This year we were blessed to spend some time with some of our closest friends...who are like family.
Our annual trip with The Epps, Van Aken's and Harris's was filled with nature and all the fun things that kids can do in the outdoors. This year they drove from Philly and Dallas to Branson, MO be with us (and we greatly appreciate it!).
We started out the week at Silver Dollar City...
None of us had been since we were kids, so it brought back some memories...
...and we were hoping the kids could start making some of their own...
...and I'm pretty sure they did just that. Coleman can't stop talking about it.
Since we went on a Wednesday, the lines weren't that long...and thankfully, because we found that people move very slow in Branson!
Cooper and Coleman rode roller coasters for the first time...and couldn't get enough...
...and Cal, well, he decided to he didn't like roller coasters on this occasion. Maybe the heat was getting to him.
The "Flooded Mine" was a ride for everyone, even the big kids (aka Jay, Wendell and Jason).
The guys squared off in a mean gun fight to hit the most bulls eyes with the radar guns. Unbelievably no bets were involved and Wendell walked away with only the pride of winning...which he always enjoys. :-)
I was super impressed with all of the fun things to do for the little ones. This area shot water sporatically out of the ground (very hard to capture on my iphone), but by the end they were soaked and giggling hysterically. So fun!
The kids were exhaused before the adults got to ride the roller coasters...which we were really looking forward to. But to keep our sanity we decided to check out around 4 o'clock for the day. We made the most of it and were ready to head back.
We were also ready for a nice adult dinner with some good food...
...good friends...
...and good wine.
We ended up at a Piano Bar and made our own party.
The rest of the trip was my most favorite, just hanging out...
Coleman, Evan, Colin and Sophia went fishing...
...with their Dads...
...and both caught a fish! This was Coleman's first.
And on the other side of the dock...
Cooper and Cal were fed the turtles...and there were probably 50 of them that came up to take a bite!
We also went boating...
...and found that Cooper really likes to drive.
Sophia, Colin and Evan loved to tube...
...while we soaked up the sun!
There was lots of silliness...
...and swimming and jumping off the boat.
Back on land, Uncle Wendell found the metal detectors...
...and the kids spent time finding pennies and nickels...
...and Cooper preferred to find sticks.
Back at the house, we took an ice cream break...
...and got pretty darn messy...
...but thoroughly enjoyed the sugar rush.
On night we decided to venture out to dinner with everyone. Crazy? Yes, very. But, it ended up being a very fun night.
We headed to The Fish House...
...and while we waited for our table...
...we fed the ducks...
We lucked out on a Saturday night with a private room with two big tables...
...One for the kids...
...and one for us.
Then we took a walk along the canal...
...and had snow cones for dessert.
We played by the fountains...
...and tried to stop Calvin from jumping in.
We tried to end the weekend with some group photos...
...Here's the "big" kids...Sophia, Coleman, Colin and Evan..
...that shot was fairly easy...
...where it got more difficult is adding the little ones....here's Calvin trying to coral baby Cora, along with the addition of Cooper and Cash.
And here's the whole group...(minus the ladies, who were taking all the pictures!)
Overall, the weekend was a great success! It's funny how time picks back up right where it leaves off when good friends unite...like family.
Thanks to Jason, Laura, Evan and Cash, Wendell, Eisha, Colin and Sophia, and Brian, Kelly and baby Cora for allowing us to continue to make memories of "all" of us...
Next year....Seaside, FL, baby!
