A Deluge and King's Island Baby!

One day of the Grizwold Family Trip to the North included a much-anticipated visit to the "Paris of Ohio" (also known as King's Island). I had been talking up the trip to the amusement park with great enthusiasm for several weeks because I dreaded the idea of paying a big ticket price only to have my children weeny out at riding any of the rides.

Claire and Ben seemed super-psyched about the whole idea, and as the day approached, they could hardly contain their excitement.

Cue freaky lightening flashes and Noah's second flood.

We woke up that morning and were glued to the radar on t.v. (I felt a little like an old man), hoping and hoping that the storms would pass in time for us to enjoy the park. We decided to give it a go, and . . .


After a short stop to pick up Nana . . .






We hopped in the car, along with the ever-fearless-cousin Kayli Jo whose mother styled her hair that morning with the hopes that the added height achieved by her bun would allow her to ride on more of the adult roller coasters.

I can't even fathom what it would be like to have a child like she.

And, as the weatherman assured us, the clouds rolled back and we walked into the gates of Paris.

Grandma came along for some added support and Uncle Seth too.

We were ready to go.

We promptly headed straight for "Kiddie Land," and detoured into the first line we saw. Unfortunately for us (Claire) it was the line for the Haunted House.

She was histrionic the entire time, and the day was nearly lost.

To make matters worse, as soon as we exited the ride, the freaky big head Peanuts characters accosted us. She about passed out.

But, thankful, she recovered.


And, the rest of the day . . .

great fun was had by all.

The very first roller coaster I ever rode as a child is located at this park, and really, the entire park holds some great memories for me, so I was really excited to share this with my kids. I can vividly recall the mix of fear and anticipation I had as I borded that ride and the intense pride as I left it. It was a big moment in Kiddom.

It took several hours, lots of bribing, and plenty of encouragement from her fearless cousin, but we were finally able to get Claire onto what is now known as The Woodstock Express (for all you Ohioans - the Beastie).

And . . .

Wonder of all wonders . . . SHE LOVED IT!

Seriously, you could have knocked me over with a feather, but she had a blast, and even asked to ride it again!

We had such a great time.

The day progressed.

The exhaustion set in . . .

And, as we made our way back toward the front of the park, I had this terrific idea of taking Claire on The Racers. I figured, if she had such a wonderful time on the other coaster, surely she can handle The Racers.

Um, let's just say that that moment will go down as one of my worst parenting decisions of all time. The poor thing spent the entire ride moaning and groaning bent nearly double because she was unable to sit up due to the G forces. She got off that ride and nearly puked.

Awesome.


So, we decided that a trip to the top of the Eiffel Tower was in order.

Someone didn't like it.

But everyone else did.

All in all, it was a great day, and we made some great memories. I got to ride The Beast again, and all was right with the world.

Amen.