AC's Birthday Wishes

January 22, 2009---Anna Catherine has really wanted to go camping in a tent for a while. PaPa Gator and Rick thought it would be a good idea for the kids to get camping gear for their birthdays. The kids were so excited when they woke up to find 14' x 14' tent with a 5' x 7' screened porch assembled and waiting for them in the garage. THANK YOU PAPA GATOR AND LADY!!!!!!!!!! Rick asked them if they would sleep in it and of course they said YES! Originally we were going to set it up in the dining room but it wouldn't fit. We thought about the screened porch but decided that would be too cold. So, we parked the vehicles in the driveway and pitched a tent.








AC wore her "Birthday Pincess" button to school and her teacher, Mrs. Gross, gave her a birthday hat and smock to wear. She was the line leader too. Rick went to the school, ate lunch with her, and read two of AC's favorite books to her class--Dinosaurs Love Underpants and Diary of a Worm. Anna Catherine had to introduce her daddy to the class telling them his name, occupation, hobbies, etc. The class also sang songs to him. He said it was a lot of fun. He met her best friend Marie. Rick said at lunch he was nervous with a table of 5 year old surrounding him.me. He wanted to help each one of them open their foods, at least the ones nearest him. Five year olds tearing into apple sauce cups, juice boxes, candy wrappers, etc. can potentially leave food in a pretty wide radius. He said he had to eat with his head on a swivel! Rick took cupcakes (she requested her school colors--orange and blue) and kool-aid for snack. Each student in the class drew Anna Catherine a picture of what they wished for her on her birthday (bicycle, kites, balloons, cake, etc.) and the teacher made it into a book for her. Her teacher also sent home a "birthday bag" filled with goodies. We decorated the van (blue with orange polka dots) to pick Anna Catherine up at school. She was surprised and the teachers loved it!

Anna Catherine picked out a small cake to have after her birthday dinner of tacos. She chose this little Princess Barbie cake. The Barbie looks identical to Jordyn Belcher (or at least I think so). Jordyn is one of Nicole's friends who AC idolizes because she is a SP Cougar cheerleader and she KNOWS TAYLOR SWIFT!!!! (I'll post all about Jordyn soon. She is a fabulous girl!)

Then it was time to open gifts. All three children were allowed to open their new sleeping bags and lanterns. They also received a queen size air mattress. Who wants to camp on the hard ground? Rick, Anna Catherine, and Jackson were eager to start camping in the garage!

AC was ecstatic when she opened her singing Taylor Swift Barbie from Mimi!! THANK YOU MIMI!!!!!!

Then it was time to set up the air mattress and sleeping bags in the garage. Chloe was happy to play in the tent and would have probably laid down in her sleeping bag for all off...15 seconds. So she and I slept in the house. The campers hung their lanterns from the ceiling (my kids are afraid of the dark--they get it honestly). Rick read the kids three birthday books that Mrs. Gross sent home and then it was time to go to sleep. Sorry the pictures are a little dark and fuzzy. The sides of the tent are a dark mesh.

Well, Jackson lasted two hours and was back in the house at 9:45 pm after four or five trips inside for one thing or another. Once he left the tent, came inside, got another lantern (they already had two) and a step stool from the bathroom, took them into the tent and was trying to hang the lantern up when Rick woke up. That's a little unnerving for "woods camping" so Rick orI will have to sleep in front of the door to make sure he or Chloe don't wonder off! Jackson was happy sleeping on the couch in his sleeping bag watching his dinosaur movie. Rick and Anna Catherine came in around 4 am. The garage was a little too cold. They stayed our much longer than I would have!!

I think Anna Catherine had a marvelous day!!! Thanks to everyone who sent birthday wishes!! She felt very special!!

Dinosaurs, Caves, and Camping (part 2)

May 23-28, 2008---We arrived in Cave City late Friday afternoon and check into our cabin at Jellystone Park. There are not a lot of options for lodging in Cave City and we were actually excited about staying at the home of Yogi and Boo Boo. We rented a four bedroom 2 bath cabin titled Boo Boo's Bungalow (so appropriate for Chloe). Well, I can say it looked good on paper but reality was a different story. I have never stayed at a true campground and was totally shocked at the number of Billy Bobs and Bubbas surrounding us. It looked like Nascar was in town (haha--no offense to those of you who are into racing; you're an exception to the typical fan) . There were tents, RVs, and all their gear on every grassy surface to be seen. The cabins were all full too. Apparently it was standing room only at Jellystone. A lot of people were driving around on rented golf carts. You can imagine drunk rednecks racing on golf carts---quite an experience!

