Missy Louniverse

Don’t leave your family to shop this Thanksgiving, many retailers have started their Black Friday deals early! My love language is gift giving and if I can get it for a lower price – I may buy two! Here are a few favorites – and yes, I may receive commission on some suggestions. Happy Shopping! (prices subject to change! – Black Friday Deals as of 11/22/23) For the Traveler: Glove Box…

Thinking of the Maldives for your next trip? Do it!! #liveaboard #scubadiving #scubatravel

It seems like 2023 is our year to break out of our regular and comfortable travel experiences. Not only were we able to visit the beautiful Country of Africa (South Africa; Johannesburg, Cape Town, Franschhoek, and Hoedspruit – Thanks Live Life Safaris!) but we ALSO just returned from an amazing Maldives Liveaboard with Mujavaz Scuba & Travel! We are absolutely Seizing LIFE this year. I’ll have…

With a lot of traveling, comes a carefully curated bag of makeup for all occasions. While I tend to go overboard sometimes, depending on the trip… I do have a few staples that are always within reach. Sunscreen: There are plenty of different options out there for sunscreen but I BEG of you, please find one that is Reef Friendly. While there is no actual regulatory organization overseeing these…

After the last year and 9 months of doing more Dive focused travel – I’ve finally found a way to share all my favorite travel items and Scuba gear with you! Check out the new pages on the Blog: Amazon Finds (affiliate links included – commission may be received) SCUBA Gear I’m also working on a Page where you can find all my recent trip recaps and share with friends, family, clients,…

TWICE As nice! Yup! I loved Beaches Turks and Caicos so much I HAD to go back 2 weeks in a row!The first week was for a corporate meeting – so I FINALLY got to see a few long-lost teammates! Sandra is from the West Coast team and we both share a love of all things water – so she shared with me the open availability of snorkeling at the marine sanctuary down the beach from Beaches Turks & Caicos!…

Rated in the top 4 Best Beaches in the World, Sandals Grande Antigua is an escape from the pandemic world we’ve been living in. A much needed escape at that. While our 2020 has not been the year we all planned for – I was finally able to return to our beloved resorts this past week for a much needed, relaxing vacation. And where better to do that than Sandals Grande Antigua! The first of the…

I attempted to start putting my feelings and my thoughts into words, but here’s what it really comes down to.

Just because you aren’t the oppressed ones right now, doesn’t mean its not your fight.

You’re not going to make every side happy, you’re not going to agree with everyone, and somebody will always find something to argue with you about.

That doesn’t mean you stop supporting, listening, or…

As the years pass, it never gets easier. We will Always Remember and appreciate those who ran into the chaos. (more…)

“Give them a  little grace” (more…)

“A feeling of self-assurance arising from one’s appreciation of one’s own abilities or qualities.” (more…)

Ahhh it’s been too long my dearest NYC. 

My last trek to the city was back in 2015 with the whole O’Hara clan. I’d been itching to get back up there as we used to go quite regularly while growing up. Need a new pair of boots? NYC trip. 13th birthday? 16th birthday? New Broadway Show with phenomenal music? NYC.

THIS trip was even more exciting for another reason… Family friends of ours who used to live in California and who have since relocated to Arizona were coming to the Big Apple for the youngest’s College Graduation trip. TBH I hadn’t seen any of them in about 22 years… Yes. You read that correctly. Over 2 decades.

I was hoping to see them a few years back in Cali when the oldest “cousin” got married, but it was the same weekend as a college roommate of mine so I split to Lynchburg, VA while the family jetted across the country.

I was around 7 years old when we took the trip to California. My uncle lived out in LA for a while, but I can’t remember if we visited him first or if this was our first trip. I just remember it was a time when airlines used to serve kids meals in coach (with a stuffed plane toy like a happy meal) and Dad used to get special perks which allowed us into the cockpit of the plane to meet the pilots and DO NOT TOUCH ANY OF THE BUTTONS.

Little Brother was around a year old at the time, and there were quite a few firsts for that trip. His first haircut, we went to Universal Studios & Disney Land, Saw Gloria Estefan in concert AND handed her roses/shook her hand on stage *cue the I’m-never-washing-this-hand-again promises*, Uncle Denny tried to teach us how to water ski, and plenty more fun.

