Spring Break Staycation - Bowling and Arcade Fun for the Family #StarLanes #Polaris

When I was a kid, Spring Break was just a week off of school. There was one year that we headed on a family vacation to Arizona, but aside from that they were just a week at home. I'm not really sure that I remember that my friends went anywhere either. There wasn't a 'fancy' term for staying home that week, it was just what we did. Nowadays, of course, the practice of staying close to home and enjoying all that your broader community offers has a label - staycation.

Now that I am a mom, we tend to spend the week of spring break close to home. Making some short driving trips, but otherwise spending time with friends. We like to fill the week with activities like bike riding (although it seems to be very windy when we do), bowling, jumping (used to be at an inflatables place, but now we have trampoline places), heading to the playground, swimming at the Y (or a water park) and hanging out with friends. This year our spring break has included play dates with friends, movies, breakfast out, swimming at the Y, board games and sleepovers. Still to come is a chocolate factory tour, movie and lunch at a dine in theater, time with Grandma and Grandpa, a trip to the science center, a visit to the bookstore, bowling and probably more dining out.

Many businesses know that there are many families doing staycations and offer specials during the week. The week before spring break, our local Y sent out a special pool schedule for spring break. I have seen special offers from many other local businesses that know that parents will be looking for something to make the break fun.

If you are in the Columbus area, or close enough to drive, like we are, then you might want to check out the special offer at Star Lanes Polaris. Their special is designed to span several weeks of spring break, so you can take advantage now through April 10th.

Pins, Pop-a-Shot and Pizza

March 16 - April 10

For $15, children ages 12 and under, will receive a kid's meal menu item, game of bowling and shoes and $5 arcard game card.

Available weekdays from 11am to 3pm. Must be accompanied by an adult.

Why not gather together your group of moms (or dads) and plan a playdate at Star Lanes. You can all visit, while the kids play or join in the fun and challenge the kids to a game.

No compensation was received for this post. A promotional gift card was provided for a future visit. All opinions are my own or that of my family.

$50 Sunoco Gift Card Giveaway!

*No compensation was received for this post. All opinions expressed are my own or that of my family.
Summer might be over (can you believe that tomorrow is the first day of fall?), but that doesn't mean that you can't still plan a special getaway. Whether a staycation or a vacation, time away with family is a great thing - especially, now that the kids are in school and more busy - those getaways, whether near or far, are a great chance to bond with the family. Some of my favorite memories and stories come from vacations.

Are you planning a getaway? We are planning a getaway to a nearby indoor water park and then a family vacation later this fall. One of the ways that we plan for our vacation is to stock up on gift cards for places along the way or at our destination - food, gas, etc. We both purchase the cards with redeemed points through loyalty programs and use the purchase of the gift cards to earn other rewards.

Sunoco gas gift cards can be used for any kind of purchase at any Sunoco station, APlus convenience store, and Ultra Service Center. Gasoline gift cards are available in $25, $50 and $100 denominations. Make your gas gift card last longer with discounts on gas using your APlus Rewards card.

You can learn more about their gas gift cards here and find the locations on your route (or in your neighborhood) here.

Giveaway
How would you like to save a little money on your next getaway? Sunoco has offered a $50 Sunoco Gift Card to giveaway to one A Busy Mom of Two reader.

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Giveaway will remain open through October 3rd. Giveaway is open to residents of the US only. Winners will be selected through Rafflecopter. The winners will have 24 hours to respond or a new winner will be selected.

No compensation was received for this post. All opinions expressed are entirely my own or that of my family.

Kalahari’s Summer Splash Celebration #giveaway #KalahariOH *

*a complimentary gift box for my family to experience. All opinions expressed are entirely my own or that of my family.

There is just something so fun about a get away at a water park. As a kid, I can remember the fun of going to the water park and they hold the same appeal today as an adult (somewhat surprisingly, since generally, the idea of walking around in my bathing suit is far from appealing). I have always been one to enjoy the water and swimming, but the experience was so different than just a day at the pool. In fact, most of the time, there is little actual swimming - lots of sliding and splashing and floating, but little swimming.

