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We've seen them twice now & have had a fantastic time each time we've seen them. The show is always energetic, family friendly and fun to see even for those who aren't a fan of basketball. 

Find their upcoming tour dates here -

https://www.harlemglobetrotters.com/world-tour/schedule

Save up to 20% with Promo Code: USFAM

(Discount valid on tickets purchased at least One Week Prior to Game Date)

**This post is not sponsored, it is being posted in hopes of having the chance to receive tickets to the event again**

2024 Arizona Renaissance Festival!

 

If you live in Arizona & haven't been to the Arizona Renaissance Festival yet, no need to worry as the event is still happening until March 31st. It is located at 12601 East US Highway 60 Gold Canyon, AZ 85118. Tickets are $34 per adult and $22 for children ages 5-12 with children under four still being free, parking is still free as usual. This year a new stage area has been added along with some extra performers for the new stage & you will also find some new food items around the festival grounds. 

A few things to keep in mind before visiting; Even when it is cool out, it is a good idea to stay hydrated. You are allowed to bring in one sealed water bottle per person, no other outside food or drink is allowed in. However you are allowed to exit the festival & get a stamp on your hand for re-admission so there is nothing stopping you from having a small picnic out of your car if you want to save money on not buying food at the festival. The majority of the festival events take place in an outdoor setting & there is limited shade so I highly suggest bringing sunscreen as even on overcast days you can still get a small sunburn. We also like bringing a small outdoor blanket or two to use in the grassy areas when watching shows like the birds of prey or eating lunch. If you do purchase food at one of the many food areas around the festival, keep in mind they accept cash only. There is a lot of walking to do, so wear comfortable shoes.

There are lots of shows to see & many shops to visit so time can slip away from you quickly. We like getting to the festival when they first open so we can get the most out of our day. They offer a wide range of shows for all ages & they offer a "LC" advisory on any shows that many not be the most appropriate for children so you can plan out your day. The "LC" stands for Loose Cannon. For small children there aren't only children friendly shows but there is also a petting zoo, a unicorn to take photos with, Mermaids to see and more. I like that they provide a map that includes a list of all performances & their times along with a list of what each food vendor sells making your day planning that much easier. 

You are invited to & more than welcome to dress up for the festival. There is always a wide range of costumes from fantasy creatures to knights, queens, pirates and more. You can always find an assortment of costumes being worn, however if you are looking for a specific time when a large group of people will be dressed in specific costumes they have theme weekends such as Pirate weekend and Time Travelers weekend. You can find a schedule on their website.   

Along with shows, vendors and food you'll also find some man powered rides! None of the rides operate off of electricity, instead everything is set up to allow the rides to be powered by the staff who run them. The whole event can be a lot of fun for families & can be a great spot for couples and groups of friends to do as well. This year we caught a few of our favorite acts from previous years & watched a new show or two. 

Have you ever been to a Renaissance Festival? If you enjoy dressing up, what would you enjoy dressing as for the event?

Disclaimer-  The Arizona Renaissance Festival provided four tickets to the festival for the review  free of charge no other compensation was provided. However, no product compensation will influence the outcome of any review. My honest opinions are used in all reviews, they are solely my own & they may vary from others. My reviews are posted for readers in order to provide an informed decision before purchase.

Narration Cruise with Lake Pleasant Crusies!

This time of the year in Arizona, the weather is perfect! It is usually in the low sixties to high seventies often with cloudy skies and slight winds, so it is a great time to enjoy the outdoors. The lake can be such a relaxing spot to visit, they offer camping spots, hiking, fishing & boat rentals if you do not own one of your own (or know someone who does) but did you know that Lake Pleasant also offers a cruise service? Lake Pleasant Cruises offers a few different types of cruises which are perfect for a unique date idea or family day out. We were recently invited to attend one of their Narrated sightseeing tours. This tour is family friendly & perfect for all ages. If you aren't familiar with Lake Pleasant in Arizona the marina is located at 8708 W. Harbor Blvd. Peoria, AZ 85383.

