Branson

In years past, a summer vacation with the Colorado Bertrams has involved upwards of 20 people, including siblings and grandparents. Now that Ryan's younger siblings have grown up and moved out of the house and even married, our summer vacation with the family was decidedly lower key. Ryan's dad, Dan, and his step-mom, Joyce, were gracious enough to make the long drive with Shannon and Bev from Colorado out to Branson to spend a few days with us there. We stayed at the WorldMark resort in Branson and enjoyed simple things like swimming in the pool, shared meals, and playing board games together in the evening after the kids went to bed.

The highlights of our time with them including going to a restaurant for lunch with singing wait staff, and "riding the duck" through Branson and into Table Rock Lake.

Since our reservations weren't until Sunday, Ryan and I decided to take off for Branson on Friday night. On Saturday we visited the safari we had done last year, and then on Sunday morning we visited the Butterfly Palace and the Shepherd of the Hills Inspiration Tower (which is now basically a zip line launching point.)

We had been to Branson a few times, but it was usually for SharePointalooza, a SharePoint that I was speaking at, so it was nice to finally be there just to enjoy the tourist attractions and have a nice vacation. And of course, spending time with family is always wonderful.

Butterfly Palace
Lilly and Abby in the Butterfly Palace maze	Abby in the butterfly chair
Family photo with very pregnant mamma	Lilly watching the butterfly release
Lilly and her magnifying glass	Lilly on Daddy's shoulders
Unfortunately, Abby had a cold that turned into a double ear infection while we were away so she wasn't a happy camper most of the trip	Lilly on the other hand was having a ball
Inspiration Tower
The tower had a beautiful view but there really wasn't much to do there per se. By that time in the day, we were frankly looking for something to do to kill time before nap time.
Riding the Duck
Lilly with Grandma Joyce	Lilly likes her duck bill whistle
Poor Abby fell asleep at the beginning of the tour	She eventually revived
Abby enjoyed the ride	Lilly got to "drive" the boat
View of the lake from the quarry to build the dam	The showboat
It was a little strange being so close to the water line
Playing at the condo