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The Perfect Family “Daycation” in Marina Del Rey California

Seize the day! Sun, sand, and family fun…

Last week, we explored a SoCal travel gem in Marina Del Rey, California. We didn’t have to travel far for this fabulous mini getaway! In fact, it was only an hour drive out of OC for the perfect family “daycation.”

This adorable and colorful beach town combines a picture perfect marina, excellent waterfront restaurants, and numerous summer activities.

It was so nice to just get a away, disconnect, and feel like we are somewhere abroad…

Disclosure : A special thanks to Marina Del Rey CVB for hosting our wonderful family daycation. All opinions are my own.

We started our day at 7:15 a.m. at dock 52, for some sport fishing with Spitfire Sportsfishing! (it was easy to find parking in the early am).

We told the staff we were newbies at fishing, and were extremely patient and helpful with hooking our bait and casting our lines.

Here are some helpful tips if you plan on fishing with Spitfire Sportsfishing:

A California fishing license is required. (it can be purchased on the boat)
You can bring your own ice chest to pack your “catch of the day”
Pack your own food and drinks
Pack jackets- it can get really cold in the marina
Carry cash on hand. No credit cards or debit cards are accepted for the excursion
Delicious & fresh food is available on boat (cash only)
Fishing equipment included in price of excursion
Fish can be cut and cleaned for $1 dollar a fish

About Spitfire Sportfishing

Conveniently located in Marina Del Rey, CA. The 65’ x22 ft. United States Coast Guard inspected Vessel Spitfire runs daily, year round out of Marina Del Rey Sportfishing . Built in the mid 1990’s the Spitfire is a fast ,modern, roomy fishing vessel with state of the art fish finding electronics and large bait capacity. The grade A galley seats 25 comfortably and serves hot and cold meals as well as ice cold beer and soda.

Within minutes of arriving at our ocean destination, we felt our lines tug. My son’s smile was ear to ear when he caught his very first fish. “Look mom, I did it!” ~ Simply priceless.

The ocean breeze and the crisp air was refreshing. Oh and the views were simply stunning!

It was so nice to see my girls disconnect from their devices, laugh, and just spend time as a family.

Check her out! In no time, we were catching 2-3 fish at a time…

By the end of our fishing tour, we caught about 50+ fish! Never in our wildest dreams, did we think we could catch so many. It was a wonderful bonding experience and we can’t wait to do it again!

Next… After our fishing trip, we decided to eat brunch at Beachside.

To our bellies delight, Beachside offers a variety of breakfast and lunch options. It was difficult to decide on breakfast or lunch, because everything on the menu sounded so good. So we ordered both!

We sat in front of the marina, and enjoyed the sensational view. We could see families on the sand playing and laughing. The sea breeze kissed our cheeks. It was sooo nice!

These Crab Cakes Benedict (above) were covered in a rich cream sauce. They sat on garden fresh arugula.

About Beachside

Located on waterfront in Marina del Rey, the newly redesigned Beachside Restaurant & Bar offers fresh California cuisine and innovative creations for a savory menu in an unparalleled beachfront setting. Executive Chef Victor Morales takes Marina del Rey seafood restaurant to the next level by creating decadent and thought-provoking dishes, using only the best seasonal ingredients available, providing a truly unique culinary experience for patrons to dive into.

My Tori daughter devoured her Lobster Pasta within minutes. The al dente pasta was prepared in a rich sauce, and was delectably garnished with lobster tails, and fresh peas.

The crispy chicken and waffles was insane delcious! The bread was toasted to perfection, and melted in my mouth. The fried chicken absorbed the sweet syrup perfectly.

Last, we hit “Mother’s” Beach for a stand-up paddleboard experience with Pro SUP
Shop, located in the rental truck at the far end of the Jamaica Bay Inn parking lot.

Our friendly guide, showed us the beauty of Marina Del Rey, giving us a personal tour of the scenic views. Sea lions greeted us with their presence, and gondolas past us by. A very in love elderly couple held hands and greeted us as we paddled by. It was just beautiful.

