Food Fun Family

There’s a New Queen in Town – Medieval Times’ New Storyline

Lolli — Fri, 26 Oct 2018 20:10:17 +0000

Over the years, I’ve had many opportunities to participate in fun family activities with my husband and kids, and I’ve noticed that there are some outings that are more popular than others. Medieval Times is one place that we’ve been to on several occasions but I can guarantee that my family will be excited and eager to go each time. This past week, I was invited to a media night (along with my daughter) to enjoy the new show, meet and chat with the Queen and Head Knight, and even tour the stables to meet the real stars of the show – the horses! Our meals and entertainment were covered, but all thoughts and opinions and photos are our own.

I must say – after seeing the “old” story line half a dozen times or so, I never got tired of the show. However, seeing a totally new story line this past week totally kept me on my toes! It was exciting and action-packed, and it felt like a natural progression to the show I’d seen so many times before. Don’t worry…I’m not going to spoil anything for you if you haven’t been to Medieval Times recently. Just know that the Queen is WONDERFUL (a true leader!) and there IS a twist at the end that is the perfect way to wrap up the knights’ competition.

About the New Show at Medieval Times

For the first time since 2012, Medieval Times has just unveiled a new storyline, featuring a Queen, at its castle located in Hanover, Maryland at Arundel Mills. The Maryland/DC castle is the 8th Medieval Times location in North America to roll out the new show. This new story line is a major break from Medieval Times’ 35-year tradition of casting a king in the show’s lead role. The queen is now in charge and sole ruler of the land, and inherited the throne after the passing of her father, the previous king. She is a firm but kind ruler, respected throughout the kingdom.

The decision to change the story line to feature a queen was based in part on guest feedback that they would like to see women having more significant roles in the show.

What else is new at Medieval Times?

We love Medieval Times for the hot, four-course feast (eaten with your hands!), jousting, swordplay, and the horses (of course!) – and those elements are still there in abundance. Some of the changes, in addition to the updated script are:

• More than 700 new costumes for all nine castles’ performers, including horses, all of which are custom-designed and handmade at a dedicated costume shop in-house.
• The new suits of armour, shields and helmets are custom-designed and handmade at a dedicated armoury in-house.

• Over 200 team members and 20 horses trained and rehearsed new interactions and fight scenes for three months while still presenting the former show.
• For the first time, audiences will see a Queen riding horseback in the Castle.

• New music was composed by Dr. Daniel May, composer and jazz pianist who scored “Everest” and other films and who worked with Sting, The Moody Blues and others. He directed and recorded Medieval Times’ new show composition in Kiev with the National Symphony Orchestra of Ukraine. He directed the choir in Ukraine with lyrics written by poet and choir member, Solomia Gorokhivska, solo cellist, Gloria Caceres, and violinist, Maksym Grinchenko, concertmaster at the National Symphony of Ukraine.

Behind the Scenes at Medieval Times

I loved seeing the horses “backstage” after the show. They are so much bigger up close than I imagined they would be! We were reminded that these horses are work horses – not pets – and at over 1000 lbs each, they are not animals to play around with.

I loved the attitudes of all of the head knight and head horse trainer. They said that the horses didn’t volunteer for this job, so they try to make sure that the horses are treated very well. The horses get more “vacation” days than the people involved in the show – they get to spend a lot of time at the ranch about 15 minutes away from the castle.

Horses used in the Maryland/DC castle, as well as the eight other working castles in North America, are bred and raised on a 280 acre ranch in Texas. Did you know that all of the horses seen at Medieval Times are stallions? They start training at the castles at around three years old, and they practice and exercise every single day. They are athletes and would not be happy if they weren’t exercised regularly.

I can’t wait to go back to Medieval Times again! Have you been? What was your favorite part?

Midnight Madness in Annapolis, Maryland – Loews Annapolis Hotel

Lolli — Mon, 19 Dec 2016 16:59:10 +0000

This past Thursday night, I was invited to spend a fun evening with friends old and new at the Loews Annapolis Hotel, right in the heart of downtown Annapolis, Maryland. We were pampered and fed and then sent off to shop at Annapolis’ annual Midnight Madness. Accommodations were provided at Loews Annapolis Hotel, but all thoughts are my own.

My Christmas shopping typically consists of as much online orders as I can handle, followed by carefully planned trips to the shopping centers and the mall while the kids are in school. I wouldn’t necessarily call that kind of Christmas shopping “fun.”

