Martin Luther King Weekend

Jenessa got Friday and Monday off for MLK weekend, so we planned a family trip with our great friends the Bassetts.  We headed up to Sandusky, OH to the Great Wolf Lodge - they have a huge indoor water park that is the perfect escape in the middle of January.  We had such a great time swimming and playing in the water Friday and Saturday....it was so worth it and SO much fun!

They had a great toddler pool that was just right for Taevin.  He loved the little water gysers in it and would keep trying to punch and kick them.....boys will be boys I guess!

This is the water fort they had.  The big barrel way up top would fill up with water.....

...and then dump 1,000 gallons of water on the waiting people below!

The bucket dumping

They had these awesome water slides that you rode a tube down, and they were SO FUN!! Because of the tube, you could get going pretty fast...and then if you rode a double tube you could really fly!  The girls LOVED this ride the best and by the end Taiya was even going down all by herself!!

The whole lodge was completely geared towards kids and families.  Every night they would have a story time in the lobby with these robotic characters.

At the end of the story time, they had "snow" fall.  It was really some kind of suddsy bubbles, but Taiya thought it was the most magical thing she had ever seen.  She just could not get enough of that "snow"!!

Ken and Shelly covered in "snow"

On Saturday night we headed over to Cleveland, where we finished out the rest of our weekend.  On Sunday we took the kids to Crocker Park, an outdoor mall, to stretch our legs.  The kids especially needed a change of scenery....they can only stay cooped up in a hotel room for so long!  It was cold, but worth it! Sorry the pictures aren't that great, it was foggy and so I had to take all the pictures without the flash.

Kids being silly by the fire.  Jenessa, Kailyn, Caden, Jordan, Taiya & Chase

Mona Nessa

Mona Taiya

Chess anyone?

Taiya, Jordan, Kailyn

On Monday we went to the NASA Glenn Visitors Center.  I had no idea they had a NASA research center right here in Cleveland.  It was kinda fun to see all the space stuff up close.

Jenessa trying the flight simulator

Astronaut Nessa

Astronaut Taiya

This is an actual Skylab modual/shuttle that took 3 astronauts up to Skylab 3.  I don't know if you can tell how small it is in there, but there is no way I would get in that thing with two other people and go up to space!! I would be SO claustrophobic!

An actual moon rock.....kinda cool, but looks a lot like any other rock! (Heber says I am missing the point)

For lunch we went to eat at a little place called Yours Truly.  We thought we would try them out because of their many claims to fame:

President Bush visited Yours Truly Mentor in April 2006

Discovery Channel's design guru Christopher Lowell, a Chagrin Falls native, loves YT's omelets and burgers.

Actors Jack Nicholson, Cleveland natives Halle Berry and Drew Carey and singer Chuck Berry all have dined at Yours Truly.  In fact, Halle Berry mentioned Yours Truly directly in a magazine interview about her hometown.

There were many more which you can check out here if you want.

It was a fun little place and the food was yummy!

Finally that day we went to the Great Lakes Science Center.  It was fun, but we didn't realize that on Martin Luther King Day they had free admission.....I have never seen so many people packed into one place!! It was kinda crazy, but the kids were still able to try some fun science activities, and we were able to go to an explosion demonstration which the kids loved!

Taevin, Taiya and Jenessa playing with goo - cornstarch and water

Ken and Heber working together to build the arch

Almost done, just two more pieces......

...then Taevin struck!  He toppled the whole thing just before they finished it.  Typical Taevin!

After the science center we headed home.  It was such a fun weekend!!!