Great Wolf Lodge

My cousin made a trip to Dallas and stayed at Great Wolf Lodge in Grapevine. Since it was only her, her husband, and their little boy (who is just 2 months older than Olivia) they had a couple extra passes for the waterpark. We were the lucky ones that got to go with them!

We spent most of our time in the kiddie pool which was a blast for the girls.

Out of everything there I think these wave runners were their favorite.

We actually got to go TWICE! We went with them on Monday evening after they checked in. And since we had the wristbands we decided to go again on Tuesday morning. The first day I left my camera in the room but I decided to try extra hard to stay dry and take a few pictures on Tuesday. Staying dry is hard to do with all of the things that spray water everywhere!

They had a few water slides and both girls tried them out but they enjoyed swimming and splashing more than sliding.

Just look how big this place is! When we were leaving I realized we missed an entire section that the girls were big enough for. I guess we can check it out next time!

We did go through the not-so-lazy river. We did that with my cousins family and I was glad to have an extra adult to help with the girls. Since they only had 2 extra passes, Dustin stayed home to do some homework (Olivia was free).

And this is where we spent most of our time. Since it was a weekday, it wasn't very crowded which was great.

Just look how fun the fountain is!

They both had a blast! We are even considering going there for Grace's birthday this year. Wouldn't it be fun for a December birthday?

New Years Weekend

We ended the year by traveling again. A friend of ours was getting married near Houston on the 30th and Dustin was asked to be a Saber Bearer. The groom went to school with Dustin (they lived across the hall from each other for 3 years) and the couple made the drive down for our wedding so we were excited to (finally) attend theirs. We had planned to take the girls but after finding out that it would be a semi-long ceremony followed by a sit down dinner, we asked my Mom to go with us and keep the girls during the wedding and reception. When I left the hotel the girls were in the outdoor pool having the time of their life. They got to have a picnic and roast marshmallows in the fire pit.

The next day (New Years Eve), we got up and checked out of the hotel and hit the road. We made the 3 1/2 hour drive to San Antonio to spend the afternoon at Sea World.

 We made it to the park shortly after they opened for the day and stayed until closing. 

They still had all their Christmas decorations up!!!

 After we got our tickets and went through security we headed to the dolphin cove. Grace decided to wanted to feed the dolphins so we bought a few little fish.

 My Mom took pictures from the other side so watch for them on her blog.

After feeding dolphins, we were just in time to watch them feed some of the fish.

We decided it was time to check out a show. We just happened to run into a show with beluga whales, dolphins, and acrobats. It was perfect for Grace! Even Olivia loved the show and was clapping :)

After the show it was time for more fun. We were near the kids area so we let Grace ride a couple of rides. First she rode the Dolphin Dive.

 It went up, then dropped, went back up, and dropped again. She really enjoyed it. Next was the Shamu Express. It was a little roller coaster! I went to feed Olivia while she was waiting in line and got back just as she was getting off. She said it was a lot of fun!! 

After that it was about time for another show... this time it was Sesame Street!

Grace went right up to the front and got to touch several of the characters. She kept waving at them and reaching for them. She tried so hard to get their attention! Telly petted her head, which she talked about a lot the next day.

 After the show we walked around a little more. We ate dinner, checked out the penguin exhibit, went to a couple gift shops, and walked through the Christmas Market. Then it was time for the last show of the day. The Shamu Christmas.. Miracles. One of the staff told us to save that for last because it was better after dark. I think this was one of Grace's favorite parts of the day.

 

We ended the night with a great firework show over the lake.

It was a nice end to 2011.

We spent the first day of 2012 downtown San Antonio. We visited the Alamo and the River Walk. We decided to ride the boat down the river. Afterwards, we had lunch at the Hard Rock Cafe. We spent the entire afternoon/evening on the road and made it home that night.

Summer Fun!

Since I have not posted in a while I thought I would just post some pictures of Grace enjoying the warm weather. We play in the water almost every single day and she LOVES it!

She has a pool, a wagon, a slide, and a water table all on our balcony!

And sometimes we even make it to the big swimming pool!

Last weekend we went to the beach to celebrate Maggie's birthday. They had a bubble machine and Grace got to enjoy lots and lots of bubbles!

And she got to spend some time in the water. Someone found a BIG starfish and she got to touch it!

Catch Up

It has been almost a week since I have blogged so I have a bit of catching up to do. Last week was very uneventful and seemed to fly by. However we had a very busy weekend. We kept our friends James and Kelly's little girl Maggie who is 2 1/2. You have probably all seen pictures of her on here in the past because she is Grace's very best friend (and they are our very best friends too!). They wanted to have a little get-away to celebrate their anniversary before "Little Sister" makes her appearance next month so we agreed to keep Maggie for 2 nights!

