We Visited the Children's Museum of Indianapolis

I was finally able to finish this video from our trip a couple weeks back. I was up till 3 AM with the final edits because my computer was acting up and I was super paranoid that if I didn't finish it would have all been scrapped! There was a couple of close calls and potty language to say the least.

We went to the Children's Museum of Indianapolis on one of the last weekends of the Doc McStuffins exhibit. We left Penny with the grandparents. We love her so much but she is such an active and independent toddler that I was afraid the entire day would be chasing her around and we really wanted the older kiddos to enjoy the day. 

It is the largest children's museum in the world and it was very interactive and worth the 3 hour road trip from Chicago! Check out our fun below and subscribe to our YouTube channel!

We road tripped out to the Children's Museum of Indianapolis from Chicago just in time to see the Doc McStuffins exhibit before it ended. We had so much fun and fortunately the grandparents watch Penny for the day, which made the day much less stressful and enjoyable for the older kids!

Magical Mondays: Disney Resort Review

Magical Mondays

Being an avid Disney vacationer, a former Disney College Program Cast Member and graduate, and daughter to vacation club members.... We travel to Disney World.... A LOT!

I've been blessed to have experienced such amazing resorts in our travels to the vacation spot that is practically a city in itself.

For countdown to our next Disney Vacation this September 2014, I thought I start my very first series to celebrate one of my favorite places in the world.

Resorts that I have experienced in the Walt Disney World Resort

• Coronado Springs
• Old Key West
• Saratoga Springs
• Port Orleans
• All Stars Resorts
• The Beach Club
• Board Walk
• Animal Kingdom

I feel like I'm missing some, seeing as how the number of Resorts Disney offers seems endless! Keep in mind, the Villas at each resort is only available to DVC (Disney Vacation Club) Members.

My

favorite

stays would have to be..

..

• Saratoga Springs Tree House Villas
• Animal Kingdom Kadani Villas
• The Beach Club Villas.

Today I would like share the experience of the...

Disney's Beach Club Resort

Location

Epcot's backyard!

The Beach Club Resort is located in a prime area around the Crescent Lake. Within this resort area there is a short walk around the lake to the Board Walk Resort, The Yacht Club, and The Swan and Dolphin. It's also a short walk to the back entrance to Epcot where you will enter right in the heart of the World Showcase. This would be ideal if you just wanted to bop on by one of the amazing restaurants for an evening meal. There is also a short boat trip that will take you to Hollywood Studios! This location is my absolute favorite and offers many entertaining options outside of the Resort.

• Walk to Boardwalk & Jellyrolls
• Walk to Epcot's backdoor
• Boat ride to Hollywood Studios
• Crescent Lake-water activities

The Pools

Sandy Beach Pool!

One of the best things about this resort is the pool!! Stormalong Bay is a playground of water activities for both child and adult. It is the only pool that offers a sandy beach where young children can hang out and build sandcastles. My girls enjoyed this pool so much and still talk about it to this day.

Picture found here

• Sandy Beach
• Life-size ship wreck water slide
• Lazy River
• 3 hot tub spas

Sandy beach @ Stormalong Bay pool

The Digs

Character Breakfast Buffet to die for!

Character breakfast anyone? Instead of having to travel to find one of these Disney vacation musts, you can have the option of walking to one in your own Resort!! Cape May Cafe is a fantastic restaurant that offers the Famous Character Breakfast buffet with options for any picky eater, including the Mickey Waffles! You will want to make advanced reservations for this one.

• Cape May Cafe
• Hurricane Hanna's Bar and Grill
• Beaches and Cream Soda Shop
• Martha's Vineyard
• Endless supply of dining options through Epcot and the other resorts and restaurants located on Crescent Lake.

Cape May Character Breakfast Buffet!

The Room

We had the luxury of experiencing the one bedroom villa suite with a garden view. The Villa's are offered to the Vacation Club members and they are fantastic. The whirlpool tub and bathroom were huge and the villa resembled that of a beach home. The general area included a couch with a sitting area and TV, a dining area with a full kitchen. A full kitchen is great if you are staying a couple days and don't want to spend all of your money vacation money on food. You can have a service deliver groceries and stock up on late night snacks and easy meals.

What to do!

The Beach Club is packed with activities and areas for all ages. It really is a resort for anyone.

• Sandcastle Club (ages 3-12)
• Movies under the stars on the beach ( this was a family favorite!)
• Campfire on the Beach - Sing along and yummy snacks
• Boat and Bike rentals
• Volleyball court
• Spa and Health Club

Highlights...

• Location
• Stormalong Bay Pool
• Cape May Cafe - Character Breakfast
• The Villa's
• The activities 

I hope you enjoyed this weeks Magical Monday's! This review expresses my personal experience at The Disney Beach Club Resort and Villa. I was not compensated for this post, I was just so impressed with the resort that I had to share.

Have a Magical Monday everyone!

If you like what you see here, be kind and follow along on 

Preparing for Easter

Not too long ago, I purchased The Beginner's Bible for my girls. They're very interested with the stories and graphics and it has been a great introduction into teaching them about Christ.

This Easter I plan on pulling stories from the bible to help explain the meaning of Easter and why we celebrate. Easter has always been Bella's favorite holiday! Perhaps it's the fun pastel colors, pretty dress up, or the fuzzy little bunny.

We are very excited to coloring eggs this year and I'm trying a more natural method that you will have to check back and see!

Additional Resources and Suggestions

Resurrection Eggs - 2014 updated edition By Familylife Crack open the glorious story of Jesus' resurrection! Stored in a plastic carton, a dozen rainbow-hued eggs are filled with surprises. Pop them open and find miniature symbols of Easter inside! An updated companion booklet in English and Spanish features illustrated Bible stories explaining the significance of each object. Includes decorative stickers! Ages 5 and up.

