raising kids in Pittsburgh
When the kids found out I would be at Disney without them, Evan had two requests. Get a picture with Mickey and ride Spaceship Earth.
So far, I’ve accomplished both. Today I am grateful for the memory of spending time with him and Arianna riding this one over and over and over.
And I’ll be leaving tomorrow with a goal…sell enough Thirty-one in the next twelve months to keep my commitment to our budget and buy us tickets for five days here in 2018. I got this, right?
Back in OCTOBER (I know…), our family took one big trip to Disney World. It was just a month after Grandma passed and the day after we sold our house. Whirlwind and a half. Might as well share some of our favorite things about the trip since I’ve finally taken the time to put the pictures from the Memory Maker on Facebook (highly recommend you buy this option with your tickets, thanks for these, Dad!).
(You can check out the full album over on our Flickr page!)
October was not supposed to be hot. It was over 92 degrees when we landed and tried to get the 7 of us (my parents, brother, the four of us) into our rental van that just didn’t accommodate Evan’s car seat all that well. The heat was ON and it started a bit stressful. Then we dined at a super awesome buffet that our cousins had found the day before (but now it’s closed, boo to that mess or I’d share with you) and headed for an evening at the pool with most of the rest of our family who joined in on the fun (at one point there were 25 of us together). We stayed at The Fountains, a BlueGreen Resort and it was actually quite nice (although we always have some issue with the pool…like the one right beside us was not filled although the desk attendant told my dad there was one right beside our building that would be “perfect”).
Day one at Disney was spent at Animal Kingdom. I’ve got mixed reviews. It was so hot and humid that even the animals didn’t really care to be out. We did, however, get some nice shots with the characters, even with Evan being a little standoffish with the whole process. A Dole Whip was a must, too. Favorites of Animal Kingdom? Rafiki (find him by taking the train to the very back of the park), Lion King and It’s Tough to Be a Bug (which we saw another night thanks to our Park Hopper pass).
Monday brought us to Epcot – our favorite to be honest. The kids loved riding Spaceship Earth – we even came back a few times at night to sneak in one ride of it before bed! Greg, Jack, and I enjoyed some of the (Wine) and Food Festival. We discovered what happens when our six year old gets hot RIGHT THIS VERY MINUTE at the very back of the park and allowed for the kids and Grands to have an early night while Greg and I came back to walk through the countries with the Sweazys. I started feeling nauseated due to the scents of the food and sheer amount of people trying to watch the fireworks, so we snuck out of the park a little early and watched fireworks from a distance. Favorites at Epcot – Spaceship Earth, Journey Into Imagination with Figment, Chip and Dale (the kids believe they are twins, so they were captivated) and the princesses (we dedicated a whole afternoon to hopping back to Epcot just to meet Aurora and Sleeping Beauty).
Kids – I am sorry Mama and Daddy met Aladdin and Jasmine without you. We know we owe you big time. We tried. We promise.
Tuesday was quite a special day. It has a lot of awesome memories, honestly. Of course, it was Magic Kingdom day. We started with a late morning at Downtown Disney where Pappy and Grammie had the kids do Bibbidi Bobbidi Boutique. My mom and aunt coordinated a gorgeous homemade Elsa dress for Arianna. Evan became a night with “Beast” hair (it was the only way we could get him to wear his locks in a ponytail then all week in the heat!). They were simply too cute. We met the family right after a downpour and crammed “the most people I’ve ever seen” (per the photographer) into the Rose Garden to take a shot by Cinderella’s Castle. Before sending the kids back for a nap, we did It’s a Small World as a family – trying our best to fit in one boat but I think we ended up shy two spots. Greg stayed “with the big kids” and I had a Thirty-One meeting then came back with Dana with the sole purpose of eating popcorn, riding Haunted Mansion, and trading pins. Mission accomplished.
Wednesday was a rest day – one that was much needed. We spent the evening at the Fort Wilderness’ Hoop-Dee-Doo Musical Review. The show is very entertaining and the food was great. Again, this was a whole family thing, and we captured all of us in a pre-show photo.
