Monday, July 13, 2009
National Harbour, Potomac River, MD
Tuesday evening, Russ and I left the kids with a night with Nana and we went out for a date at the National Harbour, the new Gaylord hotel community across the Woodrow Wilson bridge on the Potomac River in Maryland. The National Harbour is just beautiful, one of the most beautiful, newest places I have seen. We walked through the Gaylord Hotel gardens, lobby and shoppes. I would love to stay there overnight for an anniversay getaway. We walked along the river boardwalk, watched the sun set and had dinner at a mexican restaurant called Rosa Mexicana. I highly recommend this restaurant. There was more on the menu I wanted to eat than didn't. Staff was good. Food was outstanding, best Mexican I've had. I had the Guacamole and recommend it. Also enjoyed the chicken tacos and refried black beans and rice. If you are nearby, it is a stop worth taking.
July 4th in Richmond, VA
Sigh, me left Hilton Head on the morning of July 4th and arrived that afternoon at my sister's house in Richmond to spend a few days and celebrate July4th. We arrived to her house and had craft time, where the children made crazy July 4th hats. We enjoyed a nice dinner and then walked to the lake, just a block from their house and watched fireworks over the water. God Bless America. We enjoyed just hanging out with my sister and my mom and family on Sunday and Monday we went to Busch Gardens in Williamsburg, VA for the day. Busch Gardens is gracious to host military families for a free day each year and we've enjoyed our visits. BG created a Sesame section for kids in the park and hosts a breakfast or lunch with Elmo, the favorite character of my daughters. I am glad we opted for the lunch as it took us over an hour from the time we arrived to the park to when we walked in the front gate. We barely made it on time to the lunch! The kids loved it and watch the Sesame street characters sing and dance. Food was ok, but the real fun was interacting with the characters. We spent the whole day at the park and enjoyed the log flume ride, riding the kiddie roller coaster and rides, riding the sky ride, choo choo train and more. If we go again, I am leaving my sister's house at 7am to get in.
Tuesday morning, we left to return to Alexandria to spend the last of our 3 week vacation there.
Tuesday morning, we left to return to Alexandria to spend the last of our 3 week vacation there.
Hilton Head, SC Beach Vacation: Week 2
After running around all week, reconnecting with friends and family and the hustle and bustle and excitement of DC, we were ready to relax. After a 7 hour drive straight to Hilton Head (not much traffic at 7am on Sundayam), we arrived! We shopped at the Outlets on the way to Sea Pines plantation, where we stayed for the week. Weather was awesome, beach sand is like cookie dough, and the water is warm. The girls enjoyed swimming in the Ocean and the pool and just playing and relaxing. We went to Harbourtown Monday night to see Gregg Russell sing under the Oak tree, like Mouse did when he was a kid. We went to South Beach to the Salty Dog and Sarah tie dyed a Salty Dog shirt. We also connected with Russ' uncle, girlfriend and cousin from CO for dinner a few nights. We collected Sand dollars we found in the Ocean. Look forward to another trip there another year.
Alexandria vacation: week 1
I was glad to be back on the East Coast for a vacation starting in hometown Del Ray, Alexandria, VA. The day we arrived, we missed seeing Barack Obama at the Dairy Godmother, our local frozen custard spot, by 10 minutes. Sarah was disappointed, as she thinks he is as cool as Elmo. She got to have lunch with Elmo, but more about that later. I got to celebrate my 40th birthday with my family and got to see my mom, my siblings, spouses and kids. We had a party at my mom's house in her newly renovated finished basement. First time, I've seen my family together in over a year. That is what I really wanted for my bday - to see my family and friends who know me, love me and mean the world to me. I also got to reconnect with other friends through the week. Got to spend Father's Day with my friends Dave and Barb and their precious kids at their house for a BBQ, and a time on the world's biggests slip and slide in their back yard. The girls played dress up as their daughter is the girliest little girl in the world with an amazing Princess wardrobe. Love it.
The rest of the week, we:
- hit the pool at Army Navy Country Club to stay cool most of the week
- had Sushi at Hana Tokyo, my favorite Sushi place with my Jaycees friends
- spent Tuesday afternoon with Danielle and my goddaughter Maggie in Frederick - hit the beach for the afternoon.
- went to the Air and Space Museum in DC
- had dinner at Carlyle Grand in Shirlington and cake at Cake Love with my dearest friends Dave and Andrea. After dinner, I reunited with my Broadside posse for drinks at Rock Bottom Brewery across the street.
- got together with Amanda, my Coastie wife friend from Pittsburgh and her kids
It was a great week with the girls. Mouse flew in and joined us late Friday night for the second week of our trip. Saturday, the girls were thrilled to see daddy and we went to the Alexandria Music Festival in Del Ray before departing for Richmond, VA to see my sister and family that evening. We'd spend the night in Richmon dbefore heading to Hilton Head, SC for a week at the beach with Mouse's parents.
The rest of the week, we:
- hit the pool at Army Navy Country Club to stay cool most of the week
- had Sushi at Hana Tokyo, my favorite Sushi place with my Jaycees friends
- spent Tuesday afternoon with Danielle and my goddaughter Maggie in Frederick - hit the beach for the afternoon.
