The Fambam Takes on Florida Day 4

The Fambam Takes on Florida Day 4

The day started out early for Pam and I as we mapped out a plan for the last day of experiencing the magical world of Disney with the rest of the free world. We realized the night before that to maximize our fun, we were going to have to let the girls catch up on some much-needed teenager sleep.
With Pam becoming a Disney App expert, she was able to secure Fast Passes for "The Haunted Mansion," "Buzz Lightyear" and "Splash Mountain."

We woke up our girls and took them to Chick-fil-A to fuel them up on nuggets and save money before we hit the park. As we drove off, I realized we would be cutting it close to make the first Fast Pass of the day. Pam declared she would make the ultimate parent sacrifice and dropped us off at the entrance to park the car, so the girls and I could make the ride. As Pam secured her Coolest Parent of the Year award by taking one for the team. I had to assume the role of Supreme Leader of the Fambam and navigate the long lines of the monorail and park entrance.

I looked at my watch as precious minutes passed by and the threat of missing our first Fast Pass of the day looming. The crowd was large, and I knew the only hope of rides for the day would be through the Fast Pass system. The girls looked worried, and I had to think of something quickly to access the ride on time and preserve their faith in me being the Temporary Adult in Charge.

Matters worsened as we entered the park and saw they were getting ready for the Disney Parade. There was no room to move as they were shutting off access to where we needed to go. Sadness overtook the magic off the girl's faces, and I knew I was the only hope they had left.

I quickly put forth our Conga Line tactic from the evening before and let Little D go ninja-style, as she led us through, under, and over people by all means necessary. We may-or-may-not have gone through a few roped off areas and ignored the threats of Disney jail by Disney personnel, but we made it with two minutes to spare.

Once we got off, we fought our way back through the crowd of people to find Pam and reunite the Fambam. We wondered over to ride "Buzz Lightyear" with only suffering a few banged shins from strollers full of pissed off little kids who would have preferred to be walking rather than riding.

Tomorow Land was so full of people they literally had Disney staff trying to keep people moving on paths safely. Pam knew her tribe was tired of the crowds and found a small area where we could sit and relax. She bought AK a smoothy and Little D a churro that Rigo had highly recommended. They enjoyed their snack as I watched Little D make quick work of her sugary snack in hopes of a small taste.

It was soon time to drive the race cars, and I was in the same vehicle as Little D. Pam loaded with AK and we were off. Little D proved to be a crazy woman driver as I found this ride scarier than any other I had experienced

Pam and I barely survived the race with girls behind the wheel and decided to take a moment to capture our relief in a picture.

We still had a two-hour wait until our next Fast Pass, and all the lines were showing a wait time of at least an hour and a half. I had not relinquished my interim title of Supreme Leader of the Fambam and made the call to explore 'Tom Sawyers Island". My theory was it would provide some refuge from the masses and allow some ability to move freely about. My choice proved worthy as Little D was in her element. She ran all around the island going in-and-out of the caves and running up and down the hills with a smile on her face. We hung out on the island and relaxed as we waited for our Fast Pass to ride "Splash Mountian."

I personally thought Splash Mountain was one of the best rides we hit at Disney. Perhaps I would have felt differently had we been able to go on more than just a few.

Pam knew the girls had lost their magic from the Magical Kingdom, so she took back her rightful title as the Supreme Ruler of the Fambam and announced that we were leaving Disney and heading to the Golden Corral. The girls and I lit up like a Christmas tree with the idea. Little D couldn't contain her excitement as she jumped up in the air and screamed in delight as a full-on buffet is her most favorite place on earth.

We showed up at the Golden Corral and charted our plan of attack for getting our monies worth and then some. Little D was pleased to find out that she was young enough to receive the kid's price but assured me that she would eat enough as Cousin Garrett does sitting down for a Thanksgiving feast!

I set Little D loose as she piled her plate high of fried okra, mac-n-cheese, and brisket. Pam was lost in all the possibilities to take, and AK loaded up with her favorites delicacies. Little D was two plates into her meal as Pam sat down with her first.

The empty plates piled up as I could no longer see Pam or Little D from their side of the table. The manager started to walk by frequently with a concerned look on her face. We didn't care, we survived Disney, and we were going to enjoy our first real Fambam meal that did not consist of goldfish from my backpack or overpriced carnival food.

