Random fun in North Carolina

This post is just full of some randomness I came across when looking through pictures for my North Carolina posts. Nothing super exciting but they were cute/fun so I wanted to share.

The Boy loves fried rice. I mean LOVES. As in, will lick EVERY. SINGLE. GRAIN. off his plate. It's a sickness really. Though I should just be happy his rice does not drown swim in soy sauce like Cat Boy's. So anyway, he wanted to learn how to make fried rice himself so I showed him how. He now makes it all the time. He does a really good job and it is quite yummy. It is great that he can make it now because it not only frees me up to work on a meat, but we can't eat Chinese food out at many places because it is riddled with cross contamination for nut allergies. Here are some pictures from his first go at it.
The boys left their closet open one day. All four kids share the same closet. Princess and Money have their clothes that are not hung up on the bottom shelf. She took this opportunity to bring me as many clothes as possible to put on her, at the SAME time. So yeah, that was funny. She walked around in her many, many, layers for hours that day. In the first picture she is standing in the doorway with some of our clothes she had been carrying around too. She didn't want them on, she just carried them. Picture two is the amended outfit after a diaper change and for nap time. Apparently the footie jammies were just to much for nap time. Oh and if you are looking for a great travel bed option for your little one we LOVE our KidCo Peapod Plus Portable Bed. We had a problem with it at one point and the company was AMAZING and sent us a new one right away. For FREE! I would highly recommend it and the KidCo company (And yes that is an affiliate link) KidCo Peapod Plus Portable Bed - Kiwi When she is not sleeping in her KidCo tent she just sleeps wherever apparently. Picture 3 was right before she fell asleep. She was watching tv. Yes, I moved her so she didn't fall off.

So while at breakfast one day at the office of the RV park the kids and I were talking to the front desk lady. We got to talking about snow and I mentioned I grew up outside Chicago. Turns out she did too....then it turned out we grew up in the same area....and went to the same high school....and graduate the SAM YEAR! I mean really what are the odds of that? SHOUT OUT JEN! So needless to say we spent a lot of morning eating and talking. So one day she told the kids she would give them $1 if they would go all the way in the pool. Now, the hot tub is heated but the pool is NOT. It hadn't been filled very long and it was November, so it was like an ICE BATH. The older boys wanted no part of it but Monkey was all over it if she would up it to $5. So she did. So later that day we got our suits on and Monkey went to do the challenge. Now I ended up taking about 4 different videos and he never did do it. Once he did dunk the very top of his head in for about half a second but then ran screaming to the hot tub. LOL This is the main video I took though. Good times, good times.


Princess learned how to turn on the radio in the rig. So she would (and still does) turn it on and make people dance with her. FOREVER. Really, she rotates through people till she gets bored. She NEVER gets bored.....we eventually all just collapse or try 50 things to distract her. This girl really loves to dance. Picture one is her and The Boy dancing, picture two is a shirt I had to get her because of the reaction when we stop dancing with her, or really any time she does not get what she wants, or thinks she might not get what she wants, or food is cooking, or the fan in the car is on, or, well you get the picture. It says My name is Princess Fussy-Pants and the shirt isn't lying.
Meet Tongue. He is a cat that Cat Boy HAD to have when we were at the mall one day. So The Hubby went back and got it for him as a birthday present. Cat Boy took this picture of him. I just had to share because it's to cute. Next we have my old Care Bears! My mom kept them from when I was little and used them for her daycare kids. Monkey and I had been watching Care Bears so I asked her to send them to me. Princess loves them and plays with them all the time. In picture three you can even see one must not be feeling well. She is putting some Young Living oil on it. She knows what is good for her Care Bears. The last picture is of a panda at BJ's. No, we did not buy it! We don't have the room. She did however hug it and talk to it all through the store. She was just fine when we put it back at the end of our trip. I was hard to do because she like him and he was soooooooooo soft.

Great Wolf Lodge Charlotte, NC

As I mentioned earlier we had to delay Cat Boy's birthday trip to Great Wolf Lodge in Charlotte NC. In our family we like to give experiences for birthday's instead of parties or presents. The kids love picking where they want to go for their birthday and it is fun for the whole family.

