water fun

Yesterday we used our free water park tickets.  It was a perfect day for it--90 degrees and bright and sunny.  We knew we had to use them this weekend, because next weekend is the last chance before it closes for the summer, and the tickets expire, and we didn't know if the weather would cooperate next weekend, so it was now or never. 

We took everything we needed with us to church (because the water park is lots closer to church than our house) and I got the girls ready in their suits before we left the church.  While I was getting them ready, my husband was talking to Rachel's best friend, Taylor's mom (they go to our church), and it turned out that they had free tickets to the water park, too, which also expired next weekend!  On the spur of the moment they decided to go too, so they met us there later and we hung out with them much of the time.  What a happy surprise!

It was a really fun day, and I wish we could have stayed longer, but it was after 2:00 and Rebecca was having trouble keeping her eyes open (she usually takes her nap at 1:00).  Rachel really didn't want to leave.  She was so happy that Taylor was there, and was just really enjoying the water, which I was both surprised and happy to see.  The last time we were in a big pool was at Disney World, when she was not quite five, and she was terrified of the water.  She wouldn't even go in for more than a few minutes with my husband or me holding her.  I purposely haven't put her in swimming lessons, because I was convinced that she'd cry and carry on and it would be a complete waste of money.  But yesterday gave me hope that maybe she's not as scared anymore, and maybe next spring we can do swimming lessons in anticipation of next summer.   She loved the wave pool, lazy river, and kids' areas.  She even agreed to try a water slide with me, even though she was scared.  She doesn't have a good track record of trying things when she's scared, so I was sure we'd get up there and she'd chicken out, but she didn't!  We went down and she LOVED it!  I was so proud of her.  She went down it again later with Taylor, and wanted to do it some more, but we didn't have time. 

While the steep price of admission means that we likely won't go again for quite awhile (we thought there wasn't enough there to justify the cost, until the kids are older and can enjoy more of the park for a longer period of time), for free, it was a super day of family fun!  I wish we could have taken two cars and Rachel and I could have stayed longer (my husband isn't the water-lover that I am, so he would've been perfectly happy taking Rebecca home to nap while I stayed with Rachel). 

We didn't take a camera (because trying to keep track of it and keeping it dry would've been very difficult!), so I don't have any pictures to share, unfortunately.  You'll just have to imagine lots of wet, happy smiles.