Vacation Bible School

These monkeys just completed a very successful week of Vacation Bible School: Mt. Everest!  I was blown away by the growth that I saw in Shyla since attending last year.  Truly inspiring and heart-warming!

(That is Shyla's friend from Kindergarten, on her left.)

As an added bonus: we've been enjoying the bible school songs and dances, without end, since last Monday!

Legoland Vacation Day 5

Final day of vacation, before the long drive home of course, consisted of a few hours back at Legoland just to do a few more rides and catch a really silly show.  And, then, time at a Carlsbad State Beach.  The girls, especially Shyla, love the beach, the sand, and the waves.
All in all, it was a great vacation!  Lots of smiles and memories!  Legoland is no Disneyland….but it was cool nonetheless and the kids had a blast.

Legoland Vacation Day 4

Day 4 of vacation, and the 3rd day in the parks, was primarily spent at the Waterpark within Legoland. This was definitely a highlight!  Again, many of the attractions were designed for kids of Harper's size so she had a blast!  Shyla continues to have fun at the bigger/scarier rides but also with her sister on the smaller-scale ones.

There was a lot of silliness and a lot of fun!  We even shared an order of Apple Fries with Vanilla Cream (a Legoland speciality) before heading back to the hotel.  After a brief rest-time we headed to IHOP for dinner (craving pancakes!) and Harper, for the second night in a row, fell asleep at the booth!  This time she woke up in time to be angry about only having Shyla's leftover grilled cheese!

Legoland Vacation Day 3

Day 3, Sunday, began at the Legoland Aquarium.  We only spent a couple hours there because the girls were a bit bored, but I think Stevie and I could have spent a lot more time.  It was well done and interesting.

When we finished we headed back to Legoland for more rides.  One of Shyla's favorites was Drive School in which she got to drive her own car (not on tracks) around a mini-city with turns and stop-signs.  She ended up doing it 3 times!  There were some pretty funny accidents!  There is also a Junior Drive School that Harper did, but she wasn't nearly as impressed by it.

That night we went to eat dinner at Islands, one of my favorites.  Unfortunately, Harper missed the deliciousness of it because she fell asleep in the car on the way there and slept in the booth the whole time!  I guess that means she was having fun!

Legoland Vacation Day 2

The next day, Saturday, we were well-rested and ready for some fun!  Legoland was a lot of fun and great for the girls, especially Harper.  Stevie and I had to remind ourselves that it wasn't Disneyland and, in a way, we had to lower our expectations.  But, everyone had a great time.  Some of the lego sculptures were down-right amazing!

That evening we met Uncle Dan and Auntie Erin at Baked Bear (side note: SO DELICIOUS!) for ice cream sandwiches.  And some playtime on the beach.  The water was really cold but Shyla really wanted to go in.  She also took the opportunity to perform the 4 songs from her end-of-kindergarten performance!  It's always so great to see them!  The girls tried to talk to Baby Gunning but no one was able to convince that baby to come out yet!

Legoland Vacation Day 1

We just got back from a wonderful family vacation in Carlsbad, CA!  We are so fortunate to be able to take the girls on these outings and make these {hopefully} everlasting memories.

We left on Friday morning after a busy work-week (more on that later!) and arrived at our hotel in time to get some wiggles out, grab a quick dinner, and get ready for the adventures to come!