Dollywood (aka Home of the ZaZa)

For months now, PopPop has been talking about taking Max on a trip to Dollywood, so that he could ride on a real-life ZaZa. I mean, sure, he has ridden on the miniature train at Heritage Park, and on the wannabe train at the Riverbanks Zoo, but the train at Dollywood Express is pulled by a REAL steam engine! I have been wanting to take him, but have been unsure how Max would hold up on a long car ride (over 3 hours) and then a long day at a theme park, and then a long ride home. But I realized that at this point in the year, we are running out of nice weather AND quickly running out of time to take trips like this as far as my pregnancy goes. So, basically, it was now or never.

As a bonus, Dollywood currently has all their lights up for Christmas and Max is very into Christmas trees, lights, snowmen, Santa Claus, Reindeer...and pretty much everything else Christmas right now. So, last Friday, PopPop, Mimi, Max and I all loaded up in Mimi's car and drove the 3 hours up into the Tennessee mountains. The drive went much better than I expected, with Max passing the time playing on the IPad and just in general enjoying the attention. He particularly enjoyed driving through the tunnel as we got into the mountains, although he did wish to be "out of tunnel" as soon as we were inside it. (Oh, he did manage to sneak a 30 minute nap in there at the end of the drive. Way to fight it off, buddy!)

When we got into Pigeon Forge, Max was overwhelmed by everything there was to see...sensory overload for a little kid! After a quick lunch at Calhoun's, we were on our way to the park!

At this time of year the park opens at 2 and the lights come on at dark, which would leave about 4ish hours to fill in the park. PopPop had some concerns about how we would fill those hours with Max. He also expressed concern about the fact that I had not brought a stroller for Max. Max is pretty much over the stroller these days, and when we bring it along we find that we are just pushing around an empty stroller which ends up just being one more thing to keep up with. I had faith that my boy would have the stamina to keep up for the day.

Max was having fun from the get-go. From the parking lot, we had to ride a trolley to get up to the gates of the park. Max was happy to believe that he was riding a ZaZa already!

And once we were actually inside the park, he was raring to go! Dollywood is definitely a "Dolly-fied" version of a themepark. It's cute and quaint whereas others are gaudy and tacky. Both types are fun, don't get me wrong (love ya, Six Flags!), but Dollywood definitely has more of a family, laid-back feel to it. And it was the perfect day to be there.

 Nice and cool (but fine if you had a jacket) and so much fun to see all the Christmas decorations. They were everywhere!

And look! Another ZaZa!! Train count at this point (including the parking lot trolley): 2! So far, so good.

As we made our way over to the actual train station, where we could catch a ride on the steam train, we ran into these guys, who were a big hit with Max.

(Well, they were sort of a big hit, as long as he was able to keep his distance. Pop Pop tried to get Max to feed the ducks, at which point Max decided to seek shelter by a tree. You never know when a duck could decide to go rogue, after all).

 

We also passed by the Ferris Wheel on our way to the train station. After a debate as to whether Max would be scared, it was decided that we should try it. Well, not we exactly; apparently the Ferris Wheel is MUCH TOO DANGEROUS for a pregnant woman, so I would be sitting out. But the 3 Muskateers managed to make in onboard. Max's very first themepark ride!! And....he did great. Not scared at all. Apparently he spent the whole ride stating "Going up" or "Going down" as appropriate. Let's face it, Ferris Wheels aren't exactly terrifying (unless you're afraid of heights, I guess).

Soon after the Ferris Wheel adventure, we made our way to the train station. And there she was: the Dollywood Express. (ZaZa Count: 3!!) We were concerned that the noise might scare Max. He was unphased. Mimi, however, was terrified that she might get a cinder in her eyes.

 

 

We did have to kill some time once we had boarded the train. It was also necessary to employ some distractionary tactics so that Max didn't notice the cotton candy cart that was parked directly beside PopPop.

But soon enough, we were on our way...riding the rails on an actual train! As I imagined might happen, Max didn't really "get" that he was on a train. But, he did enjoy waving to the people as we rode along and checking out the scenery and Christmas decor that was set up along the way. It was about a 20 minute ride. A good start for Max I think.

(The best thing about this video is definitely the country accent this guy is rocking. Everyone at Dollywood seemed to talk like that.)

