Branson Christmas

I am a very sentimental person. I am very sensitive, too. With our lifestyle, I have learned to grab every opportunity that I can when it presents itself. Being close to the Ozarks at Christmastime was one such opportunity.

Every few summers, or so, my folks would load us up into the old conversion van and we would make the trek 200 miles to Branson, Missiouri.  Silver Dollar City was the usual destination. We never made it during Christmas.

The winter after my dad died, a friend of the family insisted that we go down for a few nights. She had a granddaughter, and I had a two year-old Madelyn.  So the five of us went together in my mom's truck.  We did a lot of shopping, the Dixie Stampede, and the Trail of Lights out by the Shepard of the Hills. It is a memory that I will cherish for many, many years. Branson was a favorite of my father's, so I was hesitant about going without him. But it helped with closure, in a weird way.

This year, I was sitting in the living room when it slapped me in the face. Take your girls to the Dixie Stampede!  I asked mom if she thought that Audrey would be entertained enough to sit through the show. She laughed at me and checked me for a fever.  After some discussion, the plans were made to leave Audrey with Gramma and David the next weekend, and for me to head off with Madelyn and Hannah after school on Friday.

The three hour drive was easy with just the older two kids. We checked in at the Clarion and went to the Stampede to see all the horses in the stall.

We made our way into the pre-show area of the Arena and settled down with our snacks and drinks. I went to get Madelyn another popcorn at the concession stand.  While I was up there, a gentleman tapped me on the shoulder.

"This lady will need a rag, too. Her daughter just spilled her soda."

Oh crap.

I went back to check on Hannah, who was just a mere twenty feet behind me, and she was sopping wet. So was the lady sitting next to her. I felt awful.  I got her table wiped off, and patted Hannah the best I could. I couldn't get her very dry. I tried to take her to the bathroom so I could hold her pants under the hand dryer. But they only had paper towels.  I tried the gift shop. No pants. Just shirts.

"Sorry, honey. You will have to stay in these pants."

She was fine. She didn't care at all.

After being ushered into the grand arena, we were seated at our counter. The drinks offered were Pepsi and Iced Tea.

"Is the iced tea decaf," I asked.

"No, ma'am."

Oh boy. Caffiene for my girls. That is okay. We have a lot to accomplish tonight, anyway.

The show started promptly at five-thirty, and Hannah was in awe.  Madelyn loved it, too.  Supper was served. It was a cornish game hen, pork loin, corn on the cob, baked potato, and a biscuit. All to be eaten with your hands. I thought Madelyn would be grossed out, but she loved it! She cleaned that bird.  Hannah was too busy watching the show. I had to remind her to eat constantly. It was hilarious to see her so enthralled.

After the show, we headed down Highway 76 and out to the Trail of Lights. It was two and a half miles of electrical engineering marvel. Half way through, we met a huge traffic jam. After sitting idle for about seven minutes, Madelyn lost it.

"Oh! For Pete's sake! What are you doing? Taking a picture of every bulb on that tree?!?"

I told her that this was a lesson in patience.  But to tell the truth, I was this close to honking myself. 

Ninety minutes after we entered the trail, we finally saw the exit. We felt like freed hostages. We rushed back to the hotel for an hour of swimming in the indoor pool. After showers and jammys, we were tucked in bed by eleven.

The next morning we were going Christmas Shopping at the Tanger Outlet Mall and then to the Landing in Downtown Branson.

We got to Tangor at 9:38 AM and got the last parking space. We hit the Carter's outlet and the Disney Store. Hannah was in no mood to shop.  We went to the truck at 10:45 and the parking lot was insane. The aisles were jammed with vehicles. The driveway was backed up and it caused a huge jam on Highway 76 for miles. I was glad to get out of there. We didn't have to leave Branson until two, but we all decided that it was chaos.

We tried to eat at Lambert's for lunch. It was an hour and a half wait. We didn't wait.

Red Robin had a table for us in Springfield. The waitress was so sweet. She gave us a huge dessert for free. She said she knew it must be hard for me to get out with my husband away, and she wanted to treat us. I saw on the ticket that she had paid for it herself in cash. I left her a huge tip. It sure touched Madelyn's heart.

Well, I can't get the pictures to load on this computer. I am at Jay's folks house for Christmas.  The trip out here is another blog in itself. But, I promise to post them when I return to Chanute. They are worth it!

Stay tuned!

*****

Here are the pictures...

Outside our Hotel: Clarion on Hiway 76

When I got out of the shower, Hannah had carafe from little coffee maker and was playing tea party.

Nutcrackers outside back door of hotel.

The waitress gave us a free desert at Red Robin, Springfield, Mo

Poinsettias outside of Dixie Stampede

Character from Dixie Stampede

Horse Stables

Christmas Light display from Trail of Lights

Under the Sea theme section

Hannah's favorite part

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