Knott's Scary Farm- Buena Park, CA

What do amusement parks do to pack in the people in the off season - that time between summer vacation and Christmas Break? Why dress up for Halloween of course! This marked my third or fourth visit to Knotts "Halloween Haunt" which is better known as Knotts Scary Farm by locals. This amusement park manages to get all of us parents of pre and young teens as well as teens and young adults to shell out $40-$50 to come in after dark and go through gross mazes, be scared by chain saw toting clowns, and go on rides that promise to scare you even without monsters. What more could you ask for?

I hate roller coasters and most rides since I get terrible motion sickness, but I love to be included in my teens' lives...this time my 13 year old and her friend let me join them, but rarely held my hand when goons and ghouls jumped out of the dark. Me, I loved the fog and the clowns...they loved the rides.

This is a definite right of passage for all parents of young teens in Southern CA. Be sure to catch this experience some time.

Traveler IQ Challenge- TripAdvisor

I'm a self employed mom. I don't play many games online or by myself, though I LOVE games. This is one that I could probably play all day. It's on Trip Advisor and it is a "where in the world is? kind of game. Have fun trying and playing:

Traveler IQ Challenge- TripAdvisor

Vacation Mamma Suffers No Vacation Stress

Wow - I've been neglecting this blog something awful. I wish it were because I've been off traveling. Instead, I've been building my new vacation rental property management business. I took and passed my CA RE Broker's license and have been building a boutique property management firm specializing in beach rentals. It's a huge labor, love, and learning curve. Needless to say there hasn't been a lot of time or money for travel the last 6-9 months.

Hmmm...you know it's bad when your teenager says - "gee we haven't been anywhere good since last summer." Well of course I disagree (she's 15 we don't agree on much these days). There's dad's birthday RV rental and staying at Casper Wilderness Park outside San Juan Capistrano. There's that trip to Las Vegas (the Venetian, MGM Grand, Ka and Dane Cook) in December. There's my birthday trip to LA (architectural tour, Westin Bonaventura, and Wicked at the gorgeous Pantages Theater) in January. "Those don't count" she recants. In fact she says "we should have skipped those and saved for something big." Of course I'm thinking "we did save for something big: new furniture and blinds for the family room." Of course it's hard to feel good about that when we are sitting in the same family room with the sun keeping the TV faded on the same worn love seat while we still wait for said furniture. Funny how spoiled my family has become when we don't count $1000 weekends as vacations any more!

Well instead of getting depressed...I'll instead focus on my blessings near to home and those mini trips in addition to those above that I have been able to enjoy:
- a day trip to the Antelope Valley Poppy Preserve near Lancaster, CA (2.5 hours from south Orange County CA)
- a day trip to Temecula for a Cancer for College Golf Tournament with Will Ferrell (I lost that photo when my iPhone broke)
- an overnight trip wine tasting in Temecula, CA with my book club just an hour away (we are reading our 100th book this fall! - and trying to get on Oprah)
- an overnight business trip to Las Vegas two weeks ago for a Vacation Rental Manager's seminar/conference with my good friend and business partner (where we checked out the condotel MGM Signature Towers (fantastic), the new club LAX, and surprisingly good appetizers and wine at the Golden Nugget during our conference)
-countless trips to the beach at T-Street in San Clemente,CA to drop my teenager
-at least two sunsets at Pine's Park in Dana Point, CA with my pre teen
-innumerable trips to North Coast Village in Oceanside, CA to look at and set up new vacation rentals for my clients at the beach
-many afternoons in my back yard pool hear in Southern CA when most others still have the heat running (at least I just have to heat my pool and spa)

Whew - stress gone! I'm not feeling stressed at all now...hmm time to get planning our trip to Maine this summer and to check out colleges in NYC and Boston!

MyNauticalMile - Boat and Fishing Charters: Top 10 Fishing Vacation Destinations

Though not a fisherman really, I do love to travel, and have been known to troll for a fish or two.

Of this gentleman's blog list about the top ten fishing spots, I have actually visited his number one spot (Quepos near Manual Antonio national park in Costa Rica - a great vacation), number 6 (Alaska - where I cruised the inside passage with my mom on our only real vacation together and caught my very own 25 lb king salmon), and British Columbia (where I've only explored Victoria by land). Good taste this man has...

MyNauticalMile - Boat and Fishing Charters: Top 10 Fishing Vacation Destinations: "Top 10 Fishing Vacation Destinations"

Eight questions to ask before booking a vacation rental - SmarterTravel.com

Eight questions to ask before booking a vacation rental - SmarterTravel.com: "Eight questions to ask before booking a vacation rental
by Sarah Pascarella, SmarterTravel.com Staff - March 14, 2008


As my friends and family will attest, I'm a big fan of vacation rentals: It's my first-choice accommodations type whenever I take a trip. But before I book, I always research the property thoroughly. This gives me peace of mind because I know the place I'm renting is clean and comfortable, and also ensures I won't get any surprise charges after checking out."