Cherry Hill

New Summer Adventure #5

Since I last went to Cherry Hill (many MANY years ago), it really has changed. The first thing I loved was the abundance of grassy shady areas with chairs for families and their bags to park. This green space is the center "island" for a pretty big lazy river, that passes under old time bridges and in front of fake western store fronts, etc. My kids were content with that scene for at least a couple of hours, and Peter and I took shifts with Sean on the green space. I immediately regretted that I brought NOTHING to read, and no fake old time bookshop in sight. It was a shame.



You don't have to pay for a tube, you just have to keep your eye out for someone to be done with theirs. It never felt like we had to wait too long. :o)



Ben decided to snuggle in the towel on my lap for a minute. He is silly about pictures! Always hard to get a good one, but still they capture the moment.



Sometimes I'm mean and take pictures of my kids when they are in the middle of a cry. This is Ben when he still wanted to be in the river. But then I busted out the strawberry milks and all was forgiven.



Zach was not a fan of the canyon ride, the whole water in the face thing. So since he went on it with Peter the first time, I could NOT talk him into going again with me. I tried all the tricks in my book, still I ended up riding that alone while the boys were patient snacking and waiting for me.

I had shown the boys the 360 degree pictures on the Cherry Hill website, and they were stoked about the pirate ship near the toddler-deep splash pad area. But guess what? No climbing on the pirate ship. Lame!

We swapped out our wet towels with some dry ones in the car and headed over to these slides:



They were a hit with the kiddos. Peter and I each got to go down at least a few times with each child. Good times. The turns were pretty zippy, and try as I may I almost always goofed up on my leaning and nearly tipped over at the end every time!



Zach's impressions of the blue slides. (Not a lot of water in the face here, see?)



Cherry Hill is great for a lot of things, especially so for families with kids just a little bit older than my own. I love that there is an RV park and campground right there, so it makes for a good family reunion set up. For the price, if you live nearby and think you would come often, I think it would actually be worth paying for the season pass. I had coupons such that one of us was free and the others were at a discount, and it was still a $35 day.

As we were leaving, and here is the lamest part of the whole thing... I finally decided to ask someone to snap our picture at the mini golf and blue slide exit near where we parked. Soggy towels and swimsuits and all. So the nice lady took two pictures, and said, "do you want to check them?" Me: "no, I'm sure they're great!" Then two seconds later in the midst of loading the kids, I check and NO pictures of our family group. Bah! I just wanted one because we likely won't be making Cherry Hill an every year event. What do you do? Unload everyone? And find another poor bystander to help us out? Ah, well. We were pretty beat and happily headed home to the tunes of the kids telling us they were STARVING. Poor things.

Hershey Park in Hershey, PA

Adventure #1 for the Summer Adventure Challenge

the story, as I remember :)

*We got there just after it opened but with our huge group, it took forever to actually get in the gates

*even with my $12 off per adult coupon (yes, Sheely was considered an adult!!) it still cost me $140 to get in with my kids. WOW. That's a lot of dollars.

*I made both of my boys wear red AND they had wristbands there where you could write your cellphone number and put them on your kids so they could call you if your kids get lost. I find this a fantastic idea, since I've just been writing my cell number on my kids' hands for years!

*I chose not to drag around my expensive camera - so my pictures turned out kinda lame, but that's what I get. I knew there would be much chucking of the backpack and I didn't want it to
get trashed (I was right, lots of chucking of the bag)

*we convinced my mom to rent one of those awesome electric wheelchairs - and thank heavens, that is a hilly park! it would've been a nightmare on her crutches!

*as soon as we got to the first set of "kiddie" rides, I realized my problem: I had no husband and two big kids and one little kid. I had not thought logistically about how to help everyone get what they needed (i.e. - big rides for big kids, little rides for the Tuft). I started feeling really stressed next to the little dragon ride when my sister Erin hooked up Sheely with Chris and off they went to the huge roller coasters and Xavier was content to stay and do some younger stuff with Tuft. Sigh of relief

*Jordan and I took Emma and Xavey on a spaceship ride that went up pretty high, they liked that

*So many rides for little kids! That was fun - Preston was so thrilled to run from one to the other and back again, OVER AND OVER. His favorites: the Ladybug, the little swings, the little pirate ship, but especially the little kid SCRAMBLER - LOVED it and begged for us to keep walking back over there :) On the ladybug you just keep going around in a loop but there are a couple little bumps along the way, and every time we'd hit a bump, Preston would do his closed-eyes-manic-laugh that slays me.*It got really hot but not really humid, so if you stood in the shade, it was quite pleasant

