Since Gabe is really into Legos right now, we thought it'd be a great idea to surprise him with a trip to Legoland for his 4th birthday. Greg and I are terrible at keeping surprises, but we did it with this one! We didn't tell him where we were going, we just put him in the carseat and hit the road. Needless to say, when we got there and told him where we were, he was thrilled! He was even more excited to find out that we were going to stay in a hotel and go swimming too.
Dad, it's this way...
Gabe and his Daddy
This was amazing... They had created a "mini-Chicago" out of Legos, and of course hundreds of Minifigs. Gabe's absolute favorite thing right now is minifigs or "guys".
I think I'm going to use this picture for his Thank You notes. I love it... he was so happy that day.
Daddy & Gabe riding a pedaling ride at Legoland. Love these guys.
One happy kid.
Blurry, but you can sure tell we're having fun!
Gabe and Dad enjoying a swim.
There was a small fire in our hotel the next morning. Gabe thought it was great. He thought we'd planned the whole thing! Um, no buddy... we sure didn't! We went down to eat breakfast and there were firetrucks and an ambulance outside. The smoke detectors started going off and they escorted us out to a hotel shuttle until we could go back in. Gabe just watched the entire thing in awe. When we were able to go back inside, we went up to our room on the 7th floor to get our bags. We couldn't believe how strong the smoke smell was!
When we went out to the car to head to Ikea (!!!) this fireman asked if Gabe would like to see the truck and get a picture taken. Um, yes! How sweet was that?
We went to Ikea, where Gabe was not behaving, and got a few things. It was probably a record breaking trip as far as how fast we got out of there. I wish I would've made a list before we went. After Ikea, Gabe got to go to White Castle for the first time! Steve would be so proud. I felt a little guilty taking him there because the food is so bad, but we NEVER have White Castle... We don't have any around us. Gabe just had chicken tenders and fries. I did let him try my plain slider (yes plain, I don't like onions, pickles, or cheese on mine) and he liked it.
This sums up my weekend... Happy times with my loves. I am so happy we surprised him and I'm so happy he had so much fun.
I plan on cutting the front of this pillow off and framing it for my scrapbook room. I loved, loved, loved the embroidery, but even with washing it, the thought of laying on someone else's pillow creeped me out. .jpg)
Ok, only one of these is from a garage sale. The top middle one is what started my collection. It is one of the only items I have from my Grandma Smith and I have always cherished it. I love the design and I love how sweet it is. The one on the bottom right, I got from a garage sale for $2.50. I was so excited to find it!! The one on the left is from eBay. I think I paid $7.00 for it. Periodically, I'll get on eBay and etsy and check for them. I just think they are precious. I'd like to have a collection on my kitchen wall.
AND, we can't forget about Gabers! My most exciting finds are when I find vintage Fisher Price toys. I love the little people like I had when I was little. And, Gabe loves them too. He loves getting to "give them a bath" when we get home - which consists of him pulling a chair up to the kitchen sink and me helping him wash all the guys. Ok, so Mommy washes and Gabe splashes and makes a mess, but he loves it. I think I paid $20 for the above set, but it was worth it. It had all the pieces, plus a few extra. And, it went great with the family house we got him on eBay for Christmas last year.
And, I got this one yesterday at the Pantagraph's garage sale. It was only $4.00 and it had all the pieces (except for the side door, but that's ok!). And, Gabe loved it. He's been playing with it non-stop since I brought it home. 