TEXAS TRIP 2014

lunch at Ikea

My Texas trip with the boys and Grandma started with a surprise, Will coming with us!  His schedule got re-arranged due to some training and he ended up with a 4 day weekend starting the day we left.  So we enjoyed having Will for most of the trip and then he got to fly home in time for work Monday.  

our visit to Bass Pro Shop in Springfield, MO

Day 1:  Thursday-we picked Rex up from preschool at 1pm and then headed south.  Our first pit stop was in Springfield, MO at the World Headquarters of Bass Pro.  It was SUPER cool and I would love to go back sometime and explore more of the store.  The boys loved all the fish and animals, Will of course found the gun museum to enjoy, Grandma loved the chandeliers and I loved the buffet!  

Rex would like one of these

We spent the night in Joplin, MO in a really great Homewood Suite Hotel.  The boys got to bed late but little did we know that would actually end up being one of our easier nights of the trip.

Grant and Daddy catching some sleep in the hotel.  Grant woke up early but fell back asleep in our bed.

Look who I found hanging out in Exotic Fruits

Day 2 Friday:  We enjoyed a good breakfast at the hotel and headed off for a day of driving through Oklahoma.  We made it to the Stahr's by 3 p.m. and were greeted at the curb by many excited cousins.  I wish I had taken a picture of it.  We also enjoyed arriving to a 70 degree day and playing in the back yard part of the afternoon.  We enjoyed a good meal from Jasons Deli Friday night and got 7 children to bed and then Annie, Will, and I went out after the kids were all in bed....to the grocery store!  Where else would a couple of stay at home moms go after hours!  Annie took us to her fancy health grocery store to stock up for the rest of the visit.

Grandma is a professional story reader.

Day 3: Saturday the Stahr boys had several things on the calendar.  In the a.m. Annie, Alex, Gavin, and Grandma Cindy all headed out early for Alex's Equine horse therapy.  I watched 4 children by myself and learned I only want 2 children!  Next Will, Annie, Alex, Eli and I headed to Eli's final soccer practice of his session.  It was parent participation day and Will and I both got to enjoy playing along during some of the games.  That afternoon when we got home I put Grant down for his normal afternoon nap.  Even though he had not napped the day before I was pretty sure he would take one.  To my surprise we soon found him back in the living room playing with toys....how did he get there!?, who let him out!?....surprise Grant learned how to crawl out of his pack-n-play.  (Good bye naps and good bye easy bedtimes or sleeping all night for the rest of the trip.) That evening Grandma treated us to take out from PF Changs.  Once the kiddos were all asleep we enjoyed a game of Scrabble where Annie soundly beat all of us (she always wins).  That night at about 1 a.m Grant woke up and would not stay in his pack-n-play, he would not stay in bed with us, he would not let us rock him, he would not let us walk and hold him, and mostly just screamed and this was even with Benadryl in him!  Finally all 3 of us were at our wits end after 2+ hours of all this so Will and I got dressed took Grant and loaded up in the van and drove around until he fell asleep.  It took all of about 15 minutes.  Finally by about 4am we were all sound asleep again.

A LOT of silliness came from the boys only table at dinner.

The Lego Movie crew

Day 4: Sunday was a nice relaxing slow start to the day.  After our long night Grant did actually let us sleep in till past 8.  We all got around and ready and made it to church.  All the kids did amazingly well in nursery and I really enjoyed the service at Dallas Bible Church.  Next on the itinerary was the Lego Movie!  Grandma volunteered to babysit (not napping) Grant and Laura while the rest of us went. For the Stahr boys this was their first movie at the theater and for Rex only his second.   They all really enjoyed it, I especially enjoyed listening to Rex and Alex discuss the movie all the way home in the back seat. Next up was a driving tour of Dallas downtown and some seriously good BBQ.  Once boys (and Laura) were in bed Grandma Cindy babysat yet again and we had a fro-yo (frozen yogurt bar) double date with the Stahrs.  That night Grant fell asleep on the way home from dinner and actually slept all night till 6 a.m. (best night of the trip, he kinda owed us one!)

