Great Wolf Lodge

All winter long we tried patiently to plan a vacation-- something quick and simple, something we'd have to look forward to, something to beat the winter blues, and something to add a little spice to our lives! Well, as is often the case, some things are easier said than done. Between all the yucky winter snow, Jon's various work commitments (he recently started moonlighting nights in Fayetteville), my classes, and both kids in school full-time, our little vacation kept getting moved back, back, and back... Originally planned for February, our stay at the Great Wolf Lodge finally rolled around last week! 

The Great Wolf Lodge is a chain of family resorts with indoor water parks. There just happens to be one about 2 hours away in Charlotte, and we'd heard great things from everybody who'd been there. We kept a very happy Lucy and Zach home from school, packed up on a Tuesday morning, and headed to Charlotte to spend the next 24 hours enjoying some R&R. We started with lunch on the way at "Dish," a favorite of ours from "Diner's, Drive-In's, and Dives" with quirky Southern food. Yum! 

I got some tasty catfish with a blueberry balsamic sauce, Lucy got the chicken and dumplings, and Jon and Zach both got burgers. I think the baking powder biscuits and deviled eggs that come with every meal were the stars of the show!

 The kids could hardly stand it so we headed straight over to Great Wolf Lodge, which is literally blocks away from the Charlotte Motor Speedway where all the NASCAR events take place. Anyway, not knowing what to expect we pulled up to this HUGE resort built just like a lodge you'd see in Alaska.

Like I said, the kids were bouncing off the walls, so literally seconds after arriving we changed into our swimming suits and headed over to the indoor water park. Our room was perfectly situated about 10 feet away, so it didn't take us long to get started. There was a wave pool, two kiddie pools, and probably about 7 or 8 different water slides. We had a blast and played for about 4 hours our first afternoon. 

We finally talked the kids into getting changed and heading out to find some dinner, as well as a grocery store so we could buy some breakfast for the next morning. I'm happy to report that Leah scarfed down her very first Happy Meal that night. 

 Right before bed there was a story time/musical show in the lobby for the kids. They had some cute songs and singing and dancing animals and a very pretty Indian maiden, and Leah was hooked the whole time. She loved it! 

 Afterwards we got to meet Wiley Wolf the mascot, and then it was off to bed... Or at least it was SUPPOSED to be off to bed. I should have known, since traditionally our children are horrible sleepers anywhere other than their own beds at this age, but Leah had a very, very, rough night, which means I had a very, very rough night. Ugghhhh. I always feel so bad letting my kids cry in a hotel because I don't want to disturb anyone else, but boy it puts the pressure on us to keep them quiet at 3 a.m. (and in Leah's case, midnight, 2, 3, 4, and 5! 

 Oh well. Trying to rally, we ate our little breakfast in the hotel room and since the water park didn't open until 10 a.m. we killed some time in the hotel's arcade. They also had a bowling alley, movie theater, tons of different restaurants, and some cute gift shops. 

 Even though Leah only slept about 4 hours the night before she was off like a shot all morning long, running from kiddie pool to kiddie pool, and even going down the above water slides by herself!! Are we crazy?? Most likely. But we were running on fumes, and she LOVED it. She finally crashed at about noon and the rest of the kids were able to play while she napped until about 3 p.m.  

 By that point we were STARVING for lunch so we let the kids pick again, and they picked Happy Meals (again), so Jon and I got take-out at On the Border, a Mexican restaurant chain that TOTALLY hit the spot. We got the Dos Equis XX double X fish tacos which were killer. Just don't ask me how to pronounce their name (long story, don't ask)!

We made a quick trip to IKEA so I could stock up on scrub brushes and chocolate bars, and made it home just in time to put the kids to bed for school the next day! It was definitely a whirlwind trip, and after our night with Leah I kinda needed a vacation from my vacation, but we had a great time and can't wait to go back... just next time when she's a little older!