- went to the Air and Space Museum in DC
- had dinner at Carlyle Grand in Shirlington and cake at Cake Love with my dearest friends Dave and Andrea. After dinner, I reunited with my Broadside posse for drinks at Rock Bottom Brewery across the street.
- got together with Amanda, my Coastie wife friend from Pittsburgh and her kids
It was a great week with the girls. Mouse flew in and joined us late Friday night for the second week of our trip. Saturday, the girls were thrilled to see daddy and we went to the Alexandria Music Festival in Del Ray before departing for Richmond, VA to see my sister and family that evening. We'd spend the night in Richmon dbefore heading to Hilton Head, SC for a week at the beach with Mouse's parents.
East Coast Vacation - Girls first flight
Our second vacation this summer was to the East Coast for three weeks! We went to my hometown, the uber cool Del Ray section of Alexandria, VA. First week, it was just me and the girls - their first flight ever. If I could coat them in stickers, I would have. They were beyond good. I was so proud of them and told them so. We flew Frontier, which is an amazing airline,with all seats that are first class big and if you get the classic tickets, you get to check in 2 bags per person and watch direct TV on your personal screen. Love it! The issue was that our first flight was cancelled due to mechanical issues. I'll spare you the gore, but 7 hours, 7 bags, 2 preschoolers later, I finally landed in a hotel at 9pm with the girls near Denver so we could catch a flight in wee hours of the morning to get to DC. The girls seriously deserve some sort of medal. They were troopers.
We made our 7am flight next day without issue and the girls slept for 2 hours and then watched Sponge Bob on TV for the other 2 hours of the flight.
Happily, we saw Nana in DC that morning and start our big East Coast vacation.
We made our 7am flight next day without issue and the girls slept for 2 hours and then watched Sponge Bob on TV for the other 2 hours of the flight.
Happily, we saw Nana in DC that morning and start our big East Coast vacation.
YMCA Estes Park, CO
After a Spring of extreme couponing, my freezer is stuffed, pantry and toiletries are stocked for the next year and I am glad. Now I can take the summer off and enjoy and travel without having to fuss much with shopping at all. Hooray!
This is the summer of travel for the Holmes family. Our first trip this summer was to the YMCA Estes Park Retreat Center over memorial day weekend. They have a special for military families - $80 for 2 nights INCLUDING meals and all activities, except crafts and horse back riding. I was so excited to go for not having to cook 3 meals a day for 2 days for my family. That along is a vacation to me. We drove through the uber cool town of Boulder (reminds me of DelRay in Alexandria, my hometown). We arrived Friday and toured the historical Stanley Hotel, famous for being the site for Stephen King's film The Shining. The hotel was much smaller than I imagined and we couldn't take the tour as all 26 tours that day were booked and they wouldn't let small kids on the tour anyway. I wanted to eat lunch there, but it was expensive and nothing really looked good to me anyway. I love to eat well, but the most interesting thing in the restaurant was the fish tank. It was late, kids were hungry, so it was fast food for us. As far as fast food in a pinch, I am on to KFC for that grilled chicken.
We shopped at a cute place called Estes Ark, place looked just like Noah's Ark. Inside were two of every kind of stuffed animal in the animal kingdom. I told Charlotte and Sarah they could have any animal they wanted in exchange for their ratty old teddy bears they take everywhere and cannot sleep without. They would have nothing to do with that. Fun store. Bought unique greeting cards, and raced slot cars on a track they have in the basement. Mouse was loving it.
Downtown Estes Park looked like a beach boardwalk. Fun Stores, but we didn't stop. Straight to the Y for us. The Y did not disappoint. The property was amazing and we didn't leave all weekend. We're going back end of July when we will spend our time at the Rocky Mountain Natinoal Park.
Friday night we checked in to our hotel room, which was spacious and had a view of the mountains from our balcony. We had dinner onsite and were pleased with the food and selection. We were surprised that there were over 1000 others in the dining hall, as the Chinese American Christian Association was meeting there all weekend. Took 20 minutes in line to get our meals. Being so new to Colorado, we were surprised to run into 2 other military families we knew at dinner. One family had reserved a fire pit that night we joined them for a time around the camp fire, smores, mountain air and stars.
Saturday, after breakfast, the girls attended a bug class, where they learned about all kinds of different bugs, went outside to catch, ID and release bugs and then create a bug craft. Too much fun. Then we played a round of miniature golf before lunch. After lunch was parachute class for the girls, then off to roller skate. Charlotte has always been a good rollerskater, and Sarah made friends with some older kids who took her under her wing, and is now a good skater. We met one of the families we knew at the rink and spent a good time socializing with them. After skating, we went horseback riding. Charlotte doesn't like to ride, but Sarah really does and she rode a mini horse named Shortcake around the cutest outdoor trail in the planet. Then back to eat some dinner at the dining hall. After, we went to our room to change and the girls completely fell asleep on us. No evening swim. Next morning, we had breakfast and went to art class to make a sun craft. Then we went to the roller rink to skate some more. Then lunch, then home. Great but short weekend with amazing memories and great views. We've decided to make this place and the Y at Winter Park our "vacation home" without the hassle of owning it. We're going back often.
