More than fun...

We had an awesome opportunity to spend a weekend with some great friends we only see a few times a year. We met up at Hogle Zoo and spend the day looking at the animals and enjoying each others company. The day was really hot, and we loved the misters they had around the zoo, but they never seems to cool us enough.

We saw many animals. Mason enjoyed watching the elephant give its self a bath. He laughed so hard when the elephant would suck up water in its trunk and then spray it all over it's self. I am sure he was thinking he wished he could do the same thing.

We watched the Monkeys climb all over the place and swing from the branches in their home.

Paige thought the monkeys we pretty cool too.

We attended a bird show. At the beginning of the show, we were instructed to say seated through the whole presentation. Do you know how hard it was for us to keep Mason seated. He just doesn't sit still. There were all sorts of varieties of Birds. They would fly directly over the crowd and we could feel on our heads the breeze from them flying. Paige was mesmerized. She loves birds any ways, but to see them that close, she was lovin' every moment of it.

We got to ride the carousel, that was really fun. It was a first for Paige.

We went to see the giraffe's and we caught one outside. We thought it was so neat how it was standing in a way so we could see how tall it was. He then stretched his neck out and he was really tall.

I don't remember what this little kangaroo looking animal was really called, but she watched it eat it's lunch and really didn't want to walk away. Good thing there were other animals to look at cause we would have been there all day watching it eat.

Mason spent some time watching the swimming turtles. I don't know know what he like so much about it as he really couldn't see it well.

To end out trip to the zoo, we rode the train around a part of the zoo you can't walk. It was the only family picture we had taken all weekend. We need to be better about having family pictures taken.

That night we stayed in Salt Lake at a Marriott. They had a pool and after a lite dinner and checking it we took off to the pool. The kids we excited to swim, but I left our camera in the room, so no pictures from this.

The kids thought it was great to sleep side ways in the bed, how do families with larger families stay in a hotel? We almost didn't fit.

Once we were all asleep we slept well. After our busy day, it was much needed sleep.

We woke up early the next morning and headed to Lagoon. I have not been there since I was little, Shawn since before we were married. It sure was a different experience having 3 little kids with us. You take so much for granted when you don't have to take kiddos to parks like this as an adult.

The kids rode this helicopter ride as their first ride together. We weren't so sure Mason was going to do so well. He has my stomach and isn't much a thrill seeker. I took the kids on a ride that takes you up in the air and then drops and rises you quickly. It was little, but Mason hated it and Emma thought it was great. We didn't do that ride again.

Mason did enjoy the car ride though, and I am sure he wanted to go again, but we never got back to it. Poor kid.

This had to be Mason's favorite. Loves water and had a smile on his face the whole time he was in the boat. Paige and Emma, we'll they wanted more action I am sure.

We did the bumper cars several times. We did them with Emma and Mason while waiting for the rain to stop, and then again later.

Emma had the hang of how to stir, Mason just liked being in the car and didn't understand how to steer. Biggest lesson learned... Don't let Paige drive.

Paige just sat there looking cute. She only went once, but got a little girl stuck and the girl was mad, you could tell. She is just too little to get it. It was so funny to watch as we tried to tell her what to do, and have her look at us like we were the crazies.

Everyone talked me into going on this ride. I didn't like it. It scared the crap out of me and I just wanted that minute to be over. Emma on the other hand could have gone 12 times with Shawn. She thought it was awesome and was mad that she was too short to ride the other roller coasters.

This is her ride.

We went on the Farris wheel, but Mason screamed the whole time and after only going around 1 time, we got off. After that he settled down. He was over stimulated and just tired I am sure. We decided we would end the evening on a ride that Mason could handle and that the whole family would enjoy. We went on our 2nd train ride of the day.


We played at Lagoon A Beach also but I didn't have my camera and so there are no pictures of that. The kids LOVED the water park and would have played there all day by it's self. It was hard to keep track of all the kids with them going 3 different directions at all times, but some how Emma stayed safe and we kept Mason and Paige with us. It was an awesome weekend getaway. Our next getaway, won't include the kids. Not that we don't love them, but it's time for us to have a weekend to ourselves.