Sunday, February 21, 2010

Great Wolf Lodge...

Last weekend, we packed up the whole family and drove almost 4 hours to Great Wolf Lodge in Kansas City. Well, I guess it wasn't the whole family. We left Charlie with my parents (thanks mom and dad) and took along Grandma Debbie (actually, she took us). We met up with a bunch of aunts, uncles and cousins. I am lucky to have married into such a large, wonderful and super-loving extended family.









Haley enjoyed catching up with her cousins and racing down all of the waterslides. It was hard to catch a picture of them but I made them stop for just a moment so that I could snap a pic.



Elsa had fun lounging around. Especially in the kid-friendly hot tub. She is not very adventurous. Okay, she is the complete opposite. She loved to be held and didn't want to go down any slides. I am wondering if her feet ever touched the ground?!?!



Sophie, on the other hand, is quite the adventurous one. She went down EVERY single waterslide and had a blast doing so. It took me until Day 3 to let her go down the last 2 that she had not tried (they were partially enclosed slides that she had to go down by herself). And she loved them. She had a HUGE smile on her face at the bottom of each and every single ride she went down.





Great Wolf Lodge has to be the MOST kid-friendly place that I have ever been to. From wearing our pjs to breakfast to the bedtime story telling in the cozy lobby to the magic shows and dance parties to so much more. You never had to leave the building and there was enough entertainment to keep the kids busy even outside the waterpark.

It was Valentine's Day weekend and they brought out a huge tub of heart shaped sugar cookies, icing and sprinkles for everyone to decorate.



Though it doesn't look like it in this picture, Sophie loved Wiley (the bear) and Elsa was scared out of her mind (but she can't resist cheesing it up for a picture).



One HUGE bonus from this trip... We got to meet Kylie, Jody and Matt. I will never be able to express in words what it is like to meet another family that has fought through Infantile Spasms. It is a bond like no other. Kylie is one adorable little girl and her parents are two of the sweetest and most genuine people I have ever met. They are doing an AMAZING job at raising Kylie. It was such an honor to meet this cozy little family.

(Jody, Me, Elsa, Kylie, Brandon, Sophie and Matt)




(Sophie giving one of her famous smash my face into you hugs.)


Thank you Debbie for this wonderful and memorable vacation!!!
I needed this...a break from reality...a time to just focus on the family...I had SO MUCH fun.

9 comments:

Adesta said...

Wonderful! So glad that you all were able to get time away and just relax. Looks like you all had quite the time!

blogzilly said...

Looks awesome...except for...you know...the water... :)

Glad you guys all had such a good time.

Anonymous said...

This mini vacation got a two thumbs up from all of us here in KC too. A most definite "do again " one day! Now we're praying for Spring to get here so the troops can get outside and continue to run off that energy.

Love,
Aunt Barb

JSmith5780 said...

OK, so my mind went straight to "residuals". Ken- I'll never be able to look at water parks the same again!

Seriously though, it looks like everyone had a FAB time!

MJStump said...

It was so great to meet up with you guys and share in the happy times!

You are so right, "it is a bond like no other." I think that is why for the first time, Kylie felt so comfortable with new people...its like she just knew she was safe.

Anonymous said...

How fun! That is on our list of places to go. Love seeing Sophie so happy!

labonte4 said...

Looks like a well deserved mini-vaca!

Anonymous said...

You all look wonderful and so happy! And Sophie...wow!! Good for you to take a mini get away...family is great!
Aloha~Sheila

Colby said...

What a wonderful opportunity for you guys! You deserve ALL the happy times that come your way!!

Love all the family photos....And Sophie is having a ball!

Looks to me like I am seeing a regular old "normal" family!!!

Cyndi