carowinds with the gaubs

We took Auntie Janne and Hannah to Carowinds for the first time and now even Hannah is a season passholder just like us (ok, fine, it's the free Pre-K Pass, but still, she's a passholder nonetheless!).  The little girls had to sit out for the first ride of the day and stood around pouting since they were too short.

We had our usual Panda Express for lunch... and recreated scenes from "Lady and the Tramp"

So excited to see Snoopy!

The little girls finally got to go on a ride-- the swings!

Like our kids, Hannah loved Pig Pen's Mud Buggies!

And her first time on a roller coaster was a success!!

To celebrate Ben's birthday weekend, we ordered the World's Largest Funnel Cake-- and even with two extra people, we STILL couldn't finish it!

The little girls fell asleep for awhile and I pushed them around while everyone else went on the big rides.  Hannah wanted a picture with Uncle Jacob since their shirts coordinated!

The little girls convinced Dad/Uncle Jacob to buy them cotton candy since they couldn't go on many rides-- he's such a pushover!

And we wrapped up a fun day at Carowinds with a spin on the horsies!  Can't wait until we can take them again!

spring at carowinds

We love having season passes to Carowinds since it means that we can go often-- especially in the spring and fall when the weather is nice!

Everyone's favorite ride in Camp Snoopy: Pig Pen's Mud Buggies!

FINALLY a coaster that Ellie is tall enough to ride!

- the horsies -

Lexie wanted to go on this headache inducing ride over and over and over, and went until she ran out of people to ride with.

- the Albaeck sweethearts -

On our way home from Carowinds, we stopped at Ninety's to try their over-the-top milkshakes-- and they were delicious!!

carowinds opening weekend

After taking a year off, we got season passes to Carowinds again this year, and everyone was excited to go for opening weekend.  We saw Snoopy and stopped for a quick picture and then made a beeline for Panda Express for lunch-- the kids really missed it!

So excited to see Snoopy!!

The kids area was completely transformed into Camp Snoopy and opened this year with six new rides!  We braved the cold (it was only about 40º outside!) and enjoyed a nearly empty Camp Snoopy which allowed the kids to ride things over and over and over!

The Flying Ace Balloon Race has always been one of Ellie's favorite rides!

The park was so empty that Ellie had a private ride on Charlie Brown's Wind Up!

Beagle Scout Acres was a new addition this year and the kids (big and little!) absolutely loved it!  They ran around exploring while the adults relaxed-- too bad there's not a Starbucks nearby!!

Another new addition, PigPen's Mud Buggies, turned into the favorite new ride of the day and the kids rode it many times!

Ellie wanted to go on the Kite Eating Tree and convinced the big kids to ride with her!

We love Camp Snoopy!!

- PEANUTS Trailblazers -

Since the big kids were such good sports in Camp Snoopy, we waited while they rode Afterburn nearly ten times in a row!

As a special treat (for using the potty at Carowinds!), Ellie got her face painted.  She sat patiently while the guy took his time getting it just right for her and she was so excited to see the finished result!

- Ellie (4) and Lexie (10) -

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carowinds winterfest

Carowinds introduced Winterfest this year and we HAD to check it out since Christmas decorations and amusement parks are two of our favorite things!!  We started the night with the tree lighting show on their giant, 70 foot tree.

The big kids humored Ellie and we started with the carousel-- the roller coasters were closed so we had more time to check out the shows and "smaller" rides.

She still gets SOOOO excited every time we go on a carousel!

She was completely giddy the whole time we were on the carousel.

After the boys rode Afterburn (the only coaster open during the event) the kids all posed for a few pictures in front of all of the Christmas lights.

It was magical seeing the park covered in lights!

Winterfest had unique experiences that aren't found during a regular day at Carowinds like decorating Christmas cookies!

We bought the giant sugar cookies and the kids had a blast decorating and then eating them!!

Petting zoos are always a hit!

Pictures with the performers.

The kids were excited to try out some new-to-them rides like the swings...

... and the Rock-n-Rollercoaster!!

Apparently, according to our children, the fact that we never let them play the games at Carowinds is a travesty so we caved and they each played a game during Winterfest-- and they all won cute, little winter puppies.

We all had a great time at Winterfest and it was a wonderful way to get into the Christmas spirit!

fall fun at carowinds

On a school trip to Carowinds, Christopher entered Jacob in the Carowinds: My Hero promotion and he won tickets (and Fast Lane Plus!!) for the family!  We went on a beautiful, fall day so that we could enjoy the Halloween offerings in the park.

After getting in a ride on the Intimidator for the big kids, we headed to Planet Snoopy for Ellie's favorite rides!

Ellie was easy to entertain while the big kids went on roller coasters with Jacob.  It was so funny to see the new Winterfest decor mixed in with the Scarowinds decor!  The kids were excited to have Panda Express for lunch since we don't usually get it outside of Carowinds.

On weekends in October, Planet Snoopy has a pumpkin patch and all of the kiddos picked out a pumpkin.

Sweet girls in the pumpkin patch.

- the Albaeck sweethearts -

Carowinds added the County Fair area this year and the kids were excited to go on the new rides-- especially since we had Fast Lane Plus and didn't have to wait in line!  Chris and Nick went on Electro-Spin and thought it was AWESOME!

Jacob took all the big kids on Do-Si-Do, another new ride for this year.

We made sure to get our usual picture on the NC-SC state line on our way out of the park after a fun day!