End of the Bears Era

Sadly the Bears baseball era has come to an end.  After 4 years (8 seasons) Jackson and a few teammates are moving onto a more competitive baseball team, the Oklahoma Braves.  We have loved watching the Bears boys develop into baseball players these past years!  We sure will miss our Bears family but are so excited for Jackson's next baseball chapter!

Look at my little man at his first tball game in September 2016!  He was serious then and still has that competitive baseball drive!

Crazy the difference in 4 years!  Jackson is developing into one heck of a baseball player! 

Raptors Baseball

Mason is such a natural at baseball and has so much confidence out on the field!  Can't wait to watch him play for years and years to come!!!  One of his teammates sister's was home from college due to Covid and she snapped these pictures of Mason doing what he loves!  I sure do love these Raptor boys!

"Back to School"

After the longest spring break in history (6+ months) the kids headed back to school Covid style!  This will be another school year for the memory books.  I loved having them home for the past 6 months but we are all excited for more structure and routine!  We had our ups and downs the past 6 months but 2020 is teaching us all to slow down a little and enjoy our time together, because we all know it goes too quickly!

We are starting school on a A/B hybrid model.  The Miller trio is schedule A so they are going to school on Monday and Tuesday, along with half of their class.  Wednesday, Thursday and Friday are virtual days for them.   So thankful our school district is giving the kids an in person learning option for a little bit of normalcy!  Honestly, I think this A/B model might be the best thing for our family.  With smaller classes (~ 10 kids) on their A days, the kids will be getting more one on one attention from their teachers and a higher quality of education!  Plus the virtual days gives us more flexibility, makes our evening sports more manageable and gives me more time with my trio!  Who would have thought when I stopped working in March 2019 that I would be "homeschooling" the kids and gaining back so much time with them.  I worked the first 7 years of their lives and felt so guilty but I'm making up for it now.  Quality time I never thought I would get!!!  So thankful!

We were SO excited to receive our Meet the Teacher email to find out that Jackson and Harper have Mrs. Decker for 3rd grade and Mason has Ms. Cox for 1st grade.  Two amazing teachers that are the perfect fit for the kids.  This is the first time since Kindergarten Jackson and Harper have been in the same class.  It was a last minute decision but I think it will be best for our virtual days.  Jackson and Harper graciously said they would do whatever made it easier for our family, so same class it is!

Meet the teacher day looked very different this year.  The teachers sat outside for the introductions because parents are not allowed in the building.  We received an email from our teachers giving a tour of their classroom.  Strange to think that parents might not step foot in their child's classroom this year.  

Jackson and Harper are already loving Mrs. Decker, even though she is an OSU alum :)

We loved Ms. Cox when Harper had her for 1st and are so excited for Mason to be in her class this year!  She is the best!

First day of school!

Masked up and ready to go! 

We couldn't walk the kids up on the first day so the only pic I could snap was while I was driving off after they hopped out of carline.  Go do big things Miller trio!!

The first day was a HUGE success!  All three said it was the best day.  Mason even said it might have been better than Disney World, WHAT?!?!?  So glad that even with all the change and mask wearing they had a great day!  Kids sure do see the good in every situation!

Day 2 of school looked very different!  This was our first virtual day at home.  We bounced from room to room to find the perfect work station, not sure we found it but we will keep trying.  First virtual day was a little rough balancing the three but I have no doubt it will get better!

Disney Covid Trip

The kids and I took a once in a life time Covid trip to Disney World!  We all needed a little Disney magic and happiness in our lives before starting part time home schooling again!  We were sad Tyler couldn't make the trip, but we were so thankful for our travel partners Meggie, Carter and Adley.   When two Disney loving moms have husbands tied down at work, we decided to take on Disney with the kids!  Best decision EVER!  Zero planning, no lines, endless rides, constant hand sanitizing, all time mask wearing and super clean parks made for the best last minute vacation!   The longest we waited was 20 mins for a ride and we were able to ride everything at least once, and most rides multiple times.  And the best part was there was ZERO planning!  We booked 7 days before leaving and there were no fast passes or sit down dining.  The easiest Disney trip ever!!!

First flights during Covid . . . mandatory masks, no middle seats taken and a way cleaner plane.  Sounds ideal (minus the masks)

These boys cracked me up studying their plane safety!

