This past weekend we decided to go on a little last minute trip to Lancaster county, PA with our friends the Kriebels. We both do not have any other vacations planned for the summer, other than family visits, so we figured it would be a fun, close little getaway for us. We chose a place called the Willow Valley Resort to stay in since it is great for kids and we know several people who have been there already and enjoyed it. The resort has a big playground; lots of pools, one with slides and other indoor water fun; yummy food; a farm to tour; a big duck pond and there are scheduled activities throughout the day that are suitable for kids.
So, we left on Friday around lunchtime and got back yesterday late afternoon. It was the perfect amount of time to be away with the kids and they had a blast at the resort and being with their friends for several days in a row (not to mention going to bed late, no naps for the older ones and lots of yummy treats to eat!).
Here are a few pictures of the actual resort. It is very scenic...
Here are Ben and Samantha as we walked to the duck pond and playground our first afternoon. Ben loves giving kisses and holding hands with people lately, but I told him he has to ask first. So, he asked Samantha and she said yes, she'd hold his hand. Ah, young love! :)
The youngest "couple" of the trip, Nate and 11-month-old Brianna. They had a fun time playing with each other and observing each other. Nate says her name and was seriously concerned for her well-being all vacation. Everytime she cried or was out of sight, he kept saying "Uh-oh, Brianna!" and would make sure she was ok. So funny! They both enjoyed the swings...
Ben and his buddy Tyler at the stream.
And this is much more interesting than just watching the stream: watching the daddies throw big rocks into the stream. Nevermind the large "Do Not Throw Rocks" sign :). The kids were hysterical...
Ben posing behind the tree....
Handsome Nate!
Samantha acting silly! She was the only one who truly would smile for me as I tried to get some photos of the kids.
Tyler at the duck pond...
Here we are our first night after dinner at the indoor pool that has all of the slides, sprinklers, water fun for the kids. They all loved this pool and didn't want to leave! It is great because it's shallow enough for even the little guys to walk around. Nate couldn't get enough of the water and kept trying to stick his head underneath!Daddy walking Nate around...
Nate in one of the water sprinklers...
Tyler going down the kiddie slide. He was the only one who would do the whole thing; Ben and Samantha were afraid of the spraying water along the edge and wouldn't do it!
Ben loved the sprinklers, though, and kept putting his whole head under them. We told him that the slide would be no worse but he still wouldn't do it. Next time!
Nate and Dad. Can you tell that Nate is having fun?
Saturday was warm, but overcast. We were just glad that it did not rain since they had called for scattered thunderstorms. The one organized craft that we took the kids to was a make-your-own kite activity. So, the kids all colored their own kites and then, fortunately, it was breezy enough outside that we all went immediately out to fly them. The kids loved this and had a great time. We got all 4 kites into the air at once!
Nate in one of the water sprinklers...
Tyler going down the kiddie slide. He was the only one who would do the whole thing; Ben and Samantha were afraid of the spraying water along the edge and wouldn't do it!
Ben loved the sprinklers, though, and kept putting his whole head under them. We told him that the slide would be no worse but he still wouldn't do it. Next time!
Nate and Dad. Can you tell that Nate is having fun?
Saturday was warm, but overcast. We were just glad that it did not rain since they had called for scattered thunderstorms. The one organized craft that we took the kids to was a make-your-own kite activity. So, the kids all colored their own kites and then, fortunately, it was breezy enough outside that we all went immediately out to fly them. The kids loved this and had a great time. We got all 4 kites into the air at once!Here is Ben with his...
And Samantha with hers...
Here is Nate's kite flying high...
...and here he is flying it himself (while Daddy helps him).
Next up, we explored the resort grounds on Saturday. We hit the corn maze and then the farm and barn after that. Here are the dads and kids getting ready to go through the corn maze.
Ben and Tyler had the most fun in the corn maze, trying to find a way out. Here, they have hit another dead-end. What faces! Ha ha!
And another one! What a bunch of silly characters these guys are!
Here's Nate bringing out the Amish in himself after our farm walkthrough...
Ben and Tyler looking out over the farmlands...
Later that afternoon, Nate and Brianna went for their naps while the moms and dads took turns staying on the balcony while the babies slept in the rooms and taking the big kids out. Here, Amy and I took the big kids to the bakery for a treat. They all chose lollipops (and both boys chose pink butterflies. Go figure!!).
