2014 Holidays Pop Quiz

Okay readers, put your books away and take out a No. 2 pencil.  It's quiz time.  Hopefully you were paying attention the last four months and took good notes.  This is an open book quiz.  Feel free to use the pictures for clues.

1.  For Halloween, TJ and Grant dressed up as?

     a.  Phineas and Ferb

     b.  Elvis and Frank Sinatra

     c.  Wolfman and Captain American

     d.  Static Cling and a Sock

2.  Where was the Halloween party?

     a.  The Brown's House

     b.  The Haran's House

     c.  The Cul de Sac

     d.  What party?

3.  What was the first ride the Brown, Kirk, and Blockus clans rode on our trip to Disney World?

     a.  Seven Dwarves Mine Train Ride

     b.  Toy Story Mania

     c.  Star Tours

     d.  Space Mountain

4.  On Wednesday night who returned to Hollywood Studios to see the Christmas lights?

     a.  TJ, Rich, and Grace
     b.  Mark, Rich, and TJ
     c.  Kira, Grace, and Grant
     d.  Betty, Lisa, and TJ

5.  What Disney character did Grant not get his picture taken with?

     a.  Buzz Lightyear
     b.  Donald Duck
     c.  Chip n' Dale
     d.  Pluto

6.  Who went to Epcot Saturday morning?

     a.  Betty, Grace, Linda, and TJ
     b.  Mark, Rich, Lisa, and Grant
     c.  Betty, Linda, and Lisa
     d.  Lisa, Rich, TJ, and Grant

Bonus:  Who joined them for lunch?

     a.  Lisa, Rich, and Grant
     b.  Kira, Mark, and Rich
     c.  Grace, Linda, and Betty
     d.  Rich, TJ, and Grant

7.  What ride did Grant go on that TJ has never been on?

     a.  it's a small world
     b.  Goofy's Barnstormer
     c.  The Haunted Mansion
     d.  Hollywood Tower of Terror


8.  What seat did TJ sit in on Space Mountain?

     a.  Front
     b.  Middle
     c.  Back
     d.  TJ did not ride Space Mountain

9.  What did Grant and Rich do that no one else in the group did?

     a.  Rode the Seven Dwarves Mine Train Ride
     b.  Met Gaston
     c.  Rode the horse drawn trolley
     d.  Met WALL-E

10.  Which was NOT a pairing on Tomorrowland Speedway?

     a.  Grace and Linda
     b.  Mark and Kira
     c.  Rich and TJ
     d.  Lisa and Linda

11.  Who cooked the Thanksgiving turkey?

     a.  Linda
     b.  Lisa
     c.  Kira
     d.  Publix


12.  Who got which character hats?

     a.  TJ got Donald Duck and Lisa got Goofy
     b.  Rich got Goofy and TJ got Donald Duck
     c.  TJ got Donald Duck and Grant got Pluto
     d.  Grant got Pluto and Rich got Goofy

13.  Who did not go to Animal Kingdom on Friday?

     a.  Betty
     b.  Linda
     c.  Lisa
     d.  Grace

14.  What was Grant's favorite present for his 4th birthday?

     a.  Cement Mixer
     b.  Underwear
     c.  Stitch pillow
     d.  iTunes Gift Card

15.  What was the name of the guest who joined us for Christmas dinner?

     a.  Martin
     b.  Mervin
     c.  Merlin
     d.  Marvin

16.  What cool present did Rich get for Christmas?

     a.  Xbox One
     b.  GoPro Camera
     c.  Lego Star Wars AT-AT
     d.  iTunes Gift Card


17.  Who cooked the Christmas day turkey?

     a.  Linda
     b.  Lisa
     c.  Kira
     d.  Publix

18.  Where was New Year's Eve held?

     a.  The Aviator
     b.  The Draftline
     c.  The Haran's house
     d.  The Brown's house


19.  Who bailed out on baby sitting within 15 minutes of getting to the party?

     a.  Grace
     b.  India
     c.  Kira
     d.  Betty

20.  Who almost got arrested by the police for shooting fireworks?

     a.  Rich
     b.  Lisa
     c.  Mark
     d.  TJ

Answers in the next Journal entry!

Get Away

No one has posted here in long time!  Are we that busy?  We haven't posted for Halloween, Thanksgiving (and the big family trip to Disney World), Grant's Birthday, Christmas, or New Years.

As soon as I get home I posting stories and photos.  There is a lot of catching up to do.

Home?  Yes, I have been away from home living in a hotel suite since mid-January in Enterprise, AL.  No, Lisa did not toss me out.  Yes, this is work related - a six week long school for my civilian employment.  It's about four weeks of material stretched across a month and a half.  It's a good course but the pace and method of teaching it need to be reconsidered. 

But I digress.

The other week Lisa was able to find a weekend babysitter and she flew to Atlanta on a Friday to meet me before the Valentine's weekend.  It's a three hour drive from Ft. Rucker, AL to Atlanta but our timing was perfect as I pulled up to the Delta terminal just as Lisa walked out the door.  My good wife found a glitzy hotel up in Buckhead that treated us like VIPs.  Or at least we acted liked VIPs with a big corner room with lots of windows.

It was like an extended date night where we able to NOT talk about the kids, stay out later than usual, and sleep in a little longer without being pounced upon by Grant at oh-dark-sunrise.  Our Saturday morning walk around a high end mall in Buckhead did not inspire us for our bedroom remodel - but the Chipolte was nice.

We adventured by MARTA to Centennial Park and the Georgia Aquarium.  I like cities and city transportation.  Getting on a train in a place you've never been to before helps add to the adventure.  The park was a quick walk through on the way to the aquarium.  Ah, the aquarium!  We sat for a long time in front of a massive wall of thick plexi-acrylic staring at whale sharks gliding by, sting rays swimming loop-d-loops, and other fish moseying by while not being pulled by children - or having to chase after them.  It was such a change for us with two high energy boys.  The word, Pleasant, comes to mind.  Fun, is the other.

An Irish pub in downtown Atlanta filled us with a beer and warm pretzels before heading back north.  We then discovered that failing to make reservations at an Italian restaurant is not a good idea on a Saturday night.  We also learned that Italian take out tastes just as good in the room as it does in crowded restaurant without a two hour wait! 

Sunday morning arrived with a trip to a Waffle House in Buckhead - the cast and crew are always the same, much to our bemusement - before dropping Lisa off at the airport. 

I couldn't help but make a get away from our get away and detoured off of I-85 for twenty minutes to find the town of Senoia, GA, the setting for "Woodbury, GA", from the show, The Walking Dead.  The Walking Dead is one of the few shows that we watch regularly together.  We watched from the very first episode so driving the same place at the Zombie Apocalypse is occurring on the show was well worth the added time to get back.  And, it turns out, Senioa, GA, is "Woodbury" with the exceptions of the trash and fortifications from the show.  I was a totally geeked out tourist - snapping pictures and selfies - to the envy of the other fans of the show.

It was great to be away from our lives and work and children.  It is okay to not bring the kids everywhere, all the time. We - as adults - as married partners - need to be reminded of that from time to time and get away more often.