Christmas morning was magical. With just our little family, it was also very quiet and peaceful. The kids opened their presents and daddy surprised us all with tickets to Disneyland!! Mommy almost cried tears of joy. If you know my husband you know that this is a BIG deal. He has never quite caught the Disney spirit, if you know what I mean, so this was a huge surprise for his Disneyland-lovin' wife! I can't wait to take our kids and show them what it's all about! #disneylandforever
Daddy also had one more surprise up his sleeve. Don't ask me what got into Caleb this year. Maybe it was the elation he felt after passing his dental boards and being oh so close to graduation. Or maybe he just drank one too many sparkling ciders. Either way, Beckam's birthday is the day after Christmas, so he surprised Beckam with a trip up to Flagstaff, AZ to take a ride on the Polar Express! Beckam was so excited!!
After presents and our traditional breakfast of cinnamon rolls and scrambled eggs, we hopped in the car and headed north. We were SO excited when about an hour into our drive it started snowing!! Mommy almost started crying tears of joy again. We blasted Christmas music and watched the flurries fall as we drove. It was definitely one of my favorite Christmas memories to date.
About 3 pm we checked into the Marriott Hotel. We had decided to super low-ball Priceline.com's Name Your Own Price and see our odds and the Marriott took our bid. SCORE!
First on our agenda was a trip to the indoor heated pool. Thank you Marriot hotel! We swam the afternoon away and then went back to our room to snuggle in and have pizza and watch a movie.
The next morning, Beckam's birthday, we went swimming again and then had lunch at a famous Mexican restaurant in Flagg.
And then it was time to head to the Grand Canyon Central Station!
After a little bit of waiting, THE POLAR EXPRESS pulled up to the station! There were hundreds of children waiting in their pajamas just like Beckam and when they could hear the engine coming it was so cute to hear the squeals of excitement!
It was FREEZING waiting to board the train!!
But Beckam had his trusty hat and gloves from Great Grandma Charlotte so he stayed very warm! :)
Finally, the conductor yelled, "All aboard!!" and I don't think Beckam's mouth closed for the next 90 minutes.
We sat on the toasty train car and soon it started to chug away from the station as the soundtrack from Polar Express started playing. When the "Hot Chocolate Song" came on, servers in white chef uniforms came down the aisles passing out hot chocolate and warm chocolate chip cookies to enjoy while they read the story of the Polar Express.
The conductor came by at one point and yelled "Tickets please! Tickets!" and punched each child's ticket with a special letter.
And then we all sang Christmas carols until the conductor came over the PA and yelled, "The engineer has just spotted the lights of the North Pole up ahead!"
Out the window was the North Pole and Santa Claus and his reindeer and sleigh!
The train screeched to a hault and all the children screamed as Santa started towards the train! Before we knew it Santa himself was standing right in the aisle and gave each of us a bell from his sleigh! Beckam yelled to him, "Thank you for my batman costume, Santa!"
It was such a perfect little Christmas weekend getaway! We definitely feel grateful for our blessings and for this wonderful Christmas we could spend together as a little family. I will remember it for years to come. I hope all of you had a wonderful Christmas too!!
And may the bell still ring for all who truly believe =)
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