One Last Summer Hurrah

 
All summer long, I have been hoping to get myself to Kennywood. Lucky for me, I have friends like Kelly who also have the same fabulous ideas. For those of you unfamiliar with what I'm talking about Kennywood is an amusement park located in Pittsburgh. Of course we wait until the very last weekend it's open to go. Well, at least until it reopens for Phantom Fright Nights. We may be in our twenties, but we'll always be kids at heart. Needless to say the park was extremely packed and every ride line was nearly an hour long. That didn't stop us.

We started our day off with a little shopping at the SouthSide Works. For most, it's impossible to leave that place without indulging at the Cheesecake Factory. Do you know a better way to kick off an evening at Kennywood? I sure don't.

 
I do have a minor confession to make. I'm a hidden scaredy-cat. I put on a believable front until I hear a gut wrenching scream from someone on the ride. Then the fear turns me into a different person. Don't get me wrong I love going on rides, but I am a chicken to the extreme while riding. For the most part, I close my eyes and hold on for dear life. Every once in a while you might hear a squeal, an obstinacy or an "I hate you". After the ride is over and the initial fear cools off, I really enjoy myself. Kelly may have enjoyed my reactions more than the rides. I already got a call from her this week reminding me of what I was like. Amusement parks truly are one of my favorite places to go. All the silly things that I do on the rides are simply uncontrollable coping mechanisms for my fear of heights and reenacting the roller coaster scene from Final Destination. No big!

Kennywood 2012

Please ignore the green on our faces. It is not some new makeup trend that we're trying out. Apparently they have already begun to decorate for Fright Nights. This means transforming all the lights to spooky colors.

This venture to Kennywood brought back some wonderful memories of a vacation I went on at the beginning of summer. My mother and I went to Disney World in Orlando. A tradition we recently brought back to life. When I was a munchkin, Disney World was a place I visited yearly mostly because my grandparents had condos in Florida. This was a convenient bonus to my childhood. After they sold them, our usual summer vacations turned into the Outer Banks and Vegas. (In no way am I complaining about that!) Last year, to help satisfy my Harry Potter obsession, my mom and I took a mini vacation to Orlando to visit Universal Studios and an impromptu visit to Disney World. We enjoyed the trip so much we had to go back this year for more. It was honestly one of the best trips of my life. There's nothing I love more than spending quality time with my mommy.

Animal Kingdom 2012

Epcot 2012

Magic Kingdom 2012

Universal Studios 2012

Magic Kingdom 2011

Good news to all Disney dorks. Walt Disney World is currently expanding the Magic Kingdom. The special addition is known as the New Fantasyland. Some may say this is a place where mermaids sing, beauties tell tales, beasts roar and elephants fly. Storybook Circus is already open to guests and the Enchanted Forest will be opening in December 2012. Ladies, if you're a fan of Belle or Ariel get excited! The little girl inside me is already packing her seashell purse. 

Back to reality... The weekend ended in the best way possible, with a Pittsburgh Steelers win! A much better outcome than last week's game. The New York Jets may have two hunky quarterbacks, but looks won't win you football games. Mondays are always a little bit better in Steeler Nation after a Pittsburgh Steelers win!