Summer Vacation

This week we recupperated from last week's vacation --- runny noses, coughs, laundry, unpacking, laundry, cleaning, laundry and more laundry. Unlike the mundane of this week, vacation was a blast!

We spent five days camping in Branson, playing at The City (as in S*lver Dollar C*ty) and visiting other hot spots around town. The weather was interesting...a few hot afternoons with scattered thunder storms that cooled the evenings and mornings. We faired well in our tent and declare the camping a great success, even though Eric stood outside during one t-storm to brace our tent while a tree fell down nearby. The mobile home campers were so sweet to come by and make sure the crazy family with two little ones was still alive. :)

The City was awesome! We bought season passes early on in the year for just a little more than a regular one day pass and hope to visit again this Summer and maybe again in the Fall and Winter. The last time I was in The City was 15 years ago, but as Elle and Zane experienced it for the time, I had flashbacks of being there with my parents when I was a little girl -- it was very surreal and a joy to see the pleasure the kiddos had from it all.

Elle was tall enough to ride all the kiddie rides with one of us and there were several rides that our entire family got to do together, like the train ride. There was also water toys, a swinging bridge, a funny house, animals, music and fun foods to try. Elle also rode her first roller coaster (It was fast, for me!) and loved it! She was also just tall enough to ride the Ladybug without an adult -- oh boy, was she excited about that and she did a super job! Of course, we were just 10 feet away, taking pictures and talking to her the entire time. We actually could have reached out and touched her, but she felt like the 'biggest' girl ever! So much fun! Her favorite ride was the swings -- huge swinging contraption that takes you way up in the air and makes you feel like you're flying. We rode it over and over and over again. I think it was my favorite too. Zane spent a lot of time in our new Sit & Stand stroller (LOVE IT!!!!) and would probably say that was his favorite ride of the week...oh wait, no...his favorite ride was the shuttle bus that took us from the exit to our car parking lot! He insisted on sitting on the seat, not my lap, and had a silly grin on his face as he held is head up to feel the wind slap his face. :)

We also enjoyed a ride and tour on a Duck, based on the classic 1942 WWII DUKW. DUKW is a military acronym. The letters are codes indicating that it was designed in 1942 (D), for utility/amphibious purposes (U), with front wheel drive (K), and two rear driving axles (W). It's a very odd looking water/land vehicle, with a duck-like shape. Our guide told stories of past and present, we learned about Ozark Mountain and Branson's history, the lakes, about famous personalities and the area’s impact on the state and our nation. Of course, the highlight was going from land to sea as we splashed down into Table Rock Lake! Our guide even let the kids drive the boat and Eric got a little wet. Zane slept through the entire tour...it was a cool morning in an open air vehicle, no car seat, laying in Mama's arms while the truck/boat bounced us up and down in rythmn, he was out in five!

Another surprise was how much we enjoyed the D*xie Stampede! It's a Civil War, horse entertainment show in a gigantic arena with a massive meal eaten with one's fingers. The show was stellar, patriotic and so entertaining! We all enjoyed it - Zane stood up, clapped, danced, pointed, screamed and was thoroughly riveted for 2 1/2 hours. Elle sat in stunned silence...not sure if it was the horses, pigs, lights, music, dancing or the large cornish hen on her plate that awed her the most, but it was really a great show and we're glad we did it.

We were very pleased with the sense of family, patriotism and faith in all the activities we enjoyed. We are definitely looking forward to our next trip back to the Ozarks!

I've posted some pics and slide show below.