The Dells

Michael's brother and wife, Dan and Tara, were going to the Dells on Sunday night and invited us with. Michael could not get the day off due to some crazy stuff going on at work, so I decided I that with the help of Dan and Tara, and their kids, I could do this without Michael. And it worked.

The 3 1/2 hour drive there was great, not a single issue. That is crazy when a 15 minute drive to school is usually full of issues. Good start to the trip. We stayed at the Kalahari, it was lovely. Two days of perfect weather, nice. First day, the kids swam all day, and Akila fit right in and always had a swim buddy with her. We even splurged and rented a Bungalow at the outdoor park which had a TV, frig, comfie seating and shade. We ordered pizza and ate in the bungalow. We stayed until about 8:00 or so when we finally went and checked into the hotel room.

We had gotten a suite with two bedrooms, a living room with a pullout couch, and a kitchen/dining room. It was a really nice suite. When we got into the rooms, the excitement of the day, on top of a new setting, was too much for Akila. She started to lose it and went into frenzy mode. Trying to call her room, running around, being bossy, rude and annoying. I took her out to the van to help me carry more stuff in (with the incentive that she got to drive the luggage cart thingie). When we were in the parking lot, Dan came out. He was going to make a run to Walmart to get some milk and cereal.

He offered to take Akila with and I was so relieved!!! It was the perfect distraction to get her out of the funk and it worked. The rest of the night was pretty smooth sailing (just a few typical bossy/rude issues). Day 2, Akila was a bit more clingy to me but not bad at all. We left to drive home yesterday around 5:00 and the second half of the drive was a bit challenging, but nothing totally out of control.

It was a great two day mini-vacation and I am really thankful for family like Dan and Tara being willing to let us come along, and being willing to help out. They are truly a blessing.