Idaho Falls Air Show

Today we went to the air show. Both set of parents, Amy, Ryan, Mandy, Lilly, and Stevie all went. It was awesome and the kids seemed to enjoy it, all things considered. It was VERY VERY HOT, we kept dousing the girls with sunscreen and both left with minimal burning, thank goodness! Hannah kept busy walking between all of us and watching the planes. Elayna was content to sit in her stroller and snack. By the end of the show, I was figuring out the timing on my camera and was actually able to catch many decent pictures. Keep in mind, I have a small Canon Powershot, nothing fancy, but it seems to work just fine! By the end of the show, we were all ready to leave. 5 hours in the heat is enough for anyone, especially young children. The walk back was quick, it is nice living only a couple of blocks from the runway. All-in-all it was a good day.

The Alamo

After the Children's Museum, we went to The Alamo. It was interesting to see. We were able to get a few photos from the outside, but no photos were allowed on the inside. When you enter the Alamo, you have to put away cell phones, cameras, no food or drinks, and all hats MUST be removed upon entering. We weren't sure how strict on the rules they would be, but we saw one of the ushers make a man remove his hat. Rules are rules! All kids did well, but by the end, they were ready to take a nap. It was a long day, but well worth it. Ed grabbed a shot glass and I was able to find a cool little Christmas ornament. One more day of vacation then we make the 24 hour trip back! *sigh*

Children's Museum

After eating at the Rainforest Cafe, we took the kids to the Children's Museum. It was a very unique place, like no other I have been to. There was a small toddler room where Nara and Elayna could play safely. Sadly, you had to be three or less to go in the room. Hannah was sad, but loved the opportunity to see many of the other things the museum had to offer. She and Ed pushed their faces into a body sized pin art. It was quite cute when their faces came through! After an hour and a half, the little ones were getting quite tired and we heading to our next stop...The Alamo!

Rainforest Cafe

Yesterday, we went to the San Antonio River Walk. While strolling in the rain, we stopped for lunch at the Rainforest Cafe...how fitting. When you walk inside, it was immediately made to look like a rainforest. Animals were hanging all around, moving and making sounds. There were waterfalls and fish tanks as well. The food was delicious.

Painting

Well, yesterday Joy thought it would be good to let the kids paint. I definately DO NOT have the patience to manage something like that!!! It was a disasterous mess...however, all three LOVED it!!! Hannah enjoyed running her fingers through the goo. Elayna was hesitant at first, but eventually jumped right in. Nara was a pro and went to work immediately. In the end we had a greenish-blueish-redish-orange table, not to mention the children, and three happy little ones. Good idea! Glad I thought of it! :)

The Salt Lick

Once again, our dining experience was determined by a Man vs. Food episode. Ed watched the Austin episode which included a place called The Salt Lick. We ate at two other Man vs. Food recommendations in Pittsburg, one was good, the other was not so much. However, Mike and Joy both claimed that this place was good. When we finally arrived in the middle of NOWHERE, the place was pretty busy. Every table was a picnic bench style. Right inside the door was a big grill with mountains of meat...a true carnivores delight! Elayna did well eating the baked beans and ribs. Hannah enjoyed the ribs, brisket, and of course bread. Mike, Ed, and I all got the Family Style platter...aka...all-you-can-eat meat platter. Both girls could eat off of ours rather inexpensively. Nara wasn't very happy this lunch outing. Joy jokes that it is because we were eating all that meat!!! :) We think that she is cutting her first molar and having a difficult time with it. All-in-all it was a great lunch experience. Tomorrow, off to another great lunch outing.