About Pro SUP Shop

The calm flat water of Mother’s Beach, Marina Del Rey is the best place in the Los Angeles area to learn the sport of Stand Up Paddle Boarding and kayaking, Pro SUP Shop’s professional ASI & WPA Certified Instructors will help guide you into the fastest growing water sport in the world! Everyone sent out at Pro SUP Shop receives a lesson of instruction and safety procedures.

Pro SUP Shop is located in the Jamaica Bay Inn parking lot right on the enclosed waveless beach for hassle free stand up paddle board and kayak rentals. We’ll have your board or kayak on the beach and ready to go in just minutes.

4175 Admiralty Way, Marina Del Rey, CA 90292
1-310-989-4350; https://www.prosupshop.com

Marina Del Rey is a SoCal hidden gem, and our summer “daycation” was perfect. Our family will forever cherish this day in our hearts.

Marina Del Rey–Where living in the moment means paddleboarding to breakfast. Seizing the day can be a mid-morning sailing lesson, parasailing over the marina, or cycling to Venice Beach. Embracing an evening is toasting the sunset and dancing under the star-kissed sky on a harbor cruise. It’s all here … What will your Marina adventure be?

DIY: Make your own Percy Jackson & The Olympians Board Game

Disclosure: Thank you Disney Book Group for sponsoring this post.

My son is taking the Percy Jackson summer reading challenge and he just finished reading the first book, “The Lightning Thief.” He is hooked on this adventurous series, and can’t wait to go on to the next book!

I’m challenging my son to finish the Percy Jackson series before summer’s end, and I encourage you to do the same with your kids!

Andrew has only been on summer break for a week, and I am trying my best to keep him occupied. We decided it would be fun to make our very own Percy Jackson and the Olympians board game together. I also thought that it would be a great idea to incorporate trivia questions to help him with comprehension.

Summer reading is critical for students to retain the skills learned in the previous school year. Children who don’t read are at risk of falling behind their classmates. Parents can avoid this by making sure kids take time to read. One great way to get your kids excited about reading is to create a game based on the books they’re planning to tackle this summer!

I have attached some printables and trivia questions to this post to help you and your child create a Percy Jackson & the Olympians game like ours!

Here is a list of things you will need to get started:

Blank board game or large poster board
Colored construction paper & glitter
Markers, colored pencils, or crayons
Stickers or computer image printouts
Glue stick
Dice and/or spinner

Instructions for making your game board:

Create a Percy Jackson & the Olympians “world.” Use your images, stickers, paint and glitter to make the board colorful and unique. Cut 1.5 x 1.5 inch squares, and create a path with a game beginning and end. There is no right or wrong when creating your own game board. The point is to be creative and have fun!

We found this blank board game containing game pieces, blank cards, blank spinner & dice online!

We took out paint and glitter, and printed images relating to the Percy Jackson series like lightning bolts and ocean waves. Feel free to use any of the printables I have attached here when making your own game.

Percy-Jackson PrintablesDownload

Throughout our path of squares that lead from start to finish, we added directions like “Back 2 Spaces”, “Draw an adventure card,” or “Take a spin!”

Instructions for making your spinner:

If you land on “Take a spin!”, you spin the wheel to determine what to do. Divide your spinner into 4 – 6 sections, which you can differentiate by color.

Then we wrote in various game options like:

Go forward 1 space
Go back 2 spaces
Go to the “Underworld” and lose a turn
Take an adventure card!

Andrew also added a rock, paper, scissors option to our spinner!

If you don’t have a spinner, you can still play! Just fill in each of the white squares with directions similar to what would go on the spinner so that on every turn you land on something.

Instructions for making your “Adventure Cards”:

I used Quizlet Online to create my own flashcards of Percy Jackson & the Olympians trivia! Here are some trivia questions to get you started. Print them here. Click here for quiz cards on the characters from Percy Jackson & the Olympians.

When it’s your turn, and the square or spinner tells you to take an adventure card, you must answer a trivia question in order to move forward in the game. (If you get it right on the first try, move forward 3 squares! If you get it right on the second try, move forward 1 square. If you miss the question after 3 tries, go back two squares.)

Print Instructions: Use the print option shown above.

GAME RULES: Here are the instructions to the game we created. Feel free to use them or modify as you like!