Thursday was Hollywood Studios. We started the day with a Character Breakfast (with Doc McStuffins, Sofia, Handy Manny, and Jake). I might have had to pull my ticked off pregnant card with the Cast Members with Jake. They skipped our entire row of tables and made us wait an entire hour before he came back around. Our server was trying to kick us out, but I stood my ground and had a mad husband and uncle with me, too.
This park wasn’t as much our speed as we hoped, so we saw some characters then hopped over to Epcot (Princess afternoon) and back in time for Fantasmic – worth it.
Friday, our last day at the parks, was spent doing everything we wanted to do again and again. The kids, Jack, and I hit up three parks I think. We got to ride Pirates of the Caribbean (it was broken most of the week!), meet Tiana and Tinkerbelle, rode Spaceship Earth and Figment again, spent some down time waiting for a bus because the monorail failed, rode the ferry, did an Animal Kingdom evening, and seriously wore ourselves out before heading back to the resort for a swim and pizza. A fuller day never did we have!
Our trip came to an end on Saturday after another Downtown Disney visit for the kids “big gift” (we had Tinkerbelle visits each night), pin trading, and unwinding. It was hard to come home to Pittsburgh (especially since we were technically “homeless”) and start our six weeks of transitional living, but we did it.
A few things about our trip…
Thanks to our family for the fun and memories on this trip!
Disclaimer: In June, Experience Columbus sent my family and four other Pittsburgh Mom Blogger families on a weekend getaway to check out their city. We were compensated in the way of attraction passes and gift cards; however, this does not impact the views expressed in my recap posts (including this one). All opinions are my own (or my kids’ / husband’s). This post is from our personal follow – up trip to redeem our passes for the water park.
Back in June, we spent so much time enjoying the Columbus Zoo that we didn’t have enough time to take in the attached waterpark, Zoombezi Bay. Our family decided to make our own trip back to Columbus to check it out today.
After we paid $8 for parking and another $8 for a locker (we got the regular size and were SHOVING our four towels, flip flops, and tees/shorts in), the rest of our day was spent enjoying the sun and water.
3 things I would have changed about today?
1. We would have brought the kids’ puddle jumpers. Not thinking, we left home without them. Zoombezi has life vests for infants to adults, but the selection was scarce. We actually took the last two toddler ones I saw hanging and it was barely noon.
2. We would have got there earlier. The Zoo opens at 9. We should have walked around in the cooler part of the day and saw the monkeys like Evan wanted. We didn’t, and he was sad. This is because Zoombezi opens at 10:30 and I let us be lazy with breakfast and getting there. Once we arrived at 11:30, it was almost 90 and I got heat exhausted quickly. Arianna and I both had to break the news to our boys, we had to go head for the highway around 2:30.
3. I would have brought my underwater camera for some pictures…and could have hung the locker wristband on that. Sweet moments with the kids left uncaptured…and we lost our locker wristband twice. Luckily, we found them…but I don’t (want to) know what happens if you don’t find them. If you do not have it on when going to locker attendant, they do ask you to identify some things in your locker…keep something unique up front!
3 things I wouldn’t have changed about today?
1. Spending time with Evan in Baboon Lagoon. This area, designed for 2-10 year olds, is full of fun splash zones, smaller slides, and a 2 foot deep pool area. Evan loved playing in the water that was just his size and speed.
2. Circling the Roaring Rapids (lazy river) with the whole family. Shy of the fact that it has few soak zones, it was the best lazy river I’ve been on. Evan loved the wave area!
3. Letting Greg take Arianna on water slides. There were less “big kid” slides than I expected, and few accommodated her height, but those two had some good fun. I never would have rode the mat slide, but my ‘lil girl took that thing on all by herself (with daddy in the lane next to her). Evan says when he is five we all will ride it. Huh.
All in all, it was great to take another “tank trip” to Columbus. Our family loves the city and throughly enjoyed everything we did and everyone we met along the way. Thanks once again to experiencecolumbus.com for the memories!
Disclaimer: Experience Columbus sent my family and four other Pittsburgh Mom Blogger families on a weekend getaway to check out their city. We were compensated in the way of attraction passes and gift cards; however, this does not impact the views expressed in my recap posts (including this one). All opinions are my own (or my kids’ / husband’s).
