Our Weekend at King’s Pointe + What We’re Learning from Gifting Experiences Over Things
Back in early December, Cory and I were on the hunt for one last “family gift” idea for Christmas.
At this point, I was becoming SUPER aware of how much stuff we had. (And how much of it barely got played with.) We had just started a major decluttering project in our basement and it was clear that my kids already had enough! The fact that I didn’t even know what to buy them as a gift felt like a huge red flag.
So, I decided to try a new route: What if we gifted experiences over things we’d no doubt be tripping over for the next year? I suggested to Cory that we look into doing a weekend away at a hotel as a gift instead and he was all in!
Through the grand gift of Google, the Hubs stumbled upon King’s Pointe hotel and water park in Storm Lake, IA. It was a perfect fit for what we were looking for! It was only 2 hours away, it would give the kiddos a chance to stay overnight in a hotel, AND it had an indoor water park. Check, check, and check.
I grabbed a swimsuit for each of them, printed a couple pictures of the hotel, and made a poster that said “20 days till our hotel stay!” Then I wrapped it all up and snuck it under the tree.
We ended up not getting to the hotel for much longer than 20 days (story to come), but we were all extremely happy with our choice of gifting experiences over things.
Here’s how our weekend went down, plus some reflections I wanted to share in case you’re thinking of going this route, too! ❤️
A Recap of Our weekend:
We originally booked our trip for mid-January, telling the kiddos at Christmas it would only be a couple of weeks before we’d get to go. Unfortunately, things didn’t quite go as planned.
2 days before our originally-planned trip, Brooks started running a fever. Ironically enough, the waterpark also had a heater go out in the pool area. The staff was kind enough to call us Thursday night before our Saturday reservation to let us know they were going to have to close the water park and gave us the option to reschedule. (Side note: I was very impressed by their customer service to go out of their way to call us! I’m positive not every hotel would do that.)
We rebooked for mid-February and were lucky enough to make it happen this time! A couple weekends ago, we loaded up the car and hit the road.
Check-in was 4 but we arrived early and were able to go to the water park while we waited for our room to get ready. I will add that if you ever happen to go to King’s Pointe and want to swim before check-in, maybe have your kids already in swimsuits. We were a cluster trying to change in the locker rooms. All the same, we made it work!
The kids had a BLAST.
Between 3 water slides, a splash area, a lazy pool, obstacle course, and zero entry to the pool, there was something for all of them and plenty to entertain and enjoy.
After swimming for a couple of hours, we were able to check-in so we took a break to hang out in our room. I love how much kids love hotels. And, had we done a hotel without a water park, I still think they would have had fun simply because hotels feel magical at their age.
I think the couple hours at the water park wore them out, so we spent the evening in our room and grabbing dinner before calling it a night.
The next morning, everyone was up and at ‘em by 7AM. (a major down point of hotel sleeping = early risers!) so we grabbed a bite to eat downstairs in the hotel (not complimentary, but still beat loading up the kids and driving somewhere), then it was back to the water park when they opened at 9.
It was tough to get them out of the water to head back to our room so we could check out by 11, but ultimately, I would say our weekend was one for the books. It was absolutely worth the 2 hour drive and we would do it again in a heartbeat! We’ve even started talking about coming back in the summer to experience their outdoor water park. It looks twice as big as their indoor one.
You know what I’m still working on, though? Asking a stranger to get a photo of our whole family. WHY. I always forget this! It’s a #facepalm moment for sure, but one that I’m learning from and intend to conquer next time! If I can remember. (Send halp!)
(*I also feel like I should also add that I am in no way associated or affiliated with King’s Pointe. We just had a great time and I want to share our story in case this is something you’d consider with your kiddos, too. 😊)
Thoughts on Gifting Experiences Over Things:
I’ll take a trip/experience over another toy for Christmas any day.
This was our first year choosing a weekend getaway as a Christmas gift so we’re definitely newbies when it comes to gifting experiences over things. But, Cory and I have already decided to make this a thing every year. Beyond the obvious reasons (like time together as a fam and the break from technology for a weekend), we just had FUN!
The stories the kids are already talking about from this trip made it worthwhile. I love hearing about the tiny details they picked up on and the goofy stories they’re sharing with their grandparents. (To compare, I haven’t heard a whole lot of stories about the Barbie camper Christmas gift, but hey, maybe I’ll be surprised down the road.😉)
Traveling/experiences opens our kids’ eyes to new ideas and Adventures.
I love the small town we live in. I love the community mindset and the way everybody knows everybody (which, don’t get me wrong, also has it’s downsides! But I digress.)
Even though I love it, our small town is just… small. I’d like our kiddos to know that there is life outside our tiny, small-town bubble. Granted, this specific trip to Storm Lake, IA wasn’t far and it wasn’t a grand adventure like a week away or an airplane ride, but there’s still more adventure to be found when we choose experiences over things.
For this trip, we travelled on a new road and visited a town we’ve never been to before. Seeing the kiddos eyes open wide as we crossed the metal bridge from Nebraska to Iowa was something I’ll never forget. Plus, getting to explore and drive around a new town kept the kids curious.
Additionally, Cory and I created a new rule: We have to eat at a restaurant none of us have ever eaten at before. I’ll be honest, this rule was originally created because Cory and I wanted to veto fast food. (Please Lord, not McDonald’s or DQ.🥴) But it ended up leading us to a random bar and grill called Malarky’s in Storm Lake and we quickly decided this rule was worth sticking to for every trip.
We got to experience our kids being brave first hand.
This kind of piggy backs off the of the last post, but truly, sometimes shaking up our environment and stepping outside our comfort zones is the single best thing to help us be more brave.
For example, I never in a million years thought Brooks would go down one of the water slides. He’s just a CAUTIOUS kid and it took him a while to even let me carry him around in the pool. Mind you, he had a life jacket on the whole time, yet he would seriously PANIC if I let go of him. It didn’t matter how many times I told him he would float, HE DID NOT CARE.
But eventually he got brave enough to take me up on my offer to go down the slide together. We be-bopped all the way to the top of the stairs where he then proceeded to panic and tell me that he, in fact, did NOT want to go down the slide. Before he could overthink it, I grabbed him and off we went.
He giggled the entire way down. When we got to the bottom, he asked if we could go again so we did. It only took those 2 times of me riding with him down the slide for him to decide to go by himself. And he rocked it!
Seeing your own kiddo face their fears and shine is an absolute joy. Totally worth yanking Brooks down the waterslide in this scenario! 😬
We can find ways to do little stuff in the mundane, too.
I will always and forever be team, “it doesn’t have to be big to be impactful.”
What I’m reminding myself is that we don’t have to plan a week-long trip across the country to make a difference. It doesn’t even need to be a waterpark/hotel stay. If we want to experience things with our kiddos, then we should go experience things with our kiddos.
Maybe for you there’s a walking path across town you’ve never taken before. Or maybe there’s an art class or new learning experience you can all do together. My point is that it doesn’t have to be grand or expensive to get the same results. I think simply spending time adventuring together as a family is the real win. And that might be my biggest reasoning for choosing experiences over things going forward.
Wrapping Up.
The older I get, the more I’m realizing that time is the most expensive currency. I know everyone says it, but I feel like I’m only now starting to grasp it. I’m extremely grateful we got to enjoy a weekend together just for fun. And I’m confident we will be gifting more experiences over things as time moves on.
***OVER TO YOU: Ever considered gifting experiences over things? What have you loved about it? Let me know in the comments below!
