Dutch Wonderland!

Saturday, September 4, was Shawn's work picnic at Dutch Wonderland. I got up early and went for my typical morning run, then we got the boys ready to go and headed out the door to get there when it opened at 10 am. The boys were excited! Our first stop was to get our picture taken, which his company gave us free.

Then we walked a few steps, and Joshua saw Duke, or as he said "the big purple dinosaur!" He ran right up and gave him a hug.

We started snapping pictures, of course.

Unfortunately we didn't get any of Caleb because by the time he wanted to go up to him, other children had crowded around. That was okay, though. We were there to ride! First stop was to check how tall the boys had gotten. Joshua made it up to the green, but Caleb was still in the blue section. Soon enough he'll be able to ride some of the taller ones!

The first ride we did was called the "Off-Road Rally" at Joshua's request. He wanted to ride in the 'big trucks.' And since Caleb's not quite tall enough to ride without a 'responsible adult,' I hopped in the back with them. I remember asking them what sound does a truck make - does it say "choo choo" or "honk honk" or "beep beep." I'm assuming Daddy took this picture when I was saying "choo choo" but it gives you the idea of what we looked like. Joshua had asked for the yellow truck, and so did Caleb. Love it when they agree!

Next we went to the "Turnpike" ride where they get to drive their cars. Joshua begged to ride with me and told Caleb to go with Daddy. That's better than both boys wanting the same parent! They take your picture on this ride and try to sell it and ask that you don't use your own cameras. So, I 'borrowed' the picture below off their website. Joshua LOVED driving the car! At first I was trying to help him steer, but he said "NO!" and did it by himself. The pictures of both our cars turned out cute, but we're far too cheap to pay their prices for a picture.

Next, Caleb asked for the boats. So, we went down to this ride below. We were the last ones in the boat so we sat in the very back.

Here's Daddy & the Bean on his orange boat:

I can't remember if this was next or not, but Joshua kept seeing the "blue train" or the monorail and asked us to go on. So, we did. But, I must say it was probably my least favorite ride of the day. We got right on with no wait, but we were the last ones on and so we sat in the middle and had to ride backwards the entire time. The boys were too short to see when seated, so it was pointless and LONG! Such is life!

Next - or somewhere in there - Daddy said he wanted to take Joshua on the bumper cars. Caleb didn't meet the height requirement, so I took him to ride on "Duke's Dozers" which he loved.

I loved his little face in the picture below. He picked the No. 2 car since he's 2!

After Caleb's ride was over, we saw that Daddy & Joshua had just climbed into their bumper car. So we went down to watch (and take pictures!). Poor little guy got stuck behind a girl that couldn't operate her car. So they sat there most of the ride not able to move. But, he still had fun.

Here they're coming out, and Caleb was excited to see them!

Joshua wanted to ride "Duke's Dozers" so we put the boys on again. Caleb didn't mind at all!

Next we went to a ride that from further away I thought was 'bees' because there's a hive in the middle with bees on the top of it and the entire noise makes a buzzing sound. Joshua thought it was "cows" because the ride was black & white. Then we arrived we noticed it was "Panda Party." Haaa!!! The boys LOVED this ride and went on twice.

We didn't show them that their panda could make the annoying buzz noise. ;-)

See below that Caleb's giving the thumbs up that he's having fun. He kept saying "cool, dude!" and Shawn told me that Miranda taught them that.

Next we took them to one of Joshua's favorite rides called the "Wonder Whip." They both laughed and laughed as they were whipped around. Shawn & I cracked up watching them have so much fun!

Since we had obviously seen this ride before, we put Joshua on the outside. It probably won't be long until we need to stick Caleb on the outside as this person takes the impact!

Don't you just love their little smiles?!?! Shawn & I watched and waited, and he took a quick picture of us.
 This day was fun but SO exhausting as we carried the boys much of the time and walked around and hoisted them in and out, etc.

Much to their disappointment, the ride came to an end. I always went in and helped them get unlatched and led them to the exit.

Next we ventured to a new area of the park. Last year it had been warm enough for us to take advantage of Duke's Lagoon, or the water park. But, this year the high for the day was only in the low 70s and it was breezy. So, while it was gorgeous to be outside and riding, it was not really water park weather. That was okay! We were then able to see more of the rides. The next ride the boys went on was called "Choo Choo Charlie" and was very much like the cranky cars at the Strasburg Railroad, only these cars must have been greased a little better because the boys could do them with ease.