Water parks have come a long way in my lifetime. When I was really young, I don't remember that we even had water parks in Ohio (we may have, just not any that I knew about). I know that when I was older there were a couple of water parks built in Cincinnati - the Beach came first in 1985 and Surf Cincinnati a few years later. A trip to the water park was a special day, but it was just a day. I can remember one year, when we were on vacation in Myrtle Beach, we took a day and went to the water park down there. I don't remember much about the park itself, but I remember coming back to the room after the day at the park and my brother had a strange rash. That rash turned out to be chicken pox that he had unbeknownst to us had been exposed to those last couple of days of the school year. It made for a fun ride home and although I didn't have them on vacation, I did get them a few weeks later.

Now, as an adult, I have had the fun of taking my family to enjoy indoor water parks. Many are actually resorts with the water park attached to a hotel and full of several amenities for the whole family. Not only do you have the luxury of being able to enjoy a water park year round and not worry about getting a sunburn, but you also get the chance to head back to the room for a break and the chance to play the day you arrive through the day you checkout.

One of the water parks that the family enjoys going to is Kalahari Resorts in Sandusky, Ohio. Did you know that at 173,000 square feet, Kalahari Resort in Sandusky is America's largest indoor water park? Kalahari water park is full of attractions for all ages and level of thrill seekers. Some of the attractions include a 12,000 sq. ft. wavepool, the Swahili Swirl 60' diameter bowl raft ride, Zip Coaster uphill water rollercoaster waterslide, Cheetah Race 4 lane mat slides, Kid's Safari and Leopard's Lair for the little ones, Rippling Rhino and Victoria Falls raft rides, lazy river, and MUCH more!

In addition to the obvious attraction of the water park, we enjoy their room selections. Our favorite is their Village Suite, featuring three bedrooms (one with a king bed and two with two queen beds), a living room, and a fully equipped kitchen. It is a great way to enjoy the park with a large group. We have gone with my family and especially with young ones, it is nice to be able to make a dinner in the room and to be able to put them to bed for the night and still be able to gather and visit in the common areas.

This summer, you can enjoy Kalahari's Summer Splash Celebration: A ONE WORLD AFRICAN CELEBRATION OF MUSIC, FOOD & ART.

As part of the celebration, I have an opportunity to share with one reader a Kalahari Sandusky Gift Box.

Kalahari box containing:

· Kalahari Brochure
· Summer Splash Flyer
· Features Fact Sheet
· Green Initiatives Fact Sheet
· 1 Sandusky Overnight stay with restrictions
· 4 Sandusky Safari Outdoor Adventure Park Passes
· 2 Kalahari Ball-caps
· 1 Kalahari CD
· 2 Kalahari Magnet
· 2 Shirts

a Rafflecopter giveaway


Giveaway will remain open through August 15th. Giveaway is open to residents of the US only. Winners will be selected through Rafflecopter. The winners will have 24 hours to respond or a new winner will be selected.

No compensation was received for this post. I received a complimentary gift box for my family to experience. All opinions expressed are entirely my own or that of my family.

Time for a Vacation?

I don't know about you, but it always seems that after all of the fun and excitement of the holidays, life seems a little blah. Fortunately, there are still a few more days left in this holiday break, but I already find myself thinking, what will we do after the holidays. Here in North East Ohio, when you consider the weeks and months of cold and snow that likely await us, it starts to make me wonder how to mix it up and get away.

For the past several years, we have planned a get away to an indoor water park. There is certainly something to be said about wearing your swimsuit and splashing around in a water park, while snow gently falls outside. It is great to feel warm and escape the constant chill that seems to be a part of winter. Plus, after a few weeks of normal life, it is good to have something to look forward to.

The fun of a water park certainly helps to break up the blahs of winter. Why not consider booking a trip for your family in January or February? Don't forget to consider a trip to the spa to pamper yourself too!

Don't forget, you can still take advantage of the special package offers for A Busy Mom of Two readers at Kalahari Water Park in Sandusky, Ohio or the Wisconsin Dells.

No compensation was received for this post. I am participating in a Kalahari posting program through US Family Guides. As a participant, my family will receive a one night stay at Kalahari. All opinions expressed are my own or that of my family.

