We decided to take our kids up to Busch Gardens and Water Country USA for a 3 day vacation. We started off at the water park and had a ton of fun. Ivy only cried for a couple of hours combined the first day, and for being only 2.5 months old and staying outside the entire time, I thought that was a win.
This picture was taken after Ella had gone down 3 water slides and decided that she didn't like being splashed. That's when I knew we were in for a long day with her. In case you've never been to a water park, you should know that there's water there. And water splashes. So virtually every attraction except for the wave pool was a no-go for Ella.
Ivy is obsessed with being swaddled. Even when it's hot. So I brought my absolute thinnest blanket so that she could get her naps in during the day. I kept her head wet as well. But for the most part, I tried to keep her in the shade of either her stroller or her hat during the day.
My parents joined us at the water park right after I took this picture. I didn't get any pictures of them there, but it definitely made it easier to take the kids places with my parents' help.
We stayed in a hotel in Williamsburg that night. Our family is big enough now that we need two separate hotel rooms to accomodate our whole family. So I took the girls and Ben took the boys. But Ben took Ivy both nights because he's a super hero and is able to sleep with a baby in bed with him whereas that's an impossibility for me.
The next day we went to Busch Gardens. We met up with Becca, Preston, and Colby, as well as my parents. We divided for part of the day and conquered. Lily and Skyler were tall enough to go on any ride in the park. So Ben and I took them (and Ivy in her stroller) to go on the bigger rides. We got there right when the gates opened so we made a mad dash for the roller coasters while they didn't have lines. Ben stayed behind with Ivy while I took them on their first ever roller coaster: Apollo's Chariot. Fortunately, with no line to wait in, the kids didn't have time to let panic sink in and they were buckled in before they could change their minds. They started getting pretty nervous as we went up, and they were pretty scared through most of it, but I kept laughing though it all and for the last 20 seconds of the ride Skyler laughed as well. After we got off, both kids were pretty freaked out but I told them they had just gone on one of the scariest rides in the park and if they could go on that, they could ride anything. I thought it was a good strategy. It wasn't. Lol.
So we went to ridiculously boring different rides instead. ;)
We always have lunch in Germany because the German food is delicious and -- HELLO! -- air conditioned. They always put on shows and Thad and Ella got up to dance with the dancers. They're adorable and I love them.
Lily held Ivy after she finished eating her lunch so that Ben and I could eat.
I had promised the kids that if they each went on a ride that terrified them that I would buy them ice cream cones at the park. A couple of weeks before we had virtually ridden every ride in the park via my computer and the kids all chose one that looked scary. For Lily and Skyler it was any roller coaster, for Ella it was the pirate ship (and boy did she scream on that.... everyone was staring at her as if she was being murdered...), and Thad's was Escape from Pompeii. I was proud of them, although secretly wished they had a little more courage to go on more rides. But they earned their gelato fair and square and I am still dreaming about that deliciousness. Best gelato/ice cream I've ever had.
Ivy stayed cool with her clipped fan. She did great the whole day!
We figured out that day that water rides were Lily and Skyler's favorites. We went on so many of them, they were soaked for the entire second half of the day.
We ate dinner at the smokehouse in France where we always do. We watched the Griffon go around and around.
Dinosaurland was easily the kids' favorite part of Busch Gardens. It was a giant tree house and obstacle course all in one. Plus the baby rides were perfect for all 5 kids.
We stayed until 9:30 for the fireworks and watched them from the parking lot.
When we got to the hotel after, Ella asked if we could watch TV (because cable is such a rare treat). I said no and took this picture just a couple of minutes later.
We were supposed to go to Busch Gardens the next day as well, but it just wasn't in the cards for us. Williamsburg was expected to get 2" of rain in 24 hours and we knew it just wouldn't happen. So we stayed at the hotel until checkout at 11. We swam and the kids played pool and foosball. Then we decided to go to the movies and we saw Incredibles 2 which was awesome!
It was a fun short trip and I'm glad we braved it even with a tiny baby.