Pam was the first to tap out and got back on the Disney App to see what Fast Passes might be available. The girls loved Epcot. It was not nearly as crowded as the other parks had been. Pam's Candy Crush thumbs came through again as she found us several good rides to hit at the girls favorite park in Disney.

Epcot was beautiful at night as we rode several attractions right off the bat. The girls wanted to walk around the countries one more time. We enjoyed strolling at our own leisure without anyone touching, tripping or just getting in our way. For the first time in three days, I felt free and able to move around.

It was soon time for the Desparrois Fambam to call it a night and get some rest as we had to check out and head to Clearwater Beach the next day for some rest and relaxation. The girls waved goodbye to Mickey, and we left the park exhausted from all the fun, rides, attractions, fireworks, and walking the last three days provided!

We enjoyed Disney World and loved that we were able to take the girls to see it. It had been a dream of Pam's since AK first came into our lives. If you haven't been, I suggest you take the time to plan a trip. The parks are all beautiful, the employees treat you like royalty, and it is remarkably clean.

The Fambam Travel Tips of the Day:

-Do rent a car when going to Disney World (You will save money on going off-site to eat, and you will need a break from the crowds).

-Do consider going at a time of year when the crowds are less intense (Your kids will get more out of the park, and you will receive more points in the quest to be Coolest Parent of the Year).

-Don't take your kids if they are too young (The little kids looked miserable, and their parents seemed even more miserable).

The Fambam Takes on Florida Day 3

The Fambam Takes on Florida Day 3

The day started out getting the girls to rise from their slumber and prepare for another day of what Dinsey describes as magical. The plan for today was two parks. The first being Hollywood Studios for me and Little D to get our Star Wars on and then the Animal Kingdom.

I have been looking forward to Hollywood Studios since Pam came up with the idea of coming to Disney four years ago. Rigo has tickled my fancy with tales of the Star Wars attractions and seeing Darth Vader in real life. I was over my "It's Tough to be a Bug" pity party drama from the night before. After all, I was about to meet and greet my favorite Wookie, Chewbacca!

As we walked in with the rest of the entire population of Florida, Pam's quick Candy Crush thumbs went to work on the Disney App and discovered the Tower of Terror only had a 20-minute wait. We have been told by many Disney goers that this was a must ride so we headed that way. The line seemed to be moving quickly as our excitement grew. We soon realized that the closer we got the line would backtrack and go off in another direction. Twenty minutes soon turned into an hour as AK was growing fidgety as she learned that Walt forgot to put restrooms in the lines of his attractions. After an hour-and-half of waiting patiently, we went on the attraction for our thirty seconds of fun.

The long wait left very little time left for Hollywood Studios to be explored properly. Pam decided she needed to go into a few stores and I opted to watch the Darth Vader show at the entrance and run through the park to see all it would have to offer on my next trip to Disney in another 43 years.

I met up with the rest of the fambam to load back up in the car and go to the Animal Kingdom. Pam knew the girls were getting hungry so, She ordered some BBQ sandwiches from The Flame Tree Barbeque restaurant at the Animal Kingdom to eat upon our arrival.

When traveling with Pam, she is always two steps ahead of everyone continually reviewing any and all possibilities to make the vacation more enjoyable. With her uncanny ability of preparation, she told AK to go and get napkins and condiments. She directed me and Little D to find a table to sit at, and she would pick up and pay for the food. After Pam's play calling, we broke the huddle and set out on out tasks. The table area was packed, and our attempt to get a table looked futile until Little D used her Ninja skills to scope out a table and get to before anyone else could. 

The table was a mess from the party before. A Disney employee came over to clean it up. We were the only ones at the table and I asked Little D to go help out Pam and let her know where we would be dining. I talked with the staff member for a few minutes while sitting at the table. Once he was done a man from a foreign country approached me at the table holding trays with his family behind him looking slightly upset that I was sitting down. He told me I had to move because his family was hungry and ready to eat. At this point I saw two options, go to full-blown fisticuffs and risk being put in Disney jail or firmly stand my ground and refuse to move. Luckily my new Disney friend walked over and let the man know I had been there waiting for my family.

After our meal, we bumped, got pushed and slowly shuffled our way through the park as we hit up the rapid river ride and a roller coaster for fast passes. Both were great but not worthy of the long lines to get on. 


