Branson

I took this shot in the car on the way home. We had just left and I said, "oh, Jason, I forgot to take a picture in Branson." And he said, "Would you like to take one now?" And I thought how sweet that was of him to let me pull over and get a good shot. "Yes, that would be great!" And I waited for him to pull over to the side of the road and he didn't. "Are you going to pull over?" and he said, "What? No. Just take it out the window." So that's what I did. It doesn't really capture any of the pretty-mountainness, but that's all I am offering.

We were in Branson, Missouri, for the past few days.

When I was little I remember telling people I was part hillbilly. My grandmother told me I was, so that's what I was. Only later did I realize that's not like being Irish, or Jewish, or some other heritage you are proud of. My friend Geoff still brings the hillbilly comment up.

I thought I needed to mention that story so no one thinks I am being derogatory. And I certainly hope that nobody reading this is the great-grandchild of the original developers of this rhinestone-encrusted, mini golfarific, singing brothers trio capital known as Branson. But seriously...it's actually GORGEOUS under all the glitter. It's nestled in the Ozark mountains. Unfortunately billboards yelling at you to come check out this show or that musical litter the backdrop of green trees covering the mountains.

We hit a little snag with the Scout retrieval when Spencer woke up with a mystery illness. Friday we were all supposed to go to the picnic, tour, and closing ceremony at Kanakuk. But Spencer looked miserable at 5:00. She had thrown up several times, felt hot, and had a headache and sore throat. We found a clinic open till 8, so I took her there while my parents and Bo went to see Scout. The diagnosis? Strep throat. I was so sad-- because she was sick on vacation but also because I had been counting down the days to seeing Scout for two weeks. The happy news is that my dad met me and took Spencer back home so I could say hi to Scout. She was so happy to see Tucker! Unfortunately, she had bright red lips from the sno-cone and he might not have known who in the world this kid holding him was. Oh, and my friend Tina had prepared me for the post camp reunion, so I was totally fine with the lack of emotion and even interest when she saw me.

Jason arrived Friday night, and we reunited with Scout Saturday morning to pick her up and bring her home. Yay! She had so much fun she could hardly contain herself. Tucker warmed up to her and flapped his arms like a little bird when he saw her.

On Saturday we rode horses, and the girls played golf with my dad and Jason. Sunday they went to Silver Dollar City and rode 47 rides that all made Jason fear for his life and the lives of his kids. Apparently, people in Branson don't think safety is number one on rides, because Jason recounted every ride where he was hanging for dear life to his plastic seat belt. Plus, have you seen Scout? He really thought she was going to slip through those huge gaping spaces on the roller coasters. Nevertheless, they had a blast.

And, after nine hours in the car (including driving 20 miles past our exit because I was on the phone and missed Missouri State Highway 60), we made it back safe and sound.

Once again, I did a really bad job taking pictures in Branson. But here's one of Scout and a horse's hiney.