The cruise lasts for an hour and a half & covers about ten miles of the lake. While you are cruising around the lake the captain will talk to you about the lake itself along with some of the local wildlife & plant life that can be found at the lake. It is highly recommended that you arrive at least forty-five minutes before your cruise time, this is to ensure you make it to the boat on time. The closest parking to the marina is a 5-10 minutes walk depending on how fast you walk so they have a shuttle service to pick up passengers. Each cart can hold up to five people so it may take a few trips to get everyone down to the marina. All of the shuttle drivers were friendly & the short ride was enjoyable. 

The boat is quite large & has two levels where you can enjoy the views. You can choose to be on the upper level which is open or the lower level which is inside. On the lower level you will also find a small bar which has alcoholic drinks, non-alcoholic drinks and snacks available for purchase. Everything was very reasonably priced. There are also two bathrooms and a small sitting/standing area on the front of the boat. The bartender was quite sweet & let us know that her favorite spot of the cruise was on the front little patio which we were lucky & able to grab seats at for the ride. The seating was comfortable & they offered plenty of space for everyone on board not to feel cramped. Once the boat takes off from port, you are able to get up and walk around to see views from all sides of the boat. Plenty of people walked out onto the front of the boat to take in the views & for the amazing photo opportunities as well. 

We really enjoyed the cruise, the boat ride was quite relaxing and the time flew by. We enjoyed hearing all of the facts about the lake & learning about the wildlife including that sometimes you'll see the wild deer swimming in the lake to reach the islands in the middle where they will live for a little while. During the cruise we were able to spot plenty of ducks, seagulls and even a bald eagle. We were also to see a ton of sail boats who were out enjoying the lake that day & if you get lucky enough, you might even get to see them race. Depending on what time of the year you take a cruise, there are chances to see the wild burro, mule deer, blue herons and more. During the cruise, my son had the chance to go up to the top deck & into the captains quarters to meet the captain & was even able to use the steering wheel. He really enjoyed the opportunity. After disembarking from your trip, there is a restaurant at the marina along with a gift shop & more so there is no need to rush back home. 

For the narration cruise it is $30 per adult & $15 for children ages 4-17, kids 3 and under are free. Aside from the narration cruise, they also offer a brunch cruise & sunset dinner cruise which have catering. Additionally they also have live music cruises and the boat is available to rent for private events. If you do not like how much boats rock when out on the water, there is no need to worry on this cruise as the boat is pretty steady and you'll hardly feel it moving around on the water, it was quite a gentle ride. I highly suggest checking out their cruises & enjoying one with your loved ones. 

🌵 If you live in Arizona check out the "Things to do in Arizona" section of my blog to find entertainment, restaurants, vacation spots & more. (Click on the name or locate it on the right-hand side of my page).

Disclaimer- Lake Pleasant Cruises provided tickets for us for the review free of charge no other compensation was provided. However, no product compensation will influence the outcome of any review. My honest opinions are used in all reviews, they are solely my own & they may vary from others. My reviews are posted for readers in order to provide an informed decision before purchase.

DoubleTree Suites by Hilton Tucson - Williams Center Review!

When traveling it is always nice to find a hotel that is close to where you are visiting, looks nice outside & inside the rooms while not cost an arm & a leg just to stay the night at their location. During December we took a trip to Tucson & while we were there, we stayed at the DoubleTree Suites by Hilton Tucson - specifically the Williams Center location. The rooms were stayed in were suites that had a living room area with a sofa that had a pull-out bed, a tiny kitchen nook, a working area, TV & coffee tables/an extra chair. Connected to it was a back bedroom that had two queen sized beds, a second TV, storage areas and the bathroom. It was big enough to comfortable sleep six people. 

I selected this hotel as it was within 10 to 35 minutes of all of the locations, we planned on stopping at during our trip, however it also had great reviews & from the photos other guests had posted it looked cozy + clean. As everyone knows sometimes looks can be deceiving what you see or read online isn't always what you are guaranteed to get & not all hotel experiences will be the same. Luckily, everything was exactly as described, and we were very pleased with our stay at the hotel. Upon check in we were all offered a complimentary warm cookie, if you've never had them before they are amazing! They are walnut + chocolate. 

