Medieval Times Review

Disclaimer: My family received complementary tickets to Medieval Times to facilitate this review.  I was not compensated in any other way for this post. All views and opinions expressed are my own.

Things have been pretty quiet around here lately.  Our family has been taking a break from our school work to rest, relax and visit family.  Recently we traveled to Texas to visit our family there.  We survived a crazy long road trip with a five year old(road trip printables coming soon) and we had so much fun!

A major highlight of our trip was our visit to Medieval Times.  None of us had ever been so we were so thankful for the opportunity.  To prepare C for the experience we headed to Half Priced Books and got a fun book describing what life was like in Medieval days.  She was so excited, every day she asked if it was Medieval Times Day yet.  Finally, the day arrived and we eagerly headed to the Medieval Times in Dallas, Tx.  

I was instantly impressed with how organized they were at the ticket counter.  They have many lines open and extra people reminded those waiting to have tickets ready if they pre-purchased and to be prepared when their turn arrives.  At the ticket counter they give you color coded table number cards.  The color of your table determines which night you will be cheering for.  We got yellow and proceeded to the crowning area.  Everyone in our group loved our fun everyone we encountered was.  Once you enter the crowning area, everyone is dressed in costume.  C loved that!

While we waited for the show to start, we perused the Hall of Arms, checked out the different souvenirs and then visited the torture museum.  The torture museum is an extra fee, but it was only $2.00 per person.  In the torture museum you will get to see torture devices used during Medieval Times.  It is definitely creepy in there so you will have to think about whether you think your child can handle it.  C is never really bothered by those things so we decided it would be okay for her and she was fine!

After the Torture Museum it was time to head to our seats.  Once seated the server quickly goes over the menu, asks if anyone will need a vegetarian meal and gets everyone fired up for the show to begin.  It is pretty loud in there so it is a bit hard to hear the server well but everything is pretty simple so it wasn't a big deal.  Our server was also pretty easy to flag down if we had a question.  

I can tell you without a doubt, you will not leave Medieval Times hungry!  The food was delicious and the portion is certainly generous.  I was surprised that C actually got the same size portions as the adults.  She didn't mind one bit and devoured almost the entire meal.  My husband ordered the vegetarian meal so we could see what they offer.  He was very happy with his meal. 

The show was amazing!  Everyone in the audience really got into cheering for their knight.  The knights come around and throw flowers to some of the little girls in his section before the festivities begin. Each knight also chooses a girl that he will fight for.  Since we were in the front, he chose C!  She felt so special.  After all of that, the jousting begins.  After the joust the battle continues on foot.  It was so interesting to watch and kept everyone's attention.  

After the show the knights come out for pictures.  From the time we arrived to the time we left we all had a blast!  I highly recommend Medieval Times if you live or plan to vacation near one.  I hope our family we be able to visit again in the future.  Be sure to check your local Medieval Times location's website before you arrive.  The Dallas location had a few deals going on the week we went there.  All you have to do is mention the coupon code at the ticket counter to claim the discount.  

Thanks you so much for visiting Joy Focused Learning!

~Angela

Kentucky Down Under Adventure Zoo Review

Disclaimer:  I received free tickets for my family to help facilitate this review.  However, all views and opinions expressed are my own and my family's.  I am not being compensated for this post in any other way.

I shared last week that my husband and I celebrated our wedding anniversary by taking a weekend road trip.  We chose to celebrate as a family this year instead of just the two of us.  It wasn't our most romantic anniversary but it may have been the most fun!  We started our trip with a visit to the Creation Museum, it was so much fun!  You can read more about our visit and grab some free printables for your own visit in this post. 

Our next stop was the Kentucky Down Under Adventure Zoo in Horse Cave, KY.  I wasn't sure what to expect, we thought we might spend a couple of hours here and then do something else with the rest of our day.  We were pleasantly surprised!  We arrived shortly after opening and stayed until just barely before close.  All of us enjoyed every minute!  

Our Visit to the Creation Museum and FREE Field Trip Notebooking Pages!

Disclosure: I received media passes for my family for this visit to the Creation Museum.  All views and opinions in this post are my own and are solely based on our impression of the Creation Museum.  

My husband and I were married on Pi Day (3.14) and to celebrate we loaded up the car for a weekend of family fun.  It may not have been the most romantic but it may have been the most fun anniversary to date.  Our first stop was the Creation Museum in Northern Kentucky.  It was amazing!  We haven’t been there in a couple of years and it was such a treat to visit again.  There are a lot of photos in this post so it may need a few extra moments to load. :) At the bottom of this post you will find free printables to go along with your trip to the Creation Museum.

At the ticket counter they have a map and scavenger hunt for the kids.  C really enjoyed searching for everything and checking things off as she found them.  She especially appreciated having her own map.  After checking out the beautiful Main Hall, we headed to The Dig Site exhibit.  C had a blast in here!  One of the walls in this room has hidden fossils for kids to find.  After she found a fossil she excitedly headed over to the display to read more about the fossil.  We spent a long time in this exhibit.

There were a few exhibits that were really fascinating to my husband and I but C didn't have the attention span for us to sit and read all the information provided.  She did enjoy each of these exhibits they just didn't hold her attention as long as they held ours.  This included the The Starting Points,  Biblical Authority and Biblical Relevance exhibits.  

Spring Break at Medieval Times

My family will be visiting Medieval Times this summer via media passes courtesy of Medieval Times.  I was asked if I would be willing to share about their current Spring Shows and happily obliged.  I am not being compensated for this post.

Do you take a Spring Break in your homeschool?  Medieval times has some awesome programs going on right now for Spring Break.  Here are the details:

Spring Break at Medieval Times

All kids and students are just $29.95 for the month of March.  Students applies to anyone with a with a student ID so high school and college students are included in this deal!

"Experience The Excitement of Medieval Times this Spring Break.  A Four-course feast awaits as you watch the pageantry and thrills of an authentic medieval tournament come to life inside the walls of the King’s 11th Century Style Castle.  Six armor-clad Knights of the realm compete in thrilling games on horseback as the pageant unfolds and cheers of the King’s noble guests fill the arena.  Skill and strength are measured in the combat.  Discover which of the Knights shall become champion."

Christmas and New Year Wrap-Up.

I haven't posted a weekly wrap-up in awhile!  Today was our first day back to school and it was so nice to have some routine in our day!  C wasn't quite as excited as I was, but we successfully completed our first day back after Christmas Break.

Here's what we've been up to:

Weekly Wrap-up Week of 12/1

We have had a fun two weeks.  I hope you all had a wonderful Thanksgiving!  Last weekend we went to Home Depot to try out the kid's workshop.  It was so fun!  C made a cute little tool box, she was so excited to use real tools!