Monday, July 23, 2012

Adventures at Disney California Adventure

Last week, my sister Gina and our friend Chaeli (pronounced Shelley) went to California with my dad for the 2012 National Compassionate Friends conference.  I flew out on Wednesday night and dad and the girls came early Thursday morning.  Then we went to Disney California Adventure for the day and had a blast!


Me and Gina in front of the entrance to the new Cars Land
The new Cars Land was amazing.  It looked like we stepped inside the Cars movie!!  There were several rides including Luigi's Flying Tires, which was NOT worth the 1.5 hour wait.  The Radiator Springs Racers sounded amazing but was closed after a break down.  A cast member working in a gift shop said that ride breaks down almost every day.

New Little Mermaid ride!
When I was little, I watched The Little Mermaid almost every day, so I was stoked when we were able to go to Ariel's Undersea Adventure.  It was a cute ride and thankfully there was hardly any wait.

Me & Chaeli trying on ears
Because I'm getting married this year, I decided that I needed to buy some mouse ears!  So i picked out the sparkly white ones with the veil!!  I love them so much and am planning to wear them to my bridal shower next month.

It was an amazing day.  I'm glad we chose to do California Adventure instead of Disneyland, since I feel like it wasn't as crowded as Disneyland gets but with all the same amazing Disney magic!

love and coffee,
Lulu

Sunday, March 18, 2012

Dakotas Trip: Mt Rushmore & Rapid City

After visiting the Crazy Horse Memorial, we drove to the "big heads" (as my dad calls it), Mount Rushmore.  Thanks to my mom and sister having been there in January, we didn't have to pay the $11 for parking and used their parking pass.  

There wasn't as much to look at compared to Crazy Horse, but it was still enjoyable.  It was great to be able to check this item off my bucket list!  Plus the weather was absolutely beautiful; a little windy but sunny and not too cold or too hot.  We had fun wandering through the gift shop and trying to figure out what we wanted to take home to remember our trip.
In front of Mount Rushmore

For lunch, we continued driving to Rapid City to dine at Beaujo's Colorado Style Pizza.  This is a restaurant that started in Colorado, famous for its whole wheat pizza crust eaten at the end of the meal with honey.  I remember going here as a little kid for their lunchtime buffet.  I was stoked when I found out that we could eat there on our trip! I recommend joining their birthday club; I got $10 off my purchase which was basically half off lunch for two.  The service was great and very attentive and the food was very yummy.  The only bummer is that their salad bar doesn't include different types of lettuce, just iceberg lettuce and spinach.  If you're ever in the area, I suggest you check out Beaujo's!

Coming soon....North Dakota adventures...

love and coffee,
Lulu

Tuesday, March 13, 2012

Crazy about Crazy Horse

Jared and I just got back from a wonderful road trip to the Dakotas.  The first thing we saw was the Crazy Horse memorial.  It is located south of Rapid City, South Dakota in the beautiful Black Hills.


It cost us $20 for the two of us, but before you say "That's too expensive to see a big rock" remember that this project is entirely privately funded.  The memorial does not accept government funding and relies on admissions and donations.  

The first thing we did upon arrival was watch a short film about the history of the memorial, which I found very informative and inspiring. We walked around the museum which showcases a lot of Native American history. The gift shop is huge and we had fun looking around to find the perfect thing to take home.  We settled on a few postcards, a pen for me to use at work, and a wooden Christmas tree ornament.  

Jared & I in front of the model
It was rather windy when we went but still really enjoyed it.  I liked seeing the models for the finished product.  Jared was there about ten years ago and was amazed how much work they've done since then.  Maybe in ten or fifteen years we'll bring our kids there...

More soon on our Dakotas trip!

love and coffee,
Lulu