Our room was clean & had plenty of space for the four of us to stretch out, relax after a long day of walking & the sofa + beds were comfortable. Our family just a few rooms down enjoyed their room as well. The carpet did make me laugh though, it reminded me of the carpet in the Shinning. There was already a bag in the hotel closet that had extra bedding & pillows for the pull-out sofa, so it was nice not having to walk down to request any. If you felt like having a little snack or wanted a drink that the bar doesn't offer, they have a snack room near the front desk where you can buy a number of different items. The pool area was also quite nice, however we went when it was a little chilly & we didn't really have any time to go for a swim, so we didn't visit the pool during our visit. 

Near the pool they had a hotel bar + grill, where we ended up grabbing dinner once we got back from our last stop of the day. The pizza was way better than I had expected it to be! The hostess at the bar was also very chatty & friendly, we enjoyed talking with her while we were waiting for our food to be done. You can eat at inside the grill, or you can take your food back to your room, we ended up taking our pizzas back to the room as we had ordered not too long before closing time. The bar + grill is also the location where they serve the complimentary breakfast that comes with your stay.  

Breakfast was fantastic! They had a wide range of options to choose from baked goods like muffins, bagels & breads to fresh cooked eggs, bacon/sausage and biscuits & gravy along with a fresh fruit, yogurts and even a cereal bar. If you were feeling thirsty, they had a whole drink area with a juices, coffee, water and milk. If you didn't want to eat near the other guests, you can take the food up to your room. Over-all it was a great stay & I would stay at this hotel again if we are back in the area. With taxes & fees the room was about $115 per night which isn't bad especially considering breakfast is included and if we were to go out to eat somewhere it would easily be $40+ just for breakfast for four of us. 

🌵 If you live in Arizona check out the "Things to do in Arizona" section of my blog to find entertainment, restaurants, vacation spots & more. (Click on the name or locate it on the right-hand side of my page).

Supercross Championship Live!

 

Seeing races and competitions live can give you quite the thrill! My family and I love going to see monster trucks when they come to town & we are always looking for new things to do. So when we saw that Supercross Live was coming to town for the Monster Energy AMA Supercross Championship, we knew we wanted to check it out. Their stop here in Glendale is round six of seventeen for this season. If you are a fan of Supercross this is an event you are sure to enjoy! Instead of just seeing it at home on your TV, you'll be able to enjoy the action right in front of you. 

We have a pretty large track for them to race on here at the State Farm Stadium, it is crazy to know how quickly the crews are able to bring the dirt in, built the track, and then get everything back out again. The entire track was easy to see from anywhere in the stadium so no need to worry about where you end up sitting. The track was a combination of regular dirt with two sand areas, which can be a little slippery on a dirt bike, so it is possible to see a rider lose their bike from time to time.

The crowd at this event was buzzing with excitement. The introduction for this show and for the main roster of riders was very energetic to watch! There were fireworks, a laser show, pyro and custom music for each rider being featured on the big screen. They also had a live DJ at the event playing before & during the event. Depending on if you has asthma & where you sit in the stadium it may be a good idea to bring a face mask with you, there is a lot of dust, pyro smoke and more that was floating around the area which is why they had the top of the dome open to help air everything else. For small children it may also be a good idea to bring headphones as it can get a little loud. 

The races are very fast paced & there is a lot going on at once, but thankfully they make it easy to help keep up with who is in front by turning their headlights green. The races are over before you know it, each one last just over six minutes. The event was family friendly, there were fans of all ages from small babies with their parents up to seniors enjoying the show. It was fun watching the riders race around the track & also seeing how high they were able to jump over some of the spots along the track.

Does this look like an event you would enjoy? Have you ever been to a similar event?

Disclaimer- Supercross & The Encore Agency provided tickets for us for the review free of charge no other compensation was provided. However, no product compensation will influence the outcome of any review. My honest opinions are used in all reviews, they are solely my own & they may vary from others. My reviews are posted for readers in order to provide an informed decision before purchase. 

Petersen car museum in Los Angeles Review!

