A great LONG weekend!

There is nothing I love more than a weekend, other than an extra LONG weekend! We had such a great time over the last few days! We decided a few weeks ago that we would take the kids to Silver Dollar City (an amusement park) in Branson, Missouri this Saturday. We bought season passes at the beginning of the year and wanted to fit in a couple more visits before our passes expire, in January.

So, anyway, Friday after school, one of Tessa's good friends invited her to come play & have dinner. So, of course then our boys wanted to have some friends over too, so we invited a friend over for each of them. They had a great time hanging out, playing outside, and playing on the Wii, and one of them stayed for dinner.

Our kids are always up early, so Saturday morning, once they were all awake (around 6:30), and they had all had breakfast & gotten dressed & everything, we told them to get their shoes on because we were leaving. They wondered where we were going on a Saturday morning at 7:30 a.m. We told them that we were taking them to Silver Dollar City. They were so excited! So we drove the 2 hours to Branson, and started our fun! The weather was perfect--not too hot or too cold. We rode all the kids' favorite rides, and Clay even rode a couple new ones that he hasn't ever tried before. We talked him into the river raft ride (where you get soaked). I went on it first with PJ & Tessa, and then we talked Jonah & Clay into going on it too, so we could all go on it together. It was so much fun and even Clay had a blast. We rode it several times, and were completely soaked by the time we were done! :) It took the next few hours to dry off, but it was a warm day, so it wasn't a big deal. Before we left, we stopped at the old-time taffy shop that they have there, to buy some homemade taffy (it's kind of become our tradition). We enjoyed some taffy on the drive back to Arkansas & stopped for dinner before going home. It was a great day!

On Sunday we had our usual day, going to church, enjoying some quiet time & naps afterwards, the kids playing outside & enjoying the beautiful weather, etc. The kids asked if we could camp out in the backyard in the tent that night, and we thought that would be fun, so a little before bedtime, Neil put up the tent & the kids each pulled out their sleeping bags & pillows and arranged them all in the tent (leaving some room for Neil & me). Once it started to get dark, we all laid in the tent, with all the tent flaps open, looking at the stars & watching the fireflies. Then we decided to tell silly stories, where I begin then Neil tells the next part, then the kids each tell a part. It was so funny--we were all laughing! Finally, it started getting late & the kids were tired, so we all went to sleep (or at least I TRIED to go to sleep). Sleeping on the hard lumpy ground, with 4 wiggly kids & 1 noisy dog doesn't make for the most restful night, but it was SO worth it to make fun memories for our kids, and I love watching them all snuggled up, sleeping away. :) They had a great time, and all sleep quite well.

Monday morning we got up & I made waffles, ham, & eggs. Then Neil, PJ, & Tessa did some yard work, pulled out our garden, trimmed the bushes, mowed & edged the lawn, while Jonah & Clay & I did some laundry & housework (they helped clean the windows & mirrors and picked up a few things around the house, while I vacuumed, mopped, & cleaned the bathrooms). We all finished around the same time, (around lunch time), so we decided to go on a picnic. We stopped at Subway to pick up some sandwiches & headed to a park. Again, the weather was perfect--sunny & warm. We stayed for a couple of hours & then headed back home. I read some stories with Jonah & Clay while PJ & Tessa did some homework, and then the 2 little boys fell asleep (they were up very late & still up early as usual). We don't have much more planned for the rest of the day, other than hanging out & relaxing. It's been such a great weekend!! Lots of fun family time, perfect weather, and great memories! :)