We continued on and watched the magic take over as people were starting to become hostile and angry with each other. At one point a lady was screaming that she was just trying to get through a walking path as she pushed people to the side with her robust figure. Pam pointed out that everyone was trying to do the same, but apparently, the rules of walking on a path did not apply to her.

Pam dipped into her magical bag of tricks and gave the girls money to find some food and sit down and relax. She then escorted me to the car to help retrieve our sweatshirts for the evening. Pam once again proved why she is Supreme Ruler of the Fambam as the girls were revved back up for more Disney fun, and I desperately needed some space to be away from people for a little while.

We met back up and did the African Safari. I am sure it would have been cool to see, but it was night, and I quickly grew tired of the guide saying things such as, "Look, in those bushes, behind that huge rock, a rhino might be sleeping."

We got off the ride, and Pam knew she needed to come up with another magical plan as we were tired and desperate looking. She put her Candy Crush fit thumbs into action and found us another Fast Pass at the Magical Kingdom. The best part was we could see the fireworks over the castle before the ride.

The Magical Kingdom had, even more, people than the Animal Kingdom. We let Little D navigate the way through all the people since she is small and nimble. We initiated a knew fambam move called the Conga Line as we all held on to each other's shirts while D found a spot to view all the glory.

The fireworks did not disappoint and we were all satisfied to ride the "Small World" attraction. While we rode, Pam was able to secure another Fast Pass on "Pirates of the Carribean". Once there, it was decided that Captain Jack Sparrow would be the last of the Disney Magic for the night as we had early morning passes, and the girls were tired from their day of jockeying through the masses.

We went back to the condo and made a frozen pizza. AK crashed the second we walked in the door only to rise from her slumber thirty minutes later to eat some pizza. Little D put her new found treasure Eeyore to bed while Pam and I found ourselves planning Day 4 where it was determined that the early morning Fast Passes would be replanned so the girls could sleep in and we could regroup for our last day of Disney Magical fun!

The Fambam Travel Tips of the Day:

-Do use the My Disney Experience App for Fast Passes and ordering food (It makes life easier and easier is a code word for magic at Disney).

-Bring a water bottle and fill them up with the water fountains in the parks (not only will this save you some serious money, the water tastes great and is always cold).

The Fambam Takes on Florida Day 2

The Fambam Takes on Florida Day 2

Christmas morning started out early with me getting up and heading to the hotel Starbucks to get a candy bar cup of coffee for the wife and smoothies for the girls. After all, the end of the year is coming quickly upon us, and I needed to get some extra bonus points in the battle to win the Coolest Parent of the Year Award. This has not been easy, as Pam has taken home the trophy for the last six years.

We exchanged gifts, wolfed down some breakfast and soon found our selves in a full sea of strollers, kids, Mickey Mouse ears and parents hoping to accomplish the same thing Pam did four years ago when she struck gold with her idea!

We navigated our way through security to find our first Fast Pass experience of the day called Living the Land. I determined that it was educational enough that it would count as homeschool credit and AK could drop out of school if she would like. She declined, and we were off to our next adventure of Finding Nemo.

It's no secret that AK loved Nemo when she was little. Her face lit up with glee is we loaded our clamshell and rode the adventure with Bruce the Shark. Although we enjoyed the ride, the aquarium we explored after the ride was spectacular, and one I would put up with any I have visited before.

After two rides we still had one more Fast Pass to use. Pam noticed Little D getting hungry and offered up a Mickey Mouse Pretzel to stave off her pre-teen hunger. With Little D satisfied with her food consumption, we traveled the many countries Epcot had to offer up.

Little D loved visiting each country, and I was on a quest for a new beer to try. While Pam and AK found themselves watching a mime, Little D and I explored her favorite place on earth, Italy. Little D dreams of the day she can leave behind the fambam and become a full-time Italian. I soon settled on a beer from Italy as the price was not too outrageous only to discover that I had a shot-sized glass. After chewing my way through several bites of my beer, we found the other half of the Fambam and went on to train for space exploration at Spaceship Earth.

To no one's surprise in the Fambam, Pam took on the role as ship Commander. AK was the Engineer because they are not in charge of much. I was assigned the task of navigator because I was the only male in the crew and Little D was the Pilot which proved to be disastrous in trying to land us. Little D did get us safely to the ground, but let's just say NASA will not be calling anytime soon.

