5 Reasons to Love Fall in Pensacola

We may not have rows of apple orchards or leaves that change to brilliant oranges and yellows but Pensacola does offer a lot of activities to usher in the fall season!  This week the temperatures have dropped giving us a taste of the cooler weather that is to come.  I have had my windows open all week, Starbucks began carrying the Pumpkin Spiced Latte again, and I saw Halloween decorations at the the store.  Fall will be in full swing before we know it!  Pensacola is a great place to be in the fall because the beaches are still gorgeous and there are lots of fun fall activities!

Get lost in a sea of corn and a maze of hay bales! Visiting the local corn mazes is a great way to spend a day as a family.  Wander the corn maze, shoot corn from the corn cannon, and grab a treat when you are all finished.  Several of the area corn mazes are set to open the first week in October.  Dixon Primary will be putting on their Haystackular this year as well!

It’s the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown!  Ever since I created this website, I have gotten emails from readers looking for a place to pick real pumpkins out of a real pumpkin patch.  Last year, Holland Peanut Farm opened a pumpkin patch and invited families all over the area to pick out pumpkins at reasonable prices, go for a hay ride and enjoy a cup of boiled peanuts and they will be opening the pumpkin patch again this year!

Get your fill of shrimp, oysters, conch and more.  The 34th Annual Seafood Festival is held on September 23-25th and is one of my favorite family festivals.  There is a children’s section, beautiful arts and crafts to peruse, and tasty seafood to try.

Fair time!  This week of cooler weather has made me think of the fair.  We didn’t go last year because of scheduling conflicts but I would love to take the kids this year.

Time to explore parks.  We will be starting our park series back up with the cooler weather.  It had been my intention to write about a new park every week in the summer but it was just too hot outside.  The cooler weather means camping, more time playing outside and exploring area parks!

As these activities get closer, I will share our reviews, important dates and things to know before you go.  What is your favorite fall activity in the Pensacola area?

Reflections on the Waves at Waterville, USA

My pal Dianna mentioned she was headed to Waterville, USA in Gulf Shores, AL for an afternoon of fun in the sun and I was thrilled when she said that she would do a guest post.  We haven’t been to Waterville yet and though we intended to make it this summer, it will have to wait until next summer.  I love Dianna’s tips on how to survive a day at a big waterpark!  Even though school starts Monday, Waterville will be open on the weekends until the end of September (9/24).  Be sure to check the calendar for dates and times before you go!

The Hayden Trio decided to take advantage of the first sunny day in weeks and embark on a journey to Gulf Shores, Alabama for our first experience at Waterville, USA.  We hadn’t been to a water park in years, and decided to take the plunge with our three-year-old, Cautious C.   Overall our 3 hour stay was a mixed bag of fun and less fun mostly because of some oversights, mistakes, and lack of information.   To ensure that your experience is better than ours, I have compiled a list of tips in the form of do’s and don’ts for your trip to Waterville. 

