Gatorland, Orlando

What's the first thing that comes to mind when you think of Orlando, Florida?

For a lot of people, it's probably Disney World. Maybe it's oranges. For me, the first thing that pops into my mind is...

...alligators!

Last month I visited Florida for the first time when I traveled to Orlando for the annual Mom 2.0 conference. Like always, I added a few extra days onto my trip so I could explore the area a little while I was there. I was pretty flexible with my plans for those days, but there was one thing I wanted to make sure I saw, and that was alligators. And, boy, did I see a LOT of alligators!

Ok, before you get worried, I didn't see any of these alligators just out and about on the streets of Orlando - although I'm sure they're there if you know where to look! No, these alligators were all in the one place. One fabulous place named Gatorland!

My first experience with Gatorland was an Instagram post that featured the larger than life walk through alligator at the entrance to the park. I'm a total sucker for kitsch roadside attractions, so combined with my desire to see alligators, I just knew that I had to add a visit to Gatorland to my trip to Orlando.

Let's take a look at my visit to Gatorland - or Gatorlando as Lola says it should be called...

Glowing Wild at Denver Zoo

If you’re looking for somewhere to spend a day filled with wonder, excitement and a wealth of wildlife, Denver Zoo is always a great choice. Right now, it’s also one of the most colorful places to visit, day or night. But only for a few more days.

Through May 4th, Denver Zoo is home to Glowing Wild; an awe inspiring exhibition filled with larger than life colorful lanterns by Tianyu Arts & Culture. 

Sixty unique scenes featuring various flora and fauna inspired lanterns light up the night on May 2nd through 4th, however, if you happen to visit the zoo during the day, you’ll also be in for a treat.

I visited Denver Zoo today with Mathilde’s class for a school field trip and had the pleasure of being able to see all of the Glowing Wild sculptures for myself.

Let’s take a look…

 

Designmuseum Danmark in Copenhagen

A little while back I shared my visit to Kirkland Museum here in Denver, and it got me thinking about our visit to the Designmuseum Danmark in Copenhagen way back in 2017.  Despite being one of my favorite places we visited in Copenhagen, I’m still yet to share it here on the blog. In fact, there’s still a lot from our Copenhagen trip that I still need to share in general, so stay tuned for a little bit of playing catch up.

I’m a huge fan of mid century modern design, and no one does it better than the Danes, so visiting a museum full of famous Danish designs was such a treat. Designmuseum Danmark features examples of some of Denmark’s most famous industrial design, including furniture, lighting, household goods, toys, graphic design, and so much more. 

Let’s check it out…

Hatch Show Print, Nashville

I recently shared a round up of all the fun things I did during my trip to Nashville, Tennessee last year, and today I'm going into a little more detail about one of my absolute favorite places that I visited.

Back in the 90s I was a graphic design and illustration student at university and technical college. My favorite medium to create was always letterpress and block printing. Give me a lino block and some carving tools, and I'll be content for hours. Maybe give me some bandaids too, because I'm a little out of practice!

Printing using these techniques has just always felt so satisfying to me. The fluidity of the carving tools as they make their way through the lino, the feeling of setting the type in place just so, that tacky feeling of the ink as the brayer rolls it onto the printing area, the clunk of the printing press, the feeling as it rolls smoothly over type, the reveal as the paper is lifted from the press or block... So satisfying to create in such a hands on way, especially in this digital world. 

When I was looking into things to do and see in Nashville, one place in particular caught my eye: Hatch Show Print!

Things to do in Nashville - Even if you don't like Country Music!

Have you ever visited Nashville, Tennessee?

For most of us, when we think of Nashville, country music is the first thing that comes to mind. As someone who does not like country music at all, Nashville wasn’t somewhere I’d really ever thought of visiting. But then last year Mom 2.0 (a conference for parent entrepreneurs and creators) happened to be held in Nashville and it gave me the opportunity to visit.

Now, I must admit, that before I really looked into Nashville I honestly didn’t think that the city would offer much to visitors like me, but the more I looked into it, the more excited I got about exploring. It turns out that whether you like country music or not, Nashville is a vibrant and colorful city with a ton of fun for tourists of all ages.

Today I’m sharing everything I did during my visit to Nashville. If you’re planning a visit and want to know what to do in Nashville that doesn’t focus too much on country music, then read on…