travels Archives - We're Parents

Hersheypark Just Got a Little Sweeter – Introducing BBLz ™

August 2, 2017 by Larisha Campbell

Disclosure: This post is sponsored by Pepsi and Hersheypark. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Sweet Memories

Growing up, I only got to go to Hersheypark once. It was our 8th grade field trip. Andrew says he only remembers going two, maybe three times. It was always weird to me that neither of us have been more often, because we both have such fond memories of our minimal experiences. Hersheypark is such a sweet place (pun intended), that I want to make sure that our girls experience it often. Last year, when we went, the baby was really too little to do anything, but Serenity had so much fun that she has brought it up dozens of times since last year, always wondering when we are going back again. It’s a much larger park than we were used too, so even with two days last year, we were all exhausted. We needed a re-do.

Planning the Sweetest Day Trip

Andrew’s work schedule has left minimal summer fun time available so far this year, but when we had a mid-week break, we went for it and drove to Hersheypark. We didn’t tell the kids until we were getting into the car and they were so excited. The baby still doesn’t really know what was going on, but her sister’s excitement got her really happy. I love seeing them enjoy thing together and I knew this year would be such a treat.

Tip: Before we headed out, I downloaded the Hersheypark app onto my phone. It makes finding rides that the girls can do a breeze and I love seeing if there’s wait time before we head in any one direction.

The night before we left, we planned out our trip and decided on what we absolutely must have the girls do together. We picked the perfect day. It was literally gorgeous weather and we were so excited to do the water and dry rides together. Serenity grew a few inches over the past year, so she was able to ride the SooperDooperLooper ride, her first looped roller coaster, and her reaction didn’t disappoint. We are so incredibly blessed to be able to make these memories together as a family.

Hersheypark Just Got a Little Sweeter – Introducing BBLz™

We always like to splurge a bit when we take trips like this. For example, the girls always get to pick some type of treat that they don’t regularly get to have at home- they usually pick cotton candy. This year, before we even went, I knew what our special treat would be. Pepsi, a proud sponsor of Hersheypark, introduced a new installment this year – BBLz™ (pronounced “bubbles”). You can easily find it directly across from Hersheypark’s newest ride – Hershey Triple Tower.

Bubble Makers (soft drink mixologists) create a unique one-of-a-kind beverage experience unlike anything you’ve tried before. Unique flavors and ingredients, including foam and candy, arend whimsically blended together for a fun treat! Each person in our family got their own BBLz™ creation.

We thought they were such a fun and unique way to combine the Pepsi brand with the sweetness of Hershey. We definitely think everyone should have the unique experience of having their own BBLz™ too!

Even though BBLz™ are only in one part of the park, you can still enjoy delicious, refreshing Pepsi beverages throughout the park! Try to check out the PepsiSpire digital beverage fountains where you can customize your own flavor creation with hundreds of different options! Of course, there’s Aquafina, too, which is especially refreshing on those extra hot days!

We can’t wait to hear what you do at your next Hersheypark vacation and what you think of the BBLz™ beverage experience.

2017 Mitsubishi Outlander

May 22, 2017 by Larisha Campbell

The time has officially came. We are in the market for a new vehicle. We literally have no idea where to begin looking. Part of me just wants a new car, the other part an SUV, the mom in me a minivan, and I’ve always dreamed of a pick-up truck. So here we are. Searching.

The Search Begins

We recently planned a “friend-cation” to Great Wolf Lodge in the Poconos and thankfully Mitsubishi let us test drive the 2017 Mitsubishi Outlander GT S-AWC for our trip. We only have two girls and our family doesn’t plan to grow anymore, however we are looking for something that allows our girls to take a friend each with them on our travels. For this trip, Andrew wasn’t joining us, but my girlfriend and her two littles would be. The rest of the week that we had the trip would be just us seeing how we liked the vehicle.

I’ll admit I was a bit nervous when the car arrived. We had four kids in car seats – three of whom are rearfacing, plus luggage and food. The Mitsubishi Outlander has generous space for a small family when you have two children, but four children and luggage, it was going to be a tight fight. The optional third row can be:

down completely
up completely
one side can be left down while the other is up
or down completely with one side of the second row also down.

When the optional third row is up, there is limited trunk space. I didn’t measure, but I would roughly estimate it to be between 13-15″. There is extra space for belongings underneath also (this is where headrest are stored when not in use).

On road!! #greatwolflodge

A post shared by A Arnold (@mrs_aarnold) on May 10, 2017 at 4:13am PDT

But we did it.

