Sunday, August 26, 2012
Back from Nashville
We made it back home this afternoon despite terrible weather here. Tomorrow is the kids' first day back to school. Lots to do to get them ready (including a much procrastinated book report). Stay tuned for the Nashville trip report.
Next stop... Nashville, TN
By the time this posts, we will be in Nashville TN. Stay tuned for the trip report.
Saturday, August 25, 2012
How do we pick our destinations?
Normal people decide where they want to go and then search for the best way to get there. They are traveling to see family; or maybe they are interested in the sights of a particular city. Some travelers are strictly on business while others combine business with leisure. But the one thing that almost all travelers have in common is knowing what places they are planning on visiting at the start of the trip planning.
In our family, we do it the other way. Our trips start with me sitting in front of the computer on our airline's website. I plug in the date of the next trip (usually the following weekend) and our home airport and then randomly search cities for available flights.
For day trips, I have been pretty much concentrating on destinations east of the Mississippi and prefer states which we have not yet seen. I want to keep the flights in the two hour or less range if we are going to be coming right back because I don't think it is fair or fun for the kids to have them sit on a plane three hours each way and to only have a couple of hours not in a plane or airport.
Once I find a city with pretty open flights, I book it and then research things to do in that city. I take into consideration the availability of public transportation, how long it will take to get around, and the cost of rental cars (if needed).
I learned from the Chicago trip to allow for plenty of time for the kids to just be kids and play. For me, traveling is a chance to see lots of new places and do new things but for the kids, a playground is a place to play and a fountain is a chance to get wet. The trick is finding the balance.
I have also learned to not think of the trip as a "once in a lifetime trip" where you have to do and see everything on your list. If we miss something, we can always go back another day. As long as the kids don't get tired of traveling and my husband doesn't get tired of working, we can always go back.
Another thing I have to take into consideration is money. So far, our day trips seem to be running around about $150. After taxes, I only make about $200 a week. And, I do have other living expenses in addition to travel. So, I look for detonations with cheap or free things to do. No, I take that back, I still look for the destination first and then I look for something cheap or free to do while we are there.
I expect to have a little more money in my pocket after school gets back in session. My childcare expenses will drop from an average of $90 a week to an average of $40. Also, I have notified another courthouse that I am available for extra shifts and I know for a fact they they will be shorthanded for a while so I am expected extra work. I plan on banking this extra cash for some longer trips in the near future.
In our family, we do it the other way. Our trips start with me sitting in front of the computer on our airline's website. I plug in the date of the next trip (usually the following weekend) and our home airport and then randomly search cities for available flights.
For day trips, I have been pretty much concentrating on destinations east of the Mississippi and prefer states which we have not yet seen. I want to keep the flights in the two hour or less range if we are going to be coming right back because I don't think it is fair or fun for the kids to have them sit on a plane three hours each way and to only have a couple of hours not in a plane or airport.
Once I find a city with pretty open flights, I book it and then research things to do in that city. I take into consideration the availability of public transportation, how long it will take to get around, and the cost of rental cars (if needed).
I learned from the Chicago trip to allow for plenty of time for the kids to just be kids and play. For me, traveling is a chance to see lots of new places and do new things but for the kids, a playground is a place to play and a fountain is a chance to get wet. The trick is finding the balance.
I have also learned to not think of the trip as a "once in a lifetime trip" where you have to do and see everything on your list. If we miss something, we can always go back another day. As long as the kids don't get tired of traveling and my husband doesn't get tired of working, we can always go back.
Another thing I have to take into consideration is money. So far, our day trips seem to be running around about $150. After taxes, I only make about $200 a week. And, I do have other living expenses in addition to travel. So, I look for detonations with cheap or free things to do. No, I take that back, I still look for the destination first and then I look for something cheap or free to do while we are there.
I expect to have a little more money in my pocket after school gets back in session. My childcare expenses will drop from an average of $90 a week to an average of $40. Also, I have notified another courthouse that I am available for extra shifts and I know for a fact they they will be shorthanded for a while so I am expected extra work. I plan on banking this extra cash for some longer trips in the near future.
Friday, August 24, 2012
Oops, sorry about that
I just logged in froth library and discovered that, for some of you, the expense report looks like a jumbled mess. I looked fine on my computer. I will see what I can do to fix it.
Hershey Park - Expense report
When I first proposed bringing the neighbor kids along, I asked their mother to fund their portion of the trip. I estimated that we would spend about $150. She sent $160 and at the end of the day, we made sure that whatever was left over was spent on souveniers for the kids.
We tracked most expenses but we did lose track of some things, especially drink refills. Once we purchased a souvenier cup, refills were $1. I am sure we went through way more sodas than we accounted for.
We also did not track our gas.