After a little sugar high from their pops, we took them to the duck pond and they ran loose for a while, chasing ducks, finding feathers, running around. When siblings have to sleep in the same room at night, we'll do anything to tire them out during the day - ha ha!
Some poor ducks thought they'd get a nice afternoon nap. Not so much...
At the pond...
Later that night after dinner, we all ventured to the pools again. There are 4 large pools onsite but we went back to the same ones since the kids loved the kid pool so much. It is adjacent to another deeper (and warmer!) pool so we also held them and went into that one both nights.
Dad and Nate in their hats.
Nate going down just the second half of the water slide, the part that did not spray him in the face. He LOVED it! If he could walk better, I would bet he would have showed his big brother up and gone down the entire slide himself :).
Later that night, they had a big campus-wide bonfire that we took the kids to for a little while. It didn't start until 9PM so we were already seriously pushing bedtime. But, we took the babies for a few minutes and then the dads stayed a while longer with the big kids while the moms went and put the babies to sleep. Here is everyone (minus me!) at the campfire...
On Sunday, we had a farewell brunch outside picnic-style. The Kriebels had a party they had to go to later in the day so they left after brunch and we stayed in Lancaster for a few more hours before heading home. Here are Nate and Brianna at the brunch...
After we parted ways and the Kriebels headed home, we went to the Hands-On House children's museum for the afternoon. I have wanted to bring the kids here for a while but it is not large enough to justify a trip to Lancaster for that alone, so it worked out that we were able to do it while we were there. This museum was a HUGE hit with our kids; it was small enough to not be overwhelming but large enough to keep them occupied for about 2 hours. We would highly recommend it!
One of the boys' favorite exhibits was the build-your-own Automoblox (just like Ben's, Aunt Chel!) cars and then the race track you could send them zooming down. Here, Andrew helps the boys put together their cars.
Ben in serious-mode as he perfects his vehicle before the race...
They next enjoyed going inside a cave with Dad to explore bugs and other underground creatures. What a boy thing to do!
The Hands-On House has a whole farming section with different farming exhibits and facts. The fact cards at each station make it interesting for the parents as well, since there were several things I did not know that we learned. We also liked how each station had hands-on things that even the youngest visitors could enjoy, but the activity cards and facts they intersperse with the exhibit make them great for older kids too.
Here, the boys are celebrating the corn harvest at their corn station. You can pick up a harvest bucket to fill, stick the ears of corn to the stalks on the wall, and fill up a tractor with corn. Plus there were counting and sorting games to play.
Nate showing us the corn. He thinks it's hilarious when we eat corn on the cob so he recognized it right away!
There was also a chicken coop at this exhibit, where you could collect eggs from the hens as they lay them. Again, very fun and creative!
The boys on the large tractor at this same exhibit.
Next up: the supermarket. Like the Please Touch Museum's, this was a big hit!
And Samantha with hers...
Here is Nate's kite flying high...
...and here he is flying it himself (while Daddy helps him).
Next up, we explored the resort grounds on Saturday. We hit the corn maze and then the farm and barn after that. Here are the dads and kids getting ready to go through the corn maze.
Ben and Tyler had the most fun in the corn maze, trying to find a way out. Here, they have hit another dead-end. What faces! Ha ha!
And another one! What a bunch of silly characters these guys are!
Here's Nate bringing out the Amish in himself after our farm walkthrough...
Ben and Tyler looking out over the farmlands...
Later that afternoon, Nate and Brianna went for their naps while the moms and dads took turns staying on the balcony while the babies slept in the rooms and taking the big kids out. Here, Amy and I took the big kids to the bakery for a treat. They all chose lollipops (and both boys chose pink butterflies. Go figure!!).
After a little sugar high from their pops, we took them to the duck pond and they ran loose for a while, chasing ducks, finding feathers, running around. When siblings have to sleep in the same room at night, we'll do anything to tire them out during the day - ha ha!Some poor ducks thought they'd get a nice afternoon nap. Not so much...
At the pond...
Later that night after dinner, we all ventured to the pools again. There are 4 large pools onsite but we went back to the same ones since the kids loved the kid pool so much. It is adjacent to another deeper (and warmer!) pool so we also held them and went into that one both nights.Dad and Nate in their hats.
Nate going down just the second half of the water slide, the part that did not spray him in the face. He LOVED it! If he could walk better, I would bet he would have showed his big brother up and gone down the entire slide himself :).
