Category: Places You Should See

The Disney Dream – Five Magical Days Part 2

September 25, 2013 · Leave a comment ·

For background and the first day of our cruise, please read part one.

Ports Of Call: Castaway Key

Disney leases the island known as Castaway Key from the Bahamian Government. Disney is once again in complete control of the environment and it shows. Since we’d sunk so much into Atlantis, we did Castaway Key on the cheap, opting for a package deal where we could swim with the stingrays, rent tubes and rafts, and ride bikes for an hour (it was too damn hot so we stuck with water activities). We had an awesome day. The girls loved swimming with the stingrays. The boys, meh not so much. The rays are kind of like puppies, when you first get in the water. They are excited to see you because they know you are going to feed them. They swim around in between your legs and onto the special tables where you can pet and feed them. According to the marine biologist who briefed us, there were 61 sting rays and they were rescues. All of their barbs were trimmed for safety, but we were still encouraged to do shuffle our feet through the sand to alert them to our presence.

We were divided into groups and everyone had chance to feed them (if desired). After they’ve had their fill, we took our snorkel and masks and were free to swim around their pen. Fish & I were floating having a staring contest with on of the rays when all of the sudden he (or she) rippled and disappeared except for her eyes. We both immediately stood and said “id ooo ee ah?” at the same time. We laughed and took the snorkels out of our mouths and said “Did you see that?” I’ve seen it on TV and in films, but it is really cool to experience in person.

We floated, we ate lunch, A-Man & Mim explored the water slide while Fish & I snorkeled some more, we had a day full of as much or as little activity as we wanted. The kids had an opportunity to participate in group activities on the island, but both were content to hang with their parents. Their parents thoroughly enjoyed it in anticipation of those years when they will want nothing to do with us.

Our fourth day was an At Sea day. This is by far my favorite part of cruising. I make it a point to find at least a little time to grab a lounge chair on the deck closest to the water and just appreciate the sea. I stare, I read for a while and eventually I end up investigating the inside of my eyelids, but I find it tremendously rejuvenating.

One of the amenities on The Disney Dream is the Aqua Duck, a “water coaster”. It’s a clear tube filled with water, you ride around the perimeter of the ship on an inflatable raft.Towards the end of our At Sea day, the line was manageable enough to entice me to try it. It was fun and definitely a novel approach to a water ride. The kids loved it. Husband and I pulled up a few beach chairs and relaxed watching the end of Tazan on the massive LCD screen mounted on the ship’s funnel (aptly named FunnelVision). It was enjoyable even if we did have to share the space with OPKs (other people’s kids 🙂 ).

Logistics

Disney manages things well. Boarding was a breeze. They pay attention to every detail. Even what folders guests leave in the cruise terminal. (NO! I didn’t leave the folder with the travel documents and passports at a counter by the Oceaneer’s club desk). *ahem*. We even had a full, hot breakfast on the morning of our departure.

Debarkation was a little crowded, but there is a smaller window of time in which 4,000 people pick up their bags, and pass through customs to get back to the U.S. Still we had no trouble finding our bags and the lines moved at a reasonable pace.

Would we do it again?

We will cruise again. Will we take a disney cruise again? Probably not. One of the big draws for us was the kid friendly atmosphere and by the time we have saved enough to cruise again, the kids will be old enough where that won’t be such an issue. We’ve cruised with Carnival and Royal Carribean in the past. They all provide excellent service (although not quite as good as Disney). We paid the extra to have an environment where we could be comfortable letting our kids go with minimal supervision. Was it worth it? Most definitely. Do I recommend it to other families? Without reservation. The Disney staff is just amazing. You will have a good time. Your child will have a good time. The memories are worth every penny.

The Disney Dream – Five Magical Days Part 1

September 23, 2013 · Leave a comment ·

About a year ago, my husband announced that the time was right to take the kids on a Disney Cruise. Um, Ok, no arguments here. I did some research and the plans were made.

Me: “When should we tell them?”

Him: “The day we leave.”

Can I just tell you how hard it is to keep a secret of THAT magnitude? Amazingly, we pulled it off. Here’s where the kids found out they were going on a Disney Cruise.

Let me start by saying that the number one objection I hear to Disney vacations is that they cost too much. It’s true, that they aren’t cheap, and a year later our finances weren’t as robust as they had been, but we made the trip anyway and I’m really glad we did. Disney has incredible standards of service that make any vacation with them a wonderfully memorable experience.

