Busch Gardens

Last weekend we experienced our first ever family trip to an amusement park. We made use of Mom's timeshare in Williamsburg and ventured to Busch Gardens by way of Amherst to pick up my Mom. The boys did remarkably well on the drive down and, really, overall were very good. This was a good pre-test for our trip to Disney in the fall!

The obligatory family picture. Sesame Street Forest of Fun is new at Busch Gardens and is fantastic for the ages my boys are now. Plus - they were running a special and the boys were free so you really can't beat that!

Grayson wanted to ride "Prince Elmo's Spire" first, heretofore referred to as "Elmo's Tower."

So - we honored his request. I wasn't sure how he was going to respond, but it turns out he loves rides!

So then Luke decided he wanted to go. But only after Grayson tested it out first. So Steve got to stand in line the second time. Luke looked so small but, according to Steve, giggled and smiled the entire ride!

Next we all rode Oscar's Whirly Worms. Pretty fun, but the boys were less than impressed.

So on we went to bigger and better. Have no idea what the name of the coaster was, but it's the kids' coast you can see in the background. Pretty decent size coaster for a kids' ride. Long line. But both boys rode and had a blast.

There are time when a contraption like this could come in handy at home!

The boys enjoyed "hang gliding."

And, of course, a snack was necessary.

This was Luke's favorite thing - the little Sesame Street character show where he got to see Abby.

Grayson so excited that his Nana was with him!

Back at the timeshare we made use of the indoor pool. Luke must have jumped 50 times!

And Grayson made good use of our hot tub in the condo!

On our last day there we went to D.O.G. Street the the colonial area for lunch at The Cheese Shoppe. Previously always a favorite, it's going to be a long, long, long time before I brave waiting in line in that place again. It's no longer the quaint little known sandwich shop in the corner I enjoyed as a student. Now don't get me wrong - the house dressing is still fabulous. But not fabulous enough to endure an hour long wait crammed like sardines with 400 strangers. After the sandwiches I decided to treat the boys with a visit to the Wythe Candy Store. Thousands of choices, but both boys only wanted a lollipop. Grayson chose the biggest he could find. Luke chose a small purple one.

And he fell asleep with it on the way home. It was hilarious, he kept licking it in his sleep!

And, best part of all....I actually watched Grayson EAT at a restaurant on the way home!!! He ate more than I have ever seen him consume. He ate a full half (maybe more) of an adult sized hamburger, mac and cheese, corn, mashed potatoes, and some ice cream. He still refused to try a french fry but I wasn't complaining - we had definitely made progress. Apparently the Rawlings family will now become regulars at Country Cookin'.