Our First Spring Break

Last week was Caleb's first Spring Break!  We considered taking a big trip, but decided to keep it simple and fun.  Caleb wanted some pajama days and we all just needed a relaxing week.  It was a great Spring Break with play dates, small outings, and even a chill pajama day.

We spent one afternoon at the Zoo with a group of friends.  We packed a sack lunch and a had great time enjoying the beautiful weather. 

Almost the whole crew of kiddos.  Pretty awesome kids!

For Spring Break, Caleb had been given a coupon for Mr. Gatti's Pizza.  We decided to have a fun lunch date with dad and check it out.  They have a descent pizza buffet and then have a game room similar to Chucky Cheese.  Caleb and Dad had a lot of fun playing games together and earning tickets.

Sure do love my handsome boys.  It was fun to get to spend some time with Daddy.  Caleb was sure sad that Daddies don't get Spring Break too.  He didn't think that was very fair.

Our big trip for the week was to Dublin, TX, home of Dr. Pepper.  It is a small town only 1 1/2 hours from here and has an old fashioned Soda Shop.  You can also tour the Dr. Pepper Factory and Museum. 

Home of the Oldest Dr. Pepper Bottling Plant in the World

Just a small little place but really cute

The Soda Shop was great!  They made simple sandwiches but the best part was the soda.  They made it with just soda water and a squirt of the flavoring you want.  The flavoring was made from pure cane sugar, no corn syrup.  The difference is amazing.  It really does taste so much better.  The Root Beer was the Best!

The Bottling Factory

Just recently, Dr. Pepper announced that it will no longer be making Dr. Pepper in Dublin.  They will continue to make a select few drinks, just once a month, but no more Dublin Dr. Pepper.  This Dr. Pepper was made with pure cane sugar and no corn syrup.  After tasting it, it really is a shame they are no longer making it.  The factory is small and old but was educational. 

Here is where the process begins.  The bottles are taken into this huge machine where they are washed and rinsed and cooled in order to be ready to use.

The machine is really large.  You can see a diagram of the process above the kiddos.  All to make sure we don't get sick.

The bottles after they come out of the machine.  They now check for any cracks or damage to the bottles.

The bottles are then filled with soda water and the flavoring syrup before the bottle caps are put on.  This factory specializes in the old fashioned glass bottled soda.

I thought this was a neat machine.  Can you see the bottle caps?

 The bottles are then taken to be mixed.  It takes about 3 shakes to mix and the soda should stay mixed for up to 1 year.

The final inspection is done here.  The bottles are taken off the belt and placed in a 4 container box, where a special light is shined on them.  The look to see if the color and fill levels are correct and if the bottles have been damaged in any way. 

After they are all check out, they are ready to be boxed up and ready to sell!

Love'n the Dr. Pepper Experience!

We were not allowed to take pictures in the Museum, but it was neat to learn the history of Dr. Pepper and the Dublin Plant.  Do you know how Dr. Pepper got its name?  Is Dr. Pepper really made from prune juice?

As part of our tour, we each received a free bottle of Dublin Dr. Pepper.  The kiddos had a lot of fun drinking sodas in the soda shop.  It was a great day!

Just to prove that us moms were really there, we had to get a picture.  So glad that Mardy and Natalee were willing to come with me on our little field trip.  It was totally worth it!

By the way, Dr. Pepper was created by Charles Alderton of Waco, TX.  It is said to be named after the father of a girl Alderton hoped to marry.  To earn favor with the father, he named the drink after him.  Alderton did not marry Mr. Pepper's daughter but the name stuck.  And Dr. Pepper is not, nor ever has been, made from prune juice.  It is just a unique combination of flavored syrups that Alderton came up with while in his own little soda shop.  Dr. Pepper was known as the first energy drink, due to the high content of sugar.  Marketing techniques focused on drinking Dr. Pepper at 10, 2, & 4 to keep your energy up.  Most things in the factory and shop had the numbers 10, 2, & 4 somewhere.  Even check out the population of Dr. Pepper, Texas!