Happy Halloween! We recently had a great time looking for tricks & treats at Spooktacular at the Jacksonville Zoo & Gardens.
We headed up their opening weekend & it really was a fantastic time. We went with my dad & stepmom, who also live up in Jax. You can read more on our road trip in my latest post with Orlando Moms Blog HERE.
Over the summer, Liam started watching Grease a lot …like ya know, how kids are when they hone in on a movie or show. It becomes an obsession. It was definitely like that for us with this movie. It’s a classic & we were pleasantly surprised he became so fond of it. When we acquired a bag of hand-me-down clothes recently from a friend for him, there was this black leather jacket in it. Little man immediately grabbed it out and said, this is Danny’s jacket!!! {a.k.a. Danny Zuko} ….He then declared that he was going to be Danny for Halloween, and it stuck. A few more miscellaneous items later & the transformation was complete ❤
Ladies & Gentleman, let me present ….Danny Zuko
The entire gardens were decorated for Halloween. It was impressive to see the amount of pumpkins that were carved! This scarecrow was a real person 🙂 …Liam was not too sure of them. We tried to get him to take a picture with it, but that was a no go. LOL!
Several different themes were displayed throughout the park, and were definitely from movies we all know & love. First up was The Wizard of Oz!
LOVE THIS! Catching up with all the gang ❤
This event was event was at night, so almost of the animals were asleep. Only the nocturnal animals were out. Totally ok & understandable. We did, however, get to see some of our favs, still. The giraffes were hanging out when we 1st got arrived. The baby’s are adorable!
Also snuck a peak at Mr. Elephant 🙂
It was a gorgeous night. A cool breeze was coming through & the moon was full & bright. I loved the lights that were up all around. Such awesome atmosphere & so pretty!
Glow in the Dark Cotton Candy! …super fun, but oh my!!
Spooky Bridge all lit up for the night
Liam’s all time favorite Halloween movie is The Nightmare Before Christmas. We were all over the moon excited to see the section the was decked out for this movie, including his fav main characters, Sally & Jack Skellington.
Look! We found the Lost Boys 😛 …don’t tell Peter Pan
Fantastic night & great memories made! The holidays are busy times but we really love to get out there & adventure through our community….there are awesome events to experience together!
October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month, and it’s a topic that is near & dear to my heart. I have several people in my life, family included, that have battled, and some that are still fighting, this monster. Some have won their fight….some have not. Therefore, I am all for bringing awareness, education, and support to this area, as well as help in raising funds for research. ❤
That said, I am excited to tell you about a local event happening NEXT Friday, October 21st:
5th Annual Pink Bash Set for Friday, October 21 in Downtown Orlando
Befitting Libby’s Legacy Breast Cancer Foundation
Pink Bash is an annual community celebration and fundraiser event in downtown Orlando designed to bring breast cancer awareness to Central Florida in an interactive, uplifting way. Pink Bash features a survivor fashion show, live music, pink carpet photos, raffle prizes and more — all to support the cause and honor those that are fighting, have been touched or have lost their battle to breast cancer.
Pink Bash
Friday, October 21, 2016
5 – 9 p.m.
Dr. Phillips Center for the Performing Arts | Seneff Arts Plaza (Front Lawn)
Pink Bash transforms the front lawn of the Dr. Phillips Center for the Performing Arts with a vibrant line-up of activities throughout the evening including:
· Survivor Fashion Show
· Food and Drinks
· Pink Boutiques
· Live Music by the Gerry Williams Band
· Fundraising Activities and Exclusive Prizes
Advance Designated Driver / Companion Ticket: $15 per person ($20 at the door) – Includes admission to Pink Bash to enjoy the event, shop and participate in donation activities. Food tickets will be available for purchase at the event.
Advance General Admission: $25 per person ($30 at the door) – Includes admission, a Pink Bash tasting glass and complimentary beer, wine and signature cocktails.Food tickets will be available for purchase at the event.
NEW THIS YEAR: Advance General Admission PLUS Pink Bash Foodie Pass: $39 per person –
Includes express entrance access, a Pink Bash tasting glass, complimentary beer, wine and signature cocktails and five small plate food vouchers (a $20 value).
Participating restaurants include: Bento, Kasa, Rocco’s Tacos, Sweet Gelato, Nothing Bundt Cakes, Cafe Tu Tu Tango, Santiago’s Bodega and The Porch/Gringas.
Photo Credit: Orlando Sentinel Media Group
I’m THRILLED to be able to offer two general admission tickets to one of you!
Contest runs today, October 14th through Monday, October 17th at 8:00 am, EST. Winner will be chosen at random and will notified by reply to comments in this post. Winner must respond back to me within 24 hours or prize will be forfeited & another winner will be chosen at random.
