Great Wolf Lodge 2014

Well, I did a big update before this one, so feel free to look at that one too. (All 3 of my readers. :-))

I have a good friend who is an amazing photographer. I stole these pictures from her blog, and they perfectly capture our trip. I took a few pictures and video on my point and shoot so I will try to find those. Most of the time I was not trying to take pictures. I was there without Jeff so  I needed both hands most of the time. :-)

It has been our tradition for 2 years in a row to go to Great Wolf Lodge when we finish reading the Book of Mormon as a family. This year, we had friends who were going in March, but Jeff thought it would be too crazy with going to Arizona the next week and he wouldn't be able to get it off work. We weren't quite finished with the Book of Mormon, so I figured we would just go later. Well, I was starting to feel like sports was taking over our lives and that I hadn't had to chance to just hang out and have fun with my kids. I felt like I needed to go. I talked with Jeff and asked what he thought of me taking the kids by myself. I knew 2 other families would be there and that they would help where they could. He still thought I was crazy, but said to go for it!

So, on Thursday morning, I took Dallin aside and asked him if he would be willing to help with Caden so that I could go on slides with Bryce. That was the tricky part- Bryce wasn't tall enough to go on some of the slides without an adult. They wouldn't even let him go with Dallin. So, for this to work, Dallin would have to watch Caden sometimes so I could go with Bryce. Dallin's face lit up as he agreed and I told him to keep it a secret until I knew for sure. I showed up at school after lunch and pulled them all out of class. When I told them what we were doing they were very excited. :-) They were bummed when I told them I didn't bring electronic devices (my trip=my rules!) but I think it all went well. They were in very good spirits and we had a fantastic time. They found their friends and quickly paired up for the rides. I was very grateful for the other families being willing to take my kids with them on rides and sometimes they watched Caden so I could go on rides with the kids. It was a much needed spontaneous activity! Believe it or not, it was actually out of my comfort zone. A- I don't like driving and it was 3 hours away. B- I don't like being alone at night. I felt pretty safe there, and when we showed up, the front desk lady must have felt sorry for me because she upgraded my room to a king suite. Caden and I had a room to ourselves and a huge bed! The other kids had their own area and they were pretty happy too.  I couldn't have done this without our friends! It takes a village!