Branson Trip

We just got home from a wonderful few days in Branson with the kiddos, Aunt Laura and Nanny and Papa. We left Sunday after church and drove up to Branson. Aunt Laura came with us and we had a quick, uneventful trip. 
We checked in to our hotel, which was the "Bass Pro Hotel" and it was called "Anglers Lodge".

Then we went to get dinner at "McFarlain's" and everyone enjoyed their meal. 
We even got some fried green tomatoes to share. 

I loved how decorated the whole city was for Christmas. It was so fun. 

After dinner we drove over to "Big Cedar Lodge" and drove through their lights display. 
There were lights everywhere and we loved it. We let the kids climb up and sit in the front seats and put their heads out the sunroof.

 

We listened to Christmas music and had so much fun seeing all the lights. It was a beautiful night and the perfect time to enjoy a night time drive. 

Then we got back to the "Angler's Lodge" and changed into our matching pajamas. 
The hotel lobby was so pretty and rustic, we wanted to get a picture in front of the big rock fireplace. 

The next morning Chris and I had to go to a sales meeting for "BlueGreen Vacations". We didn't plan to buy, but they had payed for our hotel and given us gift cards to enjoy, so we had to go. 
To our surprise, we ended up really liking the sound of the vacation package and we bought into it. 

I'm so excited. We bought points that we can redeem to reserve hotels/resorts and condos and we get them every year. It's pretty cool. We are excited to see where we can go as a family in the future. 

After our meeting, we went back to the hotel. Aunt Laura had stayed with the kids while we went to the meeting. When we got back, we took the kids down to the pool to swim and play. I don't know what it is about hotel swimming pools, but they are way more fun than other pools for some reason. The kids loved it. 

After swimming, we got dressed and went to Bass Pro Shop to let the kids buy a souvenir from the weekend and to visit Santa. 

Then we met Nanny and Papa at the "White Fish Grill" at the Branson Landing for dinner. After dinner we walked along the landing to see the lights and water show. 

Then we drove over to the Hughes Theater to watch the "Hughes Brothers" show. 
Surprisingly, we all enjoyed it. I wasn't sure how my kids would do with a show that was just singing, but they really enjoyed it. 

After the show, we went back to our hotel for the night and slept. The show got over pretty late so we were all tired. Aunt Laura went back with Nanny and Papa to their hotel and we went to ours.

The next morning we ate breakfast and then met Nanny, Papa and Aunt Laura at the Christmas Village. 
We did a little shopping and just enjoyed being together.

 

Then we drove over to the "College of the Ozarks" and ate lunch. 

Papa had wanted to go here for years and we were excited to make it happen. 

Lunch was delicious and we all enjoyed it. 
After lunch we said our good-byes to Nanny, Papa and Aunt Laura. They headed home and then we drove over to "The Shephard of the Hills" to play for the rest of the day. 

It was so fun. 

We did the tubing first and it was a blast. Even I raced the kids down the slide and screamed and laughed the whole time. 

 

 

We had so much fun playing!

 

Bailey loved petting the goats and feeding them leaves. 

 

The boys loved playing mini golf. 

 

Then we walked over to play on the trampoline. 

 

We got to watch the sun go down and it was so pretty. 

 

On our way out, we stopped to warm our hands and look at the nativity scenes. I love how Branson is so open with their Christianity.  Nativity scenes were everywhere and we loved it!

We left after we got cold enough and drove back to our hotel. When we were back at the hotel, Dad took the kids down to the arcade to play and I relaxed for a bit. Then it was time for bed. 

The next morning we ate breakfast and then Dad took the kids to swim one more time while I got us packed up. Then we had to get dressed and check out. We drove back on Wednesday and got home right before the snow storm moved in today. I think Branson has gotten more snow than we have. It's just been really really cold, but supposedly the snow and ice are coming. We will see. 