‘lil Blogger me is supposed to sit down and right yinz a stellar post about the #1 Zoo in the United States. The Columbus Zoo. The zoo that I knew as an elementary school kid that now my children beg to go back to. It’s a post that’s been spinning in my head for weeks (among five zillion other things that we have going on in our ‘lil world).
But I mean, seriously. How am I supposed to put words to paper about how incredible the Columbus Zoo and Aquarium is?
Maybe it’s telling you that Jack Hanna is kinda a big deal there, and he’s made sure that the animals have plenty of space and real-to-life habitats in this zoo.
Or that the Zoo has a really awesome “Hoofit” Program with the local health plan, telling you ways to stay healthy & hydrated during your visit. (By the way, we walked/ran the zoo twice and I had almost 30,000 steps that day between the trip and my morning 5k.)
Or the fact that you can get super close to the elephants (our favorite).
But maybe you’d want to hear about how good the brand new Heart of Africa exhibit is, complete with a great lunch spot, camel rides, and giraffe feedings.
Or that there are manatees in the aquarium.
I’m sure my mom and dad want to check in on the gorillas that I know Jack and I kept them at for hours during our visits.
And Jack will totally be jealous to hear about Dinosaur Island, which was well worth the 45 minute wait and near potty accident to take a 3-minute boat ride around a river of dinosaurs.
And Grandma and Pop Pop would not be surprised to know that Greg’s kids like snakes.
And you all want to see our family photos from the trip, too (source: Kaman’s Art Shoppes).
There are just way to many things to tell you and show you and gush about. And while I don’t want to mix up my ‘Burgh loyalty (’cause our zoo is pretty awesome), I’ll tell you that the Columbus Zoo deserves its accolades. I can push out of my mind that I am pretty sure the attached waterpark, Zoombezi Bay, was probably crowded because it was oh so hot that I spent way too much money on water bottles to keep us hydrated throughout the day. And I’ll forget the fact that even after two loops, we still missed stuff because the path isn’t straight (but totally keeps you on your toes). Or that I got super frustrated in the Discovery Reef because there were too many people in there trying to catch a break in the A/C. Because lemme tell you. This zoo is incredible.
Bonus? The polar bears swim. Lots. They get it.
If you get it and want to check out the Columbus Zoo & Aquarium, head over here to learn more about tickets (including how to add Zoombezi Bay to your entry — we are going back in July to take advantage of this!). And HERE to see more of our photos!!!
Disclaimer: Experience Columbus sent my family and four other Pittsburgh Mom Blogger families on a weekend getaway to check out their city. We were compensated in the way of attraction passes and gift cards; however, this does not impact the views expressed in my recap posts (including this one). All opinions are my own (or my kids’ / husband’s).
If you couldn’t already tell, we had a great time last weekend in Columbus. I’m kind of bouncing around with our story, but it keeps yinz on your toes, right? Today we’ll be sharing fun from our time at COSI, Columbus’s Center of Science and Industry.
The preface to this story is that our morning started out fun and relaxed. I went for a run, packed a few last minute things, woke up snoozing kiddos, and confirmed with my #PghMomBloggers friends that we’d be asking Drury for a late check out and heading to the pool. The skies were a little gray but sunny, so my family intended to be a ‘lil lazy then head to the Arts Festival before walking over to COSI . As we boarded the CBus, I noticed big black clouds rolling in and fast. Not 2 minutes after two of the other families got off the bus at German Village did the sky fall apart.
It was pouring rain and my happy mood snapped. We devised a plan to ride the bus back to the hotel area, Greg would get off the bus and get the car then meet us somewhere along the route. Unfortunately, he didn’t have much faith in his navigation skills / GPS, so we all got off the bus and ran in the rain to our hotel. I was not happy and it definitely impacted our time at COSI (sadly for me!).
Just a quick drive over a bridge from downtown, we were at COSI. Parking is $5 (unless you are a COSI member). I think that you can pay cash or card (or maybe even pay inside?) but we were sharing spaces with people who where there for the Arts Festival so parking was $10 and I was kinda at my limit for the day so I didn’t really pay much attention.
