The Secret...Revealed!

I have discovered the secret to awesome family adventures!!! In the last three days we have 1) Gone on our FIRST family camping trip and 2)Spent the day at Six-Flags America - all with my friend T and her two children.

The secret? Simply this... lower your standards. Drastically.

My goal was survival. I expected to be miserable - but hey, it was for the kids. The only thing I wanted to do was avoid catastrophes. I met my goal!

I'll detail the camping trip in the next post, right now I'll focus on the Six-Flag Adventure:

We were going to Six Flags for one reason, and one reason only....our children read the required eight hours (each) to earn a FREE ticket - and they refused to be denied their prize!

I started out excited about the upcoming adventure - and then I started researching the place. Reviews were horrible: the place was crowded and dirty, the lines were long and service was slow - and that was the good news! As we looked into "additional" charges we realized our "Free" day was going to cost a mint. $15 parking, $7.00 pretzels, $14.00 hamburgers, $9.00 raft fee. I started to fret and fume, and try to figure out less expensive options. I eventually gave up.

We postponed the trip several times, eventually settling on last Sunday. You know - the day of the monsoons? Luckily, we bailed before getting into the car, and rescheduled for yesterday. It meant T couldn't bring her boyfriend, but at least it was a Wednesday, and hopefully less crowded.

We were already tired from camping, and slow to get on the road. We didn't get to Six Flags until almost noon, and decided to stop and fuel up on the cheap at McDonald's before entering the EXPENSIVE ZONE. Paid the $15 for parking (rucka rucka rip-off!) and started schlepping to the gates. Finally got inside and realized we had to pay $17 for a locker rental (guess we didn't need to collect those quarters, after all!!!!)

And then - we were ready to play! Despite many buses filled with children, there was no wait for the non-thrill rides. Each ride, however, still took forever. The people seemed to move in slow motion, there was a deliberate pause before each movement and safety check, then they always stopped for the two extra people that were "almost" there, then did the safety checks again. I think it was a company policy, actually. They lose money the more times they run the ride, and so try to fill each ride to capacity before they start - and they are in NO hurry to start. Ah well.

It was a memorable event on the wooden roller coaster - the children and my husband's FIRST time on a large coaster - and my LAST. Stick a fork in me, I'm done!

When we were done with the ride part, we shared water and snacks we had stashed in the locker, then changed into swimsuits. Our first water ride was everyone's favorite - riding an inner tube down 1 of 4 slides into a 3foot deep pool. What fun! We spent quite a bit of time on that one before moving on.

The rest of the water park was less impressive - although the kids had a ball! I was especially impressed by the diligence of the lifeguards - they were amazing! (ok, I was initially irritated by their penchant for incessant whistle blowing - but I moved on!) Turns out the life guards are constantly tested and monitored. I saw one guy being berated because it took him over 30 seconds to see (and retrieve) the object the tester had thrown into the pool. Another dove into the water, blowing her whistle frantically, to "rescue" a staged drowning victim. No wonder these folks look like their wired on speed! I have NEVER seem a place take life guarding so seriously - way to go, Six Flags!!!

By now the kids were dragging and hungry. We bribed them into waiting until we left the park to get dinner by promising them dessert, as well (no, we have no shame, we're PARENTS!). We ended up at a nearby Ruby Tuesday's. The five children sat at one booth and the three adults were able to eat and speak in relative peace and another table! AND...the waitress kept telling us what wonderful, polite children we had!!!! (guess exhaustion works - right up til the moment they dissolve into a quivering mass, anyway)

We then took ours to the bookstore for a treat. They each got a book, and read in the car until they fell asleep. We were home and in bed by 10.

It was a good day! Wasn't perfect, but we were expecting to have such a hideous time that it seemed wonderful by comparison!!!

So there you go folks....when all else fails - lower your standards!

Pop back soon for the camping adventures of the bubble family - complete with real horror stories!!!

Enjoy!v