travel Archives - MomStart

SONIC’s new Custard Cookie Dough Concrete & Dunked Ultimate Chicken Sandwich

August 15, 2017 by Momstart 2 Comments

We received a gift card to try the Custard Cookie Dough Concrete at Sonic.

We have a brand new reason that you need to get yourself on over to Sonic. Sonic has a new sweet sensation that I can’t wait to try. And if you live next to a Sonic I suggest you get there ASAP to try the new Custard Cookie Dough Concrete while the weather’s hot.

SONIC’s new Custard Cookie Dough Concrete is going to be a crowd pleaser. In addition to the new Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Custard Concrete, SONIC also offers Dark Chocolate with Oreo® Cookie Pieces, Strawberry with M&M’S® Minis, Peanut Butter with Butterfinger®, Banana with Reese’s®, Caramel with Snickers® and Vanilla with Heath® Bar, and a large variety of custom blends.

Also new this summer at SONIC Drive-In is the all-new Dunked Ultimate Chicken Sandwich, a flavor-loaded, quality chicken sandwich “dunked” in rich, bold sauce over a premium all-white meat chicken fillet on a warm brioche bun. Guests can choose from three premium sauces: Bourbon BBQ, a rich bourbon BBQ sauce with a smoky & sweet linger; Buffalo made with hot and spicy cayenne, red chili peppers and a touch of chipotle; and Garlic Parmesan with Parmesan cheese, roasted garlic and Italian herbs. It sounds like a great addition to an already amazing menu.

I miss being so close to SONIC that I would eat there three times a week. It was like THE place to go in college and we had one close enough to work that I could walk there on my lunch break. Oh and in high school it was right across the street. I practically grew up on Sonic so I love eating there. I hope another one opens up even closer because currently we have to drive over an hour to get to one. But yes, it’s worth it when we do and we’ll be going to one this Saturday to try these new menu items.

Culinary Delights in Kissimmee #MyKissimmee #iFlyAlaska

August 2, 2017 by Beeb 5 Comments

Travel consideration provided.

Exploring new foods and restaurants is one of my favorite things to do while traveling. The first time I visited Florida in 2014, I had all kinds of memorable gastronomical experiences like tasting gator meat for the first time and eating the best steak of my life at Meliá Orlando Suite Hotel. So when I returned to Kissimmee this year, I was excited to see what yummy delights would be in store during this adventure – and my friends, I was not disappointed.

Elaine Alves Catering, Inc.

When we arrived at our vacation home the first night, Chef Eliane Alves was there to welcome us by catering an amazing dinner. Having a catering service prepare a meal right in your vacation home’s kitchen is such an awesome way to kick off a trip in the most relaxing manner. All you have to do is sit back and enjoy while an amazing meal is prepared for you, with leftovers packed up and put into your fridge for you afterwards so that you have easy meals to grab during the rest of your stay. It’s especially perfect for the first night of a trip, when you might be too tired to go out to dinner and can just relax on the couch instead!

Elaine and her team were so friendly and made the perfect hosts to welcome us on our first night in Kissimmee, pouring us a Peach Bellini Coquetel to start off our evening while we enjoyed fresh bruschetta appetizers.

They set out a beautiful table for us!

The main course was a Lobster bisque served with an amazing homemade Quiche Lorraine (Soooo good!!) and Romaine salad with fresh mozzarella, caramelized walnuts, figs, strawberry, a selection of Truffle Glazed balsamic & Lemon Olive Oils and grilled chicken and prosciutto on the side.

We were spoiled with not one, but two desserts! First up was a lovely Tiramisu.

And when Elaine read the itinerary and saw that her dinner guests would be three ladies, she said that her first thought was: These ladies need cupcakes! Elaine knows an amazing baker and enlisted her to create dainty cupcakes with edible glitter (!!) that would be perfect for a group of ladies. Her intuition was totally correct – Carol, Jana and I loved the cupcakes, especially the NUTELLA cupcakes! Elaine didn’t just show up with a pre-set menu – she created something special just for us, and it was amazing.

For More Information:

Elaine Alves Catering, Inc.
ElianeAlvesCatering.com
Phone: (954) 292-3921

El Tenampa

During the second day of our trip, we stopped at El Tenampa Mexican Restaurant for lunch. The recommended dish was grilled arrachera (flank steak) and nopales (cactus), which I was excited to try – I always seek out the specialty dish when I visit a new restaurant, and I’d never tried cactus before! I also loaded up on chips because it was national chips and dip day, so I had to observe the holiday, naturally! Yum!!

