Army Girl...

I saved this little gem for its very own post. While on vacation Kristi's kids are allowed to select 1 souvenir to take home with them. Kalli picked a bracelet/earing set, Cole (Kristi felt like she should get him something while they were here) picked out a stuffed mama/baby penguin, and Kaya wanted nothing more than an Army guy outfit. So we took her to an Army-Navy surplus store and dressed her from head to toe in camo. You've never seen a happier kid. We joke that she and Cole are going to get married one day, but I really do hope that she becomes my daughter-in-law in the future.

The Jacksonville Zoo...

For our last of day of K-Crew adventure we headed to the Jacksonville Zoo. We walked around a while and the kids were able to use their craft binoculars and then we hit the splash park. It was great to cool off in the hot weather.

Mmmmmm Cupcakes...

After our morning at the beach and a picnic lunch we hit my very favorite cupcake store in town. Everyone picked out a flavor and we sat down for a special treat. Even Kiley got in on a little bit of cupcake action!

Huguenot Park...

On day 4 of their visit we took the ferry over to Huguenot Park. It was my first time there and I had no idea how much fun it would be for the kids. They had a large tidal area that was barely ankle deep where you could walk out and collect shells and look for crabs. I'm sure we'll be back soon.

A Visit to Whole Foods...

Kristi LOVES Whole Foods, and evidently, so does Cole. We usually get over there once or twice a month for a few things and for their story time. So we decided to take a drive over so Kristi could get some stuff and so that we could get a tasty lunch.

Just Hanging Out...

After our busy day at SeaWorld we spent day 3 of the K-Crew visit just hanging out around the house and visiting Whole Foods. The kids played outside and when it started to rain we brought the party inside and played Wii. Kalli did an awesome craft with the little kids that I'll feature soon over on the Yellow Fence Blog. They made binoculars out of toilet paper rolls and it was a big hit.

Chef Mickey...

After a full day at SeaWorld we headed to the Contemporary for dinner at Chef Mickey. We took Cole there years ago with my parents (pictures here) and I still think it is by far the best character experience at Disney. It was especially great for us because we didn't have to go into a park to see the characters. Everyone had so much fun and Kiley wasn't scared at all, which was great.

SeaWorld (part4)...

SeaWorld (part3)...

One of everyone's favorite parts of SeaWorld was all of the underwater viewing areas. The kids LOVED watching all the different sea life swimming around. Kiley was particularly taken with the dolphins. An added bonus is that these areas were very well air conditioned, so Kristi and I were happy to spend a little extra time here.

SeaWorld (part2)...

SeaWorld...

On their second day in Jacksonville we packed everyone up and headed to Orlando for the day. We dressed the kids in some kind of matching, tie-dye t-shirts. They looked adorable (and were really easy to keep track of). We visited SeaWorld in the morning and then had dinner at Chef Mickey before driving the tired group home. SeaWorld was fantastic for everyone. It was very HOT, but not very crowded. All the kids had a blast and everyone was so incredibly well behaved. Overall, it was just a really awesome day.

Splash Park Fun...

After visiting the beach in the morning, we drove 4 sandy children over to the splash park at Hanna. We were pretty much the only people there and the kids had so much fun running around and keeping cool. Even Kiley was able to sit in a shallow puddle and splash around a little.

Hitting the Beach...

Their first day in town we hit the beach. We visited Hanna park for the beach and the splash park. Everyone had a great time. Kristi's kids loved playing in the ocean. It's always funny to me when people are so appreciative of the beach and the sea. I guess when you live so close, you tend to take it for granted.

Visit from the K-Crew...

So I'm almost done sorting through the tons of pictures we took while Kristi, Kalli & Kaya were visiting. We had an awesome time the week they were here. I'm going to post the highlights over the next few weeks. I almost can't even believe they were here THIS summer. It seems like a million years since their visit.

Visit From the K-Crew...

We had an awesome visit from Kristi & the girls earlier in the month. I'm sorting through the 2000 pictures we took while they were here. I'll post more once I can get through some of them, but here we are Chef Mickey with all the kids.

Sledding...

Sledding was an adventure for us. Cole and I wiped out on our one and only trip down the hill. The girls went down over and over again and they loved it.

Cole & The Birthday Girl...

Snow with the K-Crew...

Kaya & Kalli had so much fun playing with Cole in the snow. They helped him make a snowman and took us sledding.

SNOW...

Cole and I took a little trip last week to visit my good friend Kristi and her family. We were so thankful to be able to be there for Kaya's 5th birthday party and to get to spend some time just hanging out with the K-Crew!