Put In Bay

We took the kids to Put-In-Bay this summer with their cousins.  We took the Miller Ferry, which the kids enjoyed and was relatively inexpensive. Children under 6 are free and all other kids are $2.50 each way.  Adults are $7.50 each way.  Just as a warning, if you take the Miller Ferry instead of the Jet Express, you will get dropped off a couple of miles from town and then have to take a bus into town. 
There are a lot of places to eat at Put-In-Bay, as well as things to do.  We skipped the Butterfly House, because we had taken the kids to Miller Nature Preserve earlier that week to see the butterflies.  We did the crystal cave tour.  I would not suggest this again.  I think it was only $3 per person, but it was really crowded.  You walk down a ton of stairs and stand inside of a huge crystal, which is cool, until they squish like 20 people in there.  Instead, we should have done Perry's cave, and will try that next time.  There is also Perry's Monument, but the wait was half an hour, so we chose to do other things.  The kids loved DiRivera Park, where there were a bunch of play structures, picnic tables and cannons they could climb on.  We also let them mine for gems.  Bags of rocks started at $6.95 each, and they get to take them out and pan for their jewels.  The kids loved this!  There is also a carousel, and it is $1.50 per ride.  They all went on twice.  We went to a fun ice cream place right by the park, and when the kids were done, they had a sandy area to play in, complete with a boat and wave runner to play on.  We rented an 8 person golf cart for the day and it was well worth the money.  The kids loved it!  Will definately go again!!

 

 

 

 

 

                                          Bus ride into town

 

 

                                          Golf cart

 

 

                                          crystal cave

                                          gem mining

                                          DiRivera Park

                                          Sand area near the ice cream shop

Strawberry Picking

Though it is too late for it right not, there are a couple of weeks that constitute strawberry picking in Ohio.  We took the kids to Boughton Farm in Akron.  It is located at 2256 Boughton Dr.  They do not use any dangerous chemicals on their berries, so the kids can eat them as they pick them.  Generally, the first couple of weeks of June are when you can actually pick strawberries.  They do have other fruits and vegetables though, but you have to check their website to see availability...Overall, the kids had a great time and I would definately suggest it!

Squire's Castle

Today we went to Squire's Castle, which is located in the North Chagrin Metroparks.  It is actually the Gate Keeper's house that remains, but the kids had fun running around inside of it.  It was about an hour to drive out there, so we paired it with some other things...like Preston's Hope, the inclusive playground in Beachwood, which is about 20 minutes from Squires Castle.  Information on Preston's Hope is on one of the previous blogs from last summer.

The kids loved it.  It is free and there are a lot of spaces to have a picnic.  Will definately go back again!

Canton Area Activities

Today we did a playdate with friends at the McKinley Museum.  For us, it is an hour drive.  It is located in a park setting.  There is a monument with a ton of stairs that the kids can climb.  They loved it!  Right next to that is the museum part.  For $52, you can get a year's membership that will also allow you to get into other museums for free.  If you don't get the membership, then kids under 3 are free, kids over 3 are $6 and adults are $8.  The price isn't too bad.  Included with your admission is the planetarium.

So, my kids had fun for two reasons: first, they were with a group of friends, and second, they have never been there before.  Like any museum where we have gone more than once, I don't really see them having a blast there again.  This exact same thing happened with the Great Lakes Science Center.  Anyways, the employees are rather unfriendly.  On our way in, one of the kids tripped and skinned her knee.  When we walked in and paid, we asked for a bandage and were given one.  This part of the story will come into play a little later...
I have seen advertisements and endorsements for this place, touting it is a great activity for kids.  In my opinion, kid-friendly places have to in fact be "friendly to kids."  I would be lying if I said I could feel the love.  There is a whole set of rules that you must abide by and there are employees scattered around the place waiting for your kid to screw up (or you, but preferably your child).  There is NO flash photography anywhere in the entire museum.  The sign by the admissions desk states that there is no flash photography, but lists specific places, rather than saying the whole museum.  We were there for less than 2 hours and were scolded 4 times...
Scolding number 1: my friend took a picture of her son with the dinosaur.  A big no-no.  Got told that there is no flash photography.
Scolding 2: the kids were checking out the ecosystem area.  There is a level above this area with all the science stuff.  There is a curtain there.  A woman kept poking her head out from the curtain watching the kids.  I started to feel paranoid and considered deep breathing exercises but decided against it.  There is an area with fish.  There is a sign that said not to touch the water.  I told all of the kids that were near me not to touch the water.  Once child stuck her forefinger in the water and....scolding #2.  The woman who was making me paranoid yelled down to her that she needed to keep her hands out...
Scolding 3: There was a planetarium show.  It started at 1:00.  They announced it.  Just so that you could deal with the miserable old hag at admissions, you need to get tickets, even though you don't have to pay for tickets.  So, we follow the rules and go over to get tickets.  Two adults...5 kids, while two kids and one adult stayed in the dinosaur area and tried not to touch anything.  Well, Ms. Pleasant  then states that "not all of these children look like they are 5.  They HAVE to be 5 to get in."  Lindsey is tall, as tall as Kaylee, so I knew she was fine.  Ava is turning 5 in 2 weeks.  And yes, one child looks smaller than 5, but is 4 1/2 and going in with her mother.  So when her mother said she is almost 5, the woman asked "how close?"  She told her they cant go in if they are under 5 because it is dark and they get scared.  This ranting lasted awhile and she made it quite clear that she did not want us in the stupid planetarium.  So, reluctantly, she gives us the tickets, with another lecture on how she isn't supposed to, oh, and by the way "the show starts at 1:00 and they will not open the doors once they are closed for you."  After all the ranting, we manage to get to the planetarium, are about 10 feet away and the man looks right at us and closes the door, practically in our faces.  Ugg...could these people be any meaner?
Scolding 4: This is the best scolding. Think back to the beginning when I talked about the scraped knee on the little girl.  So, the knee starts to bleed and her mother decides to get a bandage from the gift shop when she visits.  She asks the woman for one, and is told "I do have one...But, I can't give it to you.  You will have to go back to the admissions window and get one there so that you can explain why you need it."  Seriously???  WTH....