This is the summer of travel for the Holmes family. Our first trip this summer was to the YMCA Estes Park Retreat Center over memorial day weekend. They have a special for military families - $80 for 2 nights INCLUDING meals and all activities, except crafts and horse back riding. I was so excited to go for not having to cook 3 meals a day for 2 days for my family. That along is a vacation to me. We drove through the uber cool town of Boulder (reminds me of DelRay in Alexandria, my hometown). We arrived Friday and toured the historical Stanley Hotel, famous for being the site for Stephen King's film The Shining. The hotel was much smaller than I imagined and we couldn't take the tour as all 26 tours that day were booked and they wouldn't let small kids on the tour anyway. I wanted to eat lunch there, but it was expensive and nothing really looked good to me anyway. I love to eat well, but the most interesting thing in the restaurant was the fish tank. It was late, kids were hungry, so it was fast food for us. As far as fast food in a pinch, I am on to KFC for that grilled chicken.
We shopped at a cute place called Estes Ark, place looked just like Noah's Ark. Inside were two of every kind of stuffed animal in the animal kingdom. I told Charlotte and Sarah they could have any animal they wanted in exchange for their ratty old teddy bears they take everywhere and cannot sleep without. They would have nothing to do with that. Fun store. Bought unique greeting cards, and raced slot cars on a track they have in the basement. Mouse was loving it.
Downtown Estes Park looked like a beach boardwalk. Fun Stores, but we didn't stop. Straight to the Y for us. The Y did not disappoint. The property was amazing and we didn't leave all weekend. We're going back end of July when we will spend our time at the Rocky Mountain Natinoal Park.
Friday night we checked in to our hotel room, which was spacious and had a view of the mountains from our balcony. We had dinner onsite and were pleased with the food and selection. We were surprised that there were over 1000 others in the dining hall, as the Chinese American Christian Association was meeting there all weekend. Took 20 minutes in line to get our meals. Being so new to Colorado, we were surprised to run into 2 other military families we knew at dinner. One family had reserved a fire pit that night we joined them for a time around the camp fire, smores, mountain air and stars.
Saturday, after breakfast, the girls attended a bug class, where they learned about all kinds of different bugs, went outside to catch, ID and release bugs and then create a bug craft. Too much fun. Then we played a round of miniature golf before lunch. After lunch was parachute class for the girls, then off to roller skate. Charlotte has always been a good rollerskater, and Sarah made friends with some older kids who took her under her wing, and is now a good skater. We met one of the families we knew at the rink and spent a good time socializing with them. After skating, we went horseback riding. Charlotte doesn't like to ride, but Sarah really does and she rode a mini horse named Shortcake around the cutest outdoor trail in the planet. Then back to eat some dinner at the dining hall. After, we went to our room to change and the girls completely fell asleep on us. No evening swim. Next morning, we had breakfast and went to art class to make a sun craft. Then we went to the roller rink to skate some more. Then lunch, then home. Great but short weekend with amazing memories and great views. We've decided to make this place and the Y at Winter Park our "vacation home" without the hassle of owning it. We're going back often.
Tuesday, March 17, 2009
Extreme Couponing
In case you are wondering why it seems that I have fallen off the face of the earth, well I had kind of checked out. The culprit? My new hobby. Extreme couponing. It almost sounds like a sport and well, I guess it can be and has been to me.
It is Carrie's fault really. I was reading my newspaper one morning and saw a reference to springsbargains.com, a blog featuring the latest deals in Colorado Springs. I visited her blog and was hooked. She posts daily the best deals available in the Springs - sales at Walgreens, where to get free breakfast or sandwiches at local restaurants, clearance deals and what is best to buy at my local supermarket. From there, it all started.
I also learned about downloading and printing coupons from the internet, which I hadn't done before and coupons you can add directly to your loyalty card from P&G, cellfire.com and shortcuts.com that you can use on top of your coupons.
I found some other useful sites that outline strategies to use at the stores, maximizing sale prices and what coupons to use and where to get them:
-www.southernsavers.com
-www.moneysavingmom.com
-www.frugalcouponmom.com
-www.afullcup.com
-www.hotcouponworld.com
I also learned about All you magazine which is stacked full of coupons each month. I signed up for a two-year subscription from a Southern Living Consultant for $18/2 years. Worth the investment.
I enlisted a cousin who is willing to give me her newspaper inserts each week and decided to also subscribe to the Denver Post on Sundays to get more coupons.
I've clipped coupons my whole life, but I totally adopted a new mindset - if it isn't on sale AND I don't have a coupon and it isn't truly essential, I'm not getting it.
For the first time since I moved to the Springs, my food/retail total for last month was down $200! And at the same time, I was stocking up on essentials. I was getting many things for free and in many cases, I was being paid to purchase items! All of my trips to grocery store now reflect at least a 50% savings (most of the time, more) and I even saved 30% off at my last trip to the commissary.
