Our Mini-Vacation!

Our Spring Break was last week, and we decided to take a little mini-vaca to the big city of St. Louis! In the effort of keepin' it real, I am providing a bit of commentary on my own pictures. What you actually see, and the story BEHIND the picture. A peek, if you will, into what is really happening, and what I was thinking. Enjoy!

The first thing we did in St. Louis was SWIM! I think the kids were the most excited, and had the most fun, at the indoor pool at the hotel. But did I get any pics of that? Nope. There were a lot of kids swimming, and I was afraid that my camera wouldn't make it out alive. The kids had a blast at the pool though, and Annie loved the hot tub! The next day we went to the Zoo!

The St. Louis Zoo is incredible, and is always a favorite with my family! Apparently some other people like it too, because they had record crowds the day we went, and we got to park about 3/4 of a mile away, and hike to the zoo. We made it though!

Here's sweet Annie, making good friends with a Chimpanzee! (back story: There were CROWDS of people around us at this point, and I had to fight my way through to get this pic. I heard several people comment about "that chimp and that cute little girl!")


My three sweet darlings at the zoo! (back story: It took three tries to get them all three to look at me, and this is the only picture I got of them all together the entire trip!)


Ellie eating Dippin' Dots! (back story: She was so happy Daddy let her get this treat! She deserved it though, she was quite a trooper this day, and never complained!)

Ellie at the Mississippi River and the Arch! (back story: Ellie really wanted to see the river and the arch. I love that she is interested in the things she's learning about at school! Shortly after this however, she had her toughest moment of the trip in a crowded restaurant. We got through it though, and I was proud of her for being able to work it out.)


The Magic House! Another favorite of my kids! This was the first time we'd been there since they added on, and WOW, it's even more incredible now! This was in the new part, it's the Beanstalk from "Jack and the Beanstalk!" The kids LOVED it! (back story: This thing became my nightmare! We couldn't get Austin out a couple of times, and had to send Ellie in after him. Annie never wanted to leave it, and got mad when we made her. She retaliated by disappearing a few minutes later, and we found her back here. She got in MAJOR trouble for that little stunt. Ellie liked it, but I could tell that it was major sensory overload for her, and yet I couldn't keep her out of the darned thing! She did fine while we were there, but afterwards was edgy and grumpy.)


Austin LOVED the Magic House! He did really well overall, and that made me so happy! (back story: Really, he did great! Mommy however, was in a bit of a grumpy mood this day. I blame it on not sleeping well the night before. Which may have had something to do with the fact that my sweet husband thought a hammock was a good idea for an extra bed in the hotel room. It wasn't.)



We got to see this sweet little two week old baby! Our good friends Matt and Gina are proud new parents! We were thrilled to meet this little guy, and spend a little time with his great parents. He is a DOLL! (back story: Gina, you are a brave, brave woman for inviting our circus over to your house! I hope we didn't stress you too much! Thanks for letting us meet your sweet baby!)

On our way home we visited another favorite place, Purina Farms! They had their Easter Village set up in the barn loft, complete with all kinds of baby animals the kids could pet! The girls were fascinated with this gosling! (back story: I couldn't keep Ellie away from the baby animals. She was in heaven.)


"What baby animals? LOOK! TRACTORS!" (back story: Austin quickly lost interest in anything but the tractors!)


And the Grand Finale? A CAT THAT DID TRICKS!!! His name was Friskie, and he was 5 months old. I was impressed! (back story: Ellie now wants to be a vet AND and cat trainer. She was beyond excited!)


I will say we had our ups and downs. Our kids are never easy kids, but on the whole, I am VERY proud of how they all did! It was a great getaway! We've done this trip before, almost three years ago! If you want a little peek into the past, and you have an extra 10 minutes, click here to see my post from that trip. (It's kind of long!) My how the kids have grown and things have changed!

Happy Spring Everyone!