Midnight Madness, on the other hand, was everything Christmas shopping could be….and should be! Mom and Pop shops? Check! Treats and tastings at every stop? Check! Fun handmade, unique gifts for all sorts of hard-to-shop-for friends and family? Check!

Midnight madness was basically the ultimate holiday season Girls Night Out, and I can’t wait to do it again next year.

What is Midnight Madness? Midnight Madness is a yearly tradition in Annapolis! Come enjoy holiday shopping, special deals, caroling, and treats every Thursday night in December from 6pm to midnight. Expect lots of fellow shoppers, plenty of deals for all your holiday shopping needs, and a fun night out with friends. Find out more at https://www.downtownannapolispartnership.org/

We stopped at a specialty spice shop, a used and rare book store, a shop dedicated to special oils and vinegars, a super fun hat store, and so much more.

Yes, it was cold (freezing cold, in fact!) but armed with some hand warmers, warm winter hats, coats, and scarves, and the warmth of good friends, we hardly even noticed the cold.

I loved the quaint downtown area decorated with festive lights. Perhaps my favorite thing about the evening was bumping in to some friends from Sons of the Severn Barbershop Chorus singing Christmas carols. Since I was an hour from home, I was not expecting to run into someone I knew!

Sons of The Severn Barbershop Chorus

After we shopped til we (almost literally) dropped, we headed back to the Loews for desserts and drinks (I needed water!), visiting and gift wrapping in the Presidential Suite. I think we all stayed up well past our bedtime, but it was totally worth it! Especially since we could sleep in (and take the day off from waking kids up for school in the morning!). I fully enjoyed the comfortable bed at the Loews as well as the friendly staff.

Ring in the New Year at Loews Annapolis Hotel!

Forget a late night drive home after your New Year’s Eve celebrations. Loews Annapolis Hotel can take care of all your New Year’s Eve needs! New Year’s Eve Package start at $314* for stays December 31, 2016 – January 1, 2017, and include:

Nightly, coastal chic accommodations in our Four-Diamond service hotel
Live entertainment, dancing, party favors, and champagne toast at midnight
Bubbles & Bliss: split of Moet champagne & souvenir champagne glasses in-room amenity upon arrival
Hangover brunch for two in BAROAK Cookhouse & Taproom on New Year’s Day
Valet parking for one vehicle per night
2 PM checkout on New Year’s Day
Want to stay an extra night? Special discount rate offered

Special New Year’s Eve 5-Course dinner for two at BAROAK Cookhouse & Taproom with 2 seatings available. $50 per person early seating, $75 per person late seating (includes party favors and champagne toast at midnight). Live music by blues artist Dean Rosenthal. Find out more at www.baroakannapolis.com

Have you been to Annapolis? If you live nearby, you should definitely make plans to stop by during the holiday season!

Roti Modern Mediterranean

Lolli — Tue, 30 Aug 2016 21:44:53 +0000

Last week, we celebrated my husband’s birthday with a delicious assortment of food from Roti Modern Mediterranean. All food was provided by Roti, but all thoughts and opinions are our own.

I don’t know the last time we’ve had such an amazing birthday dinner. In fact, I think Roti might need to be our new birthday dinner tradition. Everyone in the family was raving about the flavors. Of course, it doesn’t hurt that we LOVE Mediterranean foods.

Here’s what we got from Roti:

Chicken Roti
Salmon Kabobs
House-baked Pita Bread
Tomato & Cucumber Salad
Mediterranean Chopped Salad
Fresh Vegetables
Assorted Cookies

Sauces:

Roasted Red Pepper
Spicy S’hug
Roti Vinaigrette
Dill Yogurt & Cucumber

I stopped in the local Roti Modern Mediterranean in Bethesda, Maryland to pick up our food and instantly fell in love with the restaurant, even before I had taken a bite.

Roti has a relaxed, casual atmosphere that would be perfect for lunch or a date night dinner. I was able to quickly find a dozen things on the menu that I wanted to try (and lucky for us, we did get to try about a dozen things! YUM).

Roti does catering, too! You can place your order ahead of time and either pick up your food from the restaurant or have your food delivered to your home or event location. Roti might just be our new favorite place for catering (I wish we had known about Roti when we were planning our daughter’s local post-wedding get together!).

The bold flavors and the freshness of everything we ate were enough to hook me, but I love the mission of Roti so much that I wanted to share what they had to say about the foods that they serve.

Roti Modern Mediterranean was created…”to share our love of the Mediterranean’s delicious flavors, wholesome ingredients, and bright spices. This is food you’ll love to eat and makes you feel great.”

