Thrilling rides is not the only reason my family loves Universal Orlando Resort. Food is a close second. To say we love to eat is an understatement. These 5 restaurants are always on our must do list when we visit Universal Studios and Islands of Adventures. 

The first one, and my absolute favorite, is Mythos. It's located in Islands of Adventure.  This award-winning, full service restaurant creates the feel of a Mediterranean grotto on a distant ocean. The food is delicious. Mythos features a mix of Mediterranean, Asian, and American cuisine with options like Greek salad, pad Thai wraps, burgers, and my personal favorite, Cranberry Blue Cheese Crusted Pork.  
Our second favorite restaurant is Antojitos. This may come as a shock to those that know us, since Chris hates Mexican food. But surprisingly, he really enjoyed Antojitos. Once you step into the restaurant you will feel like you are south of the border. The menu features  favorites like guacamole, tacos and fajitas, but also traditional creations like hearty Mar Tierra Stew and Mahi Veracruzana. Antojitos is located on City Walk. One of the perks for staying at a Universal Resort, is that you have priority seating at restaurants like Antojitos.

Third on my list, is Toothsome Chocolate Emporium located on City Walk close to the entrance of Islands of Adventure The Steampunk theme of the restaurant is part of the appeal, but what brings my family back are the macaroons,  gourmet chocolates, and one of kind milkshakes and sundaes big enough to feed a party of 4! Flavors like Chocolate Brownie Bark, Bacon Brittle, and Salted Caramel Flan makes it impossible to choose just one. 

My ten year old's favorite is Red Oven Pizza Bakery located in the heart of City Walk. She would eat there for every meal if we let her. There are so many options to choose from, but my family sticks to traditional pepperoni, and it never disappoints. Want to take your food on the go? No, problem. There is a convenient take out window. 

This last restaurant shocked even me. We stumbled upon it while riding rides at Universal Studios. The Classic Monsters Cafe is a quick service restaurant that features a favorite for everyone such as rotisserie chicken, pizza, salads, ribs, cheeseburgers, and hot dogs. This restaurant pays homage to Universal's horror movie history. The inside features themed dining areas like Dracula's castle, the swamp, and the flying saucer. 

More Summer Adventures

It's been awhile since I've filled you in on our explorations out here in West Texas. And since next weekend is a long weekend, you know we are going to be finding somewhere else to explore. 

About a month ago, we decided to get in the car and just drive. We had talked about going to Big Bend National Park, but then Chris said "how about Roswell, New Mexico?". All I could imagine was space ships and aliens, so I was game. 


Oh, it was the cheesiest place I've ever been too! I do not know what I was expecting, but I can assure you, it was not that! Chris said it was exactly how it had pictured it. 

We did eat lunch at a very good diner called Big D's Downtown Dive. The food was delicious! Totally worth the drive. We also went to Riodosa, NM. It reminded me of Gatlinburg, but probably back in the 70's. I have a feeling we will be going back up there this winter. I'm excited about snow!

For Jerri Lynn's birthday, we went hiking at McKittrick Canyon. After hiking 7 miles, we drove to the Guadalupe National Park. 

And of course, we had had to get a picture of El Capitain. 

Hiking in the canyon was so breathtaking. I have never felt so small. I can only imagine when we really go exploring the Grand Canyon, how small I'm gonna feel. 

Right down the road from our rental house is a mountain bike park. Chris and Zoë have had mountain bikes since December/January. When we got out here, Chris got me one as well, so we have been taking advantage of the trails. 


None of us have conquered the green trail well enough to advance to the blue trail (I probably never will lol), but Zoë has really impressed me on her mountain bike trail skills! I'm very proud of her because I know it's something that's not in her comfort zone. 

 

But she is a determined kid. 

Some more Texas fun

Well, we have had a very busy summer. I cannot believe it will be over in 2 weeks! We have had fun exploring our new home. And there is so much more we want to see and do.

A few months ago, Zoë said she wanted to go to the Petroleum Museum in Midland. Midland is seriously 15 minutes away from our rental house. So, of course, off to the Petroleum Museum, we went. 

Zoë enjoyed it so much, she made sure we brought her daddy and pawpaw a few weeks later so they could see it also.

For Father's Day, we went to the Southwest Museum. It's also on Midland. They had a really cool Planetarium and Art Gallery.

We stumbled upon a state park about 30 minutes west of us in Monahans, TX that has 70ft sand dunes. 

We tried to slide down the sand dunes with these little disc, but it's not as easy as it looks. We managed to slide down a few, and it was fun. However, I am

not a fan of all that sand. Especially, without any water. 

