tampa | los angeles | new york | Chayil Marie Branda

amen.

Must See: The Great Reno Balloon Race

I have a love affair with hot air balloons. I think they are romantic and thrilling all at the same time. When I came across information for the 2012 Great Reno Balloon Race, I was enraptured by it. I can't decide if I would rather be up in the balloons or on the ground watching them lift off... what about you? Where would you rather be?

Either way... Mark September 7 - 9, 2012 on your calendars now! This is a MUST SEE!

Straight from their website......

"The Great Reno Balloon Race is the largest free hot air ballooning event in the Nation. During three days in early September, you can look up into the Reno skies and see a rainbow of hot air balloons soaring about. From its humble beginnings in 1982 with just 20 balloons, The Great Reno Balloon Race has taken flight with more than 100 balloons each year. Taking place just a few miles north of downtown Reno, the event enchants both young and old with its vibrant colors and inspiring music. The Balloon Race has won many awards over the years including 'Best Special Event in Reno' and 'Best Special Event in Northern Nevada.' With an average of 150,000 spectators attending the event each year, the number of lives touched by the beautiful spectacle continues to rise just like the balloons themselves."

Introduction to Walt Disney World ~ My Top Five

(Cinderella's Castle during the 2011 "Magic, Memories, and YOU!" show)

I have lived in Florida my entire life. Disney World has been just as much a part of growing up as beaches and hot summers. A passholder when I was a kid and a passholder as soon as I could make decisions for myself. While I would not claim myself as an expert, I am certainly not a novice.

I will be doing separate articles on each of the parks, as well as resorts and recreation. But first, these are my top five rules for visiting ANY Walt Disney World park.

1. Bring Snacks! ~ You can bring in food items to the parks. If you want, pack a sack lunch! But at least bring some granola bars, power bars, pretzels, something. You WILL get hungry... and remember you can get free cups of ice water at any quick service station.

2. Remember the parks are huge and not designed to see everything in one day. ~ They wouldn't sell 5 and 6 day passes if you could see a park or two in a single day. Make a "must see" list of your top five attractions before you go or when you first arrive. Then... feel accomplished when you see those in a single day.

3. Don't buy gifts in the first hour that you are there. ~ There are TONS of gift stores and magically a majority of the rides let out into a gift store. Don't get sucked in! Make notes of what you want and where it is and then at the end of the night, go back and pick up the souvenirs that caught your eye. Note that the stores are open an hour longer than the rides. You don't want to carry bags all day and you will probably

4. Take note of where the First Aid station is and don't hesitate to go. ~ Get a headache? Stomach ache? Blister? Need a nap? Believe it or not, all of these can be remedied at the the first aid station. I have visited everyone at the WDW resort and have always left feeling better. Everything from a fever-ridden teether to a light and heat sensitive migraine. I've gotten meds and taken naps. It doesn't cost anything and can save what could be a ruined day.

5. Be prepared to wait in line. ~ 17 million people visit the Walt Disney World Resort in the course of a year. That's a lot of people. Be prepared to wait a little. Be patient with cast members who are trying their best to get those people in and out of attractions quickly and safely. Bring something with you to do while waiting in lines. Hand held games like "20 Questions" is a great one. If you have a group, try "Catch Phrase". If you are prepared to wait in line, you won't be surprised by it and having something to do will make you happy and might make the people around you happy. You'll be surprised at how fast, they'll jump into your fun too!!

.. :: Bowen Family :: Safety Harbor, Florida :: ..

I do love it when I get to photograph friends.

Especially friends with an adorable baby.

Must See: Kakslauttanen Igloo Village

In this week's must see, we are taking a look at Kakslauttanen's Igloo Village.

I came across this incredibly "cool" place on Pinterest (swoon) and knew that this was going to go on my MUST SEE list. Located in the Lapland area of Finland, this very unique hotel has a special oppourtunity from December/January to Early April, a night in an igloo! Not not just any igloo.... your choice of either a traditional snow igloo or a more futuristic glass-domed igloo!

Now, I'm from Florida and while cold weather is not my "thing", this once in a lifetime experience would prove to be a night to remember and I would pretend to be thick-blooded, just to say I did it.

Check out their website below to get more information... and if you go... TAKE ME!!

For more information on rooms and rates, visit:

Hotel and Igloo Village Kakslauttanen

Happy Thanksgiving!

Happy Thanksgiving to you and yours!!

Right about now, I will be cuddling up with my kiddos on the couch, getting ready to watch the performers on Herald Square. This is one of my most favorite moments of the entire year. The kids, my husband and myself, all being lazy as cats on the couch with the scent of warm cinnamon rolls in the oven for our traditional thanksgiving breakfast. This year, I have the amazing blessing of GOING TO Thanksgiving dinner, instead of MAKING Thanksgiving dinner. THAT is what I am thankful for this year. :)

It's my prayer this morning, amongst my cinnamon rolls and cuddling, that you have something and someone to be thankful for this year.

Happy Thanksgiving!!

a very merry unbirthday....

"Alice opened the door and found that it led into a small passage, not much larger than a rat-hole: she knelt down and looked along the passage into the loveliest garden you ever saw. How she longed to get out of that dark hall, and wander about among those beds of bright flowers and those cool fountains, but she could not even get her head though the doorway; 'and even if my head would go through,' thought poor Alice, 'it would be of very little use without my shoulders. Oh, how I wish I could shut up like a telescope! I think I could, if I only know how to begin.' For, you see, so many out-of-the-way things had happened lately, that Alice had begun to think that very few things indeed were really impossible.

There seemed to be no use in waiting by the little door, so she went back to the table, half hoping she might find another key on it, or at any rate a book of rules for shutting people up like telescopes: this time she found a little bottle on it, ('which certainly was not here before,' said Alice,) and round the neck of the bottle was a paper label, with the words 'DRINK ME' beautifully printed on it in large letters."

~ Excerpt from Alice's Adventures in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll

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Special thanks to Eric Smith for the images.

..:: ♥ Family Love ♥ ::..

Just as the sun peek over the horizon, the warmth that touched her skin was welcome. She had been waiting for this moment. The moment when the light breaks the darkness and the rays bring a warm tone to the areas they touch. She had chosen the perfect spot. She knew what magic was held here; the tall grass, the delicate field flowers, the vast space that seemed to touch the sky. She smiled. She was ready. This was going to be incredible.

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Seriously?? Is there anything better than a big open field? Picnics, Kites, Pictures... I am blessed to live in an area that had lots of them... and here are two reasons why...

The Shelton family and the Phillips family ♥

Dominican Republic ~ República Dominicana

Hace cinco años, comencé aprender español. Desde entonces, he viajado a México, Guatemala (dos veces), Costa Rica y República Dominicana.

Pero la República Dominicana fue el primer viaje que me trajo mi cámara.

Estas imágenes han dejado una impresión en mi corazón.
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5 years ago, I began learning Spanish. Since then, I have traveled to Mexico, Guatamala (twice), Costa Rica and Dominican Republic.

But the Dominican Republic was the first trip that I brought my camera.

This images have left an impression on my heart.

past, present, future

more to come from this trip later....

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