We were able to get the following into the 2017 Mitsubishi Outlander:

2 adults
4 children in car seats (3 rearfacing, 1 in 5pt harness forward facing)
large duffle bag
average size suitcase
diaper bag
case of water
4 canvas reusable shopping bags full of food
a day bag for the park (needed before we could check in)
a pack and play
a bumbo chair

and I’m sure a few other things I’m forgetting at the moment. It was crammed, but my friend and I were both pretty amazed that we got everything we needed into the 2017 Mitsubishi Outlander.

We drove the almost 3 hours from my house to Great Wolf Lodge and finally arrived, amazingly barely using half a tank of gas. Score!

Once we were home and our friends were gone, we were able to see more about the features for just our family. Our girls have been recently fighting in the back seat of our car. “Don’t touch me.” “You’re on my side”. Repeat. Constantly.

One of the best things about the optional third row was that I was able to keep our 4 year old in the back and the baby in the second row. They didn’t argue once! It was bliss!

The last day that we were reviewing the 2017 Mitsubishi Outlander, our oldest begged to sit next to her sister again. They got along for about 3 minutes until I was ready to move her back again. For that, the optional third row was pure blissful joy.

Let’s talk about the features:

Some of these are optional features depending on ES, SE, SEL or GT 3.0 S-AWC models –

Starting at $23,495
25/30 MPG
Seats 5 comfortably with optional 3rd row for 7 total seats
10 year/100k Miles Powertrain Limited Warranty
Forward Collision Mitigation System
Super All-Wheel Control
Rear Cross Traffic Alert System
Blind Spot Warning and Lane Change Assist
Multi-View Camera System – 360 degree view
7″ Touchscreen + Apple Carplay + Android Auto
LED Headlights
Heated front seats
Heated steering wheel
Front Dual-Zone Automatic Climate Control
premium Rockford Fosgate surround sound

Once we got home from our trip, we definitely enjoyed our little family inside. All the features were fun to play around with and I loved the sun roof on the warm days that we were getting as the weather warms up. I think if you have a small family who does limited traveling, this could be the perfect option for you (I’m already tired of the girls fighting again).

Dorney Park First Timer

May 12, 2016 by Larisha Campbell

Close your eyes. Think back to those times as a child when you were able to go to the amusement park. If you were anything like Andrew and I, it didn’t happen often – we were lucky if it occurred once a year. Now, think about the feeling you had when you got onto that first roller coaster or first ride every time. There was something magical about the feeling that you got. Excitement. A little nauseousness. Fast pounding heart. Cheeks hurt from smiling so much. It’s something, as a child, that we yearned for all the time.

Now as an adult, I yearn for being able to experience it from my child’s viewpoint. Watching their excitement is a remarkable gift that we’ve been given as parents. We were recently invited to Dorney Park and I couldn’t wait to get there to get on rides with Skibbles, our toddler. I was also excited about taking our 11 month old daughter because it would be the first chance that she’s ever had to ride on any rides.

As soon as we got inside the park, we were greeted by Charlie Brown himself. Skibbles has never met Charlie Brown, so this first time experience was so much fun for her. We had taken the opportunity to check out the map and website for Dorney Park beforehand, so we knew right away that we wanted to head to Planet Snoopy, a theme park just for kids! It has super fun rides, including a kid sized roller coaster that Skibbles just adored. There’s also live shows and the chance to meet with PEANUTS characters throughout the day. We spent most of our day in this area of the park. Andrew has been to Dorney Park once before as a teenager, but for the rest of our family it was our first time, and I have to say, it has been our best park experience so far. Everyone was so friendly and there was so many attractions for us to enjoy, even as a family together.

I had to laugh though at a ride called the Monster (Skibbles called it an octopus) that we just HAD to ride twice. It was the only ride she asked to ride more than once and she even told me that it tickled her belly! It gave me that sinking belly feeling, so I know that’s what she meant! What I loved though more than anything else during the day, was taking the baby on the Zephyr, a scenic ride aboard a miniature train. It was her first ride and her smile made the whole day an incredibly memorable experience. We also got to learn so many cool facts about the early days of the park’s opening and history throughout the last 150 years!

The girls quickly fell asleep once we got into the car, but as soon as Skibbles woke up, she couldn’t stop talking about it. We can’t wait to go back soon to check out Wildwater Kingdom, the water park side of the area.

Check out our fun video to see the great time we had!

You can head to Dorney Park now for their “Battle of the Bands” event and check out the event calendar to see what else is coming up soon! Grab your Dorney Park tickets today and meet us there soon!!

Disclosure: This post is sponsored by Cedar Fair Entertainment Company in conjunction with Blog Meets Brand, and I have been compensated for my participation. All opinions are my own.