• Do pack water shoes.   Again, I have not been to a water park in years and do not remember needing shoes.  But for Waterville in July, foot protection against the hot pavers is a big plus, especially for little ones.  Cautious C is sensitive, but even we bigger Haydens ended up with scalded soles at the end of our day. 
• Do not pack food or drink (but you can get away with a juice box).  We packed two waters and a juice in our bag for our fun day, and were promptly asked to take them back to the car when the park attendant searched our bags.  Since the car was parked in the back 40, we ended up throwing away our perfectly good waters.  When I pushed about bringing the juice box, they did bend on that rule. 
• Don’t avoid the parks in July.  Though it was a beautiful day and fairly crowded, the lines moved rapidly and there was plenty of room on the lazy river and in the wave pool. 
• Do park near the arcade (right below the biggest hill of the roller coaster) and buy your wristbands there.  We avoided the long lines at the entrance and waited only minutes in the air-conditioned arcade for our wristbands.  Plus it gave me an opportunity to buy the tickets while the hubby entertained Cautious C by walking around the video games. 
• Do use the clean restrooms in the arcade before you enter the water park.  It is obvious that bathrooms in a water park are going to be wet.  But if it grosses you out to put your bare feet on a wet bathroom floor, the dry arcade is your best bet. 
• Do print a map from the Waterville website before you go.  I know it’s a water park and you’re not going to run around with a wet map all day, but it would have really helped to have a map to get our bearings at first.  There are no signs directing you to things like inner tubes and the beginning of the lazy river.  It doesn’t take long to figure it out, but when you have a little one whose feet are burning, not having to backtrack at the beginning really helps. 
• Don’t expect to be able to go down slides together (except for inner tube slides).  After making a climb up Rainbow Falls with Cautious C, being told we could not accompany him down the slide, and then having to walk all the way down the crowded steps, it is a lesson I will not soon forget.  Cautious C has gone down slides before, but needs a little help to get comfortable at the beginning.  Needless to say, he never went down any of those slides. 
• Do not bring a life jacket.  Waterville provides all types of life jackets in good condition free of charge. 
• Do nab a yellow tube anywhere you can get it.  From my previous water park experiences, I thought tubes and flotation devices were organized in separate areas for each attraction.  However, even the Waterville employee told us that we might have to look several places for an inner tube.  There was no real pattern to the distribution and collection of inner tubes, and they seemed to simply flow without boundaries all over the park.   If you intend to ride a tube ride, get on the lazy river, or float in the wave pool, get your yellow tubes wherever you see ‘em.  We got ours around one of the lazy river exits and held on to it for the other tube attractions.  
• Do not wear a shirt over your swimsuit and don’t feel subconscious about it.  There were signs everywhere that directed slide riders not to wear shirts down the water slides.  If you wear a shirt because you want to hide something, don’t.  Even at the beach I have never seen the range of body types and “get-ups” that I saw at Waterville.  There is no reason to wear anything more than a swimsuit.  It’s July for goodness sake! 

Final Note

If you too have a Cautious C, It may not be best to start on the 10 and under play area beneath the huge dumping bucket.  That is where we started and it was a critical mistake because Cautious C does not like surprises.  It took us over an hour to rid him of his anxiety after the huge bucket dumped right on his head as he reached the slides.  We should have started small. 

Overall, Waterville was an interesting and entertaining experience.  If you have a fearless child, then you should have no problems just diving in and having fun.  The Hayden Trio spent over $100 at the park and did little more than we would have at a community pool.  But most of that was due to having Cautious C and making some general mistakes.  Hope that these tips can help make your Waterville trip everything you want it to be! 

Dianna Hayden lives in Cantonment with her husband and 3-year-old. As a family they love to travel, but find that Pensacola and the surrounding areas are hard to beat!

Photos courtesy of nola.agent via Flickr.

Fourth of July Celebrations in the Pensacola Area

How do you celebrate Fourth of July?  Do stay at home and have a small family celebration or do you head out to the parades and watch the fireworks?  Fourth of July is almost here and there are lots of different ways to celebrate in the Pensacola area.  As always, follow the links to be sure the information is correct and there are no changes.

Sertoma’s 4th of July Celebration – Celebrate the 4th in Seville Square with a free children’s area (inflatables, poy rides, arts and crafts vendors), food vendors, and live entertainment.  Activities begin at 11am and the fireworks show begins at 9. 

July 4th Riverfest in Milton – Activities begin at 9am and there are different things going on during the day.  The Treasure Island Children’s Activity Area is from 11am to 5pm and the firework display is at dark over the Blackwater River.  There is also a Stars and Stripes Parade on July 2nd at 7pm in Milton.

Pensacola Beach’s Fireworks Extravagana – Watch the fireworks from the Soundside at 9pm.

4th of July Fireworks in Navarre Beach – The fireworks will begin at dusk and will originate from the Black Skimmer Pavilion parking lot.

Do you know of any other Fourth of July events happening in our area?  Leave us a comment!

Pensacola Friday Family Flicks 2011 Returns This Week!

What: Outdoor movies; Where: Palafox Pier; When: scheduled once a month; Cost: FREE

Friday Family Flicks returns to Downtown Pensacola this weekend.  Friday Family Flicks is a series of movies that are shown on an outdoor screen on Palafox Pier.  The movie schedule is as follows (movie titles are subject to change without prior notice):

• May 20, 2011 – The Chronicles of Narnia: The Voyage of the Dawn Treader PG
• June 17, 2011 – Yogi Bear G
• July 15, 2011 – Diary of a Wimpy Kid2: Rodrick Rules PG
• August 19, 2011 – Rio G

You will want to arrive early enough to get a good seat.  That being said, we didn’t have any difficulties seeing the screen from a blanket on the ground.  The movie starts at dusk which is usually around 8pm.  There are various vendors that sell popcorn, drinks and other food.  We usually pack a picnic dinner or pick up dinner from one of our favorite restaurants and snack our way through the movie!

