We took a road trip with our closest friends.
"Forever and ever" is what we were told it took.
In reality, it was about 8 hours to Flagstaff, Arizona.
While we were there, we decided to drive the bit to see the Grand Canyon.
It was another hour and a half or so, but we all figured that was a lot
closer than driving from home!
Daddy and Monkey
Mommy and Monkey
All of us. Kevin forgets to smile a bit.
It's the military, I think.
Monkey hangs out with his best friend.
She needs a blog name.
We'll call her.... Pony Princess.
Proof! An actual sign!
View from one of the look outs.
We were on the South Rim.
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Here's where it gets good.
We drove back to our hotel, and found that our Elf
(Jolly Jingleheimer. He's mostly known as Jingles.)
He brought pajamas!
And tickets.
To the NORTH POLE.
Apparently, there are portals all over the world.
It's how Santa gets around.
There's a magic trolley that some elves took us on.
We had to say a magic spell with our eyes closed,
there was music and flashing lights, and
POOF
There we were.
After we got there, we knocked on the door.
An elf let us in, and we saw Santa's Toy Hall of Fame.
It was pretty cool.
(Monkey and Pony Princess checking out a wagon in the Hall of Fame)
The next room the elves let us in, was Santa's original work room.
It's a much bigger operation now.
His head elf, Alabaster Snowflake,
showed us some cool stuff.
They were pretty impressed.
This train is magical, and it goes from the old workshop to the new one.
And it is pretty awesome, as you can see from Monkey's face.
We went to the actual workshop,
and the kids made some toys for other kids who might not get any.
Monkey made a cheerleader bear, Pony Princess made a football bear.
Then there was rocket Nerf war among children and elves.
Next, we walked through the wrapping room.
After the wrapping room, we got to sit down and have a snack.
There were cookies and snow man soup
(for you grown ups, that's hot cocoa).
Pony Princess, Monkey, and Pony's sister Minnie Mouse.
And an elf. See, she glitters!
Then, we headed to Elf University.
We had to learn Elf Manners and pass a test so we could leave.
After that, there were lists for Santa to write.
It took a lot of concentration, especially for Pony Princess.
She needed to know how to spell DOLPHIN.
After writing them, it was *almost* time to see Santa.
First, the elves had to check and see if their names were on the nice list!
It looks worrisome.Very stressful.
They were all on there! Even Daddy's!
They had to do the Nice List Dance.
Next up, we got to visit the Sleigh Room.
It's a lot bigger than I ever imagined.
This is Santa's Navigation System.
And the Believe Meter.
Because if you don't believe, he can't stop at your house!
The last bit of the night was seeing SANTA!
(We got a picture from the workshop, but I don't have it with me right now.)
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It was a pretty amazing adventure.
If you'd like to check it out for yourself,
I totally recommend it!