Yes, I still have the newspaper from the day after the concert, That’s August 17, 1996

I luckily had enough credit card points to purchase my direct flight from Charlotte to LaGuardia and met the family late on Thursday night for our stay at the Renaissance Times Square. After all the hello hugs, we headed up to the restaurant lobby for a quick snack, and then to get a good night’s rest before Mom & My tour guide services would be needed.

One of the best parts about staying in a hotel with Mom & Dad is that Dad reverts back into the old Softball tournament ways and finds breakfast to bring back to the room 🙂 The even BETTER part about sharing a hotel room with Mom & Dad in NYC is that the breakfast he brings back, is New York Bagels!! Breakfast in Bed, why yes I am on vacation – You’re the best Daddio!

The hotel was centrally located to just about everything – right in the heart of Times Square so Mom & I planned our loop to see the most we could before the rain was supposed to start.

First Stop? Central Park of course! A quick 13 blocks straight up 7th Ave allowed us to wander in the natural beauty of the park that almost feels like you’re in a completely different place. It looks like a giant rectangle from the sky, but when you’re in it the paths wander and roll, bringing you up to lots of memorable movie locations such as the Bethesda Fountain in the Boathouse area (27 Dresses, Elf, Maid of Honor) and Literary Walk on the Mall (Enchanted,  Definitely, Maybe and about 194729 other movies).

Then up to the Met, and back down to the Plaza (Bride Wars, Eloise)… I’ll be honest, I don’t know Eloise. But our friends were very fond of her, just…. not the $500 toddler dress available in the shop downstairs.

Since we were on 5th ave, we just haaaad to stop into Tiffany & Co of course – but we were all pretty taken aback by the $22,000.00 price tag on a custom Tiffany’s Huffy Beach Cruiser bicycle. We headed up to the only floor we could afford – the Sterling Silver section, but did not leave with any blue bags in hand.

About this time it was getting close to lunch so we started to wander towards Rockefeller plaza (where the Christmas tree and ice rink is usually set) however in the summer it transforms into a lovely outdoor cafe.

NYC is almost like Disney World in the sense that there are hidden gems under the streets. In our case – our lunch spot for the day. Sadly though, there’s never enough seating so like a good New Yorker – you sit wherever you find available, even if that means the floor.

We did a little more shopping before deciding last minute to head to the Met’s Game as the rain was supposed to hold off for us! A quick stop at my usual favorite (Grand Slam in Times Square) for a replacement of NY Yankees Boxers as mine were over 15 years old and sporting holes – plus some fairly well priced sweatshirts. Then we jumped on the subway and off to Citi Field!

A  Met’s win sent us back home on the Subway tuckered out with over 20k steps on the day. We all slept fairly hard that evening in preparation for Saturday’s Broadway Matinee!

It rained on us almost all day, and wasn’t seeming to let up but we kept on like New Yorkers do and walked down to Macy’s to ride the wooden escalators….

And then on to the Gershwin Theater to enjoy Wicked on Broadway – Mom & My second time seeing the show, Dad and the rest of the gang’s first. We had planned to change into proper Theater-wear, but by the time we got back and considering the next walk – we were going to be soaked anyway so we went as is.

I do love this show – the music is moving and the lighting/effects are really breathtaking. We looked at Daddio at intermission and asked him what he thought after Defying Gravity, and all he could say was “WOW”. 🙂

The rain did let up a little bit after the show and we headed back to the hotel to regroup and find dinner at one of my old favorite bars off Times Square – The Mean Fiddler. I found this spot while interning with CBS Sports the summer of 2009 and fell in love with it. The staff is all from different parts of Ireland so if their accents don’t get you – I don’t know what’s wrong with you. The food is good pub food, the beers are cold & below the main restaurant is a space for karaoke, salsa dancing, etc. depending on the night! I stumbled back to my apartment a time or two from there that summer.

