Great Wolf Lodge Niagara Falls

Before the girl's passports expire, I wanted to take advantage of them one last time. We opted for the Canadian side of Niagara Falls and tied in a stay at the Great Wolf Lodge since my sister Reagan had talked it up so much. 

Does anyone else get nervous while queuing up for border control? We have all our documents sorted and somehow I still find myself sweating like I've committed a felon or something. The agent was really nice and actually directed most of his questions towards the girls in terms of where we were going and for how long.

I believe there is a difference between a place that is "family friendly" which basically means travel friendly with a few things thrown in for kids and a place that has families in mind while it's being created. Great Wolf Lodge is definitely the latter.

The most genius part of the experience was the wrist bands. As you can see in the photo, everyone received one and they worked for all purchases and served as our room key as well. We never had worry we'd forgotten a card key or carry a wallet around because everything was charged to the room. In the waterpark, the wristband was also used to check out towels. We could exchange cold, wet towels for warm, dry ones at any time using the wristband. Sydney really got the hang of it and kind of loved having the power to scan and get something on her own.

We would have had fun on our own, but being there with Reagan and her family made it even better. Neither Brent nor I saw much of Liesel as she took off with Paisley the entire 3 days we were there.

Groups would combine and recombine as kids got tired of slides and wanted to hang out in the hot tub, or just nosh on some fries or just float in the lazy river. Brent took little ones so Reagan and I could chat in the grown ups only hot tub and sometimes Reagan and I gathered Brigitta and Rockwell for the smaller slides. It was so easy, and no one was ever left out or hurt, everyone had a blast.

See Sydney's smile? That's what she was like the entire time we were there! Pure joy.

Both of Reagan's girls had celebrated a birthday at a Great Wolf Lodge and so she used this opportunity to celebrate Rockwell's. Since Brigitta's birthday is just a couple of days later, we decided to tie it in as well. She received her own free set of wolf ears with a party hat and a token for a nice, big ice cream cone. 

A word about the wolf ears: while they weren't free, they also weren't so expensive that we felt gutted buying them for all the girls. Where Disneyland Mickey ears cost $15-$25, (then multiply that by FOUR!), the wolf ears were only $4. We felt like it was a reasonable price to pay for something that enhanced the girls experience during our stay. Again, not free but not breaking the bank either.

Since we stayed at in Canada, all the pricing was in Canadian dollars. With the exchange rate, it felt like everything was 25% off, which was just dreamy. We also found that gratuity was included for breakfast so again, we weren't fumbling for a wallet to grab some cash for tip. Although the breakfast meal plan felt pricey, in the end it was worth it. There was quite a spread with lots of healthy options. They had an omelet station where you could request your own, have them make up the omelet of the day fresh, or just ask them to prepare eggs however you'd like. There were lots of protein options which was fantastic for kids who have been extremely physically active.

  The waffles had wolf paw prints on them. How cute is that? 

Also noteworthy is that Brent spotted Iron Chef Geoeffrey Zakarian and his wife in the lobby.

When he checked in, Brent was told that while checkout was at 11:00 am on our departure day, our water park wristbands were good until close at 9:00 pm. We ended up packing a small bag of clothes to change into and (of course!) there were family changing rooms right there in the water park! It just felt like whoever designed this place had really thought of everything.

There was a dance party every night but for one night we signed the girls up for the "pajama party". For 2 1/2 hours the girls got to do crafts, get their face painted, go to story time, etc while Brent and I had a proper date. We chatted in the grown up only hot tub and did slides and just spent time together without little ones to worry about. It was divine to have that time to ourselves to connect in the middle of this family vacation.

 I know I've been talking up our experience at the Great Wolf Lodge so I feel the need to give a balanced review and point out that they do not carry Liesel name magnets in the gift shop...

...which was HUGELY disappointing!

Hill Cumorah Pageant

How cute are these cousins? 

For me the best part of the Hill Cumorah Pageant was mixing with the participants beforehand. Right before we met Joseph Smith, Ireland was whining and I said, "You're about to meet the prophet, lighten up!" and Reagan burst out laughing. For the most part, I think I'm pretty hilarious but I'm only truly assured I'm a riot when I'm around my own family members, who are a hoot themselves.

