Hey loves. We had a fun weekend away making some memories before its back to school. There was a little hiccup with a kids roller coaster and my back (when will I ever learn). But we made the most of it. I have been home suffering since. Lets recap our fun. sorry for the picture overload
Friday July 31We packed up the van and were on the road by 715am. Our first stop was Chick Fil A for breakfast. I didn't realize until we were out of the van that Anna was still wearing her robe. She is truly a vibe.
Back on the road. You would think we woke these two up super early. In reality we woke them up at 645, which some days they are already up at that time.
It was a two hour drive to the Columbus Zoo, which was our first adventure of the trip. We are members of the Cleveland Zoo which gives us 50% off tickets at the Columbus Zoo. We also purchased all day tickets to do all the rides throughout the zoo.
We started the day riding the rides in the front.
I only rode one ride with them in the front but saw the tortoise while I waited.
These bumper cars were so fun. They are more like hoover rides, Anna was able to drive herself, they had a blast.
Ella even had fun riding them.
Not pictured me on the swings, which was the only ride I rode.
Their favorite ride was the oldest wooden roller coaster in Ohio. The rides are not very popular (and the zoo in general was kind of slow) so they didn't have to wait on anything.
One of their favorite part of the zoo is being able to touch the stingrays.
A few came up high enough for Anna to reach, and one even splashed her.
We checked out one of their live shows. There was a porcupine, duck, a parrot, and cockroaches. The kids enjoyed it. (Next time we want to do the early show with the sea lions)
After the show we headed to find food. We got chicken tenders, fries, Mac and cheese, and a sandwich with chips. We also topped off our water bottles.
Now on to checking out more animals and photo opps.
All the baby gorillas
I have Ella on this monkey when she was younger in the same-ish pose. I want to do a side by side.
Dinoland boat ride. I didn't go not knowing what to expect.
After waiting 20 minutes we did ride the Carousel. This is the first and only time that I have gotten to ride a horse and not stand next to Anna. The ride height was 44, compared to most are 46 or 48.
I love seeing the manatees.
Riding the train.
This is another one that I have a younger photo of Ella on.
We didn't have luck finding the polar bear, but this brown bear not only peed in front of us but also walked right up to the class to say hello.
We had a fun day at the zoo. We didn't get to see everything this time, the rides took more time that expected and we didn't stay until close.
We left the zoo and went and checked in at our hotel. We were staying at Home 2 Suites by Hilton. Not our first choice, and probably would not stay at this hotel again. It was in the process of being remodeled. The pool had just reopened after being remodeled and the water was green (the kids did not go swimming). The beds were horrible. They were listed as queens, but were really doubles. Even Ella complained about the sleeper sofa. The kitchen area was nice if we were staying longer. The bathroom door didn't lock. Continental breakfast was also disappointing, cold not many options.
We had dinner reservations at one of our favorite breweries, North High.
I had delicious beef tacos.
The downtown Dublin area has a permit for DORA (designated outdoor refreshment area), you can walk around with a drink. We took a beer to go and went walking around. Austin was excited to see a Ferrari.
In front of Urban Myers bar was a blue and yellow Porsche, if you know you know.
At the steps is a water fountain (I wish I got a bigger picture). Kids play in the fountain and go down a slide into the water (which is really the steps). I told the kids not to get soaked, just get their legs wet. Anna and Austin boot ended up soaked. I love the look from Anna like "I don't know what your talking about". Thankfully I had beach towels in the car.
On the walk back to the car we stopped and got ice cream.
Anna got coffee ice cream, Ella and I shared a mint ice cream that was dairy free, and I don't remember what Austin had.
We called it an early evening and headed back to the hotel for showers, a little TV time and bed.
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XOXO
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