Posts Tagged ‘deals’

Hotel Review: The Resort at the Mountain (Mt. Hood, OR)

6.19.2010

Resort at the Mountain, Mt. Hood, Oregon

The Resort at the Mountain

Phone: 503-622-3101
Address: 68010 E Fairway AVE, Welches OR, 97067-9706 USA

Summary: The renovations are beautiful, and the older architecture gives an atmosphere like the resort in Dirty Dancing.

My rating: 4.5 stars

For May 29, 2010 stay, by Krista Ehlers

We really enjoyed our stay here, in spite of the fact that the weather was very “Northwest,” i.e. cold and rainy. We had an excellent deal: room plus 2 dinner entrees, 2 breakfast entrees, and the choice of 2 rounds of golf OR 2 massages for $160! We took the massages, which worked well, due to the weather… and due to the fact that I suck at golf. :) The best part was that we stayed two nights, and they doubled everything (4 dinners, breakfasts, and massages). This is virtually unheard of. This pricing lasts through July 8, 2010, so give it a try!

As far as we were concerned, the quality, service, amenities and spa were top-notch. The buildings looked a bit dated – 60’s era – but the decor was very modern, and so you were left with a positive, nostalgic feeling overall. The front desk staff was very helpful and friendly. We asked to switch from a ground floor to a second floor room, and the woman at the front desk not only accommodated us, but personally walked a key over for the new room.

The Altitude restaurant served what I call “fancy feast,” but I think most people would refer to this as “fine dining.” If you go, try the t-bone – it was so good, my husband had it both nights! There is also a more casual cafe and pub, which serves a continental breakfast each morning.

The grounds were lush, and due to the age of the resort, the trees were tall and contributed to the sense of being far away from it all in a peaceful, wooded setting. We were impressed with the number of activities available: golf, miniature golf (lighted!), lawn bowling, croquet, bike rentals, basketball and more. The spa itself was beautiful, with a large relaxation room and sauna, in which we relaxed most of the afternoon. In addition, there is a heated outdoor pool and large hot tub. All told, we think this is a great place for a romantic getaway, but an equally great resort for a family.

Favorite Free Font Sites

2.17.2010

Taking a moment away from more serious pursuits to note my favorite places to find free fonts. These are great for personal use: cards, brochures, scrapbooking, etc. You have to take care when using any of these for commercial purposes – sometimes it’s not allowed and sometimes you just need to get explicit permission and/or pay a little extra. Tips below on how to install these fonts for use. Have fun!

deviantART

Lots of cool, edgy, grungy fonts here. Great for Adobe Photoshop brushes as well.

18 Custom Cool Fonts

Chosen by You the Designer. There are only 20 fonts, title notwithstanding, but they are all very cool.

Divide by Zero

Created by Tom Murphy: Fun and quirky fonts, plus a font making tutorial.

1001 Free Fonts

The fonts are categorized by type, and you can get a commercial license for 10,000 fonts for just $20.

dafont.com

More free fonts, similar to 1001 Free fonts, but I like the site and selection a smidge better because new fonts are added frequently.

How to install your fonts

Download the files and then unzip them.

Windows Vista: Right-click on the font files and click Install
Windows XP: Copy the font files into C:\Windows\Fonts
Mac OS X: Double-click the font file, then click the Install font button.

Seattle Mid-winter Break Camps

2.5.2010

Mid-winter break is upon us here in Puget Sound, and I found myself ill-prepared to entertain my 4-year-old! Turns out that there are quite a few options, and I thought I’d share. Did I miss some good ones? Let me know in a comment!