Ship: Disney Dream

Departure Port: Port Canaveral Florida

Cruise Length: Four nights/Five Days.

Ports of Call: Nassau, Bahamas, Castaway Key, Bahamas (Disney’s private island).

Overall rating: 4.5 out of 5.

The Accommodations

The thing about Disney is that they get the important stuff right. Our room was tight, but comfortable, we had opted for a room with a balcony, something I highly recommend. We had a queen sized bed and the kids had bunk beds. One dropped out of the ceiling and the other was the couch converted into a twin bed. Both kids said they were comfortable and our mattress was fantastic. The bathroom was in two separate rooms, a shower and sink and then a second space for a sink an the toilet. I’ve cruised before and one of my big complaints is the size of the shower. This one was down right spacious in comparison. It even had a little bench.

Disney Cruise Food

Food is a big factor for us when we travel. Fish is intolerant to gluten, eggs and dairy and allergic to red food dye. The combination means we rarely eat out at home, but Disney is amazing at handling food allergies. The staff went out of their way to accommodate her needs, even planning ahead to have an extra, sushi style appetizer on hand when they knew she’s love it. I may have been a little jealous that I didn’t think to order two myself. It was THAT good.

My one complaint was that outside of meals it was sometimes hard to track down snacks. On other cruises I’ve been on something has been open 24/7. But there were times when I just wanted a little nibble and couldn’t find even a strawberry. Truth is I probably saved myself a few pounds. I never starved, I was just looking to fill in a few cracks here & there.

Disney Cruise Activities

Fish is 13 and Mim is 9. Neither child participated in the planned activities as much as we thought they would, but in hindsight I attribute that more towards their personalities then a flaw in the programming. Her age group was automatically given the right to enter and leave the activities as they pleased. Their activities mostly started at 4pm. It’s a hard age to program for, but there was a variety of events, including cooking, movie making, movie viewing, video games and dance parties.

Mim’s group, The Oceaneers, had a two spaces just chock full of fun all day long. There was a Toy Story themed toy room, a craft room a dance floor, a science lab and gobs of video game stations. There were plenty of staff available to organize games and trouble shoot where necessary. We opted to give Mim the same freedom to sign in and out of the activities as he desired, with the understanding that if he didn’t behave responsibly, he would be glued to our sides. Some people were aghast that we’d let our 9 year old run around the ship unattended, but we know our kid. He was great about making sure we knew where he was at all times. It was actually nice to be able to feel comfortable enough with the environment to give him that taste of freedom, and even nicer that he lived up to our expectations.

Our schedule leading up to the cruise precluded a lot of family time, so the kids were keen to stay with us or do things as a family and that was fine with us. They even sought each other out to spend time GASP together! One highlight was a scavenger hunt that took them all around the ship. A-Man and I also managed to snag a few minutes to ourselves in the 18+ sections.

Ports of Call: Nassau. Bahamas

Here we opted for an excursion to the Atlantis Resort. Where we paid an exorbitant amount of money for access to Aqua Adventure (their water park), a lunch voucher and a tour of the aquarium. I should say we started off this trip by visiting Disney’s Typhoon Lagoon. In comparison, Atlantis Aqua Adventure has fewer attractions and longer lines that Typhoon Lagoon and we were at TL a sunny Saturday in August. The only attraction Aqua Adventure had that was better than Typhoon Lagoon, was the river ride. TL’s is actually a relaxing lazy river. AA’s is a river rapids adventure. There are calm parts, but there are also narrow passages and with rapids and waves. There are several paths to follow, on one, you are transported via conveyor up into the tower of one of the water slides. Where you then go down a series of slides until you are eventually released back into the river. That was fun and it was the last ride we rode, so we left with a pleasant feeling. The aquarium is small and in my opinion, not worth the trip. Atlantis is like a mini Las Vegas in the Carribean complete with gambling and high end shops. Nice, but not really my scene. If we hadn’t visited Typhoon Lagoon we might have had a more favorable impression of Aqua Adventure, but having visited both in such a short space of time, Typhoon won hands down.

I also feel the need to say that overall, I wasn’t impressed with Nassau. There are a lot of empty storefronts down town and in hindsight, I wished we’d picked an activity that supported the local economy rather than a mega-corporation headquartered thousands of miles away.

Stay tuned for part two later this week!

Bouncing Off The Walls, Literally – Sky Zone

March 5, 2013 · Leave a comment ·

It’s February vacation around these parts. A whole week off from school. Oh, yay. I mean OH! YAY!

