Knoebels Amusement Resort

 Knoebels Amusement Resort is about three and a half hours from the Sanders' house in Delaware.  That's quite a drive to make but worth it.  Knoebels is currently ranked the #3 park in the world by Amusement Today (Golden Ticket Awards) and also has the #3 wooden coaster in the world- The Phoenix.  With credentials like these, it was only a matter of time before we showed up.

Knoebels is unlike any park that I have ever been to.  To begin with, it is very inexpensive. There is no parking fee, no entrance fee, the entertainment is free, and you can either buy tickets for the individual rides or buy an all-you-can-ride arm band.  We went on a day where arm bands were buy-one-get-one and so we only spent about $100 dollars total to visit this park.  That's about the same cost as a one-day ticket to Disney for one person.  

The park is set in a rural area of Pennsylvania.  Since there is no entrance fee, a park gate is not needed.  You can walk into the park from many different points. There are cabins and a large camping area that are literally right next to the rides.  People are free to walk into and out of the park at will, and you can even bring your dog.  There were tons of four-legged friends walking around.  

 Since the park is ranked #3, you'd think it'd be loaded with really new and modern rides.  Not so.  Most of the rides at Knoebels are really old.  Their claim to fame is having rides that are so old that you don't find them anywhere else anymore. The carousel, for example, was built in 1913 but is kept in pristine condition.  It is one of the largest carousels in the world and it still has a working ring dispenser.  Riders on the outside row of horses can reach for the steel rings as they ride.  The rider who grabs the brass ring gets a free ride.  I scored two rings myself, but not the brass ring.  The kids tried to grab a ring, but they couldn't quite reach it.

The park has a ride called "Flying Turns" which is based off a 1920s bobsled coaster.  I have never ridden anything like it before.  The track disappears and the coaster rolls around like a bobsled.  Knoebels also has a ride called "The Looper" which is the last of it's kind in the U.S. They have a "whip" ride from 1915.  The bumper cars are throw-backs and have been voted best in the world by USA Weekend.  There are just so many good, old-fashioned rides.  The standout for us, though, was the Phoenix roller coaster.  I know I said in April that Outlaw Run (at Silver Dollar City) was my new favorite wooden coaster.  That is no longer so.  The Phoenix is simply amazing.  This coaster- built in 1947- has definitely stood the test of time.  It is smooth and gives lots of airtime.  Brian says that it's his favorite as well.

 After riding the Phoenix, the other wooden coaster at the park (called the Twister) just couldn't compare.  We rode Twister once, and that was sufficient for the adults.  The kids wanted to go again, so they went by themselves.  This is the first time that we've allowed them to ride a full-sized coaster by themselves while we wait at the exit.  Brian about died laughing when he saw the picture taken during their solo ride.  Olivia's hands are up and Owen is posing.

 Our trip to Knoebels was an all-day event.  We were really tired when we returned to the house.  Even though the park was rather far away, it was definitely worth the drive.

Chincoteague

On the northern coast of Virginia lies the uninhabited Assateague island and it's neighbor Chincoteague island.  Many believe that the wild ponies of Assateague arrived when a Spanish galleon ship sunk of the coast of the island.  The horses lived in isolation on Assateague for many years, and they adapted well to their new environment.  A little too well, in fact.  Population control is an issue.  So, every July, the residents of Chincoteague go over to Assateague, round up a number of horses, swim them across the channel from Assateague to Chincoteague, and auction them off.
A few years ago, Olivia and I read the book "Misty of Chincoteague" which tells the story of Phantom, a wild pony of Assateague island, and her colt, Misty.  We pass Chincoteague island every year on our way to Delaware and we always say we'll visit one year.  This was the year.  The main thing that we wanted to do on the island was to see the ponies- several of which are descendants of Misty.  

 Our first stop was the Chincoteague Pony Center where we singed the kids up for riding lessons.  This was their first non-guided, solo ride on a horse.  The girl who gave the lesson was phenomenal.  The kids started by learning how to sit on a horse properly and how to maneuver it using the reigns.  They practiced by going around the ring, stopping and starting the horse, and changing directions.  The instructor then put out some orange cones and had the kids weave the horse in and out of them.  After that, she had the kids trot the horse.  Finally, she placed some brushes on top of the posts of the riding ring and had the kids steer the horse to each post, collect the brush, and deposit the brush into a bucket in the middle of the arena. This took a lot of steering.  The kids did great for a first time on a horse.  The only minor hiccup that Owen didn't want to kick the horse because he was scared he'd hurt it (and his horse was older and didn't really want to go on his own).  He got more confident as the lesson went on, but it took a little while to get there.  Once the lesson was over, each kid got to pick a ribbon as a souvenir.

