The Start of Furlough

Since this blog is not only a way for you all to keep up with what we are doing, but also a diary for our family, I am planning to eventually post lots of pictures of things we have done this summer.  Before we left Ecuador I made a "blog book" that included all blog entries from our last "term" (3.5 years).  It has been a great tool to carry with us and show people our lives overseas in pictures.  So, I hope we don't bore you too much with everything!  We have had a GREAT summer and are super sad to see it come to an end.  A good friend says that as your kids get older, they get more and more fun and that is very true.  We've had a blast with our kids this summer!

Leaving Quito on June 27th.

We told the kids that we were flying from Quito to Miami and then we also had to make a stop in Orlando before heading to Ohio.  We told them that it was a pain to make the extra stop, but we just couldn't avoid it.  They had no idea that we were really planning to surprise them with a trip to Disney World and we weren't going to be in Ohio that same night!   This was our first family vacation.  We always do fun stuff when people come down to visit, but we don't always have enough vacation time to work in a time away for just our family.  So, we had a great time doing something our kids never dreamed was possible! 

Our friends Dennis and Sandy Dunsmore (They just visited us in Ecuador in May.) live 10 minutes from Disney.  It was great to be able to see them again and hang out.

The Dunsmore's granddaughter Karissa was also visiting them so she got to know our kids too.

Chad volunteered to be an "extra" at Hollywood Studio's "behind the scenes" tour.  The kids LOVED that!

What we did a lot of on vacation!!

Epcot

Planning our "attack"!

The Tree of Life at the Animal Kingdom.

We ate at a 50's diner in Hollywood Studios.  This waiter was so funny!  He was constantly teasing us and the kids.  He even made the kids take their plates back to the kitchen!

We wore them out....but we sure made some great memories!

Lastly we want to thank some special people that made this vacation a reality.  You know who you are and we won't mention your names, but you made the vacation of a lifetime happen for our family and for that we are truly grateful.  We are even more grateful for your friendship and what you mean to our family.  We are blessed!