Fourth of July

We had our first little family vacation of sorts this holiday weekend. We have always wanted to take the kids to the lake for a day of fun in the sun but just hadn't gotten around to it yet. Since David had the 4th off, it worked out perfectly our day trip.

We started off the holiday by going to watch the fireworks at the mall. We sat on a hill about a half mile away and had a wonderful view of not only the mall's show but others as well. We sucked on Sonic slushes and cuddled on blankets.

Friday morning, packed and loaded, we headed up to Crystal Bridges Museum to see the current traveling exhibit. We had tickets for the 11 AM slot and about 11:30, the two youngest kids were crying and Lillie was asking when we were going to be finished. I guess walking around and looking at paintings and sculptures while having to be quiet was asking too much. But David and I enjoyed it. I saw my first Renoir, Picasso, and Lautrec.

After the museum, we headed out to the Prairie Creek Marina on Beaver Lake. We payed our day pass and headed down to the swimming beach only to realize that we were on the wrong side for the Marina Restaurant. So we crossed over the little inlet to the Marina and JJ's Grill. There was absolutely NO parking. We had to park a good way down the road into the Marina and hoof it in. Thankfully most of the cars were there for boating and not for the restaurant. The grill was very fun. It is out on the water and has long windows that open up. So you can actually sit outside on bar stools and eat in the windows, sort of like those restaurants you see on old photos of Coney Island. As you walked down the pier to JJ's,  they had lots of docking slips for folks to park their boats to come eat, just like parking spaces for cars.

The kids were about to come unglued so the beach was next. There we were faced with our next problem. They had closed the bathrooms and put out port-a-pottys to handle the holiday traffic. So my bright idea of changing into our swimsuits in the bathroom was nixed. But I found a solution. I had several picnic blankets with us and I rigged up a changing room of sorts in the backseat of the van. David and I had to sit on the back seat, hunkered over because of the blanket, and try to slip into swimsuits while not letting someone get a glimpse out of the many little holes in our cover. Fun times. Even with the doors open and the air conditioning running, I was sweating everywhere by the time I got out from underneath those blankets.



We slathered on sunscreen and loaded everyone up with gear and headed down to the beach. It took us what seemed like an eternity,  when you have an arm full of chairs, to find a shady spot and lay out our little campground.

We finally made it to the water.

It was actually fun. Not too cold. Not too hot. There were people everywhere but it made it feel that much more festive. We watched skiers and pontoon boats, jet skis and windsurfers, paddle boarders and kayaks. It seemed like just about every kind of water sport was being enjoyed on the water. The kids loved it. The water was surprisingly clear and the beach had smooth sand without any flotsam. After some snacks and then lunch, we had one last dip in the water.

On our way home, we stopped by this little 50's drive up diner in Rogers, Susy Q's. It has been open for 52 years and we all had a ice cream treat. They had great malts, floats and shakes. While we were there, this older gentlemen drove up in a black restored convertible Cadillac. I'm not much of a car person but that was a fine ride! David and I discussed the possibility that he drove a car just like that when he used to come here as a teenage. Talk about reliving your childhood.

On our way home, Lillie informed us that "This was the best day of my whole life!" I think we will be trying to hit the lake again this summer.

I will post pictures later.