Because it was also a celebration weekend for my parents (34th wedding anniversary) the waitress we had brought the entire table of 7 Cinnamon Toast Crunch shots and then took the boomerang of all of us!

With our tummy’s full we decided to jump in with the rest of the tourists at the M&M and Hershey’s stores right next to our hotel for the sugar fix. Hershey’s store is definitely more affordable than M&Ms (although you can choose your individual colors & flavors) plus they give you a fun size Hershey bar as you walk in the door – Just like at the end of the ride at Hershey Park!

All of our tired butts headed back to the hotel for bed and the final stops Sunday before flights out of town. We went together to Daddio’s Bagel spot for breakfast, Pick-A-Bagel on 8th ave, and with the tiny restaurant so packed, we came back to the Firefighter’s memorial park on 47th ave. We all reminisced on our favorite parts of the weekend and started planning for our next trip together… maybe New Orleans?! 😉 But definitely not in the thick of summer – maybe in the Fall…. October.

A couple of us headed back towards St. Patrick’s Cathedral and took in a piece of Sunday Mass while admiring the artwork inside. I jumped in an uber with the extended family for a ride back to the airport while Mom & Dad called their car for the 4.5 hour drive back to Virginia.

I really lucked out with my flights – not only because they were technically free, but when I arrived back at LaGuardia to head home to Charlotte I didn’t have a seat assignment yet. So I breezed through TSA Pre-Check (totally worth it not to have to remove electronics & shoes) and onto my gate where I was placed in the exit row, window seat.

My little legs were happy for the extended space and I arrived back in the Queen City with NY Bagels in my backpack for the following week.

A great time back in my home away from home – you know that total relaxation feeling you get when you walk in the front door to your home after a long day? That’s how I feel in New York City. While I wouldn’t be able to live there again, I like my space too much, I know where I am and how to get where I want to go when I’m there. The people really aren’t all as rude/mean as you think they are – you can ask anybody down in the subway for Directions and they’re happy to help.

I’ve become JAMerican – and this post is mainly photos of Beautiful Jamaica. 

So after the whirlwind Disney Adventure, I thought it smart to schedule a tour of beautiful Jamaica with 17 Travel Agents. Literally, the WHOLE island.

Our itinerary had us staying in Ocho Rios (East Coast) for the first 3 nights to tour the 3 properties out there plus the golf course, drive 4 hours to the Southern Coast for two nights there (one resort tour), day trip to the West Coast for 3 resort tours, and spend our last night next to the airport in Montego Bay – after touring those 3 resorts… It doesn’t seem like a lot, but when you add in 10 Resorts, a golf course, unlimited 5-star gourmet dining and all the good booze…. things get fuzzy. 🙂

I had not seen the Ocho Rios region for about a year and it did NOT disappoint. There are two Adults Only resorts there and one Family Friendly one. I think the highlight for everyone though was the golf course tour because we all got to drive golf carts around.

I was super excited we got the big bus for our long trek from Ocho Rios to Whitehouse – definitely looking forward to a nap, but clearly the bus driver wasn’t about to let THAT happen and I was forced into the jump seat over the stairwell at the front of the bus to keep him company

I’ll admit – I’m a little biased in saying that this SouthCoast resort is one of my favorites – its quiet, relaxing, and the beach is GORGEOUS. Plus Adults only 🙂

But alas, this was not vacation – we had this tour, and the next day – an hour-ish ride to the west coast (Negril) for 3 more tours. One Adults Only, One Family Friendly, and one family friendly off-brand.

Our final day of tours took us to Montego Bay where we visited the very FIRST hotel in the family, the FLAGSHIP hotel (no, they’re not the same hotel), and the Original home of the Over Water Bungalows in the Caribbean. And all adult only 🙂

My Work Trips < your work trips 🙂

#CallYourLocalTravelAgent

Yeah, you guessed it, I paid to participate in my third 19.3 mile weekend in Orlando with the RunDisney races.

See what had happened wasssss….. I got a very random phone call on a lovely Saturday last year from a peppy girl claiming to be from Hilton Grand Vacations. Due to all my time on the road with work – I have been able to bank all those hotel points to myself for the last 3 years. So it was about time I received a call.

