Big Cedar vacation

On Philip's birthday we left for a family vacation to Big Cedar Resort in Missouri. We'd heard nothing but good things about this place and since it's only 4 1/2 hours from us - ROADTRIP.

On our way there we took a side bar and stopped in Catoosa, OK to see the Blue Whale that is a popular Route 66 attraction.  

The whale and swimming hole are way past their prime (as in there appears to be a layer of gasoline on top of the water and the whale walkway has boards that are iffy at best) but it was a fun stop and the kids thought it was cool.

We then ventured on through the Arkansas route, which was a really pretty drive but added to our time in the car making it close to six hours.  Translation - we exhausted our list of songs and I had personally performed "You Must Pay The Rent" enough that it was worthy of a Tony, if they gave those for one-man Broadway shows that lasted 20 seconds.

We arrived to stunning views and a lovely resort

After checking in we got a bite to eat

and then played our first round (of what would be many) of miniature golf at the cutest little course.

The concept of golf was difficult for Denver to understand as he really isn't one for just letting balls roll around and not make it to their desired location. He found it was much easier to just run pick it up and throw it in the hole.

We had the best time.  We went canoeing

this was a little stressful as Denver really enjoyed leaning over the side for as close of an encounter as possible of the lake.

Annie was very helpful and pitched in paddling,

and holding Denver in his seat when she got tired, which really was a bigger job.

During our time canoeing we had a slightly scary experience when we came into contact with some low trees and almost ended up with a snake joining our party. Beyond the mild cardiac arrest I incurred it allowed for a good story to tell and surprisingly after that Annie was able to spot numerous snakes in the water that were not visible to the regular naked eye ;)

We also went to Silver Dollar City (Or Big Dollar City as Annie named it) for a day which was a big win because the kids really enjoyed the amusements and Philip and I got to consume large amounts of frozen lemonade.

Denver was a big fan of any type of ride and there were many here he could participate in

Some on his own

and others with an adult.

A good time was had by all

(maybe not by this cow)

A favorite part of Big Cedar for the kiddos were the pools and lazy river

They also had a nice beach with sand for sculpting and playing in

We celebrated Philip's 36th birthday at a fancy restraunt at the Top of the Rock and again were impressed with the beauty of the Missouri mountains...I'm partial to this view in particular :)

We also did fun golf cart tour that took us up and down a mountain and through a cave

We spent the majority of our stay on the resort grounds giving us the perfect break from our regular schedule and allowed us to settle down and relax and just have fun together.

Welcome back summer - we missed you!

Mowing

One of the greatest joys of parenting a girl and a boy is seeing the stark differences between the two.  

Annie has always been into all the girly girl stuff and enjoys being fancy while Denver is all boy.

Case and point - Denver enjoys getting dirty, making noise, wrestling/tackling, and any and everything involving being outside. 

One of his favorite outdoor activities is mowing.

If Philip is out there so is Denver

He will mow as long as Philip does, helping him out on the actual mower or using his own bubble mower.

No matter how long or tough the job he sticks with Philip and enjoys every minute of it.  What did we ever do without him?

Ballet year 3

At the end of May Annie completed her third year of ballet.

She really works hard throughout the year and I am always so proud of her because it really takes commitment to go weekly and practice, practice, practice.

It pays off though and Philip and I are always impressed with how well she performs.

This year she admitted she had some stage fright 

but you could never tell from how well she does - she always runs right out to her spot, completes the routine without having to look for cues from her instructors in the wings of the stage, and smiles at the audience throughout the performance.

With each year she has improved 

and despite all the effort it takes mid-winter to stay motivated and go to classes late in the evening, the work is well worth the grace, coordination, and confidence she gains.

Bravo sweet girl, you never cease to amaze me with your talent in all things you do.