Silver Dollar City and Branson Fun!

We took Kingston this past weekend to Branson for the weekend.  On Friday, we drove up and ate lunch at Joe's Crab Shack in the Landings.  After that, we stopped by Ride Makerz to look at the cars.  It's basically just like Build a bear- but with Cars.  Kingston and Luke went in before me just to look.  Kingston came out and says, "Aunt Issa, can I have a car?"  Ummmm....Yes.  So we helped him pick out the body, wheels, remote control color, etc.  The lady timed him when putting on the wheels.  He got a fast time of 1 minute 21 seconds...with some help from Uncle Luke.  She announced to the whole store that he was a car maker!  After making that car, we stopped by the candy store for a little dessert.  We then headed on to the hotel for check in.  We ended the night with dinner at Freddy's and a little shopping fun. 

On Saturday, we were up and at 'em pretty early.  We ate at the hotel for breakfast and then headed on over to Silver Dollar City.  We got there when the park opened up at 9:30.  Kingston had a blast riding rides with Uncle Gook.  They rode the giant swing rides- which he loved.  Next, they rode the big pirate ship- which he wasn't thrilled with at all.  He said it made his tummy feel funny- I bet!  After a few more rides, we snacked on some nachos for lunch and a Chocolate Cheesecake Funnel Cake.  We let him play in the tree house area for a while and then went to the top of the park to meet the Barbers.  While waiting for them to get there, we were sitting on a park bench listening to music.  I noticed Kingston had gotten really still- the poor little guy fell asleep on the park bench beside me!  He takes after his Daddy- as Chris did the same thing in Williamsburg!We rode a few more rides with the Barbers and then went back to the hotel to rest.  We had spend 8 hours at Silver Dollar City and my poor feet were beat! 

We met back up with the Barbers for dinner.  We tried to eat at the Landings, but ended up going to Lone Star instead.  The kids ended the night with some swimming time at the hotel.

On Sunday, we loaded up and went to play some morning Putt Putt.  The older boys played a competitive game while Stella, Chantel, Kingston, and I played for fun.  Kingston had a blast "scoring goals" as he called it.  Stella loved hitting the ball with her little putter.  We ended the day with lunch at Joe's Crab Shack and ice cream.  It was a fantastic weekend!

Silver Dollar City:

 Putt Putt:

Ride Makerz:

 Joe's Crab Shack:

Grandparent/Special Person Day

Mom, Dad, and I went to eat lunch with Kingston today for Grandparent/Special Person Day.  I'm guessing I was the "special person."  Kingston ate a school lunch of Pizza, veggies, and fruit.  He had fun visiting with us.  We played "Pull my finger" which Luke introduced him to last weekend, talked about how nasty broccoli was, and snacked on chip and dip- as he calls it.  After lunch, we went to his classroom where he gave Nana and PaPa a poem with a hand print on it.  He showed us the Lobster he painted.  Then it was outside for a quick picture and recess. 

Mt. Nebo with Kingston

 Petit Jean Overlook

Luke and I took Kingston to Mt. Nebo for the weekend.  We left Sunday morning and headed up the back roads stopping at Petit Jean Mountain first.  We went to the overlook and checked out the sights.  After that, we stopped at the gift shop and then went to the Cedar Falls lookout.  The waterfall was barely flowing.  Then, we headed on over to Mt. Nebo.  We ate a picnic lunch before checking into our cabin.  Kingston thought the cabin was awesome.  He was able to play on the playground for a while that afternoon.  He loved the Merry-go-round and the zipline they had on the playground.

We ate tacos and "chip and dip" as he calls it for supper.  Then we went to the Sunset point to look at the sun set.  On our way there, we saw 14 deer right outside our cabin.  It was so amazing just watching them and being that close to them.  At dark, we decided to roast marshmallows.  We forgot to bring matches, so set paper towels on fire by using the electric stove.  Kingston loved roasting marshmallows and sprinkling M&M's on the top.  We ended the night by watching Pete's Dragon.

The next morning, we ate a big breakfast and headed out.  We went to Magness Lake on the way home hoping to spot the Trumpeteer Swans.  We only saw black ducks, but the scenery was pretty.  After eating a Mexican lunch, we headed home.  It was a fantastic weekend.  Much needed for me and Luke!