Time for presents!

After finishing the cake, we opened our presents! Michael got some cool stuff, and loved looking into the bags and sharing with his friends. After the party, Justin, Michael and I attempted to take some pics of all 3 of us - it was a bit tough to get everyone in the photo and looking the right way. Here are a few of our attempts.

Fun with cake and ice cream

The kids played a while, and then we had our cake and ice cream! Michael loved the frosting, and the ice cream; typical kid! It was getting pretty cool but the kids didn't want to come out of the water - we had to practically drag the little blue kids outta there, they were so cold. They all loved wearing the hats - what's a birthday without some party hats?

Michael's 3rd Birthday

Can't believe that Michael is three years old! Justin and I had a birthday party for him with 2 of his friends from preschool. We have a volcano sprinkler, and that was the theme of the party. As our guests arrived, we enjoyed playing in the water. Justin's friend, John, and his mom Colleen attended, along with Regine and her mom, Tracey.

Justin's last day of Kindergarten

June 14th was the last day of school. Here are some pics of the boys leaving for school, and also the kids waiting in line to enter school. This is where they wait every day, but as first graders, they won't have to have their parents with them! When school is over, the teacher opens a gate to let the students who walk to class out to meet their parents. This is the highlight of the day, as the kids love to stand on the gate and take a 'ride' as it swings open. On the last day of school, Justin's teacher, Ms Wheeler, let Michael take the ride, too! She was a wonderful teacher, and we will all miss her next year as Justin moves on.

Adventureland

Our afternoon took us to Adventureland - we acted like pirates on Skull Island, and on the pirate ship, as well as saying hello to CPT Jack Sparrow and the other pirates of the caribbean. We also climbed up into the Swiss Family Robinson's treehouse.

Sunny Saturday

It was a nice day - we enjoyed the breakfast in the park very much. It is really fun for the kids, and it is a nice break for the adults, too! We took another ride on It's a Small World, and just enjoyed the attractions before things got too crowded. We even managed a family photo with everyone in it this time.

Fantasyland, and breakfast in the park

Took advantage of the early entry for hotel guests, and spent about an hour before breakfast riding Dumbo, the teacups and some of our other favorites. It is always so beautiful to be in the park early in the morning, when there aren't many people and it is quiet and lovely. The flowers and trees were all blooming; really pretty and easier to enjoy without so many people there to block the view!

Candle-bration - Happy 15th Birthday, Disney Paris!

We enjoyed the Small World ride a few times, did some shopping and hung around long enough to see the show celebrating Disneyland Paris' 15th birthday. It was really neat - each spire of the castle had one or more Disney characters on top, and each had a candle that was lit during the ceremony. The boys enjoyed Tinkerbell spraying magic dust on all of us the most!

Wassup, Mickey?!

The boys were eager to say hello to their friend, and to introduce Amelia to Mickey Mouse! The boys weren't a bit shy, but Amelia didn't seem too sure about it. We took in a few sights, and then headed over to Disneyland Park. We all love the Toy Story movies, and after a few rounds on Buzz Lightyear's Space Ranger spin, took off for lunch at the Pizza Planet!

Breakfast and Walt Disney Studios

We once again enjoyed the French breakfast of croissants, coffee, juice and chocolate spread, not to mention the pan du chocolat! The weather was beautiful - sunny and warm but not too hot. We walked from the hotel to the parks each day, and enjoyed the great landscaping and blooming flowers on the way. It was great fun riding on Aladdin's Magic Carpets!

Disney with Friends

For the second part of Justin's spring break, we headed off to Paris again to visit the mouse. This time, we had made plans with Frank and Jill Libritz and their daughter, Amelia to enjoy the mouse's house together. We drove down to Landstuhl and spent the night, so to leave early the next morning. Unfortunately, we found out at dinner that evening that Frank wouldn't be able to join us, so our traveling party of 4 adults vs. 3 kids had now shrunk to us vs. them! ha ha. After about a 4.5 hour drive, we arrived at the Sequoia Lodge. Jill and Chris braved the extended check-in line while the kids and I checked out some of the hotel features. Soon, we were unloading the car, checking out the rooms and off to the park! We decided to rent a stroller for the boys - what a momentous decision! The look on their faces shows how excited they were with the stroller - who would have guessed?!! It also served as a handy seat for Chris or I if there were no chairs.