Later that night, they had a big campus-wide bonfire that we took the kids to for a little while. It didn't start until 9PM so we were already seriously pushing bedtime. But, we took the babies for a few minutes and then the dads stayed a while longer with the big kids while the moms went and put the babies to sleep. Here is everyone (minus me!) at the campfire...
On Sunday, we had a farewell brunch outside picnic-style. The Kriebels had a party they had to go to later in the day so they left after brunch and we stayed in Lancaster for a few more hours before heading home. Here are Nate and Brianna at the brunch...
After we parted ways and the Kriebels headed home, we went to the Hands-On House children's museum for the afternoon. I have wanted to bring the kids here for a while but it is not large enough to justify a trip to Lancaster for that alone, so it worked out that we were able to do it while we were there. This museum was a HUGE hit with our kids; it was small enough to not be overwhelming but large enough to keep them occupied for about 2 hours. We would highly recommend it!One of the boys' favorite exhibits was the build-your-own Automoblox (just like Ben's, Aunt Chel!) cars and then the race track you could send them zooming down. Here, Andrew helps the boys put together their cars.
Ben in serious-mode as he perfects his vehicle before the race...
They next enjoyed going inside a cave with Dad to explore bugs and other underground creatures. What a boy thing to do!
The Hands-On House has a whole farming section with different farming exhibits and facts. The fact cards at each station make it interesting for the parents as well, since there were several things I did not know that we learned. We also liked how each station had hands-on things that even the youngest visitors could enjoy, but the activity cards and facts they intersperse with the exhibit make them great for older kids too.Here, the boys are celebrating the corn harvest at their corn station. You can pick up a harvest bucket to fill, stick the ears of corn to the stalks on the wall, and fill up a tractor with corn. Plus there were counting and sorting games to play.
Nate showing us the corn. He thinks it's hilarious when we eat corn on the cob so he recognized it right away!
There was also a chicken coop at this exhibit, where you could collect eggs from the hens as they lay them. Again, very fun and creative!
The boys on the large tractor at this same exhibit.
Next up: the supermarket. Like the Please Touch Museum's, this was a big hit!
Daddy and Nate outside of the grocer before entering...
The boys in the produce department...
Nate actually wouldn't leave the produce department, he loved it so much!! 
Ben and Dad visit the snacks, meats, canned goods and bakery as well...
And finally, it's checkout time!
The other favorite section for the boys was the manufacturing area, complete with timecard punch-in, an assembly line and quality control. Adorable!
Here are the boys on the assembly line. Ben is actually assembling his widgit via directions while Nate just checks things out. Ben LOVED following the directions and picking up diferent parts at each station as he sent his item down the conveyor belt. He must have done this at least 5 times!
Here's Nate playing with some platforms and a ball...
Finally, here are the boys at the giant Lite Brite station. Isn't this the best? I haven't thought of that thing since 1983...and here it is again!!! Just as much fun as it used to be without the huge lightbulb that blows out :)
And finally, our trip has come to an end. After a quick lunch, we hit the road and the boys caught some zzz's within a few minutes. What an exhausting weekend for them! In fact, they both slept almost 14 hours last night, they were so tired after all of the vacation fun :)
The boys in the produce department...
Nate actually wouldn't leave the produce department, he loved it so much!! 
Ben and Dad visit the snacks, meats, canned goods and bakery as well...
And finally, it's checkout time!
The other favorite section for the boys was the manufacturing area, complete with timecard punch-in, an assembly line and quality control. Adorable!Here are the boys on the assembly line. Ben is actually assembling his widgit via directions while Nate just checks things out. Ben LOVED following the directions and picking up diferent parts at each station as he sent his item down the conveyor belt. He must have done this at least 5 times!
Here's Nate playing with some platforms and a ball...
Finally, here are the boys at the giant Lite Brite station. Isn't this the best? I haven't thought of that thing since 1983...and here it is again!!! Just as much fun as it used to be without the huge lightbulb that blows out :)
And finally, our trip has come to an end. After a quick lunch, we hit the road and the boys caught some zzz's within a few minutes. What an exhausting weekend for them! In fact, they both slept almost 14 hours last night, they were so tired after all of the vacation fun :)
The blueberry connoisseur looks as if he was caught red-handed eating a few too many off the bush, don't ya think? Ha!
The boys checking out some of the animals...
And Nate in the tot area, on top of a duck. He loves animal sounds and kept "quacking" when he spotted this one so I knew I had to get a photo of him on it.
Peek-a....
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