Fun in the Sun

Well we arrived in Texas at 2. HOT AS HECK! So, we decided to play in the little pool. Hannah was so happy to finally get into a pool that she was jumping and splashing everywhere. Elayna is used to a rambunctious sister, but Nara had a little trouble adjusting to the constant splashing! Especially when Ed whipped out the HOSE!!! Yes, he started it. By the end, Ed, Joy, and myself were completely drenched in our clothes. Nara, adjusted well to the noise, hussle, and bussle. Elayna, put up with splashing in the face, hose attacks, and getting wiped out by Hannah more than once. Hannah was in heaven. She was so content to play in the water that she almost seems oblivious to the house getting shot at the back of her head! When we left Idaho, it was still in the upper sixties. She hadn't had the opportunity to swim in the backyard yet. We have a semi-busy week planned. Keep watching for updates! Oh, you may notice the minor road rash on Elayna's forehead. Yes, she lost a battle with the sloped concrete driveway. She scuffed both her knees, and her forehead clear down to her nose. She cried for about 30 seconds then was fine. What a big girl!

A few more states!

Well, we made it to the last stop on our two week vacation! Here are a couple more states we went through. We started at South Carolina the day before we headed to Texas. While driving, we stopped at the Stennis Space Center on the Louisiana/Mississippi border, but it was closed for tours at that point. We still took a couple of pictures and read one sign before it started to down pour on us!!! The streaks across the Nasa sign are rain drops! We finally made it into Texas early this morning and stopped to take a picture of the star and flags. Hannah was awe struck when she saw the size of the star. We will be here for four days! Here's to another great week.

Fireworks

Well, it was finally dark enough to light a couple of fireworks. All four girls barely made it. Elayna was especially tired. We had a nice small collection of fireworks; enough to keep the girls' attention. We had a couple of confetti poppers, I was actually able to catch Abby's going off!!! Dave, however, couldn't get his gun to shoot. All the girls enjoyed the sparklers. They wanted more and more of them.

Fourth of July Beauties

We had these outfits picked out about a month ago. Last year, we had to scrounge at the last minute. This year, we prepared ourselves early!!! Beautiful ladies.

Here are the girls' Fourth of July outfits. All four of them are gorgeous! We are getting closer to having everyone smile in the same photo!!! Sooner or later it will happen!

Butterfly Beauties

Again, to bide our time while waiting to eat, we found a small area that had face painting by donations. All three girls wanted a butterfly. I was thinking that the butterfly would be put on a cheek, but it was literally FACE painting, covering the entire face. All three turned out adorable. They were all extremely proud to walk around with their butterfly!

Abbitude!

After we left the beach, we drove a little further into Hilton Head to eat at The Salty Dog. When we arrived, the wait was around an hour. This pier was dedicated to the story of Jake "The Salty Dog". So, while everyone was off checking out gift shops and looking around the pier, Abby and I stayed to feed Elayna goldfish. I took advantage of the moment and captured some great poses of her. As I was taking the pictures, I was wiping a tear, realizing how quickly my little neice is growing up!

Atlantic Ocean!

Yesterday, we went to Hilton Head, SC. It was a beautiful day. The light breeze was around 20 mph (not really a breeze), but it was so warm that it was welcoming. The water was warmer than almost every hotel pool I have been in. It took us three hours to arrive at Hilton Head, but it took almost an hour longer to find a parking spot. Good idea to go on a Saturday during the Fourth of July weekend! We found a nice spot and played in the ocean for three hours. Elayna went in on occasion, but after getting wiped out by a wave once or twice, she was content to play with the sand...that is, after we convinced her she shouldn't eat it! Hannah, Abby, and Adrea all took to the ocean like fish. They almost never left the water. Dale, Ed, and Dave herded the girls, while SiRan watched Elayna. Melissa and I took advantage of the day and relaxed as needed; going in and out of the ocean as desired and lounging on the sand at other times. Sadly, we had to leave. We put the girls in the car, where Hannah and Elayna promptly fell asleep. They just aren't used to the constant hussle of vacation life!

Ed Got Iced!!!

So, we saw an episode of Tosh.O where a man was getting iced. Apparently, if someone can get a Smirnoff into your hands without you knowing about it, you were just "ICED" and have to get on one knee and chug it! Well, Dave, thinking this was a good idea to try on Ed, actually succeeded!!! Luckily for Ed, we had just bought some delicious GRAPE Smirnoff. Watch out world, Ed is ready to pay someone back (that is, for those men who aren't a fan of Smirnoff)!

