Saturday, April 14, 2012

Great Wolf Lodge - A 6-yr-old's Dream!



























Wow! What a weekend! We gave Carson a few choices for his birthday this year - a birthday party at home (or at a fun place in town,) or a trip to Great Wolf Lodge. No brainer, Great Wolf Lodge won hands down!  It was our first trip there, and we had heard great things. It really was a fun place for families.  I wouldn't say it was the best place for a toddler, but for the 6-12 crowd it was awesome.  Maggie actually had a great time too, but we were all on our guard keeping track of her.  Carson and Dad started on the water slides as soon as we got there, and Mom, Grandma, and Maggie took a walk to get the lay of the land.  Maggie loved running all around, but she wasn't too excited to meet Wiley the Wolf :).  After their swim, Carson and Dad started on the MagiQuest game and played until it shut down at 11 p.m. On day two we all swam and took turns with Carson on the water slides.  That night we finally sang Happy Birthday to Carson after a late dinner, and then Carson hurried off to story time.  On our last day Carson took the Wolf Walk, made an origami wolf with Dad, and then it was off to finish the MagiQuest game and face the Dragon!  Oh boy, did we get lucky with that.  Dad and Mom had payed close attention to all the other kids who were fighting the Dragon, and although we thought we had a chance, we were afraid that we'd be stuck there all day getting it done.  On Carson's first try, he walked into the Dragon's lair and the Dragon immediately declared Carson the victor!  He gave him the gold and told him he was a Magi Master! Mom and Dad thought there must have been a computer glitch (thank God) and we went to the Magi store to ask one of the "Magi Geeks"(think dungeons and dragons dorks of our day) how it had happened.  Carson had chosen a "topper" for his wand that had special software inside that would automatically defeat the Dragon -- whoohoo! SWEET! He was so proud of himself, and he wore his Magi Master button with pride. Thanks to his lucky topper, his defeat of the Dragon placed him amongst those with the "top gold" for the day.  He was so excited to see Dark Blade Battler (yes, he chose that on his own) on the big screen.
It would have been impossible to squeeze one more thing into that weekend!  We were so glad Grandma Connie could come with us on our Great Wolf adventure! We'll definitely go back some day!














Carson's 6th Birthday




Carson's birthday also happened to be Rodeo Day at school.  Grandma Connie, Mom, and Maggie went to school to have lunch with the birthday boy. He requested McDonald's, but kindergarten eats lunch at 10:15 in the morning, so it was breakfast instead of a Happy Meal.  The birthday boy didn't mind one bit. After school he quickly opened a few presents before we jumped into the car for the trek to Great Wolf Lodge.  He was more than a little excited to get new Wii games, Connect Four Launchers, and several new books!  He's been on a reading terror lately…his favorites - Dave Pilkey's Captain Underpants series, and the gem he's proudly holding in the picture - Ook and Gluk… They are ridiculously silly, but they keep him entertained :).  Next stop - Great Wolf Lodge!

Wednesday, April 4, 2012

Bayou Bend















We visited Bayou Bend while Grandma Connie was here in February.  It was a beautiful day and a nice way to get outside and let the kids run around a bit.  They do these free family days once a month, and this one was wildlife themed.  Carson loved seeing all the critters and listening to the naturalist/kid's comedian do his puppet show.   Maggie got to stretch her legs a bit too when we walked all around the gardens.  Carson loved exploring the gardens too.  He ran all over and wanted me to take his picture everywhere. Fun day!

School Valentine's Day Party





Oh yea, we're THAT far behind…Carson had a very nice Valentine's party at school and Maggie and I went up to help out a little.  The kids enjoyed their ice cream treats and looking at all their Valentines from each other.  Maggie was a very good girl.  When she finally got out of her stroller she walked around and made some new friends.

Winter Basketball






Carson played Upward Basketball this winter.  He really loved it, especially since Michael helped coach. It was all kinds of craziness, but Carson enjoyed it so much that I'm sure he'll want to play again next year.