Vacation Post

This year we opted not to vacation at Cape Charles, Va as we have the past few summers.  The drive was just too far now (8 hours) and we were ready to skip the beach and go somewhere different.  We wanted to go somewhere that was 1. closer to home. 2. had a lot of activities to choose from and 3. was not too expensive.  We ended up in Sandusky, OH. Overall, it has been great, but we had some hiccups along the way also.  Most people come here for Cedar Point which is the #1 amusement park in the US. We skipped it this trip.  Our kids could only enjoy so many rides at their current ages and we're going back to Kennywood at some point in Sept. anyway.  The cost just wasn't justifiable.

We got here on Saturday and got acclimated to the condo. That was a new vocabulary word for all of our children, "condo".  I'm SO thankful we live in a single family home with a yard! Whewie! Mommy needs some space! We grabbed mexican for dinner and hit the grocery store, of course.

Sunday we tried to find a beach to swim in. We're on Lake Erie but swimming beaches in OH are hard to find.   The first beach was contaminated with ecoli. gross.  The second beach was all rocks and not fun. There was also a snake in the water which was rather entertaining. After 2 attempts we came back to the condo and took a dip in the pool.

Monday was such an adventure! We took a ferry to Put-In-Bay on South Bass Island. We rented a golf cart and toured the island. Then we did some touresty stuff...butterfly house, rock wall climbing, took a tour of Perry's cave. A super fun day!

Since Monday was a bit pricey we wanted to try a cheaper alternative on Tues. and ended up roller skating. Ainsley and Lance roller bladed and Sage and Jude both attempted skating with trainers (like a walker on wheels).  They did not last long and ended up on scooters instead. When did roller rinks start with scooters? And why most we skate in the dark and fog??? Ainsley and Jude had a lot of fun but Sage busted a few times and was not happy to be there.  We ended the day with a quick thrifting trip for Ains and I at the local Goodwill and a swim at the condo.

Wednesday we found a REAL beach! hooray!  It was super relaxing. The kids played together so well for hours.

Thursday we went to an outdoor water park called Monsoon Lagoon. While it was fun, Sage and Jude quickly got cold (darn Ohio weather!).  There was a pool, a second pool with slides, a lazy river, and then putt-putt (which Sage really liked!), go carts (a blast!) and bumper boats.  It was amazing to me to watch Ainsley drive her own go cart! Eeek!  All in all, we spent more time doing the out-of-water activities so that S & J could enjoy the day too.

We saved the best for last and went to an indoor water park on Friday called Castaway Bay at Cedar Point.  After a week of cooler temps not great for swimming we were thrilled to walk into a really warm park with warm water.  Oh. It was so much fun. We spent 8 hours there and we loved it. HUGE water slides, small water slides, a daring raft ride that A and S loved, a wave pool and the blessed hot tub.  I'm a little concerned that Sage and Jude have my circulation issues. They both begged and begged to go back to the hot tub numerous times throughout the day.  I was happy to oblige!

So, the hiccups.  Live and learn, right? Um. All these activities and adventures cost alot of cash!  :)  I think we'll still be able to meet our monthly budget but it sure adds up quickly.  The biggest bummer of our trip was the condo.  It was not nice. On day 2 or 3 we realized we had a LARGE flea problem. Gross, gross, gross.  Lance wrote the owner. It was that bad. I feel bad for my husband. He probably has 50 bites on each ankle. Of course he isn't one to complain.  I'm so glad we did not bring the hamster and I will never rent a place again that allows pets. Everything in the condo is just cheap.  I have to laugh because this next story is so out of character for my husband, but it proves my point.  The sheets on the master bed (a king) were SO cheap and yucky.  They felt awful to sleep on but what can you do? Um, my husband went out on Wed. and BOUGHT NEW SHEETS. That's how much he disliked the sheets.  We can use them at home but I just have to laugh at my sheet-snob husband. The master bedrooom also shared a room with the fitness center.  We were able to get all of our workouts in but were often woken up by people working out super early or super late.

All in all, it was a great vacation minus the condo :)  Sweet memories were made and that's what matters the most.  I will try to post more pictures at a later date but they are a hassle to retrieve from Lance's phone.