Kids & Traveling | Grammy's Corner

Kids & Grandparents on Vacation

Sea World Of Texas in San Antonio

I often hear people make the comment “if I had known grandchildren could be so grand, I would have had them first.” But what makes grandchildren different from our own children? Why do we consider them ‘grand’? For those of you with grandchildren, you probably would agree that there is a difference in your everyday expectations of your grandchildren today compared to your children when they were at that age. Our grandchildren usually spend a limited amount of time with us before returning to their parents; therefore, we are not responsible for the day in, day out, daily care and pressure of rearing a child. When our children were young, we were so busy with day to day affairs of a job, family, and home life; there seemed very little time enjoy life together. But with our precious grandchildren, we laugh, play, and explore the world when given the opportunity; because we have finally slowed down in life ourselves.

After spending two days with three of my grandchildren, ages 2 to 8, at Sea World in San Antonio, I have some of the best memories to last a life time. This destination provides opportunities for all ages to relax and enjoy. Between the shows that were entertaining for the young and the young at heart, the animals, the rides, and all the water features allowing us to stay cool, we stayed busy from the time the park opened until it closed. Sea World provides multiple resting spots throughout the park for grownups to relax while the children play or the two year old to take a nap. The funniest sight I perceived while in the park were strollers of all kinds being used to carry all the belongings instead of the children!!! Following are a few suggestions you might consider if you are planning a trip to Sea World.

While in the park….

Feeding Time With Seals

Make time for feeding times: Meal time is the best time to meet some playful Atlantic bottlenose dolphins and California sea lions, who you can feed by hand at designated times throughout the day. Stop by in the morning to check the day’s schedule, then give yourself some extra time to get a great spot right at the water’s edge. They are very playful and will come up to your hand.

See what goes on behind-the-scenes: Up-close tours like our Behind the Scenes and Ultimate Seafari Tour times aren’t listed on the park map, so they’re easy to miss. An insider’s tip? Book online ahead of time, or stop by the tour desk just inside the Main Entrance on the right.

Head to Sesame Street Bay of Play:This enclosed area is just for kids and a great place to let them burn off a little energy. Plus, there are plenty of shady spots for parents and a special play area just for toddlers. There are cabannas that can be rented for the day in this central area of the park, which is great if you have toddlers. It serves as the hub for the rest of the park. We went over to the Lazy River to float around I don’t know how many times. But the grandchildren loved it and so did I.

Water Play Park

Beat the heat: Temperatures can get quite high, especially in the middle of the day. Plan to take in these “cool places” when the thermometer rises: Shamu Theater, Penguin Encounter®, Sharks/The Coral Reef, and Nautilus Amphitheater. The new ‘Azul‘ show is awesome. We sat through it twice, because I couldn’t watch everything at one time. Don’t miss this one.

Pay once and dine all day: With the All-Day Dining Deal, purchase your meal tickets at one time and get a wristband that allows you to go through the restaurant lines as many times as you’d like that day. An Adult is $29.95 plus tax and Children 3-9 are $15.95 plus tax. Children under 3 may share with an Adult. Purchase in the park at any Ticket Booth, the Animal Connections Reservation Center, or Guest Services. Also, check into the Dine with Shamu. This is an up close experience with Shamu that children get to ask as many questions of the trainers that they want, while serving up an excellent buffet meal on linen table cloths. I was impressed by all the food that we purchased within the park. It was very good, with some excellent healthy choices, such as turkey croissants, turkey wraps, fruit, taco salads, fajita salads, pizza, pasta, grilled chicken, and barbeque. Large cups of ice water are free just by asking for it.

Dining with Shamu

Remember the kid in you: Don’t be surprised if you find yourself choked up in the presence of Shamu. Or, your arms covered with goose bumps in 85 degree weather as your hand touches a dolphin. There’s an incredible connection between humans and animals, one we celebrate here every day. Take a few deep breaths and drink in when you feel the connection move through you, and you’ll carry the feeling home with you.

Sea World of San Antonio surprised me by the quality of family vacation it provided for a family stretching in age from barely two to over 60. We all enjoyed ourselves without becoming overtired or cranky, making it a very relaxing, enjoyable family vacation.

