Category "Experiences"

Splurge on a Fancy Dinner | Culinary Experience

Have you every wanted to try an expensive restaurant but always talked yourself out of going there?

splurge-fancy-dinner-restaurant-gift

I’m guilty.

There is an expensive steak restaurant near where I live that I’ve always wanted to try. It’s so close to my house I drive by it almost every day.

The restaurant has a great reputation, and I’ve heard about the delicious food from lots of people I know. So why haven’t I gone there yet?

It’s not that I can’t afford it. I just always come up with different reasons not to. Let’s see…

I’d rather spend that money on something else I want. I feel guilty spending that much money on steak when I’m perfectly happy with the steak served at other less expensive restaurants. I end up deciding to try  another new restaurant in town that isn’t so expensive.

But guess what this lucky lady got for Christmas?! My thoughtful husband gave a gift card to the expensive steak restaurant in my Christmas stocking!

Since I would never splurge on going to that restaurant, he decided he would do it for me!

Continue Reading

Pie Face Showdown Game | Whipped Cream Fun For All Ages

If it involves whipped cream, you know it’s going to be a fun time! I have a game that will entertain people age 2 to 102.

Are you ready to create some hysterical memories with your family and friends?

The Pie Face Showdown Game gives everyone the chance to throw whipped cream in someone’s face!

pie-face-showdown-game-gift

How you play Pie Face Showdown:

Two people compete by pushing the red button on their side as fast as they can to move the throwing arm loaded with whipped cream towards their opponent. When the loaded arm reaches either end, it pops up throwing the whipped cream SPLAT into the loser’s face.

My son and I played Pie Face Showdown with my sister’s family, and did we laugh and laugh! The players and everyone watching are giddy and excited to see who gets creamed. As you can see, we also ended up with hilarious photos of whipped cream splattered faces.

Continue Reading

Gift Card to New Store in Town

It’s fun to experience a new store in your town or city. The excitement and buzz of a grand opening is usually all over the media and the talk of the office.

trader-joes-gift-card-thoughtful-gift-ideaFor my birthday, my boss gave me a gift card to Trader Joe’s that recently opened its first store in Oklahoma City.

What a pleasant surprise! I’ve been to Trader Joe’s in other cities and have waited 26 years for it to open here because I love Trader Joe’s!

When we visit our friends in New Mexico, we always make a stop and purchase what we can haul back home in the car!

I like finding unique, interesting and delicious foods at reasonable prices and can’t wait to see if they still carry my favorite granola nut cereal, a Trader Joe’s specialty.

Continue Reading

One Day Staycation

Couples who are also parents often don’t have much alone time together, especially during the day.

one-day-staycation-experience

Recently, I talked my husband into a one-day staycation. We both took off from work on a Wednesday so we could hang out all day while our kids were at day care. Our own version of a play date!

Finally, we could do the fun things we’d been wishing to do but could never find the time with our busy schedules as working parents of a baby and a toddler.

As we planned what we’d do that day, we felt that long lost feeling of freedom slowly come back. We can do what we want, when we want! Woo hoo!

Our daytime date definitely had a different vibe compared to our evening dates. For one thing, we had a lot more choices about what to do. Forget about the usual dinner and a movie date.

Continue Reading

Grape Stomp & Wine Tasting at Vineyard

This gift is for wine lovers. You start with grapes and end with a favorite bottle of wine!

grape-stomp-wine-tasting-vineyard-experience

For my mother-in-law’s birthday, I took her to Tres Suenos Winery & Vineyard for a one-of-a-kind experience. Together, we participated in a grape harvest, a grape stomp and a wine tasting.

Grape Harvest

We arrived at the vineyard at 7 a.m. What a gorgeous piece of land! After checking in, we grabbed some buckets and shears and started snipping bunches of grapes off the vine. They looked so beautiful, round and plump!

I must say it was a gratifying experience to see grapes growing in nature. Before this, our only experience with bunches of grapes was buying them in the clear plastic bags at the grocery store.

We plucked some grapes with our hands and popped them into our mouths, enjoying the sweet juice while spitting out the seeds.

Continue Reading

Birthday Adventure With Adult Siblings

- - Birthday, Experiences

A Birthday Adventure! Doesn’t that sound fun? Especially if it is with your siblings.

birthday-adventure-epic-fail-store-closed-thoughtful-gift-ideaTo celebrate my sister-in-law’s 64th birthday, I suggested my husband and his brother take their sister on a secret trip. They both thought it would be a great idea as the three of them had never-ever been on a trip together as adults.

Road Trip With Siblings

Randy and Kyle picked up Lesa and drove 1 1/2 hours to Tulsa. They teased her all the way about what was waiting for her at their destination. Did she like ink and pain? A hint of tattoos. It’s so like brothers to try and scare their sister!

They arrived at their destination — Rustic Cuff, a one-of-a-kind jewelry store phenomenon. Continue Reading

Hop In The Car One Day Road Trips

Our lifelong friends, Curtis and Susan, my husband, and I have come up with a fun experience to spend time together – Hop in the Car One Day Road Trips.

hop-in-the-car-one-day-travels-with-friends-thoughtful-gift-ideaIn the early years, we spent a lot of time together. We doubled dated and later were in each other’s wedding parties. We even shared holidays.

Our lives got much busier when we were raising our children, and we spent less and less time together. But now that our kids are grown, you would think we would have more time on our hands but our lives are as busy as ever.

We may have dinner together for a few short hours in a noise-filled chain restaurant once a year. This was pitiful and had to change!

I came across the best restaurants for home cooked meals across the state of Oklahoma on TravelOK.com. We decided to plan Saturday trips every four to six weeks to visit Mom and Pop type places to eat and our travels included siteseeing along the way. Continue Reading

Pick-Your-Own Farm Experience

What’s even better than a farmer’s market for fresh produce and a fresh experience?

pick-your-own-farm-experience-gift

Pick-your-own farms! You’ll get the freshest, most flavorful fruits and vegetables for less money.

Even better, it’s a memorable and delicious way to spend time with friends and loved ones.

My husband and I took our toddler son to pick blackberries for the first time this summer. (It was my first time too!)

We enjoyed hunting for juicy, ripe blackberries among the blackberry bushes and filling up our pint-sized berry baskets.

Continue Reading

The Gift of Song | Singing Lessons

Is there something you have always wanted to learn to do? I love to sing. I just couldn’t carry a tune so I decided to take singing lessons.

gift-of-song-singing-lessons-thoughtful-gift-ideaI found a voice teacher at a local university who gave private lessons. She was surprised when I told her my request. 

“I want to learn how to sing one song – Fever.”

I’ve heard it all my life on the radio and in live musicals.

Peggy Lee made the song famous, and my favorite rendition is by Michael Buble.

It is one sexy song!

Never know how much I love you
Never know how much I care
When you put your arms around me
I get a fever that’s so hard to bear

You give me fever
When you kiss me
Fever when you hold me tight
Fever in the morning
Fever all through the night

Continue Reading

Balloon Room Surprise

Balloons turn adults into little kids again, especially when they appear in an unexpected place like the office!

balloon-room-surprise-prank-giftTurning someone’s work space, whether it’s their office or cubicle, into a playroom of colorful balloons is a great way to surprise someone for their birthday, work anniversary, or to congratulate them on an achievement.

Giving someone a Balloon Room Surprise could mean blowing up enough balloons to cover their floor and their desk, or it could mean filling the entire room with balloons all the way to the ceiling!

For a thoughtful twist to the Balloon Room Surprise, hide a gift among the balloons for them to find!

Continue Reading