They go on to say that, “the Mediterranean diet has sustained people for centuries. Rich in vegetables, olive oil, wholesome grains, and lean protein, this is a delicious and healthful way to eat. At Roti, we source only the finest ingredients, prepare them simply and with pride, then serve them exactly how you want them.”

I could tell that everything we ate from Roti was fresh and perfectly seasoned. But beyond the wonderful flavors, Roti goes a step further by serving only farm-fresh, antibiotic-free chicken from Pennsylvania, salmon from the Gulf of Maine (from sea to the table in less than a week), 100% grass-fed beef, non-GMO blend of basmati and wild rice from California, whole wheat, handmade pitas (with gluten free pita bread also available), and more.

I could go on and on about how good the food tasted (the family particularly loved the Chicken Roti and the rice. Oh, and the sauces! We couldn’t get enough of the Roti vinaigrette and the dill yogurt and cucumber sauce). Or I could go on and on about Roti’s top notch “food that loves you back.” But I think you’ll get the best experience by trying Roti Modern Mediterranean for yourself. Check the restaurant locator to find the Roti nearest you!

Storks – See it FREE at Tysons Corner

Lolli — Tue, 23 Aug 2016 04:00:32 +0000

I am excited to give 20 family 4-packs of tickets to see an early screening of Storks on Saturday, August 27 at Tysons Corner Center! I’ll be taking my family to see the movie, and would love for a bunch of local friends and their families to see it with us! No compensation has been received for this post – I’m just excited to share this opportunity for DC/MD/VA families to see a movie for free!

Please note: the download links have been a little finicky so if you aren’t led to the correct download page the first time around (it will be very clear), try clicking one of the other links in the post. I have tried and tested the links, and they just seem to have a mind of their own. Apologies for any confusion!

Here are the details:

WHEN: Saturday, August 27 – 11:00 AM

WHERE: AMC Tysons Corner | 7850 Tysons Corner Center, McLean, VA 22102

>> Download tickets here (each download is for a 4-pack of tickets!) <<

Please note: These tickets are completely FREE! However, it is important to arrive early to get a seat. Screenings may give out more passes than they have seats for, so to ensure that you get a seat, please arrive up to an hour before the screening time. Also, the above link is limited to 20 downloads. Once they’re gone, they’re gone!

About STORKS

Storks deliver babies…or at least they used to. Now they deliver packages for a global internet retail giant. Junior (Andy Samberg), the company’s top delivery stork, is about to be promoted when he accidentally activates the Baby Making Machine, producing an adorable and wholly unauthorized baby girl.

Desperate to deliver this bundle of trouble before the boss gets wise, Junior and his friend Tulip, the only human on Stork Mountain, race to make their first-ever baby drop – in a wild and revealing journey that could make more than one family whole and restore the storks’ true mission in the world.

The animated adventure “Storks” stars Andy Samberg (“Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs,” “Hotel Transylvania”), Kelsey Grammer (“Toy Story 2,” “The Simpsons”), Katie Crown (Cartoon Network’s “Clarence”), Keegan-Michael Key, Jordan Peele (Comedy Central’s “Key & Peele”), and Danny Trejo (“The Book of Life”).

The film is directed by Nicholas Stoller (“Neighbors,” BAFTA nominee for “Muppets Most Wanted”), and Doug Sweetland (supervising animator on “Cars,” Oscar-nominated director of the animated short “Presto”).

Stoller also wrote the “Storks” screenplay, and serves as a producer along with Brad Lewis (“Ratatouille”). The executive producers are Phil Lord, Christopher Miller, Glenn Ficarra, John Requa and Jared Stern.

A Warner Bros. Pictures presentation | In Theaters Friday, September 23, 2016, in 2D and 3D

Rated PG for “mild action and some thematic elements.”

Run time: 86 mins

storksmovie.com| twitter.com/storksthemovie | Instagram.com/storksmovie | www.pinterest.com/storksmovie/ | #Storks

Don’t forget to download your free tickets!

Johnny Rockets Georgetown Restaurant Refresh

Lolli — Fri, 05 Aug 2016 03:10:47 +0000

My family and I were invited to experience Johnny Rockets’ new look at their DC Georgetown location last week. This post has been sponsored by Johnny Rockets, but all thoughts and opinions are my own and my family’s.

Johnny Rockets has a special place in my heart. After my daughter got married this spring…after the wedding and the pictures and the reception were over, the kids went home to grandma and grandpa’s house and my husband and I crashed from exhaustion – both physical and emotional. Being the mother and father-of-the-bride is a big deal.

