June 14-15 Margaritaville

Since we are “winging it” on this trip we don’t know where we are staying until we are driving in that direction. We found a brand new KOA that was having a grand opening so we decided to go for it. Those are usually a little more expensive, but 2 nights got us a 25% discount. They had a big lake, sandy beach, kid’s play park area, & a bunch of little cabins you could rent. Across the street was a big water park that was on our must do list. Once again the in laws stayed in a hotel down the street. The weather was overcast, but I took the kids to the playground & down to the beach to check it out. They wanted to play in it so bad, but we kept it to the sand only. Since there wasn’t much to do that evening we took the kids to the hotel pool to burn off some energy. Worked like a charm & they bathed at the hotel & got their jammies on so we could get back to the camp to see the grand opening fireworks. Yay! They were about 30 min late getting started & both kids were tired & wanting to go to sleep. Hey who am I to argue? Dalton zonked fast & Annika was a bit slower & asking questions when we heard the “boom boom” of the fireworks. She jumped out of bed & ran outside to see them. They lasted 15 min or more & were really impressive. I’d say they were better than some 4^th of July fireworks we’ve seen in the past. It was a great way to end the day.

The next morning Kurt & his parents went to see some war museum so I go the kids ready for the beach & we headed out. It was overcast & crappy but they had fun. Emry was fascinated by the sand & would not stay on the towel. She dined on a couple hands full of sand. Gag! The weather was not looking any better so we walked allll the way back to the trailer & we got drizzled on a little. By then everyone was back & we decided to take the kids to the local imaginarium science center.  Of course Dalton slept the first 20-30 of us being there so it gave Annika time to do her own thing without having her pesky brother around to bother her (that’s what she would say anyway). There were all kinds of neat hands on things. You could make your own cloud by putting your hands on this big ring & pushing down. It reminded me of making smoke signals like Indians did back in the day. There was a big static generator, hot air balloon you could inflate with fire, a thing you could get on & go in circles (she did that several times), a robotic arm you could control to pick up balls, a bunch of mind puzzles to make you think (made me feel kinda dumb) & so many other neat things. Dalton finally woke up & he too was having fun. It was a great way to spend the afternoon killing time. I had a roast going in the crock pot all day & was looking forward to eating it. The campground was having a free concert the second night so we were eager to get back, eat & go see the Jimmy Buffett tribute band (my kind of music). My mother in law went to the casino & we went to the concert. The band was really good & the kids played with beach balls, ran around, and we all danced. Someone started a conga line & we all jumped in. It was a great evening & I had fun. Not sure when I have had that much fun & relaxation. Good times good times. Of course our stay wouldn’t be complete without a thunderstorm. Ugh….bad weather is following us. It’s a trend as you will see. Next stop, the Spam museum.