We got out of the car and the rain stopped. Marvelous. We did take our umbrellas, but once we got inside, Greg opted to take them back to the car so we could be more hands-on. (COSI has some super large lockers to hold your coats / bags / belongings, but they are square and our golf umbrellas didn’t fit.) (These are things I didn’t think I’d have to know as a parent before kids!)
Once we redeemed our tickets, we were given tags that were to be showing during the entire trip. Be sure you are prepared for this – belt loops (or shoelaces) work best to hold them. Evan, Greg, and I had one, but there was nowhere on Arianna to put her tag. She had to wear it on her wrist which had me worried the whole time, especially in the Oceans exhibit. I witnessed a few people losing theirs because they got them wet. 🙁 Here’s what I mean:
Our first official exhibit stop was an area where the kids could build things with foam blocks. I plopped down on a bench and got comfy, happy to watch them play for awhile.
The rest of the time at COSI was somewhat a blur because the crowd started growing and it was hard to let our ‘lil ones explore with a bunch of big kids running them over. Yup, Evan got knocked down at least twice while holding my hand and there were no apologies happening. I watched a kid who was about 9 running free fall flat on his face, no parent in sight to see if he was ok or to tell him to not run. Anxiety level was high (for me) and it was a weird role-reversal (as this is normally Greg’s gig — he was relaxed and quite enjoyed the day!).
What I do remember were these things I loved:
1. The Dreamscape portion of the Oceans exhibit had hands on water play activities that the kids LOVED.
2. No “pooping” you, we played a “Who Pooped?” game.
3. The Little Kidspace was full of hands-on things for kids through 1st grade – read perfect for our ‘lil Burghers. They check the number of adults and kids and you have to have a pass to enter and exit. Awesome for safety! There was also a water play area here that wowed us, and a kid-sized sink in the bathroom. Major wins for the day!
All in all, the kids and Greg loved our time at COSI and have convinced me that I would too if I had just snapped out of it (and it hadn’t been raining and so busy). You can give it your own spin by visiting them in Columbus. Adult tickets start at $17.95 and kids are $12.95. There are lots of add-ons available, so be prepared to either say no or pull out your wallets and take on the full-blown experience. (Everything listed in this post was on the General Admission ticket.) More photos from our day can be found here.
My apologies as the Bitter Becky shines through – I was really unhappy with the way the weather didn’t cooperate, and this can definitely impact my opinions! We hope to head back to COSI when the kids are a ‘lil older and we can let them enjoy everything on a different level. I just didn’t have the patience to be the best mom I needed to be during this part of our trip. Boo!
This was my brain during our visit!
Disclaimer: Experience Columbus sent my family and four other Pittsburgh Mom Blogger families on a weekend getaway to check out their city. We were compensated in the way of attraction passes and gift cards; however, this does not impact the views expressed in my recap posts (including this one). All opinions are my own (or my kids’ / husband’s).
It was the calm after the storm, just what we needed.
Our visit to Franklin Park Conservatory was right at the end of our Experience Columbus trip. So right at the end that I had to assure the ticket counter attendant that YES we REALLY wanted in even though we only had 45 minutes to enjoy. I really needed a calm event before our drive home (after a rain storm, almost dropping the best ice cream I’ve ever had, and a mild mama breakdown). Ahem.
And enjoy those 45 minutes of calm, we did. For 43.5 minutes, we explored the Blooms and Butterflies 20th Anniversary Exhibit. Our ‘lil butterfly fit right in.
Greg spent most of that time trying to catch the brown butterfly that had gorgeous blue wings inside. It was definitely worth his time, although I was using a smaller, tighter, slower lens and this was the best shot I got:
Because normally it looked like this:
Evan and I were busy looking at plants. While I love butterflies (and, fun fact, have a tattoo of one), one of my favorite memories as a kid was of when my mom would take our Campfire Kids / Buckeye Y troop to the botanical gardens in Fort Wayne. This girl is totally going to be that lady that once the kids are grown and the retirement check is coming in will be a gardener. We explored the beautiful plants like…
With just over 2 minutes to spare, we left the butterfly exhibit and while I started at gorgeous glass sculptures, Greg and the kids looked at the butterfly life cycle part of the exhibit. I really wanted to see more plants, so rushed into one more room before we had to call it a day (and a weekend, boo hoo!). But it was amazing to have taken that peaceful time because…
If I had to pick a “best moment” of the trip, it just might be the calm, quiet 45 minutes we got taking in nature’s beauty.
