Uptown Jungle, The Great Wolf Lodge, and Blake's 1st Day of In-Person School

 Uptown Jungle - We took a trip to the Uptown Jungle near our rental properties. The kids had so much fun and Jeremy and I were able to relax in the parents lodge occasionally. They were really into the rock climbing and tried each wall. Blake did really well and Kylie did better than I expected. I think once she got up high she realized she was high and then stopped. It was nice to get out and doing something fun together. 

Great Wolf Lodge - Jeremy and I booked a trip to the Great Wolf Lodge months ago to celebrate Blake's birthday. We told him about a month before we went and he was SO excited! He told all his teachers at school and anyone that would listen. He was most excited about the waterpark. We went on a Sunday afternoon but first we stopped for lunch at a dinosaur restaurant which we had been to previously and we all loved. We then headed over to the lodge to check-in. We received free wolf ears at the giftshop which was really fun! We went to the room to check it out and the kids loved it! They had their own room with bunk beds and a TV! We watched a little bit of the cardinals game and then headed to the waterpark. 

The first thing we did at the waterpark was the wave pool. The kids did not want to go in at first but Jeremy was determined and forced them in. It turned out to be their favorite part of the waterpark. Every time they heard the sound they would go running to the wave pool! We went on all the water slides! There were two that the entire family went on together and then there were two where we went in teams of two. They also had a kids waterslide area which was nice because we could just sit on the side and relax. The lazy river was a favorite as well. Towards the end we sent to the outside pool for a quick swim. 

After swimming we went back to the room and got changed and ready to party! We went to the main area and started with ben and jerrys ice cream! We decided to get a big bowl and then share it. We went for a walk outside to find an area to eat. Next was the candy shop which wasn't a fun experience. It was super stressful and rushed because they only allow one family at a time so they were rushing us and the kids were not making decision quickly. :) 

Next, we went bowling! It was a smaller set up so it had a smaller lane and bowl! It was perfect for the kids and a lot of fun. We went to the arcade next and played some games! We ended with the wolf dance party. It was pretty late but the kids wanted to see what it was and ended up liking it. 

The next morning we had breakfast in the room and then went to the waterpark. We went early so we could get a good spot for the day. We spent about 4-5 hours at the park and had a lot of fun! We spent most of the time on the slides and at the wave pool! On our way out we let the kids pick one snack and they both picked dip n dots.

Blake's 1st Day of In-Person School - Blake started in-person school at the end of October. He was really excited to see some of his friends again. It is definitely different than it was last year but I can tell already that going in-person is the best option for Blake. We have been working really hard at his reading and since he has started attending in person he has really improved with his reading. He is currently focused on phonograms. Every time he reads me a book he circles or underlines the phonograms. :) 

I have officially caught up! Hopefully I can stay on track going forward. :) 

Blake's 6th Birthday and Labor Day Camping Trip

September started off with Blake's 6th birthday! He has looked forward to his birthday since his last birthday. The last few years he has been really involved in determining where his party was and what the theme is. He wanted a pool party last year but we weren't ready for that since we had recently moved into our house. So, I promise him that he could have a pool party next year. Then COVID came and school didn't start in-person so a pool party wasn't an option. A party with friends and family wasn't going to be an option either so I told him I would surprise him with a really fun day and then a family weekend trip to celebrate his birthday. He was a good sport and took it like a champ! I decided on a Minecraft theme and did lots of Pinterest searching. We ended up doing a fun food table with snacks that matched Minecraft. I created a Minecraft cake with half the help of Safeway and half the help of Pinterest. Apparently, bakeries are not allowed to make Minecraft cakes. 

He spent the day in school doing his online learning and his class sang to him every class. (He has different teachers for every subject.) My mom and I decorated his desk area and decorated the kitchen to make him feel special. We also let him open a few presents throughout the day which he loved! During lunch we took him to the dollar store to play a game. He has been asking to play "I'll buy whatever you can carry". I thought it would be fun to let him play on his birthday but at the dollar store. :) He loved it and had fun. We had panda express for dinner since his favorite food is rice and chicken. He ended his birthday playing Minecraft with Jeremy! 

Sadly my moms two weeks ended a few days after Blake's birthday. We decided to do one last fun event to thank her. The Phoenix Zoo has been closed for awhile but they have a "Cruise the Zoo" option so we decided to give it a try. It was actually a lot of fun. Both kids had moments where they were really grouchy and moments that they were loving it but overall it was better than I expected. We were lucky and were able to see most of the animals on the path. We decided to purchase the picture to have a memory. After, we went to Kneaders for breakfast before dropping Grandma off at the airport. 

For Labor Day, we decided to go camping for a night. We drove up to Williams and on the way he found a little farm/pumpkin patch. The little store was packed and we were the only ones wearing masks but after we bought tickets we went to the main area and you were able to easily social distance. There were tons of activities for the kids! They had ziplines, bikes, train rides, trampoline, and picking strawberries and other fruits. We pretty much did every activity but at the end we planned to pick strawberries and buy some to bring home. It ended up getting pretty hot and we decided to just pick a few to eat and then head out. 

We drove through the mountains and ended up finding a spot to camp right at a lookout point! It was so pretty! We set up our tent which was so easy and then headed to Williams for dinner. We walked around main street and found a fun place called Route 66. We had burgers and bbq. It was pretty good! After we walked around a little more and then ended with ice cream from McDonalds. We hurried back to our camping spot to watch the sunset. 

After it was dark we started to get the tent set up for the night. I was in the tent getting everything organized and all of the sudden my right arm was hurting so bad. I looked down and saw a bee and knew I was stung. We had previously tried to get bugs and bees out of the tent but we apparently did not get all of them to leave. :) Initially it hurt really bad and was really swollen but I tried to ignore it so we could still have fun. We played a game of memory before bed which was really fun. Everyone went to sleep really quickly. 

The next morning we had to get up early and pack up to head to Snowbowl. We had tickets for the scenic chair lift. We got there and there was a long line so it took about 45 minutes to get on the lift. The kids were antsy but they enjoyed the chairlift ride. After we stopped at the shop and Jeremy found himself goggles and before we knew it we were buying goggles for all 4 of us, hats, and gloves. It was an expensive "quick" stop but the goggles will be nice for when we are at the cabin. Before we headed home we went to Flagstaff and walked to the train station to see the train pass and then grabbed lunch.