Fort Rapids Indoor Water Park

Where does the time go? It has already been almost two weeks since we took a mini-vacation to Fort Rapids Indoor Water Park. Indoor water parks are a great family getaway - in fact, we try to go one or two times every winter. Typically, we do a late fall trip and an early spring trip. We often try to align to a day off of school, but sometimes go on the weekend.

I have been to several indoor water parks and I feel like each of them has their pros and cons. I love how they all do a great job of theming the entirety of the resort. They also offer a variety of non-water activities to entertain your group when the water park is closed.

This was our second trip to Fort Rapids. The theme at Fort Rapids is the wild west. The lobby is large and features a giant fireplace. It is around this fireplace that you can gather in the evening for a bedtime story and cookies & milk (at least on the night we were there)

The water park is not a huge place, but this is a good thing.

The centerpiece of the park is their Rascal Round Up. Featuring several slides and constant running water, the highlight is the 1000 gallon bucket that is perched atop the play area that tips over on a regular basis, sending a lot of water splashing down.

My daughter is a big fan of the purple slide in the Rascal Round Up Area. I think she likes the blue tube as well, but since it is enclosed and dark, she is less inclined to choose that slide. What is nice is that your child can grow through the slides - there are three lower level ones and then the two larger ones at the top.

For the younger crowd, you can spend time at the Kiddie Korral. This area features low depth water with water toys, an umbrella that I call a 'mushroom' and four kid size slides.

One nice thing that you will see throughout the park are a number of 'Science of Splash' signs. They have partnered with COSI and share about the science behind some of the attractions.

They do not have a wave pool, but they do have a lazy river. They also have three large tube slides that all empty into the lazy river, including Black Out Pass - which is the ride my family calls the toilet bowl, because after a course through a winding tube, you are shot out into a large bowl and you circle it a few times before dropping down the tube into the middle and into the exit pool. For all three of the tube slides, you can ride alone in a single tube or pair up in a double tube. My son was tall enough to ride and even adventurous enough to ride on his own. I liked that we could experience the slides together or 'race' each other to the bottom.

Speaking of racing, they have a set of slides called Shoot Out Racer, we just call them the racers. It features four tubes that you ride through on your stomach on a racing mat. They all follow a similar course and finish four across. At the tubes, each slide is a different color, at the bottom they are all open, yellow slides. My daughter was a little nervous about riding them the first time. The lifeguard was very kind and suggested that she try the yellow tube. Turns out that the yellow is translucent, making the slide more light than dark through the tube portion of the ride.

Catching pictures of your family sliding can be a challenge, but can give you some rather 'artsy' looking pictures.

The water park has a very limited supply of towels available. They make this very clear on their website and encourage you to bring your own. Having been to other parks where they are readily available, it was a little disappointing to not have them easily available. They also have a limited number of life jackets available for the little ones. Again, they have some, but not many - so it is a good idea to plan ahead and bring your own if you have it.

After a long day at the water park, we were happy to go back to the room for the evening. The resort has a variety of rooms that will meet a variety of needs. They have guest rooms and family suites. The guests rooms are available for parties of 2 - 6, with the 2 being the room with one king bed and an in-room Jacuzzi. Have a bigger party, or want some common space where the parents can stay up longer than the children? Then, I would recommend the family suites, which can sleep from 6 to 12 guests. We have stayed in both the Havazu Canyon and the Kings Canyon. The Havazu sleeps 8 and the Kings Canyon, 10. I like the set up of the smaller room, because sleeping for 6 of the 8 are in bedrooms. This means that the kids can go to bed and the doors be closed, while the adults hang out. The common area featured a couch and a chair. I also like that it had a kitchenette and a small table that makes it easy to eat a meal in the room (we picked up some food to go and relaxed and ate it in the room). The Kings Canyon had sleeping for 2 in a bedroom and 2 in a loft, with the other 6 spots in the common area. It had a sofa and a chair in the common area, but the only other seating was on the 2 beds in the common area. I definitely loved though that this room featured 3 bathrooms! This made changing to go to the water park a lot easier. I also like that the rooms featured a dryer - making it easy to dry the cover-ups, suits and towels for the next visit.