With Fast Pass number 3 down, Pam was able to get on her Disney App and find us some new fun in the Animal Kingdom. Pam's quick thumbs from playing years of Candy Crush proved to be advantageous with the Disney App as she scored us a ride on It's Tough to be a Bug.

We loaded up the car in search of bugs. We arrived at the Animal Kingdom to find it very dark and hard to navigate with the lack of lights and thousands of people we had to swim through. As always, Pam took charge and led us to the Tree of Life where the show on bugs would take place.

I was slightly excited to see "It's Tough to be a Bug" because cousin Maggie had highly recommended the show, and it starred my boy Flick! With the Fast Pass, we found ourselves first in line, which should mean we would have any pick of seats in the house like proper theater etiquette allows. After all, I do live by Ricky Bobby's mantra of "If you're not first, you're last!" Apparently, Talladega Nights is not a Disney Movie because they do not share in Ricky's sentiments.

The doors to the theater opened, and we were told to go all the way to the end of the aisle and not stop in the middle. I had little concern at this point, but the usher was telling everyone it is a 4-D movie and there were no bad seats in the house.

This proved to be a lie as big as Mickey's ears. Once the movie started everything was blurry from being at the end of the aisle, and I felt very little of the physical effects. Like an angry kid who just got hosed out of his favorite baseball card, I let the usher know I was not pleased with the so-called "no bad seat" talk. She merely smiled at me and got on the microphone and gave the directions on how to exit the theater.

Pam soon sprang into action and realized that I was suffering from too much Disney excitement and hangry Mike was coming out. She grabbed my hand and loaded us up into the car. I continued to whine and complain until I found us in the parking lot of Giordano's Pizza. Pam knew she could stuff my face with pizza from the land of Chicago to bring my blood sugar level back to normal and welcome her third child back to her brood.

With the votes tallied on the day, AK brought home the gold for Toughest in the Fambam as she was sick and achy all day and never complained once. Little D received the honors of the Happiest Child as she loved EPCOT and all it offered. To know one's surprise I won the award of Grumpiest Kid for my late day meltdown, and Pam went way ahead in her quest for the Coolest Parent of the Year Award standings as she had to calm her third child down after a disaster failed ride.

We chowed down on our grub and discussed the fun from Day 2 and mapped out the plan for day 3 as the Fambam heads to Hollywood Studios and back to the Animal Kingdom for a possible redemption at the Tree of Life for the Bug Attraction!

The Fambam Takes on Florida Day 1

Day One:

The day started out at the early hour of 4:30 am in Midland, Texas. It has become a tradition to walk the dogs before we go out of town as it helps ease Pam's guilt of leaving her four fuzzy friends behind as the rest of the fambam sets out for fun and adventure in a faraway land called Florida. 

Pam came up with the idea of going to Disney for Christmas break four years back. With the day upon us, we loaded up the girls and headed to the airport to set out and see why Rigo calls it the most magical place on earth.

We blew through security at the Midland airport and found Dallas Love virtually dead for Christmas travel. Pam was delighted to see the line to Dickeys BBQ empty as she ran to the counter to order her favorite breakfast of brisket and egg tacos smothered in spicy bbq sauce. I followed suit while the girls opted for much healthier options of wraps and fruit.

Pam and I laughed at the girls as they have much to learn about the difference of healthy eating when you are at home and indulging in the finner junk foods when you are on vacation. Pam gave her usual 4.8 slices of brisket out of five for Dickey's while the girls came in at 2.4 for their choice of living longer lives free from heart disease.

It was soon time to line up for our flight to Orlando. Pam and I checked us in the day before, and AK got A60 while Pam, Little D and myself got B1, B2 & B3. The thing about Southwest is they allow family boarding in between the A group and B group. Usually, this is not a big deal, but going to Orlando means everyone under the sun with kids gets on before the B group. AK secured a spot for her and one other person. Pam being one to think quick on her feet told Little D she would be babysitting AK in the back of the plane while we found a couple of seats further up. 

Once again I beamed with pride as Pam gave us two luxurious hours of complete kid freedom and let the row in between us create a child-free buffer! Southwest says they don't have a first-class option. But I beg to differ; you just have to travel with Pam.

