Monster Mini Golf!

Today we had planned to take our annual trip to Westminster to pick apples at Baugher's Farm. Mother Nature had different plans though! So as to not disappoint my sons and niece, we had to come up with a plan b. I've had coupons to Monster Mini Golf in Jessup sitting in my car for just this rainy day occasion!

Located in Jessup (30 minutes from Baltimore), just outside of Columbia, Monster Mini Golf is a great place for kids and adults alike! We are huge Halloween fans any time of year, and the entire place was decorated for Halloween! The props, paintings, and moving pieces far exceeded my expectations!

The kids had an absolute blast playing mini golf. The boys had only played twice before and for my niece it was her first time. The course was a little tricky, but we didn't exactly follow the rules and certainly didn't keep score!

 The entire place is filled with black lights and glows in the dark! Our favorite painting was a zombie ninja turtle riding his zombie horse!

 Many of the props moved and made noise... which was wild! Our kids weren't scared one bit though as it wasn't too over the top on the fear factor.

They are extremely child friendly and even have "contests" while you are there giving away prizes if you have a certain color golf ball or are at a certain hole when they call it. The kids won twice and were quite thrilled! We will be back and are considering throwing the boys' joint birthday party there in February!

TIPS:
-Admission is $8 for kids and $9 for adults. However, there are plenty of coupons out there! We used buy one get one coupons from an Entertainment book, but I have also seen groupons and coupons in the Baltimore Sun newspaper.
-They allowed us to only pay for the kids. My husband and I were still on the course but didn't have a club/ball (and were completely content with that).
-There is an arcade. We chose not to participate because we are on a budget. If this is something you would rather not do, it helps to tell your kids in advance.
-We arrived right after they opened at noon on a Saturday. There were only a few people there and we never had to wait for a hole or rush because we were slowing another group down. From reading various reviews they can get busy at night, especially on the weekend, making the experience less enjoyable. We didn't have any issues at all though!

For more detailed information visit their website:
http://www.monsterminigolf.com/fran-md-columbia/

Home Depot Kids Workshop!

It's no secret that my favorite price is FREE, but some times I am skeptical when I hear the word! For a long time I have been hearing about the free monthly kids project at Home Depot and after seeing a friend's Facebook post this morning, we headed to our local Home Depot. Well, it wasn't too good to be true! It really is free and more importantly it was very nice!

This month's Kids Workshop was a Wizard of Oz Birdhouse (in celebration of the 75th anniversary of the movie). When we arrived to Home Depot we simply signed in, they provided us with a prepackaged kit to make the birdhouse, an apron to keep paint of clothing, and then give you the space and tools needed to complete the project.

Both boys were overjoyed that I "actually" let them touch a hammer. We found it easier to build our birdhouses on the floor than the tables as they were bouncy. 

I'm not sure if every Home Depot goes as far as our local store, but they even had Wizard of Oz cut outs and decorations! I loved the inflatable ruby red slippers that looked like they were on the witches legs after the house fell on her! (That sentence sounds really morbid... not my intention!)

At the end of the project they even go so far as to give the kids a certificate and special button specific to the day's craft! 

I was beyond impressed with how generous Home Depot was and we definitely be going back! They have a Kids Workshop on the first Saturday of every month from 9 a.m.-12 p.m. Next month's craft is an ambulance! For more details please visit: 

http://workshops.homedepot.com/workshops/kids-workshops