“Hi Ms. O’Hara?! I’m whatever-her-name-is with Hilton Grand Vacations and wanted to thank you for being a Silver member with Hilton and offer you a fantastic opportunity, do you have a few moments? This call may be recorded for quality assurance purposes”. Well sure, why not – I’ve nothing to do this morning. Proceed.

“Great! We’d like to have you come down to beautiful Orlando, Florida for 3 nights, 4 days stay in one of our two fabulous Hilton Grand Vacation Resorts – this offer is available for you and 3 guests for the days of your choice in the next 6 months  for just $99!!”…. hold up. rewind. A hundred bucks for me and some friends for a 4 day weekend in Orlando – what’s the catch…. She assured me there was “no catch” and “I assure you I’m not a scam – I wouldn’t have your Hilton information if it were”. So I go with it (probably not as smart on my part looking back, but hey – hindsight is 20/20). I took the chance figuring I might be able to claim fraud with the bank if it went that far.

Much to my delight – they were also agreeable to allow me to extend the availability dates – because let’s face it… I already had a Canadian Adventure planned  and was hoping to go somewhere else for my birthday. I also thought to myself, “hey, this might be an awesome opportunity to bring BigSeester, Philippe & the kiddos to Disney World”!

Lucky for me, the fam bam was all together at the pool when I called to ask if they would join me. Thankfully BigSeester & Philippe accepted and we figured we’d find a weekend that worked and book it from there. We agreed on April 2018 and I called to lock in the dates, We had about a year to count down.

About a month out… as I was checking for the 1,000th time that we had an actual reservation, the hotel was expecting us, and oh yeah… what time the TIMESHARE PRESENTATION was going to happen…. There was a catch – but here’s what I figured; working in the vacation business, it would be helpful to know what the selling point of a timeshare is vs. the all-inclusive option. So it’s kind of a “work trip”.

I also happened to check the Disney website for ticket prices (holy sh*t that dang mouse is EXPENSIVE) and found out that the Star Wars Dark Side Half Marathon Weekend was happening THE EXACT SAME WEEKEND. Since I was talking with BigSeester at the same time, I kept going back and forth on whether I could do it and hang with them and do it all…. I ended up signing up 30 freaking days before the race was to happen… And, since I’ll never be an Olympian and I like shiny things, I signed up for the 10k and the half-marathon. Knowing I’d completed it twice (once actually training, and once not training at all), a month of running would be better than nothing. Plus the promise of 3 medals as long as I finished each.

Now to the good part. BigSeester gets an opportunity with her new job that takes her to Seattle the day before she and her fam are to drive the 6 hours to Charlotte. So, quick change of plans means Philippe is Han Solo-ing it with two toddlers to Charlotte (his mom agreed to step in and help too!) and we’d drive to Orlando the following day to pick BigSeester up from the airport after her cross-country flight.

The drive down went surprisingly well! for starting at 7:15am.  Both kids on iPads, but neither of them know how to sleep in the car yet. By that age, I was a pro – so staying awake is the new challenge. And yes, of course we hit all the traffic and had some interesting experiences stopping for Breakfast & lunch. I also misread the RunDisney website and thought I had until 8pm to pick up my race packet/tshirts/bib number but unfortunately the day before the race, they close at 7. After picking up Seester from the airport, we arrived at the ESPN Wide World of Sports at 7:12pm and they were kicking everybody out. Long drive, missing pickup, tired me. So we headed to the hotel.

The hotel does look relatively new and we were pleasantly surprised as we walked into our spacious suite! Kitchen/Living room in the middle with a giant master bathroom (and a tub that fills from the ceiling… weird) attached to a master bedroom then a second bedroom and bathroom on the opposite side from the living room.

As this hotel wasn’t a race hotel- they didn’t have race day transportation. However, they did welcome us with some snack baggies (YUM!) when we checked in after I asked and they figured out I was running.

