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Month: February 2014

Fun at the Newest Farrell’s in Buena Park!

/ Food, Let's Eat!

We were so excited to attend a pre-opening VIP event last weekend at the new Farrell’s in Buena Park. It actually didn’t feel like we even went to a restaurant, it was more like this giant party with 200 of our newest friends, that just kept on going!
Upon our arrival in the parking lot, the girls immediately spotted the Medevial Times mobile and insisted on posing for a picture with it! (Little did they know, they’d soon meet the actual knights inside the restaurant!)

I love the location of this newest Farrell’s because it’s very close to so many of the family attractions that the city of Buena Park has to offer, including Knott’s Berry Farm and Medevial Times. After checking in with the Farrell’s hostess, we were greeted by Alesha from Medevial Times. She had a promotional table set up and was handing out Medevial Times swag and coupons for the attraction. Alesha really interacted with my girls and even visited our table a few times, once we were seated.

Two of the Medevial Times’ Knights were walking around inside the restaurant, passing out t-shirts and crowns and helping the Farrell’s crew deliver some of the exciting desserts that require a whole lot of singing and hoopla! The girls REALLY wanted to order The Zoo, which is one of those desserts, JUST so they could have it delivered by the knights, but we also knew there was NO WAY that the four of us could finish a dessert that had like 1000 scoops of ice cream!
The energy of the entire staff at Farrell’s was amazing and it was something you could feel right when you walked in the front door! I think this is why it felt like we were at a party. While you’re at your table, you are constantly being invited to participate in songs and clapping and although it does seem like there’s non-stop drum banging occurring throughout your entire visit (because there is), you’re so busy having fun that you don’t seem to mind it nor the fact that your child or children are NOT sitting quietly at your table and that’s OK under these circumstances!

We started off with Farrell’s Ooey Gooey Cheese Sticks as an appetizer. For lunch, I ordered the Fabulous French Dip sandwich and the girls all ordered the sliders off of the children’s menu. There was even an option to upgrade the regular fries to chili cheese fries, so of course they hopped on that opportunity right away! We were careful NOT to eat too much regular food since we were ultimately trying to save room for some of their infamously crazy-good desserts! 

Farrell’s isn’t just a fun family restaurant, it’s a total entertainment package, something that you don’t get at typical restaurant. This was apparent after just a few of the talented and energetic crew spent some time at our table, amusing the girls. First, “Max” stopped by our table, and the girls immediately spotted one of the buttons he was wearing which had a pickle on it. He then explained to me that the button was actually Mr. Bob Farrell’s original motto. 

I think the girls took that as their cue to not only start asking him for pickles every time he passed by our table, but also to nickname him “Mr. Pickles“! Not long after that, we came to learn that “Mr. Pickles” was actually half of an infamous entertainment duo that you can probably meet at just about any Farrell’s community event, and at a future Farrell’s openings. The other half of the duo was nicknamed “Mr. Jake” by the girls. Jake is best known as “The Purveyor of Good Times” in the Farrell’s world. These 2 guys were so good with my girls, brought them stickers, pickles and took boatloads of pics with them. I think the girls instantly became lifelong fans after spending about 5 minutes with this duo! 

The girls were extremely impressed when they got to witness an epic ice cream eating contest between the Medevial Times knights and the team of “Mr. Pickles” and “Mr. Jake“.  Each team took a very different approach to how they were going to beat out the other one. While the knights continued mowing through their trough, the Farrell’s duo actually utilized glasses of water to wash it down, while stirring the ice cream and making it more liquid. I couldn’t actually watch for very long, but the fact that “Mr. Jake” did it all with a camera headband on is even more hilarious! I’m kinda wondering where THAT video footage is? 

When it came time for our own desserts, we decided to share an order of the “Ice Cream Nachos” (yep, they exist) and a “Banana Split” and yep…our desserts were accompanied by drumbeats and a song! Both of these desserts were giant and yummy! I jokingly told the girls, who are all competitive cheerleaders, that if this had been one of their cheer competitions, that they would’ve placed first! (I may have helped them a little bit) 

 Everything about Farrell’s is so nostalgic. Their menus are printed on newsprint and you actually can take them home with you. The drinks are served in (plastic) vintage Coca-Cola glasses and there are little American flags stuck into just about every appetizer, burger and dessert. The decor is mostly black and white, with touches of red here and there and each table has an old-fashioned stained glass lamp hanging above it. The servers wear uniforms adorned with armbands and these adorable straw hats that are available for purchase in their shop.

