tinaalsgirl

I would like to point out that Six Flags is also not IN St. Louis. It's at least a half-hour drive from Forest Park to Eureka, and St. Louis doesn't have the excellent mass transit system that, say, Chicago does. I've been to STL, Chicago, Branson... St. Louis is a local destination city; if you live within a 3hr radius, you probably will go there at least once in your life to go see the Arch, etc. And all that is within the heart of STL; Six Flags is a bit of drive away from there. SDC, on the other hand, is maybe a 10-15min drive from Branson, depending on the time of year (SDC traffic can get REALLY bad sometimes). And Chicago... well, everything can be reached without ever driving a car - bus, train, walking... So, yeah, St. Louis may be something interesting to folks who live within a decent drive of it, but outside of there... well, let's just say that some of the FL and CA based Youtubers I follow have made the trip to Branson/SDC but not to STL/SF.

Oh man, I am SO excited that LR is testing. Maybe I'll actually get to ride it on Halloween after all!

I'm so glad they're keeping Pirates & Princesses! I've watched the show several times on Youtube and faved a bunch of pictures on Flickr. I'm just absolutely in love with the new costumes for the princesses and the really catchy music. Hopefully they'll keep it going after next year, 'cause I'd love to go see it in person someday!

Hmmm... I honestly can't remember. The ride had me so sick after riding it that the memory of being on it is literally rather a blur. I'm guessing, though, that my head wasn't above the headrest, as I am rather short (5'3").

So, I actually got to go to Bay Beach the end of July with my friends, and I absolutely loved it! I got to ride Zippin Pippin, which was my first woodie outside of the two at Worlds of Fun.... and I LOVED it! That surprise bunny hop at the very end there was crazy! We also rode Scat.... and I will never, ever, ever do that again. That was the worst ride I have ever ridden in my 33 years of life. To end on a positive note, I really, REALLY loved the fried cheese curds there. And I got a light-up souvenir mug to take home with me. I'm hoping I get to go back next year!

Oh man, I hope that's true! I'll be at Dollywood on Halloween... hopefully I'll actually get a chance to ride it, 'cause I have no clue when I'll ever be able to go back!

One of my go-to snacks while doing this low-carb thing is fried pork skins. I can get a big bag for about a buck-fifty at my grocery store, and they have basically zero carbs, so I can snack on however many I want... Which is good, because when I get bored, I tend to eat, and I get bored a LOT living where I currently live.

I actually "fell off the wagon" for a month and a half while spending that time at my sister's.... But apparently I'd been doing low-carb for long enough that even though I cheated that whole time, I didn't gain any weight. Granted, I didn't lose either, but I didn't gain, and that surprised the heck outta me. As of yesterday, I'm down to 235lbs (being back home has helped move the weight loss forward again, lol). Woohoo!

So I'm guessing Halloween should be pretty chill crowd-wise? Since it's on a Wednesday. You mentioned that the weather is mild. What kind of temps are usual around Halloween at DW? I get cold really easy, so I need to know how to pack.

Oh, I ADORE The Golden Girls! And considering I was a wee one when I watched it live on-air, I feel like it had an impact on the kind of person I grew up to be. They addressed so many important issues!

Ahhh, okay, so that's what they mean by "slightly used." I can deal with being in that!

So, I'm gonna be taking my first ever trip to Dollywood in about a month. What do you guys think the crowds will be like on Halloween, 'cause that's the day we're gonna be going? I wanna focus on rides; I looked over their slate of shows, and none really jump out at me.

Well, I'm unemployed and broke, so $300 is a lot for me. I do wonder how the contestants are expected to breathe...?

So, have y'all seen about SFStL's "Coffin Challenge"? I can't believe I did it, but I went ahead and filled out the application.... https://www.sixflags.com/stlouis/special-events/other-events/fright-fest-30-hour-coffin-challenge

It honestly looks more appetizing that what I found at Walmart the other day:

I was actually slightly disappointed in the show when I finally got to see it. I'd fallen in love with the soundtrack back in 2000 when my music teacher had played it for us; I didn't get to see the show until 11 years later. So I'd built up all this grandeur and magic in my head while listening to the CD over and over, to the point that when I finally saw the show, I wasn't as impressed by it as I'd hoped. So I definitely look forward to seeing what comes next! Not just visually, but also musically! Because the IllumiNations soundtrack is one of my all-time favorite albums!

I can now add "The Good Doctor" to my list of favorite currently-on-air TV shows, alongside "Doctor Who." I... think all my other favorites are now either just over or cancelled... I mean, there are shows still on that I like, but DW and Good Doctor are the only ones that I am watching religiously week-to-week.

I wanna say someone mentioned If I Could Turn Back Time by Cher as well.

The only Walk of Shame I've ever had to do was for the Superman tower and Batman at Six Flags St. Louis. And both of those was because the OTSR's wouldn't come down far enough to latch. Anyone have advice for a gal like me with a large bosom? I haven't had the chance to go back since then, so I haven't been able to try the only thought that has come to mind so far: a control-top or sports bra.

Congrats, Ape! I, too, weighed in at 238 on Monday, which is the first time I've seen under 240 in.... gotta be over a decade.

Well-known food connoisseur Anthony Bourdain has been found dead of apparent suicide. And a few days ago, designer Kate Spade took her life as well. God, this sucks.

Ah, yeah, I can understand their restrictions regarding going up to the top of the Arch. Even though they take you up in a sorta elevator, the possibility of it breaking down means you'd have to traverse stairs for an emergency exit. Plus, those little pods they use have 5 seats, but dang if you can barely fit 3 adults in there comfortably. I wonder when all this work on the Arch is gonna finally be finished. It's been going for quite a while now. Apparently once everything has been finished, the museum will once again be free admission (I guess stuff requires a ticket right now because of the renovations...?). Sounds like what they're doing is gonna be pretty cool once it's done; they're even gonna have a replica of the top portion of the Arch with live webcam views in the windows for people who can't take the elevators/pods up to the top! http://www.stltoday.com/entertainment/arts-and-theatre/hotlist/gateway-arch-museum-visitors-center-to-open-in-time-for/article_9222e6c1-b789-54ac-93af-241ea9abeccd.html Loved your pics of Lincoln's Home and stuff; can't wait to see your Branson pics!

There are also some pretty nice places to stay on Indian Point Road past SDC (I personally love Still Waters Resort), so if you stay at one of those, you can avoid traffic on the day(s) you go to the park because you'll be coming up Indian Point Road instead of down it like everyone else.

It's close to a 4hr drive from Schlitterbahn KC to the nearest Six Flags (in Eureka, MO). The only other major water park in Kansas City is Oceans of Fun, which is a bit of a drive from Schlitterbahn, too (Schlitterbahn is kinda out in the farthest spot you could possibly consider to still be part of the KC greater metro area).

So, I've been out of town for a little over two weeks, and only just this morning finally got around to weighing myself.... And miracle of miracles, I *actually* lost weight during my trip! Normally I gain a couple pounds or stay even, but I've lost 3 pounds! My guess as to why I lost this time around has a few factors. One, I had to go up two flights of stairs to go to the bathroom at my sister's house because the bathroom on the level we sleep in broke. Two, we did a full day of walking at the Kansas City Zoo just last Wednesday, and boy howdy did I feel that for DAYS after. Finally, we ate out less, and when we did eat out, I tried my best not to over-order; when we ate at my sister's I ate food that I bought for myself (my sandwiches and mashed cauliflower mostly). So, anyway, I'm down to 243.8lbs. Can't wait to see 240!