 

The Petersen car museum in Los Angeles, California is a fantastic stop for anyone who is a big fan of movie cars or older cars in general. We stopped by while we were in Los Angeles & we had a fantastic time viewing all of the cars they have on display. The museum is three stories tall, and they have an underground vault with even more cars. The vault cost extra & isn't something we did on this trip so I will just be sharing cars from the main three floors.  Tickets are $21 per adult, $13 for youth ages 12-17 and $11 for children ages 4-11. They are located a short walk from the La Brea Tar Pits so if you plan on visiting both locations I recommend paying to park at La Brea then walking over to the car museum like we did. Along the walk we also found a neat art exhibit that we took some photos in. 

Something to know a head of time, they do not allow purses or backpacks into the museum. You will need to stop by the security office & leave your bags there while you explore. Thankfully there was no one in line for checking bags so it only took us a few minutes to do. They recommend you start on the third floor & work your way down, and the way they have everything set up it makes it very convenient doing it that way.  

They had some pretty great set ups along the way for a number of the cars, some of the cars had the movie or show scenes playing in the background that they were featured in. Others has photos of the cast in front of the cars such as the Mystery Machine. Along with cars they also had a number of motorcycles on display. I didn't see my personal favorite TV show car, but who knows, it could have been in the vault. 

On the second floor there was an interactive play area for small kids, which is perfect for parents & it will help keep the kids happier during their visit. The entire museum was well lit & we enjoyed how much information and videos they had playing through out that show cased some of the cars and the history behind them as well. Not only did we see a lot of fun movie cars, but there were a lot of really funky car designs I had never seen before so they were awesome to see and know existed. One of the funky cars we spotted is the green car shown below.

For all of you who love Teslas, they have a whole Tesla exhibit on display including one of the new Tesla cyber trucks. They have a large gift shop that has everything from magnets to toys and car brand merchandise like Porsche shirts. If you get hungry, they have a restaurant on site, it smelled pretty good but there was a wait to get in & there was another spot we wanted to visit for lunch, so we didn't try it out.

If you are planning a trip to southern California & are looking for other activities to do feel free to type in "Things to do in California" in the search bar of my blog so you can find some other great activities in California. This was not a sponsored review, we paid to get into the museum ourselves. I enjoy being able to share spots like this with my readers who may not be able to visit in person but are still interested in learning more about these spots, or for anyone planning vacations in the area. 

🌵 Also If you live in Arizona check out the "Things to do in Arizona" (Click or locate it on the right-hand side of my page) section of my blog to find entertainment, restaurants, vacation spots & more. 

Wingspan board game Review!

Today I am going to be sharing a board game with you that is slightly older than most of the board games I tend to review, however it is one that a lot of people highly enjoy and has gone through some updates since its original release back in 2019. I was recently gifted a copy of Wingspan from Stonemaier Games and will be sharing my thoughts on the game with you. Wingspan is a card-driven building game that is suited for one to five players & is played over the course of 40-70 minutes. Along with a board game version of this game, there is also a digital version! So, if you want to save space and still want to play this game, I suggest checking that out. While card-driven games may not be everyone's cup of tea, my family & I have been enjoying playing this game and like how everything is set up for the game play. 

I generally love all animals, but I really enjoy birds! I am always excited to see a new bird species out in the wild and snap a photo of it, and I like bird watching. So, as you can imagine seeing that this game was based on birds made me pretty excited to play it and it has been a game I've had my eye on for a little while. Aside from it just being a bird based game, I was drawn to how the game looks, the images on the cards are beautiful and the little bird eggs are so colorful. We made jokes when we were playing the game that the eggs looked kind of delicious, because they look like the colorful chocolate robins' eggs you get during Easter time. All of the game pieces in this game are well made, even the card holder is extremely sturdy & feels like it is made to last. The food pieces are thick cardboard which will help prevent them from bending or tearing and the eggs are solid wood. The cards themselves are on a nice thick cardstock that is easy to shuffle & play with.