We had no grand travel plans for this week. So that meant a week of little trips here and there in an effort to stave off cabin fever. In my research of new, exciting and reasonably priced adventures, I found a place where they could literally bounce off the walls.

Sky Zone is an indoor trampoline park with independently owned locations around the country. Our closest location is an hour and twenty minutes away. The trip was originally scheduled to coincide with a visit with family, but when the plans fell apart, I had already let the cat out of the bag, so we went anyway. I can honestly say it was totally worth the trip.

This location has 5 courts, a kids area for those under 40”, two dodgeball courts (during our visit one was for big kids and one was for little kids), Foam Zone, where you bounce from trampolines into a huge pit of 3-D foam shapes, and an Open Court where everyone bounces in their own trampoline rectangle . At 48” Mim was tall enough to bounce with the big kids, but they still divide jumpers by size, so while I could see him and jump next to him, he was on different side of the court. We were separated a open mesh curtain. This didn’t phase him in the least, but some kids might not be so happy with this arrangement.

Since we’d traveled a bit, we opted to bounce for 90 minutes at a cost of $16 per person. As much fun as we had, 90 minutes was a little too long. Mim loved dodge ball even though by his own admission he wasn’t very good at it. Fish & I alternated between the Open Court and the Foam Zone. She tried Dodge Ball a few times, but her teammates were bigger, faster and more competitive.

The facility was clean and well staffed. Before bouncing, you must have a waiver signed by a parent or guardian and you must meet with a staff member to go over the rules. There are court monitors at ever court and they kept things under control without harshing the groove.

You are not allowed to bring in any food from the outside, but they have water and healthy snacks available at relatively reasonable prices. We all had a blast and will definitely head back again. For locations and details, visit the Sky Zone web site.

This review was not requested nor was I compensated in any way. The words and opinions are my own.

Funky Chickens and Other Fair Phenomena

October 4, 2012 · Leave a comment ·

Fancy chickens in the poultry barn. Sometimes, sometimes it was hard to tell which end was which, if you know what I’m sayin’.

Required eating at the fair, pierogies and kielbasi for me, and chili in a bread bowl for A-man.

My crazy kid road this thing!!! What’s worse is that I let her!!

I take this picture every year, and the jeep keeps getting smaller. How does that happen?

Charleston, September 2012

September 25, 2012 · Leave a comment ·

“Mom what was your favorite thing about Charleston?” Mim asked. “The laughter.”

Four women, three nights, four days in Charleston, South Carolina and the surrounds. At one time, our only connection to one another was work related, but over time we grew to be friends which is good because eventually our work paths diverged. With one exception, we stay in touch via Facebook and Twitter. We know enough about each other to be concerned if one of us drops out of sight for too long (yes Scottie I’ve checked up on you), but there are great stories to share when we see each other.

The weather was warm, but not too hot. The food was fabulous and Karon took it upon herself to introduce the Yankees to some of the bounty the South had to offer. Bless her heart 😉. We experienced, she crab soup, real crab cakes, fried shrimp (that tasted like shrimp, not breading), fried green tomatoes, grits, muscadines, and boiled peanuts.

I learned some of the local dialect too.

“Iced tea, half and half”, results in a beverage that tastes good, but won’t put you in a diabetic coma after the first sip.
“Nakin, nakin, nakin” means “Do you want a napkin for the blob of muscadine that is on your chin?”
“Boyld peanut?” roughly translates to soggy, cold bead that has the texture of an undercooked potato.

We went on a Segway tour, saw Patriot Point, visited The Marketplace in downtown Charleston and experienced a fantastic farmers’ market. We shopped at a Piggly Wiggly (a.k.a. The Pig), ate breakfast at the Waffle House and enjoyed afternoon refreshment at Kudu, a local coffee house that also served craft beers and had a lovely courtyard. We rode the trolleys, got completely confused about who was meeting who, and where, ate lots of food that went straight to our hips and even laid a myth or two to rest. But, most of all, we laughed and that was indeed, the best part of the time I spent in Charleston, South Carolina.

NYC

April 17, 2012 · Leave a comment ·

Do you remember when your kids were babies and you wondered if you were going to be able to go anywhere of substance again? Would you ever be able to enjoy an activity that wasn’t brightly colored or littered with oversized characters? I’m here to tell you that yes, you can.

