Branson 2009...this is the way we roll....

We got home last night from our annual trip to Branson. My parents have a time share...actually two time shares....in Branson. The first is at Big Cedar Lodge. It's absolutely beautiful. It's in a very woodsy area and is full of fun things to do. There must be at least 6 different swimming pools, several restaurants, horseback and carriage rides, miniature golf, and many, many other things. It's located right on Table Rock Lake so there is also a marina where you can bring your boat or rent one for the day. This is pretty much the only vacation our family takes so we are so so grateful to my parents that they have this and invite our crazy brew along with my sister's bunch to all get together and enjoy spending time together. Last year Mom and Dad also bought into Stormy Point. It's a new area with a very "Cape Cod" feel. My aunt Candy and her husband Rich joined us all this year. And we are soooo glad they did. For one, Candy is a complete and total 'kid magnet'. When we were growing up, all the cousins LOVED spending time with her. She was always just so much fun. She took us roller skating, swimming, camping, bike riding. There was nothing she didn't do with us and I'm pretty sure our parents were thrilled to have her around...I understand this now as a parent myself. She entertained my kids and BOY WAS THAT NICE:-) She's still got it :-) Anyway, back to Stormy Point....my parents and Candy and Rich decided to stay there and my and my sister's family stayed at Big Cedar. Stormy Point is, how do I put it into words,....ADORABLE!!!! All the little houses are lined up with cute little yards, white picket fences, and are all painted different colors. It's so beachy.

We spent lots of time swimming.....

Yes, this is proof that I actually did get into the pool. I have three kids now. All self-conscious, swimsuit hating, bare arm loathing feelings MUST be thrown out the window. Spending time with my three little monkeys is way more important:-)

We took the kids to the Fish Hatchery. I've never seen so many fish in all my life. The kids loved it. Of course, they thought they could bring their fishing poles but that wasn't quite the way it works there. But boy, would they have caught a few.....

They also had an indoor exhibit of snakes and turtles. The kids got to touch this snake. Tucker was in hog heaven. This was definitely his kind of thing...

We rode the "Ducks" on Saturday. If you're not familiar with Branson, you probably don't have a clue as to what I'm talking about. If you ever go, you will see lots of 'amphibious' vehicles riding around....shuttle on land....boat on water. We were all given "quackers" upon boarding. Wow did the kids have a good time with these....my ears are still buzzing. It took us on a tour up in the hills of Branson then we went right into the lake...literally:-)

Since Porter couldn't enjoy his "quacker", he got a Sailor's hat.

My little Popeye:-) Isn't that hat just perfect for that face????:-)

That evening, we decided to get rid of all the leftover bread that would be thrown out the next day because we would all be leaving. We heard about a pond at Big Cedar that was FULL of turtles. We decided to take our bread and our brew of kids to the pond to feed the turtles. I just hope there weren't any casualties floating belly up the next day. That was A LOT of bread....

So....we are back in the world of reality in Wichita, Kansas. We got home yesterday afternoon with tons upon tons of things to unpack. I decided to wait until today to dive into any of it. And yes, reality it was. I had my back turned, unpacking a suitcase and when I turned around this is what I saw....

OK, big deal. It's a picture of cute little (well..big) naked Porter. But there's something about this picture that makes it so special.......HE'S ON HIS BELLY AND I IN NO WAY HELPED HIM GET THERE!!!!! Now he really is a Roly Poly!!!! He rolled over, he actually rolled over...at 7 and a half months old he finally rolled over!!!! My mom would argue that he actually did it in Branson. Yes, he did get fully over at Big Cedar but only used one arm to hold himself up as the other one was trapped somewhere beneath the chunkiness muscle.

And then I turned the other direction and this is what I saw.....

Yes, a picture of Sawyer and yes, pink marker all over the forehead....this is MY reality. I have no idea what Tucker was doing and I don't think I want to know.....