Jonesie Bug & Freddie Bear: Christmas at Dollywood!

Our long-awaited Christmas trip to Dollywood (postponed by last week's devastating fires) has come and gone ... and what a day it was!

The boys missed their naps ... we were driving during nap time ... but they still did spectacularly, even with staying up two hours later than usual. I was so, so proud. I was also so, so glad to have Jeremy there with us for the full day. Because there was no crowd AT ALL, we were able to totally enjoy ourselves - and the park - without the frustrations of crowds ... or heat. The weather could NOT have been more perfect. 55 degrees for most of the day, no one got uncomfortable even after the sun went down.

In addition to the rides (both boys even rode the ferris wheel for the first time), we saw Santa - even ate our dinner with him watching the boys to check up on their behavior! We also saw Rudolph and Yukon Cornelius, though the boys were a little hesistant to see the Abominable Snowman.

As a surprise, Jeremy bought Jones a stuffed Rudolph and Freddie a stuffed "Swhoa Monster." Later that nite, I asked Jones what was his favorite part of the day, and he said, "Playing with my reindeer."

The boys tried Dolly's famous cinnamon bread for the first time. The line is sometimes more than an hour long (they sell about 2000 loaves a day!), but we didn't wait a single second. I pinched off bites and handed them to the boys as we walked from the bakery to the Oso cars. It's about a three minute walk, yet by the time we got there, the bread was GONE. When I'd give Freddie HIS pieces, he'd offer a bite first to his Swhoa Monster. That kid's heart is GINORMOUS and so sweet.

Once we got to the area where the Oso cars are, Jones heard the 1960's-sounding Christmas tunes and jumped out of the double stroller, saying, "Let's dance!" and so they did. And then they rode the Oso cars - Freddie TWICE! - and then we got Jones a 2017 Season's Pass (Freddie's still too little to need one) and then, we watched the Christmas parade, which is SO improved from the last time I saw it, which, let's face it, was nine years ago. The boys - Freddie especially - would wave and say, "Merry Christmas" whenever the floats went by.

As the parade ended, people who were watching it fell in line behind it to head to the exits. When our turn came to do the same, Freddie continued waving and saying, "Merry Chrissums," as if HE were suddenly part of the parade. It was adorable.

We decided to stop off in the bakery and eat some gingerbread to allow the tram crowd to die down. After they'd downed their treats, I dressed the boys in their Batman jammies, hoping they'd fall asleep in their car. Within minutes, they did. A couple of times, Freddie would cry out in his sleep. I thought he was waking up, but when I'd look back to help him, he wasn't awake. I figured out, his head was bobbing. It must've been uncomfortable for him, so I spent the rest of the hour-drive home straddling the front and back seats to hold Freddie's head in place. It wasn't comfortable, but it was the least I could do for a boy who'd been so, so good on such an amazing day at Dollywood!