Good Nap

We have been playing so hard this week that the girls all seem to be exhausted. Elayna went down for a nap the other day and when she woke up, you could see her hands imprinted on her face. She slept so hard that you can actually see her fingernail! Funny funny.

Georgia Aquarium

Tuesday, we went to Atlanta to pick up Dale and SiRan. While there, we took advantage of some of the sites. We started at The Varsity, a famous hot dog place. The dogs were delicious! Amongst the ten of us, there were NO leftovers!!!! The next morning we headed to the Georgia Aquarium. Here are some pictures that turned out nicely. We weren't allowed to use a flash, so many of them were blury, but many more yet turned out. The whale shark (bottom right hand corner) was pushing 30 feet long!!!! When it swam by, Hannah's jaw dropped, priceless. We had been to aquariums where you could touch the rays, but this aquarium, the rays actually wanted to be touched. They swam to the top of the water so you could pet the top of their heads. When one came out and touched Hannah she jumped back. It startled her. I guess she wasn't expecting it to be so slimy. There were also sharks swimming around the tank. Every time one would swim past, she would pull her hand out. She wanted nothing to do with touching a shark. Especially after seeing the one in the upper left hand corner from underneath it. By the time we went through the entire aquarium (four hours) Hannah was once again exhausted. Elayna slept through the beginning of the tour, and Hannah slept at the end. Both girls are having a hard time adjusting to the time change. Also, when Abby, Adrea, and Hannah get together, sleep is a thing of the past. Giggling, wrestling, playing, and joking, sleep is NOT an option! Today, we are spending the day relaxing and catching up. Tomorrow, off to the beach! South Carolina, here we come!!!

Indiana

Well, Indiana didn't disappoint. We stayed with our friend Dave. He lives across the street from a little park. We thought Hannah would LOVE that. I took her outside for a grand total of 30 minutes before the humidity hit her hard! She was doing everything she could to hide from the sweltering heat. The actual temperature fluctuated around 90 degrees. The humidity made it unbaearable for her. The next morning, we ate breakfast with one of Ed's coworkers and his little girl. We decided to take the fun inside and play at the mall at their little play area. It was much cooler and more desirable! It was donated by Deaconess Hospital (where Hannah was born!) so all the toys were medically related. I put Elayna in the ambulance and she stayed on that for twenty minutes! I tried to find Hannah and she was hiding in the wheel of the abulance. When I asked her what she was doing, her response was priceless! "I am hiding in my oil spill!" How did she know about the oil spill? Crazy. After running around for an hour and a half or more, they were all exhausted!!! Elayna fell asleep in the parking lot, and Hannah fell asleep just as we left the parking lot. Both girls slept for more than THREE hours!

That evening Bill was able to put together a poker game. It was there that we met up with the most friends. With eight other players, besides Ed and myself, we focused less on the game and more on catching up. After six hours of playing (three games later) we finally left. Sadly, we said goodbye to all our friends. Hopefully we will make it back there someday.

There is always room available in Idaho for a visit out west!

We Made It!!!!

We started Thursday afternoon at 3pm mountain time and made it to our first destination, Evansville, Indiana at 10pm central time. Not bad considering we had Hannah and Elayna with us. It only took us 30 hours, six more than the estimated map quest time. We were planning on driving straight through, but once 4 deer and an owl all tried to commit suicide, we decided it was time to pull off. One deer was so close we had to hit the brakes pretty hard! Once in Indiana, we were able to catch up with several great friends. We were sorry we couldn't see everyone, but time limited us. As when I moved away, I had a difficult time leaving.

At about noon on Monday, we left for our second of three destinations...Grovetown, Georgia!!! We were able to make that trip in a little less than 9 hours. Elayna has adapted to long car rides and hardly complained. Hannah is a natural born traveler and was as good as gold! I now sit in Georgia awaiting the fabulous week with family! We just got back from Atlanta visiting the World's Largest Aquarium. Pictures to be posted soon.