Disney World was absolutely amazing. Honestly, today was one of the best days of my life. We only went to Magic Kingdom, but it was so cool. To actually get to the park is quite complex, but acutally still really fast. We had to park then take a tram to the gate to buy tickets then take a ferry boat to the actual park. Once in the park, all the magic begins. The characters are strategically located throughout the park, offering autographs and photos. So, we bought the kids “autograph” books and pens so they could collect the character signatures. We spent most of the day collecting signature and visiting each section of the park. Max was chosen to play Belle’s papa during “Storytime with Belle.” As if we didn’t already know, he is quite the ham and a good actor. Jaycie was a little said since she loves Belle so much, but she snapped out of it pretty quick. She was thrilled to meet Ariel. We watched Cinderella get her crown at the Castle. The whole thing was really great. We didn’t go on any rides because the lines are horrible, plus none of us really like rides anyway. Tomorrow we are heading to Sea World. I don’t think Max will sleep tonight.

Pictures in the ‘More’

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FLORIDA OR BUST PART III
Finally we are here! Georgia is the sex shop/strip club capital–they are every where. And truckers get discounts! It’s just crazy. The ride down was much better today than yesterday. We got a very early start (6 AM–and I’m on vacation). We had to make a slight detour in Chattanooga to pick up a portable DVD player cause Ben’s laptop did work out so well. It was a great investment–it kept the kids occupied all the way through Georgia. The mountains in Tennessee were amazing. I loved Georgia. Florida is looking pretty good so far. It’s about 65 degrees out, we ate our dinner outdoors which was amazing. Our hotel room is much better too!! It’ll be nice to spend the next couple of days hanging out here.

Pictures in the more:

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Pictures:
The Big Cross- a little scary-huge cross, but a small church. Ben said they must have spent all their money building the cross.

Jaycie sound asleep, so peaceful…

Finally crossing the Ohio River into Kentucky!!!!!!!!!!

Our destination for today: Tennessee….

FLORIDA OR BUST PART II
So, we made it to Nashville. Jaycie has a rough go of it this time around. She threw up twice and was basically miserable most of the way. We got her some Dramamine and that seemed to help her. We plan on doping her up before every long car ride now. Our hotel is a little scary, but it will do for one night. I’ll book a different one for the way home. Tomorrow, we’re off to Florida. I hope Georgia is more exciting then Illinois. Ugh-I didn’t think we were ever going to get out of Illinois is was so boring and flat–almost as bad as Iowa!!!

FLORIDA OR BUST PART I
We have arrived safely in Madison. The kids are doing okay so far with the drive, but I expect tomorrow will be more difficult. Jaycie asked “are we there yet?” three times from Eau Claire to Madison, so I can just imagine what she’ll be like tomorrow. We were able to meet up with one of our old high school friends so that was nice. Tomorrow’s destination is Nashville. I’m hoping we’ll be there by 7 PM or so. It’s easier for the kids to drive during the day because there are more interesting things to see and maybe some good picture opportunities.

Clear and Present Dangers-Interesting read from the New York Times. Hopefully, I’ll have more free time to read, now that I’m only working part time.

No longer does he see Republican government as a source of stability and order. Instead, he presents a nightmarish vision of ideological extremism, catastrophic fiscal irresponsibility, rampant greed and dangerous shortsightedness.

…he identifies three broad and related trends -none of them new to the Bush years but all of them, he believes, exacerbated by this administration’s policies -that together threaten the future of the United States and the world. One is the role of oil in defining and, as Phillips sees it, distorting American foreign and domestic policy. The second is the ominous intrusion of radical Christianity into politics and government. And the third is the astonishing levels of debt - current and prospective - that both the government and the American people have been heedlessly accumulating.

So, I have this freakish way of remember people’s birthdays for no apparent reason. It’s quite weird. I can pretty much hear a person’s birthday once and I will remember it for ever. I don’t know why. It probably has something to do with numbers since I have a weird obsession with numbers. I can’t imagine what kind of great information I could store in my brain if it wasn’t taken up by all these numbers. Anyway–today is Jill’s birthday.

So, I finished my last day of full time work yesterday. I’ve committed to working part-time 15-18 hours a week until they find someone to replace me. Then I will do about 10 hours a week helping out my pregnant co-worker. It will be nice to stay in the loop without most of the responsibility.

I’m almost done with my first term of grad classes. Well, one class anyway. It was mostly boring with bits of excitement, so I’m patiently waiting for next term. Two of my next three classes are policy and organizing focused which is more my speed. I’ll also be choosing and interviewing for my field practicum in March/April. Plus, choosing my thesis topic and starting the literature review for it. I’m very excited about field and the thesis, so I’m hoping the other classes will get me excited too.

Over spring break, we are taking the kids to Florida. We are going to drive down, which I think will be fun and horrible at the same time. We have an adapter for Ben’s laptop so the kids will be able to watch DVD’s. We are going to stop in Madison and Nashville on the way down. Then we’ll do 2 1/2 days in Orlando and 2 1/2 days in Lake Placid where our friends live. Ben promises I’ll be able to see the ocean. It will be quite the adventure!!!