Ken pulled out the video camera on Christmas Eve while the kids spread reindeer food in the front yard. Enjoy!

So you can’t say I didn’t warn you.  Prepare yourself for cuteness overload when watching this video.  You might not be able to stand it. Enjoy!

WARNING:  If you haven’t already bought the Letter Factory DVD by Leap Frog for your toddler, then this video will make you head straight to Amazon.com before you can say “Leap and Lily”.

Several years ago, I had bought the whole Leap Frog DVD series to introduce Edie to reading.  We have about five of  these movies, and I keep them all of them in our van’s DVD changer.  As a rule, I don’t let my kids watch movies in the car unless we’re going to be riding for an extended amount of time, and then when I do turn it on, the DVD has to be educational.  Oh yea, I’m one of those moms.  Not only do I make learning seem like a reward, I make them beg for it.  “Can we pleeeeaaassse watch a movie in the car?  Pleeeeaaassse?”

By the time Edie was two, she knew her ABCs, and this was before I even knew Leap Frog DVDs existed.  She would ask for me to quiz her every night, and not because she’s a genius, but because she has just always been a very motivated child.  In stark contrast to his sister, Roark could barely speak a coherent word as his second birthday was approaching.  And although I had thought it would be really cool to have two motivated kids, I really wasn’t too worried.  I just thought, “It’s a good thing he’s so adorable because he’s not winning any extra points with his smarts.”

Anyway, since Roarkie started riding face-forward in the car, he’s been inundated with Professor Quigley and his shenanigans at the Letter Factory.  I didn’t really think much was sinking in until recently, when out of the blue Roark identified all his letters in his little box of cards, and then not only did he know the letters, he knew the sounds too.  I couldn’t believe it.  It was just like when he decided to start talking.  One day he knew a couple of words, and the next day, he was using full sentences.  Crazy kid.  Now he begs me to quiz him every night as well, and he’s further along than Edie was at this stage in the game.

While Edie was at the beach for Spring Break, we had the rare opportunity to capture some video of Roark. Here’s Roark showing off his stuff from the Letter Factory…along with singing the intro to his favorite show. Enjoy!

Well, then check out my kids ’cause they got moves you won’t believe (and crazy Saturday morning hair as well).  Enjoy!

In an effort to try and make this blog really confusing, I’m posting the final video of last years vacation on the heels of finishing up our 2010 vacation journal.  Did that make sense? In other words, this video footage was taken over a year ago.

The end of this trip was mostly driving down the coast.  By which I mean, we drove on bridges and islands all the way down from Ocean City, Maryland to Charleston, North Carolina.  In fact, we even drove the RV onto a ferry when there were no roads available. As much as I would like to say I supported the ferry decision, I spent the entire time second-guessing my husband’s sense of adventure.  It wasn’t until we were off the boat that I finally admitted that it was a good idea.

We stopped by Kittyhawk and saw the place where the Wright Brothers flew the first plane.  If you’ve never been, Kittyhawk is basically a grassy field with a plaque and some geese.  It was worth a stop because we were driving right through the town, and it’s a piece of American history.  But don’t plan a trip around it.

We ended the vacation with a stop in Charleston, and although it’s been over a year since we were there, I just remember it being really hot.  One of the air conditioner units decided to crap out on the last couple of days of the trip, and we sweated A LOT.

On a completely unrelated note, I can’t believe how little Roarkie looks while I’m holding him as we swing.  Wow!  So much can change in a year.  I am so thankful to have a husband that preserves our family memories in these videos.   They are priceless to me and one of my most treasured possessions.
Enjoy!

After traveling through Pennsylvania Dutch country, we continued to head East towards the coast.  Our next destination was Ocean City, Maryland.

Now I will be the first to admit that when it comes to beaches, we are spoiled in the South with the Gulf, but there is something about the Atlantic Coast and it’s boardwalks that I love.  It makes me feel like I have just stepped into a movie or something.  I just need The Drifters playing their hit in the background, and the illusion is complete for me.  Edie, on the other hand, didn’t even need any Motown.  She was moved just by watching the street vendors.  When she came upon some techno music outside a body piercing establishment, she let the beat overtake her and spontaneously decided to put on a show.

This video also includes footage of Roark’s first beach experience which explains why their is only a little bit of beach footage.  He refused to behave and kept insisting that he wanted to play in the sand.   Despite my manhandling and trying to keep him out of it, he somehow managed to get sand all in his diaper or as I always say, in his nooks and crannies, and then decided that he was done for the day.  Edie had a blast at the beach like she does most places, but unfortunately for her, it’s still going to be several years in our future before Roarkie is ready for the sand and sun.

Ok, so I’m a day late on our Monday video post, and I actually have a very good excuse as to why I didn’t post yesterday.  It was my birthday, and I didn’t feel like it.  So there.

When most people travel to Lancaster, Pennsylvania, they go to see the beautiful countryside with Amish farms and windmills, but not us.  We drove right through all of that and set up camp at Edie’s most favorite place on earth-Dutch Wonderland Amusement Park.  There were no horse and buggies or children in bonnets and caps, but there was a princess and a dragon and about a zillion rides all geared towards children age six and under.

To read more about our day (yes, we only spent one day at Dutch Wonderland…one very full day), you can read the post here.

Well, it isn’t a family vacation video, but it’s a video nonetheless.  And without building it up too much, it makes me laugh every time I watch it.

Last September, Edie began taking dance classes at a local dance studio near our house.   She’d really been enjoying it and having a good time, and I really enjoyed the fact that it was very little inconvenience to me.    None of this driving-kids-across-town, several-nights-a-week nonsense.  This was  a low-commitment, low-cost activity that she could participate in.  She was happy.  I was happy.

Then about two months ago, all her friends started talking about the wonderful world of soccer.  Soccer, soccer, soccer! Everywhere we turned someone else we knew was playing soccer.  So about a month ago, she announced that next year she wanted to play soccer instead of dance.

“Whatever you want, ” I said. “But I’d wait to make that decision until after your recital.”  Let’s face it – I know my kid, and at even at age four, the girl loves a stage.  I had a feeling that after her recital, she might forget all about that soccer idea.

It could just be me.  Watch the video, and then tell me if you think I’ll be spending my Saturdays next year at the soccer field.  Enjoy!

After driving almost 1,000 miles and listening to Roark fuss for about 750 of them, we finally arrived at one of the biggest waterfalls on earth.  That’s right, Niagara Falls.  We actually stayed in northern New York because we didn’t want to drive the motorhome over the border.  Oh I’m sure real RVer’s do it all the time, but for this trip, that was not on the agenda.  After all, putting on a Maid of the Mist poncho in that wind was enough of a feat for one day without inviting customs in to tour our motel on wheels.

In rained most of the morning, so we were RV bound for a good part of the day, but eventually the sun came out.  And so did we.  Since we towed a car, we were able to drive into Canada in the afternoon and spent the evening in one of the biggest tourist traps known to man.  To read more about our day at the falls, go here.  To watch a video of our day…well, you know what to do.  Enjoy!