I can't remember who) didn't move closer to the middle to even things out.  We weren't physics majors, people.

Anyway, I'm pretty sure Genevieve and I needed to update our tetanus shots after playing on that rusty playground.  

Caroline was in charge of the s'mores.

I then slept on the top bunk on a mattress that was similar to what one might tumble on at a gymnastics center that caters to toddlers.

I also had a knee in my kidneys most of the night.

I woke up with limited mobility in my lower back and neck, and smelling like I had survived a house fire.

I rolled off the bunk to discover my better half lounging in the lower bunk.

We did have fun and Genevieve loved it.

She is ready to go again.

I may be able to go after a few sessions at the chiropractor.

Pirate Night and Final Day at Sea

I had to wake my child after a 3 hour nap to go to dinner on Tuesday night.  

She was one cranky Snow White.  

She perked up when I told her she was going to the Bibbidi Bobbidi Boutique to get pirated up.

She loved her experience, and I loved it far more than the ridiculousness that we experienced in DisneyLand. 

The process was a lot simpler, and a lot less expensive.

Note her father's pirate reflection in the mirror!

Caroline did not do the dress, so she sat only for hair and makeup!

They were ready to swashbuckle.  

Pirate Night involved dancing and a party on the top deck, complete with fireworks.

I didn't love it.

I would have preferred another show while I downed peanut M&Ms.

This might be my favorite picture of the entire trip.

The show did not start until 9:30, so it was a late one for us.

Wednesday was a day at sea, so I was ready for a more low key day.

We had breakfast and saw Goofy in his nightgown.

Genevieve visited the Oceaneer Club for a Doc McStuffins activity.

I spent a few hours relaxing on the deck with a rice krispie Mickey pop.

I was so excited that I closed my eyes.

I was wishing I had 3 more.

Mother and Sister took the girls for a meet and greet with Anna and Elsa.

Our final night was my favorite dinner at Tiana's Place.  

The food was spicy and tasty.  

We met my favorite princess, Tiana of New Orleans.  

Tiana sang with her band, the Crawdads, and all of the wait staff participated in a little dancing parade.  We danced too, and also did the limbo.

The men also ordered as many appetizers as they could.  

We loved our Disney cruise, and I think Genevieve was the perfect age for it.  Caroline had a marvelous time, but G still believed in all of the magic of the characters.  It was a very memorable trip.

Disney Day 3 Castaway Cay

The crew was up on Tuesday morning and eager to visit Disney's private island, Castaway Cay.

G slept in her Frozen dress, so she wore that to breakfast.

Classy.

In typical YaYa/Genevieve style, these two snuggled during breakfast.

G claimed she was cold, so my mother wrapped her in a scarf and then spoon fed her breakfast.

I'm not even kidding.

Mother instructed her to "act like a statue" when she sipped her hot tea.

Trinity ran the Castaway Cay 5K that morning.

They have a noncompetitive 5K that has the runners make a loop around the island.

T reported that the run was beautiful, but hot.

Even though he started running at 8 a.m.

While he showered, the crew suited up and got off the ship.

Minnie greeted us.

G decided to have a total meltdown and refused to acknowledge Minnie or be photographed.

It was a great way to start the day.

Minnie has amazing little rodent legs.

The beach was beautiful and the water was glorious, but cold!

The temperature did not deter my girl.  

 She splashed around while we lounged with our beach chairs submerged in the water.

I was a nut about keeping her covered up, because the sun was intense!

Speaking of nuts,

YaYa helped her look for fish.  

Chip braved the cold to snorkel with Caroline. 

Katie claimed a shark the size of Caroline swam under her while she was snorkeling.

She was so certain that she reported it to the Disney authorities.

The lady told her that although they put up nets, there is no guarantee that sharks won't get into the lagoon.

Uh, what?

Chip remained skeptical of sister's claims because right before she flippered away with her snorkel gear she said, "I can't see anything without my glasses and they won't fit under this mask!"

We enjoyed a delicious BBQ lunch on the island and then ventured to the water slide.

3 out of the 4 pictured here DID NOT GO DOWN THE WATER SLIDE.

I bet you didn't think 67 year old YaYa would be the one to shoot out of that slide, right?

Trinity went too.

G claimed she loved it until she hit the water at the bottom.

She got a snoz full of salt water!

We were on the island from about 9:00-2:30 and it was my favorite day.

We all napped hard when we got back on the boat.

I had to wake up Genevieve at 5:30 to make it to dinner on time.

It was so fun!