We started off our week long staycation with a trip to Six Flags Over Texas! Highlights included Colby's first ride on the Titan (the tallest rollercoaster at the park), our first time on Aquaman, and a pretty epic ride on the Roaring Rapids. We were completely soaked, but it felt amazing.
I was afraid to get my phone out with all the water, but I had to capture Colby's crazy screaming, haha.
We brought a change of clothes and headed straight to the Rangers game...
It was our first time to Globe Life Field, and let me just say that it was insanely nice to be indoors and not dripping sweat at the game.
We went early to watch batting practice, and also scored some free hats.
Sadly, we didn't catch anything, but it was fun to try.
We stayed until the bottom of the 12th inning, but as we drove home, we tuned into the game and heard that the Rangers lost. (Side note: Brooke received blue extensions for her birthday and was super excited to wear them to the game!)
The next day, we ventured over to Mineral Wells State Park and rode about 9 miles. It was an overcast day and super nice at first, but it quickly warmed up. And then the bridge we needed to cross was closed, but Kevin determined that it was fine for us to cross, so we did. He literally lifted our bikes over the barricade and we carried on as if nothing was amiss. I was just hoping and praying that we would make it to and from our final destination safely!
The trails took us past lots of beautiful wildflowers, but Brooke despised the lizards that darted right in front of us on the trails. I didn't love them either, but Brooke was screaming every time it happened. Then Colby saw a snake and Brooke saw a few tarantulas and nearly had a fit. Needless to say, it was an adventure, especially with the incline at the end.
After our ride, we explored the park a bit. We enjoyed a beautiful scenic overlook and had fun climbing through, on, and around the rock formations.
We couldn't leave the park without stopping at the lake and we ended up staying until dark. Colby begged Kevin to fish, but he didn't catch a thing.
That night, Kevin was talking to the kids and asked them if they wanted to learn how to ski the next morning. He is always trying to teach our kids new things, which is something that I love about him. They both responded yes, which kinda surprised us for Brooke. We've been trying to get her to branch out from the kneeboard for several years, and she has never wanted to. So Kevin stayed up late with her watching YouTube videos of kids skiing, then gave them a mini lesson when we arrived.
Oh, and Colby forgot his sandals at home, hence the creative back carry to the boat, haha.
The lesson...
I think I'll always cherish these pictures. Kevin is such a patient and kind teacher and the kids really respond well to his instruction.
Neither one of them got up, but they gave it their best. After a while, they moved on to surf lessons.
If you look closely, you'll see that Colby was rocking his Ear Bandit. He hates to wear it, but lake water and tubes don't mix well and unfortunately, he's learned that lesson the hard way!
The next day, we headed to the library so the kids could get their first prize for the summer reading program. We heard that they had annual passes to the Perot Museum in Dallas, so we wanted to get one as soon as possible. When we arrived, they informed us that they had just given out the last one. We were SO disappointed! I couldn't even believe they were giving out such an amazing prize, but then to barely miss it seemed like a total let-down. As we drove away, we were talking about the reading program and Kevin asked if the other libraries in Grand Prairie were also doing it. I said that they were, so he suggested I call another location to check for the pass. And guess what?? We found one that had the passes, so we quickly rushed there to get one. And since we were already in North Grand Prairie, we made a pit-stop at Hurtado BBQ for Kevin and I, grabbed Sonic for the kids, and headed to the Perot for an afternoon together. As we activated our pass, I again was floored that we were able to get it for free. The family pass, which gets up to 8 people into the museum, is usually $320!
The traveling exhibit was about Disney's Pixar and it was seriously amazing! I learned so much, and we actually spent the majority of our time in that area.
We made it to a few other floors before closing time...
Then ended the day at Costco, where the pizza slices are bigger than your face!
Apparently Kevin also pulled a tooth that night...
We planned on boating Friday morning, but when Kevin heard back from someone about a surfboard he wanted to buy, we drove to Rockwall to pick it up! Happy Father's Day (a few days early) to Kevin!!
Our friends, the Richeys, went boating with us that night and we had a blast. My kids were super excited to show off their new surfing skills and were the best cheerleaders when their friends tried it.
Brooke was in heaven with baby Rhys...
We loved our time with friends and we especially loved all the time we spent together during the week. We were able to hit everything on our staycation bucket list, so I would call it a success.
