Sarah Henry - Caring Bridge Update

• Daily Update - December 29, 2012

  Written Dec 30, 2012 4:10am
  Dear friends & family of sweet Sarah,
  
  Sarah experienced another first today. Her occupational therapist and physical therapist visited and helped place Sarah in a seated position on the side of her bed with her feet dangling down. (Today's focus was on head and trunk control.) I know it must have felt so wonderful to her sweet body to get to change her position and feel a little breeze on her back! They will work with Sarah daily to help her regain movement and function.
  
  Sweet friends from Sarah's childhood drove in from Arkansas to love on her and spend time praying and talking together. Sarah has touched and continues to touch so many lives. One common truth that always surfaces in conversation is what a consistent and true friend Sarah is to so many through so many seasons of her life.
  
  Continue to pray for Sarah to remain stable (particularly her blood pressure) so that she can be moved out of ICU into a room on the floor. And as always, please keep her babies and all of her loved ones in your prayers.
  
  "Be completely humble and gentle;
  be patient, bearing with one another in love. Make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace. There is one body and one Spirit, just as you were called to one hope when you were called; one Lord, one faith, one baptism; one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all. But to each one of us grace has been given as Christ apportioned it." (Ephesians 4:2-7 NIV)

  Daily Update - December 30, 2012

  • Written Dec 31, 2012 1:21am
    Dear friends & family of sweet Sarah,
    
    Thank you for your prayers for Sarah and her family. The doctors all had positive feedback today. Because of strong test results, they hope to move Sarah out of ICU toward the end of this week. Keep praying!
    
    Sarah slept deeply a good portion of today. We continue to read and learn that there is a lot of power and healing in her getting good rest right now. Small interactions (even 5 minutes) can lead to long naps.
    
    Please pray for Sarah's younger brother, Joel, as he travels back to his family in Florida tomorrow. And please lift up his wife, Tamara, as doctors recently discovered a growth on her thyroid and they are doing biopsies to determine next steps. I know they would appreciate your prayers.
    
    Sarah's family is grateful for all of the visits, prayers and encouragement. As a reminder, please refrain from visiting Sarah's room directly without checking in with her family first. If no one is present at the time, please refrain from a direct visit. The family is asking that no one make a visit after 6pm. Rest and sleep are very important in this stage of Sarah's recovery. Please respect these bounds and encourage others to as well. Thank you so much for your understanding and love.
    
    "Meanwhile, the moment we get tired in the waiting, God's Spirit is right alongside helping us along. If we don't know how or what to pray, it doesn't matter. He does our praying in and for us, making prayer out of our wordless sighs, our aching groans. He knows us far better than we know ourselves, knows our pregnant condition, and keeps us present before God. That's why we can be so sure that every detail in our lives of love for God is worked into something good." (Romans 8:26-28 MSG)
    
    Much love.
    Sent from CaringBridge iPhone app
    
    

  Daily Update - December 31, 2012

  Written 2 hours ago
   
  Dear friends & family of sweet Sarah,
  
  Two of Sarah's sweet three babies (Will & Ava) made a visit to see her today.  She smiled when she saw them and looked at them intently. As one could imagine, the moments were filled with sweetness and sorrow and such a mixture of feelings.
  
  Her neurologist returned from a week away and was encouraged to read and see Sarah's progress.  It is clear that she makes purposeful movements based on comprehension of instruction.  It will be a long journey of healing and recovery for Sarah, but she is fighting hard.
  
  As always, thank you for your prayers, love and support of Sarah and her family.  We all wish everyone a beautiful 2013!
  "Through"
  by Annie Johnson Flint
  

  When you pass through the waters

  Deep the waves may be and cold,

  But Jehovah is our refuge,

  And His promise is our hold;

  For the Lord Himself has said it,

  He, the faithful God and true:

  "When you come to the waters

  You will not go down, BUT THROUGH."

  
  

  Seas of sorrow, seas of trial,

  Bitter anguish, fiercest pain,

  Rolling surges of temptation

  Sweeping over heart and brain --

  They will never overflow us

  For we know His word is true;

  All His waves and all His billows

  He will lead us safely THROUGH.

  
  

  Threatening breakers of destruction,

  Doubt's insidious undertow,

  Will not sink us, will not drag us

  Out to ocean depths of woe;

  For His promise will sustain us,

  Praise the Lord, whose Word is true!

