Next stop: Cedar Point Amusement Park in Sandusky, Ohio. If you or your kids like roller coasters, this is the place to go. 17 roller coasters -- many of them record-setting at the time they were built or still holding records and winning awards today. Amazingly high and fast, and my kids LOVED them.

We stayed at Sandcastle Suites, one of the Cedar Point properties. It had a room big enough for all of us (two beds plus a sofabed, and it is within walking distance of the entrance to the parks. Not a fancy hotel but certainly nice enough, especially since we weren't in the room that much. I loved the setting, right by Lake Erie, within easy walking distance to the beautiful beach. It was about 10-15 minutes walk to the entrance to either Cedar Point or Soak City, the waterpark.

We spent 2 1/2 days at Cedar Point. Well, half of one day was at the waterpark, and part of one day was on the beach, but we spent most of the time at Cedar Point itself. The kids still weren't tired of it when we left. Beware, lines can be long, and food/drinks are terribly expensive, but that's to be expected. It was a great time.

We took our kids to Cedar Point a few years ago on one of our baseball stadium trips. It is such a great amusement park - my DD's first "big" roller coaster, and she's been hooked ever since (she and DH spent half a day this past Sunday at Magic Mountain just going on 7 or so biggies). We also went to Soak City and still have the towels we bought there. (P.S. My mom was from Cleveland and they used to go to Cedar Point when SHE was a teenager).

<<<when SHE was a teenager>>>

Which would have been in the 1930s!

Niagara Falls: You really have to see it! The falls are indescribably awesome, so I won't really even try. All of us, including the teenagers, were impressed with the size, the sheer volume of water, the river above them, etc.

Of course we did Maid of the Mist. Unfortunately, we were some of the last ones to board the boat, so all the rails were taken. That means we had to look over and through and above people to really see the falls, which if you are height-challenged like me, is not ideal. But we could certainly hear them and feel the spray. If you are thinking, why didn't they just wait for the next boat, they won't let you do that. Believe me, I tried.

Cave of the Winds -- this is better than Maid of the Mist. It's on the US side, and you get a poncho and sandals. Good thing, because you get drenched. You walk out beside the Bridal Veil Falls (the smaller one beside the American Falls). It's amazing to be so close to it.

We stayed at the Hampton Inn and Suites on the Canadian side. It's maybe 10 minutes walk to the falls. Nice hotel, but the pool is probably the smallest I've ever seen in a hotel. We didn't even try to swim, and we normally enjoy hotel pools. Other than that, I would definitely recommend the hotel, although it does not have a view of the falls.

Between our hotel and the falls themselves is the area called Clifton Hill. This is the "tourist trap" area, and it reminded me of Times Square in NYC. Much smaller scale, of course, but similar. Restaurants, shops, bright lights, tourist attractions such as the Ripley Believe It or Not Museum, etc. And absolutely jammed with people. The kids thought this area was great, and we spent some time and lots of money here.

So...that's the highlights from our trip. We had a wonderful time!