The Adventures of Benjamin Clay and Elizabeth Clare: Silver Dollar City

The kids finished up their last week of school with parties, lunches and all sorts of festivities. They were excited about all of those things, but Ben kept announcing as soon as those things were over that we’d be leaving for Silver Dollar City. He was very excited about our long weekend. The kids were going to be off for a week of school while the teachers got ready for their new classes and participated in training. We decided to do a short family trip and then the kids would spend time with Grandmas after that.

We drove Friday night and were ready to hit SDC as soon as it opened Saturday morning. We first headed to the measuring station as that was recommended for smaller kids so they wouldn’t have to get measured at each ride. Thinking this was just a small stop before our day began was not quite true. Ben did fine and got his bracelet with his height marked on it. Elizabeth wanted nothing to do with the process. She refused several times, and Ben and Mom ended up going on a roller coaster while Dad and E sorted out what she was going to do. Poor Dad ended up having to hold Elizabeth against the wall while the employees measured her. Then she was not a fan of the bracelet (which we put on her ankle), but at least the worst was over.

Ben loved the roller coaster and was ready for everyone to go on rides after that. We rode so many things! There was an elephant ride, a boat ride that was like a giant swing (E’s least favorite ride), a jumping frogs ride, and many more. The kids even did the water rides where the round raft goes in rapids and where the log boat goes down a hill into a giant splash. They loved them and begged for more. They also enjoyed the giant tree houses and playgrounds, and we made sure to take an ICEE break each day among other snacks and meals.

We were able to push the kids pretty hard and went without naps for two days straight. This made for some less fun bedtime routines, but overall they did so well and had a wonderful time. Ben even tried some new places to eat and surprised himself that he liked trying these new places.

We did SDC for two days and then the third day we hit the outlet mall and stopped by a cave on the way home in Arkansas. The kids did really well in the cave. They were both nervous about being in the dark, but did a great job. The tour guide was a little windy and ended up talking an extra 30 minutes or so, but they still hung in there. The guide even held Ben over the railing to touch a special formation that they allow visitors to feel. Mom was not a fan of that, but Ben came back in one piece.

This was all a weekend for fun, but it was also a test to see how the kids did in this setting in preparation for a Disney trip. They passed with flying colors!