There is also plenty to do after the water park closes. There is an arcade, they do evening story time, and there are restaurants.

In fact, the weekend that we were there, there was a family Halloween costume party. It included a DJ, games, Caricatures, Pictures and snacks. I just wish I had known ahead of time that when they snacks, they meant a mini-meal. The snack area featured pizzas, chicken fingers, marshmallow ghosts, candy and caramel apples, punch, and more. We had already eaten dinner, so we only picked at a few of the treats. There was a costume contest, which we missed because the kids were anxious to get more time in at the water park. The prizes included future stays, vouchers for the arcade and more. They also offered trick or treat around the resort. The kids had a great time putting on their costumes and having a little fun, before returning to the water park for one last hour of play before it closed.

One of my favorite things about Fort Rapids is that it is a short drive from Cleveland and allows us to easily meet up with friends and family from southern Ohio for a weekend get away.

No compensation was received for this post. Information was provided through US Family Guide, of which I am a member blogger. My family was invited to enjoy a complimentary visit to the water park to facilitate this review. All opinions expressed are my own or that of my family.

Fort Rapids Waterpark - Columbus

As a busy mom, I enjoy taking short get away weekends with the family. It is not uncommon for us to take a weekend and head to a nearby amusement park, zoo, science center or water park. I like to keep the trip to only a few hours, so that the ride isn't too long and we can have more time at our destination.

One city that we have made weekend (or mid-week) trips to is Columbus. They have several attractions that the family enjoys. A while back, we made a weekend trip and met my cousin's family for some indoor water park fun. We headed to Fort Rapids. It is smaller than some other water parks that we have been to, but it was just the right size for us. I love that indoor water parks can be year round destinations. In the winter, you can escape the cold and snow. In the summer, you can hang out inside, away from the direct sun - this is really important as I seem to have a knack of getting burnt at the outdoor water parks.

See that purple slide? I am pretty sure that is the slide that my daughter declared her favorite on our last visit. Part of the Rascal Round Up play structure, she would venture to the top on her own and I would catch her at the bottom. Perhaps you see the racing slides behind it? That was is the Shoot Out Racer slide that my son enjoyed. Him and my husband raced down several times. I would walk over between my daughter's slides and see them come racing down. With only a 42" height requirement, my daughter should be able to join in on the fun and we can do some family races.

Great Deal! Save $50 off Overnight Stays OR $12 off Day Passes!

Fort Rapids is "central Ohio's largest indoor water park resort. Fort Rapids is the perfect family fun travel destination where 60,000 square feet of wet and wild fun is waiting for the whole family. Come relax and unwind in one of our guest rooms or family style villa suites, then zip down 12 unique water rides, float in the lazy river, get drenched by the 1,000 gallon tipping bucket and win big at the 5,000 square foot Gold Rush Arcade."

No compensation was received for this post. Information on the deal was provided through US Family Guide, of which I am a member blogger. In exchange for this post, my family is invited to enjoy a complimentary visit to the water park.

Camping Out

The other night, as we were sitting at the dinner table, my five year old asked when we were going to get to sleep in the tent. Aside from indoor camp-outs, she has never slept in a tent or gone camping. We made one attempt when she was about 9 months old, in our friend's yard, but the kids and I wound up coming home. She wasn't always sleeping through the night at that point, so I figured that sleeping in a tent would not help her sleep through the night and the others at the camp-out likely would not appreciate the sound of a crying baby at 3 am.

I can remember doing lots of camping as a child. Whether it was sleeping in the pop up camper in the driveway with all of my cousins at a slumber party the night before my brother's birthday party, an annual weekend family camp-out with my dad's family, a weekend camp out for Girl Scouts or even a vacation that we took to a lake and camped, I always loved it. I can remember at the family camp outs that when my cousin and I got older, that we were allowed to share a tent, instead of sleeping in the tent/camper with our families. I loved the hiking, the swimming, the hanging out around the campfire and the waking up in the morning to the sounds of nature.

The campfire brought with it so many stories and lots of delicious food. There is something great about food cooked on the campfire. For some reason, Hot Dogs tasted better when you cooked them on a stick. Marshmallows were so nice and ooey gooey - and sometimes, added to chocolate for S'mores.

