We just returned from the Wisconsin Dells! Kevin managed to actually get a few days off from work by some wonderful miracle, and Isaac was about to begin his week of spring break, so it was the perfect time to hit the road for a family trip!
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| Excited trio posing by the car |
It was the first opportunity we had to travel there. It was a good time of year, as we were able to snag a couple of nights at a very nice resort at a reduced rate. This particular resort would have been much more expensive and way beyond our reach during peak tourism season! We got most everything ready the night before departure, then surprising ourselves, made our goal of setting out before 6 AM! We carried the kids out to the car still in their snugly pajamas, and brought along their favorite blankets so they could go back to sleep once we were officially on the way. Because of getting an early start, we were able to take our time. We stopped halfway there to change the kids into their everyday clothes and have lunch at Culver's (of course--it's Wisconsin, after all!).
The room we had to stay in was ideal...cozy fireplace, two bedrooms and even a completely furnished kitchenette so we could fix our own meals with groceries brought from home.Not having to eat out for every meal saved us alot of money, and made it easier to incorporate some healthy foods into our diet.
The older kids had a blast at the massive water parks.They were very brave and adventurous and tried every slide they were old enough for! Would you believe that I did not get to snap one picture of them in the water?!? That was due to the fact that Ethan was terrified of the HUGE bucket that would dump out gallons and gallons of water from the air at regular intervals. To a little guy such as he, it was quite scary! He did wade a bit in the shallow end and splashed about for awhile, but otherwise clung to me like glue the whole time. That was okay, though, since I am not much of a water person--and did not relish the thought of climbing all those stairs and having to wait in line forever to go down one slide.
With Kevin having to keep tabs on the others, and Ethan permanently on my hip, neither of us had a spare moment to whip out the camera during that time, unfortunately.
It was drizzly and cold when we were there, so we did not get a chance to explore much outside of the resort on foot, but did see many interesting things from the car window. It was overwhelming to see the many hotels, shops, and restaurants all compressed into a small area. It was confusing navigating around, this being our first time there and completely unfamiliar with the layout. We had a hard time locating a decent map! Many of the local attractions seemed to be tourist traps, so we steered clear of those for the most part.
On our way out, Kevin wanted to take the children on the famous Duck boat ride. It is a very neat tour of the area, partly on land following trails through the woods, partly in water beneath the amazing rock formations. Even though it was very windy, they enjoyed it, though they are obviously hiding their enthusiasm in the photo below!
Here is a peek at the rocks:
It is a very beautiful part of the country, when you stop and see the pure, unspoiled natural aspect--apart from all the tourism hype. I would love to go back sometime, just to explore the out of doors more.
The kids were real troopers. All things considered, traveling with three young children is no easy feat, and to expect it to go perfectly would be unrealistic. You can plan and organize and have an idea of how you want things to go, but anyone that is a parent for very long knows that something unexpected is bound to happen. Looking back over our past traveling, there has not been one trip since having our first child 6 years ago that has not included either vomit or a diaper explosion--or both. Really.
And this trip was no different. We were not far down the road on our trip out when one of our little ones (who will remain nameless!) was car sick all over the back seat.
Yuck.
But you know what? That's life with young children! You just have to roll with it, then move on. You can't let it get you down. Someday I know we will look back on those kinds of things and laugh! :) Children make life interesting and fun, even in those not-so-pleasant-I'd-rather-not-have-to-deal-with-this-now short term frustrations!
All in all, it was good trip, a fun mini vacation. A chance to get away and spend time together. It wasn't necessarily relaxing...but it was fun and welcome break after a long, cold winter.
But it is good to be home. Now it is time to unpack all of our junk, or I should say "gear", and then tackle all this laundry that has built up.
I will have the weekend to get things back in order, at least. And then home school resumes again on Monday..it's back to regularly scheduled programming for us!
When they were done, we pressed sheets of paper down over the top. When lifted off, the painted design stayed on, and the shaving cream dried clear! 