God Gave Us Easter By Lisa Tawn Bergren / WaterBrook Press Curious Little Cub loved learning about Christmas. Now she's wondering about Easter---and peppering Papa polar bear with questions. Why do we celebrate Easter? What happened on that day? What does it mean for our faith? With simple words and easy-to-understand biblical insights, Papa explains the meaning of Jesus' death and resurrection. Ages 3 to 8. 40 pages, hardcover from Waterbrook.

The Beginner's Bible: Timeless Children's Stories Introduce children to the stories and characters of the Bible with this best-loved Bible storybook. Now updated with vibrant new art, text and stories, more than 90 favorite Bible stories come to life, making The Beginner's Bible the perfect starting point for children. They will enjoy the fun illustrations of Noah helping the elephant onto the ark, Jonah praying inside the fish, and more, as they discover The Beginner's Bible just like millions of children before. Recommended for ages 4-8.

*This post contains my affiliate link that helps support my family.

If you like what you see today, please follow along subscribe by email

Our Disney Trip 2013: Part 1

These pictures are a little late but I wanted to share our amazing trip with you all!!!

We went at the end of January and the weather was wonderful but slightly cold for swimming(we did anyways!).

Disney Beach Club

The Pirate ship with the slide!

We stayed at the Disney's Beach Club Resort, part of the Vacation Club!! The Villas were very spacious! Our favorite part... The pool!!!

How do they do that... the

sandy beach

pool? Surprisingly super clean too. Bella could sit there and build sand castles all day! Another thing I loved about the resort was that it was right off the Boardwalk and short walk to Epcot! Yes, we could walk to the back entrance of Epcot, without any lines and start in the World Showcase right by France!! One of the evenings Grandma and Grandpa offered to watch the kiddos and the hubs and I had a date night through World Showcase! We had coffee and chocolate croissants in France!

Animal Kingdom

We started off our first full day at Animal Kingdom! I knew the girls were really going to enjoy this park. We got on the safari ride right as it opened! This is the best time for this ride. I have been on this attraction more times I can count and this was by far the best time!! We got to see all the animals!

I saw this cure garden scape as we left the Festival of the Lion King!

 Bella really got a kick out of the African musicians! She became pretty shy when the guy started smiling at her.

Hollywood Studios and Epcot

We didn't really spend much time at these two parks. By mid day the kiddies were cranky and hungry and all Bella wanted to do was swim. Here are some of the photo ops I remembered to get.

If any of you get a chance, I highly recommend stopping at the

Honey I Shrunk The Kids playground

!! I've always loved this attraction and it gives the kids a chance to run around and blow off some steam in a giant backyard playground just like the movie!!! Bella really enjoyed this.

Ride along with the giant ant or climb in a "spider web"

Epcot

Bella wasn't too excited about the Sea's with Nemo and Friends ride. I think she was more afraid of the sharks. We sort of had to

force

 convince her that it would be fun.

See her enthusiasm?

 Afterwards was fun... you can read all about it

here

.

It never stops amazing me at the little things she finds so much joy in. There was a fountain in Epcot, Bella thought it would be fun to just run through it. On a normal day I would have yelled and tried to stop her from soaking her clothes and shoes but today I was a little more carefree. I did manage to convince her to put her swimsuit on, but by that time it was a little too late...

Reminds me of something I have once done... although I wasn't so young:)

Stay tuned for Part 2 with Magic Kingdom and Character greetings!!! Oh there are so many pictures to share!

Coconut Chicken Tenders

Studio Movie Grill Coconut Chicken Tenders

Have any of you heard of the new movie theater 

Studio Movie Grill

? It's a super modern, amazingly CLEAN movie theater that serves food and (alcoholic) beverages. My husband and I have been so many times because we found this amazing deal on groupon for 1 movie and free drink for $6!!

This post is not a paid advertisement... I was not compensated for this post... just so you know.

I just wanted to share the awesomeness of this place. It's a pretty great date night for the parents who have to fit a dinner and show in a couple hours!

One of my favorite items on the menu (and there are many) are their Coconut Chicken Tenders!!! OMG these things are so crunchy and so delicous! Let's not forget the option of sweet potato fries to go along!

So I tried to recreate this recipe on my own and I have to say... I almost nailed it!

We made these yummy bad boys last week and they hit the spot! I had to make them on two separate occasions to get the egg wash right. Here you go and I hope you all enjoy!

I  like to explain by stations... These are the three stations (in order) that you will have your chicken tenders go through. I bought a bag of frozen chicken tenders and actually cut them in half. This helped get them cook all the way through with out burning the crust. I would recommend completely thawing out the chicken tenders first!

Flour station...

Drop your tenders in a plate of flour. This takes off excess moisture on the chicken tenders and allows the egg wash and crust to stick better.

Egg wash Station.....

1 egg and 1/2 cup milk whisked together.

Dip your floured tenders in the egg wash and fully coat.

Crumb Station....

Dip your coated tenders in the crumb bowl and coat evenly.

50/50 of coconut flakes and panko bread crumbs. I like to chop the coconut flakes into smaller flakes but the choice is yours. I generally use 1 cup of each.

Seasonings.....

1/2 tablespoon Garlic powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon pepper

1/2 teaspoon sugar

Mix all ingredients in the Crumb Station together.

Cook...

There are a couple methods for cooking your chicken tenders. You can bake them in the oven or pan fry them.... I pan fry then for the golden crispy crust. I usually do three tenders in a large fry pan with a nice coat of vegetable oil on the bottom. I turn the heat about half way. It takes about 1 minute per side. Test the first couple you do to make sure they are cooked all the way through. You may need to adjust the heat or oil level.

This recipe comes pretty close to the one I had at 

studio movie grill

!!