Wordless Wednesday - Girls Camp

Excellent Court of Honor

All the time we were traveling, Curly was working on one merit badge or another. He even passed two off via Facebook Messenger. So when Sunday rolled around and it was time for the Court of Honor, he had racked up 6 merit badges!

Burrito also had 6 and Taco had 4 as well as advancements and various other camp patches. 

It was a great day to recognize all of their hard work. Great job, guys!

Traveling Together - Fort Bridger

We spent the night in Rawlins. It was our last hotel room and we had about 5 hours until we were home. But I hate just a straight drive, so we had a few planned stops to break it up. First was the Little America and a delicious ice cream cone. Curly found another bison to pet...

The Wyoming sky is so beautiful!!

We drove through the pretty little town of Lyman where Curly bought a $5 bag of caramel popcorn off a cute little girl doing a bake sale. It was the perfect treat to get us further down the road to Fort Bridger.

We enjoyed walking through all the old buildings, especially the museum and giftshop.

Then we were homeward bound, set to arrive several hours earlier than we had planned. This trip has been so much fun! Thanks, Coach, Omaha was a great idea.

Traveling Together - North Platte, Day 2

North Platte was proving to be much more fun than we expected. We bought a 4-in-1 pass and headed off to Buffalo Bill State Historical Park. Curly was excited to learn more about Buffalo Bill, but he was even more stoked to see the baby bison.

(I'm going to be in SO much trouble!) But my pics of the baby bison aren't nearly as good.

The rest of the house was pretty cool too.

After that, we took the short drive to the Lincoln County Historical Museum. Since we were just beginning to learn about the area, I knew nothing about the Canteen area. I love this story!

I spent most of our time in the museum learning about the Canteen while Curly and my sweetie wandered all over the grounds.

Finally, we were off to the Gold Spike Observation Tower. My sweetie was so excited to see the largest working railyard in the country.

Then we were off. We stopped by Cody Park on our way out. We still had 5 hours on the road before we could sleep.

Traveling Together - North Platte

It was time to leave Omaha and head for home. We wanted to make a few stops, so we loaded up and took off early. After an hour or so, we stopped in Lincoln so we could take a quick drive through Nebraska's capital city.

Nebraska has the most amazing clouds!!

We wanted to try some local food, so we stopped at a Runza for lunch. It was fun for different and very reasonably priced.

Then it was back on the road. Nebraska is SO flat! So much corn!

We rolled into North Platte and checked into our hotel. Curly wanted to visit the Cody Fort, so that was our first stop. They had tons of souvenirs and a little display of the first Wild West show. It was pretty cool.

After we spent a bunch of money, we headed over to Cody Park to see the trains they have on display. Did I ever mention that my sweetie loves trains...?

After the trains, we decided to drive around the park. It was huge! They even had a tiny amusement park. Curly bought us 4 tickets for $2 for the carousel, and he gave away 2 of them to a couple of little kids hanging out with their grandparents.

We bought ice cream and walked around a bit, then we drove over to the baseball fields. Curly was certain that he could hit one over the fence.

He didn't quite make it, but he was close. We finally left the fields as it was getting dark. There was a Ruby Tuesday near our hotel, so we grabbed dinner. Then Curly and I went swimming.

He had a little ball with him so we played a silly game of volleyball. It was so much fun!

More North Platte tomorrow.

Traveling Together - Council Bluffs

I know I'm cheating a little because you know Curly has been playing all of his games in Council Bluffs and we have been staying in Omaha, but this way is easier to keep track.

So he played a couple of games today. Curly played really well, including an unassisted double play at first and a couple of good hits. But it didn't matter. The games were lost and the tournament and baseball season were over, just like that.

We had the hotel scheduled for one more night, and Curly already had a ticket to watch Arkansas play in the College World Series, so we made some fun plans of our own. While he was seeing this...

We were doing this...

And then he was doing this...

And we were still hanging out at Cheesecake Factory. They have a really long menu...

We eventually went back to our room and watched TV and ate cheesecake.  

Curly dropped by about 10 and then left to go and find his friends. Most of them were flying out in the morning and it was their last time to hang out as a team.

It was after midnight when he finally slipped into bed.

Time for us to head for home.

Traveling Together - Omaha

We spent most of Sunday on the road, and we finally rolled into Omaha around 9:30. It was well after 10:00 by the time we were settled in our 2nd room. (We were forced to move when the lock didn't work.)

Monday dawned way too bright and way too early. We had to be at the ball park by 7:00 AM. The fields were across the border in Council Bluffs, Iowa, requiring about a 20-minute drive. 

It's hot here and humid. We are not used to that kind of heat and by the end of the first game, Curly threw up in the dugout garbage can and his head hurt so much that we took him back to the room and had him sleep for an hour before game #2.

Thankfully, that worked, and he was fine to play the 2nd game. Unfortunately, both games ended as losses, but the day was early and we still had time for some fun.

We ate lunch at Dairy Queen and then we went back to our room to cool off. Curly wanted to watch Top Gun, so we cranked the AC and curled up for a good movie.

The only option after that was to find a theater still playing Top Gun Maverik. It was a fun and exciting movie with lots of popcorn and soda.

Then it was off to bed so we could be ready for another early game in the morning.

Traveling Together - Rock Springs

We did it. We are driving to Omaha for a baseball tournament, and as Curly sadly put it, it could be his last. It will definitely be his last for this year.

We decided to break up the trip by spending the night in Rock Springs, Wyoming. We didn't have time to see much except gas stations (gas is cheaper in Wyoming!), but I snapped a couple of pics through the window for you. Next stop, Omaha!!

Spring Recital 2022

I always love watching my kids perform, on the stage or on the court; doesn't matter. When Baby Doll was so busy with volleyball, I wasn’t sure if we would get the opportunity to watch her dance again, so the recital tonight was really something special. Her first number was tap.

I'm sure you already know, but she is the one right in the middle.

Her next number was ballet.

So beautiful! I wish I had better pictures. I'm glad they always film it all for us.

Her final number was jazz. This one, I should have filmed myself. It was so much fun!

Love this pic. Sorry it is a little blurry.

The perfect jump into summer! Awesome as usual, Baby Doll.

Reptiles & Amphibians

Not long ago, Curly decided that since it was summer and we have a zoo pass, he wanted to work on the Reptile and Amphibian Merit badge.

This merit badges requires a trip once a week for three months to check for changes and growth on whatever snake he chooses to "adopt."

No, Curly, I'm pretty sure the one on the carousel doesn't count....

Now that's more like it! Any guesses what kind of beauty this little guy is?

Skittles loves the reptile house, but the carousel is probably his favorite.

Isn't it???

You big teaser!!

Wordless Wednesday - Sucker from Sesame Place

 

REVIEW: Challenger Soccer Camp

Last week was Baby Doll's first week out for summer vacation and we chose to keep the fun going by signing her up for Challenger Soccer. Their week-long camp is a great way to make new friends, learn new skills, and stay active.

Players are assigned to a specific team and coach on the very first day. Baby Doll was excited to be part of Team France. Teams earn points all week for the win and exclusive bragging rights.

She worked hard and in her off-hours, she made a huge brownie frosted like the French flag. This paid off big with 500 points, but even wearing team colors helped her earn points.

It's amazing to me how much kids can learn in one week! I highly recommend this camp (I have even been talking it up to random moms on the playground.) 

Besides all the obvious stuff, Baby Doll became more confident in her own skillset. For an older, but relatively new player, that is priceless.