Fish and I took a day trip to New city York recently and had a blast! We were part of a larger group, that split up, so it was just the two of us loose in The Big Apple for nine hours. She originally wanted to go to Ripley’s Believe it Or Not Odditorium. I said fine but also made some suggestions including Madam Tussauds Wax Museum, A boat tour, 30 Rock, the Empire State Building, The Sony Wonder Technology Lab, and the Intrepid Sea, Air & Space Museum. Ultimately, it came down to a choice between the Intrepid and The Wonderlab. We didn’t jump on the WonderLab earlier enough to guarantee tickets. Fish was actually relieved because she’d had a hard time making up her mind.

I really wanted to use public transportation where possible. We live in an area with ZERO public transportation. It is possible my children will have enough vision to drive, but driving for the visually impaired varies by individual, by the state they live in and by road conditions. My kids might choose a field or land a job that requires them to live in a state where they won’t qualify for a license. I’d hate for them to turn down an amazing opportunity simply because they can’t drive. I want them to understand that especially in a major city, public transit is viable option.

Half the Adventure is in the getting there

The bus departed at 6am and arrived in New York at 11. I had a little trouble getting my bearings, but we were never more than a block or two off course. Turns out despite my heartfelt appreciate of public transportation, my skills are a bit rusty.

We missed the first bus because we were on the wrong side of the intersection. We missed the second bus because while I had the exact fare, they don’t accept paper money on busses, only Metro cards or coins. We acquired the necessary metro cards, but when we asked the driver of the third bus to announce the 12th Avenue stop, he smirked and said we were headed the wrong way. Ooops! Stupid ordinal directions! The fourth bus was the charm. We laughed our way through the entire adventure. “You’re never going to live this down, you know that right?” my daughter smiled an evil grin at me.

The Intrepid was fun. This kid LOVES museums. She is endlessly curious and museums provide a buffet for her brain. We prowled through the Growler a cold war submarine and then explored the aircraft carrier Intrepid from stem to stern. She got a kick out of the sleeping quarters for the enlisted men and loved looking at all the planes on the flight deck.

With only minimal confusion, we made our way back to Times Square and grabbed an early, quick dinner. After which she announced that she wanted to ride the subway and we should find a destination that would require a subway ride. We decided Rockefeller Center met the criteria. When we got there, the line to the Top of the Rock was too long for the allotted time we had left. She rolled with it. We stopped at Starbucks and headed back to the subway for a return trip to Times Square.

This was our first day trip to a new destination that was just she and I. I have no desire to be my daughter’s BFF, but this trip felt more like two friends exploring rather than Mom chaperoning a field trip. I don’t want to brag, but this is my blog, so I guess I can. I was so pleased that she shunned the shopping frenzy that gripped some of the girls. We had a few minutes before our final meeting, so we ducked into Toys R Us and she appreciated the display of Annoying Orange merchandise, and the ginormous Pig from Angry Birds, her only observation was to marvel at the bloated prices. “I bet that’s cheaper at home or even on Amazon.” Times Square was markedly more crowded in the early evening but Fish was a good sport about staying near me and my occasional need to hold her arm or steer her by the shoulders. It was a long day (almost 22 hours door to door), but she kept it together and we made some awesome memories.

There are so many places I’ve seen and want to share with my kids and new places I want to explore with them. I’m super excited that my daughter is growing up to be a delightful travel companion.

New Orleans, Louisiana

March 5, 2012 · Leave a comment ·

Grammy & Grandpa wanted to take the kids to Disney World for School Vacation Week. Who am I to argue? A-man & I weren’t exactly invited. We could have gone if we wanted to, but we’ve been to Disney before and we’ll go again. A-Man said I should find somewhere for the two of us. I love to travel but A-Man has a lot of travel scheduled the first four months of the 2012, so I would have understood if he wanted to just stay home. “If I stay home, I’ll just work, so let’s have some us time.” Oh how I love this man.

He wanted someplace warm. I looked at Arizona and New Mexico, New Orleans, Hilton Head, North Carolina and even other cities in Florida, . Everything was dismissed for one reason or another except New Orleans. We’d never been and it seemed like a city where we could do a short get away and cover most of the sights. We had a lovely trip. I had planned to research and loosely plan an itinerary prior to our departure, but life got in the way so it turned out to be a bit of a meandering vacation, but it was truly delightful and exactly what we needed.

We stayed just outside the French Quarter in a room with a decent view of the river. It was fun to just sit and watch the tankers and ferries go by. The weather was a bit damp at the beginning of our stay, but it dried out and was always warmer than home (60’s during the rain & fog and 80’s with the sun).

