Amazing

God amazes me in all things.  How we can take this:

And grow this:

Truly, He is amazing!

A Howlin' Great Weekend

This past weekend we dropped everything and headed out of town (but not too far out) for a family getaway to Great Wolf Lodge.  We even left computers and iPads at home!  I know!  It's shocking! 

Our goal during this trip was to spend time together as a family and have a well-rounded Great Wolf Lodge experience.  I am happy to report that we were able to do both!

We arrived in the early afternoon yesterday to a complete sea of people checking in.  I will say it was very busy, but not so much that it was unpleasant.  They have their check in process down to a science for sure!  After checking in and getting settled in our room, we headed to the water park, full of water slides, a lazy river, huge play structure, and a wave pool.  Aaron, the girls, and I tried it all out for several hours.  There were lines for the water slides, but nothing too terrible. 

The girls after the Canyon River Run water slide

Following dinner (burritos in our room - yes, it was "camping at GWL"), we decided to try our hands at MagiQuesting.  The girls purchased wands in the MagiQuest store, and then we spent several hours on different quests to find enchanted objects in the hotel.  After about four quests, we called it a night.

Fast forward through the snoring, pillow fighting, etc to this morning.  We had breakfast in our room, then the girls and I headed out to do some more MagiQuesting.  Let me tell you, this is a workout!  I climbed 20 flights of stairs in an hour, and at 18 steps per flight, that's 360 steps total!  I'd call that a pretty good start to the day.  Aaron and I traded spots so I could finish packing up and get us checked out by 11am.  The girls continued on their quests and became Master Magis.  They also completed one adventure (the slaying of the dragon), before we had lunch and spent a little more time in the water park. 

This afternoon in the water park was much less crowded, so the girls got to go on water slides multiple times.  It was so much fun to watch them enjoy spending time together.  They truly enjoy each other's company, and will go out of the way to compromise so they are all happy. 

All in all, this was a terrific weekend.  Aaron and I got to spend the time watching our kids have so much fun.  We left the work at home, and got to spend time with our girls.  I've been thinking a lot about time, and the hurried lifestyle so many of us lead.  In fast paced America, I think the best gift we can give the people we love is time.  It doesn't cost a thing, but is truly priceless!