Because we ended early in the evening and knew that we’d need to eat some real food before the night was over, we decided to walk around the hotel to see if we could find something to eat. Our walk took us to Johnny Rockets, where we were finally able to decompress, relax, and fill our bellies.

We left Johnny Rockets that night feeling so content. It was the perfect way to end the wedding day.

Fast forward to last week, when we finally got the vacation that I had so desperately needed all summer. We were driving home on Friday afternoon, but quickly realized that the DC-area traffic was not going to make it easy for us to get home before we stopped by the media event at Johnny Rockets. We headed to Georgetown straight from our vacation and walked along the canal until it was time for us to check in at the restaurant.

A funny thing happened when we sat down for our dinner. We were tired from our 4+ hour drive. We were sweaty from spending 30+ minutes walking outside in the oppressive heat and humidity that we had last week. But when we started eating, the heat and the fatigue washed away. It was the most perfect way to end our 4-day vacation. Instead of arriving home tired from hours in the car, we got home feeling rested and well-fed.

While we were at Johnny Rockets, we had the chance to sit down with Joel Bulger, Chief Marketing Officer. We got a little off topic as we chatted with Joel – for the first 15 minutes or so, he asked us more questions about us than we asked him about the restaurant! Here are 10 things we learned about Johnny Rockets while we chatted with him:

Johnny Rockets is a global restaurant chain that has been around for 30 years and is in 28 different countries with over 350 restaurants. The Georgetown location has been there for 18 years.
To celebrate its 30th anniversary year, Johnny Rockets is debuting a brand refresh, with a new logo and a “modern evolution” of the iconic images, style, food, and experience that we’ve known and loved for the last 30 years.
Johnny Rockets’ hand-spun shakes are made with premium ice cream – a proprietary blend made just for Johnny Rockets by Blue Bunny.
“If you’re going to go get a burger and fries, get the best one you can get.” (my favorite quote directly from Joel Bulger)
Johnny Rockets’ cooked-to-order burgers are available in 4 protein options: fresh, never frozen 100% domestic farm-raised beef, farm-fresh chicken, ground turkey, and Boca Burger.
Everything – from the classic made-to-order burgers to the new design – is inspired by lots and lots of consumer testing. They really care about what their customers think and want.
In the new restaurant design, they’ve included elements of the classic diner, including counter seating. But they’ve updated the layout so that everything is not fixed in place. There are communal tables for friends and family, and room for many different sized groups.
The 50s diner look that Johnny Rockets has been known for – complete with jukeboxes and servers dressed in soda fountain uniforms – has been replaced with remixes of classic music an pop music of today and new uniforms for the servers.
Johnny Rockets trains their team members with easy to access online training guides as well as on-location training.
If you order a burger in China, you’ll get the same burger you’ll get here in DC. That’s because the chefs make sure to develop recipes that are easily replicated, no matter where they are.

In the near future, all Johnny Rockets franchises will be updated to the new design and logo. As for our family, we can’t wait to head back to our local Georgetown location!

My Behind-the-Counter Experience

Shortly after we arrived at Johnny Rockets, I was taken behind the counter to see where all the magic happened…and to see the new cooking equipment in the kitchen. The grill was impressive – it’s computerized with a tablet-like touch screen and everything. But perhaps the most impressive part was how fast it cooked the burgers! If only I had a massive grill like that in my kitchen so that I could make my family’s dinner in just a few minutes…

About Johnny Rockets

Johnny Rockets is an international restaurant franchise that offers high quality, innovative menu items including fresh, never frozen 100% beef cooked-to-order hamburgers, veggie burger, chicken sandwiches, crispy fries and rich, delicious hand-spun shakes and malts. This dynamic lifestyle brand offers friendly service and upbeat music contributing to the chain’s signature atmosphere of relaxed, casual fun. Founded in 1986, Johnny Rockets operates more than 350 franchise and corporate locations in 28 countries around the world. For more information, visit www.johnnyrockets.com.

Cool New Tech Products for the Summer

Lolli — Wed, 22 Jun 2016 03:12:25 +0000

This past week, I spent the day at the Tech and Travel Luncheon at the Willard Intercontinental Hotel in Washington DC (check out the VIEW from this room that I posted on Instagram!).

While at the luncheon, we were able to meet with major tech brands showcased by the Consumer Technology Association as well as tour the gorgeous historic hotel (just down the street from the White House, no less!). The luncheon, a small travel fee, and some fun tech swag were provided but all thoughts within this post are my own. Amazon affiliate links are used in this post.

