It’s hard to believe that summer is almost over! I am always amazed at how quickly July andAugust seem to fly by since the January and February calendar pages never seem to flip that quickly. Now that my children are in school and my hubby and I get limited vacation in the summer, I feel the need to make the most of our time off. My goal: make some fun family memories and fill the kids’ fun meters without breaking the bank. I think I was pretty successful on both counts this summer, if I do say so myself :-) We had looked into renting a cottage up north as we have done in past summers but found that most places will only rent in one week blocks, which is a bit long for two 6 year olds. Also, the prices were really high for rentals. In many cases, a one week cottage rental was equivalent to half the cost of a trip to Disney which would have blown my goal of not breaking the bank right out of the water; water that we would not be sitting next to in our Muskoka chairs this summer :-( However, living in Niagara, there are many great things to do right in our own backyard. We`ve spent some time on Clifton Hill (using coupons for discounted attractions the kids received from their school), checked out the Falls (which I am happy to say still impress my children), rode the carousel at Port Dalhousie for a mere $0.05 a ride and walked around Niagara on the Lake (free if you don`t count the ice cream from the Avondale Dairy Bar afterwards). By August, we were looking to get away with the kids for a few days to experience something new and different. The challenge was finding somewhere affordable that would be entertaining for the kids (and for us, let`s be honest). We decided on.......Rochester. I know, you're saying, "Rochester? Why Rochester?” At least that's what the border guard said when we were crossing over. The big draw for us was the Strong Museum of Play for the kids. Among the things that we enjoyed at the museum were a Comic Book Heroes section, aquariums with fish the kids recognized from Finding Nemo, lots of interactive exhibits for both kids and parents, a big grocery store where the kids can shop and play cashier, the Sesame Street steps for great photo ops (and a blast from the past for mom and dad), an arcade as well as displays of popular toys from different generations. A week later, they are still talking about things they did, saw and learned at the museum and have asked to see our pictures from our time there. While our summer vacation did not include a week at acottage, it was still filled with good times and fun family memories. How did you and your family spend your summer vacation? We’d love to hear about where you went, what you did and the fun you had along the way. |
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