Hey there friends! We spent 4 fabulous days in the Wisconsin Dells! Today I am going to be talking about day two. Be sure to check out days one, three, and four!

On Day 2, we really just did whatever our little hearts wanted! We had a general idea of what we wanted to do, but unlike our other vacations, we weren't constrained to a schedule. This is bad and good in many ways. My kids and I thrive on some sort of schedule or routine, and my husband's anxiety is worse without one. 

The kids woke up about the usual time. We ate breakfast in the room. Our hotel gave us free passes to Noah's Ark Waterpark, the largest in the country. However, even for August, it was a bit chilly in the mornings. We decided we'd wait until the afternoon to see if it warmed up. 

We still had the discount books, and we toyed with the Riverside & Great Northern Railroad. We had a BOGO Free adult coupon and Nolan was free, so we might as well! They didn't open until 9:30 and the train left at 10, so we cruised the strip again. When we got there, we viewed their toy shop. I found little train wooden letters. They were only $3.50. I had seen some online before for two or three times that, so I decided to get the boys their first initial. I would have loved to get their full first names, but hadn't budgeted for that. After a few minutes of checking that out, it was time to board the train. It is a small little train, but such a lovely ride. Both kids enjoyed it, but Liam especially. 

After we were done, it was around 11 and we were getting hungry for lunch. We were so overwhelmed by where to eat. It's hard enough sticking to your budget on vacation, but trying to find vegan friendly places can be challenging. We decided to eat at Pizza Pub. They had an all you can eat lunch buffet. It featured an over 50 item salad bar, along with unlimited pasta, pizza dessert, and pizza. They had a veggie pizza and I'm sure they could have made it without cheese, but we pretty much stuck to the salad and pasta. Kyle ate probably four plates and the kid's and I had two each. We also all got dessert, their apple pie pizza. With our coupon, Liam's meal was free, and Nolan was free as well. We all got water to drink. We were completely stuffed and happy they were so accommodating to our restrictions. 

After that, it was warming up quite a bit. We decided to go back and get ready for the water park and digest a bit. 

This may seem silly, since the Dells are considered the waterpark capital of the world, but we aren't big waterpark people. It just seems really overwhelming for us. All the bathing suits, towels, sunblock. Then you have all the people crammed into a smaller space. I think it just gives us all anxiety. Since it was included in our stay, we planned on not stressing about it too much. We would go, have some fun for an hour or two, and bail. We did have to pay for parking, but the tickets were free. 

This next part may be cringe worthy, but we only went to one spot of the largest waterpark. I'm sorry, but even in their "slower" season, when it was barely 70 degrees, it was still crowded! The entrance we came in was right next to the kids area, and that's where we stayed! Liam had tons of fun. There was a decent sized water slide and he went on it, probably, 10 times! First with Kyle, then eventually by himself. Nolan enjoyed some of it, but anytime something sprayed him, he got very upset. It would be extremely warm one minute, then the sun would disappear and it'd be freezing! Nolan had fun for maybe 30 minutes, then he and I retreated to our beach chairs under towels the rest of the time. Liam continued in the pool and slide. He and Kyle explored for a bit. Some areas of the park were closed, so they ended up coming back for a few minutes, before we decided we were done. Low and behold by the exits, there was a Dole Whip kiosk! I could have died! Not only do they give you that nostalgia of our favorite place ever (Disney World), but the pineapple soft serve is vegan! UM, YES! Sign us up! We got two, for all of us to share & they were giant! For 4.99, we could have all shared one! After we finished our treats, we headed back to our motel. We didn't even bother with naps. Liam rarely takes them, and Nolan refused to sleep on the bed when we laid him down. Of course though, he did fall asleep in the car.

We got back, showered, changed, and attempted to recharge our batteries. It was mostly Kyle napping, me watching TV, and trying to keep the kids from being too wild. We ate dinner there, just some peanut butter sandwiches, chips, fruit, and veggies. Then we headed our for our next adventure!

Our hotel also included Khalari Indoor Amusement Park. It was actually for each night of our stay! Had I realized that, we probably wouldn't have done knuckleheads the night before, and gone there both nights. I though that maybe there wouldn't be much for the kids. We had watched videos and there only appeared to be a few rides. 

There was tons for all of us! We were all able to do the Ferris Wheel & Merry-go-Round. Liam & I did a small, yet wild rollercoaster. He also did the Vortex Tunnel probably 5 times! He & Kyle then did go-karts. They had a ropes course for small kids that Liam enjoyed.  We played a small round of mini golf. This did not go as well. Some of the things Liam really struggles with are impulsiveness, patience, and self-control. I'm not sure if it was just the fact he was getting tired or his issues, but we had to cut the game short. Kyle ended up doing the adult ropes course. We planned on coming back a different day, where I could do it too, but that didn't end up happening. 

We headed back to the hotel & got ready for bed, it  had been a big, exciting day! After the kids fell asleep, Kyle got us some "grown up drinks" and we enjoyed spending some time together at our outdoor seating. Then we headed in for bed. 

Hey there friends! We spent 4 fabulous days in the Wisconsin Dells! Today I am going to be talking about day one. Be sure to check out days two, three, and four!

