Hershey Pennsylvania - Chocolate overload!!!!

For the first weekend back with Chris home, we wanted to take a fun trip to really spend some good time together.  We left once the kids got out of school on Friday and drove up to Hershey PA.  Only about 3 hours away, and totally a great experience.
We found the hotel "The Hershey Lodge", were handed a huge stack of chocolate bars, and started our fun filled weekend.
Saturday morning, bright and early, we headed over to Chocolate World.  

Of course, I had to make the kids stop and pose for a picture...proof that we were actually there :)

And for those of you wondering about Cavin's sloppy jacket look...I was just happy he had on pants, the jacket was an added bonus.  Don't worry, after a short while of standing in the freezing (literally) weather, he zipped it up.

Starting off a great day of CHOCOLATE!!!

My sweet, angelic, precious little girl! (can you sense the sarcasm?)  

Look mom!  Thats a LOT of chocolate syrup!

Millions of hershey kisses

The house was made entirely out of candy...hershey bar roof shingles, twizzler outlines on everything, white chocolate, dark chocolate, milk chocolate...can you imagine living there??  This definitely tops a traditional gingerbread house!

Welcome to Hershey Park - see Santa and his reindeer up on that roller coaster?

They had a lot of the bigger rides at Hershey Park closed for the season, but had a TON of the younger-kid rides open.  It was definitely cold, and the kids even rode some rides while the snow was falling, but it was a lot of fun and definitely a great way to spend the day.

Hershey Park CandyCane Lane was definitely a Christmas event to remember.  Everything was decorated for the holidays, Christmas music blared over the loudspeakers, the kids even got to see Santa's reindeer in person.  

At the end of a busy day at Hershey Park, we headed to the Sweetlights display.  2.5 miles of holiday lights depicting everything from candy factories to elf villages.  The first .5 mile was really fun and neat to see...the remaining 2 miles was well...a LOT of Christmas lights to ooh and aah over.    

Of course a Strawser family trip wouldnt be complete if we didnt fill up every available moment of every day (this is more me than everyone else...but they have grown to accept it and just have a good time!)

SO, once we finished Chocolate World, Hershey Park & the Sweetlights drive through, we took the kids to the Giant Center to watch the Hershey Bears Ice Hockey Team.

Here is Cavin with the Hershey Bear that was in our hotel.  Scary looking.  Of course, since the Bears are the farm team to the Washington Capitals, Cavin was dressed appropriately :)

Waiting for the game to start

What would a hockey game be without Hershey Bear masks?!

They have their game-faces on!  I couldnt take them seriously like this!

Not much makes a 6 year old happier than being at a hockey game, and then catching $5 from a credit union blimp that was flying around the stadium. (with a little help from a nice stranger behind him)

Bears WIN!!!

Sunday morning started out at Breakfast with Santa (And Kit Kat too!)

The kids were able to give Santa any last minute additions to their list (Cavin added an iPhone4S to his list...lol) and Santa of course game them some chocolate and a teddy bear to take home with them.

Sorry they arent all Christmasy dressed...I wasnt that prepared this year.

When breakfast was over we headed to our last stop at Hershey PA...the Hershey Story Museum.  There is so much History to Hershey that it was a great experience.

Nana, this is for you...an old recipe for the Chocolate sugar puffs that you make. (just turn your head sideways to read it!)

Learning a lot...Im sure!

One of the best parts of the weekend was the Chocolate Lab experience.  We convinced the lady at the desk that Jacie was close enough to 4 years old to take the class, and then got to dress up like 'lunch ladies' (as Caden said) and spend an hour in the kitchen learning how to make chocolate and even designing our own chocolate bars with white and milk chocolate.

Caden was helping Chris get ready

Cavin wanted a beard cover too...crazy kid!

Me and Jacie ready to start making our candy bars

What a crazy group!  LOL

Jacie made the cutest snowman chocolate bar!  She cant wait to share it with her cousins on Christmas day!

I made a Christmas tree...and it came out GREAT if I do say so myself.  Chris, well he made a snowman...kinda...it looked a little like a chocolate alien. :)

Caden made a baseball, and Cavin made a snowflake.  Of course, Caden was testing along the way too!

And that was it...a great family weekend in one of the sweetest places ever!  Lots of nice people, and more chocolate than I could ever ask for.

One last picture...the view down main street downtown...check out the Hershey Kiss streetlights!