We bet you’ve seen Peter Pan, or read the book. Peter sings a song “I Won’t Grow Up” which is quite charming and adorable. Because none of us really want Peter Pan to ever give up his hijinks.
But today you’ll find lots of products and activities that actually seem to un-encourage (is that a word?) adults from growing up. Perhaps it is because our lives are more stressful than ever before. We’ve got a tough economy that’s slow to improve, and all of the challenges of becoming an adult.
Take a look at 10 things you can still do as an adult, that used to be kid-sized. Because even if you vote, pay taxes, and have a mortgage – you can still be “young at heart!”
10. Because no one is going to make you put your Big Wheel away… ever!
Well, okay, the one you had when you were 6 is probably going to be super uncomfortable to take a spin around the block on. But go ahead and take a look at the “just for big kids’ sized” High Roller Mark 1 Adult Size Big Wheel Trike. Why, it even has flames on the handles and brightly colored streamers that will fly along as you whiz down the block!
Actually, this is perfect if you’ve got a tiny tike on their kid sized Big Wheel and you want to get out there and play with them. It’s great for family fun. Or if you’ve also decided that you simply are never going to get older and accept the fact that it’s time to sink your extra cash into a 401K or mortgage payments, instead of an adult-sized trike!
9. Remember those fun summers away from camp? You can still make the magic happen!
Now some of you are going to be super thrilled and others are simply going to be gobsmacked, but there’s actually sleepaway camp especially for grown-ups. No, we’re not kidding! And you can do all of those fun things you did when Mom and Dad packed up the station wagon and drove you into the beautiful outdoors for a memorable summer. Color wars. Swimming at the lake. S’mores and a bonfire. Ghost stories. You could probably even short-sheet the camp counselor’s bed and they won’t be surprised at all.
This time instead of Mom and Dad packing up the station wagon, it’s going to be you plugging the directions into the GPS and asking your boss for time off from work. Just do yourself a huge favor and don’t say it’s for “camp” – say “conference” instead; you won’t be the only one doing Forever Young or Camp No Counselors.
8. Deep down, every little girl dreams of being a princess… even if she’s 32
This one is for those of you who just adore Disney and fairy tales. Remember watching those wonderful, delightful Disney cartoons growing up? Beauty and the Beast? Cinderella? Snow White? Ariel the Mermaid? Now we can see that wide smile on your face. We bet you’ve even been a Disney princess for Halloween a couple of times by this point. Perhaps you were a prince. Well, you can actually take this a bigger step further – and get a fantastic Disney Princess Makeover while visiting the Magic Kingdom!
Now adult makeovers are done without a costume – but do keep in mind that originally this Disney Princess Makeover at the Bibbidi Bobbidi Boutique was only, only for children, so it’s special that they’ve expanded it for adults at all. You’ll get a hairstyle, makeup and accessories so you look just like your favorite Disney Princess or Prince. This could be lots of fun to do as a couple – or perhaps to twist your boyfriend’s arm into doing because hey, you did after all get him to take you to Disneyland in the first place. So why not make him look like Prince Charming when you’re on the Matterhorn anyway? Just imagine the selfies. We think this is pure selfie magic. Could even be great to double dog dare someone with – if they lose a bet to you!
7. Remember the Hoppity Hop toy as a child? Just upgrade to the adult size
Okay, when you’re 5 you need three things: a PB&J sandwich, a day at the park, and your hoppity hop. That’s about it, except maybe for Grandma & Grandpa. Remember the Hoppity Hop? With a thick rubber loop at the top you’d hold on to with both hands? You pressed with your legs on the bouncy red rubber ball and it would “hop” while you sat on it. A very simple toy but still, lots of fun.
Now adults can have this same fun. We can imagine the Hop Ball (for adults) is great entertainment after you’ve had a couple beers or wine coolers and settled in to hop. Just stay away from hills and you’ll be fine!
6. Hated getting out of the ball pit? Now you don’t have to!
Those cute kiddie ball pits? Yes, they have them for adults now. Just imagine it as kind of like a disco floor where no one is pressured to get the exact right steps to The Hustle. Instead you can just float, hang out, and otherwise chillax in all of those cool, colorful balls. Why, it can take you back to those days when Mom would take you to the mall for a pair of sneakers for Back to School and you’d refuse to get out of the ball pit.