Driving from our house to the Dells is about 5.5 hours. We knew we'd be stopping at a dairy free ice cream shop and grabbing lunch & gas in between there as well. We set our alarm for 7 AM and planned to leave sometime between 8-9 AM. 

We picked up the rental car the night before. This could have easily been a place to save a ton of money, but after driving our van to Disney twice (15 hours one way), our 11-year-old vehicle was feeling it. We keep it in good shape, but it seems like after each trip, it would need something replaced every few months, sometimes large repairs. We figured we'd get something a little smaller, that got better gas mileage & save some wear and tear on our car. Paying some extra money now, we felt, could save us some large repairs in the future. We decided anytime we have to drive for more than 4 hours one way, we will just rent a car. 

Kyle & I had done most of our packing the night before while the kids slept. We just needed to pack up some last minute items: chargers, toothbrushes, blankets, etc. We took our time. We had a general idea that check in time was 3pm and we wanted to do some things when we got there, but we weren't sticking to a strict schedule. 

We had planned on stopping at a grocery store once we got to the Dells, but we couldn't find Nolan's sippy cup. We only have one (that might be for another post), so I ran to Walmart to grab a new one. While I was there, I just decided to grab some of the things we needed for the week, instead of stopping again later. I got some Almond Milk, Coconut Milk, grapes, carrots, gum, cheerios, paper plates, bowls, & utensils. We had gotten diapers, bread, peanut butter, chips, pretzels, & vegan cheese its at the grocery that week. Luckily, the milk was boxed so we didn't need to refrigerate it until we opened it. Our room had a fridge & microwave. We also brought a small knife and cutting board. 

For the car ride, I packed very minimally. We normally would have our DVD player. While I don't like the kids watching it the entire time, we normally bring a handful of shows or movies for the ride. That on top of other things, like books, games, etc tends to overflow & overwhelm very quickly. Knowing this was a compact car, I packed Liam's backpack with some things for him and my backpack for some things for me. For the kids, I packed two board books for Nolan, Curious George Treasury Book for Liam, both of their cups & blankets, a candy spinner (similar to this, it was an Easter gift that comes with candy, and can be spun and played with after), a small Mickey toy, a pack of playing cards, and an unopened Lightning McQueen. In my bag, I packed a book for me, a crosswords puzzle book, 3 audiobooks, and 4 kid CDs. We listened to all of the CDs in probably an hour or so, and got through 1 audio book on the way there. I also finished my book. 

We ended up hitting traffic about an hour and a half into our trip, long before we even got to Chicago. There was some sort of accident, mixed with construction. We were in that, barely moving, for about an hour. After that, we all had to go to the bathroom, so we had our first stop.

A little later, it was getting close to lunch time. We grabbed some Taco Bell. We got a few things and ate alongside our snacks we had brought with us. 

One thing I regret, is going the route we did. It was the shorter route, but with the traffic jam, and the excessive tolls, we were probably an hour and a half later and $10 poorer. The other way we considered going said it has tolls as well, so we just went the shorter way. Never again! 

We made it to Madison and went to the Chocolate Ice Cream Shoppe. It was affordable & vegan, so we were very happy! We loved driving through downtown Madison. It is a college town, so it is very hip. We saw lots of consignment stores, neat parks, etc. We would have loved to have spent more time there. Maybe next time!

Going there, we were still about an hour away from the Dells, so we got back on the road. Since they are an hour behind us, we got to our hotel at about 3:30, so it all actually worked out perfectly!  We stayed at the All Star Inn & Suites. I will probably do a full review and link it here later, but we were very pleased!

After we got all unpacked and settled, we changed clothes and hit the strip! We were down the street from the Downtown Dells or Riverfront area, and not too far from where all the action of the strip was. With our stay, we got two different coupon books. We decided to eat at Sprecher's Restaurant and Pub. We had a free appetizer with two entrees. Kyle got one of their craft sodas (which is mostly why we went). The boys shared an order of pretzels, I got the Southwest Salad with no cheese or chicken, & Kyle got a Roasted Cauliflower & Quinoa Burger with no cheese. Now, we might be the worst vegans ever, but we don't ask a lot of questions on vacation. We know animal products are not good for our bodies, so we avoid them as much as possible. However, it's hard enough eating out, let alone several times a week, like we do on trips. So we preview the menu before hand, use our best judgement, and try not to fret over it too much.

After we finished, we decided to go to Knuckleheads. We went to the Trampoline Park there. We have one similar at home, but haven't been for a couple of years. We brought our socks, so were able to save that way. Somehow, they charged us for 3 people, instead of 4. It was $48 just for 3 of us! So we decided, Kyle would just watch. Honestly, I wish I hadn't paid for myself either. I love trampolines and had tons of fun, but after 30 minutes, I was pretty much done. The boys had an absolute blast though. 

After that, it was about 8 o clock their time, which meant 9 our time! Our kids usually go to bed about 7-8. Our hotel had a playground and swing set. The kids still had tons of energy, so we hit that when we got back. After that, we did baths and bed. We were ready for day 2!