:: The McGee Family vacation 2016 is officially in the books! It was the perfect blend of fun, giggles, new experiences, antibiotics, meltdowns (toddler meltdowns don’t take vacations people!) and even a few cold Blue Moons. ::
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We only get 18 summers with the kids before they head to college (insert sobs here!) so Denny and I are big believers in taking time each year to get away from the stress and chaos of everyday life. This year we picked Lake George, NY! It is less than 5 hours away (a huge requirement when you have a squirmy little boy who despises his car seat) and it offered all types of toddler-friendly activities.
The days leading up to the trip started out a little bumpy with 2 trips to the pediatrician, a round of croup, a 104 fever and an ear infection (who knew this could happen after getting tubes?) BUT we still managed to head to Lake George within 14 hours of our originally planned departure time. Yes!!
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Here are the highlights for each of us:
:: MITCHELL’S VACATION FAVES ::
- Steps that do NOT have a baby gate
He spent hours going up & down these steps. It’s ultimate freedom for a toddler!
- The washing station that people use to get the sand off their feet.
He couldn’t get enough of this.
- The hotel water slide!
He cried for 25 minutes after we went back to the room. This little boy loves to swim!
- Morning explorations – Mitchell is still an early bird so Denny and I took turns taking him outside each morning. He loved checking out the property every morning at 6 am (and once I grabbed my coffee I didn’t mind the cute company either.) 🙂
“Stay close Mom, we’re heading into the woods!”
No line for the slide at this hour!
- And oddles of fun on all the kiddie rides!
These two had a blast at the Magic Forest, which was perfect for the kiddos!
:: MAKENZIE’S VACATION FAVES ::
- The beach! She loved playing in the clear waters of Lake George and playing in the sand. She made a giant castle for “Punzel” aka Rapunzel.
Beach baby 🙂
After the castle came the creation of Lake Daddy, appropriately named after the lead digger on the project. Mitchell even left the steps and the foot washer to get in on the fun.
- Visiting Santa at North Pole, NY! We realized that Lake George was within a short drive of where Santa lives so we had to stop by and say Hello to our favorite jolly old guy.
Asking Santa for a balance beam
Here’s a shot of Santa’s house in case you were wondering. It’s a 1 bed, 1 bath little home with great curb appeal and solid schools.
The flying bobsleds!
Who doesn’t love a holiday moose?!?
Christmas carousel with Daddy!
Blitzen was hungry!
- More rides at the Magic Forest and the giant 4-story slide that she bravely went down about 20 times.
She flew down this slide then got up and ran back up the stairs for more!
- And a giant lollipop, yum!
She requested that the lollipop also be in the picture with her. 🙂
Admittedly, Denny and I are exhausted from chasing these kiddos around a non-baby-proofed hotel room but we had a really fun vacation too. Here are our highlights of the trip.
:: OUR VACATION FAVES ::
- Housekeeping and no cooking for a week! Be still my heart.
- Beautiful scenery. Lake George is undoubtedly a gorgeous area to visit.
Picture taken in Lake Placid (in full disclosure the picture was taken from a moving car with two squirmy kiddos in the backseat en route to Santaland – site seeing didn’t exactly occur on this trip)
- One-on-one time with the kiddos. We each had an individual “date” with the kids. Kenzie played her first round of mini golf on her night with Denny, and I took her to see the boats in the lake. Mitchell and I had a chance to dip our toes in the water and dance on the beach to some live music!
- A few days away from the normal stresses of life – no work, no bills to pay, no dishwashers to unload. Talk about bliss!
Family time rocks!
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We are super grateful to have had the chance to get away to Lake George and we can’t wait to go back again soon!
Vacation love,
Erin
