What a GREAT Summer!

It has been so long since I've been able to sit down and write down my thoughts and the events in my life. Mostly it's been because I've been away from my computer and the only one at home is the one that Kevin uses for work; which means he's always using it. Now that I'm back at school I can use the one in my office during my lunch to catch up on all the Carr Family info. Hope you've got some time to spare, this may take a while.

Looking back on it, it seems like the summer just flew by. I had a few things I wanted to get done...and only got to a small portion of them. But I got to spend time with the boys. We played, went to the Library, went to the gym and the pool and just hung out together. Then came vacation!

What a fantastic 3 weeks we spent together. Now, before I go on I have to explain that our summer vacations are Road Trips in the truest sense of the word. I pack the car with a week's worth of clothes, a bag of snacks (because it's cheaper to get them from the grocery store than at every gas station we come across) and a cooler of drinks and we hit the road. I have a whole system for this. I make lists. Yep, I'm a list maker. I write down what each family member will need for the trip and then check it off when it is packed. One of the keys to packing for an extended trip is to pack one bag with the clothes for 3 days for each one of us. That way when we stop for the night, we only have to bring one bag into the hotel every three days. At the end of 7 days, I find a laundry facility and do laundry. It works out really well.

So, first we headed West with San Diego as our goal. Our first big stop was Amarillo, Texas. A couple of years ago we discovered the Big Texan Steak Ranch, home of the FREE 72 oz. steak dinner. You might think, "Woo hoo, I'm heading there for my next vacation!" But of course, there's a catch. You have to eat that 72 oz. steak--with a salad, baked potato, shrimp cocktail and roll--in an hour or less to get it for FREE. Our first trip there, Kevin attempted it but was just a couple of bites shy of finishing the whole thing. But this time, he had a plan. He started fast and made sure he ate the side items as he went along, rather than saving them for last. This time he was successful! He had just under 10 minutes to spare, too! You may ask, "What happens if he doesn't eat it all in under an hour?" Well, he would have had to pay for the dinner. A whopping $72. As Kevin ate, Liam, Ben and I enjoyed our own, much smaller, steak dinner.

Here is the massive dinner that Kevin was destined to devour in an hour.

Liam makes quick work of his steak dinner.

The smaller brother has a smaller appetite.

A very stuffed Kevin is victorious.
He finished the entire thing with 9 minutes and 44 seconds to spare.

From Amarillo, we headed to San Diego, California for Kevin and his "Fat Guys at the Movies" partner Neil to attend the San Diego ComicCon. The boys and I spent the day at the beach or the hotel while Kevin enjoyed all things entertainment at the convention center. I sure learned my way around San Diego in a few days. We also visited a Maritime Museum that had 5 different types of ships from throughout history for us to explore. After one last trip to the beach, we headed East.

Liam at the edge of the ocean.

Ben isn't quite ready to get too close to the water.

Ben and Liam meet a "real" ship's captain.

One of the classic ships that we got to tour.

One last trip to Ocean Beach. Daddy got to join us on this trip.

Our next stop was the sand dunes in Yuma, California. They were so vast you would think that was all there was in the world. There's quite a funny story there too. We were all wearing sandals and tried to climb to the top of the dunes, but the sand was so hot pouring in through our sandals that we didn't make it very far before we had to turn back. But as we're turning around, we see Ben just truckin' along up the dunes. We realized it was because he didn't weigh as much, the sand wasn't getting to his feet. So, by the time we headed back to the car and got tennis shoes on so that the rest of us could travel to the top, Ben was tired of being in the heat.

Ben climbs to the top of the dunes.

Liam and Ben pose with Mommy before heading to Texas.

Our next stop was Texas. We were there for a few days and made the most of it. We drove to Texarkana, Arkansas and stood in both Arkansas and Texas at the same time. We also saw the only Federal Building that operates in two states.

"Arkansas...Texas...Arkansas...Texas"
This was Liam and Ben's mantra as we stood in two states at once.

The Post Office/Federal Building that serves two states.

After visiting Texarkana, we drove down to Shreveport, Louisiana and had dinner at a CiCi's pizza there. In one day, we added two more states to the total number of states we've been to. Our total is now 39. We then headed back to Keller, Texas just north of Fort Worth to visit our friends the Sanfords who just moved to Texas a few weeks prior to our visit. We spent a couple of nights with them before heading to our next destination.

The Three Amigos, Liam, JJ, and Ben goof around at Sandy's Steak and Shake.

The Carrs and the Sanfords have one last big dinner together before we leave Keller.

Our next stop is The Alamo in San Antonio, Texas. That was a bit of a shock to us, in that it is in the middle of downtown San Antonio. I was expecting it to be in the middle of a desert-like area, but nope, skyscrapers and modern buildings all around. After dinner at a Mexican restaurant on the riverwalk, we headed toward Galveston and the Carnival Conquest.

The family perches on a canon at the Alamo.

One of the few buildings of the Alamo that are the still-standing originals.

Yep, The Alamo sits in downton San Antonio.

A delicious Mexican dinner at a local favorite.

Well, this is getting a little long. Needless to say, our trip is only half over. I think I'll make a second post just about the cruise. Keep an eye out for part two of the Carr Family Vacation 2007.