Great Wolf Lodge, Grand Mound

We were treated to a two night vacation to Great Wolf Lodge for a Christmas gift. The kids have been looking forward to it since Christmas morning.

We started off the day by leaving early on Saturday, dropping the dog at the kennel, the other one with Grandma and Grandpa, and driving for three hours to get there. We stood in the lobby line for quite a while, Saturday was a busy time yet it appeared there was only one person working! Thankfully another employee was passing out bracelets so the kids and I could change and go to the water park while J. finished checking in. Aunt N. was able to come an join us for the day, and she was able to go on the fun slides with the older kids while someone stayed with the little boys.

The waterpark was lots of fun. There was something for everyone, big slides, medium slides, hot tub, wave pool, water basketball, and little kid area with small slides. S. didn't really enjoy getting splashed and there was not a quiet area for him to just sit in the water. The little kid area had all sorts of water squirting, splashing, dumping and spraying. I wish they would have a pool just for kids who don't like to get really wet! E. had a great time and by the end of the weekend was putting his face underwater every chance he got!

We went to our room after a few hours, had a snack, got bathed and changed.

We went out to eat at Country Cousins to celebrate S.'s birthday and met with family there. S. opened some gifts, ate some mini corn dogs, got some ice cream and tried to blow out the candle. He really loved having all that attention.

After the kids went to bed J. and I left the teens in charge while we snuck out to the bar and had a snack and a drink to unwind. It was a busy day and was nice to just talk.

The next day we ate breakfast at the Loose Moose in the resort. It was Sunday morning and CRAZY busy. The service was ok, and the food was fresh. The kids filled up on sweets and junk, but we encouraged a few healthy choices too. I had some eggs, bacon, potatoes and waffles with strawberries. It was pretty good.

We spent most of the day in the water park. K was able to go on all the slides (expect the Tornado) with an adult. L and C had quite a time going on all the slides, riding the waves and enjoying every bit of the park. They even supervised the little boys so J and I could ride down the slides with K a few times.

We took a break at the arcade, and in our room for lunch (there was a fridge and microwave in the room so we packed our meals). We got the boys to take a nap, so we laid low for a few hours in the afternoon.

We went back to the waterpark until 8 pm. It was so much quieter by the afternoon and we were able to enjoy the slides with no lines. I went on all the big slides with the kids, a few were pretty scary. At night the lighted slides are lots of fun. The Howlin' Tornado was completely dark and had a huge drop. Next time J. tells me "it's pretty tame" I am not going to believe him!

J. took the little boys to story time while we finished up with some time in the hot tub. We went back to the room for some pj time, popcorn, tv and treats. The kids ran around with their wand at the interactive stations around the hotel for a bit too.

Monday morning we got up earlier and had breakfast again. This time there was nobody there! It was quite a change. The downfall was the food had been sitting out for quite a while and it was not as good. We went up to our room, packed up everything, brought it out to the car, checked out and then hit the water park again for a few more hours. It was snowing and we wanted to get home before dark, so we had to leave earlier than planned.

We all had a really good time and think it was one of the best family trips we've been on. I think we will go again, in a few years.