TO ENTER:
1. “Like” this post
2. If you do not already, please subscribe to follow this blog. Enter your email address on the “Follow Us” link on the left-hand side-bar of this page.
3. In the comments below, share why you would love to attend the 5th Annual Pink Bash in Downtown Orlando.
NOTE: One entry per subscribed email address, please.
That’s it! ❤
Pink Bash is produced by Orlando Sentinel Media Group. A portion of the event proceeds benefits Libby’s Legacy Breast Cancer Foundation, a local breast cancer foundation formed in Central Florida to provide support directly to Central Floridians. Libby’s Legacy Breast Cancer Foundation was formed in 2007 just a year after Robin and Marty lost their mom, Libby Maynard, to Stage IV Breast Cancer. Libby was full of fun, faith and courage. The organization hopes to embody her spirit through the foundation by being secure enough to be vulnerable, strong enough to be gentle, wise enough to be humble and powerful enough to serve others. The mission of Libby’s Legacy is to provide comprehensive breast health care to the underserved Central Florida community through education,mammograms, follow up diagnostics and Hope Coaches on the journey from diagnosis to treatment and beyond. For more information visit: www.libbyslegacy.org.
Stay Social:
Facebook: Orlando Sentinel Events
#PinkBash
Looking forward to seeing you out there and let’s support our local community that we love — Orlando!
I am a Pink Bash Social Ambassador, however all opinions expressed are my own.
This last week has been an emotional one for us here in the sunshine state. Early last week, we started watching the news diligently and following along to see where our 1st hurricane in 12 years hit would along our east coast — Hurricane Matthew.
By Wednesday morning, as I participated with Liam in National Walk to School Day, I knew it was just a matter of time before we all received news of school closures & preparations for the storm to come. Sure enough, we received word late that morning that both the county schools and the university where I work were both closed down Thursday & Friday. This was real & it was time to get prepared.
The last time a major storm affected our area here in Central Florida, Stephen & I were not yet homeowners OR parents. I have to be honest that preparing for this storm AND waiting for it to come felt VERY different this time around. I had a lot of nervous energy on Thursday. I just kept cleaning & doing laundry. I had to keep busy. I also took Liam to Publix….He was hilarious, as he kept yelling out, ‘you were right Mommy, the shelves are empy!!’ — I had told him that the store might look different because many people were buying food & water to prepare for the storm 🙂
We prepped as best we could in the time we had. All of our patio and front yard stuff got piled into the garage, along with our stockpile of water. Again, since we hadn’t been through a storm while in the house before, we kinda felt like we were winging this a bit.
Tub full of water….always a precaution. We did remember that from Charlie.
We went to sleep (well, as much as we could, anyhow) on Thursday night knowing that the winds were picking up and Matthew would be moving through by early morning.
We dozed off and literally woke up to answered prayer ❤ ….the storm veered to the East about 10 miles, and it was just enough to keep the eye & all the worst winds off shore from our area. We had some high winds & gusts and a good amount of rain still throughout the day, but nothing overwhelming. So, so thankful & blessed!!
We were so relieved to see that our family & friends here in Florida were all okay, as well. Especially Stephen’s family in the Vero Beach area, as they were much closer to Matthew’s impact. We were also worried about my dad’s house up in Jax, but they fared well, too. Both of our mom’s are also here in FL & they are also doing well! Prayers for all those still recovering & waiting for power to be restored. St. Augustine is one of our favorite places to visit, and they were hit very hard 😦
On Saturday, we all went outside, as a family, and began the clean up process. Luckily, the debris wasn’t overwhelming for us. It was nice to get it picked up, and as we were outside, we saw many of our neighbors also out cleaning up their yards, too. Liam enjoyed being a helper….Timber, as well! What a difference a day makes in the weather, right?!?!
Being cooped up in the house for a few days did give me a chance to finally finish up our Halloween decorations! Liam & I also baked up some yummy Halloween cookies 🙂
Once we were out & about, we took a trip to the Orlando Science Center to check out their new traveling exhibit — TOYTOPIA. It was so cool to see so many of the toys that Stephen & I played with as kids. Liam enjoyed the Toy Story display and the awesome model trains that was both Lego & electric!