This game consists of four rounds which each have a certain amount of turns each player can run through. Each round you'll have the chance to add birds to your play may, lay eggs, earn food and gain more cards all while working on extra goals & the main goal for each round which will earn you points along the way. At the end of round four, you'll add up all of the points everyone has earned and the player with the most points wins. Once you get a basic run down of how each step in the game works it is very simple to play. If it is your first time playing & you want a little more guidance than just reading the rules they actually have a pre-set up game ready to teach you how to play. There are four guide cards that will tell you exactly which cards & food to play and will lay out your turns one by one for the first few rounds of the game, once they are completed you can continue on with that same game or set up a fresh new game to play. We did use the how to guide during our first round just to see how it worked & found it to be helpful. Now that we've played it a few times, our games can go by pretty quickly. Your main focus in the game will be building your flock on your board while completing not only your bonus goal but the main goal for each round as well. Thinking ahead to your next move or two, while keeping an eye out to make sure another player doesn't spoil the move you were going to do will greatly help you in this game. Keeping an eye on how many turns you have left will greatly benefit you as well, it is crazy how quickly the end of a round can sneak up on you. 

One of our favorite features is that this game comes with a cute bird house shaped dice tower! It fits in perfectly with the theme of the game, it works perfectly and it fits snuggly into the game box after you've finished your round of play. We did not need to fully break down the dice tower to store it which was a big plus! Another smaller detail of the game that I personally loved, is that the bottom of each bird card has a little map of the world to show you where that bird is from along with a fact about that bird. The cards also include how big their wingspans are & has a small photo that tells you what type of nest each bird builds. The stack of bird cards in this game is pretty large, we have seen maybe half or even just a quarter of the assortment of birds in this game, so I look forward to seeing more of the cards as we sit down to play more games. If this sounds like a game you would enjoy, I suggest heading over to the Stonemaier Games website to check out this game along with the rest of their board game catalogue. If you want to find more great board games like Wingspan head over to check out my Board Game Reviews section

Does this look like a game you would enjoy playing? What is your favorite aspect of this game?

Disclaimer- The products mentioned above were provided by Stonemaier Games for the review free of charge no other compensation was provided. However, no product compensation will influence the outcome of any review. My honest opinions are used in all reviews, they are solely my own & they may vary from others. My reviews are posted for readers in order to provide an informed decision before purchase

Maricopa County Home Show Review!

 

I've seen plenty of ads in the past for the Maricopa Country Home show, but I had never gone to one until recently. We weren't entirely sure what to expect, but we had a fantastic time, it is a great event for families to visit together. If you are looking for ways to make improvements around your home or in your yard this is a great place to find a lot of information & businesses all in one spot which can really help cut down on research time and gives you the opportunity to talk with them one on one. 

Along with the obvious businesses like landscapers & repairmen you'll also find a wide range of local business that sell food, jewelry & more. Aside from just browsing shopping booths and talking with local business about what they have to offer, you will also find classes & seminars to attend, a kid's zone, and more. There were multiple buildings full of booths and areas to visit, we were at the show for about four hours, maybe a little longer. 

It was a lovely time being able to check out all of the vendors and doing a little shopping. There were five of us in total who went together & all of us ended up buying at least one thing during the event. I ended up purchasing some freeze-dried candy, local honey and some new plants. Even if you do not end up purchasing anything from the vendors, you'll still end up going home with some goodies. Many of the vendors were giving away free samples or little promo items with their logo on it when you stopped by the booth. 

There was a building where it was just food & drink vendors, all of whom were letting guests try their goods before purchasing. There were samples of wine, whiskey, salsa, coffee, tea, honey, beef jerky & more. The samples were very helpful not only to the guests but also to the sellers as I felt it helped drive sales. Promo item wise it ranged from frisbees to flashlights, stress balls, mini food samples and even plants! 

It was a lot of information to take in & we enjoyed the wide range of businesses who attended, we were able to find some we will be purchasing from again in the future. I thought they did a good job setting everything up, there was an easy-to-follow flow of traffic. If this is an event that would be helpful to you or if you want to check it out with your family they have another event coming up on February 23-25th at the State Farm Stadium. 

Does this sound like an event you would enjoy attending? What do you think your favorite part would be?

Disclaimer- Maricopa County Home Show provided tickets for us to visit for the review free of charge no other compensation was provided. However, no product compensation will influence the outcome of any review. My honest opinions are used in all reviews, they are solely my own & they may vary from others. My reviews are posted for readers in order to provide an informed decision before purchase.