It turns out that most of the free world came up with the same idea Pam had four years ago to visit the land of Mickey. The Orlando airport was mobbed with kids crying and stressed out parents making threats of Santa not showing up if they did not straighten up. We grabbed our bags, got the rental car and were at our hotel in no time. As usual, our Hilton property did not disappoint with excellent accommodations and a large apartment for the stay.

Pam decided that we would run to the store to get some groceries while the girls stayed behind. It turns out that grocery store shopping on Christmas Eve in Orlando is as bad as of an idea as it is in Midland, Texas.

After wishing the good folks at the store a merry Christmas with a few elbows into our ribs, some banged shins from too many carts in the aisle and lots of colorful language being thrown around by people in the holiday spirit. We bagged our essentials items and headed back to the hotel to get ready for Christmas Eve Mass.

With Pam being a traditionalist we headed to midnight Mass except it was 8:00 at night.  I have very few roles when it comes to travel as Pam is the supreme ruler of the fambam and makes all the critical decisions for a good reason. She did however, ask me to find a church close to our accommodations. Like most technical hip people, I googled Catholic churches. Several came up, and I opted for the one called St.Nicholas Catholic church since it was Christmas it felt like the place to be.

Upon our arrival, something seemed a tad different from what we are used to seeing for Mass. When church started, AK turned to me and with a strange look and asked if we were at a Catholic Church. I replied yes, as technically we were. It just happened to be a Byzantine Catholic Church rather than a Roman Catholic Church. The two are somewhat different in their rituals of the Mass as we soon discovered. 

Needless to say, we had quite the experience but still enjoyed the Mass. After church, we kept another tradition alive as we arrived at Waffle House for our late night Christmas eve meal. We feasted on the usual dinner delicacies and enjoyed the time together as we mapped out the plan for Day 2 as the fambam takes on Epcot!

Only Me and Sweet Pea!

The day started off early as AK, and I decided to put the hurry-up offense into full effect so we could take in the entire college football experience. Our destination was the campus of Texas Christian University to observe TCU take on Big XII rival the Bears from Baylor!

Pam scored huge points several weeks early in her never-ending quest for the awards to become The Most Loved Spouse of the Year and Worlds Greatest Mama. She scored two tickets to the game for AK and I. Just like a quarterback leading the offense down the field and steering the team to victory; Pam knew that the anniversary of losing my dad was going to be a terrible day for me. To combat the sorrow, the leader of our fambam knew that a day with my AK to college football game would make all the difference in the world!

We loaded up the Road Warrior, and AK climbed into the captain's chair to drive us 2 hours east. After a quick stop at Chick-fil-A for sustenance we were on our way. AK's highway driving has been coming along nicely with little to no high blood pressure moments occurring. After several hours in the car and sharing stories of her freshman year antics in high school we soon arrived on the campus of the Horned Frogs.

AK and I decided we wanted to take in the entire college experience and arrived early to tour the campus. Immediately upon arrival AK's eyes lit up bigger than Little D's do when she sees a stray puppy! Pam and I have been making it a point for the last several years to visit college campuses on our different trips to get the girls excited to further their education. The purpose of this decision is for the girls to make enough money to take care of in our golden years!

The first stop was at the campus store to look for some TCU apparel as AK decided to attend TCU after five minutes of being on campus. I could hardly blame her as the school is beautiful with the rolling hills filled with huge oak trees and architecture that probably makes a lot of kids want to pick TCU for their institution of high learning.

We walked over to the TCU arena to see their Hall of Fame display. We were pleasantly pleased to see Jake Arrieta from the Cubs had received a much-coveted spot in the TCU Hall!

With AK wanting to explore the campus more we headed to see the residential dorms. The dorms at TCU look just a tad different from the prestigious Dodge City Community College I attended for my freshman and sophomore year. A good day living at Sheldon Hall at DCCC was when the power worked. Something tells me the freshman class of TCU lives a little bit better than we did back in the day when the food from the cafeteria was so bad that Bogey and I survived on 99 cent Whoppers from Burger King!

We continued across campus on found our way to Frog Alley for the pregame festivities. We tried to score a prize while participating in various carnival games, but AK soon realized her old man no longer could throw very well or accurate for that matter. Instead of winning my oldest daughter a shirt for being able to show off my athleticism, AK had to settle for free fries that McDonald's was handing out!