I love being introduced to new tech products. I swear I felt like I kid in a toy store when I met with the men and women from the Consumer Technology Association and had the chance to play around with some of their favorite tech products.

Here are a few of the products that we got to test out (and some, we even got to bring home!):

HButler Orbit Key Finder

Did you know? The average person loses 9 items per day…and the most misplaced items are cell phones, keys, and paperwork. While I can’t help you with your lost paperwork, the Orbit is better than a mom at finding lost things!

Put it on your keys and use your phone to find your missing keys. Can’t find your keys? Open up the Orbit app on your phone and find your keys. Voila!

But perhaps my favorite part of the Orbit? You can use the Orbit device on your key ring as a selfie remote. We had lots of fun testing that out!

You can get the Orbit HERE

OlloClip

I LOVE taking pictures with my phone, but sometimes I wish I had a little more control over the pictures I take. A few years ago and as many phones ago, I had a lens that I could attach to my phone’s camera with a little magnet ring I attached to my phone. Once I got rid of that phone, I could no longer use the lenses.

I fell in love with the OlloClip – the lenses stay together in a convenient clip that fits right onto your phone. It has a FISHEYE lens; unscrew fisheye lens to reveal MACRO 15X. On the other side, it has a WIDE-ANGLE lens; unscrew wide-angle lens to reveal MACRO 10X. How awesome is that?

Buy the OlloClip HERE

Waka Waka Power+

Does your phone ever run low on battery when you’re out and about? I’m guessing it does – I know it’s a constant problem for me. The solution…carry along a portable power source! Waka Waka showcased two devices that stand out above the rest, and I’ll let them tell you why…

When you buy a WakaWaka, you give Light! With every purchase, a solar light will be given to leading humanitarian aid organization, the International Rescue Committee (IRC), to provide to a child or family living without access to electricity. Included in each WakaWaka Power+ package is a unique Give Code, which allows you to go online and choose which project around the word you want your Give One to go.

1.2 billion people around the world have no access to electricity, and hundreds of millions more face regular blackouts. The effects of this energy poverty are enormous. Lacking power and light severely reduces the quality of life. Kerosene lamps are widely used for lighting, yet they are very inefficient, dangerous and expensive, and have extensive health and environmental drawbacks.

WakaWaka (‘Shine Bright’ in Swahili) develops, manufactures and markets high-tech low-cost solar powered lamps and chargers that are indispensable products both in the developing world and in developed markets. Using the latest in patented solar technology, developed by our partner and market leader Intivation, the WakaWaka Light and WakaWaka Power are true lifesavers for those without electricity.

You can get the Waka Waka Power+ HERE or find out more about Waka Waka products, including the Waka Waka Base 10 on their site.

TinyPhones by JVC

Tinyphones are compact kids headphones ideal for travel…and perfectly fit and designed for kids’ ears. How often do your kids ask to use your headphones on trips? I worry about hearing damage from too much headphone use….but not anymore!

Get TinyPhones by JVC HERE.

Knomo Elektronista Clutch

About the gorgeous Knomo Elektronista Clutch: Designed with Danish blogger and Broadcaster, Christiane Vejlø, the Elektronista is a luxury clutch bag that unfolds into a practical organiser to keep digital devices, cables & other essentials sorted. An integrated battery keeps you charged on the go.

I wish I could have taken this beautiful clutch home. It looks incredibly stylish, has a place to hold all my tech, AND charges my devices? Who wouldn’t love this purse?

You can get your very own Knomo Clutch HERE.

Adobe Spark

See that graphic up at the top of this post? That was created using Adobe Spark (along with a coordinating featured image to be shown on my home page (go take a peek – I love how it turned out!). It’s so easy to create gorgeous images for social media and blog posts. The coolest thing about Adobe Spark, other than the fact that it’s FREE to use, is that you can create one image and with a click of a button create different sized images for your different platforms. Try Adobe Spark out for yourself HERE.

Future City Competition 2016: Waste Not Want Not

Lolli — Thu, 18 Feb 2016 20:00:08 +0000

Have you heard of Future City Competition? I hadn’t heard of it, either…before this month. Now I am fascinated and HOOKED!

This past Tuesday, my two youngest kids and I had the opportunity to head down to Washington DC for the day. School was cancelled because of ice, but the metro was running so we took advantage of the day off to do a little learning of a different sort. Although I was compensated for my time to cover the event, all thoughts and opinions and photos are my own.