We had a wonderful time in Branson and we are so excited about our new vacation package. It's going to be so fun. 
Now Christmas is in just a few days and I can hardly believe it! 

 

Ward Christmas Party, Bell Ringing & Tea Party

After a crazy day at the boys' elementary school, I came home and sewed and assembled 6 biblical outfits for our ward Christmas party. The theme for the party was "A Night in Bethlehem" and it was so fun. The night was to depict the night Christ was born and it was pretty cool. 

We started out with a devotional and then we went into the "market" and we got dinner. They served cheeses, olives, hummus, pita, oranges, tomatoes and ham. 

We all sat down together to eat and talk. 

 

  

Then we walked around the church visiting the witness of Christ's birth. First we heard from the wise men and the the shepherds. 

We ended with "Mary, Joseph and baby Jesus" and we listened to the rest of the nativity story. 

It was so fun and I hope the kids felt like it made the story of the nativity come to life more. I really enjoyed it.

Oh also, Aunt Laura flew in on Friday and got to hang out with us. 

Saturday morning we hung out and then got ready to go ring the bell for the Salvation Army.

This is one of our favorite traditions and although my kids weren't as excited as they usually are, we still had fun. I had organized the bell ringing for a 2 hour period and in that 2 hour window we raised $412.  Our family and three other families took turns doing 30 minute windows. It was quick and easy and I love that we get to help and serve our community!

Directly after bell-ringing we went home and I changed and left for a Christmas Tea party. 
My friend Bronte hosted it and it was adorable. 
She asked everyone to dress the part, so I felt like I had to wear the hat. 
We drank tea, had finger sandwiches and a few other treats and we also did a gift exchange. It was fun and a nice way to get to socialize with friends for a bit. 

Then we were back home for the rest of the day doing laundry and getting ready to leave for Branson tomorrow. We are excited for our family trip and even more excited because Nanny and Papa are going to join us for one of the days. 

Stay tuned for our Branson fun. 

Class Christmas Parties

Today was a crazy day! I was at the younger boys' school all day. Literally from 8 am to 2:50 pm. It was such a long day and I loved it. lol. 
I'm on the PTO board this year and it's been very involved. 
I went to the school this morning to help with a teacher gift. We walked around the hallways with a huge cart full of supplies for the teachers and another cart with a little Christmas tree covered in gift cards. The teachers got to each pick one gift card and then whatever supplies they wanted. 
It was so fun to spoil the teachers! We also set up a "Sweet Sampler" for the teachers in the lounge. I was in charge of all the  decorations and setup so it was crazy bringing everything inside, but it looked so cute once we got it set up. Each teacher/staff got a treat box that they could fill with treats. 

Then I ran out to Chick-fil-a to get lunch for Bailey and Benson. I ran back to Bailey's school in time to have lunch with her. Then I walked back over to Elm Tree Elementary to have lunch with Benson. 

Oh also, the younger boys got to wear pjs to school so they were so cute and snuggly. 

 

Then I had a small window before Tucker's lunch so I ran out and got more food for him. 
He was so excited to see me again for lunch. I had seen both boys earlier when I helped pass out teacher gifts and they had both asked me to stay for lunch with them, so I was glad that I was able to fit it all in. 

After his lunch I ran to Benson's class party down the hall. 
Class parties are always a bit of chaos but it was so fun. 

They played pin the carrot nose on the snowman. 

They played a cup-punch game and had lots of yummy Christmas-y treats. 

Then I headed over to Tucker's classroom for his class party. He was making a Christmas ornament and then they played bingo. Then it was time for treats. 

We had fun and then I got to check both boys out a little early and we waited for Bailey to get out of school too before we drove home. Tanner rides the bus home from the Junior High so we don't see him until later. 
Today was our last day of school for the semester because we are missing the last three days for a family trip to Branson next week. I'm so excited for our Christmas break. I'm ready for a vacation!

Stay tuned for our Branson Trip. We are so excited!