I’ll have more detailed posts, but we ate (a lot), walked the French Quarter, took a tour focused on life post Katrina and even did a little geocaching. We returned to Bourbon Street at night and while active, you could tell it was not anywhere close to it’s normal level of boisterousness. Everyone seemed tired, no surprise given they celebrated Mardi Gras just the week before.

New Orleans is a great place to visit. It’s filled with art and history and food (some good, some not so good). The locals love their city and they want you to love it too. I know people who return every year, but we felt satisfied with just a four day visit. I was meant to be a yankee.

Double Take

November 7, 2011 · Leave a comment ·

I recently met my friend Melissa for dinner. We met at a mall restaurant more or less half way between us. After dinner, we shopped a little and scored some great bargins. I had a few extra stops and she had a paper due, so we parted ways. The mall in question is undergoing renovations so on the way out, it took a little hunting to locate the ladies room. I did eventually find one in the food court.

When I rounded the corner, I double checked the sign.

Yup, still wearing a skirt.

So, imagine my surprise as I rounded the next corner.

What the !@$%?????

Embarrassed, I scooted out of the bathroom and rechecked both signs. No, I was in the right place. Still there was no one else in the bathroom, so I looked around for the cameras. Finding no one was waiting in the shadows to punk me, I took care of business. As I was taking care of the paperwork, I heard a group of women come in and go through the same process I did.

Of course the one I really felt sorry for was the guy who rushed by me on the way out.

Skate Escape

January 4, 2011 · Leave a comment ·

It was winter break, first there was Christmas and then the blizzard and oh my after four days in the house, Mama needed an escape! I’d had enough of shopping, and while the kids got gift cards for Christmas, I wanted to hold those in reserve for when the newness of the bounty they’d just received had worn off. Ice skating started to early (my kids had no interested in being dressed, fed and out the door by 11am over Christmas break). It was too windy to sled or snowshoe, and we couldn’t agree on a movie. Hmmm, what to do?

How about a Skate Escape? Skate Escape is a indoor rollerskating venue on Court Street in Laconia. Once we found the door, we had a blast!

Skate Escape is a converted store front, a quick Google search shows it used to be an Aubuchon’s Hardware. There’s plenty of parking, but we walked back and fourth several times before finally finding the main entrance (the old service entrance), located on the side of the building (away from Little Caesar’s).

Depending on when you skate, the cost is between $5-$8 per person and that includes admission, skate rental and protective equipment (available only on a first come, first served basis). Non-skating supervising adults pay $2. If you have your own skates (quad or inline), you can bring them, but wheels are checked at the door. They should be clean and smooth and Skate Escape reserves the right to prohibit the use of skates they deem unsafe or a damaging to the skate floor. I have a pair of inline skates. I washed the wheels with warm water and a paper towel before we left and I had no trouble.

I was really stoked for the opportunity to go rollerskating. When I was a kid, the nearest skating rink was Rollerama. The PTA sponsored a skating party in the fall and in the spring. On Saturday’s we’d go for free skate. I have some great memories tooling around the smooth wood floor. I can remember the rush to get in, get your skates and get on the floor. It seemed more often than not that I’d no sooner finish tying the last lace and head for floor when the song would change and the DJ would announce couples skate or Adult skate. My luck didn’t change this time, we got laced up and headed for the floor only to be turned back by a boys only skate. “I can go.” my son announced, but when I asked him if he really wanted to skate for the first time without me, he thought maybe he’d wait for an all skate.

Neither of my kids had roller skated before, so the first few trips around were a learning experience for sure. They have pint-sized chairs with tennis balls at the end of the legs that helped to keep Mim upright. Fish took a doozey of a spill the first time around and was a combination of hurt and embarrassed. She’s ice skated before, she rides a bike and skateboards so I think she was surprised roller skating was more of a challenge. It took a few more laps, but they got in the groove. and I even got a lap or two on my own. There was a skate guard on the floor at all times making sure everyone played safe. She was very kind and a great help to me trying to keep my eye on two kids. The DJ even gave a shout out to my mad skatin’ skillz when my son crashed to the floor in front of me and I was forced to quickly change position so I could pass over him rather than running into him.

When all was said and done the kids had fun and we all burned off some energy. We will definitely go back. When we do, I think we’ll bring our own safety gear (Fish said she wished she’d had a helmet). The walls and lolly columns are padded, but the concrete floor is unforgiving. Not that wood is a cushy, but there is some give, that just isn’t present in concrete. It is worth noting, that this isn’t an “official sized” rink, it really is a converted store. While support columns are not common place in a skating rink, they work especially with a crowd of in experienced skaters.