When I woke up on Tuesday morning and realized that the kids didn’t have school, I was thrilled about the prospect of having them experience Future City Competition Finals with me. My almost-13-year-old daughter is extremely conscious of environmental concerns. She’s our resident activist. I knew that she would get excited about this year’s Future City challenge – Waste Not, Want Not. And my 10-year-old son might be a little younger than the middle school kids who participated in this year’s competition, but I knew that his interest in all things math, science, and engineering would make this an inspiring day for him.

As we left, both kids were imagining what it would be like to form teams of their own for next year. Fun note: the team that won our region was from are cluster’s magnet school, just around the corner from us!

What is Future City Competition?

Future City asks students to answer the question, “How can we make our world a better place?” This year, Future City challenged students to design and build models of “future cities” with innovative solid waste management systems. The systems had to be safe, environmentally sounds, and energy efficient.

Teams from the United States, Egypt and China started gathering, brainstorming, researching, and working on the Future City challenge back in September, and the groups that gathered in DC this week represented the very best designs from all of the students (over 40,000 this year!) that participated.

These students work together in teams of at least 3 fellow middle school students with educators and mentors to guide them. The students are tasked to think like engineers as they identify problems, brainstorm ideas, design solutions, test and build. Then 3 students present their city’s model and concept to be judged for design, description, model, presentation, and project plan.

Here are just a few of the Future City models that we saw:

Why Future City?

The kids that I saw and heard on Tuesday were smart, engaged, dynamic. They were thinkers. They were builders. They were problem solvers. A few years ago, Concord Evaluation Group conducted an independent evaluation of the Future City program. This is what they found:

84% of students said that Future City helped them see math and science as important to their future.
85% of students said they learned they could create something on their own, without an adult.
90% of students said that Future City helped them appreciate all of the engineering that goes into building and running a city.
65% of students said that they could see themselves as engineers someday.
46% of Future City participants are girls.
95% of educators said that Future City helped improve students’ ability to work in teams.
92% of mentors said that students’ project management skills were improved from participation.

They learn. They actively work together in a group. And they have fun while doing it.

And I love that my own middle school aged kids got to feel their passion and excitement.

Find out more about the Future City Competition HERE. You can find Future City on Facebook and by searching #FutureCity2016 on Twitter

I love that I captured the look of shock on the faces of the students from Alabama when they realized that they had won!

The BEST Car Buying Advice Ever & The Washington Auto Show

Lolli — Tue, 26 Jan 2016 17:47:08 +0000

This past week, just days before THE STORM began (and, yes, THE STORM has to be all caps. It has been that epic) I ventured to downtown Washington DC, where I met up with a few dozen of my local DC-area blogging friends to explore the Washington Auto Show. Although I was asked to attend the auto show as a paid ambassador with Chevrolet as part of the Chevy-SheBuysCars Women’s Influencer Event, all thoughts, opinions, and photos are my own.

For several weeks leading up to the Washington Auto Show, the kids and I heard radio commercials advertising the auto show every morning on the way to school. The main message? You can’t buy a car until you’ve SMELLED it. The kids laughed every time they heard it, and I totally understood where the commercial was coming from, but I had a different approach. Sure, I do love the smell of a new car, but that’s not my first priority.

You can’t buy a car until you have seen felt, handled, and compared several cars, and the BEST way to do that – without spending every single weekend at ALL of the local dealerships (which I’m SURE you guys don’t want to do) – is to attend the auto show and see all of your options before making a decision.

It was at the Washington Auto Show this past week that I was given the BEST CAR BUYING ADVICE EVER.

Someone Told Me The Best Car Buying Advice Ever….

Ready for it?

This is actually several tidbits of advice compiled together into one glorious piece of advice…

When you are in the market for a new car, decide what options and features you are looking for. Do your initial research at home. Then look at each car that fits your criteria (yes, from ALL of the different car makers) and test them out one by one. But DO NOT buy the first car you test drive, because that first car will ALWAYS feel amazing and wonderful and you’ll want to say LET’S BUY IT RIGHT NOW because it feels and looks and drives so much better than the old piece of junk I WAS driving. Now, that may be the car you end up buying, but don’t plop money down quite yet. Go to a few more stops and handle a few more cars and then go back to that first car to test it out again. That second experience with the first car will undoubtedly be different.