I had a trip to Albertson's grocery store where I got 2 lobster tails, 1 lb of salmon filets, 2 pts of raspberries, 1 doz. eggs and 1/2 gallon of milk for $6. I went to Walgreens today and spent $0 - using $10 in register rewards - to get Pantene shampoo, conditioner, and detangling spray, kleenex, 2 boxes of popcorn shrimp and 6 boxes of Tyson's buffalo chicken wings in the frozen food section. Crazy, but true and absolutely great. I am stocked up on most toiletries I'll need for the next year, including pull ups for spidergirl, and am saving money that we can now put toward trips, entertainment, and achieving our other financial goals. I've been able to donate many things to Northern Churches Care, helping struggling families in the Springs.
I think I have my new hobby down now after much research and learning new stores and websites and such. Now I have time for other things... like enjoying my kids and the summer.
It is Carrie's fault really. I was reading my newspaper one morning and saw a reference to springsbargains.com, a blog featuring the latest deals in Colorado Springs. I visited her blog and was hooked. She posts daily the best deals available in the Springs - sales at Walgreens, where to get free breakfast or sandwiches at local restaurants, clearance deals and what is best to buy at my local supermarket. From there, it all started.
I also learned about downloading and printing coupons from the internet, which I hadn't done before and coupons you can add directly to your loyalty card from P&G, cellfire.com and shortcuts.com that you can use on top of your coupons.
I found some other useful sites that outline strategies to use at the stores, maximizing sale prices and what coupons to use and where to get them:
-www.southernsavers.com
-www.moneysavingmom.com
-www.frugalcouponmom.com
-www.afullcup.com
-www.hotcouponworld.com
I also learned about All you magazine which is stacked full of coupons each month. I signed up for a two-year subscription from a Southern Living Consultant for $18/2 years. Worth the investment.
I enlisted a cousin who is willing to give me her newspaper inserts each week and decided to also subscribe to the Denver Post on Sundays to get more coupons.
I've clipped coupons my whole life, but I totally adopted a new mindset - if it isn't on sale AND I don't have a coupon and it isn't truly essential, I'm not getting it.
For the first time since I moved to the Springs, my food/retail total for last month was down $200! And at the same time, I was stocking up on essentials. I was getting many things for free and in many cases, I was being paid to purchase items! All of my trips to grocery store now reflect at least a 50% savings (most of the time, more) and I even saved 30% off at my last trip to the commissary.
I had a trip to Albertson's grocery store where I got 2 lobster tails, 1 lb of salmon filets, 2 pts of raspberries, 1 doz. eggs and 1/2 gallon of milk for $6. I went to Walgreens today and spent $0 - using $10 in register rewards - to get Pantene shampoo, conditioner, and detangling spray, kleenex, 2 boxes of popcorn shrimp and 6 boxes of Tyson's buffalo chicken wings in the frozen food section. Crazy, but true and absolutely great. I am stocked up on most toiletries I'll need for the next year, including pull ups for spidergirl, and am saving money that we can now put toward trips, entertainment, and achieving our other financial goals. I've been able to donate many things to Northern Churches Care, helping struggling families in the Springs.
I think I have my new hobby down now after much research and learning new stores and websites and such. Now I have time for other things... like enjoying my kids and the summer.
Our Staycation
Hooray! Commander Mouse is off work work for the week. Vacation time! We thought about going skiing for the week since we live in the best place to ski in the entire world. After crunching the numbers, we discovered that the best planned vaca would still cost us @$2000 mostly because we'd have to put spidergirl in daycare for $120 per DAY and princess in ski school if we wanted to ski. So, we're going to put off this vaca til next year when the girls are a year older and we can put both girls in ski school (a wise lifetime investment).
So, for this week, we opted for a stay-cation and a few days away at Winter Park. We just got here to the Springs and are only here for 2 years. People plan their vacations to come to the Springs, so what a great idea!
Some of the things we did this week:
-Rented High School Musical 3 and had spa night with my girls, painting toes and fingernails and camping out in the living room with a tent and sleeping bags.
-Visited Glen Eyrie castle, took the tour, took a picnic on the lawn, hiked around the property and enjoyed the perfect 70 degree weather with my family. Planning to return for high tea with my daughters or my mom when she visits next.
-Visited the Pueblo Zoo and saw Bison, kangeroo, penguins, lynx, lions, zebras, ostrich, and lots more. Had a picnic there too. Spidergirl got to play in Charlotte's web at the playground.
-Had a St. Patty's Day dinner at the Falcon Club at the Air Force Academy
-Saw our first women's gymnastics meet at the Air Force Academy
Tomorrow, we'll be going horseback riding at the academy and having lunch there too.
Thursday, we're lucky to be leaving town for a few days going to the Rocky Mountain YMCA retreat center in Winter Park. They have a fantastic military special for 2 nights including breakfast and dinner for a family of 4 for $80 total. I am so excited. There is so much to do ther, especially for families of young children. Tubing, sledding, skating, swimming, skiing, snowmobiling and anything else winter you can think of.
I wish we had another week!
So, for this week, we opted for a stay-cation and a few days away at Winter Park. We just got here to the Springs and are only here for 2 years. People plan their vacations to come to the Springs, so what a great idea!
Some of the things we did this week:
-Rented High School Musical 3 and had spa night with my girls, painting toes and fingernails and camping out in the living room with a tent and sleeping bags.
