New this year at Conner Prairie is their highly anticipated (by us) Merry Prairie Holiday and we had been itching to go since we had heard about the delivery of the Reynolds light collection. We had driven by weekly and got more excited after each drive by! And wow does it not disappoint!
First, there is so much to do!
SO FREAKING MUCH!
The North Pole Village
Reynolds Lights
Winter Wonderland Wagon Rides
Kringle’s Carousel
Polar Bear Plunge
Mrs. Claus’ Cabin
Holidays Past – Christmas Eve in Priairetown
Or play inside too!
And probably more things I’m forgetting about!
We started the night right at 6 pm when it opened… and we ended up leaving at 10 pm. I never thought we’d stay the whole time, but we did and we weren’t bored or cold or tired of anything… we could have gone for a couple of hours more!
Two, make sure to bring a little extra cash. While most things are included with admission like tubing and the carousel, crafts in The North Pole, as well as hot drinks and snacks, are extra costs.
We started out by walking through most of the Reynolds lights… and heading over to Kringle’s Carousel. I really hope they can keep this beauty! The girls loved it… swirling around, up and down, on horses, while snow is falling and lights are twinkling all around…
*Magical*
Then we walked back up towards the North Pole Village to check out the workshop. At the time we entered it was super busy so we opted to head over to the tubing area which was right behind (in Lenape Village if you are familiar with Conner Prairie). We were so fortunate for Ella to get in line and take a turn fairy early as the snow falling quickly sped up the tubing slides and so later on in the evening they were closed…
POLAR BEAR PLUNGE
While we were waiting for Ella to tube, Olive and I headed to the Reindeer Games which were just perfect for her age! She knocked over snowmen, ran around in reindeer food, and tossed some blocks into the gingerbread house chimney!
We all met up at Mrs Claus’ Cabin which was so sweet. Mrs Claus knew our Elf Big Christmas and took a note down saying he’d done a good job by brining the girls nutcrackers this season! It was so sweet… she had a little notebook and she talks to everyone right by the fire. Plus, this is a great spot to warm up if necessary!
Next up, we headed to Holidays Past. Last year we had visited Candlelight (holiday event) and we LOVED it, so we were excited to visit Prairietown this evening with the snow-filled streets. We met with the store owners who were selling things for locals, we met with some soldiers who were away from home for the holidays, we met with the Campbells who were hosting a Soiree and they had the only Coconut in town, and we sang carols around the fire with others townies.
CHRISTMAS EVE IN PRAIRIETOWN
OH, and our favorite part of maybe the entire night was the Cranky Christmas. I can still sing the song and I LOVED that their storytelling enthralled my children the entire time and it was all done by candlelight and with no technology (obviously). At the end, Ella was ready to build her own Cranky Christmas Show. It’s located right at the edge of Prairietown, before you get to the Eagle Inn.
Go see it. You will love it.
And when you are done there, head over to the Winter Wonderland Wagon Ride over the bridge and through the woods… It’s about a 6 min ride, but make sure to wear gloves as the brisk breeze can quickly chill you! And we rode it twice!
Typically this might be the end, but it doesn’t have to be! Feel free to revisit anything over and over… Ride the carousel all night if you like! After we finished we headed back over to the North Pole Village and took in the workshop with a little less bustle! We took our time making cookie cutters and looking for the headless horseman elf – yep, make sure to try to find him! We sent our bags up to the elves who sent them back down all decorated and with a cookie recipe for our new cutters! And we also, let dad take a break in the warm barn.
Seriously, I was super excited to go when it was snowing. Lights in the snow are so beautiful and Conner Prairie itself is one of our favorite places so adding all these elements together made for a picture-perfect family evening! This one will be on our list for next year as well!