*Two hours after getting in there, we left again to have a peaceful picnic lunch outside, and after food, bathroom, and more sunscreen, we were ready to head out again

*half way through the day, Chris brought to my attention to the fact that Xavey's shoe broke, like, the entire sole was almost completely detached, fun huh? He was really patient with it, since I was not about to buy some Hershey Park shoes - he just flapped around with it the entire day!*Until about 3pm, I hadn't been on a single adult ride, it was just the way it went. I wasn't feeling frustrated, just a bit bummed, but when we found a shady spot with three great kid rides and a few bigger adult rides nearby, it worked out for me to go on one by myself and one with Lauren before she had to leave, so that was fun - thanks to all my helpful family that made that possible

*it was really fun to see Preston hanging out with his littler cousins - especially the ones closest to his age. He usually just sticks with his big brother, but when Jordan and Chris had both my big kids off on big rides, Preston was so cute with the younger ones, I really liked that

*Emma spiked a fever and Mary was lethargic too, so after lunch Erin ended up renting a double stroller, which worked out awesome and the nice first aid people gave Emma some motrin (after she took a long nap) which perked her right up*Sheely really liked taking Ava on the Frog Hopper over and over more

*around 5, my sisters with really little kids were ready to crash, so we headed to the front of the park for dinner together. We just lucked out that we picked a restaurant where the seats are right in front of a drum show performance. Xavier was SO INTO it, he stood there like a statue and watched the whole thing! Then, when they started doing the limbo, he totally joined in :) THRILLED this mama, let me tell you! I got some video of that, I have no idea if I'll ever get around to posting it :)*Also, Xavey was so cute and helpful with Alex, he wanted to sit by her at dinner

*Since Erin's kids seemed to be good to go, she and I stayed after everyone else left! This was the season of "divide and conquer." To start off, Erin took Emma, Sheely and Xavier on the Comet, a pretty fun wooden roller coaster. While she did that, I took Preston and Mary on the Tilt a Whirl. Then we swapped kids again and I took Sheely and Xavier on the Super Looper something or another roller coaster (Xavey LOVED going upside down!!). Then we just kept swapping in such a fashion so that Erin and I both got to actually go on all the roller coasters! How is THAT for finally getting your moneys worth? My favorite roller coaster was probably the Wildcat - CRAZY PSYCHO fast and long wooden roller coaster. Preston told me that his favorite part with the big ferris wheel with me. I loved that too - the view was incredible! So strange to have big huge amusement park and then farmland :) Sheely loved the Mouse Trap, which I hated because I always think I am going to fly right off that horrible thing. Xavey loved The Claw, which is what we went on last.

*Sheely harassed me about treats for a long time until I finally said - at 7pm, it's treat time - one treat for everyone, talk to me about it before then and NO TREAT FOR YOU :)

*Tufty wanted ice cream (a cone, with sprinkles, of course). When we got there, I saw they made blizzard type confectionery delights so I ordered myself a peanut butter cup one. THE MINUTE that they handed me his cone, he had to go #2 - STAT. OF COURSE. So he did the twinkle dance while I paid and waited to grab my cup and then we sprinted all the way up the hill to the bathroom. Phew, we barely made it. Then I could get Sheely and Xavey their ICEE things and everyone could have treat happiness.

*THEN, more and more and more rides. Rides everywhere and with no waiting and SO MUCH FUN. I am just such a huge fan of the fast roller coasters that it thrills me that at least two of my children are right by my side in that love. This park really does have some good coasters.

*At the end of the day, Erin and I took turns going solo on the wildest rollercoaster of all - the storm chaser or something. It's one that goes from 0-60 in 1 second or something - HOLY COW that ride took my breath away it was so fast! I'm glad I told Sheely she wasn't allowed (even though she was tall enough). It was on the verge of scary for me! While Erin got her turn, Sheely took Xavier Preston and Emma on the frog hopper (a little free fall for kids) over and over and over. They would go on it, laugh hysterically, then run around and get on again - for at least the 20 minutes that I was in charge of them.

*The final ride (after yet ANOTHER sprint to the bathroom for someone) was the aforementioned Claw ride. Picture one of those giant pirate ship type rides that swing like a pendulum back and forth until they are pretty much vertical, but instead of a ship, you're sitting in a big circle in chairs where your feet dangle down and it spins you around WHILE you swing back and forth. WOWEE WOW. We just barely didn't make it on, so we stood in front and watched the one before us go. I could see Sheely and Xavey getting nervous, but they stood their ground and we all had a good laugh when BOTH of some one's flip flops flew off the ride and into the woods beyond the fence :)

*As we got settled into our seats, I asked Xavey if he wanted me to keep my hand on his knee. He said, "yes, so I don't fly away like a lost flip flop." and gave me that silly Xavey smile. I love that boy. We LOVED the ride - Sheely told me she was going to close her eyes the whole time, but she never did once, we laughed our guts out and screamed and while we were riding, the whistle blew for the park to close. A perfect way to close out the day.