  We will not go down, or under,

  For He says, "You will pass THROUGH."

New Year's Eve

We have spent most of today regrouping for the new year.  We have laid low in the hotel room after a yummy breakfast at the hotel.  The kids are watching some fun Disney movies on one of the hotel channels & Chris and I are looking at the year ahead.  We wanted to take some time before getting home when the jet lag sets in - so we at least have a tiny glance of the things we can potentially see in January. 

In the early afternoon, we went out for a walk and walked along the Champs de Mars toward the Eiffel Tower.  Along the route, we saw a man with pedal race cars & it looked like a great way to get some energy out.  The man was cheering the kids on as they went around the track - saying, "Champion" "Bravo" and they loved it!!

Afterwards, we walked under the Eiffel Tower to the Christmas market at Trocodero.  We feasted on Baguette Hot Dogs & Frites and instead of clinking champagne glasses for New Year's Eve - we cheered to a new year with our baguettes.

As we were eating today - we were discussing the many things we have loved but we also began talking about the many things that may have come off as without difficulty on the blog.  So here goes - We've given all the highlights on here - we thought it was worthy to tribute the low lights & hopefully a taste of reality beyond the pretty blog:

• All the cool points of packing everything in a carry-on go out the window when you try to get through a full flight of people with a family of 6 & are sweating like a hog.  See the Atlanta post & sometime ask Chris to recount the story.  You too can experienced the full on giggle we get from him retelling the details of how difficult it was.
• Cleaning up vomit upon arrival in our new rental car.
• Anxiety from new sights & sounds, and sleep deprivation our first week
• Trying to figure out how to get a grocery cart & ending up with a grocery member card.  
• Asking for a specific ingredient and realizing you are saying the word completely wrong.  For example, dinde (turkey) is not pronounced dindy with a long e sound. 
• Going from larger to smaller in sleeping arrangements and expecting everyone to get along - um, no - lots of working through conflict.
• Our Caen house was very cold & we could not figure out the heater.  We slept in long johns & fleece pajamas. 
• Internet that fit into a tiny window frame.  We would often times find Chris outside bundled up outside trying to work in a lawn chair.
• One bathroom & shower for up to 8 people ... need we say more.  
• Squeezing ourselves into a tiny European hotel room & the smells these children can produce.  I told Chris today it feels like someone shoved a rotten piece of broccoli up my nose.
• We can get along just fine in counting to 10 and saying merci - get beyond that and it is just difficult.  Chris says he speaks at the level of 3 year old.  If so - the kids & I are at about age 1. 
•  The amount of times we have had a dozen of broken conversations in French.  Thankfully laughter has been soon to follow, but telling a store clerk that I loved myself, when I was really trying to tell him my name & ask him his. Thankfully he thought it was pretty funny.
• Being reprimanded by a French lady for my children pushing onto the metro & I soon followed so I could get to them before the doors closed.  Awesome!  We had it happen a second time yesterday & a man started griping at us in French.  Chris shared a few words with him in our defense.  Eek!! 
• Setting our family in lots of blessing is incredible - but also breeds a heap of ungratefulness.  Lots of working through these moments. 
• Depending on public transportation in one of the largest cities in the world.  We thoroughly enjoy using the metro & even the charm & culture that can be part of it (musicians riding along with you).  But learning what the end of the line is & which line to take & where to transfer to & not to mention the RER trains.  These are my least favorite, only due to the fact that you have to know which direction, is a short or long train so you know where to stand, and what is the name of the train (they nickname all of the trains).  May we count the ways with that one...plus add in doing it with 4 children.
• Being far from home has its perks and delights to be in a different change of pace.  But add in deaths and trauma of any sort and it just adds difficulty being far away from loved ones.  
• Never knowing if our debit/credit card will work at a location (seemed to work about 50% of time in Caen, 75% in Paris) due to not having updated micro-chip in our card and inconveniences of having to wait in long lines because of it.

