Summer Vacation 2009

We took the kids on an amazing adventure this summer. Every year we go to Myrtle Beach for a week with Mike's family. We always have a lot of fun. This year we decided to drive instead. Everyone thought we were crazy. We decided to take 3 days to get there and make some stops along the way to make it more enjoyable. The kids were so good in the car. The first day we left around 7 am. We stopped in Jackson, MS at the zoo. It was so hot out even Owen was sweating. We walked around for while and looked at animals and then Ryan got to play in the kids area. We drove a little longer and got a hotel room for the night. With the stops it didn't seem like we drove that much. Ryan was so excited to stay in a hotel. The next day we drove to Atlanta, GA and went to the Geargia Aquarium. It was a really nice Aquarium. Owen had just started standing up on his own and he loved looking at the fish. We spent several hours there which helped us to avoid Atlanta rush hour! We spent the night in a hotel again with promises of Cracker Barrel for breakfast to Ryan. We must have seen a sign for Cracker Barrel, Waffle House and Walmart about every 15 minutes for the entire trip. The next morning we slept late and Ryan got his pancakes for breakfast. We finally got on the road around 11 am and drove the last 5 hours to the beach. We got there around 5:30 which was just about the same time that Katie and her family got there. They got brave and drove too. We had such a good time at the beach. Ryan is definately part fish. We couldn't keep him out of the water. All he wanted to do was surf!!! Even Owen loved the water. But everytime we took down on the beach he fell asleep. I think I need a recording of the ocean in his room so he will sleep better. When he was awake he played in the water, ate sand and tried to eat shells. Towards the end of the week Ryan kept asking when he could go home. As much fun as he was having he was really missing the dogs. But we still had a long trip ahead of us. So Saturday morning we left the beach and headed towards VA to Mike's mom's house. We spent 2 nights there eating El Ranchero's Mexican Food... yes the best Mexican Food is actually in Collinsville, VA.. go figure!!! He got to see his friends and Ryan and Owen got some more time with Grandma and Papa Don. We left there on Monday and headed to Nashville. We decided to find something to do on the way so we found the Tennessee Museum of Aviation. Ryan loved looking at all the aircraft and engines. From the road to the museum we could see the Smoky Mountains. Then on to Nashville... sort of. We didn't quite make it. This was the only bad night of the whole trip. We drove too long, Owen was crying. Ryan was afraid of the dark and we had to drive with the lights on. He had a tummy ache and we had to keep stopping at rest areas. It was a disaster. We decided to find a hotel but of course we were in the middle of nowhere. Finally we stopped and got some sleep. We made in to Nashville where we went to Mike's friends' restaurant. We hung out for a little while and got some great pizza for the road... Thanks guys! For our last night on the raod we searched for the ultimate kid's place... Chuck E Cheese. We found one in Little Rock, AR. Oddly enough this was the nicest CEC I have ever been to. After the night we had the day before we found a hotel early. Got the kids in their beds without waking them up. We slept until Owen woke up at 4 am and hit the road. We made it home around 11 am. I was so happy to pull in that driveway, but I am so glad we took it slow and made a great trip for the kids. We will never forget it and we are looking forward to next year!!!