I had been telling Addi Claire that I would take her to the water park all summer long, and this weekend seemed like the best opportunity for us to go.
Carnival rides are not my thing. I don’t ride them, don’t want to ride them and get nauseous watching other people ride them (except for the Ferris wheel, of course).
But the water park is different. That’s just sliding in water.
Lisa McNeece
So off we went Saturday, daughter Jo Ellen and I with 6-year-old Addi Claire and 3-year-old Ellie Kathryn to Geyser Falls in Philadelphia.
We knew there would be several slides that Ellie Kathryn would not be able to get on due to her height, so we split up, with me taking her, and Jo Ellen, who is braver (and younger) than me, going with Addi Claire.
I never meant to get on any crazy water rides, but before the day was over, ended up on two and at one point on each one– airborne.
Ellie Kathryn and I spent most of the time at the Creaky Leaky Water Factory which had several slides, stairways, rope bridges and spraying water geared to her age. Although, it was extremely hot outside, there was constant water spraying, so that was not an issue.
The four of us met up with a team swap. Addi Claire wanted me to ride the Whitewater Express – a 300-foot slide that you ride down on a mat. There were no curves or twists, so I deemed it to be safe for Grana.
But I didn’t see that it was a “racing” slide, so it was pretty fast. I survived, Addi Claire thought it was great.
We met up again with Jo Ellen and Ellie Kathryn for a Dippin’ Dots break and then all four got in the Lazy River. Next Addi Claire wanted me to go with her again. She pointed up to the Splash Back.
The Splash Back is a two person backwards waterside. First you zip through a tunnel and then drop onto a ramp which slings you upward, before you travel backwards into the splash pool. It is described as a “roller coaster and waterslide all rolled into one.”
I was pretty distracted as we waited in line going up the stairs holding the double inner-tube. Addi Claire was beyond excited, which I was focused on.
As we got closer to the top, I began to think that maybe it wasn’t such a good idea for me to be on this attraction with her.
We got to the top and entered the small gate area, where we put our tube onto the starting point.
I asked the teenager manning the entrance of the ride about it. “Well,” he said while helping me and Addi Claire get situated, “I’m not gonna lie to you, first time I rode it, it scared the crap out of me,” and with that, he pushed us down the chute.
Of course it was all fun, until we exited the spiral slide for the “backsplash” part, we zipped up to what I thought was way too high, (I truly thought we would go over the top and hoped Ellie Kathryn wasn’t watching) before sliding backwards over a bump into the splash pool.
I have never been so glad in my life to get to the ground, and Addi Claire said “Grana, that was SO MUCH FUN! Can we go again?”
“I have to sit down,” I said.
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A bakery/gift shop is opening in Calhoun County next week. Cindy Chrestman Smith is opening The Country Basket near her home on Calhoun Academy road. The official opening will be August 21.
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Food news– Neon Pig restaurant in Tupelo has been honored for having the Best Burger in the Nation.
Neon Pig has been in the run-off for several weeks for their Smash Burger, but took the top spot against a San Francisco restaurant Monday.
Oreo cookies’ newest release– Brownie Batter Oreos. Oh no.
You may email Lisa at lisamcneece@gmail.com and follow her on twitter @lisamcneece