According to my childhood journal, I met my husband during a seventh-grade field trip to Canobie Lake Park—a local theme park an hour north of Boston.
From a Ferris wheel overlooking a freshwater lake to Yankee Cannon, a 90-year-old wooden roller coaster, it’s hard to find a more idyllic and adorable middle school hangout in New England.
The author went to school with her husband. Provided by the author
We are not childhood sweethearts. We didn’t start dating until our twenties, and although we reconnected and got married, we fell into postpartum confusion after having our baby.
As we adjust to our new lives, romance continues to decrease in importance until it becomes almost flat. But as 18 months rolled around, I was ready for a comeback that my husband didn’t see coming at all.
Postpartum romance takes a village
Fortunately, my parents were willing to babysit our daughter many weekend afternoons to give us some time to rest. However, if left unchecked, we can easily fall behind on work and home improvement projects. We need friends to break us out of our mom and dad mold.
Ever since I realized that we had passed the 20th anniversary of our meeting at Canobie Lake Park, I had been hoping to plan a surprise trip to Canobie Lake Park all summer. So when two of our band members mentioned they were free to hang out on Saturday, I immediately called them secretly and we hatched a plan.
The author prepares a surprise for her husband so that they can reconnect as a couple. Provided by the author
It all started when our friend offered to take my husband and I to a fun place with live music – a winery conveniently located near Canobie Lake. With the bait destination in the GPS, the four of us piled into a car and headed off, bathing suits stowed in the trunk. At the last second we veered off course and headed into the park as if it were a complete coincidence.
I wish I could have filmed his face when we arrived. The only time I saw him so surprised and happy was when I showed him the positive pregnancy test.
Everything about the theme park exceeded our expectations
Tickets are $48 per person. Parking is free. There was no line at the door. We arrived at 4pm, and the sun shone on the lake beside the park, sparkling. It was surrounded by families with strollers, but it wasn’t crowded. I didn’t hear anyone lose their temper the entire five hours we were there.
We behaved exactly like a 13-year-old child would do after being allowed to roam freely in an amusement park without supervision.
We rode the roller coaster all night. We played summer camp games while waiting in line. Making faces in the photo booth. Being dunked from head to toe in a log tank dubbed the “Boston Tea Party.” Shared a basket of chicken feet as a snack and then forgot about dinner. Ride a gondola and watch the sun set over the lake. Making fun of a completely unscary haunted house. Started a screaming match with a group of teenage girls on the opposite side of a rocking pirate ship.
This is the kind of perfect date that would only happen in a PG-13 movie
Best of all, we stumbled upon The Hit Collective, a boy band trio from Las Vegas who were kicking off a summer residency in the park. They serenaded the crowd with songs from One Direction and K-Pop Demon Hunters, and even pulled kids on stage to take Polaroid photos with them during the show. For some childhood nostalgia, we took a photo with them using my disposable camera like they were the Jonas Brothers.
A lot of things in the park feel the same, but I’m having more fun at thirty-four than I was at thirteen. For one thing, I’m no longer afraid of roller coasters. After giving birth, standing on your head for a few seconds isn’t that intimidating. In fact, I enjoyed the peer pressure to ride rides I once feared. I have no problem saying no to rides I hate (instead of jumping off towers to impress someone I like).
Not only do we feel like children; We were reminded of how much fun we can have as a couple. We fell in love again, holding hands, as we decided which car to ride together next.
What started out as a romantic gesture to celebrate the beginning of our friendship turned into a time machine adventure that we will never forget.