Public skate times are typically in the evenings and on weekends, they recommend checking their Facebook page for updates. You can also visit their website They also host birthday parties and the rink is available for private rentals.

If you are looking for a different activity to stave off cabin fever, I highly recommend Skate Escape.

I received no compensation for this post, these are my words and opinions.

A Staycation – The Red Jacket Inn and Kahuna Laguna

December 1, 2010 · 2 Comments ·

Earlier this month, we were blessed with a four day weekend. The kids had Thursday off for Veteran’s Day and Friday was a teacher’s workshop. I’m a list keeper, so there were certainly more than enough tasks to keep us close to home, but I wanted some family time and decided a quick getaway was in order.

The kids LOVE water parks. I looked at the two options in Massachusetts, but then decided to put our money were our mouths were and go local(ish). I booked a Stay and Splash package at the Red Jacket Resort in North Conway, New Hampshire. From beginning to end, I was pleased with the experience.

I looked at Trip Advisor for reviews and then went online to make our reservations. The booking system is fairly straight forward. I picked the Kahuna Laguna + Breakfast package with a garden view room with two double beds. The package included overnight accommodations for four (two adults and two children under 12), water park bracelets for four and breakfast for four.

We didn’t tell the kids where we were going or what we were doing. We just packed a few bags and launched the GPS. When we walked in, I told the woman at the front desk we’d gotten in the truck and this was where the GPS brought us and I was hoping they had a reservation for us. She played right along asking my daughter for our last name etc. The she outlined what our package included like I had no clue what was available. The look on Fish’s face when she heard “water park” was priceless. The only hitch was that I thought the our water park time was Friday morning, we found out upon arrival it was Thursday evening. At first I panicked thinking we’d short changed the kids, but it turns out that three hours is plenty of time to get your fill at Kahuna Laguna

Our room was very nice. Larger than your standard hotel room always a plus with four people. It even had a balcony! The Red Jacket is not a brand new resort, but it is very well maintained and updated. They even upgraded us to a Mountain View room. We quickly changed and headed to the water park. The snack bar wasn’t open, but we were able to order a pizza and drinks from the bar. It was $30 plus tip for a large, one topping, pizza and four non-alcoholic beverages (beer and wine were available). We were delighted that the pizza was better than average.

For those who might be used to Typhoon Lagoon at Disney or the more local Whale’s Tale or Water Country, Kahuna Laguna is small. It features two slides you ride in an inflatable tube and two body slides, a wave pool, a hot tub, basketball hoops, play space for the short and loud crowd and a sprinkler area. Kids have to be at least 42 inches to ride any of the slides. My daughter was tall enough to ride everything. My son is over 42 inches, but under 48 inches, so he was excluded from the body slides. He is not the strongest swimmer, so didn’t seem to mind at all. They provided a life jacket (free of charge) for his safety and comfort.

There are free lockers, an abundance of towels and life guards were ever present (my husband and I commented on how many miles they must walk in one shift). The water is treated, but it is not that overwhelming chlorine smell, it is a salt based system that is easier on the skin.

After three hours, it wasn’t hard to convince the kids it was time to call it a day. We all rinsed off in the showers at the park and headed back to our room. The water park is heated to 82 degrees, and the stroll through the lobby was a little brisk, but not bad at all.

The next morning, there was free coffee, tea and hot chocolate in the first floor lounge. Once we were all showered and dressed, we headed upstairs for a made to order breakfast. The kids enjoyed waffles and pancakes while my husband and I stuck with the traditional bacon and eggs. The eggs were farm fresh (I can tell the difference) and the bacon was thick. All was well with the world.

We packed up and spent some time in the game room, where I was able to scratch my itch for classic PacMan. We spent the rest of the day poking around North Conway, a blog post unto itself.

Rates at the Red Jacket vary by day of the week and time of year. A stay can get pricey, but with a little planning and flexibility, there are bargains to be had. Kahuna Laguna does offer day passes for $20 for swimmers and $10 for observers. We had a great time and would definitely stay at the Red Jacket again, but both my husband and I feel like we’ve “been there, done that” as far as Kahuna Laguna is concerned . The kids on the other hand would go back in a heartbeat. All in all a good time close to home.

Have you been? What was your experience? Have you been to either of the water parks in Massachusetts?

Live Fearless Lee

Or at least that's what I tell myself