You can experience the Franklin Park Conservatory in Columbus on your own either by buying a ticket ($12 for adults, $6 for kids over 3) or including this as part of your Experience Columbus Roar and Explore Package like myself, The Pittsburgh Mommy Blog, Champagne to Crayons, Momma on a Mission, and Pgh Momtourage got to do last weekend.
More photos from our trip can be found here on our Flickr page. If you know my husband and want to pass him a “hey, Becky’d love this gift” idea – tell him to pretty please take me back for alone time with the gorgeous plants, ok?
Disclaimer: Experience Columbus sent my family and four other Pittsburgh Mom Blogger families on a weekend getaway to check out their city. We were compensated in the way of attraction passes and gift cards; however, this does not impact the views expressed in my recap posts (including this one). All opinions are my own (or my kids’ / husband’s).
By no means am was I a hotel snob. Nope, I can stay in pretty much any hotel and get comfortable (especially if it’s at 5:30 in the morning and I’ve driven through snow and ice to get there…hello, January vacation). But yinz guys. Why haven’t I stated at a Drury Hotels property before this past weekend? It’s definitely going to be my go-to when possible, and here are five reasons why.
1. Kickback. During our weekend in Columbus, we got to experience two of the fabulous Kickback events at Drury. This is a free (to hotel guests) buffet of hot and cold foods (think hot dogs, soup, salad, veggies, chips, pasta, and more) and three free adult beverages per night. Free. Per night. These totally went down very easily after a 3 hour road trip, lemme tell you. From 5:30 – 7:00 PM, you can indulge in this awesome event, one of the things that makes Drury’s already competitive price an even greater value.
2. Quickstart Breakfast is served from 6 to 9:30 on weekdays and 7 to 10 on weekends. Of course, free food is a plus for us and the more the merrier. After my running adventures around Columbus, I’m not ashamed to admit I packed in several sausage patties and hot oatmeal. This is not your standard free hotel breakfast – it’s deluxe and included several options (eggs, biscuits, gravy, sausage, muffins, fruit, cereal, and more) plus the ‘Burghers’ all time favorite, Heinz ketchup to top it off. 😉
3. The beds and pools are for jumping in. Just reading this in the hotel info booklet made me smile (and made me do it, admittedly!). The beds were super soft and comfy – the kids and I had no trouble sleeping. (Greg is a different story when in an unfamiliar place, he was a security officer…) The pool was chilly, but it didn’t keep Arianna from jumping in and showing us her swimming skills. Evan, Greg, and I stuck to the edge and indulged in some hot tub time.
4. Customer Service is incredible. Not once did I see an employee looking miserable at the location we stayed at. The Manager was super friendly and engaged our kids in conversation. He was on-board with us sticking around for a 12:00 checkout so the group’s kids could all enjoy some more pool time, too. Everyone who managed the front desk and operator line did so with a smile. As a customer service leader, it’s hard to blow me away…but they did.
5. Free, Free, and more free! Included in your stay at Drury Hotels are free wi-fi (awesome perk when your hotel is inhabited by mom bloggers who are trying to Instagram the experience left and right) / free soft drinks and popcorn from 3-10 pm / free TV upgrades like HBO / free parking (at most locations except the one we stayed at because it’s connected to the Columbus Convention Center).
If you’re traveling this summer, consider a stay with Drury Hotels. While I’ve only gotten to experience the one on Nationwide Boulevard in Columbus, Ohio, I am pretty certain you’ll head home like I did…sad to say goodbye to your hotel! Check out their property list and start checking of stays on your travel bucket list. Or, check out the Roar and Explore Package through Experience Columbus and get all the fun in one package (starting at $411 for a family of 4).