Universal Studios Express Pass

As a travel agent, I get asked a lot, and I mean A LOT, if the Express Pass at Universal Studios Orlando is worth it. My answer, every time, is YES! 

If you aren't familiar, Universal Express Pass allows you to skip the lines at most Universal Studios Florida and Universal's Islands of Adventure attractions. Universal Studios made a recent change that allows the Express Pass to be used for all Wizarding World of Harry Potter rides, including Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey and Harry Potter and the Escape from Gringotts.  This was HUGE in my opinion. I have seen the wait times for these two attractions to be well into 2 hours. Who wants to spend that much time in line? I know I don't.  

Is there a cost? Yes, the Express Pass is $89 per person, per day. But guess what?! Universal Studios offers the Express Pass for free if you stay at certain onsite resorts. Yep, if you book a resort package at Loews Royal Pacific Resort, the Hard Rock Resort, or Loews Portifino Bay Resort, Universal Studios gives your entire party the Express Pass FREE for your entire stay.


I definitely recommend staying at one of the resorts that offer the complimentary Express Pass. We have stayed at Royal Pacific and the Hard Rock. What I love most about these two resorts  is they are within walking distance to the parks and City Walk, but that's a topic for another post.

I know I don't want to spend my vacation waiting around in lines all day. I want to be able to ride all the rides Universal Studios and Islands of Adventure has to offer, and ride them multiple times a day. (Express Pass isn't currently offered at Volcano Bay.) Whether I'm visiting Universal Studios Orlando for day or several days, I always add on the Express Pass option. It's worth every penny! 

House Update

I think it's time I updated everyone on how the house is coming along. 

We came out here for the first time in April during Spring Break. We needed to find a place to live and fast. That was the most stressful week of my life. lol. I was completely overwhelmed. 

We looked at tons of houses, but nothing felt like home. After the first day of looking at houses on the market, we stumbled in a model home and toyed with idea of doing a new construction. 

When we told our realtor about the possibility of building, she took us to a model home of a completely different builder than the ones we had looked at the day before. We were very impressed and put down a deposit for our new home that day!  

We did have an issue with the city when they tried to get our building permit. Apparently the city's computer system just went kaput. Great. But, luckily it didn't really mess anything up. 

 We are currently in a rental home until October. Our builder assures us that we will meet our closing date of the end of September.  The plus side of living in the desert: no rain to hold up construction. 

(foyer)

(living room)

We should have a roof this week, and as soon as the inspections get done, we will have sheet rock. 

(Zoë's bathroom)

Once they get the sheet rock in, Chris and I get to pick out closet systems. You know you are old when picking out closet shelving  excites you. :)

Slime making, BBQ Eating fun

Well, week 3 here in Texas, and I think it's safe to say that we like our new home. 😉

Zoë has made a lifetime friend. They enjoy spending hours, upon hours, of looking up different ways to make slime. Zoë even added stuff to my grocery list so that she could make slime at home. 

 

After a week of getting settled, we ventured out without the husbands. We made a trip to Midland to tour George W Bush's childhood home. 

 

I didn't take any pictures of the inside of the home, but it was a very cute home. I loved seeing all the pictures of young George W and his siblings. 

Last weekend, Chris and I took a road trip down to Austin. 

 

Our main reason for going was to attend a powerlifting seminar. I actually learned a few things. Not sure if I'll implement them in my lifting though. I have a tendency to just do what I want. lol!

 

We were told to not waste our time waiting for a table at Franklins (a famous Austin BBQ place) because Stiles Switch was just as good, if not better. Well, I'll be the first to say, Texas BBQ is not my thing. I am not a fan at all. I did love the mac and cheese though! It reminded me of my daddy's. 

After we finished eating, we played washers (kind of like corn hole). Let me just tell you, Chris cheats. 😜 Well, he doesn't cheat at washers, but he does cheat at arcade games. We ended our night with a trip to Dave and Busters to play games and drink a few beers. 

 

It was exactly what I needed. An actual date night with my honey. 

 

My girl had a great weekend with her new family. 😂 

 

We've had some pretty crazy weather the last couple of days. The temps are getting as high as 110 degrees which makes for severe afternoon storms. We were told it didn't rain here. Well, apparently, we brought the rain with us. 

Wednesday night we had a really bad hail storm blow in. 

 

Check out the size of that hail! We had some damage done to the rental and to Chris's and his mom's cars. Zoë and I weren't home during the storm. We were swimming with friends. And lucky for us, the weather wasn't bad where we were. 

I got a pretty busy week next week with Disney releasing it's 2018 Walt Disney World packages, so I'm gonna enjoy this weekend with my loves.