Each Farrell’s location features a shop where you can buy logo merchandise and choose from a HUGE variety of old-fashioned candies. The shop also has a ton of other fun trinkets available, including Farrell’s mustaches. 

My daughter and her entourage just didn’t want to leave the place! I don’t think we were there any less than 3 hours!  After they spent time getting their posters autographed by their staff favorites, and taking MORE pictures with them, it was finally time to say goodbye! 

Whether you remember Farrell’s from its way-back-when original locations, or you are just learning about it now, it’s something you need to experience just once! Emi hasn’t stopped talking about it since the other day and is just begging to go back again. It was THAT much fun! 
                                                Farrell’s in Buena Park is NOW OPEN! 
                                                                               650 Beach Blvd.
                                                                         Buena Park, CA 90620
                                                                       Phone # (714) 484-9700

 

 

It’s Time to Show My #DisneySide…..Again!

/ Disney

If you aren’t familiar with Disney’s most recent campaign, Disney Side, it’s this really fun campaign spotlighting Disney lovers’ own love for Disney, whether it be showing their #DisneySide while in a Disney park or on a Disney vacation or showing it off at home or just in their everyday life, it’s a chance to have some fun and show the rest of the (social media) world at the same time!
One of the latest opportunities to participate in this campaign was the chance to host a #DisneySide @Home Celebration. There were 1000s of applicants who applied to host one of these parties at home, to be held between February 15 and March 1st, integrating a party kit which they chosen hosts would be receiving. I decided to apply for it but felt discouraged at first when January 10th came and went and I didn’t receive an acceptance email. I didn’t talk about it to anyone, but I was disappointed, until I saw some other people mention online that they also had heard nothing nor had they heard of others getting an acceptance email. At that point, a little bit of hope re-ignited inside of me. I still chose not to talk about it to anyone though. I sometimes feel like if you talk about something too much, it won’t happen. 

And then I got this……. I was ecstatic!!! 

My Facebook newsfeed was blowing up with a ton of people who had also received the magical email, as were my Instagram and Twitter timelines. It was such an exciting day for so many of us. I don’t think I slept that night because all of a sudden my brain wouldn’t shut off with ideas for my #DisneySide party! I was literally up for work at 2:30 a.m. that next morning because my wheels wouldn’t stop turning enough for me to sleep. I think this euphoria stayed with me for about 2 days before I could go back to being normal again, whatever that is. 
 Next came more excitement because at this point, the chosen ones were now all waiting for our “magical boxes” to be delivered by UPS! My mind started spinning again because it seemed like every post I’d see was relating to the date of delivery, the weight of the box or boxes, people trying to guess what was going to be in the boxes, people trying to ask others if they knew about the contents of the box, etc. It was nuts! I understand how excited and anxious everyone was, but for me, I just wanted to be completely surprised and I knew my box would come at some point! I tried to stay away from anything posted that might give anything away and I definitely didn’t worry myself about when my box was being delivered. One day I got the email about my delivery and coincidentally, I happened to be home on the day my box was delivered. Not only was I home on that day, but I was home at the moment the UPS guy rang my doorbell, which is rare, since I’m hardly ever home for more than 5 minutes at a time! Boy was he in for a surprise! Just as he was trying to hand me the big box, with the magical blue #DisneySide tape on it, I asked if we could take a selfie? At first he seemed confused, and actually acted as if I were making a joke. It didn’t take him long to learn just how serious I was! Yep, as I started to explain WHAT the importance of the box was, I also stressed that it was vital I make “as big a deal as possible” about the delivery of my party kit! 

I swear our UPS guy was cut out for this stuff! After we took the first shot with my iphone, I realized that it didn’t get the wording on the box in, plus it was actually my bad side, so we switched spots! 