I am reminded of something that used to happen to me all the time when I was running a photography business (before my blog became too busy for me to handle both jobs). People used to ask me all the time which camera they should buy. At the time, the 2 main options that 99% of the people asking me were looking at were Canon and Nikon. I would tell them what my sister (the Nikon girl) had told me (a Canon girl): “Both cameras are amazing, but sometimes it comes down to how it fits in your hand. Go to a store. Hold both cameras. And then you’ll know which one is right for you.”

I’ve test driven a lot of cars. I have driven cars that were SO MUCH FUN, but only a handful of them felt right – something that felt like it was made for me.

I might not love to go around the Washington Auto Show smelling the car interiors, like the commercial suggests, but I LOVE sitting inside the cars, touching and inspecting and handling the cars. I love that I can look and touch (and click all of the buttons just to see what they do) with NO PRESSURE to buy.

I love that Chevy trucks have added this handy step to make it easier to get into or see into the back of the bed of the truck!

The Coolest Thing I Learned at the Washington Auto Show

I’m a paper and pencil kind of note-taker, and when I was looking back at the notes I took during our auto show tour, it was this piece of information that stuck out to me the most:

Luxury cars benefit ALL consumers. Because luxury car makers put a lot of money and resources into having the best, the latest, and the most cutting edge innovations, ALL cars can eventually benefit from those same innovations. So those luxury cars might be ahead of the game when they come up with cool tech and innovations, but those same innovations that the luxury cars specialize in will show up in the everyday person cars shortly, too.

My Favorite Feature From the Washington Auto Show

I saw a lot of cars with a lot of cool features (like cars that are a wifi hotspot) but the features that were SO COOL to me, especially as a mom to a daughter who will be getting her driver’s license within a month or so, were the teen driver safety features in the Chevy Malibu. Did you know that you can log on to see how your teen is driving – not just where but HOW? I love that the radio doesn’t turn on until the seat belt is fastened. I can’t wait to see this feature move to more vehicles!

The Washington Auto Show is open now thru January 31. Check the website for details on hours, what’s happening each day and to purchase tickets (you can get tickets at the show as well).

Have you ever been to an Auto Show? What was your favorite part?

Hamilton Crowne Plaza Washington DC Hotel

Lolli — Fri, 04 Dec 2015 17:10:35 +0000

I was recently invited to visit the Hamilton Crowne Plaza Hotel in Washington DC, and I jumped at the chance to have a short staycation with my husband. Although we were hosted at the Washington DC hotel, all thoughts and opinions are my own.

Since I have lived in the Washington DC metro area for the last 17 years, I’ve been asked countless times for DC-area hotel recommendations. DC is a fabulous place to visit and I know I’m fortunate to live within close driving distance. But because I do live a short drive from the city, I don’t often pay attention to the hotels that are available so that I can give friends a good recommendation.

I’m so happy that I finally have a DC hotel that I can wholeheartedly recommend! Our stay at the Hamilton Crowne Plaza was refreshing and rejuvenating, the staff was some of the nicest and most helpful I’ve EVER come across, in all of my travels, and I could have spent all day enjoying the beauty of the building.

Hamilton Crowne Plaza Hotel: Luxury Washington DC Hotel

The Hamilton is not only a beautiful AAA 4-diamond luxury hotel in Washington DC, but it is an official historical DC landmark. Built in the 1920s and fully restored in recent years, the Hamilton Crowne Plaza Hotel evokes the glamour of the Roaring 20s while providing the comforts and conveniences that we expect today. The Hamilton was the location of Franklin Delano Roosevelt’s War Room as well as one of his Inaugural Balls.

As soon as I walked through the front doors of the hotel, I noticed the gorgeous entry ceiling, with its original 14-karat gold features, as well as the grand staircase off to the right featuring a mural of Alexander Hamilton. Original artwork can still be found throughout the hotel. The recent refurbishment and redesign of the hotel was inspired by the style of Alexander Hamilton. In the guest rooms, you can find mirrored antique DC maps above the nightstands, silhouettes of Alexander Hamilton filled in with his quotes, and gorgeous deep espresso furniture.

The guest rooms also feature high-speed internet access, seven-layer bedding (I slept beautifully!), luxury bath amenities, and more. We stayed on the Women’s Floor, which caters specifically to women travelers. Each room on the women’s floor is equipped with a yoga mat, a bathroom scale, plush spa bathrobes, and larger skin and hair care products. The rooms also boast a full bath, magnifying mirror, magazines, personalized concierge services, and exclusive elevator key access.

The Hamilton is also equipped with meeting and event space for your business meetings or social celebrations. The hotel has two large-size ballrooms, five meeting rooms and over 6,700 square feet of indoor event space.

