I am blessed. I have available to me a 2 bedroom 2 bath condo in Branson pretty much any time I want it as part of a bonus time program with our timeshare. Once we get our season passes to Silver Dollar City and White Water, my cost for a 5 night vacation is the cost of food and gas, plus whatever incidentals we need, or souvenirs that I buy. I KNOW that this is an incredible blessing and I am grateful for it.
At the timeshare, I can also get a blender and a hand mixer sent to my unit, so I am set to make smoothies and paleo pancakes (with this recipe... http://paleoonthecheap.blogspot.com/2013/01/waffles-and-tikka-masala.html) for breakfast. There are multiple pools and playgrounds at the resort itself, and they have a wonderful activity center with games that you can check out and books to lend.
Holiday Hills has a very cool thing - they noticed a long long time ago that people left books in their units when they left after their vacation. So, they started keeping the books in the activity center, and now when I go, I grab a book to read during my trip. I can normally finish it before I leave, since I read fairly fast. If I do not, then I take the book home and return it on my next trip. In the past, I would guestimate that I have brought two fairly large boxes (paper box sized boxes) with me to basically dump in the activity center when I arrived.
Long story short I have taken a couple of trips to Branson this summer, and have loved the ability to control the foods that my kids eat while we are there. Thing1 and Thing2 have had fewer melt downs and mood swings than they have had in the past while on vacation.
They also have a sister property, Ozark Mountain Resort, and they have mini golf there. I can take the kids to either resort and utilize their facilities for free. This allows us to have a lot of fun for not a lot of money.
For breakfast, I like to go a little heavy, so that can sustain us well into the day. I make some Paleo Pancakes, bacon, and fruit smoothies with almond milk in order to get us going. Or, I make eggs and bacon with smoothies. Either way, we load up on protein and fruit to get us going. I bring home made trail mixes, raisins, and some other snacks with us to the park, but if we are going to be there open to close, then I will get something at the park. Silver Dollar City has these skillet restaurants, and they make what my Grandmother used to call succotash http://www.tastebook.com/recipes/2907909-Silver-Dollar-City-LUMBERCAMP-FALLS-HARVEST-SKILLET
It is affordable at roughly 6 bucks per serving, and I found out recently that 3 servings will feed 5 people. It has potatoes and corn in it, so I try to pick around those in the serving that I am eating from.
If there is more money in the budget, I will splurge at Riverside Ribhouse, where I get the half a smoked chicken with 2 sides. They have grapes and apple sauce as sides on hand for the kids meals, and they will allow adults to order those sides too. So, that is what I do. 1/2 a roasted chicken and 2 sides of grapes. If I do not finish everything, I de-bone the chicken and put it into the ziplock baggies that I keep in my purse when I go there. I do not always keep ziplock baggies in my purse, but I try to be sure that I have 4 or 5 of them in there every time I go to SDC. http://www.silverdollarcity.com/theme-park/attractions/dining/Riverside-Rib-House.aspx
The kids meals will set you back 6 bucks, and the adult meals will set you back between 10 and 15, but it is still a great deal for a VERY filling sit down meal. The ribs have a sauce, which I am sure is all brown sugared up, so I do not get the ribs. The chicken is WONDERFUL, and I highly recommend it. I have also looked at the smoked sausage sandwich and at some point, I will get it, and just not eat the bread.
When we get back, I can make dinner. I have made Spaghetti Squash with Bolognese, lettuce wraps, peppers and onion caramelized with steak and lettuce cups (paleo fajitas), and other goodies. I have been known to make a couple of dinners the day we arrive, put them into the refrigerator, and then eat off of them for dinners. That way, everyone can have what they want and heat it up themselves whenever they want it.
Basic message - if you find yourself at Silver Dollar City, you have options to stay on track with your paleoness. YAY!
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