Browsing Category:

Home and Lifestyle

    Home and Lifestyle, Kids, Travel

    Underwater Discoveries at Sea Life Michigan

    This is a continuation from my previous post which is our visit at Legoland Discovery Center Michigan. Read about my last post here ,  if you want to know more about our Legoland Michigan adventure.

    Today, I’m going to talk about our visit at Sea Life Michigan . Like I said from my previous post, you can do both attractions in one day but we did ours on separate weekends because we started late when we went to Legoland and we didn’t have enough time left to go to Sea Life. But you can definitely do both in one day. I believe we spent 4 hours in Legoland and 2 hours in Sea Life. So, whatever works for you.

    What can you expect in Sea Life Michigan ?

    The exhibit have over 250 different species . They have both fresh water and salt water exhibit. A total of 10 exhibits you can explore. As you go to every exhibit, children are also encouraged to collect stamps when they find the special stations. When they fill their books, they are awarded a special take-away for their achievement. It’s pretty cool, the kids get excited everytime they spot a stamping station.

    At the Interactive Touchpool , you can touch crabs, starfish and sea urchins. The kids were so amaze with the starfish. Just don’t touch the corals and don’t forgot to wash your hands after, there is a sink right next to it.

    We love the educational talks and feeding demonstration time, it’s quite interesting to learn a thing or two about some creatures. Like how to feed them, how they live and just fun facts about the specie. The staffs are also friendly, accomodating and thoroughly know their craft. Check out the demonstration schedules here. Your tickets are already included in this, you don’t have to pay extra.

    Among all the creatures here, my kids love the sharks, stingrays , turtle, starfish and jelly fish.

    Can you spot Dory?

    The Sea Life Michigan exhibit is not comparable to any aquarium exhibit you see elsewhere because it has it’s own unique twist to make it more fun, enjoyable and interactive for everyone most especially for the kids. Each exhibit is elaborately designed with its own theme. My kids enjoyed the shipwreck exhibit because it looks like you are in a pirate ship. One thing you can’t do on some exhibits is taking flash photography, that explains why some of these photos are kind of dark.

    Sea Life Michigan is not just an aquarium that you only get look around but also they made it fun and interactive for young kids. It’s like a big underwater playground for them. Their favorite thing to do is to go in the tunnels  of the aquariums (which they have tons of them) to get an underwater view. It’s actually pretty cool.

    After we did the aquarium, the kids went to the jungle gym playground, they played there for 15 mins. As we headed out, we went to the store and they were rewarded with medals when they submitted their stamp books.

    We had a great time at Sea Life Michigan and it’s something we would love to do it again! Also, if you want to have a birthday party here, they can cater  to that too. Go here . I hope you find my post helpful in giving you an idea on what to expect in Sea Life.

    Thank you so much for reading and have a great day!

    *This is a sponsored post by Sea Life Michigan . As usual, all thoughts and opinions are mine.

     

     

     

    Share:
    Home and Lifestyle, Travel

    What to do at Legoland Discovery Center Michigan

    Spring is just around the corner and so is Spring break! For us parents with little ones and opted for a staycation in Michigan, it’s always a great idea to take our kids for a little weekend adventure.

    My kids are Lego fanatics, so when we got the opportunity to partner with Legoland Discovery Center Michigan they were jumping with joy and excitement. Every kid or atleast most kids love Legos. Well, this place is a gem to all Lego lovers out there!

    First of all, I was really amazed with the interactive models of the Detroit area landmarks. We were in awe, on how they create and build these models and also I’m wondering how long it took them to put all these little bricks together. It is just amazing ! Anyways, let’s cut to the  chase and proceed on….

    What to do in Legoland Discovery  Center Michigan

    1. Discover Miniland – this area is an art show gallery of all the models that are made with Lego bricks. We love the interactive models featuring Detroit area landmarks, the kids had fun playing with them. Their favorite is the Comerica Park. Also, it’s so cool to watch the miniland changes from day to night.

    How cool are those skyscrapers made with Lego bricks behind my kids’ photo. Yes, they are huge. It’s mind boggling how they do this. It took me forever to build just a house that one time, I’m just not so patient. My husband is the one who assisted my kids with their Legos. But my son  Lucas, is the Lego expert in our house. He is so patient and so good in building his Legos, his desk is filled with Lego models he built himself. I’m so proud that he is passionate on what he likes to do and also credits to my husband for helping him build his Legos when he was still 3 years old. As time goes by he learned and he started to create and build things on his own.