But, I think my absolute favorite food from the campfire were the pockets of yumminess we cooked in our pie irons. Somehow, simple bread was transformed when added to a little bit of butter in a hot pie iron and filled with the simplest of ingredients. It became so crispy and held such a delicious treat. We would make a variety of pie irons. When I was younger, I remember them mostly being desserts. We would fill them canned pie filling and sprinkle with powdered sugar. When I was older, I remember making Pizza Pie Irons. These were awesome, filled with some pizza sauce, shredded mozzarella and pepperoni. You had to watch, too much pizza sauce and you were sure to get burned on that first bite when the sauce oozed out. We also got fancy with our desserts and made a lemon meringue pie, using lemon pie filling and marshmallows on the inside.

When my husband and I purchased our first tent and camping gear, with a gift certificate I had received from work, I made sure that we bought marshmallow/hot dog sticks and pie irons. We did some camping in our pre-children years, but it has been a long time since we went camping.

Since my daughter asked, I think that we may have to take a mini-staycation in our backyard soon. We can pitch our tent, pull out our camping supplies and have a little campfire. We may have to borrow a fire pit, or maybe I buy a new one to replace our old one that rusted out, but we will cook our dinner on the fire and sit around telling stories.

I know that the kids would enjoy it and it would be a good trial before making a commitment to a 'real' camping trip where we load up the car and go to a campground or state park for the night. I always enjoyed camping as a kid and I think it would be fun to start our own family tradition of camping out and hope that my kids will have fond memories of camping out too.

What type of stay-cation will you take this year?

No compensation was received for this post. All opinions expressed are mine or those of my family. I am completing this post as a participant in the Hormel Foods Extended Family Blogger program. Hormel Foods provided some of the information for this post.

A Weekend Away is Still Away

When I was a child, I don't remember life being this busy. Perhaps it was because I was a child, perhaps it simply was that there was less going on. I know that I didn't personally do much with sports as a child - I played one season of soccer in elementary school, but my next foray into sports wasn't until high school when I joined swim team and ran track (my cross-season sport). I did Girl Scouts and once I was in junior high I was on the Science Olympiad team and Hyperbole. My two brothers each played baseball and soccer. I think that one or both also did Boy Scouts for a while. Even with three kids, my family seemed to have time to go on a week long vacation each year, a couple of camp outs and time to visit friends that had moved away. I remember nights spent at Grandma and Grandpa's house, trips to the circus with my aunt and her boyfriend and later husband, Friday night Bingo with Grandma and Grandpa, and so much more.

Life seems so busy lately, that I find myself really treasuring those times when we can get away as a family. Whether we are heading to the zoo for the afternoon, or a weekend getaway, the best part is spending time alone together. Time away from the normal distractions of life.

I would love to be able to plan week-long trips, but the reality is that if we don't plan it ahead of time, it is difficult to find more than a few days on our calendar that are free. This craziness that I call life, really makes me value the weekend getaway. Sure, my husband and I took long weekends away before we had kids, and those were great, but with the kids they are even more special.

Whether we are having a true stay-cation or heading someplace semi-local for an overnight or two, making the most of the time as family is my goal. I want to create memories for my children. I want for them to think back as an adult on the fun things that we did. Things that they will treasure. Sometimes, we are more successful than others. Sometimes, there is little that we can do to impact that.

Frequently, we turn spring break into a stay-cation. Over the years, we have fit in a variety of activities. Some of our favorite stay-cation activities include visiting the zoo, spending time at the science center, mini-golf outings, bowling and playing at the park. These are all wonderful and fun, but sometimes you just need to get away from all of the everyday distractions at home. So, we try to fit in several mini-vacations (weekend getaways), throughout the year.

One of our favorite destinations for a weekend getaway are Indoor Waterparks. Living in North Eastern Ohio, most of the year, outdoor water activities are limited, so heading out to an indoor waterpark is a great thing. When you spend your days splashing in the water in a heated, indoor space, it is easy to forget that there are 6" of snow on the ground outside. Fortunately, we have access to a number of indoor waterparks. I think that there are 7 or 8 waterparks within a 2 hour drive of our house and if we expand that out to just over 3 hours, I think we pick up another 2 or 3. We mix it up and visit different ones each time. I think that we have only been to a couple of them more than once.