Up to 4 players (participants must be familiar with the book series to play)
1st player throws the dice. If the dice lands on an odd number, move forward 1 space. If it lands on an even number, move forward 2 spaces. Player must follow the instruction of the square they land on (i.e. “Take a Spin!” or “Back 2 Spaces”. If they “Take a Spin!” they must also follow the instruction of what the arrow lands on.

A family that reads together, stays together!

We had so much fun as a family playing our Percy Jackson & the Olympians board game.

More About the Series

Percy Jackson & the Olympians by Rick Riordan

Read the 5-book series that has been on the New York Times bestseller list for over 500 weeks!

Learn about Greek Mythology as the Percy Jackson series offers readers a fresh and exciting way to learn about the Olympians, the Titans, the Minotaur, and more while enjoying a fast-paced, highly entertaining adventure!

LEGOLAND Opens Duplo Playtown

Written By: Clarissa Camacho

My adorable nephew whispered in my ear, “I’m so excited. ” Off we went to Legoland, California. Jack sang the lyrics to “Catchy song” from the LEGO movie 2, while his brother jammed out next to him in the car on our drive up. As we arrived, their little faces lit up. Almost immediately, they ran to Duplo Playground. The updated play area is bright, colorful , and the perfect place where toddlers can let their imaginations roam free.

DUPLO®Playtown includes more than ten whimsical playhouses that feature hands-on activities, slides and interactive elements that encourage kids to use their imagination and creativity while playing. Children can explore a barn, fire station, grocery store, hospital and maze complete with an interactive scarecrow.

The rides were meant for parents (or tias) to bond with their little loves, which made the experience even more memorable.

Kid Power Towers stands tall in the middle of DUPLO®Playtown – kids and parents alike can ride to the top of one of three towers to get an incredible view of the entire Park and enjoy a thrilling “free-fall” down to the bottom.

The boys and I pretended to be nurses, train conductors, gardeners, and artists. They lived in their own little worlds- and it was lovely. As I took pictures of them, I realized I would have to bring them to Legoland more often, because they offered so many toddler friendly stuff things to do! And the memories? Priceless–

The new area is a great option for families with toddlers and the perfect place to let younger children play and experience their first theme park ride on the LEGOLAND®Express Train Ride.

Your little ones will love the new and improved Duplo playground!

PLOEY Movie: Activity Sheets

PLOEY starring John Stamos (“Full House”) and Sean Astin (The Lord of the Rings) has flown exclusively to DIRECTV Cinema!

This movie will fill your heart with joy! It’s about courage, friendship, and family. It has a great message too.

Synopsis:

When he gets separated from his family, Ploey, a young flightless plover chick, must undertake a dangerous journey to a legendary valley in order to save his loved ones from falling prey to the evil falcon.

Last month we screened this adorable film and learned to fly too!

DOWNLOAD these activity sheets for some family fun!

PLOEY-Activity-Sheet-1 Download

PLOEY-Activity-Sheet-2 Download

PLOEY-Activity-Sheet-3 Download

PLOEY-Activity-Sheet-4 Download

Watch PLOEY on DIRECTV today!

Holiday Guide To Planning Your Visit At Knott’s Merry Farm Open Now Through January 6th

The holidays have arrived and my kiddos are counting down the days to winter break!

Knott’s definitely knows how to put the Merry in Christmas, and there is just so many incredible things to do during this joyous celebration. It was a magical experience to see how our beloved theme park has transformed into a winter wonderland. Merry Farm is open now through January 6th, and is a great spot to visit during the holiday season with your entire family.

Spend the most wonderful time of the year with your family at Knott’s Merry Farm enjoying thrilling attractions, live entertainment, a Christmas crafts fair, festive food, lavish holiday decorations, and nightly snow in Ghost Town.

Here’s a holiday guide to help you enjoy your visit to Knott’s Merry Farm to the fullest!

Thank you Knott’s Berry Farm for inviting my family to Merry Farm. All Opinions are my own.

1. Take a stroll in the park and enjoy the holiday decorations!

As you walk into the park the streets and buildings are covered in lights. It’s remarkable!