Our expenses
Category Note Amount
entry fee Park tix $ 177.00
Food burger fries onion rings $ 15.00
food drink cup $ 9.00
Food mcdonalds $ 15.00
Food nachos $ 3.00
Food popcorn $ 3.00
Food soda refills $ 3.00
Food subway $ 18.00
Parking parking $ 4.00
souveniers souveniwrs $ 25.00
travel parking $ 12.00
Total $ 284.00
Neighbor's expenses
Category Note Amount
entry fee park tix $ 100.00
Food drink cup $ 9.00
Food mcdonalds $ 10.00
Food nachos $ 3.00
Food subway $ 12.00
souveniers souveniers $ 25.00
Total $ 159.00
We tracked most expenses but we did lose track of some things, especially drink refills. Once we purchased a souvenier cup, refills were $1. I am sure we went through way more sodas than we accounted for.
We also did not track our gas.
Our expenses
Category Note Amount
entry fee Park tix $ 177.00
Food burger fries onion rings $ 15.00
food drink cup $ 9.00
Food mcdonalds $ 15.00
Food nachos $ 3.00
Food popcorn $ 3.00
Food soda refills $ 3.00
Food subway $ 18.00
Parking parking $ 4.00
souveniers souveniwrs $ 25.00
travel parking $ 12.00
Total $ 284.00
Neighbor's expenses
Category Note Amount
entry fee park tix $ 100.00
Food drink cup $ 9.00
Food mcdonalds $ 10.00
Food nachos $ 3.00
Food subway $ 12.00
souveniers souveniers $ 25.00
Total $ 159.00
Thursday, August 23, 2012
Hershey Park, PA - August 13
A rare and special occasion occurred on Monday August 13. My husband, myself and the kids were all scheduled to be off on the same day...together...all of us, at once. It just so happens that I had also committed to babysitting (can you call it babysitting when they are 11 & 14?) the neighbors that day. So, we approached their mother and asked her if she would be willing to send money for park tickets and food and allow us to take her kids to Hershey Park for the day. This was win /win. Our kids would have someone to hang out with and ride roller coasters with and her kids would get a tip to an amusement park.
We set off at 7:30 in the morning for what should have been a two and a half hour drive. We hit traffic just before the Chesapeake Bay Bridge due to a combination of rush hour traffic and an accident. We picked up some speed for a couple of hours but then hit horrendous Pennsylvanian traffic caused mostly by construction. But, we eventually made it to our destination. It was 1:00 and the park had already been open for an hour.
I am figuring that a lot of people were trying to get one last summer blast in before the start of the school year because the park was a little on the crowded side. But, on the other hand, we escaped the usual blistering August heat in exchange for an usually pleasant day. It was hot but not August, dreadful, hot.
Hershey Park has a lot of hills and, unlike Disney, where I have the park memorized, I can never seem to find my way around. The maps don't seem to do me any good at all. We split up based on ride height and desire and then seemed to spend a lot of time chasing each other down.
Hershey is a great destination but, unlike Disney, I could not imagine spending more than a day there... maybe two but surely not three.
The ride heights are clearly marked by different candy bars. Lil' Bit who tops out at 44 inches could ride anything marked with a Reese's Peanutbutter Cup sign.
But not this ride.
Lil' Bit quickly declared all of the "Hershey Kiss" rides too babyish and demanded speed and thrills. Unfortunately, there are not a lot of rides for her size but she managed to find enough to keep her interest.
She and M went on a Pirate Ship ride before we split up.
I don't care for big coasters or rides that spin you around but, due to all of us heading in different directions, I was her riding partner.
Hershey Park has a water park in the middle of the regular amusement park and it is included in the price of admission. We decided to head there early since that part of the park closes at 6:00 and we wanted to make sure the kids got their fill of it. We got them changed into their bathing suits and splashing around just before noon. My husband and I commandeered a table and told the kids that this would be our command post. They were to check in with us there if they got hungry or just needed to see our faces. I will say, they only came by when they were hungry.
One of the highlights of the day, at least for me, was when the boys did this surfing, body boarding, ride thing. (Big Boy went first and Little D jumped in the next lane while Big Boy was riding his wave)
Oh, and if you are wondering why there are no other pictures of Little D on this blog post, he is a fast little dude and I barely caught up with him all day.
We left the waterpark area around 5:00 and set off to find as many thrill rides as we could (for the kids, of course). The boys waited in line for a ridiculous 90 minutes for the Fahrenheit ride while the girls and I found a few rides that both Lil' Bit and M could ride.
The crowds dipped down a little bit but picked back up shortly after 6:00. Hershey offers a deal where you can get in at 6:00 on the day before your all day park ticket. So, all the folks were were spending the night in a hotel, came to the park for a few bonus hours.
We headed out of the park a little before closing with the intention of getting to the souvenir shop. Now, not to beat a dead horse and constantly compare all other parks to Disney World but, this is one area where Hershey Park fails and Disney does it right. Hershey Park's souvenir shop closes at the same time that the park closes while Disney keeps their stored open for quite a while after the park closes. Disney has figured out that if people are still in their park, they are sill spending money - even more so after the rides shut down.