The first thing I did when we got our room was to unpack my diffuser. I had to throw some thieves in there to help kill the cooties and keep us healthy. Plus it smells sooooooo good.
We went down to the water park first. The kids were super excited to be at a differnt Great Wolf Lodge location. We have been to the Poconos location once and the Williamsburg location like 12 times. This location was missing a lazy river and hot tubs which pretty much had The Hubby in a tizzy. Those are his two favorite things and they were both MIA. They did have a cute little kids area that Princess really likes and a fun racing slide where you go down on foam mats. Overall I think we like the Williamsburg water park area better.

Every night they have face painting, story time, a little show at the clock tower ( that kid is creeeeeepy), and some other activities. Monkey always gets his face painted. This trip he also did some sand art in the Cub Club. The Cub Club has both free and pay for activities and is always great for a little break. In the morning Monkey also did the Wolf Walk where he learned about wolves.
No trip to Great Wolf Lodge is complete without a round of MagicQuest. The boys all have their own wands and we have the compass as well. This version was a bit different then the one in Williamsburg so that was really nice for the boys since they have done it so many times. This time The Boy did the Compass Quest instead. It is a bit harder because it is timed. Running back and forth sure was a work out.

For food we usually being our own breakfast, snacks, and drinks. This trip we brought sandwich stuff as well. Each room comes with a mini fridge and microwave so that is a great way to save money. This time we got pizza from the pizza place downstairs. It is safe for Monkey with his pranut/tree nut allergy. They are really great there dealing with allergies which always makes our trip more relaxing.

Cat Boy had gotten a gift card for his birthday from his grandparents in VA and he was careful in figuring out what he wanted. Princess fell in love with 2 type died beanie babies and he offered to buy her one if I bought her the other one. There was NO way I could refuse. For anyone close to us you know how huge this was. The older she gets the more their relationship grows. He just has no use for babies since they can't interact as much. He kept the rest of his gift card till we were leaving. He carefully looked at everything and picked out what he wanted. A light up wand and some giant tube of sour sugar. He calculated his total and let his brothers know he had enough for them to get a sugar stick too but only a medium one. I forked up the extra for them to all get a large. I was so proud of him for sharing his money.

Atkinson Mill

This was a trip I was really excited about. I had come across one of the few remaining water powered grist mills. Atkinson Mill in Selma, NC was high on my list of things to see. When we got out of the car the first thing we noticed was the SMELL! OMG it smelled like the yummiest place on Earth. It was the smell of cooking Hush Puppies and I was pretty sure The Boy was going to take off running to find them.

I wasn't sure what to expect when we got there but it was a lot smaller then I thought. I guess I was thinking they were a big factory but it isn't. The original mill was built in 1757 but burned down in the 50's and they rebuilt it. We waited in the front office for a but while we waited for our tour guide.

As we walked down to the mill we got a brief history of the place and talked for a bit. When we got to the mill we were able to look over into the water and see where the original water wheel was to draw up the water to runt he mill. Of course now they pull the water in electronically but they still have the wheel there to show people how it works. He turned it on for us and it started to run backwards. So he turned it off and said we would try it again in a bit. It was REALLY loud when it was on.

We went into the mill and everything was covered in a fine powder of ground up corn. He showed us where the corn comes in and where the stones grind it.


Right next to the grinders you could see the water outside and it too was covered in a yellow corn power.

From the grinders the ground corn is brought down the the next level where you could see some workers filling bags of corn meal. They make a lot of mixes there and everything is mixed right there where we were standing. It was really cool being able to see everything so up close. When we went down to where the guys were bagging up stuff we were shown what is leftover from the ground corm. We now know where corn flakes come from, yep it is all the stuff that isn't fine enough for the corn meal.
We went back outside and he started up the wheel again. This time it went the right way and it was MUCH quieter. It was really cool seeing it in action and the kids asked a lot of questions. We watched it for a few minutes and headed back to the front office. While walking back we stopped to look at the little well where they still get water if they need a drink. It was the same one they used to use when the mill opened.

We found out the hush puppies they were making were for a local restaurant in the area. They smelled delish so we knew we would be buying some of the mix. Back at the office we went over to the shelves of stuff for sale and picked up about 8 bags of stuff. The Hush Puppy mix was amazing. Especially the one with onion. I got a buttermilk biscuit mix that was not very good when I mad it. I will try it again but it was missing some sort of fat. The seafood breading was really good as well. We used it on some fish. We have yet to try all the mixes but I have hope for them. Cat Boy can not wait to try the Funnel Cake mix.