Santa Rosa County Fair

The Santa Rosa County Fair is open until April 10th.  Prices vary by day and discount but they range from $5 to $10 and children 0-4 years old are free.  In addition to the admission price, armbands are available for $12 to $20 depending on the day and tickets are $1.50 a ticket.  See the daily schedule on the website.

There are lots of kid friendly events and rides throughout the week including but not limited to monster truck visits/rides, the Northwest FL Zoo exhibit, and a calf scramble.

Sunsets at Plaza de Luna Park at Palafox Pier Begin April 7, 2011

2011 Easter Egg Hunts in the Pensacola Area

It is almost Easter time!  Here is a list of the Easter Egg Hunts going on around the area with a few tips to know before you go! 

Eggs in the Park

• Where: Springdale Park on the corner of Brent Lane and Evergreen
• When: April 23rd 12-2pm
• Cost: Free
• Egg Hunt Schedule: 1pm-0 to 2yo and 3 to 5yo; 1:15pm-6 to 9yo; 1:30pm-10-12yo
• Additional Activities: K9 Demo, firetruck, face painting, games, metal detecting

Easter Egg Hunt

• Where: Roger Scott Complex
• When:  April 16 10am-1pm
• Cost: Free with a donation of a non-perishable food item for the Manna Food Pantries
• Egg Hunt Schedule: 10:30am-Stroller to 2yo and 3-4yo; 11am-5 to 7yo; 11:45am-8 to 10yo; 12:15pm-11 to 12yo
• Additional Activities: bounce houses, carnival style games, snacks, and Easter Bunny meet and greet

Easter Eggstravaganza

• Where: Sam’s Fun City
• When:  April 23rd 9am-1pm
• Cost: $15 +tax per person
• Additional Activities: Unlimited rides and special attractions; free Easter stuffed animal for each child under the age of 10

3rd Annual Egg Drop in the Park (by Potential Church)

• Where: UWF Intramural Park (Please note that the city website says it is at Roger Scott as of 4/3/11 but I received an email from a church member saying that it was going to be at the UWF Intramural Park.  Thanks so much for the email!  Please be sure to double check where the event is before you go!)
• When: April 23 (There are conflicting times listed on the city website so I am not sure when it begins. If anyone has information about this hunt, please leave us a comment or send me an email!)

25th Annual Easter Egg Hunt

• Where: Perdido Kid’s Park
• When: April 23rd 10am
• Additional Activities: Easter bunny will be assisting with the egg hunt

Spring Eggstravaganza

• Where: Ashton Brosnaham Park
• When: April 16th 10:30am
• Cost: Free
• Additional Activities: Activities for children 3-10yo; bounce house and games

Annual Easter Egg Hunt

• Where: Bellingrath Gardens
• When: April 16th 9am
• Cost: Regular Gardens admission – $12 adults; $6.50 children (5-12); Free for children under 5; You must register children in the morning
• Egg Hunt Schedule: Age 3 and under:  There will be a continuous Easter Egg Hunt from 9:00 – 10:30; Age 4-6:  Easter Egg Hunt from 10:00 – 10:15; Age 7-11: Easter Egg Hunt from 10:15 – 10:30
• Additional Activities: arts and crafts, snacks, professional photographer, visit the gardens when you are finished

Easter Egg Hunt and Activities at Bass Pro Shop Destin

• Where: Bass Pro Shops -Destin (There are no Easter activities on the Spanish Fort Bass Pro Shops Schedule)
• When: April 16, 17, 23, & 24 from 11 am til 3 pm and Monday through Friday, April18 – 22, from 6 pm til 8 pm
• Cost: Free
• Addtional Activities: Easter crafts and picture with the Easter Bunny

Easter Egg Hunt and Activities at Wales West

• Where: Wales West RV Resort and Railways
• When: Saturdays and Sundays April 2-24th 1-5pm
• Cost: $10 per person
• Additional Activities: Ride the Cottontail Express, egg hunt, Easter Bunny visit, treats and refreshments

Easter Egg Hunt @ The New Covenant Group (Thanks Monica for the information!)