Well, we had run through the maddening crowd to get to the store before it closed at 10:00 . My husband and the girls made it in but the doors were slammed shut in the faces of myself and the boys. And the 17 year old security guard was earning every penny of his minimum wage. He would not budge to allow anyone in the store. And there were quite a few people with money left in thier pockets who would have loved to leave some of it at Hershey if they could have gotten in the store.
My husband and the girls grabbed enough souvenirs and candy to keep everyone happy and we headed home. We had eaten a late lunch and a couple of snacks so now (at 10:30PM) it was time toe feed the kids dinner. We stopped at McDonald's and had them eat in the car.
Our drive home took less time than the drive up but it was still 1:30 AM before we pulled into the driveway.
We set off at 7:30 in the morning for what should have been a two and a half hour drive. We hit traffic just before the Chesapeake Bay Bridge due to a combination of rush hour traffic and an accident. We picked up some speed for a couple of hours but then hit horrendous Pennsylvanian traffic caused mostly by construction. But, we eventually made it to our destination. It was 1:00 and the park had already been open for an hour.
I am figuring that a lot of people were trying to get one last summer blast in before the start of the school year because the park was a little on the crowded side. But, on the other hand, we escaped the usual blistering August heat in exchange for an usually pleasant day. It was hot but not August, dreadful, hot.
Hershey Park has a lot of hills and, unlike Disney, where I have the park memorized, I can never seem to find my way around. The maps don't seem to do me any good at all. We split up based on ride height and desire and then seemed to spend a lot of time chasing each other down.
Hershey is a great destination but, unlike Disney, I could not imagine spending more than a day there... maybe two but surely not three.
The ride heights are clearly marked by different candy bars. Lil' Bit who tops out at 44 inches could ride anything marked with a Reese's Peanutbutter Cup sign.
Lil' Bit quickly declared all of the "Hershey Kiss" rides too babyish and demanded speed and thrills. Unfortunately, there are not a lot of rides for her size but she managed to find enough to keep her interest.
She and M went on a Pirate Ship ride before we split up.
I don't care for big coasters or rides that spin you around but, due to all of us heading in different directions, I was her riding partner.
 |
| Momma don't like going fast |
One of the highlights of the day, at least for me, was when the boys did this surfing, body boarding, ride thing. (Big Boy went first and Little D jumped in the next lane while Big Boy was riding his wave)
Oh, and if you are wondering why there are no other pictures of Little D on this blog post, he is a fast little dude and I barely caught up with him all day.
We left the waterpark area around 5:00 and set off to find as many thrill rides as we could (for the kids, of course). The boys waited in line for a ridiculous 90 minutes for the Fahrenheit ride while the girls and I found a few rides that both Lil' Bit and M could ride.
The crowds dipped down a little bit but picked back up shortly after 6:00. Hershey offers a deal where you can get in at 6:00 on the day before your all day park ticket. So, all the folks were were spending the night in a hotel, came to the park for a few bonus hours.
We headed out of the park a little before closing with the intention of getting to the souvenir shop. Now, not to beat a dead horse and constantly compare all other parks to Disney World but, this is one area where Hershey Park fails and Disney does it right. Hershey Park's souvenir shop closes at the same time that the park closes while Disney keeps their stored open for quite a while after the park closes. Disney has figured out that if people are still in their park, they are sill spending money - even more so after the rides shut down.
Well, we had run through the maddening crowd to get to the store before it closed at 10:00 . My husband and the girls made it in but the doors were slammed shut in the faces of myself and the boys. And the 17 year old security guard was earning every penny of his minimum wage. He would not budge to allow anyone in the store. And there were quite a few people with money left in thier pockets who would have loved to leave some of it at Hershey if they could have gotten in the store.
My husband and the girls grabbed enough souvenirs and candy to keep everyone happy and we headed home. We had eaten a late lunch and a couple of snacks so now (at 10:30PM) it was time toe feed the kids dinner. We stopped at McDonald's and had them eat in the car.
Our drive home took less time than the drive up but it was still 1:30 AM before we pulled into the driveway.
Wednesday, August 22, 2012
Chicago - Expense report
Here is where the money went in Chicago:
| Category | Note | Amount |
| Entertainment | ferris wheel | $ 18.00 |
| Entertainment | swinger ride | $ 6.00 |
| Entertainment | fun house | $ 9.95 |
| Food | milk | $ 8.22 |
| Food | billy goats tavern | $ 22.00 |
| Food | ice cream and milkshakes | $ 20.65 |
| Food | dinner at airport | $ 16.19 |
| Food | gum for kyle | $ 2.18 |
| Food | sodas | $ 5.00 |
| Souvenirs | souvenir popcorn | $ 24.68 |
| Transportation | train tix | $ 4.25 |
| Transportation | cta tickets (train and bus) | $ 17.25 |
| Transportation | airport parking | $ 8.00 |
| Total | $ 162.37 |
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)