Going, going......

And almost gone! Sunday morning at 10:14Am we will find out what kind of travelers we have in Grace, Ella and Lily. It is my sincere hope we don't end up in the cargo hold of the plane because of misbehavior but as excited as the girls are, I really don't think they would care.
Ella has had a countdown going for two weeks now, Grace has been busy making sure we have everything we could possibly need while we are gone (because apparently there are no stores in Florida and one needs at least six pairs of shoes to go on vacation properly) and Lily just wanders around talking about how "awesome" Disney is going to be. I checked the Orlando forecast yesterday and it doesn't look great (thunderstorms every day) but we are going to cross our fingers for sun and have a good time no matter what happens.

We've had a pretty terrific first week of no school (minus the one event that put me in the running for the World's Worst Mom award but more on that in a moment). While I have been preoccupied with packing and vacation preparation, the girls have been hard at work creating a new "Girls Only" club in the garage. I haven't yet figured out all the details something about signing in and handing out Kolb Construction pens. Reminds me of a information booth at the fair but what do I know?

Ella began thinking about her future as a mother while out driving this week. She asked me when she is going to be a mom. After taking a few moments formulating an age appropriate response, I replied, "Well, first you need to meet your husband and get married." Considering that she proceeded to give us her own personal guide to meeting your mate and it went something like this, "One day when you are walking down the street, you see a hot guy or girl and say 'Hey babe, you're pretty cute.' Then a couple days later, you get married." I hope for her sake it is that easy to meet her soulmate!

Mom was lucky enough to be selected as a chaperone for the St. James 3rd Graders field trip to the Washington Pavilion Science Center so we decided to tag along. The girls had a fantastic time exploring the exhibits and observing how St. James students behave (as if they are an alternate species~of course based on the St. James-ites they know, it probably seems that way!). It was a lot of fun and are sorry we won't be here to experience the Great Plains Zoo with the 2nd Grade next week.

Now on to my World's Worst Mom award....it was Grace's last soccer game on Wednesday night. Our day was planned down to the minute to ensure we would be there on time and possibly even early. After a hurried supper, we loaded up the soccer balls, water bottles and blankets and we were en route to Yankton Trails Park. As we drove around the park to the correct field, it became clear there were no other blue jerseyed young girls anywhere in sight. Filled with dread, I realized I had been sure the game was at 715PM, so sure that I overlooked the time in the email that the coach had sent, the time that said 6PM. Yep, because of my arrogance, poor Grace missed her final game of the Spring season and Kristin and Amanda had even come to watch. It makes me wonder at what point Kristin and Amanda are going to give up on us. Kristin had the unfortunate timing to have been at the hospital on Tornado Tuesday when Ella was born and was subjected to sitting out in the hallway for hours and hours. Last year Kristin and Amanda came to watch Ella at gymnastics and before one cartwheel was even turned, the tornado sirens went off and we had to clear out of the building. I thank them very much for coming and promise we will not disappoint should they decide to ever attend a Kolb function again!

Thursday night was a more successful final night of soccer for Ella. No goals but three assists which is just as good! She was lucky enough to be on a team with two of her favorite K03 classmates and last night she got to play for two quarters with both of them. I like to refer to them as "The Wall". As you can see, they are very intimidating....

Following the game, it was off to the Dairy Queen for treats and the all important medal presentation. You can probably tell by the proud look on Ella's face, this may have been the driving force behind her desire to play. A lifelong dream of Ella's had been fulfilled at the ripe old age of 5 years old. Now that earning a medal is crossed off the list, she can move on to working on her goal of becoming an archaeologist or a jewelry designer.

While Ella was reveling her last minutes as a Hot Tamale

Grace was participating her in favorite activity of observation....

As good as Grace, aka Radar, is at watching other people I believe her true calling may be a private investigator, a sociologist, a reporter or maybe a peeping Tom. It truly is one of her most favorite pastimes! Bless her heart!

So, right now I should be finishing the packing, organizing and cleaning that are on my list, so we will be all set to go bright and early tomorrow morning. Jason and I have a wedding to attend tonight so all preparations must be complete by 5PM tonight. You can expect the blog entry to end all blog entries when we get back from "The Happiest Place on Earth"!

Happy Memorial Day!