Winter Wonderland

On Sunday we went to Winter Wonderland at Slater Park. We have been doing this for a few years and the kids love it. This year was a lot warmer than previous years (this first time we went, we froze our asses off). I didn’t tell them where we were going, but once I told the girls they couldn’t wear dresses because they had to dress warm, Teddy figured it out (he figures out everything).

We get there and the girls (especially Stella) “ooo and ahh” over all the trees and lights. Stella gets so excited, I have to laugh. We stop to talk to the giant Frosty. Teddy tells him he wants an iPad of his own and Stella tells him she wants and iPad and bunk beds for her babies. What did Maizie ask for? Nothing she hid behind me the whole time (she a bit of a scaredy cat when it comes to those types of things).

Next my dad, the kids and I go on the hay ride. While we’re on it, I ask Maizie what she wants for Christmas; the girl has yet to give a definitive answer for me. She says she wants candy and toys; thanks that helped. She also mentioned that she wants Rebecca Rubin’s (American Girl Doll) sisters; they don’t make dolls for them. I’m going to have to break her down and get specifics.

Off to the boat house to see Santa (before the line gets ridiculous). Teddy and Stella are planning their attack of the big man; Maizie had to be dragged over to him. Teddy walks right up to him and starts chatting him up. He had on his Bruins jersey and Santa asks if he was really Chara. He answers with,”No I’m Teddy and I’ve been a very good boy.” Stella ends up scoring the middle spot of the picture; Maizie is off on the side (with a death grip on Ted). I don’t think she said a word to Santa.

Carousel time, have you ever been on the carousel at Slater Park? I remember back when I was about 9 years old we went for the last ride of the season. I believe this is the exact point which the speed lever broke and no one has bothered to fix it (Have you seen the guys who run the carousel? They are up there in years.) It is the fastest one I have ever been on, it actually makes me sick. We get on and they are playing Christmas polka music, Teddy loves polka music so he’s bouncing on his horse. When it starts to move, I closed my eyes (I had to, if not I would have been out of commission for the rest of the night.)

Onto the train, this train is a big improvement from the barrel train they had a few years ago. The old train went really fast, whipped the cars around and took a creepy path. I don’t know how the drivers of this and the hay ride can see; they take you into serial killer territory and of course, no lights. Ted had run to the car to get Teddy’s coat. When it was our turn to get on the train, he wasn’t back yet and Teddy had a breakdown, “He didn’t make it!” So I took the girls on the train (where Stella kept standing up) and Teddy waited with Grampie and Melissa for the next trip.

Winter Wonderland is always the first two weeks of December, and so is Maizie’s birthday. We end the evening at Friendly’s. The clapping started and I thought Maizie was going to crawl under the table (this is a girl who does not like to be the center of attention). We sang Happy Birthday and she squeaked out a, “Thank you.” This is the third year we have done this; you’d think she’d catch on by now.