When we'd approach the actors and ask who they were, they'd get a gleam in their eye and start giving hints until one of the little ones guessed it. This one was present at the birth of Christ, and he came from afar, and he brought a gift... A WISE MAN!!!

This man's son was Nephi, and he found a ball of curious workmanship outside his tent one day... LEHI!

The pageant is pretty spectacular with a huge stage, pyrotechnics and waterfalls.

Personally, my favorite scenes are the one where Nephi builds a boat and the one with King Noah. We had just finished reading the Book of Mormon a few months ago to prepare Ireland for her baptism so the whole pageant was a beautiful recap.

Brent and I had warned the girls about the protesters on their bullhorns so they would be prepared. Afterwards, we could not find where we had parked and trying to find a Honda Pilot among a sea of Honda Pilots was nigh impossible. The panic button on my key chain wasn't yielding any clues so we had to wander around for a bit. The girls were growing tired of the insults being hurled at us when at long last we found the car! The only problem is Brent had taken off to find the car, so then we had to find Brent.

The older girls loved the pageant so much, they went the next night as well! IN THE RAIN!!! Good thing we had those Maid of the Mist ponchos!

A Beautiful Mind

My friend Lindsey sent me this poem about ADHD just a couple days before I snapped this photo of Liesel. She's supposed to be cleaning and organizing her desk, and there she is in the middle of the chaos, playing with a fidget spinner. Normally I'd be go out of my skull and jump down her throat but this made me take a second before gently getting her back on track.

Take my hand and come with me,

I want to teach you and ADHD.

I nee you to know, I want to explain,

I have a very different brain.

Sights, sounds and thoughts collide.

What to do first? I can't decide.

Please understand I'm not to blame,

I just can't process things the same.

I try to behave, I want to be good,

But sometimes forget to do as I should.

Walk with me and wear my shoes,

You'll see it's not the way I'd choose.

I do know what I'm supposed to do,

But my brain is slow getting the message through.

I rarely think before I talk,

I often run when I should walk.

It's hard to get my school work done,

My thoughts are outside having fun.

I never know just where to start,

I think with my feelings and see with my hear.

Take my hand and stand by me,

I can't help letting my feelings show.

Sometimes I'm angry, jealous or sad.

I feel overwhelmed, frustrated, and mad.

I can't concentrate and I lose all my stuff.

I try really hard but it's never enough.

I worry a lot about getting things wrong, 

Everything I do takes twice as long.

Everyday is exhausting for me...

Looking through the fog of ADHD.

I'm often so misunderstood,

I would change in a heartbeat if I could.

Take my hand and listen to me,

I want to share a secret about ADHD.

I want you to know there is more to me.

I'm not defined by it, you see.

I'm sensitive, kind and lots of fun. 

I'm blamed for things I haven't done.

I'm the loyalist friend you'll ever know,

I just need a chance to let it show.

Just forget about the ADHD.

I have real feelings just like you.

The love in my hear is just as true.

I may have a brain that can never rest,

But please understand I'm trying my best.

I want you to know, I need you to see,

I'm more than the label, I am still me!!!

~Author Unknown

Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago

I was rather excited for this trip downtown because I had a whole day planned out in my mind. We'd take the train to Brent's office, have lunch from the food truck line by the river, check out the Chicago Federal Reserve, and then hang out at Daley Plaza. It seemed so perfect. When I bought my ticket, the woman working the register said the girls didn't need tickets because they were so cute. We were off to a good start. 

Then the girls decided to act like total heathens on the train. 

Of course they wanted to sit on the upper deck, but then they kept wanting to change seats or make them face different directions, or fight over who could see the window, or complain about who they were sitting by or just generally make noise. I received a firing squad of dirty looks from the regular passengers who clearly did not think the girls were so cute.

And of course they were hyper! They couldn't keep their voices quiet and I just about died when Liesel decided to loudly play Would You Rather and began saying, "Would you rather be a BLACK person in a WHITE neighborhood or..." before I hissed her into silence. I found myself grasping at how to explain that is not an appropriate question to ask ever, much less a train headed into Chicago. Ugh, that train ride was misery and one I will not repeat for a couple of years at least.

