the pictures!

our package came with hotel and tickets to Colonial Williamsburg (the original capital of Virginia, that they have preserved as a living history town) and Busch Gardens Virginia.

our take?

Colonial stuff was for a much much much older crowd...like, much.

Jake and I thought it was ok but not 'oh my gosh'.

who knew!?

Busch Gardens, which we'd only planned on going to for one afternoon/evening but ended up going to for two nights, WAS THE BOMB AND WE ALL CAN'T WAIT TO GO BACK!

 It was beautiful, worth the drive, the customer service there was outstanding, it was soo soo soo Christmasy, I can't count how many Christ-centered Christmas carols we heard, the nativity was set up in such a beautiful way....really...amazing, the girls were beside themselves.

fun. fun. fun.

pictures of Colonial Williamsburg:

 pictures of Busch Gardens:

our favorite memories of this trip:

Watching Samantha skip through the whole three days, every.where.we.went.

Sophie singing "We wish you a Merry Christmas" over and over and over and over, timing the word "Christmas" (and sometimes "New Year") so she said it every time she looked into a luminary.

The guy who let my kids ride the bumper cars SIX times in a row.

my girls faces.

 all of them.

Having Lydia and Nora wanting to hold my hands so much.

watching Jake pull the wagon.

 going without the wagon one day!  A HUGE FIRST!

Hearing Nora tell Santa Clause (who we don't 'believe' in) that she wants a kitty-cat Halloween costume (which we don't celebrate!). And having several conversations with her where she refused to believe that Santa Clause is just pretend.  She is for sure he's real.

Charlie and Lola Christmas DVD together in the hotel room.

the food was so so yummy at this place!
holding Jake's hand

our not so favorite memories?

(keepin' it real!)

loosing a $10 water bottle, $8 hat and $8 pair of gloves in one day.

spilling an entire bowl of milk, a full cup of orange juice and a full cup of water AT ONE BREAKFAST....staggered, of course.

the melt down about the ballerina show....which none of us got to watch because one little girl was having a crying fit over the whole deal...which means that they all had a crying fit over the whole deal.....oh, and I missed most of that because I was in the worlds longest line for a $.99 refill on the hot chocolate - poor Jake.
all those little 'trip' fights that mommies and daddies have

the hotel clerk told us it was a six minute walk to Colonial Williamsburg from our hotel....argh....it was more like 20...in 20 degree weather....with four little kids. (maybe that's why we didn't like the Colonial stuff!?)
all just part of the package, right!?