oops

I posted the pictures after the write-up...so scroll down past the pics to see what they are all about!

I don't know if you can tell, but one hour into the drive, I turned around to see Sarah dumping her snack all over the place while smiling and laughing at me...ugh! You can only imagine what the van looked like when we got back!

2 hours into the drive we got a 30 minute catnap out of Sarah...no more sleep after that!

refreshed and ready for the next 8 and 1/2 hours in the car

Hey, Will, we're finally in Texas!

Sleepy yet, Sarah?

No, Mom, still not sleepy...RIIIGHT!

1st meal at the hotel--dinner at 9 PM! :)

I'm not sure I've ever seen anyone so excited to get to sleep on a pull-out bed!

Will loved his pull out bed!

Dallas

Stephen had to go to Dallas for 2 weeks for training, so I decided to make the most out of it, and take the kids out there for a few days to visit some of the friends we made while Stephen and I lived there. I will admit I was a bit apprehensive about it as the day approached for us to load up the car and hit the road. I kept thinking, "am I insane for doing this?" Thank goodness, my friend, Catherine, also has friends in Dallas, so she agreed to ride out there with me even though she had to get in the car just after coming off of a night shift at the hospital where she works as a nurse. I know she was completely exhausted, but she was such a help and was able to sneak a couple tiny naps in on the way. She spent most of the 11 hours handing Sarah her "duice". We left Birmingham about 9 AM, took 2 1 hour stops for food and bathroom breaks, and arrived in Dallas around 8 PM. Although that sounds like a very long day, and I guess it was, it went by much more smoothly than I anticipated! The kids were absolute angels to have been strapped down for that long. Sarah fussed for about 30-45 minutes total during that trip and only slept for about 30 minutes!!!!!!! I could not believe that she only slept for 30 minutes when she had such ample opportunity. Will slept about 45 minutes and was really, really good!
We had a great 3 days in Dallas. We were able to stay with Stephen at his hotel in Grapevine, TX which was one of the ones with a full kitchen and plenty of room. The kids LOVED the hotel!!! They slept GREAT while we were there! Although we were staying with Stephen, we really only saw him to tell him goodnight each night. He was in class all day, and then studied all afternoon and night when he got out of class. So, we were pretty much on our own, but I have to say I really, really, really enjoyed the time I had to spend with the kids. It was so nice to be able to just enjoy having them and doing things with them without having to worry about all the other things (the house, the laundry, etc) that I have to worry about when I'm at home. The maids even did our dishes!! I could get used to that! Seriously, though, I think the time we were able to spend together was really good for all of us. Of course, it would have been better if Stephen could have done more with us, but still, a good time was had by all.
The drive home was an absolute breeze! We picked Catherine up at 9, made one stop at an awesome pizza place in LA (thank, Anna!) and were back in Bham at 6:15. Not bad! The kids were incredibly good again...hardly any fussing from Sarah. I will absolutely admit that I was insanely proud of them by the time we got back.
Anyway, those are the details...I'm uploading lots of pics, so enjoy!

Day 1-Part 1, The Rainforest Cafe

On the first morning, the kids and I went across the street to the Grapevine Mills Mall, a huge mall with lots of outlet stores and a Rainforest Cafe. We met my friend Andrea, who I used to work at the school with, and her new baby, Presley there. We had never been to a Rainforest Cafe, and for those of you who haven't been to one either, you should go if you ever see one. It is decorated completely like a Rainforest, complete with the animals who move and make their noises every 10 minutes during the "thunderstorms" For those of you with sensitive ears, this would not be the place to go! It is really loud in there, but really neat. The kids loved all the moving animals! Actually, when we first walked up to the restaurant, Will noticed that there was a swamp right outside with a huge alligator. He thought the alligator was so neat and was leaning over the railing talking to it about it the time its eyes opened up and it came up out of the water with it's mouth wide open. Will almost passed out! It was hilarious!
I really enjoyed catching up with my friend Andrea and meeting baby Presley, who is 4 months old. She's adorable and sooo sweet! She sat there with us during lunch in all that chaos without making a peep and even fell asleep...I guess we were pretty boring! :) Andrea, I hope that you guys come visit us soon!