We waited in line for what felt like an eternity for most of the rides there that day. With this being Labor Day weekend and the sheer number of people that work at Shawn's work, it was packed! Joshua was not thrilled to have to wait for his train car, and we knew that lunch time was just around the corner. Finally the train came up, and it was black where he wanted green. So we let Caleb take the black one and he got the next green one. Then he was happy!

Joshua easily cranked his car around the track. Daddy took a 'helper' stick for Caleb just in case. While he wasn't as fast as Joshua, he did just fine. He really enjoyed the trains, too!

In the same area with the trains was the big swings, which the boys were both too small for, and the "Turtle Whirl." Joshua begged to go on the turtles, but again the line annoyed him. We stood there FOREVER! Daddy asked him to pick out which turtle he wanted while we waited. Caleb kept wanting to run off while Joshua wanted all the people to move so he could get on his rides. We had to teach them both patience. Finally it was our turn, and Joshua picked the one with the green head (at Daddy's prompting, since they all have green heads). We got the boys settled and this thing took off spinning. Caleb did NOT like it. He was sliding off the seat as it spun. Joshua thought it was great that he could scream freely. I quickly picked Caleb up and snuggled him close to me, but the damage was done. He wanted off, but he didn't freak out and simply waited for it to be done. Once it ended and my wobbly feet were back on solid ground, we decided it was time to head to lunch!

The first stop before lunch was the potty for the Bean. Then it was on to the picnic area. Shawn's company paid for our lunch, same as last year, but the food wasn't as good as we remembered. They had hot dogs, hamburgers, chips, salad, macaroni & cheese, fruit and ice cream. We offered the boys a sampling of most of the above, and Caleb LOVED the cheese while Joshua LOVED the chips. Both of them enjoyed ice cream sandwiches as well. After lunch, we got in the long line for the double-splash flume. While in line, we saw bits & pieces of a crazy high dive show called the "Prince & the Frog" or something like that. I thought it looked neat, so some year we'll have to check it out. While we were stuck in the middle of the line, Caleb decided to fill his diaper with stinkiness. And I do mean STINK! He grunted and had a red face, and we looked at each other in horror because of where we were at in line. There was no getting out to change him until the ride was done. Right then a little boy came up and gave him a hug. I felt bad for the other kid. Haaa!!!

Finally after waiting for long period of time, it was our turn for a 'log boat.' Joshua & I sat in the front while Caleb & Daddy climbed in the back. Joshua told the ride operator that his seat was wet. The man smiled and said "this is a water ride." Oh, my precious Bean didn't know what he was in for! I held onto Joshua, wondering how he would do. I told him to go ahead and scream whenever he wanted as long as he wanted. But, he chose to stay quiet. We went up the first small hill and down and we got a big SPLASH! I laughed out loud and said "How silly! We're all wet!" and we waited for Joshua's reaction. Thankfully, he followed my lead and laughed at being silly and wet. Both Shawn & I grinned at each other. Then we went through the foggy mist tunnel, and it was time for the big hill and the BIG drop and splash. I held onto the Bean and screamed. Caleb LOVED it! We looked at the picture when we were off the ride, and he has the BIGGEST smile I've ever seen. Oh, my little adventurer! Shawn said he grinned the entire ride. Joshua looks nervous in the picture, but he said he really liked it. The picture itself was really cute. Again, though, when we had our own camera there, I wasn't going to spend their outrageous prices for one 4 x 6 photo. But, it was really a nice picture of the family. Here's the one from their website.

Daddy, who had endured the smell for the entire ride, quickly raced Caleb to the bathroom to change him. Thankfully, Shawn had stuck an extra diaper and wipe in his cargo shorts so we didn't have to carry any big bags throughout the park that day. And we needed what he brought along! While they were there, I let Joshua go on the wiggle racers. These are little cars where you lift your feet and use your body (abs and arms) to wiggle the car around the play area. The Bean couldn't seem to make it work without his feet. He enjoyed it, but he didn't really do it right. Unfortunately, Daddy had the camera with him, so I didn't get any pictures. When they came back, we headed to another section of the park and the boys got to ride the "Sky Fighters."

Caleb picked the yellow one, which I would venture to guess is his favorite color. Joshua picked the green one. Since there was no one in line, they got to ride on them three times!

