Barcelona!

We all were excited to visit Barcelona! Mostly for the weather- sunny and 70s!

 Our first stop was Park Guell.  

 Next: the beach, but we had to pass through the bubbles to get there.

We came upon a fair while we were strolling back from the beach.

 Third: Montserrat

Kate hiked this particular trail mostly by herself.  She is best when climbing is involved.  Jane, well, she slept the whole time.  Haha!

 Lastly, we visited my brother and his beautiful wife at Sagrada Familia.

 Best family picture we could get! Check out Kate's cute bum!

 Kate at Plaza Catalunya.

 Eating all the food at the street market on La Rambla.

 Best street performers we've ever seen on La Rambla.

And we had to go to the aquarium, since we have been reading books about it- kid friendly too! Plus, we needed a little time away from the sun!

April happenings 2017

The girls and I watched our friends dogs for a couple days.  It was very helpful for Jane's fear of bigger dogs.  

 Kate and Jane running towards each other during kindergarten pick up.  They love each other so much, but also love to fight so much.  Haha!

 Dinosaur park with our friends-

 Sammy, Toni, and Lucy.

I took an overnight girls trip to Cesky Krumlov, Czech Republic with Leanne and Meagan.  We chatted way too late into the night, ate Czech food, and toured the city.

Always some crazy weather in Parsberg during the spring.  

Bryan spent two weeks in the field (March 19-March 30) and earned his Expert Field Medical Badge (EFMB).  So happy for him and glad to have this over with! (especially if you know the history)

Oh yeah! Movers came and packed up our crap.  Really hoping my polish pottery makes it safely!

Easter 2017

We celebrated Easter a little earlier due to our upcoming move.  

It has been fun to see Kate remember holidays from previous years.  She couldn't wait to color eggs and hide them. Oooh! and candy too!

 Jane just wanted to play with the plastic eggs.

 Searching for eggs on Easter morning.  We filled them up with jelly beans. 

 Painting some ceramics the Easter bunny left in their baskets.   

The military base had an egg hunt for the little kids.  Jane would not come close to the Easter bunny for a picture.  Poor girl does not like life-sized costumes.

Jane's first haircut

 Not the greatest photos.  She wasn't very cooperative.  She was starting to get a little mullet, so I chopped off about an inch in the back.  It looks better, but I did a really poor job.  Oops!

Disney Paris

I really wanted to take the girls to Disneyland, but Bryan couldn't really afford to take time off.  So I braved taking the girls by myself- to Paris, France- by train.  I now feel more confident traveling with kids alone.  Although, it is a heck of a lot easier when daddy is around.  

I made it a fairly easy trip.  We took the train the entire time and the girls did really well.  It was nice to be able to eat and go potty without making stops had I been driving.  

We stayed at a Disney associated hotel, so we had a shuttle to and form the park.  It was quite the hotel.  There was a large indoor aqua park, indoor jungle gym area, and restaurants attached with the hotel.  Too easy.  

Wednesday, we traveled by train to Paris.  The hardest part was navigating the stroller onto the metro headed towards Disneyland.  Luckily, I got lots of help from strangers with the kids and stroller.

 Thursday, our first day was a little rainy at Universal Studios.

Both girls were clueless about "Disneyland".  Kate loved seeing all the characters from the movies and spotting princesses.  Jane was just happy to do whatever her sister was doing.

 Such a fun ride.  

 We met Minnie Mouse and some of the other characters.  Jane was definitely not too happy with most of these characters.

 We did enjoy Aladdin's magic carpet ride!

 Friday, we went to Disneyland! They still didn't really know what to expect.

When I found out the line to meet the princess was more than 2 hours, I had a little conversation with Kate.  I told her that we would be waiting in a line for as long as Jane naps during the day.  She was committed and wanted to meet the princess.  She is so patient and determined, this little one.  I am so proud of her.  And it was such a joy to see her interact with Princess Aurora.

After our two hour wait to greet Princess Aurora, we found rides that were less crowded and good for Jane too.  It's a small world, teacups, dumbo, snow white, and peter pan are some of the favorites.

 Teacup!

 Fun at the hotel.  The jungle gym was four story's high- it was pretty cool.  Kate loved it, Jane had a harder time getting up and down to each floor without a little assistance.

Saturday, I braved a trip to the city of Paris.  All I wanted was to see the Eiffel Tower and take a few pictures.  The rest would be a bonus.  

 So, we found a playground

 and rode on a carousel. 

On the way back to the hotel, we stopped by the Louvre.  

The trip was a success.  The girls still talk about it.  The only hiccup was on the metro to Disneyland, Jane may have back-flipped off the stairs...yikes!