-Visited Glen Eyrie castle, took the tour, took a picnic on the lawn, hiked around the property and enjoyed the perfect 70 degree weather with my family. Planning to return for high tea with my daughters or my mom when she visits next.
-Visited the Pueblo Zoo and saw Bison, kangeroo, penguins, lynx, lions, zebras, ostrich, and lots more. Had a picnic there too. Spidergirl got to play in Charlotte's web at the playground.
-Had a St. Patty's Day dinner at the Falcon Club at the Air Force Academy
-Saw our first women's gymnastics meet at the Air Force Academy
Tomorrow, we'll be going horseback riding at the academy and having lunch there too.
Thursday, we're lucky to be leaving town for a few days going to the Rocky Mountain YMCA retreat center in Winter Park. They have a fantastic military special for 2 nights including breakfast and dinner for a family of 4 for $80 total. I am so excited. There is so much to do ther, especially for families of young children. Tubing, sledding, skating, swimming, skiing, snowmobiling and anything else winter you can think of.
I wish we had another week!
My email to the Price is Right
Wrote this letter to the Price is Right. Keep your fingers crossed because I really want to be there at the premiere. And I forgot the fact that I'd like to replace my 12 year old Camry with a mustang convertible in time for my 40th birthday. I am thinking of emailing Ellen to see if she has any connections with Drew Carey. I did go to high school with Oswald and was on the crew team at the same time. Hmmmm.
So I'm at the gym watching Monday's show while I'm on the treadmill and we get to the 2nd showcase showdown. The showcase is for a few nights at the Beverly Hills Hotel, a limo to take you shopping and $1000 cash, a makeover and most importantly tickets to the premiere of Monsters and Aliens in 3D. Then there is a red Mustang convertible. If you knew me, you would know why I was using every bit of restraint to contain myself. I've been to Beverly Hills twice and this would be a dream for me. I was thinking, would I take my sister for the shopping and break from the kids or my husband and precious little preschool daughters to the movie. I am the biggest animation fan in the planet and seeing an animation film in 3D at the premiere in LA in unfathomable. So I start to think, what if I were up there? A) I would be screaming but B) I would get my act together because I REALLY want that showcase. I put my business hat on and ran the numbers. My first guess would have been $40,000, but then I really started to think - what would I really bid? My honest bid was $32,000 in my head. When Drew came back from the commerical and announced that actually retail price of the showcase was $32,300 - I about fell off my treadmill. I did yell "no way" and ran to the weight room to go tell my husband what happened.
It got me to thinking. First, what if you guys added a feature on your show adding an actually showcase package that the folks at home, like me, could email or text in our bids and could actually win! Closest big wins - in case of a tie, a drawing happens, name picked win. Winner announced on the next show. Ratings would go through the roof with everyone having to and wanting to watch daily. Second, since the lady didn't win the showcase, can I have it?
So I'm at the gym watching Monday's show while I'm on the treadmill and we get to the 2nd showcase showdown. The showcase is for a few nights at the Beverly Hills Hotel, a limo to take you shopping and $1000 cash, a makeover and most importantly tickets to the premiere of Monsters and Aliens in 3D. Then there is a red Mustang convertible. If you knew me, you would know why I was using every bit of restraint to contain myself. I've been to Beverly Hills twice and this would be a dream for me. I was thinking, would I take my sister for the shopping and break from the kids or my husband and precious little preschool daughters to the movie. I am the biggest animation fan in the planet and seeing an animation film in 3D at the premiere in LA in unfathomable. So I start to think, what if I were up there? A) I would be screaming but B) I would get my act together because I REALLY want that showcase. I put my business hat on and ran the numbers. My first guess would have been $40,000, but then I really started to think - what would I really bid? My honest bid was $32,000 in my head. When Drew came back from the commerical and announced that actually retail price of the showcase was $32,300 - I about fell off my treadmill. I did yell "no way" and ran to the weight room to go tell my husband what happened.
It got me to thinking. First, what if you guys added a feature on your show adding an actually showcase package that the folks at home, like me, could email or text in our bids and could actually win! Closest big wins - in case of a tie, a drawing happens, name picked win. Winner announced on the next show. Ratings would go through the roof with everyone having to and wanting to watch daily. Second, since the lady didn't win the showcase, can I have it?
Thursday, February 19, 2009
Restaurant Week for the Holmies in Colorado Springs
I quit. I am not the cook any more.
After months of researching several freezer cooking books, weight watchers recipes and my personal collection of cookbooks, coupon/store sales blogs, I thought I had this home economist thing figured out. I needed my food to be nutritious (no frankenfoods), inexpensive, healthy (low in points), and convenient. I cooked a 15 lb. turkey that I got for $.32/lb and served it for dinner with all the tday trimmings. Dinner went over well and I had so much left over, I made up a dinner for a family needing a meal at my church. I still had a ton left over so I used the rest to make several casseroles/soups. I even put the carcass with a few veggies and water in the crockpot on high to make several cups of broth as a base for my casseroles, mashed potatoes and soups. Wow, I was so impressed with myself. The part I didn't plan on was that my family didn't like the casseroles I made. I've made them before and they have liked it, but not this week for some reason. My little ones were on a hunger strike and my husband just seemed to want something else. So, I was stuck with a bunch on casserole that couldn't be refrozen. After all the time and work. Ugh! So, I declared this week restaurant week. I am not cooking and doing tons of dishes and shopping. We are going out to eat all week until I am ready to cook again. Until then, forget it.
