Great Wolf Lodge

As a second part to Eliana's birthday celebration, in January we went to the Great Wolf Lodge in Cincinnati with my family.  GWL is an indoor water park resort.  My sister Abby, her daughter Hannah, and Eliana all have January birthdays that we were celebrating.  We had a great (but tiring!) time.  I would say that besides Eliana, my kids were a little young to enjoy the lodge.  While William definitely had fun playing in the pool and going down the little slide, I think he would have had just as much fun at any hotel with a regular pool.  He mostly wanted to stay in the shallow area going down one slide.  We did convince him to try out the lazy river once.  He was not so sure about it but was willing to float around clinging to my sister Abby ... until he got sprayed on the head by a giant beaver statue.  After that, he was done and ran out of the lazy river crying.  To this day he still talks about the mean "be-bah-bers" that sprayed water on him.  Eliana, however, really surprised me by going down lots of water slides including big ones with inner tubes. Loving to swim, her favorite area was the wave pool.  I think it would have been tough to go to the water park if it had just been our immediate family.  With a small baby and a little boy not interested in anything but the smallest slide, we would have been really limited in what we could do.  But with extra adults there, David and I were able to go on a few water slides while someone held our baby.  We stayed in a special themed room with a enclosed tent-like bedroom with bunk beds for the kids.  They thought the room was really cool because they had their own TV.  I would definitely go again (as long as we were going with someone) but probably not for a few years until the kids are a little older. 

Eliana's birthday celebration:

On arrival, all children received a pair of wolf ears, including Laney.  Those celebrating a birthday got special birthday ears, which was approximately every third kid at the lodge.

Michael holding Eliana's cake.  Blowing out her five candles.

Abby with her daughter Hannah.  Hannah was celebrating her first birthday!  She seemed to enjoy her icing!

Eliana enjoyed her cupcake too.

My dad holding a tired Laney.

Laney and me at the water park.  Isn't she cute in her fluffy swimsuit?!  I had my water sling to carry her around in, which she liked a lot.  She slept for several hours in it at the water park.

Every night at the Great Clock Tower, a bedtime story is read with a special character from the lodge.  Eliana was super excited that Violet the Wolf made an appearance the night we went.  Will still does the special "wolf call" that they taught us at story time.