by kellie abrahamson kabrahamson1@aol.com
Between the heat and the rain, finding a place for kids to let off some steam is difficult for First Coast parents this time of year. There are very few indoor playgrounds to be found and those that are readily accessible are at malls where you’re bound to spot something in a store window and subsequently spend a small fortune. Instead of taking that chance, last Thursday I decided to take my little ones to a fun alternative to the average playground: Pump It Up.
The lowdown
The premise is simple: Pump It Up takes giant inflatables out of backyards and fairgrounds and puts them in a clean, inviting, climate-controlled environment. Kids are free to jump, bounce, slide and climb along with their peers while parents either relax and look on or join the fun. And, because Pump It Up is a completely private facility, parents can allow their children to walk around and explore without fear of them running into the street or talking to strangers.
The first Pump It Up facility opened its doors in 2000. In just six years, franchises have popped up all over the country making the company one of the fastest growing franchises in the US. Jacksonville’s first and only Pump It Up location, which opened last November, can be found at 11840 Beach Boulevard, across from FCCJ South Campus.
On Mondays the facility opens its doors to the public for Family Jump Time. For just $7 per child (parents get in free) families with kids ages 10 and under are able to play and bounce in the arena for one hour. Currently, Family Jump Time is offered twice on Mondays: 5:00 PM-6:00 PM and 6:30 PM- 7:30 PM. However, beginning on October 16th, Pump It Up is adding one more timeslot: 3:30 PM- 4:30 PM. For families with younger children the facility offers Pop-In Playtime. Every Tuesday and Thursday from 9:30 AM to 10:30 AM or from 11:00 AM to 12:00 PM families with children ages 2-6 can play for $7 per child. A parent or guardian is required for Family Jump Time and Pop-In Playtime.
The rest of the week is set aside for private parties and events such as birthday celebrations, field trips, scout troops, church groups and fundraisers. Party packages include time in the facility’s arena, access to the fully decorated party room and party supplies. Pizza, soda, balloon bouquets and goodie bags are also available for an extra charge.
More than fun and games
According to the Institute of Medicine, over the past three decades childhood obesity in pre-schoolers has more than doubled and it has more than tripled in kids ages 6 to 11. Instead of plopping them in front of a video game or a computer, Pump It Up allows kids to get up and exercise in fun ways. As a bonus, parents who accompany their kids in the inflatables help engrain the importance of physical fitness in their children and may just get a little bit of exercise too!
Our Pump It Up experience
My husband and I packed up our two children, Isabelle (4) and Zeke (2), and headed to the facility for the 9:30 AM Pop-In Playtime. After signing a waiver and watching a safety video we entered the arena, an extremely large room with four massive interactive inflatables taking up a large portion of the space. The room is decorated in bright colors with fun lights and kid-friendly music playing in the background. In addition to the main attractions, ride-on toy cars and hula-hoops were also on hand, giving kids who aren’t too keen on the slides and bouncers something to do. Initially this is where Zeke spent his time, but he gradually came around after seeing how much fun his big sister was having.
Isabelle’s first stop was to a large bouncer with basketball goals at either end and several balls of all sizes scattered throughout. When older kids are at play, this area is used for basketball games and boxing matches (with parental permission, of course). On this particular day, however, it was mainly used as a bouncer.
By this time Zeke had decided all that jumping looked like fun, so he joined his sister in the next inflatable: “Chaos”. This two-sided obstacle course allows children to race one another over, under and through various obstructions before taking a massive slide to the finish line. Isabelle, a pro at this sort of thing, took to it immediately, leaving her little brother so far behind he got a little freaked out. Luckily a trained staff member, Candace, was on hand for just this sort of occasion. She turned out to be a tremendous help, getting Zeke out of the obstacle course before he had a meltdown.
Crisis averted, we headed over to the gigantic 20 foot slide. Since I did not pass on my fear of heights on to my children, they immediately began climbing and sliding. By the end of the hour they must have gone up and down that thing a dozen times and were literally begging to go one more time before we left.
The final inflatable was the “Rock ‘Em Sock ‘Em Coliseum”. The circular structure has a small platform in the center so that older kids can stand on it and joust. Because Pop-In Playtime is for younger children, the Coliseum was used as a bouncer/lounge area.
At 10:30 we gathered up the kids, who were really not ready to leave yet, put our shoes back on and went home. We colored a little, had some lunch and took a nap. As soon as he woke up from his nap Zeke immediately asked if he could “go back to the bouncing room”. If that’s not a ringing endorsement for Pump It Up I don’t know what is!
For more information on Pump It Up, visit the company’s website at www.pumpitupparty.com.
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