• Where: 1701 Bainbridge Ave (off of Gulf Beach Hwy)
• When: April 16th at 3:30pm until 5:30pm
• Cost: Free
• Additional Activities: Free drinks and ice pops, games, face painting, a short skit, bounce house for children 12 and under, and pictures with Easter Bunny

Easter Egg Hunt at Hadji Shrine

• Where: Hadji Shrine
• When: April 23 at 10:30am
• Additional Activities: Visit from the Easter Bunny, food, prizes and games

6th Annual Santa Rosa County Community Ride Easter Celebration

• Where: 4055 Hwy. 90 Pace, FL
• When: April 23rd
• Cost: Free
• Egg Hunt Schedule: 2 Easter Egg Hunts – 11:30 am & 12:30 p.m. (for all children thru 5th grade, bring your own Easter baskets.)
• Additional Activities: moon walk, face painting, Easter photos and more

Easter Eggstravaganza

• Where: Blue Angel Park
• When: April 23
• Additional Activities: Moon walk, hayride, crafts and more

Things to Know Before You Go:

• Check, recheck and triple check the dates and times to make sure they are still correct when the egg hunt gets closer.  As I always say, this information comes from word of mouth, press releases and flyers I see around town.  The information is not always correct and I am human and make mistakes sometimes (although I try not to do it very often !).  Follow the link and be sure to contact the number available to confirm the time.
• Bring a basket or bag of your own.
• Arrive early.  We went to an egg hunt two years ago at the John R. Jones park.  The egg hunt was over in less than 3 minutes.  There were hundreds (probably thousands) of eggs picked up and my two children got a whopping 3 eggs between the two of them.  They were young and were just thrilled with the excitement of it all so luckily they weren’t disappointed.  However, if we had arrived 30 seconds later we would have missed the whole thing.
• Hide a couple of prefilled eggs in your car before you go.  Now that my son is a year older, I foresee some serious disappointment if he only gets one egg.  I would throw a couple in the car and have them hunt for them when we were all finished.  Of course, in my car every day is an egg hunt except you never know what you might find!  HA!

Do you know of any other egg hunts that the community is invited to?  If so, leave a comment in this post with the information.  Any names or numbers not in an official capacity will be deleted for safety reasons.

The 2011 Great Backyard Bird Count

The Great Backyard Bird Count begins tomorrow, February 18 and goes through February 21.  The Great Backyard Bird Count is an annual event that “engages bird watchers of all ages in counting birds to create a real-time snapshot of where the birds are across the continent. Anyone can participate, from beginning bird watchers to experts.” 

This is a great way to get the kids outside (especially in this beautiful weather!) to practice their counting and colors!  Participating in the Great Backyard Bird Count is very easy.  You will count birds for at least fifteen minutes a day, on one or more days during the time period.  You will count the greatest number of individuals of each species that you see together at any one time.  When you are all finished, you head to the website and enter your results. 

Visit the Great Backyard Bird Count website for more details on how to count the birds you see.  While on the website, you can download a Data Form to help you keep track of your count.  You can also download Printable Tally Sheets for your area.  These sheets will include the birds that are native to our area by your zip code, town, or national park.

There is also a great kid’s section on the website.  There are coloring sheets, puzzles, and bookmarks.

New Year’s Eve Fireworks on the Beach

What: New Year’s celebration; When: New Year’s Eve; Where: Pensacola Beach; Cost: FREE

Courtesy of Clearly Ambiguous on Flickr

If you think your kids can stay up late enough, there will be a fireworks show on Pensacola Beach at the end of the Gulf Pier.  The start time for the event is 11pm according to the Pensacola Beach Chamber website.

First Night Santa Rosa – Family Friendly New Year Celebration

What:  New Year’s Eve Celebration; When: New Year’s Eve; Where: East Milton Ball Park; Cost: $5 in advance, $7.50 at the gate, children under the age of 5 are free

First Night Santa Rosa is a family friendly New Year’s Eve celebration.  There will be an outdoor concert, a talent show, and a Kid’s Fun Zone with inflatables, rock climbing walls, crafts and more!  There will also be a firework show! 

Admission is $5 in advance, $7.50 at the gate. Children under the age of 5 are FREE!  Tickets can be purchased in advance at any Pen Air Federal Credit Union, Fine Things on Dogwood in Milton or Addie’s on Highway 90.

The event will be held at the East Milton Ball Park, 8600 Bobby Brown Drive, Milton, Florida.