We still have to balance each of these with the other side of the coin … each was opportunity for growth, pushing past and through our own weaknesses, limitations and trusting God.   I don't share all this to bash ourselves or have some kind of pity fest over here and make for an awkward post.  We share it to show that life continues on whether you are in France or at home in Texas or wherever you are.  Time away is good and we so appreciate all we have experienced & learned & the perspective we have gained to start a new year.     I like how David Lebovitz wrote recently and found it fitting with our New Year's Eve toast:  "But we all know that a perfect baguette doesn’t look right. It’s the bubbles, burnished spots, and irregularities that make it so appealing. Nor should a croissant look like it belongs in the Louvre. Part of it is crunchy, with craggy ridges – and the ends might be a tad burnt. But the inside may be tender and delicate, and balance out the irregularities. Flaws are what makes something interesting, and I prefer a few blemishes over a pristine appearance." So cheers to a new year & embracing our craggy ridges and trusting the LORD to work and grow in us His good grace & love in 2013.

We are celebrating the New Year at the hotel with yummy pizza & more pastries!

 

Happy New Year from the Blockers!!!  

May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing that you may

overflow with hope by the power of His Spirit."

Romans 15:13

Moving to the 7th Arrondissement

We moved out of our apartment yesterday.  Looking back, it was so unnerving to rent an apartment in Paris & a house in Normandy online & have no clue what you are stepping into. We are so thankful for the wonderful hosts we have had while we are here.  Our gite owners were wonderful and Tycen was as well.  We greeted him and his dog Lukey yesterday morning alongside a family of 6 from Australia who were moving into our apartment.  We made our way down the elevator with all of our luggage - thankfully a bit less dramatic than our entrance into the apartment & a bit more organized.  Chris had reserved a taxi to take us to the hotel so we would have to take our entourage through the metro.  We drove through St. Germain and made our way to the 7th Arrondissement to the Hotel La Bourdonnais. 

We had yet to go to the Musee d' Orsay - so we decided to try it out yesterday.  Here is a photo of the kids w/ a replica of Pablo Picasso as we exited the metro stop.  Museums.  I love to visit them and really could do a few hours there myself looking at the art.  Chris, could spend the entire day - he loves every detail of the museums.  The kids.....not so much.  The Louvre was great to see Mona & the Feast of Cana, as well as some of the pieces the kids had studied at school.  But truly - it is so massive & their little legs can only go so far with a sea of people during peak season.  Same goes yesterday at the Orsay.  The Impressionists are some of our favorite pieces of art & we couldn't wait to see the list of art on the kids list from their art teacher.  It helped to have smaller rooms to see the art & the kids were excited to recognize things they had studied..  But again, a large mass of people + smaller rooms (Orsay) = a very short attention span for our aged children....pretty difficult to maneuver.   What we all enjoyed despite a busy day there - seeing works by Renoir, Degas, Monet & Picasso.  We were all so fascinated with the details on the paintings.  You see the swirls on the painting below of Picasso & you see it in person & the details of the swirls are amazing.  All the paintings were this way.  Would we go again - absolutely!  With children?  Yes, but probably with a kid oriented tour.  We find museums with tours dedicated to small children help them direct their attention to what is on display.  Also - if you go - buy your tickets online & bypass the giant size lines.  It is amazing how many people you pass by doing this.  See below for some of our favorite paintings of the day. 

 

One fun quote was from Jacob who was commenting on the paintings he was looking at for his class.  He said - these look the same as Ms. Dougherty shows us but they are brighter...why is that?  We said she had shown him a replica & he is looking at the actual paintings by the artists.  It was fun to see the light bulb come on in his little head of what he was looking at & discuss what a replica of a piece of art is. 

Here we are back at the Metro station & Rebekah saw an advertisement for the ballet she had gone to with Chris. 

Last night we went to the street Rue Cler & had dinner.  We all had plats du jour (plate of the day) at La Petit Cler Cafe for dinner.   Roasted Chicken w/ Mashed Potatoes & a scoop of ice cream from Berthillion.

A Walk Through the Marais

 A visit to the Bastille to see the statue to commemorate the French Revolution.

A tour around Victor Hugo's House - we enjoyed a few paintings of Quasimodo, too!

 

We tried to take Chris for a Falafel at the famous shop we had visited earlier in the trip with Mimi.  However, I had forgotten that it was the Sabbath in the Jewish quarter and everything minus a few shops were open.  We found a different falafel shop open & they were equally as tasty.

We had dreamed of days walking through the streets with just a baguette in hand back at home.  We had yet to do just that - so today was the day.  The kids lunch - a baguette on their walk through town!

