Wednesday, June 28, 2017

Worlds of Fun: An #IshumFamilyAdventure

Thanks to Worlds of Fun and KC Parent Magazine for sending us on an awesome family adventure!


Do you know what I love about Kansas City? The fact that we have *so many* fun things to do as a family here! From museums to parks, festivals to sporting events, there are always opportunities to make memories. But one thing that I sometimes forget about is our theme park since we rarely drive past it. But oh my stars! It's officially back on my radar! We took the kids to Worlds of Fun on Saturday, and had the best time!

Let me start by saying that I love roller coasters. LOOOOVE roller coasters! Sean does too! Ironically, we haven't been to Worlds of Fun since before we got married, so it's easily been about 10 or 12 years since the last time either of us went. While taking the kids to a theme park has been on our bucket list for awhile, we just weren't sure how that would play out with four young kids who sometimes struggle with sensory input and social/emotional delays. To be honest, we were hoping to get 2-3 hours out of this adventure, and would have called it a success if it had worked out that way.

EIGHT HOURS LATER....I'm really not sure what we were worried about. haha!

When we got there, we decided to ease them into it, still not sure how a few of them would do with the noise, speed, and crowds of a theme park. Our first stop was the carousal. We've done carousals in the past, so the kids knew what to expect there for the most part. 
Ellie, Daddy, Caleb, Elijah, and Abby

For our second ride, we decided to launch them straight out of the shoot, and jump on the family roller coaster, "Cosmic Coaster" in Planet Snoopy, the kids section of the park. Elijah was our most timid kid the whole day, but he still did every ride except for one. When we walked up and saw almost no wait on this ride, I was determined to get everyone on it just so that they would see how much FUN our day was going to be. The roller coaster ended up being a favorite of the kids' along with the "Woodstock Whirlybirds" that flew up in the air. (Sean and I thought they were both pretty great too!)
Elijah and Daddy in the back, Caleb and Abby in the middle, Ellie and Mommy in the front

And then we spent the next several hours jumping on and off of a bunch of rides with no lines. Unbelievably, on a perfect June Saturday in Kansas City with temperatures ranging from 65 - 80 degrees, there was no wait on most of the rides, and only about a 5 minute wait on the most popular kid rides. When I say we were jumping on and off of rides, I literally mean we got off one ride and walked right on to the next one. It was amazing!!

Pro Tip: Go first thing in the morning and beat the crowds!


Ellie and Abby on "Snoopy vs. Red Baron"

Ellie, Caleb, Mommy, Abby, and Elijah on "Kite Eating Tree"

Lunch didn't happen until about 2 pm, which is late for four 6-year-olds who seem to demand food every 30 minutes on a normal basis. Sean and I had a quiet side conversation, wondering if we should break for lunch, but since everyone was happy and there were no lines, we decided to keep going until the kids said they were hungry. Clearly they were distracted with fun if they pushed a meal back that far!

Pro tip: If you plan on being in the park during meal time, plan on budgeting at least $18 per person for a meal and drink. No outside food and beverages are allowed.

After lunch, we rode more rides, but it was getting noticeably busier than first thing in the morning. By this point, the kids were starting to get tired, but refused to give up and go home. haha!

Thankfully, we walked past a Peanuts show right as it was starting. Just a short 15 minute show, this absolutely was Abby's favorite part because she not only got to meet Lucy Van Pelt, she also got to sing, dance, and parade around the room with the characters. We thought she was never going to let go when it came time to leave. "C'mon, Abby! You have to let someone else get a picture with her now!"

Pro tip: The Peanuts shows are in the gift shop where the "Snoopy's Rocket Express" ends. The Saturday we were there, two different shows alternated, and ran every 30 minutes all afternoon long!
Post "Team Charlie Brown Show" Family Photo
Caleb, Mommy, Linus, Abby, Lucy, Ellie, Charlie Brown, Daddy, and Elijah

One or two more rides later, and Caleb was the first to finally say that he was ready to be done. We were incredibly impressed that he made it so long, even with having to remove his headphones for a couple of different rides. We have come so far. SOOO far! And it was so fun for us as his parents to see him living in the moment and working to overcome his challenges so that he could fully enjoy the experience with us. A few short years ago, we wouldn't have made it through the front gate with him.
Abby, Caleb, Elijah, and Ellie on "Peanuts Road Rally"

Before leaving though, I had to insist on funnel cake. Although I haven't been to a theme part in over 10 years, funnel cake has always been a part of any theme park experience for me. I couldn't let my kids miss out on what I consider to be iconic theme park food in all of it's glorious greasiness.

Yep. It's still as good as I remember!
Daddy and Abby, Elijah and Caleb (top), Ellie and Abby (bottom)

When we left, all four kids asked if they could go back the next day. It seems we are a theme park family after all! I can see us making many future memories at Worlds of Fun and any other theme parks that we cross paths with!

And not-so-secretly, I'm anxious for them to hit at least the 48" mark so that we can all go ride the big roller coasters together!
Elijah, Caleb, Abby, and Ellie

One last bonus photo:
Look what I made my family do while we were at Worlds of Fun! HAHA! I've always wanted to do one of these photos, so I dragged everyone in and made them dress up. With the exception of Abby who really wanted a 1920's feather instead of the matching hat that went with her dress, I think everyone thought it was fun, and Sean at least tolerated my penchant for dressing up in other eras (I was a Civil War reenactor in college).

This is how we afford quadruplets, by the way....
Ellie, Mommy, Caleb (in back), Elijah (in front), Daddy, and Abby

Thanks for Worlds of Fun and KC Parent Magazine for sending us on this adventure! This post may contain affiliate links. For more info, please see my disclaimer page.

2 comments:

  1. That "oldies" photo has to be the best one I've ever seen! You all will treasure that forever. It is hilarious!
    Lee Ann

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  2. What a fun, wonderful day for all of you! I really enjoyed this post and loved all the pics you included. the dress-up old west photo is awesome and well worth the money! My husband and I did that at Cedar Point and I also did it with some teens I took there one time. The picture brings back great memories and is still fun to look at after many years.

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