14K Restaurant

One of the highlights of our stay at the Hamilton was our dinner at 14K Restaurant. 14K offers classic American cuisine with a contemporary flair. We could definitely tell that each dish was given special attention from the kitchen. My husband swears that the steak that he ordered was one of the best steaks he has ever had. The highlight of my meal was the unique feta watermelon salad with baby arugula and bibb hearts, cucumber, dates, red onion, almonds, watermelon and feta cheese. It was so good! We were also completely smitten by the pesto dip for the pre-dinner bread. I’ve never seen my husband enjoy bread quite as much as he did during our dinner.

Convenient Hotel For DC Attractions

The Hamilton is a quick 7 minute walk to The White House; other popular monuments and attractions in DC, like The National Mall and The Smithsonian Museums, are a slightly longer walk or a quick Metro ride away. The McPherson Square Station (blue or orange line) is across the street, so it’s very convenient to get to any DC attractions without having a car or worrying about parking.

The view from our hotel room at the Hamilton

Connect With the Hamilton Crowne Plaza Hotel

The Hamilton Crowne Plaza Hotel is located in the heart of Downtown DC at 1001 14th Street NW, Washington DC 20005.

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See Rodgers + Hammerstein’s CINDERELLA at the National Theater

Lolli — Wed, 28 Oct 2015 02:31:45 +0000

I’m a long-time lover of musicals, growing up on the classics. I can recall the first time that I saw the made-for-TV version of Roger’s and Hammerstein’s Cinderella. I immediately fell in love with the music. I am so excited to have the chance to take my musical-loving daughter to see Rodgers + Hammerstein’s CINDERELLA at The National Theatre in Washington, DC on opening night! And even more exciting (for you, at least!) is that I get to send two of my readers to the theater, too! Note: tickets (for a reader and for me) have been received in exchange for posting about the show and hosting this giveaway. All thoughts are my own.

About Rodgers + Hammerstein’s CINDERELLA

The 2013 Tony® Award-winning Broadway musical, from the creators of OKLAHOMA!, Carousel, The King and I, South Pacific and The Sound of Music, will be playing for a limited engagement at the National Theater in DC from November 18-29, 2015.

With its fresh new take on the beloved tale of a young woman who is transformed from a chambermaid into a princess, this hilarious and romantic Rodgers + Hammerstein’s CINDERELLA combines the story’s classic elements – glass slippers, pumpkin, and a beautiful ball along with some surprising twists. More than just a pretty face with the right shoe size, this Cinderella is a contemporary figure living in a fairytale setting. She is a spirited young woman with savvy and soul who doesn’t let her rags or her gowns trip her up in her quest for kindness, compassion and forgiveness. She longs to escape the drudgery of her work at home and instead work to make the world a better place. She not only fights for her own dreams, but forces the prince to open his eyes to the world around him and realize his dreams too.

CINDERELLA has music by Richard Rodgers, lyrics by Oscar Hammerstein II, a new book by Douglas Carter Beane and original book by Oscar Hammerstein II. The musical is directed by Mark Brokaw and choreographed by Josh Rhodes. Music adaptation, supervision and arrangements are by David Chase and orchestrations are by Danny Troob.

Some of the wonderful songs from Cinderella include “In My Own Little Corner,” “Impossible/It’s Possible,” “Ten Minutes Ago” and “Do I Love You Because You’re Beautiful?” I’m getting chills just thinking about them!

Although Cinderella debuted on television in 1957, I was shocked to learn that Cinderella made its its long-overdue Broadway debut in 2013. Along with CINDERELLA, Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein’s legendary musicals include OKLAHOMA!, Carousel, The King and I, South Pacific and The Sound of Music.

For more information visit https://thenationaldc.org/events/category/series/cinderella/

Enter to win 2 tickets to see Rodgers + Hammerstein’s CINDERELLA at the National Theater!

Please note that this giveaway is for tickets only, and you will need to find your own transportation to the theater. The winner will be able to choose to see the production on Wednesday 11/18 (opening night). If you’re not within driving distance of DC, then feel free to share this giveaway with your DC/Maryland/Virginia/Pennsylvania friends. Good luck!

Please note: there are lots of ways to enter, but it’s totally fine if you simply do the main entry (comment on this post and submit your info via the widget below). The more ways you enter, then greater the chances to win!

This giveaway will run through Monday, November 9 at 11:59 ET and a winner will be chosen at random and notified via email.

Entry -Form