I'm Home, and Only Half-Way Through....

with my vacation, that is! I've had a few good days away from home, but I'm really glad to be back in my own house, sleeping in my own bed.

First leg of our vacation included a two-night stay at Hueston Woods, near Oxford, Ohio. It was a reunion of sorts with Aaron's mom's family. 36 people in five cabins, drinking more than their fair share of wine, Schmirnoff coolers, Woodchuck, and beer. Every year, we do a Christmas in July with his family. So instead of exchanging presents at Christmas, we do it in July. It's nice, because there are so many fun things that you can give at this time of year that are hard to find in the dead of winter. Aaron got a few shirts; I got a silky tote, a fun pillow that's perfect for the car, and some Bath & Body lotions; Collin got one big-ass Super-Soaker; Erin got a cute beanie horse and a way-cute outfit; Griffin got a bubble-making lawn-mower. And I drank more than my fair share of Captain Juicy-Juice (a drink made up by Aaron's Aunt Sue and Uncle Steve and their family....goes down easy and fast!), Woodchuck, and Schmirnoff drinks.

Which leads to the worst day of our vacation....Sunday. Nursing a hangover accompanied by allergy problems only to be gotten in a state park somewhere in Ohio, we drove to our yet-to-be-determined nuclear family vacation destination. We had no clue what we were going to do...which made it hard to figure out how to get out of Oxford, Ohio. We spent nearly an hour and a half driving around....and wound up in SOUTHEAST Indiana......not exactly the direction we thought we were going.....So we found a road that would lead us southward, and wound up near Louisville, KY. Figuring that we were only a little over an hour from Mammoth Cave, we decided to go there.

So, Monday was spent taking the Historic Tour through Mammoth Cave. It was actually a good trip....until we got to where the bathrooms were in the cave. Unfortunately, the bathrooms weren't functioning the day we were there. And Collin really needed to use them.....so we hiked for nearly 1/2 mile more in the cave, and were nearly to the exit....when he shit his pants. And good God, did it smell. Very badly. People were accusing their fathers of ripping the worst fart ever off the stench that was eminating from his backside. So, we get ut of the cave as soon as humanly possible, and head for the restroom...Aaron tells Collin to pull down his pants, and Collin pulls down his pants AND his underwear, further exasurbating the problem of the shit in his pants, as he spread it all over his legs and SHOES, too. Backing up just a second here, I have failed to mention that these were the ONLY shoes that he brought with him. Needless to say, that pretty much sent me over the edge. I wasn't mad at him for shitting his pants.....but I was mad at him for being so careless in the removal of his clothes. Aside from this little bit of hell, we actually had a pretty good time in the cave. A definite recommendation to take the fam there if you make it to the foothills of KY.

So Monday night we ate at a place called Toot's, which is a tamed-down version of Hooter's. The food was pretty good, and they actually give the kids free hot dog baskets, ice cream, and balloons. Not too shabby! Also a recommendation to hit if you're in Bowling Green, KY or Cincinnati, OH.

Tuesday, we went to Six Flags Kentucky Kingdom, where I totally french-fried myself by taking the kids to the water park. The babies had fun, but were worn out by the time we were done playing in the water. Collin and Aaron took a tour of the rollercoasters and other rides that the twins wouldn't have been able to go on. They did, however, get to ride their first rollercoaster, and both of them LOVED it....We got Griffin to ride it because we called it a train. He commenced to call it HIS train, and cried bloody murder when we got off of it!

We drove home last night, stopping in Southport at a good Chinese restaurant.

All in all, a very good trip. I'm glad to be back home, though.