  • Arena Sports Soccer Camps: All day and half-day soccer camps for Lil’ Kickers (3 – 5 yrs) and older.
  • Everett Skate Deck: Ah, the lost art of rollerskating! “Skate & Bounce” every Wednesday from 10:30 – 1:30 (under 7 yrs) and special events on February 15 – 16.
  • Imagine Children’s Museum: Everett’s children’s museum is fun any time of year, but they have special events set up during winter break, such as hockey carpet skating, crafts, etc.
  • Jump Planet: Play on huge selection of inflatables and bouncy houses. Drop in times for Pre-K on Monday – Friday mornings.
  • Lynnwood Bowl & Skate: Skating and bowling in the same place? Say no more.
  • Lynnwood Ice Center: Many public ice skating times, plus basic skating classes for ages 3 and up.
  • The Museum of Flight: Did you know that the first Thursday of every month is free admission from 5 – 9 pm?
  • Pony Paradise Rides: Summer Camps for ages 4 – 16, winter specials for lessons (all ages), and guided mini-trail or arena rides. (yee-haw!)
  • Pump It Up: Another huge selection of inflatables and bouncy houses. Drop in times for Pre-K on Tuesdays – Thursdays, in Lynnwood and Kirkland.
  • Taproot Theatre: Mid-winter break acting camps February 15 – 19, for ages 4 – 18, with a performance on that Friday. Is this like when my friends and I did a remake of Grease in the backyard and sold tickets to our neighbors and only our moms came? Probably far better… :)
  • Vertical World: Indoor rockclimbing, including classes for ages 6 and up.

Great deal for Seattle and Michigan Qdoba Fans!

1.20.2010

Qdoba LogoNOTE: For Seattle area and Michigan only.
If you like Qdoba, you’ll enjoy this offer. Here goes: from now through 2/14/2010 if you order online at qdoba.com for pickup, you can get an entree plus regular fountain drink for $5! This saves an average of $3 – $4 on every entree. We normally eat in the restaurant, and it will be cool to show up and have everything ready. We haven’t tried it yet, but will post back here when we do. Offer Details

Update

We have now ordered several times using Qdoba online ordering, and it’s pretty slick. I found the site to be a little slow, in spite of having a high-speed internet connection. However, we often order the same things, so once I save those items to my favorites on their site, it was very fast to order them the next time around. We have not yet had the experience of walking in and our order is ready and waiting, and only once was our order “lost” because their fax machine was off. Even then, they gave us the order anyway, even though I didn’t bring my printed receipt, until they were able to find the record of it. I think it works very well now, and I look forward to improvements as they refine their systems.

Free meals on your birthday

8.24.2009

A friend just collected a bunch of goodies for her birthday, and there were a few which were new to me. Here is a list of my favorites, including the new ones from Katie (thank you!). They all offer freebies for your birthday – mostly just for signing up for their mailing list. Enjoy, and let me know if you have some to add! (happy birthday to you, happy birthday to you…)

Alfy’s Pizza: Free mini pizza the month of your birthday
Baskin Robbins: Free scoop on your birthday
Cold Stone Creamery: Free “creation” on your birthday
Denny’s: Free kid’s meal for children under 10
Duke’s Chowder House: Register for frequent coupons, 2 free dinners, and a free dinner for your birthday.
Gordon Biersch: Free offer for your birthday (I think it was “buy one, get one free”)
Hollywood Video: Free rental on your birthday (valid for everyone on your account)
The Keg: Free prime rib dinner during your birthday month. (Fill in the form and check the bottom to receive special offers)
Old Spaghetti Factory: Free kid’s meal on their birthday
Qdoba: Get a free Qdoba card in their restaurant, then register it online. After every 10 meals, you get one free, and a free meal on your birthday, too. (TIP: My husband and I each keep a card registered, so we can both have birthday meals!)
Red Robin: Free burger on your birthday
The Ram: Join MVP club to get “buy one, get one free” coupon right away, then a free Mile High Mud Pie on your birthday
Starbucks: Free drink on your birthday. I have differing info on this: some say you have to have a gift card, register it, and put your birthday on there. Their site says you have to have a Gold Card. One person said you just tell them it’s your birthday. In any case, I added my b-day to the account profile on my existing card.

Support St. Jude at Wendy’s

10.18.2008

St. Jude Childrens Research Hospital I love it when I can support a great cause and get a great deal, and Wendy’s is offering both at once. If you donate $1 to St. Jude’s Children’s Research Hospital, Wendy’s will give you a booklet of 5 coupons for Junior Frosty’s. A Junior Frosty is pretty small, I admit, but I just think of it as the “low-cal” version! :)

You couldn’t ask for a better cause – St. Jude helps children with cancer and their families. The coupons are good until December 31, 2009, so they would make fantastic stocking stuffers! Note: I could not find anything on Wendy’s website, so this may not be a national offer, but the ones in Western Washington seem to be participating.