Busy, busy

Okay, I'm going to try to catch you up chronological order. My last posting was near Valentine's day, I think. Catalina adored her first-ever Valentines exchange (since this is the first year that she's been in school). She complained that her hand was hurting the entire time she addressed her Valentines, but she was very proud once they were complete. And, she loves the cards that she received so much that she'll probably still be admiring them when next year's Valentine's party rolls around.

The downside of our Valentine's weekend was the fact that we had to say "good-bye" to our friend, Ali. Their family is moving back to Seattle soon. Sweet, little Lolli and their dog, Bela, are spending the weeks leading up to the move with her grandparents, so we had to say an early "good-bye" to them. Here is a precious picture of Miss Perque with all of the Caputo kiddos:



Our last evening with Ali was February 16th, when we also celebrated Milton's birthday. The kids didn't really get it at the time, but they have sort of gradually caught on to what it will be like without her. One day, Catalina asked if we could drive by Lolli's house. I told her that Lolli wasn't there and she said, "I know, I just want to drive by and see it, even though she's not there." Ugh. And, when we've driven by since then, Gussy has said, "There's Lolli's house. Lolli's not there. Bela's not there. Milton's not there. Mindy's not there." Ugh, again. And, Catalina has asked several times if we could move to the town where Ali is moving. And, she's asked why Milton had to get a job in another city. It's tough, but I'm thankful that we'll get to see Mindy and Milton again before they're gone for good. And, I'm just focusing on the fact that they are really happy to be moving back and we'll definitely be visiting them whenever we can!

Here are the Perques and the Bomsteins (and Cati) celebrating Milton's bday:



And, here we are right before I broke down saying "bye" to Lolli-cakes:



After that, we had about two good weeks of sickness. Louie had a stomach bug and literally didn't leave the bed for three days. Then, a few days later, Louie came down with a cold, followed by Cati and Max. Then, Catalina got an ear infection and Max got two (ear infections). Tons of fun, really. Somehow, Gussy and I managed to avoid all of it and I'm so thankful. And, I'm also so thankful that we got all the sickness out of the way before our good friends, the Pewitts, came for a visit from Nashville. They were in Orlando for a few days of Disney vacation, then they finished up their vacation by visiting us in Tampa.

We joined them at the Magic Kingdom one day last week. It was only Catalina's second time and Gussy's first, so I loved getting to see their excitement over all the characters and the rides. Plus, it was just a ton of fun spending time with our good friends. Here are a few of my favorite pictures from the park...

Picking up the Pewitts at their resort:





Here are adorable Gussy and Will letting Jason chauffeur them through the park:



All three kiddies enjoying a show at the Enchanted Castle (or, at least, I think that's the name of the castle):



Jason entertaining the kids when we stopped for lunch (who needs a ride to have fun at Disney? A silly dad is enough for these kids.):



Jason and Gus in line for the Dumbo ride:



More Dumbo pics:





This is one of my favorites of the day!



I just noticed the time and I've got to run, but I'll finish the Disney pics and the Pewitts in Tampa on another day (hopefully sooner than a month from now). Love!