3.1.14 Color or Dye Run, Alton Brown and a Day at Disney World

We had a great busy weekend! We started Saturday morning with the Run or Dye 5K! It's a fun run where volunteers throw dyed cornstarch all over you as you run through the course.

 We had a blast and even managed to run a little here and there. We weren't as messy as I had anticipated and most of it came off. 

Glenn and I both have a couple of discolored spots, but nothing too noticeable. 

Saturday night, we went to Alton Brown's Edible Inevitable Tour. They asked us not to take picture so we only have the set up. It was an awesome show - over 2 and 1/2 hours. Alton sang a few songs about food, gave a short version of his speech "The 10 Things I am Pretty Sure I Know For Sure About Food",  but the best was his two inventions: a Mega Bake oven (based on the Easy Bake Oven), and a flash freeze ice cream maker made from fire extinguishers. He had audience volunteers for both and the audience member - Chrissy - for the Mega Bake was a little drunk so it was hilarious. We both really enjoyed - especially since we had no idea was the expect. 

Sunday morning we woke up early and knew it was going to be a gorgeous day so we wanted to get out and enjoy. Glenn threw out the idea of going to Disney World so off we went. We wanted to try using the new Fast Pass+ system, but that didn't work out so well. We were excited Club Cool had new soda flavors. Then we went to the Biergarten German buffet for lunch. It was really good. 

We enjoyed the food and the live band. After lunch, we went over to the Magic Kingdom to meet the talking Mickey. This is a new innovation that Mickey Mouse will speak to you. Usually, the characters are silent. It was pretty cool! 

We also got to see the Celebration Block Party. 

Overall, a very fun weekend! 

2.22.14 Weekend: Movies and an early St Patty's Day

We love the AMC Best Picture Showcase - the weekends prior to the Oscars, AMC theaters show them all in a two day movie marathon. It's so much fun. 

2.16.14 Brews, Bands and BBQ

On Sunday the 16th - we used our annual pass to Busch Gardens to check out the Brews, Bands and BBQ Fest. We were really impressed. For $30, you buy a wristband to sample over 100 beers. A few local breweries were highlighted so that was fun.

Then it was time for the band portion of the event: Gin Blossoms and Mark McGrath from Sugar Ray. 

February 7 - 9 Camping at Hillsborough River State Park

We headed out camping February 7th for a weekend at Hillsborough River State Park. We really like camping here. The campsites are nice and face the woods. The Park has a great network of trails to explore. Plus - it's only 30 minutes from our house. 

This trip was historic because it is the first time we camped in the cold and the rain. Our new tent passed the rain test and we were pretty excited about that. We spent most of Friday night sitting in our chairs inside our tent: 

January 2014: Carnival Paradise Cruise

For MLK Day weekend, we took off on a 4 night Cruise on the Carnival Paradise. This cruise was complimentary since I am travel agent.  This cruise is tough to review. The big memory we will have from this cruise is that Glenn got food poisoning on the first night and we spent all the first day at Sea in the cabin. Luckily, he was feeling better by dinner, but we ended up heading to bed early every night since he wasn't 100%. I also felt a little crappy due to the food so it definitely wasn't one of our best cruises. It's a shame because we loved the ship and spent the first several hours talking about how great the ship was and we should take this cruise more often. There were a couple highlights: 

12.14.13 Busch Gardens Christmas Town

 To get in the holiday spirit, on December 14th Glenn and I headed to Busch Gardens Christmas Town event. They close the Park at 5:00 pm. You buy a special ticket to enter at 6:00 pm. The event includes a Snow World – with “snow” to play in, throw snowballs and even go sledding. 

December 1st 6 night Cruise on the Carnival Breeze

Our friends Tom and Margaret flew in the Friday after Thanksgiving. We went to the famous Columbia restaurant for lunch and then hung out by the pool for the rest of the afternoon. I started making dinner,  caught the cooktop on fire, and then decided I should probably just hang out by the pool. 

On Saturday, we started a leisurely drive to Miami. We took the back roads through the Everglades stopping in Everglades City for lunch and at Clyde Butcher’s Gallery. Butcher’s black and white portraits of the Everglades are really incredible. We were lucky enough to meet him and he signed a couple prints we purchased.