Potty training like a boss!

After we returned from Disneyland, we had some friends over for dinner one night. During dinner I went to go check on the kids in the other room when I suddenly found Gavin on the toilet going potty. Not even just number 1 folks! For the next week, we instituted a sticker chart and treat rewards for every time Gavin went to the bathroom. Then, after getting it down like a pro, switched to treats for staying dry. And now we have a fully potty trained child (minus bedtime)!

If I could have only saved myself the trouble months before thinking it would one day click and be that easy. Rewind to before Christmas when he was afraid to even sit on the toilet, to a little while later buying a potty seat, only to have him sit on it (for hours it seemed like) with no success whatsoever, only to have him get up and pee his underwear all over the floor minutes later. Then fast forwards to months later finding him on the toilet, all on his own and without being told, totally going potty! But leave it to Gavin to leave me completely stumped, but I am just glad it did!

The happiest place on earth

We spent 3 awesome days at Disneyland and already can't wait to go back! Day 1 was ride centered (except for Pluto because it was the first thing we saw when we got there and #1 character Gavin wanted to see), getting as much done as we could. Jameson's brother was there for that day also and  so it was fun to have some friends for the boys to hang out with.

Day 2 we finished any rides we couldn't day 1, which was Space Mtn and Nemo. We focused more on all the characters this day that the boys were excited for, including Mickey Mouse, Goofy, Chewbaca, Kylo Ren, and Spiderman.

I took Gavin to see a show while Easton went on Star Tours (for his 2nd time) with grandma, grandpa, and daddy. I really liked how they changed everything in tomorrow land to be Star Wars themed. Easton loved it too! We tried to do Jedi training with him on Day 2, but unfortunately didn't sign up in time (It filled up by 9am!)

Mickey Mouse was a much awaited thing for Gavin, but he got stage fright when the time came. He did get a giggle out of him (blurry picture below) as we were heading out. He still talks about it though to this day. If you asked Easton was his favorite thing was, he would say anything Star Wars!

Besides the characters, I think Gavin's favorite thing to do at Disney was feed at the birds he could find!

Chewbaca was by far one of the coolest things we did! I was surprised when Gavin walked in with no fear (especially after getting stage fright with Mickey) but he walked right up and loved every minute with him. The boys each gave their best Chewy impression and posed for many pictures for once. It was something I think they will both remember for a while!

Spiderman was not on the planned character sees, but had a short line. He was totally worth it and interacted with the boys for a good 5 minutes!

Day 3 was probably my favorite because it consisted of some of my favorite rides (Tower of Terror and Toy Mania). It was also the first time we got to do the Racers in Cars Land. We made sure to get fast passes as soon as we arrived and still had to wait 2 hours before our allotted time slot.

Olaf was another surprise character sighting, which worked out great since one of Gavin's favorite movies is Frozen. Sometimes I think he seriously should have been my girl, with his love for princesses and babies. (A phase he's actually no longer in, but lasted for a good while!)

 Easton was the only one brave enough to ride Tower of Terror with me! And he loved it!

And finally, after 2 days of not being able to find the Mint Julep shop in Disney, I got my beignet fix in downtown Disney! These were probably better and cheaper ayway

On the way home from our trip, Gavin ran a super high fever and passed out on the flight home. I kept telling him to stop licking the chain lines, but he wouldn't listen to me. Both boys actually ended up getting a viral infection with rashes. Poor boy!

Annual AZ trip

So far every year since we've been in Georgia, we go back to AZ in February when Jameson has his work meetings. This year was a little different since we only stayed in AZ for a few days before heading to Disney for the rest of the week. It was also different because I convinced my grandma to come down from California while we were there. We were suppose to see them in December in Michigan when my niece got baptized, but grandma ended up having knee surgery and we couldn't swing the ridiculous expense to fly there at Christmas time. So I was happy they came down for the few days we were in AZ. They had never met Gavin before and it had been years since they'd seen Easton. So although there were few, those few days in Arizona were extra special for me.

 

Getting a little too comfortable on our flight...

 

It had been a long awaited trip to stay at Grandma Hunter's house. The boys could hardly wait to play in her backyard and see their cousins

 

Grandma also had a few early birthday present ready for Gavin when we got there. He was so excited he couldn't even wait to get dressed after baths to open them

 

 

Our next day in AZ we went to the McCormick train park in Scottsdale for lunch, and to ride the train of course...

 

This here is my Grandpa. He's a peculiar old fella who knows what he likes. When we were growing up I always remember my mom having to buy special things to stock in our fridge for grandpa when they came to visit. He also never seen without a flannel shirt on. Even in the hot AZ weather... When we were getting ready to leave the park, grandpa had wondered off and no one could find him. We discovered that he had snuck off to buy an ice cream cone. His response when we found him was that he no longer needed to eat dinner. Guess you're never too old to have ice cream for dinner!

 

On the way home from the train park, I had to indulge in my favorite cupcake spot. Sprinkles.

 

Also, can we talk about this really weird phase Gavin went through while we were in AZ where he wanted to lick everything? I'm thinking maybe the dry weather had him a little parched or something and he felt the need to lick everything and everyone. Lets just say this was not a good combination once we got to Disneyland.

 

Our next day in AZ we went to the Phoenix Children's Museum, where we met up with my cousin and her cute kids.

 

Then we came back to the Karch casa to hang out and play games. This was the last day we would see grandma and grandpa since they went to my Aunt's for the rest of the week and we left the day after for Disney

 

It was super special and sweet for my kids to interact with my grandparents. I am really happy they came down, since in their old age you never know how many more chances you'll get to see them when they live so far away.

 

Our last day in AZ I spent catching up with some girlfriends and their kiddos. So glad I got to see them, even if it was only for a little while. It made me little homesick missing all the game nights, girl talks, and play dates 

 

(Just missing Kelsey who had to leave early)

 

I also got to meet up with these special girls for dinner and long missed authentic Mexican food. Until next time Arizona...