Kids & Traveling: Types of Strollers

Man Pushing Stroller on the Beach

Our families today lead very active life styles. In motion, from morning until night, with playdates, exercise classes, carpools, shopping, strollers rate high on the list of necessit for baby gear. It’s not easy to juggle all the roles a parent plays, but having the proper equipment helps to make it easier. Without a stroller, going anywhere with a baby can be nearly impossible. Shopping for that first stroller might be a little intimidating with all the styles of strollers on the market, not to mention the brands. All strollers share the same functions, but there are differences to consider before choosing the right baby stroller for you.

Umbrella Strollers are lightweight, inexpensive, and easily portable. These strollers fold up quickly, take up very little space when storing, and lightweight to carry. They are especially handy, if traveling by bus or taxi within a city, because they take up less space.

Energi Stroller by Mia Moda

Jogging Strollers have large, shock-absorbing wheels. Many parents who like to take their children when they go for walks every day like the jogging strollers that usually have three wheels instead of four wheels. The wheels and design make it easier to push and the harnesses make it more supportive for the baby. They will have features to protect your baby from the sun, wind, and rain, such as large canopies or see thru canopies. The Energi stroller by Mia Moda is an ultra-sleek stroller designed for an ultra-active lifestyle. The lockable front swivel wheel provides unique handle control while the all wheel suspension provides the driver and the rider with a smooth ride. The unique rear cable break system allows more kick space and the adjustable handle bar accommodates any parent. This stroller is designed for children from 6 months to 40 lbs with a 3-position seat recline and a 5-point harness to keep your child comfortable and safe. With the Mia Moda Certo car seat this stroller easily becomes a travel system.

Bassinet Strollers are designed for young infants and allow the baby to lie down in the basket. They maneuver with a backward-facing design, allowing the

Acrobat, Multi Terrain Stroller & Bassinet

person pushing to constantly view the child. While some bassinet strollers are designed to look old fashioned, there are many new modern designs to choose from. The newest stroller by Dream On Me is the Acrobat, Multi Terrain Stroller & Bassinet. This stroller is designed for the family that enjoys it all. So versatile and reliable it can quickly go from beach sand to snow in a blink of the eye. A reversible seat and bassinet allow your child to travel rear facing, looking at you or front facing, looking in the direction you are traveling. The bassinet even comes off the stroller to be used separately as a bed.The handlebars are reversible switching the large wheels to the front in rugged terrain if necessary. There are swivel locks on the wheels and a five point safety harness for the child’s safety. Dream On Me Acrobat, All Terrain Stroller & Bassinet

Standard Strollers come in a wide variety of styles with a wide variety of features. Many of these strollers feature one hand folding, large canopy for protection from the weather, and brakes. These strollers vary in size, including weight. Most of the modern dated strollers are made of lightweight aluminum for easier transporting in and out of vehicles.

Multi-child Strollers come in multiple configurations to accommodate twins, triplets, or multi-age children. Multi-child strollers are available more today than in the past due to our very mobile society. One of Mia Moda’s multi-child strollers the Compagno Tandem Stroller is a stylish tandem stroller with gracefully curved lines suitable for infants from six months and, also, accommodates older children with a resting pad, standing board, and handles in the back. A 5-point harness in the front and back seats allow both children to remain safe. A universal adapter allows this to be a travel system with most infant carriers.

Compagno Tandem Stroller

Travel Systems come with an infant carrier, a car seat base, and a stroller, allowing you to click the child from the car seat base right into the stroller, or back into the car seat base. This system is designed for the newborn to 6 month old child. This system allows the infant to remain sleeping undisturbed as you move from car to stroller while he is safely harnessed in the car seat.

With today’s strollers there is no reason you can’t continue your active life style. Children enjoy being active just as much as we do. Many times, you might find it easier to have one kind of stroller for the car, and a second stroller to use for walking the trails at home. If you are prepared with the right gear for the baby, continuing with your life style will be easy, because babies adapt to anything as long as they have the basic necessities.

Have Baby Will Travel

Kids and Traveling: Mia Moda Atmosferra Stroller

Walking on the Beach, Mia Moda Energi Stroller

Our society is on the move every day, every hour, every minute. Children don’t slow us down today. We just pack their backpacks along with ours, and we are off and running for the day. Children learn to sleep, eat, and play in the car at quite an early age. Parents remain active because manufacturers provide a wide assortment of baby gear to meet their needs. This week I would like to show case one of our suppliers of baby strollers.

