Vacation All I Ever Wanted, Vacation Had To Get Away

I wanted to be Belinda Carlisle from the Go Go's. She was so b%tch*n'!

80's flashback fadeout.

On to the here and now:

Vacation planning in the Ramirez household became something of a comedy this summer as we settled on one destination after another, changing our minds on almost a weekly, and sometimes daily, basis. First we toyed with Puerto Rico, then we were definitely going to the Florida panhandle, next we were headed further south in Florida, Anna Maria Island to be specific. Next was Gulf Shores, Alabama. Then, we took a U-turn (geographically) and decided to visit family in Ruidoso, NM. When my Grandma in Arizona ran into some medical trouble, we briefly thought of changing our plans and heading to Phoenix, but she wouldn't hear of it so we were on again with Ruidoso. Then, for various reasons, we ended up going back to Table Rock Lake for a couple of days instead. Still Waters was all booked up so we rented a campground cabin in Kimberling City.

Dear Santa, Thank you for the portable DVD players. They make road trips so much more bearable. Note, I did not say pleasant. I just said bearable.

Although Santa also gave Jacob a portable DVD player, he decided to see how long he could ride and "do nothing". Can I just ponder once more, as I often do, how amazing it is that two children can come from the same parents and be so different!!

Before we got to Table Rock Lake, we had to make a stop here. You may recall that I can't drive past one of these places without stopping. This was Willie's first time...He was a Russell Stover Outlet virgin. He got a little nervous when we walked through the door and I immediately grabbed a shopping basket. He had a lot to be nervous about.

This entire chocolate smorgasbord cost just $21.99! Do you understand the magnitude of that? There are TWENTY-FOUR Whitman's Chocolate Sampler boxes here! I have to admit that we actually even consumed some of this chocolate BEFORE the picture was taken. We consumed LOTS more after the picture was taken.

My boys love candles as much as their Momma does! I just love that.

Jacob was on my cell phone, talking to his buddy back in Shawnee, finding out which teacher he'll have this year for 3rd grade. Placement letters came while we were gone. I think he looks so grown-up in this picture.

And look at this cute little monkey...can you believe he's starting kindergarten? I can't.

What? We aren't doing anything!

The location of our cabin worked out well because it was right next to the marina, where we rented a pontoon boat for the day.

Once upon a time, there were two little boys. One boy loved boating.

The other boy...not so much. In fact, he hated boating. He cried when his parents made him ride in a pontoon. He cried so hard in fact, that everybody in the marina was staring at him and his mean parents as they boated away from the dock for a horrible day of swimming, tubing, ice cream and snacks. Apparently the little boy forgot how much fun he had the last time he went boating.

I'm just keeping it real people. If you don't like it, write your Congressman! Funny thing about this is that when we told the boys to pee in the lake, we meant for them to jump in and go about their business discreetly. But, that just wouldn't have been as much fun, I guess.

After a while, the little boy started to like boating, but just "barely" and just because there were marina stores where you could pull up on your boat, hop out and buy ice cream...because he didn't get enough chocolate. Neither did his Mommy, or his Daddy, or his brother. They were on vacation after all.

Doesn't this remind you of Gary Coleman saying, "What you talking 'bout Willis?" in Different Strokes?

The little boy was definitely not going to ride on the Sea-doo.

Well, maybe just once...

or twice.

Fortunately, by the end of the day, the little boy who didn't like boating now LOVED boating, only he didn't want to ride pontoon boats anymore, he wanted to ride the "fastest ski boats in the world" instead!

We were all exhausted after a full day of boating, swimming and sun. I REALLY didn't feel like making dinner so we went out to eat at a diner in the marina. I wish I had taken a picture of this, but I didn't. All around the restaurant (and I use that term loosely), we spotted ziploc bags full of water stapled to ceiling beams, hanging in front of windows, doors, etc. Our waitress told us the purpose was to repel flies because they are frightened away by their reflection. Upon returning home, I did a quick google search and found another explanation. Seems that when a fly sees the bag of water, his eyes mulitply the bags and gives the flies the impression that there is a wall of water in front of them and they will not cross it. Whatever the reason, it seems to work for some people. I may have to give this a try.

Filling our boat up with gas and saying good-bye to the lake the next day.

We couldn't let our leftover pancakes go to waste so we fed the fish and turtles who hang around the dock waiting for people like us to come along.

Worms are fun...if you're a boy.



I think I'll leave you with this shot of a trout heart. Melody, the owner of the trout park, cleaned and de-boned our fish so that Willie can cook them on the smoker. She showed the boys how, when the heart stops beating, you can massage it to get it beating again. My boys dug right in and took turns "resuscitating" this trout heart. Future heart surgeons, perhaps? I don't mean to be gross by posting this. I just found it so fascinating and it was hard to tear myself away from watching this little miracle being performed over and over again.

Look what happens when you feed fish on a trout farm...TROUT GONE WILD!!