For More Information:

El Tenampa Mexican Restaurant
4565 W Irlo Bronson Memorial Hwy
Kissimmee, Florida 34746
Phone: (407) 390-1959
Facebook

Homecomin’ Kitchen

For dinner on our second night, we were treated to Walt Disney World’s new restaurant, Homecomin’ Kitchen. My friends, this is comfort food at its finest! Using local ingredients to create “Upscale down South” cuisine, this restaurant features can’t-miss fried chicken and moonshine cocktails. We started our meal with The Mood Changer cocktail and a selection of tasty appetizers, then dug into my main course: Chicken and doughnuts!

When you see a dish like this on a menu, you have to order it. I never understood the concept of chicken and waffles until I visited Memphis, and then it all became clear to me. I thought that chicken and doughnuts was an intriguing take on this concept, and oh my goodness, it was amazing! The crispy doughnuts and syrup perfectly complimented the flavors in the chicken – in fact, the doughnuts reminded me of homemade doughnuts that my mom made for me when I was a child. The fried texture of her doughnuts is a memory that has stayed with me since I first ate them, and I haven’t had anything like it since she made them all those years ago, so I thoroughly enjoyed these. The creamy potatoes were an absolutely delicious side and I ate and ate and ate this amazing meal!

For More Information:

Homecomin’ Kitchen
1602 East Buena Vista Drive
Orlando, FL 32830
Phone: (407) 560-0100
HomecominKitchen.com
Facebook – Twitter – Instagram

Market Street Café

We started off our final morning in Florida with breakfast at Market Street Café, a fun diner in Celebration. Since I had been enjoying a lot of decadent food during my trip, I opted for a lighter breakfast with a whole wheat egg white & spinach burrito – with a side of tots, because hey, life is all about balance. 😉 My burrito was super delicious – it’s so nice to easily find a healthy option on a menu that isn’t just a salad!

For More Information:

Market Street Café
701 Front Street
Celebration, FL 34747
Phone: (407) 566-1144
Market-Street-Cafe.com
Facebook – Twitter

Columbia Restaurant

I visited Columbia Restaurant last time I was in Kissimmee, so I was looking forward to tasting their famous 1905 Salad again! This time, I opted for a half order of the salad with a Cuban Sandwich. It was a big lunch, so I took my sandwich in a to-go box and ate the other half of it on my Alaska Airlines direct flight home to Oregon that afternoon – yum!!

For More Information:

Columbia Restaurant
649 Front Street
Celebration, Florida 34747
Phone: (407) 566-1505
ColumbiaRestaurant.com
Facebook – Twitter – Instagram

Enjoying good food helps create wonderful memories, and I certainly did that during my latest Florida adventure!

Which of these restaurants (Or Chefs!) would you visit first?

10 Reasons to Visit Disneyland Now

July 26, 2017 by Momstart Leave a Comment

I’ve been to Disneyland quite a bit the past few months and have written about the number one reason to visit Disneyland twice now, Summer of Heroes. But, Summer of Heroes and the new Guardians of the Galaxy Mission Breakout ride are not the only reasons to go to Disneyland right now. We have that top ten reasons to visit Disneyland and California Adventures listed here.

10 Reasons to Visit Disneyland:

1. Summer of Heroes: includes the Avengers Training Initiative, one of 10 epic moments you’ll experience this summer! Then, celebrate your training at the “Guardians of the Galaxy Awesome Dance Off” with Peter Quill and Gamora. You can meet all the heroes from the Avengers face to face and eat some really great Marvel themed food. I recommend doing Heroes of Summer first because sometimes on busy days they run out of themed food.

2. Return of Fantasmic! I wrote all about what I thought about Fantasmic! or what I saw of it last week from my D23Expo Experience. Disneyland provided some footage from the first show

3. The Return of the Electric Parade: The Electric Parade is my husband’s favorite parade at Disneyland. He knows the music by heart and just loves seeing all the lights parade down main street.

photo credit: Disneyland

4. The Fireworks Display: The fireworks display at Disneyland and at Disney World is so immersive. They project lights onto all the buildings, have Walt speak, and amazing music from different movies and themed rides playing while the fireworks dance in the sky.

