Myrtle Beach

First let me say that yes, I changed the look of the blog! It had been almost 6 years of the same look! Time for a new one! If anyone has any complaints, let me know... (like it's too hard to read or something)

Ok, so Courtney is doing MUCH better. She did get a NASTY ear infection, most likely due to the swelling from the croup. So, she is on antibiotics and ear drops now. She still has a slight cough, but she is so much better! She still wants to eat constantly. Can't tell if that is still a side effect of steroids or not...

Hubby's parents were here like I said last blog. Friday we got a new roof on the house. So we took off to Castle Rock for the day. Why torture ourselves sitting in the house with all the banging?! We had a great time walking around there. And we found some great deals!

The next morning I headed off to the airport EARLY! Three planes and airports later, there was Hubby waiting at the other end! We stopped and ate dinner at a hibachi place before heading back to our awesome hotel. Our hotel was 15 stories tall, right on the beach! We were on the 14th floor, but due to the air conditioners being below our balcony a few floors we couldn't hear the beach. But the hotel was HUGE and offered 2 outdoor pools, a water slide, an indoor pool, hot tubs, spa and all the other fun things to go with a SUPER hotel!

The next morning after breakfast we went to play mini-golf at the same golf course where the Masters of Miniature Golf is played. No kidding folks, there are professional mini golf players... Anyway, we played all 18, and had fun. Hubby beat me by a few strokes...

It was HOT. The thermometer said 93 degrees, but that doesn't factor in humidity which was also high. Hubby had a headache, so I headed down to the beach while he took a nap. I walked the beach for a bit, then I went back to our hotel and had a pina colada at the pool bar. After that I decided it was time to put my suit on and try out the nice pools and water slide! When I got to our room, Hubby was awake, so he joined me at the pool. It was perfect to be in the water for a while, then get out and sit under an umbrella wet. It was so warm it felt perfect! We went down the water slide once. It was pretty crowded with kids. I think we took another dip in the pool, but we just sat at our table, ordered some fruit and drinks, and enjoyed the weather.

After getting changed and cleaned up, we met up with Shane (Hubby's co-worker who was also on the trip). We all headed out to Ripley's Aquarium. Pretty neat place, we enjoyed walking around and checking out the cool stuff! I got to pet a big sting ray, that was fun!

After that we went to a Brazilian steakhouse. I don't know if anyone has ever been to one of those before, but let me just say: yummy! They walk around with several types of meat on sticks. You have a little card on your table telling them if you want more meat, or if they should just skip you. We were there for a while and we ate and ate and ate! Mmmmm, good...

The next morning we headed off (with Shane too) to Brookgreen Gardens (http://www.brookgreen.org/). What a NEAT place. Years ago it was a rice plantation. Then in the 1930's this couple transformed it into a gardens/sculpture place. They also have a small AZA zoo on site. It was so beautiful! The gardens and sculptures were so amazing and the whole place was so peaceful. We also took a tour of the zoo, with a guide and that was fun! It was a fun day! It was also about 10 degrees cooler than the day before so that really helped too. I took many picutres, none really do it justice. If you are ever in the area, stop by to see it for yourself! You can also check out all the pictures on our website...

After we got back to the hotel, Hubby needed to rest because he still had his headache. I went down to the pool. I took a dip in the pool then sat in a lounge chair reading. I was sitting under an umbrella but I should have sat in the sun. Due to the cooler temps I was actually a bit chilly when I was sitting reading my book. After about an hour, and one pina colada, I headed back up to the room.

That night we went to Bonefish Grill. I know it's a chain, but we don't have one here, so I had never eaten there. Their tuna was soo good! It was just how I like it! Mmmmm!! After dinner we made a quick stop at one of their many many beach ware stores before heading back to the hotel to pack.

Tuesday morning we had to get up at 3:30am for our 5:30am flight. Yes, 3:30am. Ugh. We had a wake up call set, Hubby's alarm on his cell phone, my alarm on my cell phone, and the alarm clock in the room all set to go off so we would NOT oversleep! And we didn't! We got to the airport on time and on our flight. Again after 3 planes and airports, we made it home. I missed my girls. The break from them was nice, but at the same time, I missed them.

Wednesday Courtney had her OT and then a doctor's appointment (where we found out about the ear infection). While the girls were napping, Grammy and Granddad went up to the Academy to check out what was new.

Thursday we had something special planned. We had purchased at the zoo ball last year, an orangutan painting. That is where the orangutans paint for you! So, we headed up to the zoo early and met up with some zoo ladies who took us to the gorilla house. We got to pick our colors of paint then go out back with the orangutan's. There were two orangutans there and they painted us 2 pictures! It was fun to watch. Although I didn't get to see the whole thing because Kasey wanted to WALK. So, we had to excuse ourselves a few times to let her stretch her legs elsewhere. It was quite neat though, and I think everyone enjoyed it!

After that we were able to catch up with the preschool class and see the Lynx. After class was over we walked around the zoo with our friends from the preschool class also. It was fun! We got to show Grammy and Granddad all the cool new things at our zoo! Courtney and her friend rode the merry-go-round, got their faces painted, and rode ponies. It was a good day had by all.

Then last night Hubby, myself and Grammy and Granddad went to the Sunbird restaurant. (The kids stayed with a sitter). It sits up on a bluff overlooking Colorado Springs. It's one of those places that has been there forever and is fun to go to for a nice grown up dinner! After dinner we sat outside by the fire pit enjoying the night and looking at stars, or planets, or whatever the super bright thing in the sky was that we were looking at. (It was the topic of a major discussion).

Sadly today the grandparents left. We always enjoy their time here, and it's always hard to see them go. It always seems that the visits are too short. We are really hoping to be able to get to Florida in the fall/winter. You know, when it's cold in Colorado and WARM in Florida! But seriously, the girls love their Grammy and Granddad, and I do too... I am really blessed to have such wonderful in-laws!

And it's amazing how much Grammy and Granddad brought out of the girls. Courtney would show off to Granddad by drawing letters! Seriously? I have tried and tried to get her to do it (using fun methods and games of course), but she never cared about impressing me! And Kasey picked up several new words and blowing kisses! Jeez, they really are going to have to come to visit more often to help my kids education move along! Of course Granddad taught Kasey the finer things in life too, like how yummy ice cream can be and how to eat pudding...

I tried to add some super cute pictures, but the site isn't agreeing with me tonight. Maybe tomorrow I can get that done!