So, feel free to make your own judgements about the place.  It is not set up as an adult place, but their employees certainly do not make children feel welcome.  We went and tried something new.  Been there, done that.  Will not be back...

Back to the Summer Activity Schedule

We thought we would try some new things this summer, since we tend to have a short list of things that we do every year.  On Mother's Day, we went to Stan Hywet Hall.  My mom went too.  Since we were both mothers, we got in free.  Lindsey was also free due to her age (either under 5 or under 6, but not sure).  We got to go for the grand total of $6.  We went and visited the Seiberling house first, which is actually really worth seeing, especially when you get to see the pool, which was also my kids favorite part.  Photography in the house is prohibited.  You can also walk the grounds, which we did, and it is very pretty and there are a lot of photo opportunities. 

Stan Hywet Hall is located at 714 North Portage Path in Akron, Ohio.  They are open between April 2 and December 30 from 10 a.m. until 6 p.m.  The are not open on Mondays.  Check out their website for prices at www.stanhywet.org.

Kaylee and Lindsey rating: 4/5--the girls loved running around, but there are obviously not any things that they can climb on and they got a little restless during the home tour.

Cold Weather Activities

I haven't been on here in awhile, but there are some suggestions for winter (outdoor) activities, as well as for indoor activities because it is too cold outside.

Skiing...
We took the girls skiing at Brandywine.  I skied when I was little and loved it.  Kids under 5 get free lift tickets, kids over 5 are $34.  My lift ticket was $44 and ski rental is $25, but none of us needed skis.  I also signed the girls up for a private lesson.  Those are $50, in addition to the lift pass, but they last an hour and it is much better to trust someone who knows what they are doing to teaching them...

Other than the outdoor ice-skating (while available), skiing and tobogganing, there isn't much use for outdoors in winter.  Here are some ideas for indoor, cold weather fun:

Brunswick Skate Station:  On Saturdays from 1-2, they offer roller skating lessons, plus rental, plus staying after for open skate for $5.  One of my children enjoyed this, the other, not so much.

Fireflies Miniature Golf, Southpark Mall, Strongsville Ohio
The kids got to play miniature golf indoors, under black lights, which definitely kept their attention.  Admission is $7, which isn't too bad.

                                                   It is hard to tell that their are blacklights, since
                                                   they don't work well with a flash!

Fun N' Stuff:
Located at 661 E. Highland Rd. in Macedonia.  They have: roller skating, bumper cars, a playland, eurobungy, and a rock wall.  There is also laser tag.  In warmer weather, they have miniature golf , go karts, bumper boats, inflatables and batting cages.  There is also a bowling area and arcade games.  Most activities are$6 and you can go on as much as you want.  You can also buy wristbands, which are $27 for 4 hours or $33 for a full day.  We just did the eurobungy (which the kids went on a bunch of times) for $6, which is still less than 1 time at the mall, and then played video games.
^^No pictures-my phone died and I didn't have the card for my camera

And, finally, the Peter Cottontail Express, at Lodi Outlet Mall
Now that it is Spring, every Saturday and Sunday in March (not Easter) kids can ride the train.  It goes around the normal route 1 1/2 times, before stopping by the Easter Bunny's home.  Kids go inside and listen to a story by the Mad Hatter, then get to sit in the Easter Bunny's lap for a picture that you take (and don't have to spend $20 for at the mall).  The bunny gives them an egg with a snack in it and then they get to get a temporary tattoo.

Winter Fun

Now that Christmas is over, we have started with some of the winter activities.  Since Christmas, we have gone ice skating twice and tobogganing once.  We were a little limited in our activities, as everyone tended to end up sick over the break.

We went ice skating and sledding at Lock 3, which I also posted about before.  It is a lot of fun for the kids, and reatively inexpensive.  Skating is free on the outdoor rink, if you have your own skates.  No worries if you don't have skates, they have lots of rentals and are only $3 to rent them.  The girls got their own skates for Christmas, so it was really cheap!  The sleds are $3 for 30 minutes and you go down a chute.  It isn't very scary, but the kids still loved it.  Lock 3 is located at 200 South Main St. in Akron.

We went skating to an indoor rink as well.  Hoover Arena, which has recently been renamed, is located in Strongsville.  I believe it costs $2 to rent skates and admission is $6 per person.  The kids also liked this, but had more fun outside. 

Today, we took them tobogganing.  We went to the Chalet, located in the Strongsville Metroparks.  The cost is $4 to go down once, or $8 for kids and $10 for adults for a day pass.  If you buy a $4 pass to go down once to check if your kids like it, you can upgrade that for a regular pass.  The chutes are 70 feet high and you go down at about 45 mph.  You can fit 4 people on a toboggan.  My kids loved it, however, we must have picked a busy day--the wait was said to be 2 hours.  We waited less than that, but still, it was almost an hour and a half.  Needless to say, we chose the one time down option.

 

 

Kaylee and Lindsey Rating: 5/5 for all three!  Ice skating has become a favorite. I think they had more fun outside than at an indoor rink, but they still had fun at both!  Tobogganing was great, but some kids might be scared.  The two hour wait was not really a two hour wait, but it was still a long wait and would have been better if we would have went at a time when it was not as crowded.  Perhaps a Sunday?