Landed and the Disney Express whisked us off to our hotel, Caribbean Yacht Club.  This bus is typically packed but not during Covid!

Couldn't wait to hit up the resort pool our first day, after a quick cat nap!  

Love this kid crew and this view at the resort!

Off to Disney Springs for dinner!

First temperature check of the trip!  Every park required a temp check prior to entering!

Love this ladies man!

Our first park day we were off to Hollywood Studios!  The new skyliner was the best ride to the park!  Such a great addition to Disney transportation!

It was 90+ degrees and incredibly humid but we were all so excited to hit the park with our masks on!

First impression of the park was that it was empty!  Never can you take a picture in Toy Story with only 1 person in the background!

We were some of the first in line at Slinky Dog Dash and by the end of the day we rode at least 6+ times!

Harper was a little scared her first time but by the end she loved it and continued to ride!

We were all excited to ride the newest ride at Hollywood Studios, Mickey and Minnie's Runaway Train.  We waited the longest for the ride but it was so worth it!  Super super cute!  Goofy's train took us into their cartoon to experience the fun!

This was a dance room and the cars did synchronized dancing to the music!  So cute!

 

Loved running into the Forrest family at Hollywood Studios!  Mason and Harper were so excited to hang with even more friends! 

The newest Star Wars rides were legit!  Can't even imagine how much more I would have loved them if I were a Star Wars fanatic!  Rise of the Resistance is one of the hardest rides to get on at Disney and we did it easily!

 

Harper and her Disney girl gang!  The O'Donnells were also in town which was super fun!  Disney with friends is even more magical!

Love these two boys, Mason and Gus!

Jackson rode Tower of Terror 3 times, once with me, once with Meggie and once with the Forrests and O'Donnells.  He lived his best life at Disney!

And he also rode Rockin Roller Coaster 3 times!  The last time we were at Disney (November 2018) Jackson wasn't tall enough to ride.  He left Disney so sad and thought he would never have the chance to ride Rockin Roller Coaster!  But then Covid hit and opened up this opportunity :)

Buckled up and ready to ride!

Jackson had some big eyes the first time!

The entire group (Millers, Nelsons, O'Donnells, Forrests) met up for a Toy Story Mania competition later in the day!  We rode 5+ times consecutively trying to beat each others scores!

Every afternoon a storm would roll in for 1-2 hrs!  Ponchos on and ready to keep going!

We came, we rode it all and now onto the next day, next park!

Day 2 was Magic Kingdom.  No more finger print checking at the entrance, only magic band scanning.  Not sure why it took Covid to realize how filthy it was to have everyone touch the same finger scanner!

This might be my favorite picture of the trip!  

Empty streets at opening!!!

Harper was a little nervous to try Seven Dwarfs Mine Train.  But just like Slinky Dog, she did it and loved it!

One of Jackson's all time favorite rides at Disney is Splash Mountain so it was one of the first rides we hit up. 

Love having the entire boat for me and the boys!

It's a small world is such a classic and great break from the heat!

The kids got a kick out of seeing these dolls with "masks" on.  We had to explain that it's part of the culture in India to cover their faces.  Wonder if this will now be part of America's culture, even post Covid???

The only character sightings were the mini parades throughout the day.  They couldn't have normal parades due to crowds congregating so they did parades with 1-2 floats.

Driving the speedway cars is always a Miller favorite!  I've got some crazy drivers in my house!

Another afternoon, another storm!

We spend our third and final day at Animal Kingdom!

The staff greeted us all as we walked into the park, kind of felt like we were entering Kanakuk!

I bribed Mason with a new lego set to ride Everest!  He did it, liked it but said he wouldn't ride again!  So glad he gave it a try.  I could only ride twice before I started to feel whoosy!  Jackson just kept on riding!

Flight of Passage is typically a 3+ hour wait and has been since the day it opened in 2017.  We "waited" 15 mins and that wait was the time it took to walk through the normal waiting cue.   The kids rode 4 times, that is unheard of during normal times!  This was Mason and Harper's first time to ride and they both loved it!

Best ride EVER!!!

We ended our last evening with a swim, rain shower and rainbow!   The rainbow was the perfect ending and sign that our trip was meant to be!  Truly a magical and unforgettable vacation!  I hated that Tyler couldn't join, but I was so glad to make these memories with the kids, especially during these crazy times!