Monday, July 9, 2018

Okoboji vacation with the De Jongs- part 3 (finale).

We had such a wonderful time on Okoboji with the De Jongs. We are very blessed to have such supportive and encouraging family. Quality time together is a joy!

I know many people will not agree with me on this, but amusement parts are one of my favorite places. Yes, they are probably one of the dirtiest places, but it's so fun. I love rides and am thrilled that Norah does too. (Kley, my husband, does not like rides, but he is a good sport about going.) We hardly go to them, so it's always special when we do, and doing special things with your kids is the best. The main reason amusement parks are so worth it to me and so fun? Check out Norah's face in these pictures. I love them all.





This is one of my all time favorite photos of Norah and I (below). I love it so much. 



Here's a lovely shot of our rear ends playing the water shooting game. Technically Elizabeth won, but was kind enough to give Norah her prize. She is pretty pleased with her stuffed minion. :)


Arnold's Park is such a fun place!



It was a perfect night to be there. The weather was great and it wasn't busy, so Norah hardly had to wait in line at all and most rides she just walked right on. I'm trying to take it slow and not have her go on crazy rides too early and get scared, but she's yet to ride a ride she didn't like. We rode the tilt-a-whirl together, which spins around pretty fast, and she loved it! That's my girl! Even if Lucy and Ellory don't grow up to like rides, I've found my amusement park soul mate in Norah. Though, with seeing their personalities already, I'm pretty sure Lucy will love rides too. Maybe not Ellory, but we shall see. 



Ellory was pretty content to just watch everything. I realized after that we got zero pictures of Lucy, but that's okay I suppose because she was running around like crazy. She loved going around to check out everything. Always have to have your eyes on her! Kley and I were talking as we were watching her run around that they are like sugar and spice in the best possible ways. Ellory is sugar and Lucy is spice. Their personalities are so different, but both so great in our family and we love them both so much!


Norah loved the small roller coaster! So fun to watch her smile and giggle as she rode it. (She would have rode the big one too if she was tall enough!)







Norah had seen this trampoline jumper from the road and had been talking about doing it all week. She was so pumped! She is getting braver in doing more things independently with bravery, like going on most of these things by herself and talking to the workers when they ask her questions. What a beautiful girl, inside and out she is becoming!



Our last morning we went to Memorial Park and it was really fun! I wish we had this where we live. It had a splash pad and two parks (one designed for older and one for younger). The girls loved exploring around! It wasn't super hot and the water was really cold, so they didn't get wet much, but liked the smaller fountains around the edge and watching the other kids.


This was not our chair, but Lucy acted like it was set out just for her.



Ellory's had had a fever for a few days prior, and on the way home Lucy felt so hot in the car. She had a fever too unfortunately, but it didn't deter her too much at the park!




I love Ellory's serious face.


Lucy loves to swing! 


I love this picture of Norah mid-jump!





Thankful for a wonderful week! Love this picture of ALL of us together- doesn't happen often enough!




2 comments:

  1. What a fun week you had!!! I am amazed at Norah's bravery, as I'm not sure any of my kids have that! 😜

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    Replies
    1. Yes, she's really come out of her shell recently! Its fun to watch her grow and show independence/bravery, since she was so shy and struggled with separation anxiety for a long time.

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