Universal Guide 🎡🎢

A few years back, pre COVID (since that is how we measure things nowadays), I brought my kids to Universal. It was one of the first trips I’d brought them on as a single mom and it felt big. But I ended up with my first ever huge migraine, out of nowhere, and was so sick. It was a terrible visit. So since then I’ve been wanting a redo. Today was that big day!

Basically Universal is split into 3 parks, the main Universal Studios, Islands of Adventure and Volcano Bay. I feel Islands of Adventure connotes a water park, it is not. Volcano Bay is the water park. It is important to note that Harry Potter World is situated in Both Universal and Islands. So you fully enjoy you really need a ticket to both of those parks.

Universal consists of the following worlds: Production Central, New York, San Francisco, Harry Potter: Diagon Alley, Simpsons, Hollywood and Woody Woodpecker (kids area). Islands contains: Harry Potter: Hogsmeade, Marvel Super Hero, The Lost Continent, Jurassic, Toon Lagoon (water based rides) and Seuss Landing (kids area).

This time I had studied up on Harry Potter world. My boys are huge Harry Potter fans. When I was homeschooling them these were the first books they took off reading. They’ve also loved the movies. So I purchased one day tickets to the two parks between which Harry Potter works is situated. There are several guides on how to cover Harry Potter world in one day. I guess my family is super efficient because we covered both parks with good success in one day! Here I tell you how….

Basically Diagon Alley is London, Harry’s home. Hogsmeade is the school/castle. Diagon has only one ride which we did not do, Gringotts.

We aimed to arrive at the 9 am parking opening but actually arrived around 9:20. Parked in the garage. Walked to the park. Started at the main Universal. Rode the NEST (Transformers) ride. Had an incident with losing an Express pass and had to head back to Guest Services to correct. Once corrected we explored Diagon Alley. We also rode the Rip Ride Rockit (in Production Central) We were unanimous that, however cool it is to ride straight up and also the fact that my youngest was deemed of sufficient height, the ride really shakes up your head. Note to send: Tylenol!!

After checking out Diagon Alley briefly, we entered Kings Cross where you board the train to Islands. I should say that we are more riders than shoppers in general so I honesty cannot comment on any shopping experience other than having to buy a fanny pack ☺️ because I forgot a backpack and decided I should carry the express passes (which are paper rather than wristbands which just seems completely impractical especially since they get soaked on the water rides!) I chose a very cute unicorn one that served me well. Pricey mistake however: $26. The train ride across to Islands was fun. It is both attraction/ride and transportation. One of my daughters didn’t even realize we’d crossed into another park.

In general Universal is more discuss effects than huge roller coasters. It’s not that it does not have roller coasters but the real main attractions seem to be rides that incorporate loads of special effects. Several have 3D glasses such as Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey in the castle which we rode a couple of times.

Note: unfortunately the Pteranodon Flyers, which looked super fun, have a height ceiling so are mostly for smaller kids. The rides Hagrid’s Magical Creatures Motorbike Adventure & the VelociCoaster do not accept Express Pass so we passed on those as the lines were long (one hour or more). On the Universal app you can sign up for an alert but the lines never reached our threshold of 15 minutes or less.

One of our favorites was the Revenge of the Mummy in NY World. I thought both NY. And SF worlds replicated the actual cities in a very fun way. We had late night slices of pizza in NY, reminiscent of my days living there (the real NYC) long ago. 🍕

The water ride, Popeye and Bluto’s Bilge-Rat Barges, is no joke. My girls and I got so soaked we had to invest in the $5 dryers for the first time ever!

Some rides were down as seems typical, Men in Black in Universal and Poseidon’s Fury in Islands.

Universal was very strict with mask wearing on the attractions.

Universal is not currently offering an all you can eat dining pass, probably because they heard about my teenagers at Busch Gardens last month, so be prepared to spend some bucks. Apparently you can bring in food but we like to travel light. The butter beer is good, especially the frozen variety. Also real beer for those of you traveling with kids/teens needing a break! We found one restaurant, Burger Digs in Jurassic, that advertised a vegan burger. In reality it turned out to be a portabella mushroom with a dairy sauce. I ate it but my 11 year old daughter was squeamish about the mushroom, claiming it was slimy. In general it is probably not an item the amusement park restaurants should be attempting. I’d rather they stick with the regular prepared patties.

Finally, the area surrounding the park, City Walk, appears to be a fun area to eat and hang out whether you have park passes and plans or not. Perhaps akin to Disney’s Disney Springs?