*On the walk back, my boys held my hands. Sheely said a spontaneous, "THANKS MOM!!" and Xavey said, "This was a GREAT day." Sounds silly, but those words are what really made the 12 hours and $140 dollars worth it.

*both boys fell asleep, heads leaning against each other, on the tram

*arrived back at the caboose at 11:30, got everyone in bed and took a shower before soothing my poor blistered feet. An incredible and overwhelming and riotous day with my sweet children. Can I recommend Hershey Park? ABSOLUTELY. Wonderfully clean. Great rides. Lots for all ages. It was expensive, but as I've looked around, it seems to be comparable to other big amusement parks. Plus, there are giant chocolate bars that walk around and take pictures with you. It's a winner in my book.

Adventure Park USA

I've seen Adventure Park USA from my drives along Interstate 70, which goes from Baltimore to Chicago (and beyond, but we stop there :). Just before you hit Frederick, Maryland you can see a roller coaster from the freeway and I've always wanted to give it a shot.

My husband spent the last half of last week at Boy Scout Camp, so I thought I'd kill an evening giving it a try. It was way too hot to do it during the day. My sister and her two little girls came along.

When we pulled up my kids freaked out - very old west flavor and you can see a couple kiddie rides and the roller coaster from the parking lot. When we got inside it was all I could do to keep them with me because you could see a huge ropes course, a Chuckee Cheese type game area and a massive climber toy (also reminiscent of Chuckee Cheese). Here is the thing: you pay PER THING. It's not particularly cheap - so I decided to get a pass for $12 that I thought would include pretty much everything we'd want to do.

We went outside and there was NO ONE there. No workers, no other people, nobody. I had to wander around and FIND a teenager worker to hook us up with the rather small carosel. Then I made her follow us to the little helicopters. The teacups were broken (DARN IT, the kids would've ridden that one a lot). Here is the thing: all around are huge and fun things that are super fun but also super expensive and not included in my pass. Bumper boats, the roller coaster, go carts, etc etc. So my 5 year old was having crabby time about all the things he wanted to do and couldn't - and my 8 year old was ticked about the roller coaster being not an option either (FOUR DOLLARS a ride people!!)

But we dragged them inside and jumped in the single moonbounce ($1.5 a ride without the pass). They liked jumping but the thing was in the corner of the game room and it was SO DARK inside there!! And since all the car driving arcade games were right there, Preston lasted about two minutes and spent the rest of his time pretending to be a race car driver. Xavier really wanted the ropes course, also not included. They did enjoy the huge climbing thing and played in there for a long time.

I kept adding in my head how much we'd done and we STILL hadn't even hit the $12 mark - so I took the three big kids outside for some mini golf. The sun was setting and lovely and they were playing nicely (if not by any sorts of rules...). Then Preston came out with my sister because he'd peed himself. Good times. Luckily, his actual shorts were mostly dry so I took him and my younger niece on the carousel again (after finding a worker, AGAIN). Then we wandered around the nearly empty mini golf course as the big kids finished.

Since I actually ended up having $4 on my "card" (like a Dave and Busters type card, that's how you go on the rides unless you have a pass wristband) since I'd used some gift cards I won at the silent auction to pay for this event. I told Sheely she could use the extra to take a ride on the rollercoaster. After finding a worker the guy told me there was no money on the card. AAARRGGG!! I had to go BACK up to the front and make the teenager fix the problem and go find ANOTHER worker to get her on the dang ride. She did really like it though, so that was something.

After some more moonbounce and climber toy, we called it a night. We did kill two hours and I think the kids did have fun. I may have had one mommy tantrum at my 5 year old because of all his whining about what he COULDN'T do. Maybe I raised my arms and said, rather loud, FINE, then we'll NEVER COME BACK HERE!!! I felt a tiny bit bad about that but it did do the job and he canned it for the rest of the night and found the bright side.

All in all - if you've got big kids and more cash than me to spend on this sort of thing, it's probably worth trying. The go-cart tracks looked fun, and so did the bumper boats. I also saw paintball. The rollercoaster does look fun. I think they have a pass for adults where you can do all that stuff all day - which might be worth looking into. For me, though, until my kids are bigger, I don't think we'll be back.