It all started in January (don't worry this won't take long but I have to set the scene) when our friends Katie and Josh mentioned that they go to Great Wolf Lodge every year in February/March to break up the winter. I immediately had a temporary lapse in judgement and thought it would be an excellent idea to join them with our family. For as long as I have loved Luke, I've wanted to be able to vacation with Mason but always a bit worried how it may go. What could go wrong?
We booked the trip in January and then anxiously waited for the last weekend in March. We got ourselves packed and loaded and were on the road by 3:30p. Let me offer you this pro tip that I didn't know until this weekend, PACK SNACKS. Pack lots of snacks and maybe even some cold cuts and oatmeal and hot chocolate and coffee and definitely pack alcohol. I was the driver because the driver controls the music. You know what else the driver controls? Where the car stops for food. I picked Chick-Fil-A in Chicopee but unfortunately, I didn't tell anyone so even though I was excited for waffle fries, Luke was nonplused.
He was also worried that Mason wouldn't like the waffle fries or the chicken nuggets there. Oh ye of little faith, Mason has never met a fried potato product he doesn't like and while I don't think the chicken nuggets were his favorite, he didn't spit it out so I'll put that in the win category.
We arrived in Fitchburg at Great Wolf Lodge a little after 6pm. Mason seemed to be taking it all in from the moment we got there but he was hungry so the first order of business was to get him food...of course they have a pizza joint. While Charlotte was testing out the slides with Chloe and Jackson, Mason was getting his eat on with some pizza. When we all met up again, Charlotte wanted to take Mason to the lazy river and walk behind while he was chilling in the tube. He really enjoyed that - so much so there was a fair amount of clapping and happy screams. Turns out the acoustics are just right to make the claps sound a thunderclap that had the lifeguards questioning if there was a storm coming.
The next morning, after we were all up and moving, which for Mason is before the rooster crows, everyone got ready for the water. Katie took Mason to the wave pool and he splashed around a bit and enjoyed that. The other kids went to the deep end of the wave pool to swim around and we all tested out the water slides. My inner monologue is now singing the theme song to Water Slide World - the #1 in family fun...fun you bet! - but I digress. Luke and Mason took a double tube down a slide and according to Luke their combined weight created so much velocity they were close to breaking the sound barrier. I've never heard him describe anything as scary but I think he was scared Mason was going to fall out of the tube - he didn't and again the clapping was loud.
I took Mason to the hot tub (Great Wolf Lodge calls it the hot springs). It is 1/2 inside and 1/2 outside. Unfortunately, the water was not hot at all. It was tepid at best (this is the word we use to describe anything lukewarm because....Luke). Mason didn't enjoy the hot spring as much as the lazy river so he went back to that. I hung back in the hot spring with Jackson only to have a woman stare at me. I don't know what she was looking at exactly but she never looked away. In retrospect, I wonder if I had a huge bogger on my face? I really don't think so because Jackson would have definitely said something.
Charlotte even tried the Tornado, which looks like a huge funnel. It starts off mild then drops you to what feels like the depths of dispair only to slide high up the other side. This continues until the bottom. I went on that slide once at Great Escape solely because peer pressure is real and I didn't want to be the chicken that couldn't do it. I lost my stomach 28 times before the tube came to a rest...there was no way I could do that again - I'm an adult now and don't fall for peer pressure. Charlotte said she died once but she came back to tell about it. She secretly loved the slide.
We played some games at night and enjoyed the weekend. I have never laughed as hard as I did at some of the words in Bananagrams and Scattergories. I started getting a bit antsy Saturday afternoon. Mason was feeling it too. A hotel room is a small enough space to feel couped up. If the weather was nicer it would have been good to get out to the nature trail 1/2 mile down the road and I'll keep that in mind for next time. I got a bit burnt out because we were on top of each other the whole weekend and that is a lot for anyone. I think the next trip is going to be the beach but we'll get an Airbnb so we all have our own space.
I wasn't sure what to expect with Mason. I wanted him to have fun and didn't allow for any thought other than that. He did great! We were prepared for anything but turned out being prepared to have fun was all we needed.
Great Wolf Lodge:
Pros:
1. Alcohol served early and everyday
2. Food was decent
3. Dunkin on premises and order ahead available
4. Water park was good for kids of all ages
5. Going with friends was awesome
Cons:
1. With your kids ALL. THE. TIME.
2. All kids are screaming ALL. THE. TIME.
3. Strange women stare at you in the hot springs THE. WHOLE. TIME.
4. Parking is nearly impossible (I think people check out but no one leaves)
5. I didn't pack enough snacks
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