Birthday Freebies

August was my birthday month. The downside is that I turned one year older. But on the upside, I received a lot of freebies thanks to free memberships, rewards programs, email subscriptions, etc. Here's what I enjoyed for free this year:

Pizza (with purchase of one pizza) from Pieology:

Dessert from California Pizza Kitchen:

Drink from Starbucks:

Smoothie from Jamba Juice:

Scoop of ice cream from Baskin Robbins:

I guess birthdays aren't so bad after all! 

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Wedding Anniversary Dinner at Alan Wong's

Alan Wong's is one of the top restaurants for celebrating a special occasion.  We saw this personally as we dined there on a very busy Tuesday night in celebration of our 13th wedding anniversary and were among many diners celebrating birthdays and other special occasions.

During our entire dining experience, service was on point and quite exceptional.  Their drink menu was extensive and presented on an ipad.  Chef de cuisine Miya Nishimura offers two different tasting menus in addition to the ala carte menu.  My husband ordered the ciopinno while I opted for my favorite -  the ginger crusted onaga.  Both entrees are served with your option of white or brown rice or mashed potatoes.  

City view.



Poke tacos.



Ginger Crusted Onaga.



Ciopinno.

We both loved our meals, but my husband conceded that the ginger crusted onaga was the clear winner of the two.  I love the texture of the crust and the sauce pairs so well with the corn.  You must try it!

Since we were out on a school night, we decided to skip dessert, but our server was so thoughtful and brought out a special dessert for us.  An excellent end to a delicious meal.

A delicious s'mores dessert.

Alan Wong's is open daily for dinner.  Valet parking is available for a fee of $5.


Alan Wong's  
1857 S. King Street
808-949-2526  


   


 

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40 Cities by 40…More or Less.


As I am nearing my 39th birthday, Gem had the best idea of creating a 40-things-to-do by 40 list.  But what to do?  I did some research online to garner some inspiration (apparently this is a thing!) and although I have an existing bucket list, marathons and death defying acts just don’t make the cut.  Realistically, there's not much on my list that I could get done besides cutting my hair short before next year (and even that's a stretch).

I started thinking of all the different places I’ve visited because traveling has recently become a big interest and something I love to do.  It's true I haven't traveled the world, but I've compiled a list of about 35 cities (more or less) that I have visited.  This leaves me with the goal of exploring five new cities before I turn 40.  Where would you go?  Wish me luck and I will keep you up to date!

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Birthday Party Vendor Idea: Stuff-A-Bubble by Balloons N Beyond

 

Attending first birthday parties have been getting less frequent for me so I'm not up to speed with a lot of frequently used vendors, but this past weekend I attended a party with Stuff-A-Bubble by Balloons N Beyond.  

 

I was most impressed with this activity where children can customize their very own balloon bubbles which the company claim are durable enough to play with outdoors and may last over 3 months.  When put to the Cade Test, my rambunctious 4 year old son took the gold by popping the balloon within the first hour.  However, he made another and it's doing fine on day three.  

 

Stuff-A-Bubble was a big hit with all the kids!  By the end of the party all the children had gathered in one area tossing and playing with their balloons.  It was really nice to see the kids having so much fun!  

For pricing information, click here.  

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Birthday Parties at the Living Art Marine Center

About 3 months ago I started brainstorming where I would have my son's 4th birthday party.  When I queried him, he shouted Chuck E. Cheese!  I considered it, but thought no way.  Too chaotic.  Plus, Cade always seems to get sick (no matter how diligent we are with the hand wipes) after partying with Mr. Cheese.  I thought about holding the party at our house complete with bounce house as entertainment.  Then I remembered how about a third of the kids caught hand, foot and mouth after a friend's bounce house party.  We would be leaving for a Disneyland trip within 5 days of Cade's party and I wasn't going to take any chances (knock on wood).

For many years, I had heard about the Living Art Marine Center, but never visited.  Their reviews on Yelp were mixed, but their party packages fit my needs perfectly.  I chose the Shirts and Shrimp package ($195) which includes making your own Opae Ula pet shrimp home and printing a t-shirt as well as touch and feel sea animals.  I liked how the party would be hosted by a party facilitator, activity based, and that the kids could take home the t-shirts and aquariums instead of a goody bag.  I also really liked that the price included up to 10 children and that the adults were free.  

The Living Art Marine Center is located near the airport and parking is free.  We started the party with pizza from Big Kahuna's in the center's indoor lunch room, which can seat about 30 guests comfortably.  After cupcakes, the children had about an hour for the scheduled activities.  Bill, our facilitator, was great at keeping the children engaged and asking them questions.  I loved how interactive and educational this party was for the kids.  

Class is in session!

The kids had fun customizing their own shrimp aquariums.  

With proper care, the shrimp can live up to 20 years!

The kids were also able to design and print their own shirts.  They could choose from sharks, dolphins, and shells.

This was a very educational birthday party.  The children learned about all kinds of sea life.

We opted for an add on so the birthday boy could feed the eels!

The children wash their hands before touching the sea animals.

Lauren held a strawberry crab.  

The kids enjoyed touching the sea animals the most.

Not only were the parents impressed with all the activities, the kids had a great time.  My 8 year old niece declared it the best party ever.  If you're looking for an affordable, fun and interactive party, the Living Art Marine Center is an excellent choice!


Living Art Marine Center
3239 Ualena Street #100
Honolulu, HI 96819
808-841-8080

Thank you to the Living Art Marine Center for extending a media discount for the party package.  All opinions are my own.

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808 Bounce

We recently attended a birthday party at 808 Bounce at Pearlridge.

When we arrived the place was just PACKED with kids.

There were 3 big bouncers and a little one designated for kids 3 and under.  There's also an air hockey table that seemed to be pretty popular. 