2. Stop At Wilderness Dance Hall For a Treat and a Picture with Santa

Santa’s warm cookies and milk are always a special treat during the holidays… Indulge in one-of-kind seasonal treats like mouthwatering pastries, exquisite chocolate dipped cheesecake on a stick, seasonal craft beers, gourmet hot chocolate with marshmallows and hot spiced holiday wine, plus much more.

Don’t forget to visit Santa and take a pic!

One of my favorite things to do is EAT at the park. Check out the holiday treats

3. Enjoy A Delicious Holiday Treat

One of my favorite things to do is EAT during Merry Farm! Here is a photo recap of some tasty treats I tried at our media preview night.

What?! Yes… Tamales are now available at Knott’s during Merry Farm. ¡Que rico!

4. Watch a Holiday Show

Guests of all ages can embrace the joy of Christmas at Knott’s Merry Farm, with classic shows like the Holiday Ice Show featuring Snoopy, the Peanuts Gang and a cast of world class ice skaters, the nightly tree lighting ceremony and The Christmas Carol. Plus stroll through the merry streets of Calico for unique seasonal treats, Santa’s Christmas Cabin, traditional live Christmas Carolers, a Christmas Crafts Village, an enchanting Snow and Glow show with nightly falling snow, and so much more.

Here is the official show schedule!

5. Go to the Calico Tree Lighting Ceremony Located in Calico Park

The Calico Tree Lighting Ceremony is a memorable experience. Christmas carolers invited the audience to sing along to Jingle Bells and other holiday favorites…

6. Head to Ghost Town For Some Holiday Shopping

I found some unique gifts at Knott’s Christmas Crafts Village and fell in love with these adorable Christmas Tree ornaments.

Ghost Town transforms into a shopping wonderland filled with dozens of local artisans selling their unique gifts. Can’t-miss highlights of the Village include artist demonstrations of chainsaw wood carving and elegant glass blowing.

7. Let It Snow In Ghost Town!

Every night during Merry Farm, when the sun sets on the Farm, the buildings and paths in Ghost Town’s Main Street and School House Road are filled with glow and snow! Thousands of sparkling lights dance to the beat of Christmas music while snow gently falls in this spectacular one-of-a-kind moment.

In between the holiday shows get on the rides, enjoy some holiday treats, and enjoy the park to the fullest! I hope you enjoy your time at Knott’s Merry Farm as much as we do…

Happy Holidays to you and your family! XO

Queen Bee Latina

The perfect stocking stuffer is now on-sale!

The perfect stocking stuffer is now on-sale. A new 2019 Season Pass includes one free visit toenjoy Merry Farm in 2018, unlimited visits in 2019 with no blackout dates, discounts on select food and merchandise, and access to exciting year-round seasonal events. A Regular Season Pass includes unlimited admission in 2019 to Knott’s Berry Farm and a Gold Season Pass includes unlimited admission in 2019 to both Knott’s Berry Farm and Knott’s Soak City Waterpark with no blackout dates. Now at the lowest price of the year, Regular Season Passes start at just $95.00 or eight easy payments of $10.00 after initial payment and Gold Season Passes are $115.00 or eight payments of just $12.00 after initial payment. These offers endJanuary 6, 2019. Applicable taxes and fees apply online. Payment plans are only available at knotts.com.

LEGOLAND Brick-or-Treat Party Nights are Back

brick-or-treat-legoland — Photo credit to Legoland

Calling all little ghosts and goblins!

Don’t miss this year’s LEGOLAND’S Brick-or-Treat…

This weekend my family will be heading to Legoland California for a spooktacular partay! It’s our first time attending Brick-or-Treat, and my little guy could not be more ecstatic. Halloween can be a bit be hard on a little kids. There’s the costumes, loads of candy which is fun, but there’s also the spooky chilling stuff that can be a bit much for little ones… YIKES

I am always looking for kid friendly Halloween activities, ones that my little guy can participate in and not be too freaked out. So follow along with us this Saturday evening October 20th on Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook @queenbeelatina at LEGOLAND

Disclosure: Thank you LEGOLAND for inviting us to Brick-or-Treat. All Opinions are my own.

