Hi Moms:
Our anniversary is coming up and we don't have a sitter this year. So we need to find something special as a family to do together. I've thought of dinner and movie, Chuck E Cheese, etc. but we can do that anytime. So I'm looking for something different that doesn't break the bank that our little guy will have fun doing, too!! I'd welcome your ideas - Thanks, S.
Hey Ladies! Thanks for the great ideas! Not only do I have lots of anniversary things - but these sound so fun I'm adding them to our fun summer get away list. I'm in Annapolis so we found something local - a great restaurant by the water and then there is a Pirate ship that takes a 1 hr cruise. At 4 - you just can't beat a Pirate Ship!!
I was thinking picnic, too, but at a local park where they have concerts (some are even free) I think I was automatically thinking low-budget, but the mini vacation ideas are good ones, too.
My DH & I went to the Melting Pot for our anniversary this year. We talked about how fun it would be for our kids. Well, maybe not my 2 year old. He could dip his own desserts in chocolate, etc. You could also do your own fondue.
A day or two in Lancaster or Hershey. Both of lots of kids activites, but is adule friendly too. You could kind of pick and choose. Go do Chocolate World with your son, and go drive through the countryside, stop for a traditional smorgesboard, and go to some shops and make pretzels with your son.
Or go to Skyline Drive for dinner or camp or stay at the Lodge or cabins overnight.
And if your little one goes to bed early...you could always celebrate with a living room picnic and some chocolate dipped strawberries. Cheap and romantic :)
What if you made a nice Picnic dinner and rented a movie. Lay a blanket out on the florr or on your bed, then make soe Fondue for dessert. They sell those little containers of chocolate near the fruit and you just microwave it. We by Bananas strawberries a bag of marshmellos, pound cake from the freezer section(sarah Lee) it just takes a few to defrost and Pineapple. You could do this with your son or put him to bed and do it afterwords. Its a nice inexpensive treat. You could even order dinner and go pick it up. If you want to include your son you could do the dinner with him and rent a kid movie also and then do the fondue and a movie for you guys after he goes to be.
I too thought of Lancaster & Strausburg. I recently took my mother there for her birthday. We stayed at The Little Red Caboose Motel each motel room is actually a caboose. There are so many things you can do there from train rides to horse & buggy rides & so much more. Here is the website for the motel. http://www.redcaboosemotel.com/
You could also have a picnic in Burke Lake Park - they have a carousel and a small train and even a lake complete with ducks!!
Being the parent of boys, both now college aged, but recalling them at4years old, my first instinct is to suggest that you place a nice photo of the two of you at your wedding on the dinner table. Nibble on crackers and cheese while he eats his meal, then serve a nice dessert with him (maybe a small two layered cake decorated like a wedding cake) and try to explain getting married. <smile> You then toast with glasses of milk and soon put him to bed. THEN you break out some wine and serve your own special meal (maybe have it catered in by a local restaurant) and celebrate nicely by yourselves!! Congrats.
Great Wolf Lodge is great. We've been there 2x. Its is more geared toward the kids though. The first thing that came to my mind was either a beach trip or Baltimore - Inner Harbor. Inner Harbor has a lot of great family activities.
M.
Dear S.,
We went to Medieval Times for my birthday with our 4 yr old and it was a blast! I went onto their website and sigend up for a coupon( its buy one get one free admission). So that helped it be a little less inexpensive. We did get an extra package so we got three free photos and commemorative cds and program. They have an announce so you could have them announce your anniversary. It's at Anne Srundel Mills Mall in MD. The website is http://www.medievaltimes.com/ and they have different coupons all the time on their website. You do eat with your hands but I 'cheated' and brought a spoon for my daughter to eat her soup. See their site wo see what the show is about. Basically you get seated in an arena and you root for one of 4 different knights. You eat while watching a show.
Good Luck,
pammy
Can you do any better than putt putt and ice cream?
Great Wolf Lodge is the first place that came to mind! It's in Williamsburg, VA, they have great suites and summer specials going on. They have an indoor water park with pools, slides and rides. They have activities for the entire family, including a spa & salon, story time, treasure hunts, an arcade and more!
Get more info here: http://www.greatwolf.com/williamsburg/waterpark
Hope you have a Happy Anniversary no matter what you guys decide to do. God Bless!
~S.
SahmIam.Biz
So, we have a similar problem, we can't afford a babysitter at $10/hr and pay to go out, so we decided to go on a family picnic out at the park or a by a local stream. We never do something like that and it will be fun just to be together. We're debating about going natural and spending the entire time exploring as a family or going to once of the very nice local playground parks so that my husband and I can lay on the blanket for a little while and talk and still watch him play on the playground, so we have a few moments to catch up and remember our wedding, etc. Congratulations!! Also, after reading the other responses, I wanted to throw this in. For mother's day we went to the melting pot, my 4yr son LOVED it. He probably ate more than we did and definitely stuff he has never eaten before. He loved dipping. If you live by C'ville, and you decided to go here, ask for David, he's great with kids. Otherwise, when you get there, tell them you would like to move the meal quicker than normal, and they're usually pretty good. They're set up to give you time and it's meant to be a long meal, but it doesn't have to be. Also, the "Big Night Out" is a meal for 2 with all 4 of their courses, you can get that for you and your husband and you do not need to order food for your child (trust me there's more than enough for 3 anyway). Also ours doesn't have the best kid friendly cups, so we brought a sippy cup with milk, they were totally fine with that. And we brought a small toy and coloring book, but ended up not needing them because David was so great about not letting the meal lag.
Hi S.! B. would love to help you. I am the owner and I have been a SAHM for 11 years. I have three children under the age of 11. I interview all of our sitters directly. If I would not leave the children with my three I certainly would not approve them to stay with your precious one! Make a date night and register with www.B..com and you will have a fabulous sitter 18 and older, interviewed, reference checked, background cleared and with her own trasportation come right to you so you can have an enjoyable night out! You pay a registration fee and when you book your sit a sit fee. Then you pay the sitter directly the recommended rate of $10-$12 an hour.