During the weeks around Christmas in Paris - they open up multiple carousels free for the public.  As we were walking home - we passed this one & hopped on for a ride around.

Afterwards, I dropped Chris & the kids at the apartment & went for a little bit longer of a walk.  That's the thing with goodbyes.... lots of times, we just want to hold on for a bit more.  I wanted one more walk through this district to see my favorite sights & smells and reflect on the many blessings of our time there.  Au Revoir, St. Germain!  We are thankful for our time and the many many walks along these cobblestone paths.

Lunch w/ Mom

The boys & I had some time out by ourselves to explore St. Germain before moving over to our hotel.  I've told the boys before - that I felt like they could have a sandwich shop one day with all of their fun sandwich creations they suggest back at home.  So, I thought it was fitting to take them to a gourmet sandwich shop, where they make fresh bread in a fire stone oven.  See the smiles above with how they tasted.  I took a picture of the menu below to get some ideas for new sandwiches to create at home:

Afterwards, we went to a chocolate/pastry shop where we could watch them create the desserts through a glass window.  Here are a few pictures of our treats as we enjoyed them on a bench along St. Germain Boulevard.

Dad - the one with the meringue would have been your favorite lemon tart!

We then walked down to a comic book/figurine store and saw a bunch of old star wars & super hero books/figurines.  Thank you boys for a fun afternoon!  I enjoyed the time in Paris with you! :)

Au Revoir & Ballets

We have posted multiple times about the coming in of trains with loved ones & how exciting it is.  On Friday, it was the first time to watch someone leave on the train.  I'm thinking we are bigger fans of the coming than the going.  The boys woke up bright & early with me & walked Mimi & Grandad to the metro station to get them on the RER B train back to CDG.  Instead of riding with them - we waved farewell as the metro swept them off into the tunnels.  Bon Voyage, Mimi & Grandad!  We are so glad you had a great time - thank you so much for coming & making so many wonderful French memories with us!!!!  ** Dad - when you adjust back to TX time - can you send me your phone photo of the metro w/ the boys.  I would love to post it here.

Afterwards, the boys & I stopped for some chocolat chaud & back to the apartment to pick up the rest of the crew to head to say au revoir to the Day family as well.  They were taking the chunnel on Friday afternoon over to London & we wanted to spend an hour with them on Rue Cler.

Here they are heading to their apartment agency to store their luggage prior to their train departure.

At a cafe on Rue Cler for chocolat chaud & cappuccinos, while Lori &

I went to a wonderful epicurie store around the corner.

 

 The crew walking down Rue Cler

They were going one way on a metro line & we were going the opposite direction.  Here they are coming into the metro to wait for the train.

Our kids were smashed up against the glass of the metro saying goodbye to their friends.

Au Revoir Day Family.

Chris surprised Rebekah last night with a night out to the Palias Garnier Opera House to see a ballet performance by William Forsythe & Trisha Brown.  Here they are all dressed up for their night out on the town.  

Check back here for some videos & more photos - Chris got some on his phone!!  What a special special night!

A bit of  trivia for any readers out there:  Anyone know what famous Broadway musical was centered around this specific opera house that Chris & Rebekah went to last night.  Check out their website for more details of where they were & a video of the performance.

Palais Garnier 

The boys, Halle & I stayed at the apartment for a movie night, met the landlord for a repair in our kitchen & began the process of packing things up.  We move Sunday to a hotel for our last 3 nights. 

Mimi & Grandad

Mimi & Grandad spent their last day in Paris soaking up some last minute favorites.  First stop, the crepe stand where mom & I had gotten our first breakfast in Paris.  She wanted dad to try Amit's egg, ham & cheese crepe.  He was there & we had a yummy crepe & coffee for breakfast.  Chris kept the kids so we could make a trek across the river to a culinary favorite - E. Dehilliron, a professional cookware store that has supplied gadgets, pans, & gizmos to a grand array of chefs across Paris.

I forgot to take a picture while we were there - so here is a picture from Chris & I's 2009 trip when I got my Staub red pot that Chris so graciously trekked across town & back home to Waco.  Go to a kitchen store and pick one up & you will know how gracious he was... they are not light.