Shortly after we got off the train, we found ourselves in front of the carousel. Max expressed an interest in riding. PopPop didn't take much convincing. Max wanted to ride the reindeer; somehow he ended up on the goat. Note his displeasure:

My kid is apparently good at math; particularly ratios. He quickly realized that he was the only child in our group, with 2 adults who were also ride-eligible (because apparently EVERY ride is dangerous for a pregnant lady). As soon as he and PopPop were done with the carousel, he recruited Mimi. Because he really wanted to ride the rooster. He did also manage to get his ride on the reindeer; I don't know why I don't have any pictures of that one.

We next made our way over to this baby roller coaster, which Max naturally assumed was another ZaZa. (ZaZa count: 4!) While he was eager to ride, I was really apprehensive as to how he would actually react to this one. It did pick up some amount of speed and include a little drop, which I figured he wouldn't be expecting. Added to that was the fact that the children riding were screaming like they were being dropped off a cliff. Well, I figured PopPop could handle it and deal with the aftermath. Max managed to JUST SQUEAK BY on the height requirement for this one. I hoped the little ears on his "chicken hat" would help him out!

Look at the tiny little head just barely poking over the edge!

Since I couldn't really see his face during the ride, I had no idea how he was faring. I don't know what I was worried about. Apparently at the end of the ride, as they pulled back into the "station", Max turned to PopPop with wide eyes and said "Ride Again?!" Max's bravery even convinced Mimi to go for a spin!

 

"don't worry kid; I'm an old pro at this ride...it's no big deal!"

 

I think he rode this thing 3 times. AND, a roller coaster lover is born. (PopPop even had him assuming the correct roller-coaster form by the last ride: hands up in the air as you go down the hills!) And apparently he also expressed disdain towards the little girls who squealed as they rode. Wimps!

After that, Max literally could not get his fill of rides. Pig, bumblebee, duck; whatever, they were all baby-stuff compared to the roller coaster zaza.

"Oh no, more squealers behind me."

The Flying Elephants were slightly more fun, though.

Before we knew it, then sun was setting (and it was getting cold!). We managed to make it back to the train station in time to watch the Dollywood Express pull in. ZaZa count: 5!

Pop Pop and Max discussed the finer points of steam engine maintenance and care.

And then Max informed us that time was a-wastin' and it was time to move on:

Miniature train set with Christmas Lights: ZaZa Count up to 6!

We concluded our visit with a walk through the park looking at the lights as they came on. They were so pretty, but so hard (ok, impossible) to capture correctly on the camera.

My little birdie was definitely fading by this point.

He INSISTED that I take his picture here, after refusing to let me take his picture in front of cute things throughout the day. Perhaps he just wanted to rest. The irony of the sign is not lost on me.

The prettiest tree in the whole place (that I saw). I loved it. See below for video. I want a tree like this at my house for Christmas!

(I could have watched this all night; but PopPop was basically sprinting towards the exit at this point and we had to move along).

To give credit where credit is due: Max was starting to fade at this point and Mimi carried him for a bit...and apparently bruised or threw out her shoulder. Perhaps we overstayed and pushed our luck with him a little bit, but all-in-all he did well with keeping up (or we did well with keeping up with him!)
Somehow I still feel like we barely brushed the surface of the park, but I definitely saw lots of roller coasters that Max will be wanting to ride in a few years. Oh, and speaking of what's going to happen in a few years, this little preview of Max driving was enough to give me nightmares!


So we finally made it back to the car after one last ride on the trolley (ZaZa count: 7!), changed Max into PJs, cranked up the heat, and got on our way. After a quick stop at Burger King, where Max wolfed down more nuggets (4) than I've ever seen him eat in one sitting, we were back on the road towards home. Max managed to stay awake to see the 2 tunnels we got to go through on the way back, and then passed out for the duration. We got back to Simpsonville around 10:30 and Chris and I tucked a very tired little guy into bed. He evidently had a lot to process, because he woke up throughout the night more than he usually does, and he even was talking in his sleep! (I'm not sure what he was saying, but I thought I heard "duck, no!" at one point. haha, not really!)

Thanks to Mimi and Pop Pop for a wonderful day at Dollywood. Max (and I) really and truly had an absolute blast. (And PopPop's fears about how we would pass the day were unfounded; fastest day ever!)