Tobacco Farm Life Museum

We wanted to get out of the house and see what there was around Four Oaks, North Carolina. When we had been at the Outlet Mall I saw a brochure for the Tobacco Farm Life Museum in Kenly, NC. I saw that on this day they were going to have a Blacksmith present and that sounded pretty cool so we loaded up the van and headed out. It was $8 for me and $6 for the kids. Princess was free since she was under 2.
We decided to start by looking around the museum. There was a lot of fun things from the past that the kids were amazed by. They had an old kitchen set up including a doll inside a tub on the stove. This lead to some interesting conversations about throwing the baby out with the bath water, no indoor plumbing, heating water, wood stoves, ect. There was an old doctors office set up too which I think made all all VERY thankful for modern medicine. I mean VERY, VERY, thankful. We also found a little kid area that was super cute. It has a little kitchen with fake food, a checker board, dress up clothes, tools, puzzles, and so much more. We spent a good amount of time in there just playing. We were the only ones there most of the time, and the only littles the whole time.


We finally made it outside to find the Blacksmith. Outside the Blacksmith workshop they had some guys there making rope. Each of the kids got a turn to make a piece of rope and they also got to keep it. It was really cool watching them make the rope. They asked about where the twine came from to make the rope and if the guy made the twine too. (He did not and was quite amused when the kids asked why not. Apparently my kids are an all or nothing bunch.)

We went inside and watched the Blacksmiths for quite a while. The main guy was making Oyster knives. They had some nice things you could buy there but I had no cash on me. The Boy was really into it and asked a lot of questions. Monkey enjoyed it as well but Cat Boy was done after a few minutes. He is much more a doer then a watcher.


We decided to take a break and walk around the grounds a bit. There were a few houses set up like they used to be int he early 20th century. We talked about what beds were made out of back then, and how the houses were set up, and observed how little"stuff" they had. Even with us living in a RV traveling we have so much more STUFF then they did back then. When I think about all the crap stuff we used to have in oue home compared to now, or what they had back then it is mind blowing. To be 110% honest with you, I DO NOT MISS ANY OF IT! Sure, I sometimes miss being able to sit in the bathtub without eating my knees. I sometimes miss having counter space that is bigger then a plate. Sure I sometimes miss having a closet where my shirts don't bunch up at the bottom. But, I have NOT ONCE missed the CRAP STUFF!

We stopped by the Blacksmiths again on the way out to see what else they were up to. It was starting to rain and it was pretty chilly so we decided to head on out. We stopped at the little store on the way out and they had some cute stuff. I was hoping for some of the little key chains the blacksmiths had for sale in the workshop but no luck. They had some other things for sale but they were bigger and it was nothing we NEEDED. See the above comment about STUFF. We talked tot he shop workers for a few and then headed to the van. We were all happy to turn the heat on and get toasty. We had a good time and I would recommend checking it out of you are every close to Kenly, Nc.

Happy Birthday Cat Boy and Happy Halloween

We decided to leave Virginia when we did because out house had finally rented out and The Hubby's grandma was ill. We knew it would not be much time till she passed and wanted to be moved to a new location before he went back to see her. Just a couple days after we got the North Carolina he got the call that she was not doing to well and packed up and headed to KY to be with his dad and go visit. This meant he would miss Cat Boy's Birthday and Halloween, but the whole family agreed that him going to KY/OH was much more important. Carol ended up passing on November 1st, 2014. She will be missed by many.

Cat Boy's birthday was on the 28th. Since the RV park had a heated hot tub and it was a nice day out and Cat Boy LOVES water we decided to go swimming. Needless to say the pool itself was pretty much the temperature of water right before it turns into a solid. The hot tub however was nice and toasty. So we played in there for a while. I mean how often can you go swimming outside at the end of October?

For dinner he wanted his favorite The Cheesecake Factory. Not for the dinner of course, but the cheesecake. Cheesecake is his absolute favorite food. There was one about an hour away so off we went. We were sure to send lots of pictures and text updates to The Hubby so he could still be part of Cat Boy's birthday. His present was a trip to Great Wolf Lodge like we do for most birthday's around here. He knew the trip would need to be put off till after daddy got home and that was fine with him.