Pam obviously knew I would be enjoying the usual stadium fare of nachos, BBQ sandwiches and pizza, so she brought us the Ueker seats to burn off the extra calories. We hiked high enough to feel light headed with the lack of oxygen from the high altitude!

Once we got to our seats, I soon realized why Pam was in charge of the fambam and always carried a bag full of stuff to take care of her brood. The temperature was 88 degrees and we had no sunscreen which was not good for our pasty white Irish skin!

We toughed it out and took on our sunburns to watch the mighty Horned Frogs beat the Bears in the battle for who was the better Christian school. AK and I had a great time watching the game and taking in all that college football has to offer. With the game ending, we walked back to campus and snapped a few more pictures to send to Pam and Little D so they would not forget us!

Pam and Little D were helping BJ pack up some boxes to move to storage and found a picture of Delaney from long ago. Little D decided to send us a before-after-picture so we wouldn't miss her too much while we were gone!

After the game, we decided to check in to the Hilton Homewood Suites that would play the role of our sleeping quarters for the night. Since this was AK's trip, I let her pick where we were going to eat and do after dinner. AK quickly decided with all the restaurants at our disposal in the greater Dallas area to pick Olive Garden despite the fact that we live two blocks from one in Midland! AK ate her usual meal of Alfredo with unlimited breadsticks while I stuck to the salad knowing we were heading to the movie and I was going to have to save room for popcorn with jalapenos. AK was pleased with her Olive Garden experience and gave the pretend Italian restaurant a rating of four-and-a-half eaten breadsticks out of five. 

We still had an hour before the show, so we walked to the various shops at the outside mall. I am not by any means a shopper, but I knew AK would enjoy it while we killed time. I was amazed at the lack of people in the stores for it being Black Friday. Perhaps everyone was shopped out or maybe people have come to their senses and realized that stores really are open all year around!

We soon found our way to the theater where AK picked Daddy's Home 2. After getting the jumbo-sized tub of popcorn and enough jalapenos to keep Sam's Club in business, we settled into our seats to enjoy the show. AK and I liked the movie as our ribs hurt from all the laughter only Will Ferrel could provide!

We made our way back to the hotel and after a long day they started at 6:00 in the morning and driving two hours, eating several nuggets from Chick-fil-A for breakfast, walking many miles across TCU and watching two Christian college football teams breakout into a fight that delayed the game for ten minutes, one TCU sweatshirt for AK and a football for Little D purchased, a feast of unlimited bread sticks at Olive Garden for AK and one funny movie watched, we called Pam to thank her for the trip as she declared the AK Daddy day over and summoned us back to Abilene to pick her and Little D up so the fambam could reunite for next weeks adventure as Pam takes on hills in San Antonio to run a marathon!

The Desparrois Family Trip to Meet a Real Life Cowboy!

The trip started much later than usual as Pam was driving the girls from Midland and I was driving my rental car out of Houston. The plan was to meet up at the rendezvous point in Dallas late Friday evening for another fun-filled fambam adventure. The last two weeks have been a grind for the entire family. So when our good friend Leslie asked Pam if we would like tickets to watch Oklahoma State take on the mighty Wildcats from Kansas State, it was a no-brainer!

 Pam and the girl part of the fambam were running a little late coming to Dallas as they stopped in Abilene to see Daddy Bill, Pam's great uncle. Daddy Bill is an extraordinary man and someone we treasure dearly. Unfortunately, he is in the hospital and would appreciate any prayers. Pam and the girls went in to see him and give him some love and a few hugs to help with his spirits. AK reported that despite not feeling well, Daddy Bill was still himself and filled the room with stories and laughter that only Daddy Bill can do!

 After a quick bite with more stories and humor from cousin Hayli, the girls loaded up for the last stretch and rode into Dallas around 10:30 at night. Since I arrived earlier, I had already checked us into the Doubletree hotel which would serve as our sleeping quarters for the evening. It was a beautiful reunion to get the fambam back together in one place as I had been in Houston for most of the week. We enjoyed catching up, but soon realized that it was late and time to turn as we had another four-hour drive ahead of us in the morning to Oklahoma for the game.