    2. Creative Workshop – A master builder is assigned for you to learn some Lego building techniques. It’s pretty cool to watch the participants did the workshop. You just have to watch out for the time slot of the workshop. We intend to do the workshop but we keep missing it, but it’s a great thing to do.

    3.  Play at the Duplo Farm, Earthquake tables and Lego Friends – My kids had a blast in this area and the most we spend our time on. They go back and forth going through the Duplo Farm, Earthquake tables and Lego Friends. They are all right next to each other, so it wasn’t hard to keep an eye on both kids.

    This is the Earthquake table, when you press a button the table will mimic an Earthquake movement. By that, it will shake the blocks. The kids enjoyed this a lot, especially Olivia. As you can tell by the picture on top.

    This is the Lego Friends area, my little girl enjoyed playing with the villages, buildings, cafes and automobiles. Olivia was in Lego Friends high.

    This is the Duplo Farm, they have a mini playground for the little kids and huge Lego blocks, almost like a life size. Olivia made a chair out of these giant blocks but I didn’t get to take a picture of it, blogger fail. I wonder what I was doing that time. I can’t believe i didn’t get to take a picture of it, that would have been so cool. You know the saying nowadays, if there’s no photo it didn’t happened.

    4. Lego Build and Race – This is my son Lucas’ favorite area of all, he probably can hang out here all day. You build your own race car then you race it. As you can tell by this photo, he is in deep concentration and determined to win a race. Go Lucas go!

    5. Watch 4-d Cinema – in this Cinema we get to experience with rain, wind and even snow, all under one roof. We watched the Legends of Chima at that time and my little girl was so funny, she keep on trying to reach the 4d characters, thinking she can grab it with her hands. It’s so cute to watch her.We all love this 4D theater experience.

    6. Ride the Kingdom Quest and Merlin Apprentice Ride – we had a blast on these rides, I love the Kingdom Quest the most because all four of us can get into one ride. The Merlin Apprentice is awesome too. Ofcourse, the kids had the time of their lives. Who doesn’t love rides? Most of us do!

    7. Eat at the Cafe – if you are hungry or your kids are hungry, you don’t have to go out to grab something to eat. They have sandwiches, salads and sweet treats. They have coffee and other beverages.

    8. Play at the Jungle Gym – the fun never stops with these two kids. They were happily climbing, sliding and playing with other kids. If you got toddlers, it’s better to have them play at the Duplo Farm because even my 4 years old was having a hard time here. Unless if you want to go in the jungle gym too with your little one. The school aged kids had a blast here though.

    9. Shop at the Lego Store – after all the fun activities, it’s time to go shopping. Shop till you drop !

    We truly enjoyed our experience at Legoland. As you can tell on my sons’ photo on top, he looks tired and worn out but his eyes and his smile is glowing with happiness. My little girl on the other hand, was already in her stroller and kind of cranky. She was ready to retire from a long day of fun.

    This smile from my son is truly the joys of parenthood that outweighs the stress of parenthood. We all know that our day to day life as parents is not easy breezy but moments like these that we get to spend time with our kids and seeing them all happy, is just priceless and something we wouldn’t trade for.

    Up next, will be our visit to Sea Life Aquarium Michigan. So stay tune for that post. I believe that you can do both Legoland and Sea Life in one day, plus you can also get a better deal on that and save up to $10 per person. Check out the tickets HERE .

    Thank you so much for reading and have a great day!

    *This post is sponsored by Legoland Discovery Center Michigan .
    I accept services/products that I believe would benefit my readers. As usual, all opinions are mine.

     

     

     

     

     

    Share:
    Home and Lifestyle, Kids

    Our Goldfish Swim School Experience

    When we first walked- in to Goldfish Swim School, we were greeted with a colorful room decorated with fun tropical style decors. The first thing that came out from Olivia’s mouth was ” Wow! “. Right there, my little girl was already impressed with everything she saw – the big swimming pool with streamers all over, the little play area and the faux palm tree in the middle of the room which she taught was real. The room is so fun and inviting for the kids especially the little ones.

    At the reception desk, the receptionist walked us through the whole process of how their class works. She was thorough in giving us details of all the information we need. Then we went to the changing rooms that looks like cabanas, Olivia loves the colorful doors. She thought they look like playhouses.

    Then, we were guided in this big hallway with chairs around this big glass walls. It is the waiting area for parents while they watch their kids doing their swimming lessons. It is  so cool how they set it up that way. You will never missed out anything with your child.

