More from vacation land....

I promise, tonight I'll try and figure out the camera.

I didn't think I'd be blogging, but since we're staying with friends, it makes it pretty easy, actually. Right now, as I speak, the kiddos are splashing around in our friends' heated pool and spa. I hope they don't get too used to this! LOL

We've visited two beaches in the past couple of days. Yesterday, we visited Zuma, which is a beach close to Malibu. Today was Ventura Beach...it was really cold! So cold that we left the guys with the kids and Jen and I went shopping on the boardwalk. ;) It was beautiful though...all of the boats in the harbor....had it not been so cold, it was definitely the prettier of the two in my opinion. Tomorrow we'll try another beach in the afternoon and evening.

It is hard to believe vacation is going by so fast, but we're having a great time. We keep remarking how much fun we're having, how much Will is enjoying it, how well C and her friend Patrick get along together, and how much of a daredevil N is! (We just had to stop her from jumping in the pool like the big kids...she was awfully close to the steps, but she had no fear!) Smiled the whole time, and when she got out, she announced...."TA DA!" with a big smile on her face. She is something else. She rounds out our family for sure. Not a day goes by that I am not reminded of how very lucky we are.

Meeting the Mouse

We had a great time with our friends in the land of Disney yesterday! I have to track down a camera cord, so for now, there are no pictures.

My husband and I reflected on past vacations, which honestly, were mostly stressful. Will's metabolic issues were discovered last May, and even during our last vacation in June last year, he was a mess. He was super low on carnitine, and it showed. Two years ago, we went to Disney, and Will was hard to deal with and really didn't enjoy the vacation much.

Yesterday, he loved it. He rode rides, met Mater and Lightning McQueen, and watched the parade and fireworks. In general, the only tantrums we saw were when we had to pull him off of rides because he was enjoying himself so much. The girls loved every minute of it as well. It was hard not to be on a high the entire day watching ALL three of my children sincerely enjoying vacation. For my husband and I, it was an experience to remember and the first vacation in a long time that we got to breathe....just totally relax.

I was reminded of how far Will has come in one year, and how very blessed we are with all of our kids as well as what good friends we have.

We're here!

We made it to vacation! :) The flight went better than expected....well, what I expected for flying with all three kids, anyway.

We would now like to thank Pixar movies, the maker of M&M's, and the Play Doh company for saving our sanity.

We're hoping to meet the Mouse tomorrow. First, we have to see how the kids (read: Will) sleep tonight.

We're off...

Very early tomorrow morning (as in...so early that I'm not sure why I'm even bothering to go to bed now) we will be leaving for the airport. After a 4 hour flight, we'll be landing across the country to visit some really good friends, pictured above reading to my two youngest. They've become like family, and we are ready to see them again!

It's doubtful I'll be blogging this week, but I suppose anything is possible. Otherwise, I'll see you in a week! :)

Special Exposure Wednesday

I love this one. My little family...having fun together.

New Tricks

Well, she IS the third child. What did you expect?

You can thank her sister for teaching her that one. This kid doesn't miss a trick.

I always thought people were joking when they talked about how much things changed with each subsequent child. My latest epiphany...they weren't joking!

The Balancing Act with Siblings

Someone on an online group I belong to asked about balancing things with siblings of children with special needs. With all of the attention that our special kiddos need, how do you balance things out with your other kids?

I'm not sure I have the answer. We work really hard at making sure all kids get some special one on one time...quality time rather than the quantity of time. But Will sure needs a lot of individual attention.

Before N came home in December, we started something we called "Date Day". The first Saturday of every month, we each took a child and did something fun. The child frequently got to pick. C and I did things like painting pottery, taking a trip to the aquarium and most recently, she's asked to go bowling. She still comes up with all kinds of ideas, even though we haven't had a Date Day in over 6 months.

It is time to begin our practice again. I think for now, one of us will take the younger two and one of us will take C. In the future, we'll have to rotate somehow.

Does anyone else have good ideas for balancing time with siblings? Or how to keep the family balanced overall? I'd love to hear them.