Today, though, we wanted to just look, no real purchase in mind - just wanted to see what treasures they had and what gadgets inspired.  Here is what my dad said about it:

You could stay all day....a true cooking store, not just some gourmet shop. If you are a foodie, and really love to cook, this is a must stop in Paris. We stayed for several hours, and brought home all sorts of new goodies to cook with.

What did we bring home - well - E. Dehillerin silpats, baking pans, a crepe pan (thank you mimi & grandad - I love it), cookie cutters, mini baking pans for the kids, & an eiffel tower cookie cutter for the rainy days at home when we miss our Parisian days.

Afterwards, we made a walk through the 1st Arrondissment looking for a restaurant that dad wanted to try call Souffle.  After a mixup on my end with the street, we got some directions from a local store & made our way.  It was delicious.  We tried ham & cheese souffle, chicken, mushroom & cheese souffle, & Mimi had French onion soup.  For dessert we had three different souffles - Grand marnier, Berry, & Chocolate w/ Pear.  The desserts were by a long shot my favorite part.  So delicious!!  Tres Bien!  ** Dad I need some of your photos - I forgot to snag them via email before you left.  :)
 

Afterwards, we headed back to the apartment so they could pack & I ran over to Bon Marche with Lori for a few hours to get some treasures to take home with us.  Super fun time!
Back at home, dad wanted to go down into the Latin Quarter for his last night here.  It is just around the corner from us & it super lively and kid friendly - nothing too fancy for the kids. I hope to add some photos to share from dinner (currently on my phone) plus some videos soon - I'm getting ready to pack, but wanted to atleast post the last few days.   In the meantime - here is Rick Steves with some insight into the Latin Quarter where we stayed.  :)

A Couple Caring Bridge Updates - Thank You for Praying!!

Daily Update - December 27, 2012

Written Dec 28, 2012 1:28am

Dear friends & family of sweet Sarah,

The doctors performed a successful tracheotomy on Sarah today.  She is much more comfortable and still very sleepy from the medication given to her for the procedure.  

Sarah continues to be responsive and we look forward to interacting with her more in the coming days as she adjusts to the trach tube.

God bless you for your continued prayers, love and support for Sarah and her dear family.  Please keep Will, Ava and Halle close in your prayers along with Bill, Anita, Greg, Dick & Jan and all the sweet brothers and sisters near and far.

2 Corinthians 1:3
All praise to God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. God is our merciful Father and the source of all comfort.

2 Thessalonians 2:16
Now may our Lord Jesus Christ himself and God our Father, who loved us and by his grace gave us eternal comfort and a wonderful hope.

Sarah Smiled! - Daily Update - Written 7 hours ago

Dear friends & family of sweet Sarah,

It has been another great day for Sarah on her healing journey.

Sarah had her first physical therapy session today. She got to sit up a bit in her bed and was responsive with her eyes and her arm & hand.

A sweet friend brought some beautiful photographs of her precious children blown up on a foam board for the walls of her room. Sarah immediately grabbed a photograph with her hand...and smiled!

She was the most alert she has been so far and continues to respond on command.

Another sweet friend came in to finish giving Sarah a manicure as her fingernails have been growing quickly. When our friend asked Sarah if she could clip her fingernail, Sarah responded quickly by lifting and offering her hand to her just as if she was in a beauty salon!

We can (very much) "see" Sarah's gestures and manneurisms in her movement today. A sweet kiss from God.

Thank you for your continued prayers for Sarah. Please specifically pray that her blood pressure continues to remain stable. The doctors will be ready to move her to another room outside of ICU in a couple of days if all continues to remain stable.

Psalm 103

Bless the Lord, O my soul,
and all that is within me,
bless his holy name!
Bless the Lord, O my soul,
and forget not all his benefits,
who forgives all your iniquity,
who heals all your diseases,
who redeems your life from the pit,
who crowns you with steadfast love and mercy,
who satisfies you with good
so that your youth is renewed like the eagle's.

