Sunday, September 13, 2009

Wisconsin Dells - Day One

Our first full day in Wisconsin Dells was plenty of fun for The Spence Family. A very unique, popular must see tourist attraction in the area is a duck boat ride so we went to experience the duck ride first hand. There are several companies which offer the ride, but today we went to the Dells Army Ducks for a one hour land and water tour. This is a guided tour which takes you on a cruise on Lake Delton, The Wisconsin River and which also makes two amphibious landings. This area is known for their 14,000 year old rock formations specially named Twin Ink Stand, Upside Down Heart, and a Wedding Bell..hence the shape of the rock formations.

The ride began on land and eventually we made a splash into Lake Delton. We were dressed in anticipation that we may get very wet entering the water, however we did stay completely dry. After cruising the lake we made our first amphibious landing until making another splash entrance into the Wisconsin River. This is where we saw all the beautiful, one of a kind rock formations. It was a great outing to begin our vacation and most of all Kyle really enjoyed cruising along in the duck.

One of the many duck boats
Kyle enjoying the ride
The Wisconsin River

Rock Formation

Another Rock Formation This is a private residence along Lake Delton. It actually belongs to the person who owns one of the large water parks in the area...very impressive Kyle and Mommy flying the army helicopter while waiting for our duck tour to begin.
Kyle driving the army jeep.

After our tour it was time for lunch. We drove around for a short while in the downtown Wisconsin Dells area to find a lunch spot. We came across the perfect little restaurant for this New Orleans girl...Taste of New Orleans - Authentic Cajun Cuisine. The food was very good and we definitely plan to go back another day for lunch or dinner. We did speak with the owner of the restaurant, who is originally from New Orleans. It was really interesting to speak to someone from my home town especially since we are all the way up in Wisconsin.

After lunch we came back to our condo so Kyle could take his afternoon nap, while John and I spent time in the four season room overlooking the pool and Lake Delton with the screen door open enjoying the breeze and listening to the waterfall...very peaceful and relaxing. This evening we drove around to explore the area and locate places we would like to go later in the week. It certainly is a huge tourist trap so we want to make sure and fit in as many fun filled activities as possible. Stay tuned for further detail about our vacation! Until then...have a great week!

Saturday, September 12, 2009

Greetings From The Dells

Saturday morning The Spence Family headed on vacation. Origianally, we planned to make a stop on the way and arrive in Wisconsin Dells on Sunday. We were making such good progress and Kyle was cooperating so we decided to continue driving and arrived this evening. This was such a great decision...so we could get settled, unpacked, and shop for supplies for our condo. We are staying at The Wilderness On The Lake in a two bedroom condo overlooking Lake Delton...beautiful! The condo is great, fully equipped kitchen, washer/dryer and is huge... it may be a little big for our little family of three, but it is nice to have the space separate from Kyle. We are deciding what our itinerary will be for the week and what fun adventures we would like to explore in The Dells....so many activities to choose from! Stay tuned for details of our week filled with family fun!

Saturday, September 5, 2009

Disney On Ice

September 5th, Kyle went to see Disney on Ice. Kyle enjoyed the show, especially since it was fast paced, very entertaining, loud,fun music, and best of all a great view of the show. Unfortunately, since this was our first "On Ice" event, we weren't dressed in proper clothing. It was freezing cold in the arena and it didn't help that we had floor seats very close to the stage. Other people were bundled in heavy clothing and blankets to keep them nice and comfortable and here is The Spence Family in our summer attire. Once the show began, we forgot about being too cold and the three of us enjoyed the show. It was a wonderful experience for Kyle to learn a little about the Disney characters.After the event Kyle had the opportunity to shake many of the characters hand since we were so close to the stage. Of course his favorite is Mickey Mouse and he had his picture taken with Mickey. Unfortunatley, the other picture which was much better, but was very blurry when printed...just our luck!

Tuesday, September 1, 2009

My Little Assistant

As I've mentioned in previous posts, Kyle is quite the little helper. He definitely enjoys assisting and is very proud of himself since we praise him for his accomplishments. This summer he has been such a "huge" help in keeping my many flowers alive and happy...the hose became his new outside play toy. Granted, he didn't always water just the flowers, he still did a wonderful job. He hasn't been a fan of the pool, sprinklers, etc. this summer, but this water activity sure kept him occupied.

Working hard to get the hose in position.

He is actually getting water on the flowers :)

All done...time to put the hose away.

As with all babies and toddlers, Kyle is a little sponge these days. He is soaking up everything there is to learn about his surroundings and his environment...he is a very curious and adventurous little guy. His speech is progressing so I'm hoping we are in the process of another little break through. He imitates many words we say and that he hears...you never know what word will come out of his mouth.

I'm shocked that today is already September 1st. I have no idea what happened to our summer..it disappeared before my very eyes. Thankfully, we moved back into our school routine without any issues. Kyle seems to enjoy school and he is always excited when I drop him off each morning. He walks into school with a huge smile, tells me bye, and waves without any hesitation. I need to come to the realization that my one and only baby is growing up before my very eyes...it is very bittersweet!


Until next time, take care.