 We got up early and enjoyed our usual free Doubletree breakfast and found ourselves on the road. AK turned 15 this year and had jumped through the hoops to acquire the proper documents to get her driver's permit. Pam and I decided early on that our daughters were going to learn to drive well before they turned fifteen in parking lots and back roads.  So now that she has her permit, AK has come along nicely and is learning to drive rather well. Pam’s simple rule of thumb is If we are going somewhere and AK is with us, then she is driving! The rule also pertains to long distant trips. We strongly feel that our girls need every opportunity to learn and we have to be comfortable with allowing this to happen and not just "do everything for them". The hardest part of the whole kids driving thing is giving complete and total control over to kid!

Pam's stomach started to growl and I remembered that I stopped at to pick up the much sought after Beaver Nuggets the day before on my trip from Houston at the worlds largest convenience store called Buc-ees's. To avoid a "hangry" Pam, I pulled out the southeastern Texas delicacy and fed them to my wife and Little D so peace would be kept in the back seat of the road warrior!

 With it being our first time to eat Beaver Nuggets, we honestly don't know what all the hype is. As a family of four, we only ate a quarter of the bag leaving lots of beaver morsels left in the bag. We all agreed that Rigo had it right when he claimed that Allsups fried burritos with taco sauce are the only way to go on a road trip!



















We soon arrived at Boone Pickens stadium and met up with Leslie. The tickets were in a great spot, and the girls were eager to take in some college football. 

Little D was eager to see the stadium, so we snuck off and found our way to the stadium store. Like most sports stadiums we visit, Little D had her sights on a game ball. Little D is well known for playing catch regardless of the sport. She is kinda like a puppy dog. You just cannot throw it to her enough. She just keeps coming back for more until your arm is ready to fall off!

 

We enjoyed cheering on the Pokes and were hoping they were going to pull off one the greatest college football comeback ever. Unfortunately, they came up a few points short on their final drive. After the game, we thanked Leslie for the tickets and took the opportunity to get a picture of the girls favorite Cowboy and starting lineman Johnny Wilson #72!

 

Johnny is an awesome kid and has taken the college playing field by storm this year being named a team captain and getting the MVP for the game against Texas. We were honored to be asked to come to a game and look forward to watching Johnny's success in the future!

We once again loaded up and headed to Oklahoma City to find rest for the night. The girls were starving and we sought refuge for their hunger pains at Waffle House. Many families have dirty secrets they keep hidden away for no one to know. Ours is the pure pleasure of the greasy cafe food from Waffle House. I can't exactly tell you why we like it so much, be we do and we are proud to say it could be a Top Ten spot for us when it is available.

After stuffing our faces full of sweet waffles, biscuits and gravy, eggs, bacon and their world famous hash browns we found ourselves ready for a long food-induced coma and settled in at the local Hilton Garden Inn.

It didn't take long for the girls to pass out and Pam to take control and declare that we would be in no hurry to return home. She decided the girls were needed some rest for the long journey back and was going to allow them to catch up on some much-needed teenager sleep.

As usual, I was up early the next morning and enjoying my free Hilton morning coffee when Pam came down to join me. We spent several hours just drinking coffee and enjoying some time to ourselves. We are so busy with work and the girl's activities that we appreciated a simple cup of coffee together.

Little D woke up and decided to join Pam and I for our free complimentary Hilton breakfast while AK opted to snooze longer. Little D was eager to get some pool time in and try out her new football. I loosened up my arm and Pam dragged AK out of the bed so we could all go to the pool together. We had a good time playing catch and having chicken fights. The girls may be getting big, but are still not match for their parents in a good old fashion chicken fight.

We soon checked out and headed to lunch at Braum's for lunch. Pam and the girls had never had eaten there and thoroughly enjoyed their first trip while scarfing down Braum's burger, french fries and washing it down with the delicious Braum's shake!

Before heading home, Pam and I participated in a friendly game of rock-paper-scissors to see who would have to play parent and sit up front with AK as she navigated the way home while she drove. I won and Pam had to sit in the pressure seat while I enjoy a leisurely ride home watching Wonder Woman and Spider-Man with my best buddy, Little D.

After spending over 13 hours in the car, one college football game, trying out some unimpressive beaver nuggets, a picture opportunity with a Cowboy, and two different hotels, Pam officially declared the weekend over as we arrived home at our little zoo filled with roue dogs and two cats.