Disclaimer: Experience Columbus sent my family and four other Pittsburgh Mom Blogger families on a weekend getaway to check out their city. We were compensated in the way of attraction passes and gift cards; however, this does not impact the views expressed in my recap posts (including this one). All opinions are my own (or my kids’ / husband’s).
You guys. To tell you that this weekend was good would be a huge understatement. Unfortunately, it’s been what I’ve been telling people as they’ve asked me about it…because I am super tired and not really ready to be back into the real world (you know, the one where I work 8-12 hours a day, am training for who knows what run, and have a kindergartener). This post will be the first of several on how awesome our weekend was, and telling as to why it needs to happen with my ‘lil family more often.
First of all, if you’ve been reading this blog for a while, you know that I’ve been on a three-year wellness journey. I want to be a thriver so I don’t have to say I am a survivor. During this journey, I’ve become focused on raising a happy and healthy family and building a better me. Secondly, you probably get the idea that I love food, and have to work hard to make a balance. So when I travel, I have to find ways to make these worlds work together. That’s why I do like to give a healthy spin on our trips (because otherwise, I’ll spend my time sick and have to work for weeks afterwards to reel it back in).
Here are the things that I did on this getaway to ensure this balance, my Thriver’s Viewpoint if you will:
1. Pre-pack Snacks. I will be telling you about the snacks and meals consumed in another post, but I knew to stay on my schedule, I’d need to be prepared. That’s why I grabbed up healthy snacks for me (granola bars, dried fruit, nuts, and bananas) and quick snacks for the kids while we were on the go and in the car. This made getting ready to head out for the days spent exploring the city.
2. Keep on my exercise schedule. This meant getting up about an hour before my family did (they were so cute snoozing, it was tough!) and lacing up my shoes for a run both days. I wasn’t hard on myself, though. My pace slowed to over 12-minute miles because I was exploring things, taking pictures, and dealing with traffic lights. During these runs, I got to see minor details of the city that I would not have seen while juggling the kids. When I returned to breakfast, it made the amount of sausage consumed feel a bit better. I highly recommend runners check out the Scioto Mile while visiting Columbus and run along the river to see the sights I did along the way (see my photos below).
3. Wearing my FitBit. Between my running schedule and our walking around, it was easy to meet my step goal. At the same time, it was really nice to see how far we walked. The Zoo actually has a “HOOFit” Program that helps visitors meet their 10,000 step goal. If my steps around the zoo put me at over 8 miles walked, imagine how that felt on the ‘lil Burghers’ legs! Seeing the steps go up helped Greg and I adjust what we were putting the kids through and let us monitor break times. (More on why our steps were way over what the program shows will be in my post about the zoo!)
4. Sleep. It’s easy on vacation to not rest, but this Mama needed it. Were we on our normal schedule? No. Did naps happen? No. But did I sleep when I needed it? Yes. Sometimes you just have to give in to the opportunities around you and rest.
5. Hydrate. Our hotel had a fridge, but we didn’t realize that before our trip (lack of my research!). I wish we had brought a case of water, because we ended up spending the same amount on one bottled water out on our adventures as we would have if we’d bought a case. Lesson learned. But, hydration was necessary. I almost passed out at the zoo, thanks to the LOVELY heat wave we had, but it was too late to hydrate with water and I had to find some lemonade stat. (You might know that heavy feeling you can get with water when you’re dehydrated.) And keep the ‘lil ones hydrated, even if it means more trips to the bathroom. Just hope they don’t pull an Evan and have to go after you’ve been standing in line for an attraction for 40 minutes. *wink*
6. Have Fun. This trip, I let go of the stress and really let myself shine. This just might have included a 10-minute session of jumping on the bed and giggling with the kids. It was proof that I need more time to be me and have fun!
More to come on what we loved about our trip, but hopefully these tidbits will give you thoughts about how to stick with a Thirver’s lifestyle while vacationing. Thank you, Experience Columbus, for giving us this opportunity.
No, I didn’t add a bucket list item. Arianna squealed with delight as she jumped all of three feet in the air on the mall bungee. She is growing up way too fast.
On our vacation we found a live starfish and enjoyed showing it to the kids before releasing it back to the ocean. So memorable.
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This post is part of NaBloPoMo.
