Dutch Winter Wonderland 2012

Last night, December 15, we went to Dutch Wonderland with our friends Chris, Lisa, Isabella and Aiden. It's become a Christmas tradition for us. We arrived first and decided to ride the train while we waited for them to get there.

When they got there, we went to the Turnpike. I road with Caleb and Shawn road with Joshua. Lisa stayed behind with Aiden while Chris took Isabella. Shawn & I decided it was worth the added expense to hire a babysitter. After asking a ton of people, we finally were able to get Grandpa Georgia to watch Ryan the first two hours we were there and hired another gal from down the street named Maddie who also works in the Universal Kids Club. Her Mom is Mrs. Hanna, Caleb's preschool aide from last year. They moved into the neighborhood just before last Christmas and they go to Calvary while Maddie still enjoys going to LCBC. I was glad she was able to come after she got out of work! While we love Ryan, it was nice to be able to ride with the older kids and not have to worry about the baby freezing. And it was FREEZING!!!

When we were done on the Turnpike, we headed to the frog-hopper ride that Joshua had begged to go on from the moment we entered the gates. He wanted that and the Turtle Whirl, which was closed unfortunately. Last year it was open during the Dutch Winter Wonderland, so that was a huge disappointment for the kids. :(

The guy who was operating the frog hopper was hysterical! He told them to ribbit on the way up and scream so they could hear in the castle on the way down. He had a very friendly personality and the kids loved him. He seemed a little whacky to me, which Shawn said was perfect for kids this age. :)

 Since Caleb hates the frog hopper, he begged me to take him on the big trucks right next to it. I agreed. :)

Since the Turtle Whirl was closed, we kept going and let them going on these fighter airplane things. Before they road this ride, they went on the big space ship with Shawn and Chris. It was a 1980s movie of star-warsish fighting. The boys LOVED it! I don't think I've ever seen Shawn's face so happy as when he came out, telling me with joy how much the boys really got a kick out of it and how happy he was that they were enjoying themselves so much. He is such a great Dad!

After the fighter planes, we headed to the next froggy ride, which the kids did a few times, as you can tell by Isabella sitting next to both boys. :)

After that ride, we ran into a friend of mine from high school (and Shawn got to know him while we were in college and lived near each other) Kevin Holland with his son Matthew. We said hello and then kept walking to the Fun Slide, where I took Caleb down (who beat me in our "race") and Shawn took Joshua. Then I chatted with Lisa while Shawn took both older boys. But, while there were three lanes, they only allow two at a time. So, Joshua came down all by himself and thought he was the best thing since sliced bread! I'm glad he wasn't scared.

Since the snowflakes were in this area and it was starting to get dark, we took our family pictures next. It's also a tradition. This is when Joshua noticed we didn't have Ryan. ;-)

Afterward, we went and did the bumper cars. Lisa went with Izabella, I drove with Caleb and Shawn took Joshua. It was a blast! I was able to stay toward the outside and we only got hit a couple times while we were able to carefully hit into folks others. There was no whip lash or getting stuck. Perfect!

We were freezing and poor Aiden was getting hungry. We had done a majority of the things that were open (it seemed far less than past years!), and the lines were getting miserably long for what was left. It was colder to stand still than keep moving. So, our last stop was to watch the lights display. It was GREAT! The boys and Izzy danced and danced to the music while we saw all the lights and decorations come alive to the beat. It was great! Shawn was howling at Joshua's "moves" and it was a nice way to end the evening.  

Here's Aiden in the baby bunting we lent them. Do you remember Joshua in it? I loved this little guy's snowman hat, too! It was a chilly night, and even with long underwear, a long john shirt underneath my turtle neck, and the warmest coat I've ever owned, I was still chilly. They had purchased "hand-warmers" and gave one to me to use; it was GREAT! I shook it and within minutes it was a warm to hold onto underneath my gloves. I would definitely buy some for the next time we know we're venturing out for a long time in the frigid temps!

We left and ate at Chris' favorite restaurant, YP. We had a coupon for 50% off a large pizza (thanks again, Missy, for blessing us with a Kids' Stuff coupon book!), so dinner was relatively inexpensive and we were able to chat in the warmth of the restaurant. I'm glad we had bundled up! We went home and were glad to see Ryan had had a fun time with our new babysitter. He was in Christmas jammies and happy to see us. She walked across the street to go home after we paid her. :) :) :) And to all it was a good night!