Enjoy & Happy New Year!✨

On NYE

Admit it. New Years Eve is always sort of a disappointment, right? You spend big money for a ticket to what is billed as The Party or maybe you celebrate a little more low key with friends. You shell out for a babysitter. If you are me you dress up. . . And inevitably it is a dud. Just does not live up to expectations.

For me this has been a pattern. It’s not that I have a bad time on NYE . I just can’t say I ever thought one was so super remarkable over any other evening.

Last year, our stupid year of COVID, I was stood up by a friend, not due to COVID, but because he had to travel several hours to obtain a vaccine and his friend’s car broke down. So I spent it with my puppy. Probably the best date ever actually.

This year my kids & I did an adventure course this morning and had a great early dinner out. Tonight I am at our resort bathed and in my jammies and glasses. I’m sitting outside in our perfect Florida weather with fireworks going off at the theme parks in the distance drinking some really nice cava. In the background I hear Sponge Bob in one room and Mortal Combat in the other. This might be the best New Years ever…even if I don’t make it to midnight!

TreeUmph Review

Today my family visited TreeUmph in Bradenton, Florida for the first time. It is an ingenious collection of ropes courses set among the trees in rural inland Florida. There are three different courses for different age and skill levels. The more challenging ones take about 3 hours. Kids have to be able to reach to a certain height to participate in the main course.

My oldest son had been once before a few years ago for a birthday party. For the rest of us it was our first experience.

I had signed up ahead and chose the main course for the three boys (ages 13, 14 and 16) and the junior for myself and girls aged 9 & 11. Once we arrived it turned out the youngest was too short to do the junior one. The junior course is actually the first three sections of the main course (5 total) so she was able to go with the boys & they actually graduated her to the main course after she completed the first three. The youngest and I had a lot of fun on the little kids course. She was a natural! I have to admit even on this lower course I was a little intimidated. But it is a great way to overcome any fear of heights! Funny how even though you Know you are strapped in and cannot fall your mind still Feels trepidation about crossing wobbly boards suspended in the air and jumping off to zip across thin air.

One thing I would recommend if you visit is to grab breakfast before right when you get off the highway! There is really nothing else! And you’ll want to fuel your crew first!

Also know that the main course is going to take a lot longer than the little kids one. My daughter was super speedy, unafraid & agile as she is! So we waited a while for the others even after I bought her another round.

We went in the morning which was great because it really started to get crowded after.

I purchased the unlimited water which was good (especially if you don’t want your kids bugging you about how thirsty they are!). Also purchased the gloves which I wore but some boys would not. And one phone strap for each of our groups so we could safely take pictures. Probably didn’t need the gloves or phone strap for the little kids course.

Unique and fun for the whole family! Closest thing I’ve done was in the rainforest of Costa Rica. Enjoy!

Vaccine Truth

Our family has avoided vaccines for some time. I began to educate myself when my oldest boys were little. Of my five, only my three oldest have had any. We live in Florida where the kids have religious exemptions from vaccination for their attendance in public school.

I am grateful to COVID for bringing concerns about vaccines to light.

I thought I’d share my thoughts on why we have objections on religious grounds. (I have other concerns as well but will focus here on the religious reasons.)

Did you know that many common childhood vaccines as well as COVID vaccines are reliant upon fetal cell lines?

“Fetal stem cell lines are an industry standard in scientific and medical research and are commonly used in research and development of most medical products available today.” The Covid vaccine is not the only modern medicine to be made with fetal stem cell research, Steve Staeger, msn.com, 9/15/2021. Certain of the COVID vaccines as well as prescribed childhood vaccines are among these.

The Catholic faith to which our family subscribes, and which mandates a respect for life, permits the use of these vaccines unless an alternative exists to prevent greater harm that could result in the absence of such use. The United States Conference of Catholic Bishops has directed that Catholics should choose Pfizer-BioNTech or Moderna rather than the Johnson & Johnson version which is created using fetal cells. (Summary of recent Catholic doctrine and issuances from various Catholic authorities.)

One bases of this dictate is that the original fetal cells were harvested long ago (1960’s or 70’s by most reports). However, do you recall that it recently came to light that Planned Parenthood was selling fetal tissue? Planned Parenthood stops taking reimbursements for fetal tissue, Stephanie Armour, Wall Street Journal, 2015.