    Since it was Olivia’s first day, I went in the swimming pool room with her instead of me sitting in the waiting room. I figured, it will make her comfortable and at ease for me to be there during her first class. The last thing I want to happen is her shedding some tears on the first day. So I was glad that the instructor is very understanding.

    During her first session, the instructor taught the kids how to get comfortable in the water. There were three kids in the class, he gave each kid a pool toy that they could play on the side while taking turns on taking each kid in the water and do some lessons. It was pretty quick, the kids didn’t get bored and my daughter enjoyed playing with her pool toy Aurora. When it was her turn, she did amazing in following the instructions and I am so proud of her !

    Since Olivia is in Junior 1 (3-4 years old) , I figured that I share to you what they will cover in this age group.

    • No tears in swim class for 3 consecutive lessons
    • Barbell kicking
    • Breath Control in Underwater Dip -10 seconds
    • Superman Glide – 5 ft
    • Sea Otter Back Float – 5 seconds (assisted)
    • Octopus Front Float – 5 seconds (assisted)
    • Pulling paddle- 5 ft
    • crab walk
    • climb out ” elbow, elbow, tummy, knee ” ( assisted)
    • jump, turn, swim to the wall ( assisted)
    • Rollover from-to-back ( assisted )
    • Rollover back- to – front ( assisted )

    Just like any regular report card, they have a skill level to pass so they can move on to the next class/level. This has been our second week in the class. So far, she has been so good. She really enjoyed the class and she always looks forward to it.

    Check out their programs HERE for corresponding  classes your child belongs to. They also offer family swim time schedule everyday, where you can enjoy swimming with your kids and the whole family. You can even invite your friends during family swim time!

    Isn’t that  a great idea to have a playdate here ? I think so too.

    After her lessons, I gave her a quick shower, changed her clothes and dried her hair by their hair drying section. I really like how they designed and set up the whole place.  It was kid friendly, fun, inviting, clean and well maintained. Their main focus are the kids and we all know that working with kids is not always easy. So, big credits for this guys for making swimming class fun and exciting.

    If you forget any swimming gears, they have everything in their little swim shop. They have bathing suits for boys and girls, googles, t-shirts, towels, backpacks, toys,  sweaters, tote bags and diapers. During our first day in class, they gave us a big tote bag with a t-shirt, a pair of googles and some little goodies in it.

     

    We really enjoyed our Goldfish experience so far. So stay tune for more as we share it through our blog and social medias from time to time about our amazing experience here at Goldfish Swim School .

    Check out this video tour of their facility. They have different locations nationwide. In Michigan alone they have nine locations !

    Thank you so much for reading and have a great day!

    *Thank you Goldfish Swim School for sponsoring this post.
    However, I only accept services and products that would benefit my readers.
    As usual, all opinions are mine.

     

     

     

    Share:
    Home and Lifestyle

    30 Minutes Meal with Blue Apron

    This Creamy Shrimp Spaghetti  is one of my most favorites from Blue Apron. If you want to know more about Blue Apron here are my previous post from their two menus here and here.

    I truly enjoyed Blue Apron. Aside that they are delicious and thorough in giving details on their recipes, this Creamy Shrimp Spaghetti is easy and quick to prepare, only under 30 minutes. It’s perfect for weekday meals !

    Read more

    Share:
    Home and Lifestyle, Recipes

    5 Reasons Why We Love Blue Apron

    If you have been following along my blog, you already knew I partnered with Blue Apron. If not and you wanted to know my first experience with them read it here . Without further introduction, here are the reasons why we love Blue Apron .

    1. Convenient – I enjoy cooking but I don’t like grocery shopping and sometimes meal planning is so tasking especially when you have so many things going on in your head. There were times when Steve and I spend atleast a half hour just trying to figure out what to eat or what to make for dinner. If we can’t figure something out, we spend another half hour again figuring out where to eat and what each of us have a taste for. It gets kinda stressful and frustrating sometimes and the result ? We end up opening a box of cereal for dinner. That’s why it is always important for me to do a weekly meal plan and with Blue Apron, meal planning and grocery shopping is convenient and stress free. You get to pick which menu/recipes you want for that week, they gather the ingredients for each recipes and delivered to your door, sealed and fresh. For me, there is nothing more convenient opening a box filled with fresh ingredients and all organized accordingly.

    Read more

    Share: