GRISWOLDDAD
Parenting, Entertainment, and Travel Tips
Things to Do In
or Near Any Town
Amusement and Water Parks
These are all over. Of course you have the big ones, like Disney, Universal, Busch Gardens, and Six Flags but others like the Nickelodeon Theme Park in Minnesota or Carowinds and Tweetsie Railroad in North Carolina or Schlitterbahn Water Park in Texas give you options that should be close to everyone.
Bowling, Rollerskating, Miniature Golf
It's time to start a new generation's enjoyment of these long-loved pastimes. What some parent's may not be aware of is that most places have equipment that makes these activities easier for kids these days (besides the gutter bumpers). In the pics below, you'll see bowling alleys offer ramps to assist kids with getting the momentum needed to get the ball down the lane. Rollerskating rinks have rolling bars to assist kids when learning how to skate.
Want to know about a free summer bowling program for kids? This post tells all about Kids Free Bowling.
Comic Book Conventions aka Comic-Cons
While these events are essentially meant to be a place to buy/sell old comics and toys, they can be a lot of fun for kids. People get decked out in costumes from comic book characters to sci-fi movie characters, so the kids get a big kick out of seeing all of them. Be sure to dress your kids up too, so they can participate! My twins dressed up, and we had people asking to take pictures with them, even a comic book artist asked to get their picture. In addition to the selling of comic books and toys, there are also artists set up selling their artwork. Many of those artists (and writers) are known Marvel and DC (etc.) artists and will sign comic books and artwork that you bring in. While they sell their art, they usually sign autographs for free. The bigger comic-cons even have panels of actors, movie and show runners talking about past, present, and upcoming comic and sci-fi related projects!
Family Entertainment Centers
Chuck E Cheese and Monkey Joe's are the ones that spring to mind, but variations exist all over and are all tons of fun and great to have birthday parties at at least once.
Farm Visits
Kids love getting out to see animals and the kid friendly side of farms.
Festivals
Whether its street festivals, fall festivals, Christmas festivals, Native American festivals, or Hollerin' Contests, people are having festivals for all kinds of reasons and often throughout the year. One that we enjoy is the Renaissance Festival which takes you back to the days of knights and maidens.
Fire Department Tours
Lots of fire departments offer tours and are even willing to give impromptu tours to kids along with fireman themed coloring books and firehats!
Libraries
Libraries are an endless source of fun and activities that many seem to overlook or underestimate. Of course they have books, but they also have innumerable activities that include storytimes, crafts, and many shows including plays, concerts and other performances. Some of the best kids' concerts we've seen have been at our local library, for FREE (and they were national children singers, not local). Most libraries only offer storytimes during the normal 8-5 workday which eliminates working parents from participating. However, it has been my experience (with 2 different libraries) that they are open to suggestion on starting a Saturday Storytime program.
Parades
Much like a fair, there's a good chance you're going to see people you know at a parade (unless of course it's in a huge city like Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade) which gives the feeling of hometown, main street America fun. They have something for everyone, whether you're there to see the local high school band, a ton of fire trucks and police cars with deafening sirens, antique cars, or if you're just a kid scrambling for every piece of thrown candy possible. Plus, you'll end up with either fireworks or Santa Claus!
Helpful hint to anyone wanting a lot of candy: my son, Eli, dressed as Spider-Man to go to the parade. Naturally, this attracted a lot of attention from the people on the parade floats. Attention=Candy.
He got a TON!
Parks/Splash Pads
These are always good for a fun day out that kids will love. Bring a change of clothes so the kids don't have to get back into your car wet!
Sporting Events
Whether you're a baseball, football, basketball, soccer, or racing fan, sporting events are fun to go to with your kids. With my kids, even if they don't like the sport or even KNOW it, they like the experience of the live game. (Or at least the first half of it or so...then the fidgeting boredom starts...)
Zoos and Aquariums
Since I was a kid, Zoos seem to have expanded. There are the traditional zoos that most states have, like the San Diego Zoo and the RiverBanks Zoo in South Carolina, but then there is this other type of smaller zoo that lets you drive through and get up close and personal with the animals, like Monkey Jungle in Florida, Lazy 5 Ranch in North Carolina, or Natural Bridge Wildlife Ranch in Texas.
Then there are the aquariums. While Georgia Aquarium was until recently the biggest aquarium in the world and is still the biggest in the USA, aquariums are all over the place and a lot of fun, like the New York Aquarium in Coney Island or the real life version of Dolphin Tale's aquarium, Clearwater Marine Aquarium in Florida.