For me the arguments about greater good and the fact that the fetal cells used are from abortions a long time ago (likely 1960’s or 70’s according to most sources) do not completely absolve my own conscientious objections. Each person needs to make his or her own informed decision. My guiding life principle is that my obligation is to take as good care of my body as possible with healthy food derived from ethical and sound sources and other means. I recognize that I am not going to live forever but while I am on earth I want to live as healthy and ethically as possible. This requires clear thinking and decisions based on it. I acknowledge that different results can occur from considering the same material but the objective is to provide the knowledge.

Holidays Without Your Kids 😢🎄🤶

When you are a single mom the first holiday without your kids can be devastating.

This year my kids were with me the last week of school and we tried to incorporate some fun pre-Christmas activities. For example we decorated pre-baked cookies. When they were really little my Mom was still alive and would bring over gingerbread people she had baked for the kiss to decorate. I still feel the absence of her especially at the holidays. I can bake but rarely make time. So ours were pre-baked but it was still fun to decorate one evening when the homework load was light for everyone.

The week leading up to Christmas, their first week of Christmas break, my kids were with dad and they had a lot more time for activities. This year we didn’t get to do a lot of things we would have together so some of those will have to wait until after Christmas.

One thing that you may find really hard to face, as I do, is to see your family sitting in the pew at church on Christmas Eve with your husband of 20 years and his girlfriend. It can drive you to the brink of heartbreak.

When you first divorce you may have high ideas of how well you will get along and co-parent from different houses. But this is unlikely. In my case things went statically south once the other woman openly entered the picture.

Christmases bring out any competition there may be between the parents as you are tempted to make your childrens’ Christmas the most special with gifts and experiences. You have half as much time to pack all this in as you used to and the loss is real.

I have decided that what you have to do is do whatever you need to to stay calm and provide your kids with a stable environment which they may not be receiving on the other end.

Florida Amusement Park Mom Hacks

Today I am going to address Sea World & Busch Gardens because this single mama of five is just finishing a whirlwind weekend pre-Christmas trip to both with my three teenage boys & two pre-teen girls. Not for the feint of heart but so worth the quality family time together & memories made! Follow my hacks to help your trip run smoothly!

We got discounted tickets to Sea World as part of a homeschool group (which we crashed…though we were invited! since we are not currently homeschooling 😅). But otherwise you can get a discounted pass to both Sea World & Busch Gardens since they share ownership.

Let’s start with best places to stay for a large family…I found Town Place Suites very serviceable with a nice sized room overlooking Sea World (amazing view of the roller coasters at night!). With two double beds and a fold out couch it fit 6 snugly but nicely (my youngest is still quite little). Breakfast included which is a great boon with hungry teenage boys. Beautiful pool which we did not get to partake in because we spent all day at the park, then went to dinner at nearby Mellow Mushroom and were off again early.

Don’t stay here! ⬇️👎🏻😝😛❌

Now to Sea World itself. This was our second visit. It has two or three major rides aside from the two standard “wet” rides, the round one & log flume. So the good thing is you really do not need a fast pass/quick que. Ride times vacillate quickly between 5 minutes & 60 minutes so catch it when you can. Manta is a very cool, different ride. Try it!

Called the Park Corniche. On AirBandB. Just say no, like we did with full refund about 5 minutes after arrival because they know they are a scam. Heebie jeebie ghetto sketchfest. No. Just NO.

The big deal at Sea World are the shows. It is so amazing to witness the relationship between the animals& their trainers! This year we saw the orca show first, followed by the sea lions, something new for us. The times for shows are posted outside the arenas where they take place but you can also check online.

I didn’t buy an all day dining pass at Sea World but probably could have used one. Come on, I have Teenage BOYS! We had one expensive meal, lunch, which totaled about $100..,.for chicken nuggets! 🤦‍♀️

Fast forward…Busch Gardens, an easy 1 1/2 journey back over to the west coast for a 10am opening, following our fairly acceptable continental breakfast at Town Place. I had oatmeal. Kids had muffins or fruit loops. Nothing special but a cheap way to feed 6. 👍🏻

At Busch Gardens I had obtained a Black Friday all day dining & quick que pass. Not inexpensive but Worth It. Actually compared it against the annual pass my ex wanted to split …I can recognize a Trojan Horse. If you live locally enough to go there more than once per year, ask yourself do you want to drive all day to ride two rides or do you want to make it worth your while? Our life is busy. I don’t know when we’ll go back. I opted for one big hedonistic day.

So we rode everything we wanted to …except the few that were inexplicably out of order…better than riding them if they’re out of order I suppose but still frustrating and prior notice should be given for those buying a day pass. Also BTW, quick que is not worth it for those who can’t ride the big rides because it is not accredited for little kid rides. So my youngest & I waited for rides in Sesame land while the four bigger kids enjoyed the full bennies of their quick que in the wider park.

