Enjoy four seasons of fun at storybook land: let your little ones loose in a wonderful world where make-believe characters and fun-filled rides are the order of the day

EVEN AS A CHILD, I knew time was accelerating. Now that I'm all grown up with kids of my own, I'm more convinced of it than ever, especially around the holidays. Each year, the standard joke on this subject occurs in our house about a week after my favorite date on the calendar. Dec. 21, the first day of winter.

"So, what do you guys want for Christmas?" I'll ask my four angels.

"D-a-a-a-d ..." comes their plaintively contrived and well-rehearsed reply. "We've already gotten our presents. Santa Claus was just here a few days ago. Don't you remember?"

"No, I'm talking about next Christmas," I'll say with a wide smile. "It's practically here, you know. Thank goodness summer's almost over and you guys will be back in school soon. And you know how fall flies by in a flash. Yup, Christmas is right around the cornet, all right."

When our precious offspring were preschoolers and kindergartners, this warp-speed logic was lost on them. Now that they're moving--rapidly, I might add--through grade school, the wisdom, if not the validity, of my words is beginning to dawn on them. Which is, I guess, the long way of telling visitors to the Eastern seaboard that Storybook Land, located just outside Atlantic City in Egg Harbor Township, N.J.--a venue we traversed during the holidays--is moving into its expanded spring (and soon, summer) schedule, even though for the life of me it feels as if we were just there yesterday.

Although Santa won't be around to flip on the dazzling Christmas lights display as he did during our sojourn, the park nevertheless will prove a pleasant diversion for the young ones who may be looking for a respite alter being dragged to southern Jersey so their parents could gamble in the nearby casinos. (That, of course, was not our motivation, as we only ventured into Atlantic City for the all-you-can-eat buffet lunches and so the kids could see the country's longest boardwalk and play on the beach; even a cold ocean breeze--it was, after all, late November--could not deter them from this latter activity.)

Okay, now that I've absolved us of one of mankind's most prevalent vices, let me say what an enjoyable, low-key spot Storybook Land proved to be. Low-key is the operative word here. As the kids get older, our vacation destinations surely will need to become more up-tempo. With some of their friends already returning from Easter break with triumphant tales from Disney World and various other amusement parks that boast killer rides and death- (and gravity-) defying roller coasters, it seems understood that Storybook Land and its ilk soon will be left behind for more exciting adventures.

Fully aware of this fact heading in, I was determined to savor every moment of this charming little park with its not-at-all scary attractions, rides, and fairy tales characters. Of course, our kids are, after all, still kids, so they naturally had a great time on thematic rides, from the Candy Cane Express to the Jack and Jill Slide to the Alice in Wonderland Card Maze to the Goosey Gander Castle to the requisite Ferris Wheel, Carousel, and Antique Cars.

Dad even got a double thrill from the North Pole display, which showcased an igloo and signpost that were covered with, and producing, real ice and snow (don't ask me how; all I know is I kept rubbing my bare hands in the freezing white stuff until they turned red as Santa's coat).

Then there was the pulse-quickening sight of immaculately kept old-time cars, many from the 1930s--my favorite era for automobiles--all with pristine paint jobs and period license plates. (When we were first married, my wife and I ventured to classic car shows all the time. Although we owned neither a house nor garage in those days, my heart ached for one of those splendid vehicles. The frustration finally became too ... well ... frustrating, so we stopped going. Today, we have a huge house and spacious garage, but they're filled with children and minivans, respectively--certainly a lopsided exchange for a doting father; still, it's nice to reminisce.)

While the proprietors of Storybook Land undoubtedly are glad to see that spring is in full bloom, bringing with it warmer weather and larger crowds spending more money, we're still holding out for another cold weather visit during our favorite time of year. After all, Christmas is practically here, isn't it?

Wayne M. Barrett is Publisher and Editor-in-Chief of USA Today.

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