Trading Swimsuits for SnowGlobes
A Great Wolf Mini-Escape
As you all know, we recently descended upon Great Wolf Lodge Perryville with a crap ton of other homeschool families. While I was there, I begged and pleaded to book a SnowGlobe experience until Brian finally caved—which, let's be honest, was mostly because my mother gifted it to us. But hey, a "yes" is a "yes!"
Of course, in true "me" fashion, by the time I got that green light, they were completely booked for our stay.
Insert brilliant idea here! Since we only live an hour away, I realized we didn’t actually need a hotel room to party. I booked the next available slot that matched our schedule for the following Wednesday. We had six spots to fill, so the convoy consisted of my mom, Ryland, his buddy Josyiah (who chose Great Wolf for his 18th birthday—good man), Priscilla, her friend Paisley, and me. We timed our escape perfectly to thread the needle between rush hour traffic sessions.
We arrived with enough time to craft our own tiny snow globes and lose ourselves in a round of MagiQuest. The master plan was to conquer all the "dry" activities the lodge has to offer. For those who haven’t been, I promise there is life beyond the waterpark! We even squeezed in a visit with the big guy himself, Santa.
Finally, it was SnowGlobe time. It was stinking cute in there. They had Christmas lights covering the globe that blinked in perfect sync with the music, which made me feel like I was living in a music video. The decor was charming, and the fireplace was easily my favorite part. They also served limitless hot cocoa with all the toppings—a dangerous invitation for me, really.
The experience even included family games for us to play while we hung out, and Priscilla picked Uno, which is one of my all-time favorites. We also got to decorate a cookie kit designed by Duff from Ace of Cakes. Fun fact: before I was a face painter, I dipped my toes into the world of professional baking and cake decorating. I’ve watched every single episode of that show, so I felt like a pro in my element. Were the cookies as fresh as if I’d pulled them from my own oven? No. But since I didn't have to do the dishes, it tasted like a win to me. It’s all about the experience!
We really lucked out with the weather; even with snow on the ground, it wasn't "freeze your nose off" cold. After the globe, we squeezed in some bowling and hit the dance party. Priscilla lives for the dance party, and since she brought a fellow "dance friend" along, they really got their groove on.
We hit the road after the first dance set to grab dinner at the nearby Denny’s. I have to tell you, Ryland and Josyiah were in heaven. They split an apple pie pancake meal and a mac N cheese brisket skillet and claimed it was some of the best food they’ve ever had. I mean... who knew Denny's was the culinary peak of the trip?
It was such a fun mini-escape and surprisingly easy on the pocketbook. I highly recommend checking out Great Wolf Lodge for the land-lubber activities. If you live nearby, pop in for some holiday magic without the wet swimsuit. The Perryville resort is just stunning this time of year!
