Merry Christmas, Little Wolves!

We spent this weekend at Great Wolf Lodge. It has become a Christmas tradition, and it's a great get away for our little family.

We stayed in a Wolf Den again, and each child chose a favorite animal. Issa loved this spunky little wolf:
I think they are kindred spirits.

Evan fell in love with this little mouse:

Any spare moments in the room were spent patting his little mouse friend. Too funny.

Violet was the star of the weekend:

Although Wiley was a close second:

Our trip began in earnest at the water park:

I was struck by how much the kids have grown in a year. Issa still loved the mushroom:

But Evan was far more adventurous this year:

He loved splashing and trying to catch the water. Both kids were more independent. Issa spent most of her time in a float in the tide pool. Brad or I stayed close, but she didn't need a hand on the raft this year. Evan climbed the little slides by himself. I could breathe a little easier.

Once we were sufficiently pruney, we headed back to the room to get ready for other forms of fun. Please notice Evan's sense of style:

Socks and sandals. I tried to change his mind, but he was very happy in his socks and sandals.

We had big fun in the arcade:

We didn't leave with quite as big of a haul, but there were plenty of candies and plastic toys to make two small children happy.

Then we were off to craft. Evan chose to make a knotted fleece pillow:

I think you can see who did the knotting. He did the stuffing, though, and then he watched frogs and played dump trucks. The Cub Club is the coolest place.

Issa opted to color a pillowcase:

That thing is so loud I have no idea how she sleeps on it. We were very proud that the lines were just suggestions. She added her own scene behind the wolf--that's my girl!

After lunch and a whole family nap, we headed out to stuff some animals. As usual, Issa was all about it:

This is how Evan stuffed his:

He hid behind Dad while Issa did the stuffing.

Issa made Violet:

And Evan made Wiley:

With our animal friends in tow, we started our adventure in Magiquest.

King Roar was hysterical:

He was more interested in using his wand as a light saber and shouting, "My a jedi!" than playing the game. If something lit up--bonus!

Princess Ballerina, however, is now a Master Magi:

It only took us three years, but we found all the ruins! Next time, we will be ready to start the adventure to slay the dragon! We need a little more bravery. Currently, Princess Ballerina is afraid of the dragon. She was so excited to finish the quests, and she's getting better at playing the game. We girls spent some time playing without the boys, and Issa dubbed me Queen Emily. I have no idea where that came from, but I'll take it.

We had a blast doing so many things, but this is what is was about:

The four of us...together...making memories. We laughed until we cried, we came home exhausted, and I wouldn't trade a single moment.