Mom finds ‘me time’ while kids have blast at GreatLIFE activities
Aug. 10, 2022
This paid piece is sponsored by GreatLIFE Golf & Fitness.
Katie Plemel discovered one of the best benefits of her GreatLIFE membership when her daughter, Raina, was 9 months old.
That’s when she realized free child care came with her membership. She could drop off Raina at GreatKids while she worked out steps away within Performance Center.
“It was amazing,” she said. “I stay home, so I’m a full-time mom, and I don’t have any child care at all. So that’s my hour every day to just have some ‘me time,’ get that stress relief, and they interact with the kids, too, so it’s great.”
Plemel is now a mother of two. Raina is 2 and her brother, Murphy, is 9 months.
Plemel and both kids head to Performance Center Monday through Friday — Murphy joined the day he turned 3 months.
“They do a craft every week, and Raina loves bringing them home and telling us about it, and Murphy is just starting to crawl, so they’ll play ball, and he’ll chase it,” she said. “It’s very interactive. I’m surprised to find that at a gym.”
Recently, the family came in later for a special event.
“I’d seen a sign at the gym for Great Night Out, and we knew we had to go,” she said.
“They adore all the girls who work there. I wanted a night to myself, and they love coming here so much I just figured I’m going to get them in their jammies, take a snack, and I couldn’t turn it down.”
For her, the timing was perfect. Her husband was traveling for work, so Plemel invited a friend for pedicures while the kids spent two hours at GreatLIFE.
At Great Night Out, members drop off kids age 2 months to 12 years for two hours of fun — with games, movies and others activities to keep them busy while parents enjoy time to themselves. The cost is just $15 per child.
“It was awesome,” Plemel said. “I don’t know how people find babysitters unless it’s a friend. I really struggle. It’s hard to trust people, especially as a new mom, and here I knew they’d love it.”
She was right. Raina didn’t want to leave when it was time to go home.
“She was so excited to come in her princess nightgown, she brought her pillow to show everyone, and it was like a mini sleepover,” Plemel said. “And I got to pick up a friend and have pedicures — so it was a perfect Friday night.”
It’s the latest in a series of positive experiences taking her kids to GreatLIFE, she added.
“It’s not like any child care I’ve seen,” she said. “Often, you see people on their phones, not paying attention, the kids are crying, and here I’ve never had that experience. It’s fun for me to know I’m going to get my ‘me time’ and have a great rest of the day, but they’re also going to have a great rest of the day because they get to spend time with people they love.”
The next Great Night Out is coming up from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. Aug. 19! Sign up in the GreatLIFE app.
