Sunday, October 25, 2009

A Sneak Peek at Next Summer's Vacation at Disney's Animal Kingdom Lodge

All pictures were taken from allears.net. I hope I don't get in trouble for using them. ;)
The first picture is the view of the public area/savannah from one of the guest rooms. You can also see more the Animal Kingdom Lodge Villas arching away, helping you - I hope - to visualize the almost circular design of the resort.
Inserting an apology here for the random-ness of the photos. I will probably never figure out how to load the pictures in the right order.
The above picture is of the vanity area in a studio (the kind of room Mom and Dad will stay in when they join us in May). Not shabby, huh, Mom and Dad? In the mirror, you can sort-of see the kitchenette that is located on the other side of the vanity area.
In the picture below, the entrance to the room is straight ahead, the vanity and bathroom to the left and the kitchenette to the right. Just past the kitchenette on the right but before the entry door, can you see the edge of the doorway leading to the adjoining room next door? The rooms are designed with a studio right next to a one-bedroom villa. That way, they can serve dual purposes: alone or combined to make a two-bedroom villa. We have a two-bedroom, allowing you, Mom and Dad, to have a private and fully-equipped space, but also allowing us to be very close together.



Above is the upclose of the kitchenette. The studios are stocked with paper plates and bowls, plastic silverware, glass coffee mugs, and the glasses which you can see on the shelf. There may be other small utensils, like a can opener. It surely is nice to have the coffee maker, toaster, and microwave, too. We've stayed in a studio before and have made all our meals in this tiny but functional kitchen. Doncha love the dishsoap and dishcloth so you can clean up after yourselves?!



Here's a view of a studio, taken from the door to the balcony. In the distant right is the kitchenette again. There is no closet; the armoir is the storage for hanging clothes. See the little door open in the cabinet? That's a play-pen in there; we've used a Disney playpen over and over again as a child bed, and there is always one in the room. (Or they will bring you one - no charge.) The sofa in the left foreground opens into a bed - the most comfortable sofa-bed one could imagine.
Below is a view of the same studio from the opposite end. Mom and Dad, your room will have a similar private balcony overlooking the savannah. The tiny table and couple of chairs make the balcony the perfect place to enjoy that early morning cup of coffee and devotions. Usually it's so quiet and peaceful early in the morning; then the kids get up. :)







Now, we have moved into the one-bedroom side of our accomodations. Above is, obviously, the tiny but fully equipped kitchen where I'll be preparing most of our meals. Very thankful for the dishwasher you can just barely glimpse over the top of the island.



This is a view of the pool area from the balcony. We probably won't have a view of this, being in a savannah view villa. This is the only picture of the pool area I could find on allears.net, though. The kids love the pool here, and we anticipate getting to visit the pool most days. Guest services will provide life jackets for the kids for the duration of our stay; they enjoy playing in the pool so much with the freedom to move around that their own (lack of) swimming abilities cannot provide as of yet.



The living/dining room area of the one-bedroom. The dining room table has a bench on the right side. The couch does fold out into a bed, as does the orange chair in the corner. It was a perfect bed for Dianna when we were there last year; she plans on using it again.

Another view of the chair-bed, dining area, and aha! the adjoining door to the studio!
We are so excited about our Disney vacation in general and super excited about sharing it with you this time will be so special, Mom and Dad. Now, if we can convince the rest of the fam that they need a Disney trip . . .









Tuesday, October 13, 2009

White Sunday

Well, I do not have a video of the children doing their songs and verses to post, but I do have a picture of them in their outfits. Apparently, Walmart was not aware that this past Sunday was White Sunday, because we could not find a decent all white (alright with an oriental accent, Ha!) outfit for either of them. So here is the best we could do. They are both wearing white tops and blue bottoms. The hat was Jarod's idea.
Jarod had to come home sick yesterday afternoon. There is a stomach bug going around and all but Dianna has caught it. Jarod and Barbie stayed home together today. Jarod is doing much better and will return to school tomorrow. Barbie is not feeling all the way better but will also go back to school tomorrow - what a trooper/super mom. Please pray that Dianna does not get the bug. Below is a picture of Jarod this morning at the breakfast table (remember, normally he goes 90 mph from the time he is coherent to the time he falls asleep mid play). He climbed up into his seat and put his head down and fell back asleep.

Tuesday, October 6, 2009

Learning at School

Talofa lava. School is in session! We just wanted to share some of what the children have been learning and have learned in school this year. In this first video we have Dianna showing us what she is learning. Praise the LORD for such a good school with a solid Biblical foundation for education. Dianna is coloring better and identifying letters like a pro. In her video she demonstrates her skills of being able to recognize a sound and assign the right letter of the alphabet to that sound. Watch as she thinks about the letter's sound before she verbalizes her answer. What a gem. Enjoy. Our next video is of Jarod leading "his class" (you and me) in the Pledge of Allegiance and "My Country 'tis of Thee". He just amazes me with what he picks up and remembers from school. He talks so clearly, I think, and so much with good sentences. I wish you all could see him and spend time with him to get to know him. Enjoy the show of our little angels. Love you all.

A Moment Captured on Film

Welcome to the screening room. We have a very special and rare treat on the menu for tonight. For one night only, in never before seen footage from his upcoming film, "Hero on a Bike," here is Jarod James. The clip is of the kids riding their bikes in the garage. Dianna is really good at riding her bike, and Jarod has been trying so hard as of late to keep up with his sister. After putting in so much time on his bike, he accomplished something that I thought was still a long was off - he pedaled his bike all by himself. Praise the LORD for HIS blessings and goodness, even in the little things. So, sit back, relax and enjoy the show. One last thing, we love you all very much.