Friday, July 24, 2009

Trip to Dutch County, PA.

We decided to take a trip to Lancaster, Pennsylvania where we'd never been before. Carolyn's colleague Joan recommended a motel to us where she used to take her kids. It was great: cheap, with a pool, a swing set, and we could keep our dog there, plus yummy donuts for breakfast:




We went to Dutch Wonderland, an amusement park. We bought "preview tickets" which was a great idea: 3 hours before the park closes, you buy tickets for the next day, but you can also stay that evening. So we got to walk around and ride rides to "preview" our visit the next day. We all had fun: Avery LOVED the rides, a lot of which are appropriate for smaller kids. The best ride was the log ride. The three of us rode over and over again because Avery (okay, and Carolyn and me) had so much fun! So the guys running the ride finally just said we didn't have to get off and get back in line, we could just stay in our log to ride again! We thought it might be too scary for Avery because of the big hill, but he LOVED going down the hills (he said "wheeee!") and getting splashed by the water. I think because we went during the week, it was not crowded at all, and there were really no lines for any of the rides.












We enjoyed eating local specialities like "chow chow" and shoo-fly pie at traditional "smorgasboards." We bought fruit and vegetables from local working Amish farms, and we enjoyed the shopping and sights at nearby towns with names like "Virginville, "Intercourse," and "Bird-in-Hand." Almost everywhere we went was so kid-friendly: there were petting zoos and playgrounds everywhere! And Avery got plenty of "ice keem kones."








Our last day, we decided to pop over to Cherry Hill Adventure Farm. They have a corn maze, hay rides, a petting zoo, and lots of other fun things. Avery LOVED jumping on a huge, ground-level trampoline. They had one for big kids and one for little kids -- perfect for Avery! He jumped until he got sweaty and tired, and then he took a great nap in the car on our way back to New York, which was our plan.










(We saw Santa Claus walking down the road!):

1 comment:

Bubbe said...

Sounds like a great trip and lots of fun. Hope everyone washed their hands really well after handling the animals! Don't want any salmonella...(I'm becoming such a communicable disease nurse).