On Friday afternoon we hopped in the car and headed for Richmond to visit my brothers Stephen and Michael for the weekend. They were very gracious to host us (Michael gave up his room and Stephen gave up precious law school finals study time to hang out with us!). On Friday evening we got there in time to walk down the block to an italian restaurant for dinner. They live in a really cool part of Richmond where the houses are all from the 1910s and lined up beautifully along the street, with restaurants on the corners, so it's an awesome place to take a walk to dinner. On Saturday morning we got up and drove almost an hour to Williamsburg to spend the day at Busch Gardens! :)
V and K were excited about the day, especially V because she understood a little more about what we were doing. Can you see she was thrilled about just taking the tram from the parking lot to the entrance?! haha
We spent most of the day here at the Sesame Street Forest of Fun. This was the first ride they did. Vivian was intrigued and seemed like she enjoyed it...Kate...not so much.
But as soon as she got off the ride I took her for a bathroom break and she was talking nonstop with an excited voice...she was pumped about doing something different. And she insisted on getting in line for the next ride.
She stood in line the whole time with a huge grin...they just watched and watched and waited so patiently like this, but as soon as it was their turn to actually get on the ride, she started crying :(
So she stood with me and Uncle Stephen while we watched V ride!
Then the guys took a few minutes to go ride a real roller coaster while I sat and watched them run around in a little play area. They were so content.
More rides! After this one, they met Elmo, Grover, and Big Bird and then Vivian went with Aaron to ride her first roller coaster (still in the Sesame Street area...it was for kids but it looked a little intense!), and she loved it. We cheered for her and when she came out, Kate acted like she was so proud of her sister...very sweet.
We walked around the park a little to find some good lunch.
And then the guys went for another roller coaster while I sat and watched them play in the water area...for almost 2 hours! They loved it and couldn't get enough! It was so much fun for me, too...I love watching them enjoy themselves.
Two times their water play was interrupted for the Elmo and friends show...of course they didn't mind. :)
On our way out of the park: ice cream and candy.
Thanks for going with us, Stephen and Michael! It's different with kids, for sure...taking turns pushing the stroller, watching them wait in line for rides, bathroom breaks, etc. So thanks for sacrificing a little to see them have fun and for helping out so much!
Proof that I was there, too. The girls were at a good age for it and it was a low-key day, and I think next year will be even better! We figure as long as my brothers are in Richmond we can keep going each year and make some great memories.
On our way back to their apartment, Kate fell asleep of course, and when we got there we just transferred her straight to bed, not even with pajamas :) She slept from 6 pm to 7:30 the next morning. V went to bed right away, too. The grown-ups ordered some fancy Chinese food and watched movies.
On Sunday we took our time getting up and then went for a quick breakfast at a local place, and drove home. Everything went so smoothly and we were very thankful!
