Okay, yes, I know this is like WAAAAYYYY overdue. We did, after all, go on vacation a month ago. I guess I just needed some more time for the emotional scars to heal.
For those of you who need to get us to speed with Part 1 of our vacation....click here.
The second leg of our journey was heading to Great Wolf Lodge for one night. With your stay here you get 2 days of access to the indoor water park for each night of stay. We figured 2 days of chasing the kids around and having to wear a bathing suit in public was just about enough so we opted for a one night stay. I have to say, we HIGHLY recommend this place. It is a bit on the pricey side but if you troll for deals and stay mid week, it makes it a lot more reasonable. The rooms all have mini fridges and microwaves too so you can bring some food in with you which helps cut costs.
We splurged a bit and got the room with a "den" for the kids. This meant that the room had a separate little area with bunk beds and a TV for the boys. This worked well because it meant that Super Husband and I could actually watch TV after the kids went to bed without waking them. Big bonus.
So, we got there for about 2pm the day of check in and after getting all checked in and sorted out we headed to the water park for an afternoon of fun. Unfortunately Buddy JUST missed the 42" height requirement to go on some of the bigger slides so we were confined to the Chipmunk Cove area in terms of slides but that was still okay. The kids loved it and had an absolute blast. Super Husband and I had lots of fun people watching. The good news is that Great Wolf Lodge is a family attraction so most of the women there have bodies like mine....full of stretch marks, cellulite and lumps. It really does help take the sting out of bearing a bathing suit in public. Really.
After a few hours of play we decided to get some dinner. We left the hotel and went to an Italian restaurant. This is where things went downhill. The kids were tired. And grumpy. We were tired. And grumpy. We arrived at the restaurant and they naturally seat us Right.In.The.Middle. Like a circus act. Which is exactly what we were. Little Man promtly uses his fork as a missile narrowly missing the people beside us. Buddy starts pitching a fit. We are not discreet. Super Husband is irritated and starts snapping at me and I decide we need to relocate to the corner. Our server was noticeably pissed at the request which in turn pissed me off. I mean, fuck, lady...we are trying to be polite and not ruin everone else's dinner experience here! Screw off and move us! So we move (much to the dismay of the people in the neighboring table) and try to proceed. Little Man is now ramping up and trying to make an escape. Buddy is mad because he wants to sit next to Super Daddy. I remedy the situation by ordering a half litre of wine. Not nearly enough.
In the end, Super Daddy had to take Buddy out and "talk" to him. Little Man finally calmed down when the food arrived and as per usual we scarfed down our meal in 2.8 minutes so we could get the hell out of there. So relaxing.
Back at the hotel, we decided to go to the lobby for story time and then a dance party. Wow. Buddy is a dance fanatic. He LOVES to dance. So he was in his glory. I don't know where he gets it from, but this kid can do moves that verge on the edge of break dancing. Which he decided to pull out in the middle of this party. No joke, there was a circle of people around him. As an aside, I have enrolled him in hip hop dance classes starting in September.
The remainder of the evening was non eventful and everyone slept like the dead.
The next day we got up, got ready and back to the water park for another few hours of fun. All was well until it was time to head out. when Buddy had an epic meltdown. Again. After dividing and conquering in the change room, we made a hasty exit and got everyone packed in the car in order to start the final phase of our vacation: Two more nights at the Marriott in Niagara Falls. This was truly the crown jewel of crappy vacations. Our kids were Beasts. Nightmares. Out of Control. I'm being nice.
I really cannot even begin to describe how miserable the whole experience was. It was meltdown after meltdown...adults not excepted.
Here's the condensed version:
* We checked in and went up with Buddy kicking and screaming
* Got settled and decided to go out for dinner and a walk. Another big meltdown and had to settle for fast food.
* Came back and attempted to get the boys to bed. They had no part of it. All the while I am being texted, emailed and harassed by work. In the end we had to turn off all the lights and TV to get the kids to sleep. I spent the next hour locked in the bathroom on my computer trying to deal with a work related catastrophe that apparently nobody else could take care of.
* The next morning we decided to go to the butterfly conservatory. Little Man ran away, managed to exit the conservatory and ended up in a staff only room. Buddy threw another monumental tantrum and we ended up leaving within a half hour of arriving.
* We drove to Niagara on the Lake and stopped at a bakery for lunch. Brought said lunch to a picnic bench where Litlle Man threw a fit and threw his entire meal on the ground. Face down.. Super Husband lost his marbles and dragged Little Man back to the car. Buddy and I followed.
* More tantrums and meltdowns when we returned to the room. We came close to packing up and driving back home at this point but since the room was paid for we stuck it out.
* Waited until 10pm in our room for the fireworks to start as we had a view of the falls. As soon as the first one went off, Little Man became petrified and cried on my lap. We didn't get them to sleep until 11pm.
* Got up and ready to leave (oh glorious day). More tantrums. Had fit waiting for elevator and others waiting stared with eyebrows raised. Not helpful, assholes!
This sums it up nicely:
While driving by the falls upon arrival, Super Husband announces, "Look! See the water falls? Look how big they are"! Buddy casually turns to look then turns in the opposite direction and exclaims, "Wow! Look Daddy.....a sprinkler"! Yes....it would appear that the in-ground sprinkler system in the park across the street was far more impressive than Niagara Falls.
Somewhere in amongst all the drama of this vacation we did have fun, however, I don't think we will attempt a trip like this again for some time. The kids are young and frankly just hanging out with us in a local park is thrilling for them. Lesson Learned.
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