5. World of Color: If you have not taken the time to see World of Color you are missing out. World of Color is in California Adventures and visually moves through Disney films in a fantastic way displaying on water and fire.

Here is a preview of what you would see at World of Color:

6. Return of the Disneyland Train: I have missed the train. The train is a great way to get from one part of the park to the other, and I believe they made some improvements to what you see while you are on the train. There was one section that was

7. Disney Junior Shows: Disney Junior Dance Party!”: Debuting Friday, May 26, this fun concert experience invites adults and kids to dance and sing along to the music. Popular Disney Junior characters from Disney Junior TV shows “Doc McStuffins,” “Sofia the First” and “The Lion Guard” are joined by Mickey Mouse and Minnie Mouse from the new series “Mickey and the Roadster Racers.”

8. A revamp to Tom Sawyer Island with a better Pirate’s Lair: My kids love going to play over at the Prate’s Lair.

9. Rivers of America attractions. The attraction is better than ever as you have more things to look at while you are on the ride.

10. Possibly sneak a peek at Star Wars Land The Galaxy’s Edge. There are certain locations at Disneyland that are high enough you can just barely get a glance or two at how The Galaxy’s Edge is coming along. You’ll have to let me know if you get a peek of the Millennium Falcon.

New at Disneyland Star Wars The Galaxy Edge and Pixar Fest

July 20, 2017 by Momstart 1 Comment

Disneyland is expecting some major upgrades over the next few years, the most exciting one being Star Wars Land that is now going to be called The Galaxy’s Edge. At the D23 Expo one of the largest exhibits on the floor was dedicated to Star Wars Land The Galaxy’s Edge. Here is all that’s new at Disneyland.

They had a full model of what the new Star Wars Land addition to the park is going to be.

You will actually get to fly the Millennium Falcon. I’m excited and can’t wait to try it.

Watch this preview video of Star Wars The Galaxy’s Edge.

Returning to Disneyland is the amazing Fantasmic! and from what I saw it was over the top amazing. The size of the stages, that happen to be boats, and dragons are HUGE. The actors move around on these devices as they move around the river. The story seems to be a little different too, I didn’t have enough time while I was visiting to watch it but OMG what I did see was fantastic!

California Adventure will be receiving an upgrade too. Pixar is going to have a larger presence as Paradise Pier is going to become Pixar Pier. You will see more Pixar characters and their stories come to life from The Incredibles to Inside Out to even more Toy Story. Also coming soon is Pixar Fest at the Disneyland Resort, expect this sometimes in 2018. This limited-time offering will include a new fireworks spectacular as well as many other special characters and entertaining moments. I can’t wait!

As part of the celebration, the Pixar Play Parade will return to Disneyland Resort – this time at Disneyland Park – and the fan favorite Paint the Night Parade will move to Disney California Adventure, one of Disney’s longest parade routes.

We can’t wait to bring you first hand knowledge of the park as it arrives!

An Experience Hotel: Star Wars Themed Hotel Walt Disney World

July 20, 2017 by Momstart Leave a Comment

Disney Vacation packages increase in value as fast as technology increased. Among all their plans for their parks they also have plans to create new experience hotels. One of these fully immersive hotels is going to be a Star Wars themed hotel. This Star Wars themed hotel infuses complete Star Wars experiences as your own. It’s like you’re living in space.

YES, the concept of Star Wars themed hotel sounds amazing and out of this world exciting. I’d love to get on the wait list now, as I have no idea when the hotel will open or if we can even afford such an experience.

Dedicated entirely to the galaxy of Star Wars, it will be a one-of-a-kind experience where a luxury resort meets a multi-day adventure in a galaxy far, far away.

When Bob Chapek was describing the Star Wars Themed hotel he went on an on about how you will feel like a character in a Star Wars movie. Everything will be an experience from a movie, to as much detail as when you look out your window at night you will see space. I mean, this sounds two fold to me, it sounds scary and disorienting but also sounds like the most exciting hotel ever. I’d love to visit a star-wars themed hotel wouldn’t you.

In addition to this Star Wars Themed hotel in Walt Disney World Resort, Orlando; Disney is also planning a Disney’s Hotel New York – The Art of Marvel at Disneyland Paris.

