Maki-Maki Owners in Spectrum Accused of Fraud

Dude, I've been eating at Maki Maki for years.. this is tripy.. get whole story here- 

Brandman U! Get educated in Irvine!

The past few weeks while driving on Alton, I keep seeing signs with my nickname on them "Brandman!"  I keep thinking, what the hell?  Why did they jack my nickname.  Turns out Brandman is a fully accredited university and is part of Chapman University.

Being able to drive to a local university is very exciting to me.  Brandman U focuses on people that work full-time and don't have the time to go to school.  They see themselves as the evolution of adult eduction.

They offer online and on-campus graduate and under-graduate programs in Business to Child development. The tuition is from $420-$500 per unit, based on program.

If you are interested in finding out more, you can go to the information meeting on October 26.  Click here for more info! or visit their site here!

Visit Pretend City, Children's Museum - Awesome!

CLICK HERE FOR MORE PRETEND CITY PHOTOS BY ALI SABET!

I first noticed Pretend City a few weeks ago while going to work.  I saw the logo while exiting Bake parkway on my way to work.  It was a new logo breaking through the Irvine skyline on a mid-afternoon.  Excited to find something new, I dug up the site while still in the care (NO, I was not driving) and found out that it was a new Children's Museum in Irvine!! 

Pretend City is open on a daily basis for casual visits and a great time.  I have to be honest, when I walked in initially.. I was a bit underwhelmed.  The kids didn't seem too excited either.... Then as we slowly walked around and got a good feel for the place, my view changed.  

Pretend city has built a wonderful little city.  But it's the elements of engagement that bring it all together.  When you first walk up to buy your tickets, you are given sudo-time cards for your kids.  As you walk around the city, the kids are encouraged to take up jobs at the stores in the city.  Then they can take their cards that are stamped to the ATM machines to get some cash out.  Then they can use the cash to buy stuff.  It's really wonderful to see the Pretend City staff engage the kids.  They are friendly and thoughtful.  They pay attention to the kids and help them with the different tasks at hand. 

My boys loved it and I actually found myself getting involved with them too!  That's saying allot, since I'm really not into activities that are just kid focused!  We were there for about an hour and a half and the kids were ok with leaving.  They loved it so much, that they have already asked me to take them back soon.

I'm truly excited that there is something for us to do in Irvine that is affordable, engaging, educational and fun.  There is also a wonderful shop in the front and tons of parking.  You can visit their website here for more info.. 

Check out the schedule here

Museum Address:

29 Hubble
Irvine, CA 92618

Museum Hours: :

Monday	10:00a.m. – 1:00p.m.
Tuesday – Sunday	10:00a.m. – 5:00p.m. daily
Member Hours:

9:00a.m.-10:00a.m. daily

More photos of Pretend City by Ali Sabet - Click Image!

Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs is pretty tasty!

I took the boys to Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs today.  I love it when there is a new animated feature, cause it gives us a chance to head to the movies.  It's a bonus if the movie is actually good!  

CWACOM is a story about an inventor who has been trying to come up with the IT invention since he was a kid.  I'm not going to give away the story here, but I do want to point out a few things.  I felt that the movie was great in 3D.  It was good enough where my 5 and 3 year old boys didn't take off their 3D glasses, and they didn't even miss the fact that we didn't have any popcorn to munch on.

The story itself was pretty good, but I wasn't really into the cheese factor.  The dialog and over-the-top acting was a bit too much at times.  But overall I think it was a great movie.  The characters were pretty cool, but I felt that the star of the movie was a bit unattractive.  The characters also felt a bit unfinished, specially their hands and arms.. they were just awkward.  But then again, the kids watching it don't really care.

I recommend this movie with a 4/5 goofballs!  You guys will have a good time and the kids will have a blast.

UCI Campus Recreation Center Looks like fun

Today I wish I was a UCI student.  Students, Staff and Faculty and Family of Students and Faculty get the amazing privilege of using the UCI Campus Recreation facility.  They have so much going on, from fun Taco making classes to Fencing and Dancing.  I found the site while searching for fencing courses in Irvine, but was in awe of all the activities that this joint has to offer.  A few minutes ago I called to find out a bit more, and I was disappointed by the fact that only UCI affiliated folk can use the UCI Campus Recreation.  So much for that.. But for all of you who have a kid in UCI, or go to UCI and haven't payed attention to this amazing opportunity-It's time you looked again!!  The only crappy part about the whole deal is their website.  It sucks.