Finding Relaxation on Vacation

One of my favorite parts about staying outside the city with family is that we have the opportunity to check out some different, more relaxing activities beyond the typical “go, go, go” mentality of being in the city. Burke has a lot of great little places to eat and shop, but we found a few places to be particularly fun – and probably something you could do in many suburban communities around the country.

We took the kids mini golfing for the first time. This wasn’t just your typical mini golf, but a jungle/cannibal themed safari adventure that include squirting water, plenty of photo ops, and 18 holes of crazy fun. The down side was that we had six people and they said we couldn’t go in a group larger than five. Since we’re rebels, we started separately and joined up together once we were inside. J and I had visited this particular mini golf course a year ago, and when A saw the pictures he had immediately asked for the chance to go.

All four of us and Uncle Mark were able to boast a hole-in-one this year. Kayo didn’t have one this time, but last year I was the only one without a hole-in-one, so she and I are about even now!

We also hit up the Minion movie while we were in town. This seems like such a simple thing that we can do at home, but when we have a toddler around, it’s not always easy to get away for a movie night with both mom and dad in attendance. The kids swear they will never watch another local movie again. The seats were full on leather recliners with footrests and giant arm rests. It was insane, so comfortable, and so much fun to give them that new experience!

The highlight for me, though, was the local park. Burke Lake Park is home to obviously a lake, but some great trails, a train, a carousel, mini golf, an ice cream shop, Frisbee golf, parkour stations along the trails, and probably a whole lot more that we missed while we were busy working out. At the time, the kids were training for the Iowa Games, but our family runs quickly rose to the top of my “vacation favorites” list. Living and modeling a healthy lifestyle for our kids is one of the best decisions and parenting choices J and I have made for our family. I’ll never forget those moments, and I don’t think the kids will forget their 5 mile runs or first parkour experiences any time soon!