Another destination that we choose is a zoo and/or science center in another city. We'll book a room at a hotel or suite in the area and will spend a day at each. It may not seem like an excursion, since you can do those same things at home, but for us it is still a get-away. We get to stay in a hotel, eat out for dinner and (at least until we get home) there is no laundry/dishes/etc to worry about. Just family time.

Parks (the state/national kind) are another destination that we choose when we are getting away for the weekend. Last year we took the kids up to Niagara Falls for the weekend. They were impressed with the waterfall and we got to sneak in a visit to the Niagara-on-the-Lake wine area for some tastings and purchases. The kids really got a kick out of being able to taste their own "wine" - it sure looks real when you are drinking grape juice out of a fancy wine glass.

Most recently, we spent the night at a local state park. There were some challenges with the visit, but overall, it was still time away with the family. We did a little bit of hiking (very little, but that's a story for another post), we swam a couple of times, we made dinner in our cabin, played some games of Yahtzee and Steal the Old Man's Deck and generally unwound together. I thought it was okay, despite the challenges, but I think that the others might have focused on the challenges. At the end though, we still made memories...knowing my kids, I will hear about the GPS that didn't work for months to come.

As I started out saying, to me getting away, even just for a weekend, is still a getaway. It is about having time alone together and building memories as a family. It may not be a big, fancy vacation, but a series of weekends can have the same impact and is a lot easier to fit into our busy schedule. This works for me.

Disney World Vacation - suggestions?

We are in the process of trying to plan a trip to Disney World for the family. My husband and I have both been as children, but this will be our first trip as a family. The kids are excited, but I think that we are probably more excited right now.

There are so many options in planning a trip to Disney World, that it starts to feel overwhelming. We are currently trying to figure out where to stay and whether the dining plan will be a good value for us.

Since this is the first trip for the family to Disney World, we think that we would like to stay at a Disney Resort location. We have narrowed in on a Moderate Resort and are considering Coronado Springs Resort. That being said, we have some points, not enough for the whole stay, but could potentially have some free nights at the Hilton by Downtown Disney. Normally, I would say that I wouldn't consider the Hilton, but it is on Disney property, includes transportation to the park and they do offer the Extra Magic Hours Benefit. Thing is that the rates for the room at Coronado are cheaper, plus if we start to bundle it, I think that there could be better value. It appears that both locations have a fee for wi-fi - not that I expect to be on it a lot, but still, something to consider. I know that the Hilton has a per day parking fee (we likely are driving), but can't seem to find that information for the Coronado Springs Resort.

Have you stayed at either of these resorts? What is your preference/feedback on the resorts? Have you stayed at another Moderate Resort at Disney World? What did you think? What do you see as pros/cons of staying at a Disney Resort location over another local Hotel Resort?

Next area of consideration is food. Of course, if we go with the Hilton, the dining package is not an option, but if we stay at Coronado Springs (or another Disney Resort), should we get the dining plan? I have read mixed assessments of the value of the package, what are your thoughts? Do you go with the 2 quick service/2 snack option or with the 1 table service/1 quick service/1 snack option? As I browsed menus on-line for many of the Disney Table Service locations in the parks, it seemed that we could likely spend a little less by being selective in our dining, but having the meal plan allows us to not worry as much about the where. That is part of what I liked about our Honeymoon - we went to an all inclusive, so we knew up front what most of our costs would be. I feel that the dining plan is similar.

Have you used the dining plan? Do you feel there was a value? How old were yhttp://www.blogger.com/img/blank.gifour kids? If you got the dining plan, did you still find yourself spending out of pocket on food?

What about Character dining/experiences? I feel like we likely would do a Disney Princess dining and maybe another more gender neutral one. I have also heard that the Star Wars Jedi Training Academy is something we will want to do for our son.

What has been your experience with Character dining/experiences? What do you recommend or recommend avoiding?

This post shared at the Works for Me Wednesday Backwards Edition, where you seek help from your readers on what works for them, instead of sharing tips and tricks that work for you.