Adding to the immersive resort hotel slate, Disney’s Hotel New York – The Art of Marvel at Disneyland Paris will transport guests to the action-packed world of Super Heroes, including Iron Man, The Avengers, Spider-Man and more. Guests will be able to explore the Marvel Universe through its comic art, films, Super Hero costumes and more, displayed in the style of a contemporary art gallery.

I wish I had concept art to show you for each hotel. The closest photo that I have is actually just a photo from Disneyland’s Star Wars Land The Galaxy’s Edge concept art.

A Photo Tour of Summer of Heroes Food

June 20, 2017 by Momstart 3 Comments

Like all Super Heroes, you need the right fuel and training to make it through the day and the Summer of Heroes has everything you needs.

Photo credit Disneyland

Summer of Heroes Food Options:

As part of the Summer of Heroes celebration at Disney California Adventure Park, guests will find Super Hero-inspired food and beverages at six different locations in the Hollywood Land area of the park, including Schmoozies, Award Wieners and Market Place.

New locations include the Cosmic Canteen and Knowhere Eats. Dishes and drinks in lively colors of green, purple, red, blue and orange reflect the bold personalities of some favorite Super Heroes. One of the fun new desserts is inspired by baby Groot. The Angry Little Pudding Cup features chocolate pudding with crumbled chocolate sandwich cookie, whipped cream and funnel cake fries.

Guests who enjoy the Mickey-shaped sourdough bread available in Disney California Adventure will want to check out the fun, new Groot-shaped breads, in sourdough and jalapeno-cheddar flavors.

The Most Dangerous Tacos in the Galaxy, a must-try, are inspired by the fiery personality of Gamora, featuring barbacoa, green onion slaw and habanero salsa. In addition, guests can try the Savory Strength Falafel Pita, Super Size Subs,

Space Outpost Tacos, Gamma-Sized Donuts and Bifrosties (shave ice with fun themed flavors).

They have some great drink options too. From a wine flight, a beer flight, to spiked Lemonade.

with fun blinking lights

To some non-alcoholic beverages too.

And sweets like this amazing Spiderman Doughnut

To use all the energy you made with the amazing food options be sure to find all the fun Avengers in the park…

Train and perfect your skills with Black Widow and Hawkeye at the Avengers Training Initiative, one of 10 epic moments you’ll experience this summer!

Then, celebrate your training at the “Guardians of the Galaxy Awesome Dance Off” with Peter Quill and Gamora.

How To Ride Guardians of the Galaxy Mission Breakout Twice & A Photo Tour

June 20, 2017 by Momstart Leave a Comment

We’re so excited to introduce you to the new attraction, Guardians of the Galaxy — Mission: BREAKOUT! and give you advice on how to ride Guardians of the Galaxy — Mission: BREAKOUT Twice on one day. Finally, I got to ride the ride! I got to ride it twice, it was a fight to ride it twice but I got to ride it twice. It was AWESOME both times.

Now, word to the wise, if you want to ride this ride you should split your group up. One of you needs to go directly, California Adventures,

then to the ride Mission Breakout, the other one needs to go to the fast pass line for Mission breakout and (yes it could possibly be wrapped around blocks by the time you get to it) with both of your Disneyland park passes. The Fast Pass. Both lines get LONG fast. If your friend that goes to the fast pass line is able to get back in line with you to ride the ride that’s once. Then you have fast passes for later in the day and you’ll get to ride the ride twice.

Here are a few pictures taken from inside the fast pass line of Guardians of The Galaxy Mission Breakout. Like how happy I was after I rode the ride.

And this is while I was on the ride

First let’s just take a look at the ride itself, it’s beautiful in the sunlight.

As soon as you enter the gates there is a statue of the collector I believe as it is his place in the line.

Then his many collections

The collector has a lot of things.

And last but not least, The Guardians of The Galaxy are currently in his collection…

Also new is with Summer of Heroes is the new “Disney Junior Dance Party!” And a lot of great food that will be in our next blog post.

Local Event: Stella Artois The Art of The Chalice

June 15, 2017 by Momstart Leave a Comment

Join Stella Artois to celebrate the unique art, culture, and cuisine of Seattle with the unveiling of local artist Paulina “Lina” Cholewinski’s “The Art of the Chalice” mural on Thursday, June 15, from 7:00 – 10:00PM.

It’s sure to be a blast!