Mouse, well, mostly Mouse, and I sat down to make a war plan for the week. We researched all the kids eat free places, looked over the Entertainment book and online for deals, and looked at the coupons we got in the mail. Since we have moved to the Springs, we've eaten out like 6 times, so this was going to be a change for us.
We started by eating at the Elephant Bar on Monday. I liked the Elephant bar and for lunch, the portions are reasonable and the food was very good. The kids liked the place and for my two preschoolers, they shared a kids entree and had plenty to eat. Mouse and I had the lunch specials and enjoyed them much. The best is the hot fudge sundae for dessert. Yum!
Tuesday morning we went to Chick Fil A for breakfast, they are giving away free breakfasts all month. This week they gave away breakfast burritos which I didn't like and neither did the girls. We ordered the chicken minis and that worked out. Tuesday night, we went to Fazoli's (kids eat for $1). Fazoli's is a fast food italian restaurant. My assessment was yuk. I was love to see an ingredients list for their food, because my bet is that it would be a mile long with ingredients that read like a chemistry project. Mouse had the Chicken Parmesian, which seemed ok and the girls and I had the pizza which was completely worth forgetting. The plus side is that our bill was $11, but I left that meal not feeling nourished. The Black-eyed Pea is a much better bet where kids eat free on Tuesdays and the veggie plate is a great standby for mom.
Wednesday, I took the girls to one of my favorite places for lunch - the Air Force Academy Falcon Club. We are members and lunch is always a great experience. I like to take the girls to this place for what I call a "big girl lunch" so we can practice etiquette and behaving like ladies. The staff is warm and always welcoming to the girls, remembering their names and surprising them with special treats they have in the back. The food is fresh and served buffet style so my little ladies can try new foods. This week, Princess especially enjoyed the black-eyed peas. They have different themed meals each day of the week, and today was chef's choice. Other days they have southern comfort, italian, from the grill. The best part is that the girls eat free and lunch for all three of us is $9 including tax and a nice tip for our server. You can't beat that price anywhere. Wednesday night, we went to La Casita, where, you guessed it, kids eat free. I had no idea what to expect, and was pleasantly surprised. La Casita is a fast food mexican restaurant, but fast here means fresh. The tortillas were made from scratch and the girls enjoyed seeing them being made and the chicken being grilled. The food was fast only because the staff was humping. They were busy. I had the chicken fajitas with guacamole and it was really yummy. Princess liked her beans and beef taco, Spidergirl is on a hunger strike. Dinner for us 4 was $18 and I'd recommend it. We'll be back.
Today for lunch, I went to King Sooper and got an 8 pack of chicken to go. The girls are still on a hunger strike, but I liked it and it is always a good standby and is on sale this week.
We have a few more days to go on this eating out adventure. I enjoyed eating out more when I was working and on an expense account. I am enjoying not having to run the dishwasher 2x a day and cooking for now. Maybe I'll be ready next week.
After months of researching several freezer cooking books, weight watchers recipes and my personal collection of cookbooks, coupon/store sales blogs, I thought I had this home economist thing figured out. I needed my food to be nutritious (no frankenfoods), inexpensive, healthy (low in points), and convenient. I cooked a 15 lb. turkey that I got for $.32/lb and served it for dinner with all the tday trimmings. Dinner went over well and I had so much left over, I made up a dinner for a family needing a meal at my church. I still had a ton left over so I used the rest to make several casseroles/soups. I even put the carcass with a few veggies and water in the crockpot on high to make several cups of broth as a base for my casseroles, mashed potatoes and soups. Wow, I was so impressed with myself. The part I didn't plan on was that my family didn't like the casseroles I made. I've made them before and they have liked it, but not this week for some reason. My little ones were on a hunger strike and my husband just seemed to want something else. So, I was stuck with a bunch on casserole that couldn't be refrozen. After all the time and work. Ugh! So, I declared this week restaurant week. I am not cooking and doing tons of dishes and shopping. We are going out to eat all week until I am ready to cook again. Until then, forget it.
Mouse, well, mostly Mouse, and I sat down to make a war plan for the week. We researched all the kids eat free places, looked over the Entertainment book and online for deals, and looked at the coupons we got in the mail. Since we have moved to the Springs, we've eaten out like 6 times, so this was going to be a change for us.
We started by eating at the Elephant Bar on Monday. I liked the Elephant bar and for lunch, the portions are reasonable and the food was very good. The kids liked the place and for my two preschoolers, they shared a kids entree and had plenty to eat. Mouse and I had the lunch specials and enjoyed them much. The best is the hot fudge sundae for dessert. Yum!