Introducing Little Man to a little nostalgia from the movie, BIG! 🙂
We closed our weekend out with a visit to one of our local pumpkin patches …that definitely always brings all the feels of fall! ❤
Hello friends! I don’t know about you, but I am super excited for the fall season to be upon us now. In fact, I believe we actually may feel some slightly cooler temps here in Orlando this week! So nice! If you haven’t started planning for it (or actually started), the holidays will upon us before we know it, and that means holiday shopping, too. That’s why I am a big fan of trying to plan ahead and shop smart. One way I do so is by shopping the outlets. Lake Buena Vista Factory Storesis an ideal place to shop for all of your fall weather needs, as well as your holiday shopping. In fact, they are about to celebrate their 20th anniversary in just a few weeks, and have some fun activities planned that are FREE AND FUN for your whole family ❤
Win a $50 gift card to Lake Buena Vista Factory Stores – Celebrating Two Decades of Great Deals
It’s time to celebrate! Lake Buena Vista Factory Stores is hosting a free admission, family-oriented celebration to mark its 20th anniversary as one of Central Florida’s first outlet centers and a favorite destination for the area’s best outlet deals. Lake Buena Vista Factory Stores’ Deals for Two Decades 20th Anniversary Celebration is on Saturday, October 22 from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. with fun activities for every age. Join the celebration featuring more than $8,000 in prize and gift card giveaways at 11:30am, 12:30pm, 1:30pm and 2:30pm (must be present to win), bounce house, DJ entertainer, strolling magician, face painters, balloon sculptor, stilt walker juggler, 20 cent hot dogs, drinks and more. Many stores are pulling out the stops with $20 gift card giveaways, 20% off deals and special store activities. Have your picture taken with Sunnie, the Sunshine Foundation’s mascot. All proceeds go toward the Sunshine Foundation, the original wish-granting organization, a charity founded in 1976 bringing unimaginable joy to children living with chronic life-long conditions.
Just over a week later, the center will host a frightfully fun and safe “trick or treating” event on Halloween, Monday, October 31, from 1-9 p.m. Participating stores will pass out treats to the children while families can shop. Prices are so low, it’s scary! Everyone is invited to join in the fun and children are welcome to dress in costume.
Photo Credit: LBVFS
Shopping is hassle-free at the outlet center, where you can find factory-direct premium quality merchandise at savings up to 75% off (and sometimes more). Plus,there’s easy store front parking, so getting in and out quickly is a breeze!
Don’t miss your chance to win a $50 gift certificate to the mall, whereyou can select merchandise at most of their outlet shops and get great deals at Express Factory Outlet, U.S. Polo Assn., Nike, OshKosh B’Gosh, Tommy Hilfiger Stores, plus other well-known outlets including G by GUESS, Justice, Carter’s, Crocs, Calvin Klein, Levi’s®, Aeropostale, Converse, Fossil, Rack Room Shoes, and many more. Don’t forget to stop by and treat yourself at Lindt Chocolate, too!
Even if you don’t win, you can get in on the savings by downloading a coupon from the Center’s website, then bringing it to Travelpro at the Lake Buena Vista Factory Stores to receive a coupon booklet valued up to $400 in savings. Savvy discount shoppers can learn about these discounts, as well as specific stores and their hours by following the center on Facebook, Twitter and Pinterest, as well as visiting http://www.lbvfs.com. Many stores offer last-minute deals so it’s a great idea to follow the center and check online frequently! Lake Buena Vista Factory Stores is located just one mile from Walt Disney World at 15657 S Apopka Vineland Road (State Road 535) Orlando, FL 32821-6316, two miles south of I-4, Exit 68. Open daily. Hours are Monday-Saturday, 10am-9pm, and 10am-7pm on Sunday.
Ok, friends…I promised you a giveaway & here are the details:
Just in time for your fall & holiday shopping, Lake Buena Vista Factory Stores is providing an awesome $50 gift card to one lucky reader of this blog. Please note that this offer is only valid for one winner, one time, through 2016.
Winner must pick up gift certificate in the mall office any week day between 10am-5pm, OR at the mall’s Information Booth on Saturday, October 22nd during the 20th Anniversary Event. Please be prepared to show a photo ID. Please note that gift certificates MUST be picked up between October 17 – November 17, 2016. Gift certificates are unable to be mailed, sorry.
Contest runs today, October 9th through Friday, October 14th at 8:00 am, EST. Winner will be chosen at random and will notified by reply to comments in this post. Winner must respond back to me within 24 hours or prize will be forfeited & another winner will be chosen at random.
TO ENTER:
1. “Like” this post
2. If you do not already, please subscribe to follow this blog. Enter your email address on the “Follow Us” link on the left-hand side-bar of this page.
3. In the comments below, share your preferred holiday shopping strategy. For example, are you a plan ahead type, or do you like to do it all last minute? …Or, maybe a little of both? 🙂
NOTE: One entry per subscribed email address, please.
That’s it! Pretty easy, right?!?!
Photo Credit: LBVFS
Good luck & Happy Fall Shopping!
This is a sponsored post with Lake Buena Vista Factory Stores. All opinions posted are my own.
Casa de Murphy 