Disney + GFCF Diet = AWESOME!

(From the hubby's cell phone)

I was so worried about trying to stick with Enzo’s GFCF diet while out of town. Even though everywhere I’ve read, people have said that Disney is the best place to be while on the diet. However they did strongly recommend to contact Disney a couple of weeks ahead of time so they can walk you through it and to make sure at least one dining area can accomodate your needs. Well I didn’t have a couple of weeks and I didn’t call. So when it was lunch time, we found a fast food place (we’re talking greasy burgers and all the good stuff) to ask if they at least have a fruit cup or anything packaged just to fill Enzo’s belly. They called one of the managers over and she said they have substitutes for everything and will cook it any way we needed! WOW…well this lady pulls out a notebook that has every ingredient listed for everything on their menu PLUS a list of additional GFCF items they carry!

So after asking me what we’d like, this lady walks me to the register and orders for us…then they prepare the GFCF food in a separate kitchen. The food items are placed in CLOSED containers, I guess they are really careful about any kind of contamination. One of the staff from the special kitchen walks it to your tray. It was awesome! Definitely the easiest order I’ve ever done for Enzo…it must have tasted pretty good too because Enzo gobbled it up!

SPD Blog Carnival - Sensory Fun Photos

The last few months have been busy being busy, especially on the weekends. This past Saturday was such a rare treat to be able to really spend time at home to just kick back. Toots decided to hook the two little kids up with a little water fun for 3 reasons:

1. Enzo has been incredibly…not his usual Enzo self in a good way I might add! “A happy Enzo is a happy family” is the motto around here….
2. It has been soooooooooooooooo crazy hot!
3. Lizzie and her trach aren’t exactly BFF’s with swimming pools or any standing water for that matter.

 

 

They were out there at least a couple of hours before we had to get cleaned up to head out for more family fun and food. But they had a great time…esp Lizzie since we don’t ever take her to the pool. We did have to remind a certain little boy a couple of times not to splash towards Lizzie’s trach, but nothing that 5 minutes out of the water didn’t fix!

 

 

Hope we can sneak in a few more pleasant weekends like this before summer is over!

Click here to read about other families and their summer fun!

4 Soccer Games + Family = Weekend Fun!

Soccer season has officially started! With 5 kids in the family playing soccer this year, we definitely have long Saturdays ahead. Opening day started with 9am games for 3 of the kids, but it was a great time to just hangout with the entire family!

Enzo's age group were the cutest and funniest ever. When one kid falls, it's like dominoes and they all come crashing...umm although Enzo usually started the domino effect. He was so excited when he scored a goal!

Our kids had their own groupie, we all watched all the kids games even though the last game didn't end until after noon. Even the kids had a great time just hanging with the cousins.

2nd Annual Back 2 School Bash

Remember last year when we decided to have a Back 2 School Bash for the kids?? Well it's that time of year again, and this Ormeo Family tradition is here to stay. Just like last year, we didn't tell the kids what we were up to or that it was even time for another Bash, we wanted to keep it a surprise.

So after a slow start (another post for another day), we were headed to the beach! Fun in the sun always turns that frown upside down right?? RIGHT except Mr. Sun wasn't making his appearance!

By the time we headed out to St. Augustine, it was time for another Florida afternoon storm. After driving around for while, we decided to park to figure out our next step. We didn't want to waste the not-so-short drive out there! But God is good and He knew exactly what we needed to cheer us up and put us back in the mood to party! We ended up at Ripley's Believe It or Not! where they had a 2 for 1 special for admission, plus a free Enzo, so we decided to drop in!

Our kids are at a really great age right now to do 'stuff' and we don't have to chase anyone down or have to haul a stroller (although once in a while Enzo still opts for it and I don't blame him, I would too if I could!). PLUS everyone is potty trained! The kids even got to commemorate our Back 2 School Bash with a waxed hand. Each one got a mold of their hand so we can all look back and remember how small and little everyone was!

First they lather lotion all over your hand and have you dip your hand in ice for 20 seconds. Then they repeatedly dip your hand in 140 degree wax until they get the thickness just right. Oh the kids loved it! I haven't taken a picture of the finished product but Enzo did a peace sign, Lizzie signed 'I love you', and Ethan did 'Rock on!'

By the time we were done, the rain had stopped. Outside the museum, they had a radio station with a few vendors with fun kid stuff. The kids were so excited to get goodies and balloons and they even got to play with djembes!

Mr. Sun eventually made his appearance so off to the beach we went! And the kids were so excited!

This day which started out so grumpy turned out way better than we planned! The kids had a blast, now we're ready for a new school year. Till next year...

PS. Click here for more pictures from our 2nd Annual Back 2 School Bash.

Zoo Day

Last Friday was $2 Day at the Jax Zoo, so the Ormeo Zoo plus one took a trip in the heat and enjoyed a the day in the sun (which of course ended nicely with a torrential afternoon downpour).  Actually the heat wasn't too bad, maybe because there is a lot of shade and trees at the zoo.

Of course only my sensory overload child would be bothered by the sun and smell that the zoo had to offer! But he quickly got over it once we got moving and saw animals everywhere!

Every trip requires great tour guides, and these two were the best tour guides ever! Thankfully they weren't too cool to hang with me and the "little" kids.

The weather wasn't all bad for an August day in Florida. It was overcast most of the day, which I'm sure helped with the heat.  The mist was still a great way to cool off, esp for Lizzie who usually doesn't get to really 'play' in water.

After having lunch underneath a breezy spot, the kids wanted to cool off in the Water Park. Justin backed out because he didn't want his eczema to itch more, so he hung out with me under an umbrella. Poor guy was itching in the heat!

Lizzie was so excited to get to play in the Water Park. She doesn't get to do a lot with water because of her trach, but this water park had no standing water and no big splashing to worry about! Enzo was a little too excited that he had to sit in time out a couple of times for running. I couldn't let him run because a few kids had slipped and fallen on their backs just walking or standing in place.

Lizzie and Enzo wanted to climb this rope ladder to the top of the treehouse. I'll be honest, I really didn't think they could do it. They both proved me wrong! They were determined to climb up like the big kids and the 2 Kuyas (big brother in Tagalog/Filipino) were waiting up top encouraging and coaxing them till they made it.

We all had a great time! Lots of giggling and laughing, not much whining! (Can you believe that?!?!!?) We can't wait to visit again...

PS. Click here to view the rest of our zoo pictures.