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.

Kalahari Resorts Indoor Waterpark

Did you know that Kalahari Resorts in Sandusky, Ohio is America's LARGEST Indoor Waterpark? I've mentioned before that we love to take the family to indoor water parks. This time of year, when it is so cold outside, makes it even more appealing - no matter what it is like outside, the weather is always perfect inside.

One of our favorite rides at Kalahari Resorts Sandusky is the Zip Coaster. The first of it's kind, this "water-coaster" propels you through 500 feet and 30 seconds of zero to 20 mph free-falls, dips and turns. It really is pretty cool to go up on water slide.

One attraction that I have not been brave enough to try is the FlowRider. On FlowRider, 50,000 gallons of water flows under you each minute to create a five foot ocean-like wave on this exciting attraction. This stand-up ride combines the thrills and skills of surfing, skateboarding and snowboarding in a wet, wild and safe environment.

For me, my favorite part about the indoor water park? Spending time with the family of course. Kalahari caters to that with their various room options, including an amazing family suite that sleeps 10 and includes a full kitchen.

Ready to book a getaway for your family? Check out the special offers (here) that they have made available just for you!

Want to learn more about Kalahari? Join us on Saturday, December 1st at 1:30 pm for a Twitter party. Watch for #Kalahari and join in on the conversation.

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.

Tyson Big Game Party and a splashing good time

This weekend, the family made their way to Kalahari Waterpark in Sandusky, Ohio. It seemed odd to not be at home for the Super Bowl, but we got a really good rate and decided that we could always have a little party at the Waterpark. We were going with another family, who also had some neighbors going to the water park.

Evidently, we were not the only ones that decided to take advantage of the rate and watch the Super Bowl at the water park. I was a little surprised at how long the wait was to check in and then, once inside, there was no question that there were a lot of football fans in the house. The cabanas, that you can rent daily, were full of people with football paraphernalia. Mostly, I saw Terrible Towels and other Steelers' gear, which would suggest that there were likely a number of very disappointed fans at the water park last night.

After checking in, we played in the water park for the balance of the afternoon. we learned that my daughter was just a smidge too short to ride on most of the "big" slides. Even for the family tube slide, you had to be 42" and accompanied by an adult. That was okay by her. She had a great time riding the same slides over and over. Her favorite was definitely riding the raft in the wave pool. My son was able to go on everything and came close to doing that. I didn't ride with him on Sunday, but I did on Monday. Around 6 pm on Sunday, when we were all feeling a little worn out and a bit hungry, we headed back to our room to change. After everyone was ready, we gathered in our friends' room to watch the big game and enjoy a multitude of snacks and dinner.

I had been invited by Tyson to enjoy a Tyson Big Game Party, with Tyson Any'tizers, and that is exactly what we did. The Tyson Any'tizers were actually a perfect solution for enjoying a party in a hotel room that was equipped with an in-room refrigerator and a microwave. We took along some plates and bowls to warm our Any'tizers in the microwave them and serve them. In the past, I have always prepared them using the oven, but was presently surprised at how easy it was to prepare them in the microwave (and they still tasted super yummy!). With the variety of Tyson Any'tizers available, we were able to meet the tastes of everyone, from the adults to the toddlers. We had Buffalo Style Popcorn Chicken Bites, Dippin' Twists with Kickin' Honey Mustard, Homestyle Chicken Fries and Popcorn Chicken.

The kids enjoyed their dinner/snacks picnic style on a blanket that had been placed on the floor. The rest of us used the table and chairs (just two) and the beds. We ate and watched the game on the reasonably sized, flat screen TV at the hotel. It was a lot of fun and a very unique Super Bowl experience. It was a lot like a regular party though, with hot wings, popcorn chicken, chicken dippers, nachos and cheese, veggies and dip, cheese balls (the puffed snack), and more. It was a little difficult to set out the food - we lined some of it up on the dresser in front of the TV, but it worked for us. A good time was had by all.

No compensation was received for this post. We received coupons for free Tyson Any'tizers, as well as a gift card, to help us host a Tyson Big Game Party.