After our riding lesson, we had lunch on Chincoteague and then drove over to the national seashore on Assateague island. The kids had fun on the beach.  The water was cold, so mostly they played in the sand.  

As we were leaving the island we spotted some wild ponies in the distance.  That was a nice way to end our afternoon.

Whitewater Rafting

While visiting Brian's family in Delaware, we decided to make a few day trips.  Our first trip was to the Harper's Ferry area to try our hand at whitewater rafting.  We took a 4-hour, 7-mile trip down the Shenandoah and Potomac Rivers.  The rapids were class I-III- just enough to be exciting without being too much for the kids to handle.  Actually, the kids did great.  The only one who did terrible was me.  I kept falling into the middle of the raft, which I suppose is better than falling out of the raft.  There were a couple of places where the river was calm enough that we could get out and swim.  The water temperature was perfect and felt so good on a warm day.  I took my camera, but was only able to take pictures when I wasn't paddling (so no pictures in white water). Both kids are already asking to go rafting again, so I guess our excursion was a hit.

Delaware 2016

 We have just return from our annual trip to visit Brian's dad in Delaware.  We had a great time catching up with everyone.  We were even able to see Brian's brothers, sister-in-law, and our niece.  One of the thing on Olivia's list was challenging Poppy to a game of chess.

 We also were able to enjoy some ice cream at Byler's with my Uncle Mike and Aunt Connie.

 Our niece Addie is growing like a weed.  I had to take lots of pictures of this cutie.

Here is Brian with his dad and brothers (minus Dustin).

 Olivia and Owen loved playing with Addie.

And here are the Sanders girls.

WinShape

 The kids participated in Winshape camp this year.  This community camp offers a week of Christian fun and fellowship to local communities.  The camp- founded by Chic Filet owner Truett Cathy- was well attended.  In addition to singing and exploring a new "truth" each day, the campers also got to participate in three "skills" classes.  Olivia's three skills were sewing, crafts, and wacky science.  She liked the sewing best and came home with a key chain and book mark that she had sewn herself.  Owen's three skills were archery, secret ops, and man land.  I have no idea what he did in secret ops (because it was about doing nice things for no reward so he can't tell me).  Man land was Owen's favorite skill.  He made a wallet out of duct tape, used tools to put together a wooden cross, and he "shaved" his face (?).

 The last day of camp was family fun day, so I was allowed to attend.  The kids had their big end of camp game that determined which "village" won the golden triangle.  All of the villages fought hard, but Olivia's village (safari) ended up victorious.

I also attended the closing session, where Olivia and her friend Hannah were chosen to help lead the camp song on stage.  The whole week was wonderful and the kids are already asking if they can attend again next year.

Mount Vernon

Another recommendation from Hannah was that we visit George Washington's home at Mount Vernon.  We could not believe how much there was to see and do.  It was way more interesting than I thought it would be.  We stayed at Mount Vernon all day.




Let me just say the George Washington was living in style.  Mount Vernon is situated on one of the prettiest pieces of property that I have ever seen.  It was on a lovely spot of land that overlooked the Potomac River.  His house was also awesome.  The rooms were well laid out and painted in bright colors.

 Around his house was a village of other buildings that were used as shops and living quarters for those who served the house.  The kids enjoyed the blacksmith demonstration and spent quite some time watching these fellows work.  Owen even stated afterward that he wanted to be a blacksmith.

Slave quarters

 My favorite thing was the "meet Martha Washington" experience.  The actress playing Martha was very convincing.  She knew everything about life at Mount Vernon and answered every question that was asked- and she was asked quite a few by my mom.  I think mama could have just sat in there for hours talking to Martha.  I loved how Martha had such proper manners and referred to George as "the general".

 We also visited George and Martha's tomb to pay our respects.

We knew that our time at Mount Vernon was over when it began to rain.  So, we loaded up to begin our journey back home.  Everyone from grandparents to grandkids enjoyed the visit to Mount Vernon.  It definitely has my seal of approval.