Brick or Treat Nights October 6, 13, 20, 27

About Brick-or-Treat

Brick-or-Treat Party Nights, presented by Disguise Costumes, is back and filled with sweeter treats, exciting entertainment and not-so-spooky thrills! Every Saturday night (Oct. 6, 13, 20, & 27) at 5 p.m., LEGOLAND California transforms into the ultimate family Halloweenparty featuring the popular Ghost Cruise ride, new entertainment shows, a new pop-badge challenge, building activities, live music and special live entertainers throughout the Park. Plus, bonus treat stations inside SEA LIFE^® aquarium and live entertainment at LEGOLAND^® Hotel and the new LEGOLAND^® Castle Hotel. Visitwww.BRICKORTREAT.com or call 760-918-5346 for more information.

Don’t miss candy, decorations and your fishy friends at SEA LIFE^® Aquarium included with your Party Nights ticket!

Park goers will experience loads of fun at Brick-or-Treat! (we seriously can’t wait)

Don’t miss:

Live entertainment + new shows!
Character Meet and Greets
Costume Contest: Group, Heroes and Villians, and LEGO^®
Treat stations with more than 1 million pieces of candy and Clif Kid Treats*
Heartlake City Fall Festival with Pumpkin Patch Build and craft time with the LEGO Friends
The AstroBash Dance Party
Brick-or-Treat Party Nights Pop Badge Challenge
And more!

LEGOLAND ANNUAL PASSES

Annual Passes are the best way to enjoy an awesome year at LEGOLAND California Resort and for a limited time buy 3 Merlin Annual Passes and receive 1 FREE!

8 Awesome Reasons To Take Little Kids To Knott’s Spooky Farm

Last weekend my family headed to Knott’s Spooky Farm to enjoy a spooktacular day at one of our favorite theme parks. Halloween can overwhelming and bit be hard on a little kids. There’s the costumes, loads of candy which are fun, but there’s also the ghastly gory stuff that can be a bit much for little ones. Not fun, especially for sensitive children…

Every year when Halloween rolls around, my son old feels completely left out of the Halloween loop, and he feels limited to the events he can participate in. They are just too spooky for him and or not age appropriate. Oh and the sadness he experiences when mom and his older sisters head to Knott’s Scary Farm…

I am always looking for kid friendly Halloween activities that my son can participate in, that won’t end with him sleeping in my bed or waking us up with a nightmare. I don’t want him to miss out on the spooky fun, and I want all my kiddos to have an awesome Halloween experience!

We hit some pretty awesome spots in the theme park that I want to share with you!

Thank you Knott’s Berry Farm for Inviting my family to #KnottsSpookyFarm. All opinions are my own.

About Knott’s Spooky Farm

Knott’s Berry Farm offers a daytime non-scary event of cheer rather than fear with activities all geared for young kids ages 3-11. Both children and parents LOVE Knott’s Spooky Farm, and the admission is included when you purchase your Knott’s Berry Farm entry. Saturdays and Sundays, Sept. 29 – Oct. 28, and Wednesday, Oct. 31, 2018.

1. Timber Mountain Log Ride

Oooh!

The Timber Mountain Log Ride (my personal favorite), converts into the Halloween Hootenanny. Knott’s has added a new friendly twist to this awesome ride. Every year the citizens of the Timber Mountain invite the creatures that live out in the woods and caverns of the area to join them as they celebrate the season at the Halloween Hootenanny.

These ghoulish gals were super friendly and photo ready!

2. Trick-or-Treating

My cute panda bear got his candy fix in Ghost Town! Kids ages 3-11 can participate in Trick-or-Treating throughout Ghost Town, and interact with spooky but friendly Shopkeepers.

3. Costume Contest

Do you like to BOO-gie?

Head on to Camp Snoopy Theater to show off your best Halloween costume at the Peanuts Costume Contest and afterwards, join your favorite Peanuts characters in a fun Peanuts Dance Party!

4. Creepy Critters of Calico

New this year!

Stanley Scarecrow has opened the Livery Stable for guests to get close and personal with the Creepy Critters of Calico.

“La Catrina” greats parks guest in Fiesta Village.

