This is Alpha, the first-born, when he was 2YO.
This is Beta, the second-born, when he was about 2YO.
This is Gamma, the third-born, when he was about 18MO.
Orlando Recap, Part 2
Mar
18
2014
Day 2
We left Knoxville, TN and drive a few hours to Atlanta, GA. Our destination was the aquarium. We spent all afternoon there, then headed to our hotel about 30 minutes away in McDonough, GA.
At the aquarium:
Archive for the ‘Travel’ Category
Orlando Recap, Part 1
Mar
17
2014
To get away from the land of ice and snow, we took a trip to Orlando, FL. I’d say we timed it right – it was 5 when we left (-5 with wind chill), and it was sunny and 80 in Orlando when we were there. It was very easy to adjust to the nice weather. The only problem was that we had to come back, although it had warmed to about 15 degrees when we returned. And I can’t take too much credit for timing it right – that’s just when the kids had their break from school. And the week after we left, Orlando had rain just about every day and it was in the 70s.
This is part 1 of a series.
Day 1
We drove all day.
Tune in tomorrow for more.
But he said to him, “My lord knows that the children are frail and that the flocks and herds which are nursing are a care to me. And if they are driven hard one day, all the flocks will die.
Genesis 33:13
Another Vacation Recap, Part II
Jul
30
2013
After we spent a week at Maranatha, we stopped at a submarine museum on the way home. Rather than prolong the Maranatha recap, I decided to separate the sub trip into its own post.
Ladies and gentlemen, meet the USS Silversides:
Here is a photo of the whole thing:
Click the photo for full size
Before you get to the submarine itself, you go into the museum to buy tickets. But before you go into the museum, you pass by a play structure. This particular play structure happens to be the turret thingy from a gun boat or old submarine. The kids had fun playing with that.
They might have played longer, but it was a hot, humid day so we urged them into the museum.
Also outside the museum, they had a hedgehog.
The hedgehog being the anti-submarine device. It fires a couple dozen little mines that land in the water in a circular pattern and sink toward the sub. The spread-out pattern and lack of warning made it hard for subs to evade.
The museum was good. It gave an overview of WWII, since that was the time the sub was commissioned. It gave some insights as to the operations of submarines. It was interesting, but we spent more time on the sub itself, which is where we headed next.
Here is some of the family entering the sub. We all went on board. The older two kids liked it so much they went through it twice.
And here is what the control room looks like.
The best part about the whole thing was the warning sign at the entrance to the sub. I regret not getting a photo of it, but it said something to the effect of “This sub is still operational. Do not touch any controls or levers.”
Everyone had a good time there, then we got in the minivan and drove for an hour and a half – long enough for the younger ones to nap. Stopped for dinner at Culver’s, then drove another hour home.
Thus endeth the vacation.
Then we went on board the ship, and they returned home again.
Acts 21:6
Another Vacation Recap
Jul
23
2013
Some of you may recall the strange affair of the Ph…
Wait, wrong intro. Let me start again.
Some of you may recall that we went to Nevada earlier this year. That seems so long ago now, even though it was only three and a half months. Now we have had our second vacation – our annual trip to the shores of Lake Michigan.
Warning: vacation recap ahead.
Visit 2010’s recap of our trip to Maranatha for a refresher course, or to see how similar trips to Maranatha are. We want them to be similar, because kids need traditions.
First up: the pool
After a couple of days, he wanted neither the swim vest nor the floaty ring. Daredevil is he.
Next up: crafts. There were a couple of cloudy/rainy days, so we went to the craft room more this year than last.
Blue Heron Bay
Jun
25
2013
We celebrated the end of the school year with a trip to a waterpark. A nearby county park (Independence Lake) had spent a few million dollars on a glorified sprayground and we decided to see how it compared to a real waterpark. A real waterpark has areas to swim, or at least submerge one’s self. This place keeps prices down by not having any standing water – liability costs are lower and the “lifeguards” do not have to have any certification.
What exactly does Blue Heron Bay have? The best answer for that is a panoramic photo:
Now for the tour. First up, welcome to Blue Heron Bay.
Lots of spray stuff:
Pokemon State Park
May
28
2013
We went to Pokagon State Park in northern Indiana. I like to mispronounce it as Pokemon State Park, hence the blog title. I had to issue a correction though, otherwise my kids would have been very disappointed when we got there and there were no Pokemon.
Weekend Recap, with Photos:
Arrival
If you hadn’t read the introduction to this blog post and you saw this photo
would you have guessed it was a state park?
I wouldn’t have.
I made a 360° panoramic photograph of the inn/lodge. Click on it for a larger photo.
Vegas Recap, Part 3
May
16
2013
Day 6
Zion National Park
This day we set out early again, mainly because we had a 3-hour drive to get to Zion. The kids did very well. I did very well too, until we tried to park the vehicle. It should be called Zion National Take-the-bus, because there is no parking.
I should have taken a photo of the madness that was the road into Zion National Park – cars parked all along both sides of the road outside the park, everyone walking from their cars, cars waiting in line to get into the park, cars turning around at the entrance because they didn’t have a reason or reservation to be admitted, shuttle buses going back and forth.
We found a parking lot a half mile from the entrance and parked there. We had to change our plans because we brought extra stuff, assuming we could get to our van between hikes for some refreshments or strollers or whatever. We had to leave the stroller and some snacks. We made our way to the shuttle bus stop and got into the park that way.
There was quite a line of pedestrians to get into the park. It seemed to me the reason was the park service had only one person at the ticket booth. By the time we got in the park, most of us were hot and frazzled. Beta was complaining about being hungry, but he couldn’t eat the rest of his sandwich that we packed because we left it in the van.
All that to say this: if you do plan on going to Zion National Park, be prepared to carry everything you need. Do not expect to have your car available for anything.
Really, they should have put the canyon in a better place, with more parking. Or maybe they could widen the canyon so they could fit more parking spots inside it, closer to the trails. They really didn’t think this national park through very thoroughly when they designed it…
(more…)