Halloween was interesting. We had found out the Outlet Mall had Trick-or-Treating so we headed there to be there when it started in case it got bust. We hit Golden Corral before hand for dinner and then hit the mall a bit early to get our costumes together. I was the Tardis, The Boy was Dr. Who, Cat Boy was a cat (Duh), Monkey was Stuffy Man (a stuffed animal super hero. A combo of 2 of his favorite things), and Princess was of course Anna. Princess was really cute. She grabbed her Frozen bag and ran from store to store. She got really mad if people tried to put the candy in her bag, they had to hand it to her and SHE would put it in there. LOL She is to funny.



There was only a handful of stores participating so we were done in less then an hour. Money was sure to tell EVERYONE he has a nut allergy and he only took safe candy. We had a pretty good haul and Cat Boy was ready to head home but the other 2 wanted to find some houses. I had NO CLUE where we were but how hard could it be to find a subdivision by an outlet mall right? WRONG! I found some but apparently they don't have sidewalks or trick-or-treaters. I pulled up Google Maps on my phone and was looking at the satellite images to find subdivisions. After driving through like 3 over the course of like 45 mins I finally found some people outside one house. I pulled my huge van over and got out in my Tardis dress. They were looking at me like I was nuts. Maybe, probably, I was. I told them we just got to the area a few days ago and dispite driving around for 45 mins we had yet to find a neighborhood with sidewalks, or trick-or-treaters. They laughed and assured me it was NOT my lack of navigational skills, but it was a hard thing to find. They gave me directions to a neighborhood close by that everyone flocks to and off we went. They were right, there were TONS of people there. We found a spot to park and started hitting houses. Apparently most people just drive and let their kid out to kit a few houses, drive a bit farther down, and repeat. We actually got out and WALKED. You know, the old fashioned way.

We had a blast and saw some great costumes. When we had enough candy for a diabetic coma for all we headed home, happy to know that no matter where we were, we would find a way to make everything work. The kids had been very worried about our first holiday away from somewhere we knew. That we would not find a place to trick-or-treat, that Halloween would not be as fun as back home, that we would be missing something. Instead we learned that no matter what, we CAN make it work. That we WILL find a way. That when everyone else is frustrated and ready to give up, mommy will get out of the car, in her Tardis dress, and ask perfect strangers for help, no matter what said strangers might think. And that friends, is what this life is all about.

Welcome to North Carolina

The Hubby has a 200 mile radius for distance to travel on moving days. Towing the rig is a lot of his nerves. So I spent a while searching for an RV park before we left. I thought I had found a good one in Selma, NC. RVacation RV park. I was wrong. We pulled in, was told we coupld have a temporary spot for the night then move to another spot the next day even though that other spot was open. They wanted to leave it open for people just stopping for the night. Ummmm, no. You are going to ask people that are staying for a MONTH to move tomorrow because it is easier for you? Plus their high speed internet was no so high speed. Their park looked like you needed a tetanus shot just to look at it and the back lots were full of construction garbage. So, we got on our phones and looked for another place. The Hubby finally found somewhere. It was a BRAND new park that was park of the same group we had just left in VA. We called up and they had lots of spots since they had just opened a few weeks before. We all hopped back in out vehicles and drove the 9 mines down the road to Raleigh Oaks RV Resort. As soon as we pulled in we knew we were at the right spot! They have 2 pools, a hottub, mini gold, laundry, a rec room, free waffles in the morning, a park, and more.

Hello out there......

Yes, I suck. I know. I have not blogged anything in 2 months. I am working right now on getting caught up. Which would not be so bad if I was just 2 months behind. Except, I am almost 7 months behind. Yeah, I suck.

Yep, that's me. Googling Meme's about slacking while I am saying I am going to update everything. In my defence I am waiting for all my photos to upload to Picasa from my phone since my laptop was murdered dies when it was pushed fell off the couch. My new laptop does not have enough storage for the 9,867,456 thousands of photos I have on dropbox. So, I wait while 1777 items upload. Then I can blog all the things.

Ooooo look Facebook games.............