5. Dia de Los Muertos Celebration

In Fiesta Village, join the Dia de Los Muertos Celebration in the Fiesta Stage area. The themed area offers a walk through village filled with photo ops, educational activities and face paintings ( for a nominal fee). I love to see all the colorful calaveras (skulls) in the gift shop…

6. The Monsters Are Coming Show

Families can watch the Peanuts Gang in “The Monsters Are Coming, Charlie Brown,” where guests can sing and dancing along to classic Halloween music…So much fun!

7. Pumpkin Patch

Decorate your own pumpkin in Calico Park. Children can participate for a small fee. My son really enjoyed this activity!

8. A Trip To Camp Spooky on The Grand Sierra Railroad

The Grand Sierra Railroad in Camp Snoopy transforms to a one-of-a-kind experience which takes riderson an adventure, along with the Peanuts Gang, to Camp Spooky with added special Halloween theming effects.

Knott’s Spooky Farm is wonderful for little ones and mom approved … Don’t miss out on the fun!

Don’t forget to pick up your Knott’s Spooky Farm T-Shirt!

KNOTT’S BERRY FARM SEASON PASS BENEFITS

A Knott’s Berry Farm Season Pass pays for itself in less than 2 visits,* making it the best value in Southern California. At Knott’s Berry Farm, we make fun easy! 2019 Knott’s Berry Farm Season Passes include unlimited visits during the 2019 season with no blackout days and special discounts on food & merchandise, hotel stays, and Knott’s Scary Farm.

Season Pass benefits webpage – https://www.knotts.com/tickets-passes/season-pass-benefits

Knott’s Berry Farm’s Hangtime Rollercoaster Is Now Open

Do you enjoy a good adrenalin rush and extreme rollercoasters?

If so, you need to head to Knott’s Berry Farm to experience their newest ride, HangTime!

In celebration of the new ride, last week I headed Knott’s to celebrate the new rollercoaster’s debut. It was a HangTime preview night and beach themed shindig! This new ride is the first and only dive coaster in Cali. HangTime towers 150 feet over the Boardwalk area showcasing a beyond vertical drop that is the steepest in California, gravity-defying inversions, and mid-air suspensions. GULP… Yes it’s pretty insane. This new ride is NOW open to park guests!

I looked up at the ride and thought, am I actually going to do this? Then I figured, what the heck… YOLO! ( you only live once)

Knotts-hangtime-ride — Photo credit to Knott’s Berry Farm

For those of you that enjoy a thrill ride, your are definitely in for a treat!

About HangTime

HangTime will send riders up a vertical lift hill into a 15-story 96-degree drop-the steepest drop in California. The coaster’s train will come to a halt once the highest peak is reached, and will leave riders suspended at the crest for several seconds staring downward at a 60-degree angle, giving the illusion of a disappearing track. Then the train will suddenly descend in a beyond-vertical drop, through 2,189 feet of steel track and five gravity-defying inversion. HangTime will be only the second rollercoaster in the Western Hemisphere to feature a negative-g stall loop, which gives riders the sensation of floating.

The new HangTime ride looks spectacular at night!

The party was HangTime beach themed with live band playing Beach Boy’s tunes, and beach balls being tossed around the park … Knott’s Berry Farm definitely knows how to throw a party!

These deviled eggs were decorated with colorful edible flowers. They were almost too pretty to eat!

Guests can experience an entire season of fun including the thrill of HangTime with a 2018 Knott’s Season Pass, on sale now at the best price of the year. A Regular Season Pass includes unlimited admission in 2018 to Knott’s Berry Farm with no blackout dates, and a Gold Season Pass includes unlimited admission in 2018 to both Knott’s Berry Farm and the newly expanded Knott’s Soak City Waterpark with no blackout dates. Regular passes are just $92 or nine easy payments of $10.22 and Gold Season Passes are $110 or nine payments of just $12.22. These offers end October 29, 2017. Applicable taxes and fees apply online. Payment plans are only available at knotts.com.

“Hey kids…Look at your mom, she’s a daredevil!”

Are you brave enough to ride HangTime? If so, share you experience by using the #KnottsHangTime hashtag on Social Media.