And the birthday celebrations continued

Madeline's actual birthday started off early in the morning with some flowers and gifts to open.

Then it was time to head to Epcot to enjoy lunch with the princesses.  

Let me tell you...it was HOT.  And there isn't much shade at Epcot.  So waiting outside in Norway for the royal family to be called in to the banquet hall was a test in patience. But the girls managed to toss leaves into the water, while the boys and mama snapped photos and tried to stay cool.

When we were finally called in, it was time to change the girls into their dresses.  Since none of their dress up dresses were in good shape, we opted to let them wear their dresses from last Easter.  Thankfully they still fit!

Before we even had time to grab appetizers from the buffet, the princesses started coming around to the tables.

They were all so sweet with the girls.  It was so cute to witness.  And Caleb was a trooper through it all.  I think being a "Disney adult" and ordering salmon off the adult menu probably helped. lol  After changing back out of their dresses, Madeline was given a birthday cupcake and card signed by all the princesses.  She was tickled.

After lunch we headed over to China.  We all arrived safely and with no jetlag.  I wish it was that way every time we went, but we'll take what we can get.  We always go to see the Reflections of China 360 movie. Caleb especially loved hearing about Marco Polo, as we studied him and his travels for school all of last year.  He and Madeline also both enjoyed pointing out all the places they've been to in Beijing.  It made my heart swell.

This next photo is for my friend Donna.  She called me out on not paying attention to posing the dumplings when we visit Jinci Temple in Taiyuan when bringing Havi home.  I did better this time. ;)

Before leaving the World Showcase and heading over to Future World, the girls got their faces painted.  Although Madeline is not animal lover, she picked the cat princess because she couldn't resist the glittery crown. And Havi is about all things "Frozen". So she picked the snow princess.

Since the Flower and Garden Festival was happening, we ventured over to the Butterfly exhibit.

Then it was time for mama and the older two dumplings to hang out with Nemo.  Havi has just become terrified of dark enclosed spaces/rides.  She will NOT go on a ride like this one.  Makes me sad.

But she did enjoy all the marine life after the ride.

And this last photo was my feeble attempt at getting all three dumplings together for a shark attack.  That's Caleb's baseball cap between the girls, really.  Photo fail.  Oh well.

We had a grand time celebrating Madeline's birthday all week long.  It's hard to believe she's already seven years old.  Seven!  Where oh where does the time go?!  Madeline, you are beautiful, smart, loving, funny, clever, loud, girly, and simply amazing.  We love you so much, girl!  Happy 7th Birthday!!!!

Our New Year's Day with the animals

This year on New Year's Day, Patrick thought it would be fun to take the dumplings to Animal Kingdom over at Disney.  It's hard to believe we've only been one other time with just Caleb five and half years ago.  Yep, we mostly hit up the Magic Kingdom and Epcot.  Anyway, we arrived around lunch time and conveniently forgot our stroller.  Caleb and Madeline took a lot of photos with their phones (and Patrick's), and I spent my time chasing after them.

I knew that we would be going on the safari.  So I schlepped my 80-200mm f/2.8 lens around with me...all day.  It made for a pretty heavy bag on my back all day, but it was worth it to bring it.  The safari ride is extremely bumpy.  So in order to avoid camera shake, I really cranked up my ISO so I could also dial up my shutter speed.  I took a lot more photos of the animals but am only sharing a handful.

We all really enjoyed making our way through the Maharjah Jungle Trek.

After the trek we headed over to Dinoland for some Fossil Fun games and a mini roller coaster (Primeval Whirl) for Madeline and me.

We had such a great time and were so glad we managed to find some time to enjoy this part of Disney that we really don't see.

Well, I still have to work on my Year in Review post.  Caleb had two days of tennis tournament play this weekend, which meant very little time at home for us.  He has really enjoyed playing up in the 12s. And although he didn't win this weekend, he loved the challenge of playing 12s in a higher level tournament and did well!  It was a great learning experience on so many levels.  We are so proud of him.

A week from today this precious boy of ours will be turning ten.  Ten!!!  The two digit club.  WHAT?!  It's crazy!  Well, this weekend, of course, he wants to play in a tennis tournament.  And thankfully this one is held just a stone's throw from my sister's place.   But what to do about a birthday party...so, we decided we're going to take Charlie our RV (also known as the players lounge or party bus) and have a little cookout/party during the tournament on Saturday.  When we shared with Caleb our idea of how we could help him to have a birthday "party" the weekend before his birthday while still allowing him to play in the tournament, he just lit up.  So that's the plan.  My sweet mother-in-law, Bammy, will be coming down from Connecticut to help him celebrate.  So we are looking forward to having her here.  And you better believe I'll be baking up lots of cupcakes to take with us.  Fun times await for this special birthday boy!