And don't even get me started on Boo Boo's Bungalow. We knew that each of the four bedrooms had bunk beds. One bedroom had one bunk bed with a full on bottom and twin on top. Rick, Chloe, and I took this room (even though Anna Catherine called it first). And no, we didn't put Chloe on the top bunk; we used it for storage. We brought Chloe's pack and play and put it in the corner. That filled our bedroom; it was the smallest bedroom. Each of the three other bedrooms had two sets of twin bunk beds. None of the bedrooms had a dresser or armoire but they did have a closet although it was smaller than a hotel closet. Jackson and Anna Catherine shared a room, Mimi had her own room, and the third was used as a playroom. The two bathrooms were very tiny as well. Each had a pedestal sink, toilet, and a standing shower and are very, very small. We did have a full size kitchen with a sink, refrigerator, stove, microwave, toaster, coffee maker, and a large table with eight chairs. There was no living room/den area. Very disappointed. We had to congregate in the kitchen, which is where most people gather, but there was no comfy furniture to veg on...just hard, wooden kitchen chairs. There was a flat screen plasma TV on the wall in the kitchen. It was the only television in the cabin and only received about six channels, one of which was auto racing 24 hours a day--very appropriate considering the typical clientele at this establishment. It was not working when we arrived and maintenance had to come out to fix it. Then it went out again Monday around noon and never came back on. Oh, I forgot to mention that the hot water heater sounds like Rick after too much Taco Bell. It belches and gurgles whenever you turn the hot water on. And it actually stopped working at least six times and had to be reset. We had our own bbq grill, fire pit, and a porch where the kids could play with their toys and blow bubbles. Rick, Anna Catherine, and Jackson toasted marshmallows and made s'mores.

I must admit Jellystone offers a lot of activities for families onsite. There was a swimming pool, kiddie pool, 300 foot water slide (which Anna Catherine went down at least twenty times one day), a putt-putt golf course, playground, indoor game room, outdoor movie theater, water wars, storytime with Yogi and Boo Boo, scavenger hunts, "hey" rides, arts and crafts, volleyball, basketball, bingo, karaoke, and dances.

Rick and his mom say it's not as bad as I make it out to be but honestly, I have not exaggerated any of my descriptions of the campsite. Maybe I have a negative opinion because I am not a camper. I must have a cabin with electricity, TV, and indoor plumbing in order to camp. I'm just not into becoming one with nature--to many critters, bugs, dirt, and boredom. I'm not high maintenance by any means but I'm just not into camping. I guess it hasn't been too bad and we will probably do this again. I'm trying. I really am. There are many Jellystone Parks yet to explore. There's even one in Mississippi between Jackson and Meridian. We may have to go down there for a long weekend. There are over a hundred Jellystone Park campsites nationwide.

The company website is http://www.campjellystone.com/

The website for our campground is http://www.jellystonemammothcave.com/

Family Vacation Summer 2007

June 29-July 6, 2007---Anna Catherine has been asking to go camping for a couple of months so we decided to honor her request and take an eight day family camping trip. However, we camped the only way I am willing to camp: cabin, electricity, running water, indoor restroom, full kitchen, television, etc. On Friday, June 29 we essentially packed up the entire house and left Pontotoc for the Crown Pointe Resort in Horseshoe Bend, Arkansas. Horseshoe Bend is located in the north central part of the state. It was a four and a half hour trip which drove both the kids and me nuts. We hate being stuck in a car for more than two hours. By then our DVD movie is over and we need to get out and stretch our legs. It was actually a very peaceful and relaxing vacation. Since Chloe can't be in the sun, she and I rarely left the cabin. I took my scrapbooking supplies and was able to get a lot of pages completed. We had packed Chloe's swing, play mat, bouncie seat, and lots of toys so she had things to occupy her time. She enjoys being outside so we would put her swing on the front porch and let her enjoy the outdoors in the shade for an hour or two every day. Rick took Anna Catherine and Jackson to the beach (yes, there was a beach area in BFE, Arkansas), the indoor pool, outdoor pool, and canoeing in the lake. The kids had SO much fun paddling the canoe. Rick's mom and brother came in late Monday night and stayed in the cabin next to us. The kids enjoyed being spoiled by Mimi and wrestling with Uncle Cliff. We spent the rest of the week just lounging, grilling out, and being bums. We did a pontoon boat tour of the lake one day and that was nice. It really makes you want to own a lake house. We spent the day of the Fourth of July in the Mountain View area of Arkansas (about an hour south of Horseshoe Bend). That morning we went to Blanchard Springs Caverns. Rick and Cliff went on the "Wild Cave Tour" in which they climbed over and through rocks, slid, and crawled through developed and undeveloped areas of the caves. It was a four hour event, and they were very tired, muddy, sweaty, and stinky afterwards. The rest of us went on the one hour "Dripstone Trail Tour" which was supposed to be handicap and stroller friendly. It wasn't easy getting the stroller up and down the extremely steep inclines and slopes, tight curves, and narrow passageways, so you would have to be very talented to maneuver a wheelchair through it. Mimi, the kids, and I went to the Ozark Folk Center to pass the time until the guys finished their adventure. The caves were amazing. We would like to go back when the kids are older so we can do one of the more advanced tours. That evening we went to the fireworks show at the Turkey Creek Golf Course in Horeshoe Bend. The fireworks were very loud but pretty. Jackson had me laughing so hard I was crying because with every explosion his eyes would get very big and he would say, "Oh my gosh, that was a big boom! A really, really, big boom! A blue one. A green one. On my gosh!". We left on Friday, July 6 and headed back home. After unloading the van, unpacking at least a dozen suitcases/bags, and doing a zillion loads of laundry, we have recouperated from our trip. It was a lot of fun and we are looking forward to our next vacation in November for a week long Thanksgiving ski trip to Pagosa Springs, Colorado (and Rick thinks he can keep us cooped up in the car for a 20 hour drive --straight through only stopping for gas, food, and restroom breaks--HAHA!!!).