Mommy and the Minister: Family Fun in Branson

As you know I was on hiatus last week. I was spending the week with my family in Branson, MO. We used to go there all the time as a kid and since Hubby had never been we decided to show him the best Branson could offer. Unfortunately, it rained the ENTIRE week :( but we were able to sneak in some fun stuff in between the downpours.

The first day we spent shopping and walking around at one of the local outdoor malls. While we were there we stopped in to take some old time photos. Little Man did awesome and the photographers were very impressed.

Sorry for the quality. I had to take a picture of the pictures with my phone. They have this special paper that if you try to scan it, it creates a watermark right over the picture and they are ruined. So this is the best I can do :(

We stayed in my parents time-share, which is always nice. It's basically a little apartment with a complete kitchen and washer and dryer. We saved a lot of money by cooking breakfast and dinner while we were there.
-Side note: We got ranged into one of those time-share sales presentations. I felt so bad for the guy, he said that ministers were the hardest to sell to, and on top of that, my parents are already owners so we can use it whenever we want. But we went along with it and in the end collected our $150 gift card, BONUS!!

Oh and if you didn't know, when you travel with a baby you bring a car load FULL of crap. OK not crap, I needed all of it at some point during the week but seriously, he took up more room than I could ever dream of. Between his own suitcase since I had to take extra outfits in case we had a blow-out, his jumpy, his tummy time mat, a stroller, baby carrier, car seat with base and my giant diaper bag, we were surrounded by baby stuff.

On Thursday we went to Silver Dollar City, an amusement park in Branson. This is my all time favorite amusement park (aside from Disney), and I have been to many. The reason I love this one so much is that it is so family friendly. Not only do they have 3 awesome roller coasters, water rides and other rides for older kids and adults, but they have a whole section for smaller kids. We even got to take Little Man on a ride! Also they have tons of shopping, and since its based in the 1800's its also educational for kids complete with live glass blowing and a blacksmith.
If you have never been to Branson, it is a great family friendly trip right in the middle of the country. Only a 5 hour drive for us, and they have something for everyone. Shows, putt-putt and go-karts, Silver Dollar City and shopping, Branson is fun for all.

Now that I'm done plugging Branson - just kidding, these are all of my own opinions, but I really do think its a great place. Here are some pictures of the rest of the week.