Here's Caleb giving us the thumbs up and saying "Cool, Dude!" This is probably my favorite picture of him from the day.

Daddy told Joshua to put his hands in the air. You'll notice Joshua's shirt says "Dad is my hero." Shawn scolded me for putting it on him for his work picnic, but I couldn't resist. He looks just like his Daddy. :)

After they both rode separately, Joshua said he wanted to ride backwards, so we put them on the same plane together. The operator didn't make them get out as she pushed the button to make it go again at the kids' request since no one was waiting to get on. This ride is located near the water park section, and it's a little tricky to get to if you don't know where to enter. That's why I think there wasn't much of a line. We spent most of our day in lines, so this was a nice change of pace.

Caleb had begged all morning to ride the choo-choo train, so that's where we headed next at the beginning of the park. There's always a long line for it as well. Joshua told his he was too tired and wanted to go home to nap. We promised that once we were done on the train, he could go home to sleep. Caleb cuddled up with me on the train and laid down. We knew that it was time to go let them rest. But, we wanted to keep our word when we had told Caleb that we would ride the trains before leaving.

The boys passed out immediately once inside the car, and we laid them down when we got home. We also slept for almost an hour. We were rested, the boys changed into warmer clothes, and back on the rode in about two hours or so. We had to decide what to do for dinner. I suggested pizza, and the boys both eagerly agreed. Caleb said he wanted pizza while Joshua said he wanted "pizza bread." Shawn & I discussed where to go, and he finally chose to go to "Poppy's Pizza" on Route 30. I have to say that it was a strange experience. We got there, and there was NO ONE there. But, it was open. A woman came out and took our order and then she brought the kids crayons and place mats. Then an older gentleman came out and introduced himself as Poppy. Joshua said there are two Poppy's?!?! The food wasn't all that great, but it wasn't terrible either. Caleb downed two slices while Joshua had four crusts (he didn't try the pizza and didn't like the bread sticks). Shawn & I both ate our fill and he drove us back over to Dutch Wonderland.

One of the first "rides" we did when we got there was the fun slide. Joshua wanted to go on again, but the line felt like it was an hour long since only one side was open. So we said we'd rather find some more fun rides to do.

We noticed that the line for the Double-Splash Flume had died down, so we decided to take the boys again since they both enjoyed it so much the first time. Afterward, we went on the "Crazy Plane" ride, sitting right up front and seeing out over the park. Even though we were only up as high as the top of the "Fun Slide" Joshua was TERRIFIED! He begged Daddy to get him off the ride. Caleb didn't mind at all.

Joshua asked to go on the big trucks again, so we said okay. Shawn rode along with them this time. He also wanted to do the Turnpike again, but the line was ridiculous even at night. So, we opted to keep walking and see what else we could see.

We saw the Turtle-Whirl and the boys wanted to go on again - even Caleb! So we waited in line to do it again. This time, though, Shawn studied the ride while we were in line and picked the car that didn't move a lot. Literally, it only went in a circle maybe once or twice tops. It was perfect! He's such a good Daddy! Then we let the boys stand in line for the Choo-Choo Charlie again.

Caleb waited with me at the bench while Joshua & Daddy went to the potty. He was having fun, but he likes to RUN! We carried him much of the day so that he didn't run off, and Shawn & I were beat by this point.

Joshua had asked to go on the "Sky Ride" earlier in the day but because Caleb was too little to go on, we had said no. We decided to let him go as our last ride of the night. I took him, and he said he wanted a green car. We were blessed with a green one when it came to our turn. But, he was scared and once again begged to get down. As our little car rocked on the slim cable, I was also nervous. But, we prayed together and then sang the song "God is always with me, He's with me, He's with me..." Then I began showing him the cool lights and sights of the park. As we were still in the air, we heard the announcement that the park was now closed and to go home. We got off the ride and headed to meet Daddy & Caleb who were waiting for us. We walked to the car and got Sonic milkshakes on the way home to celebrate a fun day!

When we got home, even though it was after 9 and we were all exhausted, I bathed the boys since it had been a 'dirty' day. They got in PJs, and I rocked Caleb and sang to him before putting him in his crib. Joshua played a Scooby Doo video game with Daddy to unwind after going potty again for us. Then he gave me a hug and pretended to be asleep so Daddy would carry him to bed. He shuts his eyes tight, but he grins from ear to ear as he's being carried. We smiled and then I nodded off as well. It was a fun day!