So last year right around (August) I came up with an idea for what I thought would be the ULTIMATE Christmas present.
*This Post May Contain Affiliate links through Viglink which is a (free for you) way for bloggers to make money with their blogs, websites and social media. I was not paid for this post, or anything I said here. This is just my honest opinion that I thought would be helpful to share with other families that may be thinking about investing money into their family fun time.*
I had been praying about what I could give my children that would really bless them and really be significant. They have way too many toys as it is, and video games…ugh. They, We all needed to get out more, to have an adventure. If it were just a question of what I wanted in an adventure I would easily say, “Let’s go to the Creek, like every day and swim, and fish, and play!”
But it wasn’t me the gift was for, and not everyone in my family is as hyped about the Creek, and the River as I. So…I got this other idea…it was confirmed when my husband said,
“Hey Babe, 6 Flags Season Passes are going on sale!” Honestly, it did not sound fun to me. I was pregnant at the time and in my 2nd trimester. But like I said, I was praying about a gift that would make the children’s hearts skip a beat.
Earlier in the Spring my husband had taken our 2 older boys to 6 Flags and they had so much fun their minds were blown. But the girls had really not been happy about being left out of that. They weren’t tall enough to go on a lot of the rides so they had to stay home with me and the toddlers. They were bummed. Also, that would have been super expensive for just one visit!
So we got season passes for the whole family during their big back to school sale. But of course we didn’t tell the children until Christmas Day. They were so excited!
My husband and I took a date to 6 Flags in November to pick up the tickets and we also decided to buy meal passes for the year. I’m so glad we did that. It took the fun level to a whole other plain of existence. This way I didn’t have to bother with meals, and coolers and leaving the park to eat. We just went, and anytime we went to the park we could eat free at certain times. We got lunch, dinner, and a snack or a dessert.
It was so worth it.
I have to be honest though, when push came to shove, I was so nervous to take my troupe of children to such a large people packed public place. So many things could happen. I literally had to say Psalm 91 out loud so I could sleep the night before we would go there. And I prayed and I prayed. I didn’t realize how much fear I was dealing with until I looked back over the year.
It was really good for me to step way out of my comfort zone. It was a lot of fun for our whole family.
The Pros:
- Our children will never forget that year of adventure, rollercoasters, and Theme Park Food.
- We got a lot of exercise. It’s a big park, with a lot of walking.
- My husband and I as parents dealt with our fears of public places with small children (including a nursing baby, and 2 toddlers.
- It forced us to be way more organized and work as a team.
- l dealt with my fear of wearing a bathing suit in public (by not wearing a bathing suit in public- I wore quick-dry leggings and a comfy neon yellow t shirt over my bathing suit. Why walk around half naked if you don’t actually have to?)
- I Had more fun than I’ve had in a long, long time. I totally didn’t expect to.
- We never felt like we had to stuff everything in to one day because we knew we could always come back, and we did, a lot.
- There actually were plenty of rides for the little ones to go on also.
The Cons:
- We got sick WAY more often than any other year of our lives. No exaggeration.
- The food was super rich so I had at least 1 gallbladder incident that I could connect with it.
- We had to deal with our fears of public places with small children, which was at times stressful and well, scary. (Even if it was unfounded or unrealized fear.)
- Not everyone has a fear of wearing a skimpy bathing suit in public.
So….to Recap, do I think it was worth it? YES, absolutely. My children will never forget their year of 6 Flags fun and family togetherness. But we only did it for 1 year. We’ve talked about doing it again, but for us, we felt it would be better to wait a year or 2 to do something like it again. I would definitely do it again, especially if we move to a location that is closer to the park we choose to go to. Our current location is about an hour and 20 minutes from the park. Which was a bit of a drive for us, especially on the way back.