The Lord works righteousness
and justice for all who are oppressed.
He made known his ways to Moses,
his acts to the people of Israel.The Lord is merciful and gracious,
slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love.
He will not always chide,
nor will he keep his anger forever.
He does not deal with us according to our sins,
nor repay us according to our iniquities.
For as high as the heavens are above the earth,
so great is his steadfast love toward those who fear him;
as far as the east is from the west,
so far does he remove our transgressions from us.
As a father shows compassion to his children,
so the Lord shows compassion to those who fear him.
For he knows our frame;
he remembers that we are dust. As for man, his days are like grass;
he flourishes like a flower of the field;
for the wind passes over it, and it is gone,
and its place knows it no more.
But the steadfast love of the Lord is from everlasting to everlasting on those who fear him,
and his righteousness to children's children,
to those who keep his covenant
and remember to do his commandments.
The Lord has established his throne in the heavens,
and his kingdom rules over all. Bless the Lord, O you his angels,
you mighty ones who do his word,
obeying the voice of his word!
Bless the Lord, all his hosts,
his ministers, who do his will!
Bless the Lord, all his works,
in all places of his dominion.
Bless the Lord, O my soul!

C'est un petit monde ...

My, oh my, what a wonderful day!!!

I had to post this song because we most certainly had a wonderful day!  Aunt Molly & Uncle Stephen -- thank you thank you so much!!! We had beyond our wildest dreams fun on December 26th.  

We left the house at around 8:15am.  Which for starters is well before any of us have been creaking out of bed.  These lovely French people keep their sun hiding until after 8am & it keeps us Texans in our beds way past when we are usually up and going.  It has been a fun slower pace for us, but most definitely needed to make a stop for coffee on the way to the metro for our train to Disneyland.

Here are a few pictures of most of us on the metro.

Katharine - check out the kids tshirts they wore today - you can see a glimpse of Jacob's shirt in this picture.  They loved their Christmas Paris jerseys & Eiffel Tower tshirts.   Thank you so much.  Halle thought her's looked like Belle under the Eiffel tower.  Very fitting for a day at Disneyland.

 This didn't turn out to be a very clear picture - but was sweet to see the expressions anyway as we turned the corner to see the Sleeping Beauty's castle

Our first stop:  We all kept repeating how fun it was to be there & could we believe we were in the center of Paris one minute & 30 minutes later - Disneyland.  So fun & exciting! 

Here is everyone waiting in line for Thunder Mountain.  I've always enjoyed Thunder Mountain but it has never been one of my favorites.  Today it was!  Everyone was giddy, fresh for the day & excited for our fun adventure.  This was Halle's first big roller coaster & Rebekah & Jacob's first time on this particular roller coaster.  They LOVED it!!  Halle just giggled & smiled the whole way through it.

Then it was off for some pirate adventures at Pirates of the Caribbean.  We made a quick stop off at the Swiss Family Robinson tree - our kids really enjoy that movie & thought it was fun that they had the tree in the park.  Once we got to the Pirate ride, Halle was a bit unsure of the dark cave - but quickly rebounded & enjoyed it.  They hadn't updated the ride like the Florida version, which I enjoyed - I like all the old school animatronics (I think that's the word).

 Here they are at Skull Rock before entering the Pirate ride.  Ryan, Dad & Chris ran over to Peter Pan to get a fast pass.  Thank you Disney for the fast pass.  It helps out sooooo much!

 After this we went to Fantasyland & rode Pinocchio (new for us), the tea cups, & Peter Pan.

Afterwards, we headed to main street for a hot dog & french fries.  The Disney Studios park closed at 7pm and we wanted to snag a few hours over there before heading back to the main park.  The first picture is of Halle & Jacob watching the Christmas parade while we waited for lunch.

 Bon Appetit!!

Here is my plug to every Disney studios park - please make a kid playland at each park like the one in Paris.  It was so fun and whimsical & captured the rides so well.  Here is a picture of Ryan with a giant French Buzz Lightyear.  Although those days have past... we spent many many early years with Ryan, Buzz & Woody.  Here is him humoring me with a picture with Buzz. 

They had a Slinky Dog roller coaster that went around in circles.  Here are my riding partners. 

A Cars version of the tea cups.... not a fan of twirling that much at once - thank you Mimi & Chris for being troopers.

A magical ride on a carpet ride....

We then went and sported our inner rock star & rode Rockin' Roller Coaster w/ Steven Tyler & Aerosmith (ok not really - but the music felt like they were right there with us).  The kids loved the ride & the quote after was "I've never felt more fully alive" 

Here is a snapshot of the Toystory portion of the park.  I'm always so amazed at Disney's creativity.

