"You're gonna love it at Adventureland!"

I just have to say that I love the fact that Adventureland still has the same old jingle it's had since my childhood. To this day if I hear the song come on TV or radio, I get really excited. I found this video on YouTube from 1985, when my sister Natalie was just about as small as our new niece Natalie. The song is still pretty much the same:



I think a lot of what I love about Adventureland is the nostalgia. We went a lot over the years growing up, and I have so many fun memories of summer trips there, mostly with my family.

So it was really fun yesterday to once again be able to experience Adventureland through the eyes of a child. Well, four little girls to be exact (five counting baby Natalie!). The whole Van Zante clan (except for Dave and Rachel, who was home sick), gathered for the day in Altoona and we had a blast. The first thing we did was take the girls on the carousel.

Livia.

Hannah, me and Kristine.

Elise.

Jaeda and Michelle.

Then, the entire family, including baby Natalie, went on the Ferris wheel. And the fun continued from there. We had beautiful weather, and the lines were pretty short for the most part, so we were able to pack a lot in!

Ben, Jaeda, Michelle and Natalie on the Ferris wheel.

Hannah, me and Arlene on the Galleon.

Larry and Arlene with their granddaughters (we missed Rachel!)

I think the kids loved the Log Ride the most. That used to be my favorite as well. But I really enjoyed watching the kids go on some of those kid-only rides I haven't paid attention to for years. It made me think of the time my Uncle Gary and Aunt Jan brought their family out to visit from Cleveland and I rode on these same rides with my cousins Katie and Zach.

Matthew with his big sister.

Elise and Livia cruising along.

Uncle Matthew and Hannah.

Elise was my partner on the ski lift ride, and it made me recall a memory that's been tucked away for a long time. I remember going to the Ohio State Fair with my Uncle Dale and Aunt Marcia when I was really little. So little, in fact, that I think it was before Nancy was born. But I remember little Natalie and my parents and Dale and Marcia, and I remember riding in the ski lift at the fair grounds with Aunt Marcia. So it was kind of special to be riding the ski lift now with my own little niece.

And speaking of Elise, she is my new little hero. That girl has no fear at all. The rest of the family say she's been like this her whole life- absolutely fearless. After Ben and Michelle and their girls headed back to Illinois, we had a few hours in the park with just me and Matthew, his parents, and Kristine and Elise. Matt's mom, Arlene, really wanted to ride the Tornado roller coaster, so off we went. Elise barely made the height requirement, but she went through and got in the very short line along with us. I was already impressed at that point- when I was 4 and a half, I would not have gone even close to the line to ride that thing! I was scared of it for many years. But fearless Elise didn't bat an eye! So on the six of us went, screaming the whole, rickety ride. We got off to find Elise with a glazed-over look in her eyes. "Did you have fun, Elise?" "Nu-uh! That was scary!" Then she adds, confused, "I thought we were going to ride a roller coaster!?" We're still not sure what she thought a roller coaster was. She looked a little bewildered, but yet never cried or freaked out. She handled herself quite well for being so scared. I was impressed.

The in-transit photo at the booth after the ride, though, was priceless. Elise is just gripping the bar; not screaming, not freaking out, but just dealing with her fear, which was a new emotion for her. You can see in her eyes that she was thinking "what did I get myself into?" This photo isn't the greatest because it's a picture of Kristine's picture (we encouraged her to buy one because it was just so funny), but you get the general effect:

She survived and didn't seem too worse for the wear. Throughout the rest of the evening, though, her Uncle Matthew would say, "Elise, do you want to ride the Tornado again?" to which she'd exclaim, "No way! Not till I'm bigger. Maybe when I'm 21." Later when the question was asked again she raised the age to 26. She's so funny.

The trip was also kind of special because the last time I went to Adventureland was in the summer of 2008. Charlotte, Beth, Ann Altic, Justin, Matt and I went the day after Tom and Jenn's wedding. This was just a few months before Matt and I started dating and the trip was full of romantic tension. :-) There was much flirting and whatnot. Later that week, actually, on a trip to Ohio, Natalie let it slip to our cousin Hillary that I had a thing for Matt, and those girls, as well as Nancy and our cousin Teddy, taunted me mercilessly for the rest of the visit. I wasn't happy. At that point I had no idea if Matt was interested in me, and I was trying not to build our relationship up to be more than it was at that time. Hillary even took this picture of us on the Ferris wheel from my Facebook page, cropped out Charlotte, and turned it into the desktop background on the computer in the den I was staying in at my Aunt Linda and Uncle Joe's:

Again: I was not happy. That day three years ago was a lot of fun, but also kind of hard on my heart. And my silly sisters/cousins didn't help matters! But, all's well that ends well, and it was really special to go back to Adventureland with Matt, officially (legally!) together, and to not have to be sneaky about wanting to sit by each other on the rides. :-)

The Ferris wheel 2011. I love that he's wearing the same hat! :-)

All in all, it was a great day. I look forward to more of these kinds of outings (with both Palofs and Van Zantes alike!), someday with our own kids and these crazy cousins of theirs!