Tuesday morning we went to Chick Fil A for breakfast, they are giving away free breakfasts all month. This week they gave away breakfast burritos which I didn't like and neither did the girls. We ordered the chicken minis and that worked out. Tuesday night, we went to Fazoli's (kids eat for $1). Fazoli's is a fast food italian restaurant. My assessment was yuk. I was love to see an ingredients list for their food, because my bet is that it would be a mile long with ingredients that read like a chemistry project. Mouse had the Chicken Parmesian, which seemed ok and the girls and I had the pizza which was completely worth forgetting. The plus side is that our bill was $11, but I left that meal not feeling nourished. The Black-eyed Pea is a much better bet where kids eat free on Tuesdays and the veggie plate is a great standby for mom.
Wednesday, I took the girls to one of my favorite places for lunch - the Air Force Academy Falcon Club. We are members and lunch is always a great experience. I like to take the girls to this place for what I call a "big girl lunch" so we can practice etiquette and behaving like ladies. The staff is warm and always welcoming to the girls, remembering their names and surprising them with special treats they have in the back. The food is fresh and served buffet style so my little ladies can try new foods. This week, Princess especially enjoyed the black-eyed peas. They have different themed meals each day of the week, and today was chef's choice. Other days they have southern comfort, italian, from the grill. The best part is that the girls eat free and lunch for all three of us is $9 including tax and a nice tip for our server. You can't beat that price anywhere. Wednesday night, we went to La Casita, where, you guessed it, kids eat free. I had no idea what to expect, and was pleasantly surprised. La Casita is a fast food mexican restaurant, but fast here means fresh. The tortillas were made from scratch and the girls enjoyed seeing them being made and the chicken being grilled. The food was fast only because the staff was humping. They were busy. I had the chicken fajitas with guacamole and it was really yummy. Princess liked her beans and beef taco, Spidergirl is on a hunger strike. Dinner for us 4 was $18 and I'd recommend it. We'll be back.
Today for lunch, I went to King Sooper and got an 8 pack of chicken to go. The girls are still on a hunger strike, but I liked it and it is always a good standby and is on sale this week.
We have a few more days to go on this eating out adventure. I enjoyed eating out more when I was working and on an expense account. I am enjoying not having to run the dishwasher 2x a day and cooking for now. Maybe I'll be ready next week.
Sunday, February 8, 2009
SnoFest '09 - Military Ski Weekend at Keystone, CO
We went skiing last weekend at SnoFest '09, which is a big ski weekend for military families at Keystone, CO. I highly recommend this trip and we plan to take it again next year. We stayed at the ski resort at the River Run condos. Most importantly, we got a condo with a balcony so we could proudly hang our Coast Guard and Pittsburgh Steelers flags from the balcony. our place was perfectly situated facing the entrance for all to see our proud display. We drove up last Friday morning, leaving the Springs at 6am. It was about a 2.5 trip to the resort. We stopped at Virgin Island Ski Rental to pick up skiis for my sister-in-law who flew in from the Burg for the trip. I highly recommend this place for rentals and for buying other ski stuff. We bought skis for our 4 year old there, skis for me for cheap, and a crazy hat for me.
Once we hit the resort, I dropped off Mouse and his sister so they could hit the slopes and ski. I visited the hospitality tent at the foot of the slopes and picked up badges for everyone for the weekend, which got in places and special discounts for the weekend. The hospitality tent rocked and had tons of food, drink, and toys including much needed hand and footwarmers, hats and more. If you are going, stop here first. There, I scored tix to take the family ice skating at the rink onsite, which is the biggest ice skating rink in the N. America. More on that later.
Next, the cherubs and I went to go check in to our room and we were able to check in at 10am. Woo hoo! Lovin' it.
What to do with my little girls? They are a little young to ski, and I questioned whether they would be able to sit through ski school so we decided to switch off watching them, with childcare adding up to $240 PER DAY! I am thinking, I can do a lot with that. So. I treated the girls to a gondola (Princess calls it Gorn-GOOLA) ride up to the top of the mountain which they ATE UP and thoroughly enjoyed. Then, I took them to the only 4 star restaurant, Alpenglow Stube, on top of a ski mountain for a lunch. It was a buffet, and the girls are accustomed to eating in big girl restaurants so I thought it would be a good thing. Lunch was good, service was slow, I mean how can a buffet take 1.5 hours, really? Anyhoo, it was enjoyable mostly and made for a fun adventure. We'll especially remember all three of us being greeted with warm fuzzy slippers at the door and our great view of the skiers on the mountain.
Then we hung out in our condo and relaxed before the first evening dinner party. If you are going to SnoFest, you gotta get the dinner party tix. The first party was "ready to rumble" where everyone was to wear their favorite team gear. Let me tell you, we were all Steelered out. My girls were in their Steeler cheerleader outfits, had their terrible towels, Steelers build-a-bears, pom-poms and we were ready with mom, dad and SIL in jerseys too. The dinner was a good buffet with plenty of food/drinks to suit everyone's tastes. We all enjoyed dancing after dinner to the live band and I was delighted to see my 4 year old can really dance, shake her booty and has rhythm like her parents. We also won an IPod and a Pepsi snow saucer. Princess and SIL got their pix taken at the SnoFest photobooth.
