I have so many childhood memories of Idlewild Park in Ligoneer, PA. I remember taking a field trip there in kindergarten and being terrified of climbing the huge nets while the "big boys" ran up them and shook me. My favorite memories of the park are when my Grandma Carnes used to go with us and set up a huge picnic lunch. She'd accompany us to all the rides, wave at us every time we came around and watch whatever child was a baby at the time when my mom rode rides with us. I miss my Grandma Carnes! Now I love that I'm making memories at the very same park with my children and their grandma. This was our fourth year to go with the kids and our first time to experience it with Lorie and Alex. It was so much fun from start to finish. We started our morning in Storybook forest, which recreates all the nursery rhymes and fairy tales in statue form. Maura's favorite has always been Little Miss Muffet with her huge spider.
I'm so glad that Grammy was there to share all the fun with us. I certainly wouldn't dream of attempting a trip to an amusement park with my children by myself. My mom is a lifesaver. Maura was her little buddy that day and I think she loved experiencing it all with Grammy
I have lots of childhood photos of my poking my head through these very same holes! I wish I had some of those old photos to scan in. Bennett wasn't too sure about poking his head through the hole! My kids loved experiencing all the nursery rhymes and ran from attraction to attraction. Maura thought Jack and Jill falling down was hilarious!
Aunt Lorie and Aunt Nancy were there with us to enjoy the day. We had a four adult to five child ratio, but sometimes it still wasn't enough! Maura and Tristan did not have a stroller and so had to walk through the park and there were times I'd look around in panic to see where they had wondered off to. It almost gave me a heart attack! Tristan, especially, had a habit of just walking away to look at something and just disappearing. I've talked with him about it time and time again and he's completely oblivious.
Hands down, Bennett's favorite thing in the park was this chicken. I think she was supposed to be Henny Penny. He kept poking his finger through the wire, the chicken kept pecking him, and he would squeal with laughter. We were all laughing at him enjoying that chicken. I stuck my fingers through too to see if it was hurting him at all, but it didn't peck too hard!
Below: Lorie is pregnant, so Grammy and I had to do all the riding. We love this little turtle ride and even Bennett is big enough to go on it. He LOVED it!
Cruising around the track with one of my main men. Speaking of cruising, Bennett was one cool character, cruising with his big sister! I allowed him to ride the rides in Kiddie Land that he could go on with Maura. She loved feeling like the big girl and taking care of her baby!
Tristan got to drive cars to his heart's content in Kiddie Land. I loved watching them ride the "big kid" rides that were designed for little riders. It's hard to believe that Maura will be outgrowing Kiddie Land before too long.
Maura even got to take Alex with her on some of the rides I deemed too dangerous for my wiggly third born. Alex loves her "Maa Moo!"
Love the old time carousel. It was built for the Atlantic City boardwalk in 1931 and completely restored. It is so beautiful and the kids love it so much!
Below: This ride gave me a heart attack. I THOUGH the seat belts were tight enough, but my wiggly boy was all over that set. I just knew he was going to fall out into that water(which is only about two feet deep!) I was completely prepared to scale that fence and rescue my baby if the worst happened. I think this was the last ride I allowed him to go on without me! Too nerve wracking!
Despite all the rides and attractions at Idlewild, this is the one thing they always remember. The ball pit. Those balls are probably the same ones they had twenty eight years ago when they first opened Jumping Jungle and I went with my kindergarten class! I tried not to think of that as my kids dove in and swam around. Bennett thought he'd died and gone to ball heaven!
What an awesome and amazing day. We got there when the park opened at 10 and stayed til 6. Not one child had a nap all day, but everyone had an incredible time. I think Bennett and Alex were asleep before we exited the parking lot! So much fun! I'm so glad we get to go to Idlewild when we go up to visit my grandparents. I love making these kinds of memories with my children.
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