Monday, June 24, 2024

Caleb's ten trip


We take each of the grandkids on a weekend trip of their choosing (within reason) for their 10th birthday. The first went to the Cincinnati zoo; the second chose COSI in Columbus; and the third simply said, "Just somewhere in Ohio where we can stay in a hotel - and maybe play putt-putt." I don't know what it is about Ohio but I suppose after the first two it seemed like the place to go!  

So, this past weekend we took the youngest to Toledo from Friday evening until noon-ish Sunday. I had no idea it was such an easy trip now with the new 4-lane route 24 all the way. Traffic was light, it was right at 100 miles, and it only took 1 1/2 hours. 

We booked a room at the Courtyard Toledo Airport Holland on East Mall Drive, and made plans for Saturday to go to Sportway of Toledo on Angola Road for miniature golf, go-karts, and batting cages. 

The hotel wasn't the greatest (mostly because it was just older), but it was right next to oodles of restaurants and shopping centers, and just a hop and skip from Sportway. Some of the staff were very nice, and maybe the best thing: Caleb had the indoor swimming pool entirely to himself twice on Saturday and again Sunday morning! He took full advantage and swam for hours on end. There is also a McDonald's right across the street that has an indoor basketball court, so we had breakfast there both mornings.

Saturday we got to Sportway just after they opened at 10am, and while we weren't the only people there, there weren't many and we could basically do whatever we wanted. We started with a leisurely round of putt-putt, then we all three rode the go-karts (we were the only ones on the course), then we all hit softballs in the batting cage, then Caleb and I rode go-karts again... It was actually a pretty fun time and couldn't have gone any better!

Between the swimming and sportsing, Caleb and I also played catch with the football I brought, and then he was up for shopping at the Target, Walmart, and Dicks Sporting Goods right next to the hotel. He got a new shirt and some basketball cards and seemed pretty pleased. Other than that we mostly watched Nickelodeon in the room, ate, and slept.

I was honestly a little worried this third grand might not be too interested in spending the weekend with us on his own. Seems he usually likes to do things with his older brother. However, it turned out to be a really good weekend and I think he had a lot of fun. So did we!

So now we've got a 10-year gap until the next 10th birthday trip (coming October!). Hopefully we'll still be alive and kicking and he'll be willing to spend time with us too! 

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