Saturday am, I got to go skiing. Unfortunately, I was sick that weekend and didn't feel much like skiing. I was glad I went anyway and hit the slopes for several hours. I LOVED it and can't wait til next year when the girls will definitely be old enough for ski school. While Mouse and I skiied, SIL got the girls in their snowsuit and they hit the playground outside of our condo to play in the snow and make snow angels. I took the girls in the afternoon to a sleigh ride while Mouse and SIL hit the slopes again. The sleigh ride was "ok" but I don't think I would do it next year. It was something new to do with the girls that they could do at their age. Spidergirl fell asleep as soon as we hit the sleigh. That in itself made the trip worth it as she is not a good sleeper when we travel. Princess fell asleep on the bus ride home from the sleigh ride. A big thanks to a fellow military woman who carried Princess, while I carried Spidergirl 15 minutes back to the car, while they slept.
We got back to the condo and got ready for that evening's dinner party. The party was great again with dancing, good southern BBQ food and prizes. Gotta do the parties.
Last day was Sunday and the ski duo completed their goal of hitting each slope at least once. I tood 90 minutes to get my cranky girls suited up and dressed to go ice skating. Ice skating was awesome. I rented an LL bean sled for spiderbaby and got Princess in ice skates for the first time ever. I also rented a walker for her to use on the ice and after a couple spills and tears, she quickly got the hang of it and was running around on the rink and having a blast. Her dad would have been soooo proud.
Before we left the resort, we had a great lunch at Pizza on the Run and headed home.
A word of caution, drive carefully on I-70 on the way home. Traffic is stop/go and cars stop really suddenly.
Once we hit the resort, I dropped off Mouse and his sister so they could hit the slopes and ski. I visited the hospitality tent at the foot of the slopes and picked up badges for everyone for the weekend, which got in places and special discounts for the weekend. The hospitality tent rocked and had tons of food, drink, and toys including much needed hand and footwarmers, hats and more. If you are going, stop here first. There, I scored tix to take the family ice skating at the rink onsite, which is the biggest ice skating rink in the N. America. More on that later.
Next, the cherubs and I went to go check in to our room and we were able to check in at 10am. Woo hoo! Lovin' it.
What to do with my little girls? They are a little young to ski, and I questioned whether they would be able to sit through ski school so we decided to switch off watching them, with childcare adding up to $240 PER DAY! I am thinking, I can do a lot with that. So. I treated the girls to a gondola (Princess calls it Gorn-GOOLA) ride up to the top of the mountain which they ATE UP and thoroughly enjoyed. Then, I took them to the only 4 star restaurant, Alpenglow Stube, on top of a ski mountain for a lunch. It was a buffet, and the girls are accustomed to eating in big girl restaurants so I thought it would be a good thing. Lunch was good, service was slow, I mean how can a buffet take 1.5 hours, really? Anyhoo, it was enjoyable mostly and made for a fun adventure. We'll especially remember all three of us being greeted with warm fuzzy slippers at the door and our great view of the skiers on the mountain.
Then we hung out in our condo and relaxed before the first evening dinner party. If you are going to SnoFest, you gotta get the dinner party tix. The first party was "ready to rumble" where everyone was to wear their favorite team gear. Let me tell you, we were all Steelered out. My girls were in their Steeler cheerleader outfits, had their terrible towels, Steelers build-a-bears, pom-poms and we were ready with mom, dad and SIL in jerseys too. The dinner was a good buffet with plenty of food/drinks to suit everyone's tastes. We all enjoyed dancing after dinner to the live band and I was delighted to see my 4 year old can really dance, shake her booty and has rhythm like her parents. We also won an IPod and a Pepsi snow saucer. Princess and SIL got their pix taken at the SnoFest photobooth.
Saturday am, I got to go skiing. Unfortunately, I was sick that weekend and didn't feel much like skiing. I was glad I went anyway and hit the slopes for several hours. I LOVED it and can't wait til next year when the girls will definitely be old enough for ski school. While Mouse and I skiied, SIL got the girls in their snowsuit and they hit the playground outside of our condo to play in the snow and make snow angels. I took the girls in the afternoon to a sleigh ride while Mouse and SIL hit the slopes again. The sleigh ride was "ok" but I don't think I would do it next year. It was something new to do with the girls that they could do at their age. Spidergirl fell asleep as soon as we hit the sleigh. That in itself made the trip worth it as she is not a good sleeper when we travel. Princess fell asleep on the bus ride home from the sleigh ride. A big thanks to a fellow military woman who carried Princess, while I carried Spidergirl 15 minutes back to the car, while they slept.
We got back to the condo and got ready for that evening's dinner party. The party was great again with dancing, good southern BBQ food and prizes. Gotta do the parties.
Last day was Sunday and the ski duo completed their goal of hitting each slope at least once. I tood 90 minutes to get my cranky girls suited up and dressed to go ice skating. Ice skating was awesome. I rented an LL bean sled for spiderbaby and got Princess in ice skates for the first time ever. I also rented a walker for her to use on the ice and after a couple spills and tears, she quickly got the hang of it and was running around on the rink and having a blast. Her dad would have been soooo proud.
Before we left the resort, we had a great lunch at Pizza on the Run and headed home.
A word of caution, drive carefully on I-70 on the way home. Traffic is stop/go and cars stop really suddenly.
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