Out of Oil and The Pinewood Derby

Today was a very eventful day for us here in Connecticut. Let me explain.
For those of you who don't know, many homes in Connecticut are heated using oil. The oil heats water that circulates through the pipes and the baseboards radiate the heat out. I know. Very complicated. But that's what we have in our house and although it's VERY expensive, it keeps our house warm.
That is, if there is oil in the tank. Today we woke up to an EMPTY tank.
Robb came downstairs where me and the kids were and announced that we would need to bundle up because he discovered that we didn't have any oil. I hadn't showered yet (and let me add that the oil heats our water, too. No oil=No hot water) and we needed to leave to be to the Pinewood Derby in less than an hour. Yikes! I braved the extremely cold water and took a very quick shower. All the while not understanding why we ran out of oil. The company that fills our oil tank normally comes automatically when the oil is low so we never run out. As I was showering (or rather freezing), Robb called the company and found out that they had miscalculated our oil usage! They were calculating for a home much smaller than ours. They immediately came out and filled our tank and once again we had heat. Of course, this was after I had taken a shower.
But we made it to the Pinewood Derby on time. And it was a blast. Josh got first place and Jake got second place! We were so excited! They both worked really hard with Robb on their cars and were excited to see their cars do well. It was awesome! Here are some pictures of the boys and their cars.

Josh and Jake

Josh's car: White Lightning

Jake's car: The Star Destroyer

Jake

Josh

The practice run

All the cub scouts...and Kate in the bottom corner.
She wanted a car so bad.
Maybe next year we will have to "help" her build one.

Jake and Josh's cars

All the boys' cars

Jake and Bro. Youell, the scout leader

Josh and Bro. Youell

Josh and Jake after the races

The boys and Robb

Fun in Disney World

A couple of weeks before Christmas we were able to take a family vacation and go to Disney World. My mom as well as my brother and his family were able to come along. It was a total blast! We saw a lot of fun things and were able to spend a lot of time together with people that we love. Here are some pictures that recap our trip...

All the kids: Jake, Josh, Abbi (cousin), Kate, and Ethan (cousin). They are wearing shirts that Aunt Stefanie made for them.

Robb and I waiting to watch one of the spectacular parades. The parades and shows are one of my favorite things about Disney World. They are awesome!

My brother, Adam; his wife, Stefanie; Abbi; and Ethan

Stefanie and Adam waiting in line for a ride.

At one of the places we ate, Josh gathered everyone's trash from our group and made this tower. I couldn't resist taking a picture!

My mom and I.

A restaurant we ate at, Hollywood & Vine.

Another restaurant: T-REX. This was a really cool place that had moving dinosaurs, a fossil digging area and really good food!

Our table at T-REX. We were sitting under a giant jellyfish!

The boys outside the Tower of Terror. This is one of their favorite rides.

Robb and Jake getting ready to go on Big Thunder Mountain Railroad.

This is Josh, Ethan, and Adam on the ride. Robb snapped the picture as they were coming around the corner.

Josh outside the Haunted Mansion. This is his FAVORITE ride!

On the carousel...
One of Kate's favorite rides.

Here I am saving a horse for Robb. He was taking pictures and I wanted to make sure he got a horse near our group.

My mom, Kate, and Abbi on the teacups.

Adam took all the boys on the teacups...

Ready for the Bug's Life experience.

Kate ready to take off on the speedway! I hear from her father that the ride was a little bumpy.

The Astro-Orbiter.

Robb and Kate enjoying the ride on the Safari.

Jake, Josh, and I on the Safari.

Kate ready for Toy Story Mania.

It's a Small World After All!

Kate, Robb, and I on the Dumbo ride.

Here we are with MICKEY!

During this trip we got to see so many characters in addition to Mickey. Here are some that we saw:

Chip and Dale

Leo from Little Einsteins

Pocahontas

Jiminy Crickey

Raifiki

Winnie-the-Pooh

Eeyore

Tigger

Mike and Sully

Handy Manny

Nemo

And here is our whole group in front of the castle...

We had such a fun trip! There is so much to see and do at Disney World. We will have to go back again to do it all!