The kiddos and me at the Rainforest Cafe

Will and the frog

the kiddos with the frog outside the Rainforest Cafe

Day 1-Part 2, Frisco

**note...not using real names in the story because I don't have permission**

The first night, we drove up to Frisco, where Stephen and I used to live so that we could visit with some of our friends. Our friends, "the Smith's" have a little boy (well, not so little anymore) who was in one of my first classes. He was and still is one of the sweetest boys I know. Since we moved, they had another little boy and he's just as sweet and adorable as his big brother! We went to their house to play for a while before we went to our favorite Mexican restaurant, Manny's. The kids and I both had a great time hanging out, playing, and visiting at their house. Because of a prior commitment, the boys' daddy was not able to go to dinner with us, so it was just going to be the Mommies and the kids. At Manny's, we decided to sit inside because it looked like it was going to storm. Big mistake! Manny's used to be a lot more fun when it was 4 adults with one child! 2 adults and 4 children...not so much. Sarah, who is usually really good at restaurants, decided to be an absolute bear so midway through our dinner she decided to go ballistic and start screaming. So, I ended up outside on the patio with Sarah and the other boys while my friend had to get all of our food packed up "to go" and wait for Will to finish eating. Once we all ended up on the patio, all the kids were happy because they could play and my friend and I finally got a little chance to relax and visit. After the kids played for a while, we headed back to their house where we were very excited to get to play their Wii. Unfortunately, as soon as we walked through the door, we saw that a tornado warning had been issued for Fort Worth and the system was coming our way. I called Stephen and he wanted us to head back to the hotel so that we would all be together. He thought I had time to make it back. So we had to run out...an abrupt end to what was a really enjoyable night. So, the kids and I raced back down to the hotel in the dark on roads that I wasn't completely still familiar with, me praying the whole time that we would make it back to the hotel before the baseball sized hail and tornadoes. Of course, I missed our exit, so we were temporarily lost which was quite scary. We eventually made it back to the hotel, and wouldn't you know, after all of that, the storm went around us. ugh! We had a great time, though guys! Please come visit us in Alabama soon!

My buddy, Blake, helping Will drive the tractor

Will driving the tractor while Luke looks on

Sarah driving the tractor

Blake, Luke, Will, and Sarah outside on the patio at Manny's

Day 2-Part 1, Andrea's house and Double Dip

We had a great 2nd morning! We went up to Frisco to visit with my friend Andrea and her baby, Presley who is 4 months old. I had a great time visiting with Andrea again and the kids loved getting into all of Presley's toys that she hasn't even been able to play with. Sarah also took a liking to a few of the dog toys. After Andrea's house, I took the kids to one of my favorite places in Frisco, The Double Dip for lunch and frozen custard. They have the best frozen custard I have ever had and it is located within a former gas station. It's a really cool place, and it was as good as I remembered. After that, it was back to Grapevine to the hotel for naps.

Baby Presley, Sarah, and me hanging out at my friend Andrea's house

My kiddos destroying poor Baby Presley's perfect room...I am not proud of this picture! I'm still sorry about this Andrea! :)

Stephen and I spent quite a bit of time and money on this little stretch when we lived in Frisco! You can see the Double Dip sign and in the background is, Manny's, our favorite Mexican restaurant.

The kids and I at one of our favorite places in Frisco, the Double Dip!!! It's the best!

Day 2-Part 2, Bass Pro Shop

After a good, long nap, I took the kiddos across the parking lot to the Bass Pro Shop so that Will could see all the 4-wheelers, golf carts, boats, and fish. Needless to say, he loved it all, and we had a good afternoon.

Will in front of the huge water wheel...doesn't he just look like a tourist? :)

the huge fish tank at Bass Pro Shop

"hulongous" golf cart!

4-wheeler!

Day 2-Part 3, Gatti Town

Friday night, the kids and I drove back up to Frisco. We went to a place called Gatti Town, a huge Chuck E Cheese type place, but much better! We me my friend Amber, her husband Drew and her kids, Madison and Sydney there. Amber and I used to work together at the school I worked at in Dallas. It was soo good to see them! I could not believe how much her kids had grown, and I'm sure she felt the same way about mine! This place had a huge pizza, pasta, salad, and dessert buffet and more games to play than you can imagine. They even had a little train that rode around the parking lot outside. Inside, they had all kinds of arcade games, a carousel, bumper cars, a mini bowling alley, and even one of those ships you see at fairs or six flags that swing up and down, back and forth. Will hopped right onto that ship and rode it all by myself. I could not believe my eyes! I thought for sure he'd scream bloody murder, but he LOVED it! Sarah mostly just liked running all over the place...it was hard to keep her still. Thank goodness Amber was able to help me watch her! We were having so much fun that before we knew it, it was 10 o'clock! Way later than my kiddos have ever been up! As we were leaving, Will wanted to get a balloon animal from a guy dressed as superman who was making them in the lobby. Mommy, of course, did not have any cash so Drew was nice enough to loan us some cash. The guy made Will a blue giraffe and even put it on a leash. It was quite interesting. On the way back to the hotel, I asked Will what his favorite part was, and he told me "giving the money to the balloon man!" So, thanks Drew! Of all the things... Sarah also walked out of there with her own special, free, pink balloon and you would not believe how in love with it she was. For the remainder of our trip (and even still here in Bham a week later) she carted that balloon around. We had an absolute blast, and it was soo much fun to spend some time with Amber and her family! Hopefully, we can do it again soon! It's your turn to come this way, Amber! :)

Sarah with her beloved balloon from Gatti Town...she carried it around everywhere for the remainder of our trip to Dallas...in fact, it is still with us in Birmingham :)