About the Event

The event will be built around a canvas installation of Lina’s mural at the South Fountain Lawn inside the Seattle Center Grounds, which was inspired by the beautiful city of Seattle and the iconic Stella Artois Chalice.
- The mural will be on display at the intersection of 713 Queen Anne Ave. North & Roy Street for the community to enjoy for the next three months.
Stella Artois also enlisted local artisans to help celebrate the city including chef Josh Henderson, glass artists Chris Schuelke & Brandon Cupp, and musical guest Beat Connection. Beer expert and Master Cicerone® Max Bakker will also be at the event to teach guests more about the Stella Artois Chalice and the brand’s signature Nine Step Pouring Ritual.
Consumers 21+ are invited to join Stella Artois to celebrate the spirit of Seattle and learn about our very own Nine Step Pouring Ritual to pour the perfect Stella Artois.
- A $5.00 donation will be requested upon entry to the event, with all proceeds benefiting the Fremont Community Grant Program.
More information can be found at the The Art of the Chalice: Seattle Facebook Page.

What You Need For A Road Trip Beginning & Ending at CVS

June 6, 2017 by Momstart 20 Comments

I’m proud to be working with CVS Pharmacy to help spread the word about #BetterHealthMadeEasy and how to #FindYourHealthy. All opinions expressed are my own, and all product claims or program details shared should be verified at CVS.com or with the appropriate manufacturers.

WE love road trips in our family, we take at least two every year. Because of our lifestyle it’s been more than that recently and we have one scheduled for August and working on another one before the summer ends. Since we travel by road so often we know all about what you need for a successful road trip and all those things can be found at CVS.

Video of What you need for a Road Trip

Zoe and I made this video of all the things that CVS sent us for a successful road trip.

CVS is also great for stopping along the way or when you reach your destination and realize that you may have forgotten an essential like toothpaste, deodorant, or a prescription. CVS makes it easy for you to transfer prescriptions to a CVS location near wherever you’re traveling in case you forgot your prescription at home.

If you have the CVS Pharmacy App it’s easy to locate a CVS near you to stop in when you’re away from home.

Prepared with CVS

Stopping by a CVS Pharmacy can make pre-travel immunizations easy

In Case of Illness on the Road

In case there are any minor illnesses or injuries that happen on a trip, MinuteClinic could be a convenient alternative to an Emergency Room visit

Now for our list of….

What You Need For A Road Trip

1. Snacks of all kinds – when I travel I get major munchies. CVS carries all kinds of protein and snack bars and they also have a great selection of resalable nuts, trail mix, and rice crisps.

2. Bottled water – it’s important to have water for drinks and also for an emergency. Plus my kids love to drink water on the road.

3. Emergency Kit – The CVS Emergency Kit and refill pieces include everything you need for any emergency. A blanket, bandages, burn cream, antibiotic ointment, hand sanitizer and a flashlight should always be in your car.

4. Medical Supplies – I often forget to grab Ibuprofen and acetaminophen and an antacid is usually important to always have on hand also.

5. Activities and workbooks for the kids to keep them busy in the car seat will save parents quite the headache. We have found that having an audio book makes travel go much faster. CVS has lots of different activities that can keep the kids busy.

The History of Pirates of The Caribbean & Experience At Disneyland

June 1, 2017 by Momstart 1 Comment

I’m reminded how amazing Walt Disney was every time I get to visit the Disney Archives. The things he accomplished in life and the legacy he left behind still lives today. The things he did inspired so many things that now exist and that includes the ride Pirates of the Caribbean.

The photos above are from the Disney Archives where we learned the history of Pirates of the Caribbean the ride that eventually led to the movies.

Photo credit Disneyland

The original version of the ride at Disneyland, which opened in 1967, was the last attraction whose construction was overseen by Walt Disney; sadly he died before it opened.

The location of the ride is interesting to me because it’s underground. The ride starts level with the restaurant in the bayou. Then it quickly plunges you down into Dead Man’s Cove. There you find pirates, treasure and a curse.

It’s a fun ride and while you are on it you should count how many times you can find Captain Jack Sparrow.

Also at Disneyland now is a Pirates of the Caribbean Dead Men Tell No Tales 4D experience. Starting with a preview of the costumes in the movie.

The 4D experience included some fresh ocean scents and rocking special effects while it included the first few minutes of Pirates of the Caribbean Dead Men Tell No Tales. Pirates of the Caribbean is now in theaters.