Spring Break 2014: Across the Wide Mississippi

One of the perks associated with this little hiatus I'm taking from the working world is unlimited vacation time.  As a result, I have a whole new attitude towards school vacation weeks.  Last year's school vacations seemed like just another inconvenient lapse in childcare; this year, they mean extra time with my kiddos, a break from the hustle and bustle of the daily routine, and an opportunity for adventure.  Sometime back in the fall, I decided that April vacation would be a perfect time to visit our family in Arkansas.  They have, after all, been living there for several years now, and we've never had the time or flexibility to make the trip.  My grand idea back in the fall was to DRIVE there.  Ben knew he wouldn't be able to take the time off, and the idea of driving 1,600 miles with my two young men as my only copilots was rather daunting.  So I roped my similarly unencumbered, equally up-for-anything mom into serving as my trusty travel companion.  Somewhere along the way we abandoned our extended road trip plan (thank you lord) in favor of a flight to Memphis and a significantly shorter road trip from Memphis to Conway, Arkansas.  We still had our share of adventure (and time in the car), exposed the boys (and ourselves) to a part of the country we'd never discovered, and had a nice long visit with Gwen and Mike and the boys at their lovely home.  Here is the story of our Arkansas adventure.

After a late flight into Memphis and a night at the airport Best Western, we had a full day planned in Memphis before heading west on I-40 to Arkansas.  We began the morning with a visit to Graceland, which was a big hit across the generations.  I had always thought of Graceland as a tacky tourist trap, but it is instead an extremely well-done homage not only to Elvis, but to his whole era.

Didn't know much about this Elvis guy, but this audio tour is pretty cool!

A walk back in time to Elvis' media room.

 

Seeing Elvis' cars and planes was probably the boys' favorite part.  They took home a mini version of Elvis' pink Cadillac (which later went down a storm sewer, but that's a story for another day).

We told the boys all about drive-in restaurants and took them for their first-ever Sonic lunch afterwards.

Next we headed to the Memphis Botanical Garden, which houses an amazing childrens' garden called My Big Backyard.  The boys could have spent the whole day here - it is a huge space with mazes and treehouses and swings and climbing structures amid gorgeous blooming flowers on which to feast the eyes.

It was really hard to get the boys to leave this swing.  I couldn't blame them!

After a fun morning and the aforementioned Sonic stop, we began the three hour (which turned out to be five hour, but again, a story for another day) trip over to Conway Arkansas, home of the fantastic Sprungwells.  We were met with a warm welcome, excited smiling faces, and a yummy dinner.

Cousins reunited!

Although Ethan and Adam hadn't seen Brian and Andrew since last summer, the four boys picked up right where they'd left off and didn't leave each others' sides for four days.  There were...

Wagon pulls,

Teamwork!

Dinners al fresco,

Twilight bike rides,

Sprinkler baths,

Hours of fun in the backyard,

I love this picture because it shows how much Ethan loved being the big cousin.  He took such good care of Andrew while we were there, and Andrew repaid him with complete worship and adoration.

and even a few moments of quiet.

Adam also loved being a big cousin.  Note his sweet little arm around Andrew.

There was also lots and lots and lots of jumping.  The trampoline was my boys' most eagerly anticipated part of our trip, and it did not disappoint.  I love this picture because I got all four boys (a very difficult feat!) - note Andrew on Ethan's back!

While the Sprunger boys were at school on Friday, Noni and I took my boys to a beautiful park about ten minutes from Gwen and Mike's house.  We had a picnic, took a little hike, and watched the activity on the Arkansas River.

On Saturday we ventured into Little Rock to go to the zoo.  We saw so many great animals; Ethan was most thrilled about seeing his very first elephant!

We were lucky enough to be in Arkansas for Easter Sunday, which provided extra opportunities for cousin bonding.

Bribery at its best - no egg hunt until we get a decent picture.  We were marginally successful.

  

 

Hunting for eggs is hard work, so we followed it up with a walk to the nearby TCBY (because they clearly needed more sugar!) before a delicious Easter ham dinner.  

Monday was another school day for the Sprunger boys, so Noni and I took the boys to Petit Jean State Park, which ended up being the most pleasant surprise of our trip.  Actually, I have to say that I was generally quite surprised by Arkansas' beauty, but Petit Jean was a real gem.  We explored gigantic bear caves, walked down to a waterfall, and had lunch in a beautiful lodge with spectacular views.

A leash would have come in handy here...terrifying.

And Tuesday it was time to say our goodbyes and make our way back towards home.  We spent most of Tuesday back in Memphis, visiting a fantastic fire museum and taking a cruise down the Mississippi River on a paddleboat.

We decided to stay right downtown on our last night in Memphis, and were thrilled to experience Beale Street in all its glory.  Our timing was perfect, as there were blocks and blocks of old cars on display as we walked to dinner, enjoying that last bit of Southern warmth.
 

Adam didn't know that grilled cheese could get any better - Texas toast!

Thanks, Sprungwells, for a fabulous trip and for your warm hospitality.  We will most certainly be back!