Thank Goodness For Wristbands

The wee ones' school does a Carnival each year as its major fundraiser.  And yes, in this case, it's big enough that Carnival is capitalized.  It takes over 400 volunteers to put it together and run it, and it's a blast.  The wee ones love when I'm volunteering not only because it means they get to run around everywhere but also because they get no homework passes for each shift I volunteer.

The best part about those passes?  They love getting the passes.  In three years, I've yet to actually have them remember to use them.  It's a great incentive all around.

Our Carnival is huge, and everyone loves it.  It is a great community builder where you see absolutely everyone there.  And yes, this year, I even saw my chiropractor.  Everyone is there, not just kids from the school.  There are games and rides and food and everything you could want from the midway of a real fair.

The first year I went, we bought tickets by the sheet.  I went back to buy more tickets only a few times before my wallet was exhausted.  I think we lasted an hour.  Wow those tickets go fast.  The wee ones had fun, but it was a much shorter day than I'd anticipated.

After that first year, I learned my lesson.  We bought wristbands.  The wee ones actually do love the rides and spend the majority of their time there, and the wristbands are valid from noon until 4pm on a given day.  That I can handle.  It's far more cost effective, and we know we can spend four hours at Carnival before we're done for the day.

The wee ones are now thrilled.  They run from ride to ride, finding friends to go with them, and giggling the whole time.  We still purchase a couple sheets of tickets so that we can buy food.  And so the wee ones can have their faces painted.  It never fails to amaze me how talented some of the people who attend our school are.  Each year when they come show me what they've chosen for their face paint... I just giggle, thankful that it will wash off when we shower.

Little Miss was  vampire this year.  Have you ever seen a cuter one?

Mister Man chose "Bruce" - his made up character from Star Wars XIX (don't ask).

Without the wristbands, our time would be much shorter at Carnival.  And we'd probably spend less money overall because we'd see how fast it was going.  Whoever came up with the idea of doing wristbands was brilliant - and not only because it means I can volunteer for my shifts, knowing the wee ones are being chaperoned by a friend who won't need to keep coming back to me for more money!

Does your school do a Carnival, too?  Or maybe a carnival?  What's your favorite part about the one at your school?

I know we can't be the only ones who love carnivals.  Carnival Savers has a contest going on now through October 4 where you can win $250 in carnival prizes.  Go enter quick though, because this ends October 4!

I am writing this post in conjunction with VolunteerSpot, a website that helps manage volunteer activities.  I've been using it for the past two years with our PTO, and it's a lifesaver.  I found it on my own and have been using it on my own.  I recently met up with VolunteerSpot and found out that they love bloggers, too.  I'm beyond excited to help spread the word about them because I personally love them so much.  Writing this post means I'm entered to win $50 from Carnival Savers, but that's not why I wrote this post!

It's Just Like The Empty Cardboard Box

Two giveaways going on for a $50 VISA gift card and Kleenex here and a green gift bag here.

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This afternoon we headed over to one of our local elementary schools that was running their annual carnival. It's a huge one, and I've always heard good things about it. We'd never gone before due to nap schedules, but I figured it was worth a shot.

We had a choice of buying a ride everything wristband or individual tickets that are also good for games and food. I opted for a few sheets of the individual tickets, not knowing what kind of rides there would be or what the wee ones would want to do.

The Top Ten Things I discovered at the carnival:

10) Little Miss does not like spinny rides. At all. It's possible that I ruined them for her by spinning too hard and too fast on the teacups at Disney. Mister Man and I like to spin fast though....

9) The wee ones can con my husband into riding huge scary rides that he hates just because he doesn't want to look like a wimp in front of them (and I had nothing to do with it).

8) You must always keep an eye on your child in the bouncy jungle gym because there might be an evil slightly older chld who decides to use your child as a karate board he's trying to break. Seriously. My husband made a scene, and it was deserved.

7) Mister Man will scream like a girl, but he likes rides.

6) Encouraging Little Miss to get a kitty face paint is not a good idea. She will then spend the rest of the day (and let's hope not tomorrow) meowing everything and trying to walk on her hands and knees.

5) Heading to the carnival just before the Bears game begins is a great way to ensure it won't be overcrowded when you go.

4) Always check the weather report before you head to a carnival. Although I was hot coming out of church, I was freezing in the t-shirt I changed into. Because it turned into fall and was overcast and windy. Fortunately, the rain didn't start until long after we were home.

3) In our town, my family can't go anywhere without knowing people. It's kinda cool. My husband ran into many former (and current) students. I ran into friends from Mister Man's preschool, his summer school, my babysitting co-op, my softball team, and my husband's school. It comes in handy when you're trying to figure out how the carnival works though.

2) Next year, we're buying the wristbands. The ticket sheets aren't cheap. And I as not going to buy any more tickets -- this carnival got expensive quickly. The wristbands allow you to ride any ride as often as you want for five hours. I spent the same amount on tickets that lasted us just over two hours. Now I know.

And the number one thing I learned?

It isn't worth it to buy the tickets. As we walked in, Little Miss wanted to do the swings. I told her ok and started to head for the swing ride where you go in the big circle around and around. She ran to the park and climbed on a swing. She was perfectly content playing in the free park, and I had to promise we'd come back to the park after we finished at the carnival.

You remember all the fun you had with the plain empty cardboard box some fancy toy you got came in (the fridge box was my personal favorite for several months as a child)? Those are the things you remember. And those are the things I need to remember as a parent, too.

Then again, Little Miss does make an awfully cute little kitty, and we can't get our face painted at the local park....