Day 3

     We saved the best for last! We woke up early and packed up after breakfast. We stopped to return our keys, and I tried to tell the staff that the map is a mess and to tell incoming guests to go the easier way along the road. The lady kept correcting me, and I am sad to say I was overcome with the spirit of Lady Cathrine De Bourgh and stated that she needn't tell me about the roads as I will never grace their establishment again. Daniel followed behind my sweeping exit and murmured good-humouredly about getting in a final sting. I was quite put out.

    We drove to Silverdollar City. We went early enough to get good parking; however, with our inexperience, we parked a good distance away. They have regular trams and buses to bring you up to the front. We joined the rapidly lengthening queue and settled in to wait. There were signs that said it was a 6 min walk, and after the second tram bypassing our stop, we decided to trudge up to the entrance. 

    There are several artisans throughout the park. They had demonstrations throughout the day. We saw the taffy maker make caramel-flavored taffy. It was fun watching them work.

We took the train and endured train robbers. Emily gave one of them some of our popcorn.

    Teddy went on this ride, and there was an adult and his father getting on the ride too. They were recreating a picture from when he was a little kid. It was fun talking to his mom as we waved at our kids on the ride. 

    This Huck Fun water ride was Henry's favorite. It has hand-cranked water cannons all around the ride and on the ride, so you can interact with people waiting to get on or passersby. When I first entered the park, I saw several people in swimsuits, and I was wondering why, but there were a surprising amount of water rides. 

    He got absolutely soaked, but loved shooting the cannons. We went into Grandpa's mansion, the place is full of optical illusions and surprises. It was nice and cool in the slanted room, as I sat on the downward slanted bench, it was the most comfortable I'd been in days! I didn't want to move.

An army of Henrys!

    After a long day playing, we started for home, stopped off for some ice cream at Brahms. Daniel had remembered them from various trips in the past, and it was well worth the trip. The store sells many things, with a ton of ice cream and dairy products, as well as a fast-food side. Apparently, you can even get a bag of burgers!

    The Ice cream was wonderful and just what we needed to finish our trip. We headed home for some well-deserved rest.

Anniversary Trip Day 2

  For our second day, Daniel and I went to hear the sales pitch while the kids relaxed. Our guide was actually a member of our church from Venezuela. She was so nice and fun to talk to. After that, we went to the cabin to change and got ready for the water park. We started with the wave pool.

Devon and Lizzy went off to try the slides while the rest of us played.

    We went on a group raft ride a few times. It was fun, but I think Oceans of Fun is better. After a full day playing in the water, we changed and went to a fun restaurant for dinner called The Hook and Ladder. It is a firefighter-themed pizza/pasta place. They had badges from all over. It was so cool!

They had this tiny hall filled with gear that they let you put on.

    The food was great, and you couldn't beat the atmosphere. A place that ticks all the boxes is a rare find, but this really hit the spot. It was next to a fun London pub and on this cute street. 

    We headed out to The Sight and Sound Theater to experience their production of David. When we had made plans for this trip, I gave the kids a choice of either a magic show or David. All but one kid chose David. I was excited to see it. I had heard it was really good.

    The show was amazing. I had streamed their show, Jesus during Easter, and I was impressed with the sets and acting. They have a huge menagerie of animals that they make good use of. They have double screens so they can project on either to create immersive scenes. The Golath and brothers were amazing puppets. Our seats were next to the aisle where several sheep, a few horses, and actors rushed through. It was so fun. Teddy had an accident, and the staff was so accommodating in helping me clean him up. He soon fell asleep; the show started at his bedtime, and no amount of lights or sounds could keep him from succumbing to sleep. Which was a mercy in the end, as he is a talker otherwise. They are having their shows free to stream here from June 29th through July 3rd, if you want to get a taste. It was a wonderful day.

 

Happy Anniversary!

     Daniel and I celebrated our 20th anniversary in June. We took the kids to Branson to celebrate. Our first stop was Fritz’s Adventure. After the 3-hour car ride and lunch in the parking lot, the kids were ready to play.

    Besides the climbing and ziplines, they had a laser game. Teddy loved showing off his skills. They had a viewing window so I could get a picture.

Hi Charles!

    Here's a quick video of our experience:

    We played for four hours. Afterwards, we headed to the cabin. At check-in, the girl tried to show us where it was located and how to get there. She highlighted the map and told us there were new roads. We wandered and wandered; there were no roads. After consulting the map a fifth time, we went out to the road and came in the back way, which worked much better. To add to the confusion, the cabins had 2 different numbers on them. We tried the keys, and it worked, so we unpacked, and I made dinner. 

    Devon and Henry fought over a room. They both wanted to sleep in the same room, but not with each other. So in the end, they shuffled around a bit, but Henry and Teddy ended up in the room. Charles and Devon had a blow-up. Not bad for our first day.

The Start of Summer

     To welcome summer, we went to the library's summer reading kick-off. Since we are hosting some games for the FIFA World Cup, the theme is dinosaurs and soccer.

    We went to Science City again to show the older kids the laser room. I thought this wall was a shadow wall, but it showed the light spectrum. Charles used his glasses, and it was super cool! 

Teddy and I played with the trains.

    I encouraged Teddy to climb this structure, and I thought he was enjoying it, so I went to sit down. When I looked back, I noticed he was crying. Due to the slopes, he couldn't figure out how to get down. Several parents tried to rescue him, but I was able to direct him, and he made it down safely.

    Devon decided to make corn quesadillas on the griddle for his dinner night. He had never done that before, so Daniel helped him. They turned out great, but the kids prefer flour to my preference of corn tortillas.

    Summer school! The kids like going to summer school. It's more relaxed, and there are lots of fun things to do. This year, Teddy got to go too. He and Henry will attend the school together in the fall, and this was Teddy's first real classroom experience. 

    He was a bit unsure, but his teacher is very nice. They had one day of school, and then we left for 3 days. When we returned on Friday, Teddy was not so keen on going back to school, but has since declared that school is fun. Whew!