 The kid's went & got an autograph & photo with Dale - thank you Disney studios for a fun afternoon

Back over at the Disneyland Park, we got in line for a ride on Buzz Lightyear Space Ranger Spin with some cinnamon & spice popcorn from Mimi & Grandad.  This ride is a family favorite. 

Here are the kids giving me a space ranger stance in front of Discoveryland.

 Space Rangers - we need your help to defeat Zurg!!!

 Ok - love this picture of Chris!!  Look who is having so much fun with the astroblaster!!! 

Ok - a bit blurry - but still thought this was a fun picture to share of our Buzz Lightyear fun.

 Rebekah rode with me - here she is after tackling the ride with her astroblaster laser gun.

We rode the cars & then Mom/Dad, Chris, Ryan & Rebekah went to ride Space Mountain 2.  Riding Space Mountain in Florida has always been a favorite - but none of us had ever been on the new version of it.  Here is a video of the ride that I found online:

Jacob, Halle, & I waited at the exit with a tub full of Candy Floss (i.e. Cotton Candy) & talked about the day the three of us could ride it together when they were tall enough.  They were super troopers for not being able to ride this time around.  Way to go Jacob & Halle!

Afterwards, we headed back to Fantasyland to ride It's a Small World ( or C'est un petit monde).  It was the best!  They intermixed the traditional it's a small world song with Christmas carols & it really was just fantastic - no other way to describe it.

Someone had posted a video from last year's Christmas Small world ride &

it seemed very similar to this year's ride - Enjoy!

Then, Jacob sang his version of Tangled when Mother Gothel sings to the magic flower.  It was great!  Thus the smile below:

 
It was getting pretty chilly at this point - so we divided & conquered the rest of Fantasyland.  Mimi, Grandad & Jacob went to Snow White & the rest of us went to the merry go round.  Here are few pics from that ride:

Then the best way to end the day ... we couldn't even imagine what would happen next.  The chilly rains began - and instead of heading to Indiana Jones for the final ride - we headed to Walts to see if they had availability for dinner to see if the rains would pass.  Now, I had zero idea of what Walt's was except I had heard the name earlier as a place to eat at in the park.  We walked in & the lady said they were completely booked & couldn't take our party of 8.  I figured that would be the case since I had just seen her tell the same to a group about our size. . but had asked anyways.  As we were deciding where to head - one of the waiters came downstairs and said a party of 8 had not shown up & we could have their table if we would like.  What?!!  Yes, please!!  As we began to go upstairs - I realized how nice this restaurant was & was completely curious about the fare we would be dining on in a moment.  As we passed the rooms of people eating, we were led to a private room with a Christmas tree - set up for the holidays - tinsel & lights on the window, a fully decorated tree, and an amazing view out upon the main street of the park.  As we washed our hands in the bathroom to prepare for the meal - I couldn't help but thank the Lord for such an amazing treat to get to do this.  What a wonderful way to end the day!!  The kids loved the menu & even ordered themselves.  The picture below was of my steak & potatoes!  Delicious!!

Afterwards - we went outside to head to the metro & listened to a few minutes of their night-time show.  They projected images on the castle & had all sorts of lasers & lights beaming from the castle.  We came outside & heard Step in Time from Mary Poppins & did some dancing in the street ourselves.

Then another family favorite came up next:

And to finish off our few minutes there - Halle's all time favorite song from Tangled:

Afterwards, we could tell it was getting towards the end & wanted to make it to the metro stop before the thousands tried to head back to the city.  It was a sleepy 30 minute ride home - Halle fell asleep in her stroller, Rebekah & Chris sat on the floor, with Rebekah drifting off to sleep.  The boys hung in there - but were fast asleep within minutes of hitting the pillow.  We got home in the late 11:00pm hour from an abundantly full day of FUN!!  

Molly & Stephen -  It was and will be a memory our family never forgets.  We wish you were there with us - but hoping in the absence of being there, the pictures & stories bring you along with us.  Thank you so much!! 

** Also - I'd like to send a BIG thank you to Abraham Mast.  When he heard I was having trouble with my computer - he went and created a document to help me step by step alleviate the memory load on my computer so I could keep posting.  I so appreciate your help, Abraham!  Thank you so much in helping us capture our memories online by showing me how to continue to post our adventures!  :)