LEGO® KidsFest - Information and Giveaway

Next weekend is the LEGO KidsFest Denver.  

Did you know that:  Approximately 7 LEGO® sets are sold each second and that children around the world spend 5 billion hours a year playing with LEGO® bricks?

"Courtesy of LEGO® KidsFest." 

I am not sure who is more excited, me or the kids. In fact, if they didn’t want to go, I’d go on my own. In my lifetime I’ve built pirate ships, villages, castles, dragons, houses, yards, anything you can image with the multicolored bricks, I’ve built. My son would spend hours building things out if his sets.

If you’ve always been a fan of building and seeing how something comes together, gather your kids and your friends, then head out to the LEGO® KidsFEST event.

Here is the official information:

Dates: April 27-29, 2012

Location: Colorado Convention Center: 700 14th Street Denver, CO 80202 www.denverconvention.com

DATES & SESSIONS:

Friday, April 27

4 pm - 8:30 pm

Saturday, April 28
Session I: 9 am – 1:30 pm
Session II: 3 pm – 7:30 pm

Sunday, April 29
Session I: 9 am – 1:30 pm
Session II: 3 pm – 7:30 pm

(Note: Each session offers the same exhibits and activities)

I am also doing a giveaway for (2) tickets to the opening night session on Friday, April 27, 2012   (4-8:30pm session)

Wanna chance to win?

Just visit this link and follow the directions. US Family Guide will randomly pick the winners from these entries and I’ll contact the winner on Tuesday, April 24, 2012. 

(All opinions are my own, I’d like to extend a Thank you to US Family Guide  for the opportunity to work on this campaign and for the tickets my family and I received.)

Cook Street and Pasta Carbonara

Dave and I got a great gift from his parents for Christmas in 2009. Two gift cards to Cook Street here in Denver. If you have not had the chance to go I want to tell you to schedule a class NOW! Perhaps we can get the Mile High Mama's to have one of our Mother's nights out there! Great idea right?



After month's of looking at classes, etc, we finally decided on Pasta, Pasta, Pasta class because we were going to learn how to make our own pasta. Romantic date night with a meal handmade by us... pretty cool concept right?



It is....



So we showed up and the class holds approximately 24 people. Couples, friends, singletons, pretty much everyone that is looking for a night out and learning something new. We got there around 7pm, got something to drink, an antipasto plate to tide us over and very cool people watching.



After filling out a disclaimer "If you burn yourself... it's not our fault", we settle in with our table neighbors and then onto Chef teaching us about Pasta.



It was hands on, an egg, some flour and tons of stirring. Then kneading it (LOTS of kneading), wine and meeting new people. By the end we learned to make Classic Pasta Carbonara, Penne Pasta with Sausage, Garlic and Tomato and finally a chocolate Pasta with Raspberry Coulis.



So... I'm gonna share the Classic Pasta Carbonara with you, sounds fab right??
I did do some modifications to it.

Classic Pasta Carbonara

2 servings of spaghetti or linguine noodles
2 egg yolks
Heavy cream (slightly less cream than egg yolk)
1 tablespoon of oil (I like to use the pancetta oil)
Splash of white wine (if you won't drink it, don't cook with it)

Topping:
2 oz pancetta
Romano cheese grated
Parsely (finely chopped)

Cook the noodles

• While the noodles are cooking put two egg yolks and heavy cream into the bowl, beat, then add cheese, parsley, salt and pepper, set aside
  
• Cook the butter and olive oil until the butter has melted, add pancetta and cook fully. Add white wine and reduce completely, remove from heat.

When ready to serve, add hot pasta to bowl with egg yolks and cheese mixture. Toss to coat well and add pancetta. Adjust seasonings and serve immediately, garnish with grated cheese and plenty of pepper.

Trekaroo - Top 5 places to eat with your kids in Denver

When you are on vacation it's a good idea to try the local fare. Run of the Mill, every other corner restaurants are great, however to get a true taste of the vacation spot, you need to step out of your comfort zone and try something fun.

Even if you are just looking for a fun place to expand your child's palette or you are looking for an entertaining night out with your kids here is a list of GREAT restaurants in Denver that will be sure to make you the "coolest" parent around.

• Top 5 Places to eat with your Kids in Denver by Crunchy Green Mom

Here are quick links to the wonderful recommendations from Trekaroo Families and those of local Colorado mom bloggers who jumped onboard the Trekaroo KidsMobile for it's stop in Denver.

• Top Activities for Kids in Denver, CO – voted by Trekaroo parents

• Top 5 Museums for Kids in Denver by The Vacation Gals.
  
• Five Favorite Indoor Water Parks In the Denver Area. by Bantering Blonde and Mom Active
  
• Top 5 Places to eat with your Kids in Denver by Crunchy Green Mom
• How to spend a day or weekend with kids in Denver by WeeblesWobblog
  
• Our Family's Staycation Experiences in Colorado by Is dis normal or dysfunctional

Read all about Trekaroo's KidsMobile Stop in Denver, CO

Other Resources for Denver, CO

• All 104 Activities for Kids in and around Denver, CO
  
• Kid-friendly hotels in and around Denver, CO
• Ski Resorts in Colorado with Kid Programs by TravelPangs
• Sledding and Tubing Hills in Colorado - TravelPangs
• Wintertime Day Trips from Colorado Springs - Gretchen

Next stop for the KidsMobile - Charlotte, North Carolina

The Trekaroo KidsMobile is a blog carnival with a twist. It’s designed to provide a unique opportunity for mom and dad bloggers to be featured on Trekaroo while

1) expressing their unique point of view.
2) getting a web of link exchanges. Jump on board!

Free Days in Denver 2009

The Scientific and Cultural Facilities District have 20 years of making it possible with Free Days at various organizations in and around Denver.

Here is the list for the remainder of 2009, take your kids, visitors or just go on a date with your significant other!

Denver Art Museum

www.denverartmuseum.org

June 6

August 1

September 5

October 3

************************************

Denver Botanic Gardens

www.botanicgardens.org

July 20

August 20

September 19

October 23

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Denver Botanic Gardens at Chatfield

www.botanicgardens.org

June 5

August 7

November 6

December 4

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Denver Museum of Nature and Science

www.dmns.org

June 10

July 13

August 12

September 13

October 4

November 2

November 22

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Denver Zoo

www.denverzoo.org

October 7

October 25

November 8

November 11

Tempe to Denver

I left this.....




And woke up to this...





Can I go back?
It was romantic, sweet, fast paced, relaxing and educational

When is the next vacation?

I have a ton of photos, videos and even a giveaway
coming up!

Hold on to your hats ladies and gents... it's gonna be a busy week!