We went back and forth on when to leave, and finally decided that we would pick Cameron up a little early from school to get on the road, but then stop for a long dinner which would put us in a good spot for an "after dinner movie" and a night of sleep. We decided that we would assess the situation once we got to Texarkana and see how things were going.
Cameron did really well! There was a little frustration when he was ready for bed and he couldn't really get comfortable, but we all rallied through a coffee stop in Texarkana and made it to Hot Springs at about 12:30AM. We were able to find the hotel that our Tennessee family was hiding in and got to play doorbell surprises the next morning!
We arrived at the lake house we had rented for the weekend and fell in love!
The beds were so comfortable, perhaps the best I've ever visited!
After a trip to the local grocery store for the essentials, we ran back to welcome the next to arrive...COUSINS!
Before deciding on Hot Springs, the only thing I had ever known about it was what Erik Estrada had said on his infomercials with timeshare and retirement information. When the boys decided to go golfing on Saturday, the girls made there way to explore downtown!
Oh and there was a Corvette Convention going on too.
Remember how we love classics?
In case you can't see it, the sign says: Gangster Museaum.
That's right, apparently there is a ton of history regarding Al Cappone and other Gangsters vacationing in Hot Springs.
Oh and then there's this.
(Don't let your political thoughts bring you or keep you away, it's a really fun town.)
It just so happens that while we were there, they also had some sort of National Park celebration going on at a park right off of the main street. There were all kinds of cool exhibits and activities for all ages!
Remember how I said I don't know how to do a kartwheel? I'm also not very good at hula-hooping.
My favorite thing that they did though, was set up 3 different canvas's that had 3 local scenes on it. Then people were given a smock, paintbrush and some paint and told what to paint on which canvas. I'm not sure where they were going to put these, but the paintings were so unique and colorful. My Neice didn't really want to paint when she found out she had to wear a smock so she watched me do it. I was told to paint myself in the park. See below. I'm not artist, but I didn't think it was all that bad. My Neice, however was worried about the color I chose for my skin. I informed her that it was during the summer and I was working a great tan!
After painting and all that walking, we visited Fat Bottomed Girls Cupcake Shoppe to pick up desert for the evening. These cupcakes were huge! It was the cutest little shop, and they will actually be on the show Cupcake Wars coming up in June.
On our way back to the car, we passed this artwork on the side of a wall. The area was blocked off, but we were able to squeeze through to have a little photo opp. We couldn't pass it up!
The rest of our time in Hot Springs was spent making memories.
(Guess what we're going to start taking away now that we've got the road trip under our belt?)
He loves his Cousins!
(We're also going to work on this "Mama's Boy" Phase that we've got going on.)
Hot Springs was gorgeous, and we definitely hope to visit again!
Highlights: Meeting somewhere in the middle for everyone in the family and having neutral ground was a definite plus. There was no pressure on anyone to host or accomodate anyone else. We all had our own space and there was lots to do outside. We played games, layed in the sun, blew bubbles and everyone got a turn on the rope swing.
Lowlights: Sure a road trip is hard on everyone and exhausting, but as long as you time it right, pack and organize your car well, go in with the right attitude & expectations, you can make it totally do-able.
Go Team Benton!
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