Grant and Laura cruising

Story time with Grandma

Day 5:  Started early with Will leaving for the airport and all of the boys up before 7  a.m.  Will had a smooth flight home and was asleep in the basement by midday (lucky!....of course he did have to work all night that night).  I woke up not feeling great but figured it was just some indigestion from the big meal the night before.  I did finally sneak in a 3 mile run along a great trail in Annie's neighborhood.  Our big outing for the day was a trip to Ikea.  The kids played in the free play land while Grandma, Annie, Grant, Laura, and I shopped for a bit.  The kids all spent much of the afternoon outside enjoying another beautiful weather day.  I continued to not feel well and ended up in bed by early evening.  Pretty soon Grandma Cindy was bringing Grant in to tell me he was throwing up.  So Grant, Grandma and I were quarantined to our room (luckily we had the master bedroom with a bathroom attached).  Grant was sick a few more times and then passed out in Grandma's arms.  Being that Grant and I were both sick we actually slept pretty good that night.  Eli also was up sick in the night but amazingly no one else ended up with the flu bug.  

Grandma rocking Grant to sleep after he was throwing up 

Day 6:  Thankfully Grant and I both woke up feeling much better Tuesday morning and since no one else in our party was sick we decided we had better start heading for home.  I packed and my boys melted down.  Seriously everyone was an emotional mess that morning.  By mid morning we were off and making good time heading north.  We discussed driving all the way home that day (my vote considering Grants sleep track record on the trip) but ultimately decided to stay in Joplin, MO again overnight.  The boys and I did enjoy getting to swim in the hotel pool and playing in the adjoining hotel rooms.  Grandma rocked Grant to sleep after I tried and failed and Rex literally passed out in his bed.  I went to sleep early at 9, still trying to recover from being sick.

just bein cute

more cuteness

Day 7: Started early....really early....like 3 a.m early.  Grant woke up and once again would not go back to sleep.  Grandma was up with him for a while and then I took over, after all he is my kid, he's my burden to bear.  Luckily we had 2 adjoining room so I was able to be awake in one room with him while Rex and Grandma slept in late.  I did consider driving him around but it would have been considerably harder by myself in an unfamiliar area and having to go through hotel halls, lobbys, locked doors, and through a very cold parking lot it didn't seem like a good idea.  Finally by about 5am I stopped trying to put him to sleep and we just ate food out of my snack bag and watched tv till the complimentary breakfast opened at 6 a.m. By 9:15 we were packed up at heading home.  Grant fell asleep before we were even on the interstate and slept for the next 4 hours straight until we pulled up in our driveway.  Grandma drove us all the way home and our trip was over.  We unloaded, Grandma headed home, the boys melted down all evening coming down from the high of the trip, and we all went to bed early and we all slept all night, in our own beds!  (I dont think I have ever been so happy to be home)

just chilln' in the a.m.

Rex in the Lego room with Eli

So aside from the parts where Grant made my life and all the lives of those traveling or living in the same house with him miserable multiple times we had a GREAT trip.  (can you tell I dont  harbor any ill feeling toward him)  Seriously it was really great.  I loved that Grandma Cindy was there with us for all of it, she keeps me sane and models love and patients and thankfulness and forgiveness and grace for me every time I am with her, I loved hanging out with my big sis, I loved watching all the cousin interactions, I loved holding Miss Laura (we are bffs now), I loved that Will got to be there for most of it, I loved the warm Texas weather, I loved the Lego movie, I kind even loved driving while we caravaned into downtown Dallas, it was very intense driving and fun.  We definitely want to visit Texas again someday.....I just need to find a babysitter for Grant, he's not invited. Kidding....kind of.  Give me some time and a few more nights of good sleep. ;)

Dont Worry Grant I still Love you today as much as I did the day we left for our trip!