Then he kept offering to switch poses and spots and try different angles! He was HILARIOUS and the best sport about it! He told me that he often chats with my husband when he delivers to our house, so he was no stranger to convo on my porch! I’m seriously considering inviting him to my #DisneySide party! I mean, he WAS one of the first highlights of this process. People who saw the pic, LOVED how fun our UPS guy is!
Next came the box opening. Unfortunately my box was delivered around 2pm and my daughter was still in school which meant that I HAD to wait until I picked her up from school to tell her about it and actually open it. 

Emi was so excited about all of the goodies that were inside of our box, but her biggest “WOW!!!” came right when she opened the box and saw there was an American Tourister suitcase!!! And it was purple!

 I think the suitcase may have been the coolest part for Emi! 
 

We were both overwhelmed by all of the goodies inside of the suitcase though! There was a whole bunch of Mickey Mouse Clubhouse plates, cups, cupcake liners and a matching tablecloth with some coordinating hanging decorations! There was a hostess planning kit with suggestions for games and even a face painting guide. There were Craisins, like they serve in the parks, and these adorable rubber bracelets and stickers and some adorable Minnie and Mickey prints, all to give out to our guests. There was also a huge box of printer photo paper from HP! I know there were other things too. The list just goes on.  It was all so Magical! I mean seriously, how amazing to have been chosen for this opportunity and now this generous pile of things to help us with our party? Wow! 
I guess it’s  time to get to planning! Stay tuned for more details and a post about our #DisneySide Party!  http://disneyside.disneyparks.disney.go.com

Sofia the First: Songs from Enchancia CD & Giveaway!

/ Disney, Entertainment, Music
I will fully admit that I actually enjoy watching many of my daughter’s Disney Channel and Disney Junior shows and movies with her. Although”Sofia the First” is aimed at the younger, preschool audience, it is one of those feel-good shows that seems to enamor her whenever it comes on. The storyline is about a young girl, “Sofia”, who transforms from a “regular girl” into a princess, and becomes part of a blended family, overnight, after her mother marries a king. The episodes are lighthearted and often include a positive, empowering message in them, that they are convey to the  young audience.
 I recently had the opportunity to preview the new CD, “Sofia the First: Songs from Enchancia” on Walt Disney Records. The day that the CD arrived was what we like to call “A Happy Mail Day” at our house! You can see my daughter doing one of her “signature incognito poses” with the envelope!
After listening to the CD just once, Emily and I had already fallen in love with so many of the songs! Now we can’t stop singing them on a daily basis! This CD is what’s currently playing in my car!
 Sofia the First, Songs from Enchancia includes 15 tracks, a bonus track & 4 karaoke instrumentals!
 Here’s a list of the songs on the CD:
1. Sisters and Brothers-Sofia
2. Merraway Cove-Sven, Oona and Sofia
3. The Love We Share-Ariel and Sofia
4. Bigger is Better-Amber
5. (You Can Always) Count on Bailywick-Cast
6. Make It Right-Belle and Sofia
7. Good Little Witch (Ballad)-Sofia
8. Good Little Witch-Lucinda and Sofia
 9. The Ride of Your Lives-Jasmine, Sofia and Amber
10.A Recipe for Adventure-Aunt Tilly and Sofia
11.Bring My Best Friend Back-Clover and Sofia
12.The Simple Life-Cast
13.Make Way for Miss Nettle-Miss Nettle
14.Enchancia-Ruby, Jade and Sofia
BONUS TRACK 
15.Be Who You Wanna Be-Jake and Sofia
BONUS KARAOKE INSTRUMENTALS
16.Merraway Cove
17.Bigger is Better
 18.Good Little Witch
19.A Recipe for Adventure”Sofia the First: Songs from Enchancia” is available now for purchase on Amazon or for immediate download on iTunes !

 Here comes the magical part….Disney Music is offering three (3) lucky readers of Over the Top Mommy, the chance to win a  copy of “Sofia the First: Songs from Enchancia” of their very own! This giveaway is open to US Residents only, ages 18+ years of age and ends 2/26. Enter the Rafflecopter below for your chance(s) to win! Good luck everyone! a Rafflecopter giveawayI am a participating Influencer at The Entertainment New Media Network. I have received free product for review and to give to my readers. I was not compensated for this review and all expressed opinions are strictly my own.