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Mercedes-Benz GL-Class Press Drive

July 29, 2012 By

A few weeks ago I attended the Mercedes-Benz GL-Class press drive in Santa Fe, New Mexico to learn more about their 2013 line of SUVs that will have Moms everywhere swooning over the safety, space and elegance. I will go into more detail about the specifics of the GL-class, but I first wanted to share a little about my time test driving in New Mexico.

This was my first time in the state and I was amazed at the landscape- far different from flat Iowa! We stayed at the beautiful Four Season’s Rancho Encantado which was a peaceful resort with no neighbors as far as the eye could see. We sure had a peaceful view, but our days were jam-packed with test driving the Mercedes SUV, the new GL-Class.

Our first morning involved a press briefing where we learned in detail about the new GL-class and heard from the CEO of Mercedes-Benz USA, Steve Cannon.

From there we headed out on our own for the 3 hour trek to Taos Ski Valley, a ski resort in the beautiful New Mexican mountains. I was able to hop in a GL-350 with Zippy from Champagne Living and Liza from Buy-Her so you can imagine how fun our ride was.

We had a pit stop at Earthship, a community of radically sustainable buildings made with recyclable materials. This was a very interesting place and apparently there is at least one Earthship house in every state!

Liza was our driver up to Taos Ski Valley and let me tell you… this girl has no fear! Swerving around those twists, turns and gravel roads, we really got a feel for how equipped the GL-Class can handle rough terrain. Even though we were speeding around mountain corners and mud pits (true story!) the ride was one of the smoothest I’ve been on.

But that doesn’t mean it wasn’t the scariest! As you can see Zippy and I were holding on for dear life as the mountain road we were on looked right over a huge cliff!

We made our way to the Bavarian Lodge and Restaurant in Taos Ski Valley for some lunch and a break from driving. This was my first time at a ski resort and the view was stunning! I’m sure it looks even more breathtaking when it’s snow-covered.

The night ended with a relaxing dinner. Here are the few mom bloggers (in a sea of auto bloggers and magazine writers) that went on the press trip. (From left: Alicia from The Mommy Insider, Liza from Buy-Her, Me!, Zippy from Champagne Living, Stacie from The Divine Miss Mommy and Desiree from Stress Free Baby, not pictured)

It was an interesting experience for all of us Moms, being given the keys to a Mercedes for a 6 hour trip up mountains, around cliffs and through the gravel and mud. I think because we were thrown into this new experience we gained a greater knowledge of the car then if we were to be driving around a test track.

So stay tuned for my thoughts on the new 2013 Mercedes-Benz GL-Class!

I was invited on an all-expense paid press trip to New Mexico to test drive the new GL-Class but received no compensation. Thoughts are my own.

Filed Under: Promotions, Reviews, Shopping, Travel 6 Comments

Conversations with Coca Cola 2012

May 30, 2012 By

A few weeks ago I was able to attend Conversations with Coca Cola, a blogger event Coca Cola held at their headquarters in Atlanta. I wanted to attend this event to get a behind-the-scenes look at one of the biggest brands in the world today, as well as connect with some of my fellow bloggers.

We stayed at the beautiful W Hotel in downtown Atlanta and I must say… sleeping alone in this comfy bed was one of the highlights of the trip!

The day started off with breakfast and introductions followed by a presentation by Megan Calhoun {SocialMoms.com} about building our brands. I’m always a little nervous meeting other bloggers because chatting behind the computer screen is very different then actually meeting everyone face-to-face!

The day was jam-packed, but time was always made for a good meal! We had a delicious lunch catered by Subway, one of Coca Cola’s major clients.

Monica Vazquez, the official trainer for Subway, gave us some healthful tips followed by a rigorous workout!

One of the highlights of the event was listening to this panel of distinguished women in Coca Cola’s leadership positions. Many of these women have to balance work-life and family-life like us and are so successful at it. One of the main thoughts that stuck with me from the panel was their thought on the importance of women helping women succeed.

In a world where there are millions of blogs, many “mom bloggers” are too busy competing than actually lifting up and supporting other moms who have a desire to make extra income for their families.

We finished off the informational part of the day at the World of Coca Cola, which is a museum full of artifacts from the history of the company.

You might be surprised that Coca Cola produces 1.7 billion servings of beverages per day on machines like this one. Amazing!

The “secret formula” of Coca Cola is often imitated, but never re-produced. They have security and a vault to keep this special formula private!

There is a tasting room at the World of Coca Cola, which includes fountains of different Coke beverages from across the world. This was a fun experience! {with @Traci, @HighImpactMom, @Table4Five, @Sharon and @2wired2tired}

Group Shot!

We concluded the night with a wonderful dinner at BLT Steak. {with @2wired2tired, @mamadweeb, @babymakingmachine and @MidwesternMoms}

Our first day included a ton of information and what I was most impressed with is the amount of time and money Coca Cola gives back to the community, both locally and globally. Most of these programs we don’t even here much about, so in a few days I’m going to highlight some of my favorite programs that Coca Cola is a part of. You will be impressed! 

My trip to Coca-Cola, including travel and accommodations was provided by Coca-Cola. Thoughts are my own.

Filed Under: Blog, Promotions, Travel 6 Comments

Sea World and a Pirate Adventure [Our Disney Trip Day 2]

February 17, 2012 By

Our first day at Disney was a rainy day at the Magic Kingdom for Mickey’s Very Merry Christmas Party. The second day was still overcast with a few raindrops here and there, but overall it was the most fun the kids had the whole trip. We started the day off at Sea World checking out the rides.

As you can tell Colton’s day started off on the wrong foot when he wasn’t able to be the train conductor.

But he perked up a bit for this ride they insisted on riding four times in a row. He kept yelling “I thiiiinnk I’m goinggg to baaaarf!” ….

….but I guess this means he liked it.

When you are at Sea World you have to feed the dolphins and touch the stingrays. It’s a must!

But instead of feeding the dolphins, Colton wanted to get his face painted like a pirate for our dinner show that night at Pirate’s Dinner Adventure. He thought he was pretty cool. Here he is admiring himself in the mirror after the painting.

This is his impression of a pirate.

Once Dory, who I like to call “Diva Dory” saw Colton’s face paint, she had to get it done too. But of course she requested a glittery pink pirate with lipstick.

I’ve talked about Dory a few times on here who is my cousin (Colt’s second cousin) and is only a few months older than Colton. Here they are together 4 years ago, 3 years ago, 2 years ago and last year. Boy have they changed over the years!

Sea World was our favorite stop on our first Disney trip. If you go, be sure to check out all of the different shows that take place daily.

Another highlight of the day was the dinner show at Pirates Dinner Adventure which is pretty close to all of the Disney parks (They graciously gave us two tickets to attend). And I also have to thank them for getting Colton on a Pirate streak which now involves non-stop days of pretend fighting with swords.

The dinner show was a nice break from walking all day at Sea World. The set was surprisingly very life-like with a massive pirate boat and a real moat circling it. It was an interactive show and the kids were able to go up on the pirate boat if they wanted. I highly recommend attending the show if you are in the area.

We sure had an exhausting fun-filled day!

See what I mean? He thinks he’s a pirate.

Filed Under: Blog, Family & Adoption, Recent Articles, Travel 7 Comments
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