No, when I say "Leapin' Lizards", I'm not talking about Annie. I'm referring to us. As in B, E and me. We were leapin' alright. I've been trying to write this entry for what feels like a month now. The three of us went to Sky Zone in Allendale to check it out. For those who don't know, it's an indoor trampoline park. They have single trampolines, ones you can play basketball on (with a hoop/net), ones you can play dodgeball on, etc.
I'd bought a Groupon awhile ago but had no idea when I'd get there. Of course, I didn't look at the fine print or when it would expire. I bought and forgot, as I do, for anything but cupcakes. But one Sunday over E's winter break from school, we decided we'd check it out. Good thing, because the Groupon was going to expire in early February and I knew I'd never get back there in time.
My Groupon was for an hour on a weekend. It figures that the dates on blackout for using the discount were over break, which I have a real problem with because that's when people want to be able to use those things. We didn't know that we would have any issue using the Groupon so we went and we just had to pay a $10 upcharge. Annoying, but it wasn't going to stop us from trying the place out, to it was fine. You have to buy their special grip socks too for $2/pair. These are basically the same socks you used to buy your toddler so they wouldn't take a header on your hardwood floors. Just bigger.
We had an hour and were worried that wouldn't be enough time. B and I were also planning on jumping. The other Groupon choice was for thirty minutes. That seemed way too short to me. So I picked the sixty minute. Who knew jumping was hard work?? B and I were winded in minutes. And I go on the treadmill every single day! For an hour or.hour and a half at a clip. Good thing I was wearing a sports bra top under a thermal because I had to take off the thermal. I was sweating like I did a marathon. An hour is MORE than enough time.
It was fun. It seemed like it must be good exercise. E was able to get into a game of dodgeball for a little while before a birthday party was supposed to use that area. It gets CROWDED. We got there early because when I looked it up online, there was actually a graph that showed how busy it gets at different times of the day. The middle of the day seems to be the peak time. It also seems like it's a birthday party factory. That's not a bad thing- it's definitely a place to burn off energy and that's what you want for a kid party. You can have a private party but even a non-private party is on the expensive side (to me) for fifteen kids that are included. I don't think I'd pay for the private party. When we were there, a few parties were going on at the same time as just their open jump. I don't like that kind of system for birthday parties. It's like Chuck E. Cheese to me. A big free for all. I'm sure all the kids have a blast though.
The employees are very conscious of watching your sticker to make sure you leave when your time is up. It's fine- they obviously have to have a good system or people would just be staying all day. We were SO done at the end of that hour though. I felt fine during and after but B was in PAIN for days. He didn't wear his compression garment on his calf and he definitely paid for that for the next few days.
It looks very clean, including the bathrooms. It is kind of weird that you have to use the bathrooms with no shoes on if you put your shoes in a (pay) locker. There are open spaces for shoes, but ever since that episode of Sex And The City, where someone stole Carrie's Manolos at a house party, I'm not leaving my shoes anywhere someone can just grab them. Anyway- if they're in a paid locker, you're not going to get your shoes and then have to pay for your locker again. None of us went to the bathroom until we were ready to go and had our shoes back on. They have a snack bar, but no real food. It's a nice looking decent sized snack bar so it seems like it would be a good idea to have real food there- pizza, hot dogs, etc. I forget what they do have but it was nothing I would've wanted for me or E. I saw a pizza guy coming in bringing pies for a party so I guess they have to order out for a party.
We ended up going to Strawberry Place in Nyack after, which was just fine by me.
For just one of us parents and E, it wouldn't be too excessively expensive to take him there again. B probably wouldn't even jump after the pain he was in. Forties are a real pain bitch, I'll tell ya. I did see a mom of three there that I know who also brought her nephew. For the five of them it cost her like $150 between the jumping and the socks. That seems like a lot of money for only an hour of play time. You could go to a museum, bowling or ice skating for way more hours and less money. It just depends on what you want to do. I needed a nap after our time at Sky Zone, so if it tires your kids out, it might just be the best money you've ever spent!
Sky Zone- Allendale
http://www.skyzone.com/allendale/
No comments:
Post a Comment