Road Trip: Arkansas Trip: (35th birthday) Laser Tag, Go-Carts, and Purple Cow

While in Arkansas I celebrated my 35th birthday on Tuesday, August 28th, and spent time with a lot of great people this year.  The day before my birthday I celebrated with John's family and the day of my birthday I spent it with my brother and sister-in-law, Ryan, John, and Skylar and played laser tag and rode on go carts.  I certainly didn't feel like I had just turned 35, that's for sure!  The laser tag was a lot of fun, but the go carts reminded me of when we were kids and my dad would take us to ride go carts at random times during my childhood.  I had a blast!

Skylar and I had a good time packing up and getting things together for our trip.


We fly with our Vapur bottles all the time.  If you haven't seen these you're missing out.  They roll up and tuck away nicely.  They also hold any type of cold beverage you want to take on the plane.



I'm a list maker, so I have to write down everything in order to remember to pack it up.  This dry erase board is the perfect list-making tool for that.

  
In Portland we waited about 30 minutes to go through the TSA check point.




And this is one reason I love flying Southwest.  "BAGS FLY FREE!"  Pretty ridiculous that you have to pay for two checked bags on other airlines.

When I got off the plane in Little Rock, Arkansas, John greeted me with a bouquet of white daisies and it was such a great surprise after flying all day.

 

I had a great few days bringing in 35 while in Arkansas.  I first went out to eat with my family.  We ate at cute little, country restaurant called Colton's in Hot Springs.  It's one of those places that allows you to throw the peanut shell-casings on the floor.  Will and Kayla brought a cute cake for the staff to come out and sing Happy Birthday and make of big scene for everyone around us, of course.  I have to admit, watching it happen to other people is fun, but having it happen to you, not so much. :-)  Paybacks are always fun though!

It still feels strange knowing I am now 35 and have officially started the downhill climb to 40.  I feel like I'm 29, or even younger.

The "birthday candle" and cheese cake I enjoyed with John's family.  The "birthday candle" I was told will last years and years of birthdays still to come.  Ha!

The Laser Tag bunch.  Nothing like shooting the ones you love with red rays of  competitive love.

  

Skylar and Ryan were ready to go!

Inside the Laser Tag arena.

  

My team did pretty darn good!

At the Purple Cow everything seems to be colored purple.  From the milkshakes to the cheese cake, this place puts a purple tint into almost anything you eat or drink.  Makes me wonder how many "dyes" are used in making all of this purple.  Yikes!

  

  

  Right now The Purple Cow has their shakes 1/2 price on Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesdays from 2:00PM-5:00PM  for all after-school-ers.


Dinner at Colton's Steakhouse the night of my birthday.  And my cake that I was surprised with.  Such a sweet thing.

My take-home gifts from Colton's Steakhouse and Grill the night before my birthday.

It was a great way to bring in 35.  Of course turning 35 meant I was afraid I would be hitting mid-life crisis and might go out and splurge on a Lamborghini, or something else very unnecessary, but I didn't.  Ha! And actually getting to spend a birthday with my family in over 8 years was great!  I loved it all!  

We spent a lot of time around John's house, but wouldn't you know it, it rained on us while we were there too.  I blame myself, I brought it with me from Oregon.  Ha!

The day we went to leave, it was early in the morning and still dark out.  Skylar was excited to fly on a plane again, though.  I was sad to leave once again. 

We always do the EarlyBird Check-In with Southwest Airlines, and I highly recommend it to anyone flying.  After your child is over the age of 5 with Southwest, you don't get early boarding to find a seat with your child.  EarlyBird Check-In allows you to board in the first group of boarders and it only cost an additional $20 (as of August 2012).

After an eight hour flight we finally touched down in Portland, Oregon and Jeff was there to greet us.

And to hold onto my southern ways, we stopped at Popeyes on the way home.

And unfortunately, the drive home took a bit longer than expected.

  

And Skylar didn't make it, he was exhausted.  

Eco-Tip:  Shopping locally can not only benefit your own community, it can also save you on gas and money overall.  Shopping locally keeps money in your own town and helps the economy overall in different areas.  We control our own economy, so why not control it close to home?  For this and other tips on going green visit, The Earth and Me Go Green.

Road Trip: Arkansas Trip: Grant County Museum

While on holiday in Arkansas we visited the Grant County Museum in Sheridan, Arkansas.  It was quite a packed museum full of memorabilia and local history.  The place has just about everything you could possibly want to know, from history, about Grant County.  

The animal display of all the animals native to Grant County.

Indian arrowheads found in and around the state of Arkansas.

This was interesting.  The Saline River in Arkansas is a fresh water river, but contains a mild salt content toward the bottom of the river.  Salt was collected and stored in a kettle similar to the one in this picture.  The salt content is still there, but the collection of the salt has stopped.

Female clothing, milk making urns, and a purse from the 1920s.

An actual covered wagon that was used during the pioneer days.  This covered wagon reminded me of places in Oregon where the history of the Oregon Trail is talked about and on display.  

The Civil War room.  This is the only room that I could really relate to when it comes to history.  My family is really big into Civil War reenacting and I knew quite a lot about the items on display in this room.  I was sad to know that the 9th Arkansas Infantry wasn't represented in this room though.  

John and Skylar.

Skylar had no idea what a tape deck was.  I found it comical that a tape deck was in a museum....ALREADY!  

Posters from the war.  

Skylar loved the fire trucks!

Overall the museum was a great visit and I hated that we were short on time.  It's definitely a place I would like to go back and see again. 

Eco-Tip:  Saving water isn't all that bad, like turning the water off when you brush your teeth, or washing a full load of laundry.  Water is a valuable resource and should be conserved whenever possible.  If your showers run more than five minutes consider getting a shower timer like this one HERE!  For this and other green living tips visit, The Earth and Me Go Green.

Organic fruit salad

Using the fruits that are in season for September, you can make a quick and very easy fruit salad with just using a few items you have on-hand.  This is a great way to get kids involved in the kitchen, as well.

What you will need:

• A Bowl

• Organic Honey

• Lemon or Lime Juice (Fresh is best)

• In-season Fruits

Using fruits, such as apples, apricots, bananas, grapes(make sure these are organic), pineapple and even pears, peel and dice the fruits to bite-sized pieces.  Add them all to the bowl and set aside.

In a separate bowl combine 2 tablespoons of honey and 3 tablespoons of lemon or lime juice.  Drizzle the honey into the juice slowly while whisking with a fork rather quickly.  Once it's combined, pour the dressing over the fruits and toss. 

Place in the refrigerator for several hours before serving.  This is a great fruit cocktail for parties or just a lazy afternoon at home and the best part....IT'S HEALTHY!

ENJOY!

Eco-Tip:  Playing in the dirt was once frowned upon by many mothers, but anymore, playing in the dirt can be a good thing.  Growing your own garden, having house plants, or even a kitchen window herb plant is a great way to live more green.  Plants give us the oxygen we need to survive and in turn, many plants can give us more than just that.  Grow something, anything, it's your choice and enjoy the benefits of what playing in the dirt can really give you.  For this and other tips on going green visit, The Earth and Me Go Green.