Great Wolf Lodge

We first went to Great Wolf Lodge on our family vacation to Michigan last year. We had so much fun, and Lily loved it so much, that we pretty much decided then and there to make it an annual tradition. This year did not fail to please. This time, we went to the Great Wolf Lodge in Kansas City. Lily swam from about 2:00 in the afternoon until about 7:30 at night, only taking a short break for dinner.

William loved to splash...

...and drink the water. Yuck!

Look at our little one swimming!

Whoa!

Fun at the fort

Downpour!

One of Lily's latest tricks: floating

Hold on William!

The clock tower where they hold the nightly story hour

A happy (and tired) Lily in her pajamas with her new poodle ready for the story

Posing with Violet. The story time was over by about 8:30, and we went back to our room, I think it took Lily all of 8 seconds to fall asleep.

Yay for Great Wolf Lodge and off to new adventures in Colorado!!

In the garden with grandpa

I'm quite sure that Lily will remember her Colorado trip for two things: her hike to the top of Green Mountain and gardening with Grandpa. Lily loves to garden! Unfortunately, her parents don't exactly have green thumbs. She loves our little herb, pepper, and tomato garden at home, but we may have to leave the heavier stuff to the extended family. :)

William hanging out in the backyard

You can see some of the gorgeous views from the backyard behind William and me

Pulling up a carrot for the evening's dinner

A good find!

A successful afternoon resulting in lots of yummy veggies

Giving the veggies a good scrubbing

William is introduced to the kholrabi, a Deetz favorite

The coordinated family

We're so cheese.

Chow time!

After the zoo on Friday, Lily and Angela whipped up some gourmet homemade pizzas. Here they are working on their special white pizza.

William worked on getting his hands on his own pizza.


What would a trip to Memphis be without some bbq? We say, "Yes, please!"

Yay for visiting with Aunt Angela!

Beauty and the Beast

On Saturday night, we got to see Beauty and the Beast at the Muny. This is the first time that Lily has been to the Muny, mainly because the shows do not start until after 8:00 pm. The Muny is the oldest and largest outdoor theater in the country. I was an usher there when I was in high school, and Suzanne worked in concessions when she was in high school. My parents now have season tickets (with rockin' seats). Obviously, we are big fans of the Muny. If you come to St. Louis, and don't see a show at the Muny, you've really missed out on one of the most amazing places in the city. I am so glad that my parents took us to many theater productions when we were young and instilled in us an appreciation for this art form. I was so happy to be able to share this experience with Lily and hope to create many more memories with her there in years to come.

Pre-show excitement

Unfortunately, the late start time was just too much for Lily. She fell sound asleep shortly after the intermission. This is not surprising since she is asleep by 7:30 on most nights, but I was hoping she would be able to see Belle in her "yellow dress". (She really wanted to see the yellow dress.) Maybe next time!

Ready for homeostasis at home

So we've been through a little bit of a rough patch here lately. Carl's emergency gall bladder surgery was followed by an insect or spider bite on my left arm which turned into Cellulitis. Then, we went swimming on Father's Day which may have contributed to the ear infection that I developed on Monday. The Cellulitis was annoying, but the ear infection has been nothing short of horrible. I've been on some heavy-duty pain killers and feeling totally out of it. Thanks to my mom and dad who have stepped in several times to save the day during this time. There are not a lot of things that have caused me as much pain as the ear infection, but having to "pump and dump" due to the pain killers runs a close second to the infection.

Liquid gold down the drain