The all you can eat is standard fare throughout the park..,pizza…more pizza…pizza anyone? I did find vegetarian Asian at one place. Unfortunately, the pass is designed to encourage you to sit down and eat inside so is not useful at the kiosks. Also unfortunately not useful for alcohol. Could someone please make an all you can drink pass for single mothers traveling with 5 teenagers?! ’d much prefer over the dining one! Don’t judge…I was staying over & have a 16 year old DD for the one mile drive to the hotel.

Breakfast at the Hyatt Place was much more acceptable…real glasses and overnight oats. The stay was more preferable as well because of the large pullout. I slept very comfortably on the pull out, even with my snoring child…guess I was ready for a good night’s sleep after those two big days!

On Race

Why is the government the only one asking about our race? In completing forms for private businesses I cannot recall a time when I was asked to provide my race. However every government form always asks me to choose one, with no option of choosing prefer not to answer. The most recent one had a category titled Caucasian/Latino. This got me wondering what Caucasian means, something I had never previously considered while dutifully checking that box while otherwise never being otherwise preoccupied by my race or others’.

In fact Wikipedia describes Caucasian as “an obsolete racial classification of human beings.”

Miriam Webster’s states that the term refers to those of or from what was historically known as the Caucus Region (think broadly modern day Russia and Turkey).

A Sapiens.org article states that “[t]he word “‘Caucasian’ is used in the U.S. to describe white people but it doesn’t indicate anything real.” The term itself actually has racist origins as it was purportedly derived by German anatomist Johann Blumenbach to describe God’s race as opposed to other “degenerate” classifications, and his theory was used in the U.S. to justify and institutionalize racism. (Why Do We Keep Using the Term Caucasians by Yolanda Moses, 2/1/17.)

Why is the U.S. government inquiring about race, either on any of its agency forms or in Census data? If we want to be non-racist let’s stop classifying based on shades of one’s skin color.

Requiring Reformation

Gotcha! 😉 Bet you thought this was going to be a politics or possibly religion article. Instead thought I’d offer a humorous piece (though still interwoven with my thoughts in general as you will find…).

Things to be reformed or possibly eradicated:

1. The way you are supposed to open refrigerated canned biscuits and cinnamon rolls. 🥐Do you know what I’m taking about? Maybe you are all home bakers and do not lower yourselves to this quick breakfast fix to feeding hungry kiddos. My mom was a master baker and always bringing over freshly baked breads, cookies, rolls, cakes, whatever you can imagine. But she left us for heaven in 2017 and 💔😢though I bake👩‍🍳, having learned from her, managing my five kid household and businesses👩‍💼👩‍💻 does not leave much time on a day to day basis. So, getting back to those canned thingies that are probably making Mom roll (sorry, Mom!), in this age of technology and innovation, why are we still struggling to pop it open by shoving a spoon in which works about 2% of the time, leaving plus otherwise to start hacking it with a knife like I did this morning which (fair warning!) created a bit of a mess.,❌

2. The School Book Fair. 📚📚📚✏️Hello. 🤔🤷‍♀️Amazon? Can someone explain the reason to invest all the time, energy & effort to set up a huge display to provide a synthetic shopping experience for children where no matter how poor you are parents are swindled into sending in hard earned dollars to be spent on smelly erasers? Thank you PTO.❌

3. School Pictures. 📸🤳Hello. Digital camera? iPhone? Snapchat? Instagram? A million selfies on your child’s phone? 🙅‍♀️Just no. I am not going to pay some third rate government contracted photographer to take pictures of my non-smiling, messy haired child with a brown background. I am definitely not going to spend money to hang it on my wall. (Okay, the first year I got swindled and they still hang but no more!) It hearkens back to my childhood when they used to use the same comb to flatten all our hair while we stood obediently in line (eww!). I’m sorry, but when, despite all the changes in the way we do life (cell phones, computers, grocery delivery…) why are we still having the government take pictures of our children and guilting parents into buying them? Seriously? Please think of some other way to demand money from school age children required to send their children to you every day for 7 hours.❌

Fall Green Smoothie 🥤🥗

My usual green smoothie recipe is baby spinach, some baby kale, cucumber, celery & ginger root, all organic, with filtered water. But it’s the time of year to add a bit of fall color to my usual green drink (still comes out green, no worries!) with the addition of fresh cranberries and orange. Yum!