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Last month we made a trip to Mason, Ohio to Kings Island Amusement Park. We had the most perfect day possible. It was raining in the morning as we drove into the park. We had our sweatshirts on for the first 30 minutes, but then the sun came out and the rest of the day was absolutely beautiful. I think the rainy forecast kept most everyone away so there were not very many people there at all. Most rides we only had to wait maybe 10 – 15 minutes. There were like 3 roller coasters that we had to wait just 20 – 25 minutes. I just perfectly happy just hanging with Karli while the boys went on the bigger coasters. The older I get the less I am thrilled about going on some of these rides. I would go if I had to, but if I have the excuse to “sit this one out”, I certainly take advantage.

Blake and Andrew each brought a friend so they always rode together. Ken rode with Chase and I rode with Karli. We ended up all staying together even though we thought the older boys would want to walk around by themselves. Karli actually went on a couple of the roller coasters. She was kind of scared when she was on them, but then afterward she was glad she went. Chase went on every ride that he was able to since he is only 49 inches tall. Blake was tall enough to ride everything, but there were still a couple of things he wouldn’t go on.

Oh, funny story… The first roller coaster we went on they made Karli get out of her seat so they could measure her to make sure she was 48 inches. She was slightly taller than their stick, so she was able to ride. They told us that you could go to the front gate and get measured and receive a wrist band that says 48 inches so you don’t have to get remeasured for each ride you get on. Unbelievably Karli was just a hair to short to receive the wrist band. We were shocked because we had measured her at home as well and knew that she was just a few millimeters over 48 inches. They didn’t care that Karli had more than passed the height test on the last ride. Then Ken had Chase measured, he got the wristband and any guess what we did? We gave Karli Chase’s wristband! We knew that Chase would pass the height test on any ride, where as Karli may have not. Karli ended up only going on a few more rides that required her to be 48 inches, but it was still pretty funny.

Andrew and his buddy went on this SlingShot ride that you had to pay an additional $20 to ride. I would have never done this not in a million years!

Rest of the photos from our day can be viewed – Kings Island Set

We stayed the night across the street from Kings Island and stayed at the Kings Island Resort which was DISGUSTING!!! I was about to go to Trip Advisor and write some bad comments, but there are already plenty of them there. This was by far the worst place I have ever stayed. Ken and I had stayed there like 6 or so years ago and it wasn’t that bad at all. I think it is under a different name now. There was hair on the walls of the shower and the bathroom floor was so disgusting I had to cover it in towels. The faces of the dresser drawers were literally falling off. The carpet was worn with holes in some areas. I went to bed exhausted from the day thank goodness otherwise I would have laid there thinking about how disgusting the beds probably were. The only good part was breakfast in the morning according to all the boys. I thought it was just okay. Don’t ever stay there if you ever go to Kings Island.

The next day we went to The Beach Waterpark just around the corner from Kings Island. There website isn’t working tonight, not sure what is going on – thebeachwaterpark.com, I’ll post it though since it just might be temporary. It is a pretty nice waterpark and the kids had fun. We were able to do some of the slides with the kids which they loved, especially Karli. I think everyone was a bit worn out from the day before though and it was so hot, so we didn’t stay there all day long like we had intended. We headed home early, but not before we stopped to have Skyline Chilli. They don’t have those anywhere near our home. It was a fun two day trip and a nice getaway.

Over Christmas vacation we took the kids skiing at Alpine Valley in White Lake, Michigan. The kids had never gone skiing before and Ken and I hadn’t skied in like 12 years! We almost booked a 3 day trip to Boyne Mountain which is a much farther drive than Alpine. Then we realized that it probably wasn’t the brightest idea since the kids have never skied before…what if they hated it?

Sidenote for video: Andrew is in all black gear, Blake in the blue coat, Chase in the yellow. Ken is in blue, and Karli is easy to spot!

After going to Alpine Valley for just one day I think we made best decision. Karli was terrified of going down any hill. She went up the Magic Carpet (a conveyor belt that you stand on and it takes you to the top) on the smallest bunny hill twice and was upset both times. Oh, I have to tell you when we were talking with the kids about going prior to that day Karli wanted to know if there were bunnies hopping around the bunny hills all day! Wouldn’t that be cute if there were :p So, Karli spent most of the day skiing up and down about the last 1/3 of the bunny hill. Once I stopped pushing her to do anything, she had a blast.

Andrew brought a friend and they had the best time. They are old enough to go off on their own and they took advantage of the ski lift and going down the bigger hills. They both did really well for it being their first time on skis. However Andrew did fall a few times and every time he had to throw a little temper tantrum. Check it out in the pictures and you’ll see the clip in the video where he throws his skis. Yes, this is the same kid that will have his drivers license in 9 months, scary!

I should mention that we were super lucky that the weather was perfect! It wasn’t very cold and not windy at all. In fact at times, us older -out of shape folks were almost too bundled up for the nice weather. The worst part is getting the skis at Alpine Valley which is set up so horribly! You have to go to one place to buy your lift tickets. Then you go indoors and up some stairs to pick out your boots. Then up some more stairs to get your skis fitted. By this point you are so hot because the lodge is over-heated, you can’t wait to go out in the cold. Especially when you are having to deal with kids at the same time and help them carry their stuff. Not good. If you ever go to Alpine Valley, trust me- don’t bundle up until AFTER you have all your ski gear. Whenever we go back that is certainly what we will do.

Chase and Blake both skied really well too. Actually I was shocked how well Blake did because he can be a bit more clumsy. Now Chase on the other hand I was not surprised at all. That kid has a natural talent for anything that requires balance and speed. He was all over the place and it was so cute how he would ski down the hill and turn and stop in position right back in line to go back up again. Sometimes he would ski crouched real low which made me think of how Olympic skiers are on TV. In the video you see him fall down a lot, but most of that is him just being silly and having fun. Plus those were the best clips to share!

The only negative, which Ken will try to deny, is that Blake and Chase would have probably gone up the ski lift more, but Ken had enough after 3 times. The first time wasn’t too bad. The second time he had a hard time getting Chase situated on the seat and the chair kept stopping several times while they were on their way to the top. That doesn’t go over real well with a guy who is afraid of heights. He also fell getting off the ski chair because he was trying to lift Chase off at the same time and he got knocked in the head with the chair! Hey, I can’t say I blame him. I was thrilled to find out that Karli didn’t even want to go near the ski lift. I hate those things as well. I won’t even admit how much money was wasted on buying ski lifts for Karli and I and we didn’t even use them!

Overall it was an amazing time and I could see us going again, but probably without Karli. Or if she goes then I wouldn’t rent skis or purchase a lift ticket. Maybe next year we will take the trip further north, who knows! At the very least I would like us to start a tradition of going skiing at least once over Christmas break.