Mia Moda is a fresh, new company that started in 2006 and is based out of a suburb of Charlotte, NC. Their mission is to design the kind of products that appeal to your sense of independence, individuality and desire to simply ‘do things your way’. Every Mia Moda car seat and stroller incorporates leading-edge technology that delivers performance and safety. And that’s why they have given them names like Viva, Energi and Compagno … identities that capture the exuberance of youth and that Roman Holiday-esque “gaiezza” (happiness, joy) that they work hard to build into every one of their products.

The Atmosferra is Mia Moda’s top of the line stroller and newest addition to their family. This European-styled stroller has luxury stroller features, such as a reversible seat and adjustable handle, but at a great mid-range stroller price. It is one of the most reasonably priced strollers on the market that has a reversible seat.

Mia Moda Atmosferra Stroller

The seat is amazing and loaded with features! It is a great reversible seat that allows you to change the seat direction easily by pressing 2 buttons on the sides of the seat and lifting the seat up so that your child can face you or out at the world. The seat is large and comfortable complete with a padded 5-point harness and three recline positions, including completely flat suitable for a newborn. The one-handed recline is very easy to do with a lever on the back of the seat. When you recline the seat, you will find a large mesh window (with cover) that allows air to circulate through the stroller, keeping baby cool. We love this feature especially for the summer! Our only problem with the seat is that you cannot recline it flat with a taller toddler. They simply won’t fit.

The Atmosferra has an adjustable footrest and a great option to turn the seat into a bassinet-like environment. Simply raise the footrest and locate the mesh pocket underneath. Remove the fabric from the mesh pocket, and secure the fabric around the baby tray using the hooks and snaps provided. This turns the seat into a fully enclosed cozy place for your infant.

Since not all moms and dads are the same height, the Atmosferra has a great telescoping handle that prevents the tallest parents from kicking the frame! This is a fabulous stroller for tall parents because it has one of the best telescoping handles we have seen on a stroller. With the handle all the way extended, there is no way you will kick the frame of the Atmosferra!

It has a very large sun canopy with peek-a-boo window that extends almost to the baby tray to completely shade your child. The large basket is fantastic and will hold a large diaper bag, shopping bags or other baby essentials. We love that it is easily accessible from the front or back of the stroller.

Mia Moda kept baby and mom in mind with the Atmosferra’s removable baby tray with cup holder and a cup holder on the handlebar for mom that doesn’t get in the way when folding.

Folding the Atmosferra is easy to do but it is a two handed fold. As you press the gray button in the middle of the handlebar, you have to press the black release button located on the left side to push the handle to its lowest position. Then locate the circular finger pull on the left side of the seat and pull in an upwards motion. The stroller will fold upwards and lock into a standing fold. It’s not hard to do but definitely takes two hands. We found that the stroller is still rather bulky when folded and will take up quite a bit of trunk space.

Unfolding the stroller is no problem either. All you have to do is unlock the latch on the right side of the handlebar, step on the back of the basket and pull up on the handle bar until the stroller locks open.

There are two large 12 inch rear tires that provide a very smooth ride over a variety of terrain and front lockable swivel wheels for an easy maneuverability. This stroller had no problem tackling grass, playground mulch or small rocks. Plus, it’s definitely a one handed stroller. Unless, it’s loaded to near the 40 lb weight capacity, we were able to zip this stroller around with one hand. With a larger child, it will take a bit more wrist power. The rear wheels have a quick release button that allows you to pop them off for a more compact storage. There is also a rear footbrake that locks both wheels at the same time.

Weighing in at 23.8 lbs., this is the average weight for a full-size, full-featured stroller. We had no problem lifting the weight into our trunk but the folded stroller is still large. It will fit comfortably in a SUV trunk but it might be a good idea to check the dimensions if you plan on transporting it regularly with a small sedan as it might not fit all cars’ trunks.

The Atmosferra can also be used as a travel system with a Mia Moda Viva Car Seat. Note: This is the only car seat that will work with this stroller!

It is available in three colors: Nero, Brown and Rosso Red. The Atmosferra has many of the features of a luxury stroller plus more such as reversible seat, adjustable handlebar, large basket, gigantic canopy and a flat recline, but at a fraction of the luxury price. Retailing at $299, it’s loaded with all the features a great stroller should have. This full size stroller is quite bulky when folded but for a fully-loaded stroller, stocked with all these great features, we think the bulkiness may be worth it. The Mia Moda Atmosferra Stroller and other Mia Moda strollers can be purchased at www.babyiture.com.