Remember the free summer camp program I wrote earlier this year?
Today was the day to redeem those hard-won points.
We piled into our beensy car (I call it our sardine can on wheels) for a long drive to New Braunfels.
I thought I had the perfect plan- let's go to Schlitterbahn on Tax-Free weekend, when everyone else will be shopping!
I imagined short lines and open spaces as we strolled leisurely through a nearly-empty park.
As we pulled into the parking lot thirty minutes before the park opens, I was dismayed to discover the parking lots were already full (we were directed to park a block away) and streams of people were walking towards the entrance. Evidentally evreyeone else in the area had the same idea as me. Sigh*.
We were determined to still have a great time and create positive family memories together, so we claimed a picnic table and began our explorations.
We still had lots of fun (although we did decide we'd never come to Schlitterbahn on a Saturday again!).
(Editor's rant: It's totally worth it to have your husband take a vacation day from work instead of going on the weekend. Last year when I took my sisters to Schlitterbahn on a Tuesday, we had very short lines and really enjoyed our time. This year we waited in lines for 20 minutes to go on a 30-second ride. Then we climbed out and got in line for the next ride. The most popular water coaster rides had a 4-hour wait in line. Did I seriously pay $45 for the privilege of standing in line? I was kicking myself mentally for not coming during the work week. Okay....now that's out of my system, let's move on.)
After observing the super-long lines for the rollercoaster water slides, we opted to stick to the other rides in the park. (Why would anyone stand in line 4 hours for a ride?)
We enjoyed lots of water slides, raging rivers, scenic pools, obstacle courses, white water rapids, and tube rides. (Just in case you're wondering- yes, Nathan did wear his hat on every ride. Hawaiian swim trunks, tie-dye shirt, and a fedora- there's style if ever I saw it.)
Matthew and Daniel looked forward all summer to surfing for the first time. This was a highlight of their day.
They were glowing with excitement (or maybe the glow was from all the water hitting them in the face?) when they climbed out of the surfing pool.
We took Diego on several of the river rides with us. He hated any of the rides with splashing water or rapids, so we stuck to the lazy rivers and kiddie pools for him. Nathan and I tag-teamed who played with Diego while the other parent took the older kids on exciting rides.
Diego loved the lazy river rides and fell asleep to the gentle rocking of our intertube. Naptime was very peaceful for him- he was curled in our arms and rocked gently for hours.
Sarah particularly loved the Torrent River- it's a ride with a wave machine creating 6-foot waves that rush down the length of the river. Sarah begged to swim that river without an intertube, so I floated next to her (with Diego in my lap) while she swam the course over and over again. Luckily there is no line for this 'ride' so we enjoyed it for over an hour without waiting.
It was a good way to celebrate the close of summer.
1 comment:
Who cares about style? I didn't get a sunburn on my head or neck!
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