All Aboard the Polar Express

I have about 90 pictures so I will try to condense them down. We had such a good time together on our trip. We started our trip by driving up to Prescott on Sunday. We stayed at a really nice hotel up there. After we arrived we went to dinner at the Cracker Barrel. When we came out this is what it looked like. If you can't tell that is a huge SNOW storm. It was soooo cool. The kids were so happy and were screaming "IT IS SNOWING". The only jackets we had were the light weight ones in the picture. So we ran to WalMart and bought some heavy jackets for the kids.

When we got back to the hotel the kids just HAD to go swimming. Every hotel we stay at has to have a pool. My kids are like little fish. Luckily this pool was heated. The kids were so cold after swimming they had to be wrapped in 4 towels to keep warm.

When we woke up in the morning we went and ate a wonderful breakfast with everything from cold cereal to french toast and sausage. We went to a local mall in Prescott to find Brody a bathrobe so he could wear it on the Polar Express. Who knew it would be so difficult to find one. After eating lunch we drove to Williams, AZ. What a dumpy little town. After finding our hotel which was all deck out for Christmas, we went walking around and captured some pictures. Yes, this hotel has a heated pool, too. We did not go swimming though. You had to walk outside to get to the pool and there was no way I was going to do that in a swim suit.

SIDE NOTE:

On our way to Williams, Az, this is the view we got to see the whole way. And check out the temperature in the van. I had to take a picture, it kept blinking ICE. I never knew it could do that. I so wish it snowed down here in the valley even for a couple days a year. It was beautiful.

That night was the Polar Express ride. The train ride was kinda silly. Allie was completely bored until we got to see the lights (the North Pole) out the window. They served a chocolate chip cookie and some not so nice tasting hot chocolate, while they read the story of the Polar Express. After departing from the "Polar Express", Santa comes on board and hands out a bell to each child and everyone sings Christmas carols. Allie was so tired by the end of the train ride she was crying "I want to go home I miss my house".

The next day we headed up to the Grand Canyon. Another beautiful drive. I can not believe it cost us $25 to get in. We drove down near the gift shop areas and let the kids explore. Brody, much to my surprise, was quite scared. Allie on the other hand was leaning over the side and having a blast. Brody kept yelling at her to stop before she falls over. We had a couple of different families take our pictures. There was no snow left, but it was very cold. We had lunch and shopped for a while then started our long journey home.

It was a long ride home but the kids kept busy with their videos. We decided to invest in two "little tv's" as Brody calls them, and some headphones. That way the kids could each watch their own show and we did not have to listen to them the whole time. This was such a wonderful and special trip and I have come back with some many memories.