We bet you were so stubborn that she’d have to get into the pit to grab you. But here you (and your sneakers!) can hang out as much as you want. There may be a two drink minimum, as it’s part of a bar.
5. Because no one builds the largest waterpark in the world just to make an 8 year old happy
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UyEIcE6RuMI
If you visit Tropical Islands Resort in Germany, you’ll be thrilled to discover the biggest waterpark in the world. Nope, it’s certainly not just for the kiddies! Its 30 miles from Berlin and is housed in an airplane hangar, so yes, it is absolutely enormous. If you go with family or friends, stick together because they can host 6,000 people at a single time in the 16 acre waterpark.
This place is also smart enough to realize that some adults really don’t want to grow up, because there are certain waterslides which are larger and specifically only for adults – so you can go nice and speedy, but this also keeps the little ones safe too. Please be “adult” enough not to pee at the waterpark!
4. Every little girl really can grow up to become a mermaid, if you’ve got a couple of hundred bucks
Guys may or may not have noticed, but one of the new women’s hair trends lately has been “mermaid hair.” This is multi-colored hair, which takes many hours and quite a lot of money to make a childhood dream come true. So please do everyone a favor and compliment the women in your life who are sporting this ‘do, because they’ve spent at least six hours in a beauty salon chair getting their hair first completely bleached and then dyed multiple colors. That’s also not mentioning the huge chunk of change the mermaid hair actually costs. Which is typically upwards of $300 bucks, depending on how much salons in your area charge, how long the hair is, and how many colors it is.
What’s totally cray cray about this fad is that hair dye starts growing out at about 6 weeks, so you’ve either got to touch up the roots or figure out if you’re going to dye it back to your natural shade. That’s quite a high cost to keep a childhood dream alive!
3. Because not everyone wants to grow up to drive a Hummer or a Lexus…
Hey! Remember the Little Tykes car from your toddler days? Let’s take you back: its 100% hard plastic, with a bright yellow top and cherry red body. It kind of looks like a kiddie version of a golf cart. Plenty of kids had fun zooming around their lawns or driveways in the Little Tykes car because they were little ones. When they got older and got their driver’s license, it was time to move on to Mom and Dad’s car, perhaps the older car that they didn’t use that often that you got to drive to your first job, which paid for gas.
It might startle you, but for some these Little Tykes car dreams die hard, so actually way past 21 you can still drive it! Yes, there’s a company that has created them for adults. Two grown-ups can comfortably sit in the front. After that, there’s really not that much room, so it’s not ideal to go to the grocery store or out to dinner with another couple. But if your dreams don’t extend too far past the lawn or the driveway way past 21, we think you’ll do just fine!
2. Some toys truly are very, very expensive and are only made for adults to play with
Are you a die-hard Star Wars fan? This life-size Stormtrooper is bigger than your kids, and actually standing at 6-feet tall it may even be a bit bigger than you are. It “only” costs $8,000 and just imagine the fun you could have with it! Besides, it’s only fair that you play with it. If your kids tried it could totally knock them over.
If you’re single, this Stormtrooper could be your perfect date – tall, good-looking and always the good listener. Perhaps you could teach him/her (it?) a few dance steps to fully complete the picture. We can imagine many adults who are tempted to not grow up, wanting a pair of them so they can battle with each other – or at least do a threatening stare down from across the room.
1. Kids shouldn’t keep ice cream all to themselves
Do you scream for ice cream? Well, a lot of people do. Now what would make ice cream more “adult”? Put it in a bikini or a sexy outfit? Actually, that’s one of the problems you’ll have if you eat too much ice cream… but that’s another article for another time.
No, you add booze to your ice cream, taking a kid’s favorite treat and certainly boosting the appropriate age limit to the legal drinking age which (depending on where you live) would be either 18 or 21. Boozy ice cream could be a fun way to celebrate a milestone birthday and certainly some types of alcohol will mix easily with the sweet, tempting flavors of ice cream.
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Just don’t eat the tipsy icecream and crash your tyke or trike on the way home…