It was pretty scary because there were so many little kids and big kids in the bouncers at the same time that I was concerned that someone was going to get seriously hurt.

Fortunately I didn't see too many crying kids or accidents, and for the most part, all of the kids were pretty careful.

The party area (tables and chairs in the back of the facility) can be reserved for 2 hours for $150, and the price is $9.75 per child (child can go in and out of the facility all day long with the wristband provided).

Note-they're pretty strict in terms of what constitutes a "party" - even if you come in on your own with just your kids and you bring in a small cake, or if you come in with several kids, you could be charged the "party" rate.

I personally did not like the set up of the area.  There was a HUGE bouncer in the middle of the facility which made it very difficult for all the parents to keep track of their kids.  Perhaps if it was moved off towards the wall it would be easier for parents to watch their kids.

Another thing I didn't like about the place is that there is no restroom (808 Bounce is on the 2nd floor in Uptown and the nearest restroom is on the first floor).

Also, kids go into the bouncer with bare feet, and they'll just run around the entire place bare feet going from bouncer to bouncer, so be prepared to have kids with very dirty feet.

However, despite all of that, the staff seemed very friendly and helpful, and after all, it's for the kids, and I must say, the kids had a BLAST!  DS1 and DS2 just kept going from one bouncer to another and we had a hard time getting them to leave! 

All of the other kids there seemed to really enjoy themselves too.

For a birthday party venue, I personally thought it was just "okay," but simply as a venue for kids to have fun and release energy, it's great!

808 Bounce: Pearlridge Center Uptown • Phase 2 98-1005 Moanalua Road Aiea, HI 96701; (808) 354-8509

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IHOP - Pearl City

Since we received coupons via email for free kids meals at IHOP for the boys' birthday after joining the Pancake Revolution e-Club, we headed down to the Pearl City location to take advantage of the free offer (coupon was for a Free Rooty Jr or any kids meal at the same price)!

DS1 got the Macaroni & Cheese, which came with Fresh Fruit.

DS2 got the Crispy Chicken Strips, which also came with Fresh Fruit (not pictured).

Both Kids Meals were $4.99 (drink not included).

DH and I ended up getting the Holiday Hotcakes Combos (they were out of the Eggnog Pancakes that day).

DH ordered the Pumpkin Praline Pancakes with the Ultimate Bacon & Sausage Combo.

I ordered the White Chocolate Chip Pancakes (I forgot to take a picture!) with the Bacon and Eggs Combo.

We also ended up ordering dessert for the boys - Old Fashion Chocolate Cake and Vanilla Ice Cream (again, I forgot to take pictures!).

Overall, we had a nice lunch despite the pretty slow service.  Although it was a bit busy, the service just seemed very, very slow.

Fortunately our server was friendly, and he actually ended up comping the ice cream!

The free meals were a great deal, and you can get a free meal on your birthday too when you sign up for IHOP's Pancake Revolution!

IHOP Pearl City: 98-1254 Kaahumanu St # B03 Pearl City, HI 96782-3200; 486-4467

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Black Angus Steak House (Cattle Company) - Pearl City / Free Birthday Dinner

Black Angus Steak House (Cattle Company) has a SUPER good birthday offer when you join the Cattle Company Prime Club - a free dinner entree up to $22.99 when an entree of equal or greater value is purchased on your 1st birthday as a member (you get a free dessert coupon upon joining too), so we took advantage of it recently to celebrate DH's birthday.

The complimentary bread.

DH ordered the Prime Trio, which includes Prime Rib, Lobster Tail, and Grilled Prawns.

His choice of sides included Garlic Mashed Potatoes (above) and the Wedge Salad.

He ate everything up--he said it was all so good!

I ordered the Sesame Teriyaki Chicken with a Loaded Baked Potato...

and a Garden Salad.

Everything was delicious!

DS2 ordered the Kids Chicken Strips with Fries (all kids meals come with oranges and dessert, and a choice of fries or rice).

I think Black Angus has the BEST kids chicken fingers.  It's panko crusted and oh-so yummy (yes, I always have to sneak a piece or two).

DS1 ordered the Mac & Cheese.

Our server made a mistake with the kids orders.  We had first ordered the mac & cheese for DS1 and then the chicken fingers for DS2, but he thought we were replacing the mac & cheese order with the chicken fingers. 

But he ended up apologizing and the mac & cheese didn't take that much longer to come out. 

The boys were excited to dig in to their desserts - Hot Fudge Sundaes with Sprinkles.

DH ended up getting a free dessert! I didn't think he'd get anything since he already was getting a free dinner with the coupon, so I thought maybe he got it because the server felt bad for the mistake on our order.

In any case, DH was happy.

It was DELICIOUS!

We had a wonderful time at Black Angus/Cattle Company.  Even though our server made the mistake with DS1's order, he was very friendly and efficient, and you can't beat that Prime Club birthday deal!

We're looking forward to another visit soon!

Black Angus Steak House (Cattle Company): 98-1262 Kaahumanu Street, Pearl City, 96782, (808) 487-0054

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CPKids Birthday Club

We registered both my boys for the CPKids Birthday Club, and since they're birthdays are close together, they both got a Free CPKids Meal during their birth month (valid for kids 10 and under).

We went to the California Pizza Kitchen in Aiea.

DH and I ordered our typical entrees.

DS1 got a Mushroom Pepperoni Sausage Pizza.

DS2 got the Crispy Chicken.

And they both got the M&M's Sundae.

I think the CPKids Birthday Club offers one of the best birthday deals around.

The meal, the drink, and the dessert were all FREE!

If you have a child 10 or under, don't hesitate to sign up for the CPKids Birthday Club!

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