Thankfully, Brent was happy to take over so I could eat my lunch in relative peace and quiet. Man those girls adore him! He'd gotten everyone settled but Sydney and as he headed back to the truck line with her skipping alongside him, I swear everyone in the plaza stopped and watched the two of them. A woman who didn't speak very good English came over to talk to us about the girls and what a blessing they are. She has 4 daughters herself and she just gushed over their blue eyes.

Refueled and re-energized, we parted ways as I took the girls a few blocks away to the Chicago Federal Reserve. It's free so I just had to show my ID and as I did so, Brigitta asked the security guard if there were bags of money inside. He smiled a wry smile and said that indeed there were!

 The girls did the money dance in front of the cube of 1 million dollars.

It's interesting how fleeting that much money can be.

Ireland got pretty good at identifying fake bills.

 We were able to see money close up and read the writing hidden in the images.

The girls snagged bags of shredded bills that have been taken out of circulation. Brigitta was thrilled to get her "bag of money" and immediately decided it was going to become a little pillow. I'm not sure how I feel about that... my daughter wanting to sleep on a pile of money... hmmmm.

For now, she just relaxed on $5000 worth of coins.

I have to say Liesel looks pretty cute on a $100. We don't get many happy smiles on our currency, eh?

We had our picture taken and printed (for FREE!) with this suitcase of $1,000,000. I told the girls to act like they had won it in a game show and then everyone in line behind us did the same pose. This is petty, but it bugs me when people blatantly steal my picture pose ideas.

I waited until the line died down to get this one of me stealing the suitcase of money. I didn't want anyone stealing my stealing photo!

Despite its small size, we ended up spending a couple of hours at this museum and the girls were bummed to leave. The thing about taking a train is you have to keep to a schedule and I really wanted to let the girls slide down the Picasso at Daley Plaza.

The only problem is that the Picasso is made of metal so on a hot, sunny day, it isn't the most inviting slide. Instead, we took advantage of another line of food trucks and bought cupcakes, ice cream cones and some pink lemonade. The girls kicked off their shoes and cooled their feet in the fountain.

We saw Brent one more time en route to the train and made the trip home. Maybe we won't repeat this trip in the near future, but we will definitely repeat it... eventually!

Summers are For...

R E A D I N G

Every trip to the library was a happy one.

S W I M M I N G

Sun on their cheeks and chlorine in their hair.

H A I R C U T S

Note what I just mentioned about chlorine in their hair. Just a few inches off for each girl means a foot of less hair to untangle for me.

B B Q

In Iowa City, this is THE place to get a slab of ribs, with cowboy sauce.

D R I V E - I N S

Many thanks to Whitney who discovered this place. There's nothing like cuddling up in the back of the car and listening to the movie through the radio.

I C E  C R E A M

I know Coldstone is ridiculously expensive, but I don't care. It is summer and we will feast on delicious ice cream (in a waffle bowl, thank you very much!).

W A T E R M E L O N

Especially on the 4th of July because the color coordinates so well!

L E M O N A D E

It tastes even better if it is pink!

My sister Whitney recently noted that as kids we look at adults and envy their freedom. They can drive, and call the shots in their own life. Kids are almost completely at the mercy of the adults in their lives. Then as adults, we look at kids and envy their freedom. Whitney longs for the days when summer meant nothing but long days of swimming and reading.

I hope my girls fondly remember these lazy days of their youthful summers

Brent's 40th

Brent helped make my 40th birthday pretty darn epic, so when he knocked over another decade, I was eager to do the same for him. Unfortunately, he's just not into birthdays and he's REALLY not into spending any money so he rebuffed all my suggestions. Even a suggestion to use frequent flyer miles (FREE!) to visit his family out in California was a dud. Brent didn't even want a cake until I convinced him it's partially for him, but mostly for the girls to celebrate him. The day arrived and I felt helpless and empty-handed. 

I spent the day cleaning the house top to bottom and making sure dinner would be ready the moment he walked in the door. The girls helped me pick out some fun balloons and we hung our streamers to make the place look festive.

I got the girls to agree to be on their best behavior during and after dinner and to let Dad have a quiet evening. We took care of the dishes and clean up (usually Brent's job) and let him relax and you know what? He was pleased as punch with that.

Noted: simple birthdays are best for Brent.

Happy 40th my Love. I hope it's a fantastic year!