Limited success with the wetsuits

For the last week I've been off to have some family fun time, and it definitely was. We started off going to the Conestoga Ranch in Garden City. I wrote about it last week. It really is a fantastic place. We decided to drive up through Evanston to check out fireworks. A little tip on buying fireworks. When you go into the big firework stores don't tell them you have a budget of $30 or $40 because they'll sneer at you and then go in the back to laugh at you. You'll walk out of there with such low self esteem, you'll need to go to the state fair to make yourself feel better. Or Walmart at 1 am. I'm not going to spend $150 on fire though. I say fire because that's what you're buying. Fire. Colored fire. It's fun, but not $150 fun. I say that knowing full well I've spent $150 on a sword before, but I believe it makes me cooler. Sword beats colored fire.
We got to the camp at about 5:30, and Mirinda was so excited to be in the big tent she felt it was time to put on pajamas and turn in the for the night. I explained to her that we were going to have fun first, and she wasn't interested in fun. Just wanted to be in the tent. I finally convinced her to eat something before she turned in, and we enjoyed a LaBeau's feast. If you haven't been there I highly recommend it, though the best raspberry shakes are at Hometown Drive-in next door. LaBeau's has the better burger though. After dinner we played on the grounds for a while, and then they lit our campfire so we could make smores. After 2 minutes of that, Mirinda had enough and felt the need to go in the tent. She was really fascinated with the idea of sleeping in canvas.
The whole reason we went up there was to celebrate Amy's birthday, and we had a great day. We went to the Pepperidge Farm factory, the cheese factory, and Maddox. Priya was really digging all of it. It made me reflect on the idea that really she's only been here about 3 months. 3 months ago her life was 4 small rooms. Now she's seen all these beautiful things. It makes me remember how extremely blessed we are to live where we live. Both of our daughters are such happy girls, and I'm honestly not sure why we got them. They are two amazing children, and it's so cool to see their personalities grow and interact with each other.
We got back Saturday night, slept at home, and then Sunday morning got up to drive to Loa for Amy's family reunion. Where is Loa? Drive to the end of the earth, and just keep going. You'll find it. It was a good weekend down there though, despite the wildfires. The girls loved playing with their cousins. Mirinda loves to dance, and Priya is discovering that she likes to dance as well. The funny thing is that each time she dances she does the exact same dance. I realized the other day that it was the Fairy Dance from Mirinda's dance recital, as they both watch the video from that 30 times a day. She does 2nd and 3rd position, without even knowing what those are. She is a smart little cookie.
Priya enjoyed her first 4th of July as an American citizen. The look of joy on her face the first time she saw fireworks is something I'll never forget. She loved everything about the holiday.
Update on the wetsuits: The wetsuits came, and we tried them out in the pool at the apartment, which is heated. It meant the girls could swim for about 2 hours, which was really great. We invited some friends to come over (they have 3 boys, and Mirinda really likes that) and had a great time. So with a successful trial run we tried the wetsuits out on the frigid waters of Lagoon-A-Beach. It kind of worked. After 45 minutes Mirinda said she was cold, but I think she was more bored than cold. Priya loved it, but all she wanted to do it stick her face in the foot deep water. We may just stick to splash pads in the future. Less drowning that way. But even after an hour she had enough, so we did rides instead.
The only issue with taking time off is you have to go back to work eventually, and Priya was not at all happy with me yesterday. She wouldn't even look at me until Thursday night. I understand why. Mirinda and I had a date last night. We went to Costco for pizza, the mall for ice cream, miniature golfing, and Smith's. That's a pretty comprehensive list of the things Mirinda loves to do, so it was good to have some one on one time with her.
Recommendation for the week: The Baked Bear. It's in Fashion Place Mall. They do homemade cookies, and make their own ice cream, so they'll make you a ice cream sandwich with your choice of home made cookies. They also do an ice cream sandwich with donuts. The cookies are great, and the ice cream is fantastic. My favorite is the bear bowl, which is a little pie tin with either a brownie or chocolate chip cookie in the bottom, warmed up, and then ice cream on top. Their salted caramel fudge is absolutely incredible. They also sell their day old cookies for $5 a dozen. I highly recommend it!
As always, thanks for reading, and for the comments. If you like this blog, please share it with your friends!