Category Archives: Parks

Wordless Wednesday: Honoring the Men & Women Who Have Made the Ultimate Sacrifice For Our Nation

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Wordless Wednesday (Almost)

By Erin

Last year the airplane was taken out of the “Airplane” Park for refurbishment. This jet refurbishment became a labor of love to build something that would honor our veterans in a powerful and special way. On Memorial Day, the new and improved Veteran’s Memorial debuted to thousands of spectators as all in attendance remembered and honored the men and women who have made the ultimate sacrifice for our nation. The Douglas F3D-2 “Skyknight” fighter, now is back on its pedestal in all its glory commemorating men and women who died while in military service. Take a look at the new and improved memorial that is here at Del Valle Park in Lakewood, CA.

Lakewood-Airplane-Park

 

Lakewood-911-Flowers

 

Lakewood-DVP

 

Lakewood-Boys-DVP

 

Lakewood-Veterans-Memorial-Plaza

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Cars Land at Disney California Adventure Park

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If you have not yet been to Disney California Adventure Park, then you should make sure to put that on your list of things to do the next time you are in the Orange County or Los Angeles area. If you are an annual pass holder like myself, then what are you waiting for?? If you are sadly blocked out for the summer, then make sure to go the first day you are able to! It is well worth it. Disney got it right and did a marvelous job designing this land, tailoring it so that there is something for everyone here. It’s NOT just for kids…. 😉

This was my first time to California Adventure since they finished construction on the park and opened up Cars Land, so I still have much left to explore and see myself. This is a list of my “Must-Do’s” and “Must-Sees” thus far while you are in the park.

 

 

1. FAST PASS/RIDES–

If you get to the park early enough in the day, as soon as you enter the park make sure to get a Fast Pass for the Radiator Springs Racers ride! Otherwise if you get there later in the day like we did around 6:30pm, go eat dinner first. The line will die down a little bit and it will save you at least an hour or so! The line for that ride was 195 minutes when we got there. After we had some dinner and drinks and looked around a little, the line had died down to 120 minutes! Notice the wait time listed on the right tire! LOL 😉 *Radiator Springs Racers is an AWESOME ride, so make sure to hit up that ride! It’s especially awesome when your car wins like ours did! 😉


 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

2. FOOD & DRINKS–

Be sure to try some of the amazing food and drinks offered in Cars Land! We ate at Flo’s for dinner and then grabbed some treats at the Cozy Cone for the long line awaiting us at Radiator Springs Racers. I had a vegetarian potato bake with pasta salad. It was very light and refreshing for a warm evening. My friend had some Sangria (they have a few wine choices at Flo’s to choose from), which I had a taste of. It was pretty good! My FAVORITE drink I found though was at the Chili Cone Queso at the Cozy Cone! They have a Vodka Pomegranate Limeade drink, can you say YUM!!!!??? You MUST try it. The Chili Cone Queso was good too, and I am not even a Chili person. So that says a lot.

3. LIGHTS AT NIGHT–

Be sure to stick around until the sun goes down to see how awesome Cars Land is at night when it lights up! It is sure to awe you, and will give you tons of photo ops for you photographers out there!

4. DJ Dance Party–

Perfect for kids, or if you just want to listen to the music, people watch and enjoy a drink outside by Flo’s it’s fun for everyone.

5. STARBUCKS–

You can use your pass holder discount AND your Starbucks card to get your Starbucks fix at California Adventure. The mark up on price isn’t too horrible either. There was about a 32 cent difference between what my Grande Mocha Frap would cost me at the local Starbucks near my house and what it cost at Disney.

6. TREATS–

You MUST try some of the delectable treats offered in the shops on Buena Vista Street, the main street when you first walk into California Adventure. Chocolate Covered Brownie Truffle Micky Ears? Don’t mind if I do!! 🙂

This is just a tiny glimps of what Dinsey California Adventure has to offer. I hope to add more to this list as I get a chance to explore the place more in depth. Will you be making a trip to Cars Land anytime soon? Or maybe you have gone already? I’d love to hear all about it!

Guest Post from Mary @ Along Comes Mary!! “Happiness is…. Snoopy (on Ice!)

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Since I’m away from the “office” right now in Minnesota visiting relatives and such, I had asked two of my good friends to do a guest post for me! So here is the 1st one from Mary at Along Comes Mary, so be sure to click on her link and check out her place for some great posts on Gluten-Free recipes and events going on around Southern California!!  Here she posted about a fun summer event that you can go to in SoCal! <3
 
Wanna know a secret? I wish I was an ice skater. Ever since I was young, it has secretly fascinated me. I remember being mesmorized by The Winter Olympics & would judge the skaters & their routines….then, in the middle of wanting to be just like all the girls when I grew up…Tonya Harding & Nancy Kerrigan happened….I was crushed something so horrible would happen, especially between 2 gorgeous, accomplished, talented women!!:-( I think thats when I re-thought my dream sport, but in recent years, I have loved watching it again…& have very badily ice skated here & there! 😉
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

So, you can imagine my excitement when on one of my afternoon jogs around Knotts Berry Farm with my Mom, that they had just unveiled a new ice show for summer, Happiness is…Snoopy! We went into the Charles M. Schultz Theatre thinking it would be…good. With the Peanuts dressed up & dancing…but we got so much more than we bargained for! This is a full production a la “The Ice Capades”; with a huge cast of professional ice skaters, including 1 couple who blew our minds!! It begins with an amazing western round up, then from there we are treated to Charlie Brown & friends at the beach, on a road trip, hitting up the party scene (even with a great cover of Get The party Started…I love that song), On a rainy day, Lucy looking to draw with her crayons (with the skaters in adorable crayon outfits) and…even….just for the girls…Justin Beagle!!!;-) With the cast doing an adorable number to the Biebs’ Baby, Baby.


 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

If you will be headed out to Knotts in Buena Park this Summer, this is truly a must-see & makes Knotts even more of a top destination visit. The theatre is HUGE, easily 3,000 seats. We were lucky to get in the 5th row but keep in mind the seats are just like at any other kind of theatre, so little ones might struggle a bit to see unless they’re on a grown ups lap or maybe bring a booster seat of some kind. It runs afew times each day with the exception of 2 days a week (You can call Knotts to find out & confirm). Its also a great chanch to rest in the very cold a/c if its a hot day out there! It would surprise me if anything in the show scared the kiddos, but you never know; some parts the lights go extra down (In the ‘Stormy’ sequence was one part). Its a very up-beat, happy show with something to see no matter where you are looking, & the solo acts the lead dancers get to do were remarkable!:-)