Day 1

It never fails. Set the alarm for 4:30 in the  morning, and I'm bound to wake up at 3:30 am. Then I lay in bed, trying to decide if it's even worth it to go back to sleep. By 4 am, Dan was awake as well. At 4:15 am, he decided to go ahead and get up and get going. We pulled out of the drive at 5 am.

The girls had worn sweats to bed, so they just had to put on shoes and could go back to sleep in the car. Brady has issues, so he changed into regular clothes before we left. The plan was that the kids would go back to sleep in the van and that we'd get a big chunk of the driving done before the sun came up.

Except that Brady and Mykiah didn't care to follow the plan. We did get the driving done, and as we stopped in Parson, our usual stop, the sun was just coming up.

We all stocked up on drinks (iced tea and bug juice) and snacks in Parson, and of course Dan had to buy some sunglasses because he forgot his. Dude, you're always forgetting them. We were a good 15 minutes away when Dan mentioned how expensive out pit stop had been. I picked up the receipt and realized we were charged $5 for a lotto ticket, which we didn't buy. But if I hear some checker at the Parson Shell station hit the lotto big, you can bet I'm going to be demanding my share.

We rolled into Branson just before 10 am, and decided that since we were so early, we'd stop and pick up our show tickets. First stop was Dixie Stampede. The lobby was so beautiful with huge Christmas trees and wreaths. And I was so excited just to be in Branson. I was literally jumping up and down in the parking lot. I love just being here.

Next stop was Music City Centre, to pick up our Haygoods tickets. Except that the computer system was down and they only had tickets printed for the same day. Bummer, dude. So we've got to go back there. Next stop was The Duttons where the computer system was just fine and we picked up our tickets for Saturday.

So we're done with that errand, might as well check into our hotel, right? Dan is quite convinced that we will not be allowed to check in so early, but I just walked in and told them we had a reservation. The dude working the desk did remark that we were early, but I'm a thinking woman. I could see by the parking lot the hotel wasn't especially busy. I thought there was a pretty good chance our room was ready. And sure enough, it was. We were able to check in, put our stuff in our room, unpack, and call for a rollaway. Oh, there was a little drama because our room was reserved for Kim Blunt, but we got it figured out. And I got a laugh. I've learned long ago to always spell our last name when making reservations for anything; it's so simple, people over think it. Lund. L-U-N-D. I've gotten all kinds of variations, but this was the first time we'd gotten Blunt.

Of course by this time, my children were starving. Brady's wooden leg was surely almost empty. I left the restaurant decision up to Dan, and he chose Panera bread. Cuz there's probably 2 or 3 of them back home, but we only eat at Panera in Branson. Dan and I had our usual -- Bacon Turkey Bravo on Asiago Focaccia -- while Brady and Mykiah had their usual -- Baked Potato Soup. Ches went out on a limb and tried the Kids' ham sandwich, instead of her usual PB&J.

By this time, I'm ready for some action. We decided to go on out to Silver Dollar City, which opened at 1 pm. It was about noon, so we weren't too early. Drove out, got our usual parking spot (kinda scary that we have a favorite parking spot, huh?) and were debating waiting for the tram vs. walking in when a tram pulled up. Off we went to the City.

I love this place. I think that with the exception of Disney, no one does theming quite as well as Silver Dollar City. From the moment you cross through the gates, it is themed. And walking out of the gift shop into the town square and seeing the enormous Christmas tree... just perfect. Christmas carols are playing, lights are everywhere. I needed this.

We had some time before the park opened, so we browsed the gift shops. Which I know is what we're supposed to do because the park owners want us to spend money. But how could we resist? Apparently, pretty well, because Dan wouldn't let me buy anything because we'd have to carry it around the rest of the day. Party pooper.

About 20 minutes before park opening, the girls and I went to watch Pure Heart, a sister singing group. Ches wants to learn to yodel, so she enjoyed it. We left and headed down the hill about 12:55, just in time for the rope drop.

Our first stop was the Grand Exposition, where Dan and the girls rode a bunch of rides. I rode the elephant ride with Ches, and Brady rode one ride, but the two of us pretty much sat out. I had forced my only son to wear a hoodie to SDC and then I passed the time by teasing him about it. He hates hoodies. To make it worse, he insists that if he's wearing it, the hood has to be up. So I started calling him Ted, which then led to a history lesson on the Unabomber. Hey, it passed the time.

Our next stop was the ball area. I'm sure it has a real name, but it's a kids' area with foam balls that they can shoot at each other. Dan and I sat on a bench and let the kids go for it. They got done in time for us to see the Tinker the Talking Christmas tree show, which was a cute little show.

One thing I did notice... I have become used to Christmas being a generic Santa-and-Frosty holiday. There was definitely Christ in Christmas at Silver Dollar City. It warmed my heart.

After the talking tree, we decided to walk over towards the Opera House because I wanted to see A Christmas Carol. Dan and Mykiah decided to ride Fire in the Hole while we were waiting. As the remaining three of us are sitting there, some SDC citizens start directing people into a line for A Christmas Carol. The line was already huge... backed up a good bit. When our two had went into the ride line, there was no outside line, so I kept thinking they'd be out any minute. I took my group and got in line, thinking we could catch the remainder of our group, no problem.

Then the line started moving. I was faced with a dilemma... get out of line and possibly miss the show, or split up the group. Of course, Dan didn't have his cell phone. That would be too easy. I sent Brady over to the ride exit to tell his Dad where Ches and I were. Ches and I stayed in line. For almost an hour. We were actually near the front of the line, I just hadn't realized it because the line was single file, but when we got close to the theater, you could see there weren't many in front of us. By this time, there's no backing out, so we went into the theater. We sat in the back by the entrance and within 3 minutes, Dan and the other two kids came through the door. Dan -- the man who had left me sitting most of the afternoon while he rode rides -- had the nerve to tell me that I should have given Brady better instructions. Honey, I did. The boy just doesn't remember well.

Kinda like his dad.

So we saw the show, and it was very, very good. I really enjoyed it and I think the family did too. Our next stop was the train, which we also enjoyed. They played Christmas carols during the ride and then instead of the train getting robbed, we got to hear Grandpa tell the Christmas story. He did a wonderful job.

By then, it was starting to get dark. And when it gets dark, it gets chilly. We had on t-shirts, sweatshirts and jeans, but it was still a bit nippy. We decided to get something to eat and wait for the light parade to start. So basically we sat around and ate and waited for an hour. For a parade that wasn't too impressive.

After the parade, I knew I didn't really want to follow the crowds out of the park, so we went the opposite way and looked in a shop and rode the Flooded Mine ride. I totally have that ride figured out now. It's a boat ride where you have guns to shoot at targets (similiar to Buzz Lightyear for any that have been to Disney). I rock that ride. Beat the whole family.

By this time, we're all grumpy from lack of sleep and ready to go home. We started out, and I only had to run back once to buy a Christmas shirt I wanted. Dan also got a new SDC t-shirt. The kids got nothing. I liked it that way.

Back into town, a quick stop at a convenience store because I had forgotten my toothbrush and back to the hotel. Dan and the kids went swimming, I checked my email, and we went to bed early.

To awaken at 4 am this morning, because apparently, that's what time Dan and I wake up now. We have a great Thanksgiving day planned. I hope you have a blessed day as well.