Grace was SO excited to see Maggie on Friday evening. She was just finishing up dinner when Maggie got here and since we had the patio door open we could hear them and Grace decided she HAD to be done right then because Maggie was here. So they played and Maggie ate and then they played a little more before we put on our jammies and read a few bedtime stories.

Saturday morning we were up bright and early and they played some more.

Around 8:45 we left for the beach and the playground. We went to Araha beach, which we have not been to in about 2 years! They have a neat pirate ship that was fun to play on. It was a little scary too once you got to the top!

The girls enjoyed the little pirate ship (or as Maggie decided to call it "Sail Boat") a little more than the big one!

In the next two pictures you can see the BIG pirate ship! There was a zip-line on the other side that the girls got to swing on.

And then we went back to the "sail boat"

We let the girls walk down to the beach and play in the sand and get their feet wet. They, of course, loved it!

Then we decided that maybe it was time to go buy Grace a pool for this year. The one she had last year got a hole in the bottom and it is too small for her this year. So we had to find a place to clean off our feet so we could load up in my school bus and go buy a pool and ice cream making stuff.

We had carried Grace and Maggie up from the beach and so we put Maggie in the stroller since she is heavier and they were both barefoot. Then Grace wanted to ride! Maggie said it was uncomfortable so we ended up putting Maggie's shoes on so she could walk.

When we got home it was time to make homemade bread! The girls had a good time stirring the dough and Maggie is such a good helper in the kitchen. She poured in ALL of the ingredients until it was time for the flour and I let the stand mixer do the work.

But after it was all mixed up Grace and Maggie each got their own dough to knead and then we put it in a bowl to rise. While we waited for it to rise we all ate lunch. After lunch we put the bread in the pans. The girls each got to make their very own little loaf and then we made a dozen rolls and another loaf of bread.

While the girls napped we set up the new pool! They had to wait to get in so we could put hot water from the sink in it to warm it up.

Once they got in they stayed in for probably an hour! We had to finally make them get out because Grace was starting to shiver.

They had so much fun that we let them get back in the pool on Sunday morning! And it just so happened that I mistakenly bought 2 bathing suits that were matching when they were on clearance for $1 last year. They just so happened to fit Grace and Maggie this year!

After we were done swimming the girls played while Dustin and I made dinner. Dustin grilled and after dinner we made ice cream! James and Kelly called to talk to Maggie while we were making ice cream and she kept saying "we are making ice cream" over and over.

Sunday morning we let them swim again but spent the rest of the day at home. They got to watch Dora and eat their snack which they thought was pretty cool.

Maggie went home around 2:30 and then we ended up just going to the PX to get a cover for the pool and decided to just eat out so we wouldn't have to spend any more time in the kitchen. Between picking up the toys, cleaning the kitchen, making bread and ice cream plus several meals, all while entertaining two toddlers was exhausting. It definitely makes me want to sort through the toys and either get rid of some or hide some to rotate out... maybe both!

Grace enjoyed having Maggie over but I think she was glad to not have to share her Mommy and Daddy once Maggie went home!

Videos, videos, and more videos...

Here are some of the highlights from our trip!

This is what Grace does in the car if she is not sleeping

This is our snorkeling adventure

Grace and her Daddy swimming in the ocean. It rained on us while we were out there!

This one is split into 2 because it was too big of a file. Grace learned how to click her tongue!

Part 2

While we were without internet...

Here are some pictures of what went on at the McGriff house this last week.

The movers came and packed up our house and then delivered everything to the new house all in one day. 263 boxes is what I think they said!

Grace was a little helper with all of the unpacking

Time to try out her pool on the big balcony

I think she likes it!

Grace's best friend Maggie came over for the evening and they got to take a ride in the wagon together.

They play really well together!! And Grace will be getting to play with Maggie a lot more now that I am finally able to join the co-op at the gym!

Fun in the Sun

Long weekend and nice weather... the perfect time to go to the pool! We took Grace to the pool twice this weekend. On Saturday we went to Plaza Housing pool and spent our time in the baby pool that was only 18 inches deep. And today we went to the pool on Foster which is a bigger pool. Grace got to ride around in her new float, which she almost fell asleep in! She had a good time, got very wet, and made lots of splashes!! Grace can float on her back (of course I never let go of her!) and kick her legs. She is definitely not afraid of the water and doesn't mind getting dunked under.

She looks pretty adorable in her hat and sunglasses.