Kings Island

King's Island, near Cincinnati, Ohio is such a great theme park. It was like having all the most amazing rides in one place. We went right as school was getting back into session for the kids in the area, so there were very few lines. So few in fact, that I had to ask the girls if we could take a break from the roller coasters, my stomach needed it! Here's our day in photos:








I had to take this photo because this is what Dave says to the girls all the time when they are doing something crazy :-)






Poor Rebekah began to run a fever and feel pretty lousy while we in the park. This was what she wanted to spend most of our afternoon in the waterpark doing ~ looking at the park map. She loves maps, just like her daddy. She still remembers the park as one of her favorite things on vacation, it was just a bummer that she didn't feel better!





Feeling much better a nap and a dose of tylenol later.

Who do you see from the top of the Eiffel Tower, Rebekah?






Kings Island + Planet Snoopy = The funnest end to a super summer road trip.

Which one of our doctors would you like to see today?

The Creation Museum

I can't believe it's nearly the end of October and I am still blogging about a vacation that happened back in August, but that's how things go...I think I am close to wrapping it up :-)

One of the highlights of our trip was a visit to the Creation Museum . It's such a cool place! The museum was born from a ministry called Answers in Genesis, whose goal it is to proclaim the absolute truth of the Bible and demonstrate the relevance of a literal Genesis with creativity to a world and culture that will often approach Biblical explanations with skeptism and false theories of evolution.

The museum brings the pages of the Bible to life in a very fun, real and colorful way! The girls loved it. We were just barely able to finish going through the museum after being there from open to close, and our tickets would have been good for two consecutive days, had we planned for that in our scheduling.

This next little section I am taking right out of the visitor guide book to the museum because I really liked their description of the museum's intent: "The Creation Museum places Biblical History within the context of the greater issue: why should we trust the Bible?

Our conclusions about the world are affected by the decision to trust either the words of the eternal, perfect God or the words of temporal, falliable men. There is an element of faith at work in every interpretation of scientific evidence.

Rocks and fossils don't come with tags on them, telling us how old they are. Scientists reach different views about the past, not because of what they see, but because of their different starting points: Autonomous Human Reasoning or God's Word."

In short, much of our worldview is shaped by whether or not we have faith in an all powerful, omnicient and loving Creator.


By Noah's Ark and then below in the Voyage Room. Quick Bible Quiz question pertaining to the picture in the top, right corner: Who lived longer than any other person and how long did he live? Answer ~ Methuselah, 969 years. (Genesis 5:27) Methuselah could talk and tell stories, and Noah who Emma is standing in front of could answer questions as they were selected from the screen in front of the exhibit. The entire museum was really neat and interactive.


The petting zoo was amazing! So many unique species like a zonkey and an albino peacock.

The outdoor gardens were beautiful too:



These tiny flowers were perfection. God loves detail and variety!!






Genesis 1:1 In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth.

The Horse Farm

A friend of my Dad's owns a beautiful thoroughbred horse farm and as he told her about the road trip we were taking, she suggested that we stop in if our route was going to be taking us close by. That was an offer we couldn't pass up ~ and I am so glad we didn't! Not only were the horses amazing, but we got our own private tour by the owner's brother. It was incredibly nice!

The barn we toured was home to many mother and baby horses. I believe the man called the babies yearlings. They were so sweet. Here you can see the mama in the background watching carefully from the corner of her eye as her baby grew curious about us.

Such a blurry photo, but the girls were just enamored with the horses.

And the horses loved Dave! The kept smelling him, and not just one or two of the horses, but all of them ~ he speculated that they must have never met a Hawaiian before :-)

Some of these thoroughbreds will eventually train to become racing horses like those in the Kentucky Derby.

Everything about the horses from their sweet temperament to their pristine appearance was so perfect and very beautiful!

Ever wondered what a $400,000 horse looks like? Take a look at the beauty above and you'll know. This one was being broken in to train as a racing horse and when he is sold in November, they expect him to fetch about $400,000. As you can see by how Rebekah is staying buried into Dave, she was a little hesitant around all of the horses.


The pretty view outside the horse barn.



Mother and baby again. They seemed to have a pretty well established schedule for time in the barn and time outside in the fields. This mother and baby were being kept separate from everyone else, I think because of an issue the mother was having with sore hooves.


Now here is an animal more Rebekah's size, and the kitty seemed to know it, following Rebekah everywhere.

It was love at first sight. Poor girl would love to have her own kitten, but because of our allergies, we will not be able to have a pet with fur anytime soon.

It was such an interesting and out of the ordinary opportunity to get to visit a real thoroughbred farm, the girls loved it very much!!

And Happy, Happy Birthday to Dave's Mom today! We hope you have a beautiful birthday and wish we could be there in person to celebrate with you!!  Sending lots of love your way...