When I received the invitation for a birthday for a 2 year old at Oceans in Motion [http://www.oceannmotion.com/] I was skeptical to say the least. I am not a big fan of children’s birthday parties to begin with and I am even less of a fan of lame wordplay. So, when the invitation arrived with the phrase, “Can’t wait to ‘sea’ you” scrawled on it, I almost puked.
The web site boasts, “Can’t get to the beach? Come to the ocean!”. This pissed me off even more. I love the beach and I look forward to introducing my little one to the sand and ocean. I couldn’t begin to fathom how some hole in the wall in a strip mall in Mt. Laurel, New Jersey was going to deliver the bliss of the sea and sand. Ultimately, it didn’t matter what I thought, what crazy cynical streak was rearing its ugly head – we were going. My son [Ben, 19 months old] was locked and loaded in his best little outfit – herringbone trousers, a button down decorated with fleur de lis and a hip little short sleeve sweater that sports a small almost unnoticeable tag that says “little citizen of the world”. He was at least going to look fabulous no matter how lame this party might be.
Sure enough, we turned into a strip mall in Mt. Laurel, NJ and parked among the endless rows of SUVs. We scanned the strip and spotted “Oceans in Motion”. It didn’t look particularly impressive from the outside. And, truth be told, save the random stuffed animals shaped like fish or sharks there wasn’t much that reminded you of the ocean once you were inside either. On the other hand, what this place offered was actually quite wonderful. It was essentially an indoor playground. There were little trampolines, mazes to climb on, toys to jump on, and a ball pit that didn’t look like it harbored a million bits of bacteria. All of this was in an environment friendly for children ages 2-6. Even Ben, at just past a year and a half, had a blast. He caught major air on the baby trampoline and took a great deal of delight throwing balls at his own reflection in the mirror and then catching them as they came bouncing back (he’s an only child and was delighted to meet such a well dressed friend).
Alas, all cynicism aside, Oceans in Motion turned out to be quite a nice place for little ones to play. It was safe and clean and the staff could not have been nicer. We were there for a party but you can bring your children to play anytime. And, as someone who has been stuck in the house with kids on yucky rainy days, this place could be a wonderful diversion from trying to convince your children how fun it would be to help mommy dust and fold laundry.