Pizza was ordered, a pack n play was ordered, and I was in bed by 9pm in preparation for my alarm going off at 2:30am… I’ts freaking early. It was also eerily simple to order my lyft  that early – they came right in, and drove me to the passenger drop off at Epcot. It was a bit of a walk to get to the transfer buses but hey, I’ll take the warm up. And finally, arrival at Magic Kingdom start gates. Thankfully, I also had the opportunity to pick up my race number that morning so I was all set to go for the 10k!

I had run up to 5 miles (on the treadmill) and more frequent outdoor runs leading up to the races. I had to take my company vehicle in for maintenance and their complimentary shuttle apparently stops running at 3pm which is weird… but they hadn’t called me by 2:45 saying my car was done, so I ran the 4.5 miles there myself to pick it up. Don’t trust google… it will take you on the option with THE MOST HILLS EVER and you will not enjoy it.

So I felt great for the 10k, finished in about 1:21 for 6.1 miles finishing at Epcot so I ordered my lyft again and was back to the hotel by around 9am. The kiddos were just getting up and fairly enthralled with the medal I brought back. I was able to shower and then we piled into the car to pick up my t-shirts and head to the Magic Kingdom!!

Yes, we tackled the Magic Kingdom with a 4 yr old and a 2 yr old. It was an interesting fiasco before we even got through the gates. WHY WERE SO MANY PEOPLE THERE?! Whatevs, we got in and headed towards Buzz Lightyear. Line. Okay… we need another stroller, and a fan/squirt bottle. Line.

How about we try another ride? Teacups? Line – but bearable. So the kiddos got their first Disney ride. Princess was captivated by the tiny mouse that peeks out the top of the tea kettle and Nugget was ready to get spinning!

We finished with no tears! On to the next ride, Peter pan? Line. Ariel? Line. It’s A Small World? winner – we’ll wait because it’s continuously moving and inside. Yay Air Conditioning!

By the end of these two rides, it was lunch time – so we headed towards Pirates,

but didn’t get that far. So we came back across Main Street…

… and back to Buzz for chicken tenders, fries and sodey pop. The parade was set to start around 3pm so we finished lunch and moseyed on over to a good spot to catch their first Disney parade.

We headed back to the hotel after that – it was day 3 of toddlers with no naps, so we all needed a minute.

I went to bed early that night since I did have another race to run on Sunday. 13.1 miles… what the heck was I thinking. I let myself sleep till 3am and then rinse & repeat to the starting line. Surprise for this morning was the resort had someone at the gate asking if the crazy people leaving that early were running the race, then providing them with water, skittles & Peanuts! And follow up water in the room upon return. It was ridiculously humid at 5am when the starting guns went off so the race guru’s kept telling everyone to slow down and hydrate.

It was a rough one… The first mile felt like the longest mile ever. They had some Disney fun & special effects along the way but by mile 7, my hips (and possible pinched nerve) stopped cooperating. A couple biofreeze stops/rubs and lots of water/electrolytes I just said “fine. I’ll power walk the last half”. So I got to see Pandora at Animal Kingdom more closely, and take in Epcot’s Flower & Garden Festival.

I finished with my worst time to date, but hey – I finished and added another 3 medals to the collection and called my lyft to take me back to the hotel.

The kiddos got to enjoy a character breakfast so I attempted to fill the weird bathtub with cold water, but it wasn’t cold enough… bummer – guess a regular shower will have to do.

I considered sitting down in the shower but was afraid I wouldn’t get back up…. and I still had a Timeshare presentation to attend.. (or we’d be charged the full price of the stay). Boy that was rougher than the race. I was walking pretty slowly anyway, so I was happy to sit in the waiting area until it was my turn. I expected to be led into a dark room to sit through a 3 hour powerpoint presentation but that was not what I was greeted with. A Zac Efron looking lad checked me in, and directed me around the corner to the Krispy Kreme donuts, hot dogs, chips, and coffee for a light lunch as I awaited my turn.

A very young kid came walking out to me, clearly this kid is my assigned sales person – lets see what he’s got.

Sweet Jesus… whoever trained this kid should be fired. He asked me no less than 5 times what I did for a living, who I was here with and what kind of vacations I like…. Homie, I’m in the vacation sales business, I’m traveling with family and I like all-inclusive. I learned this kid’s whole back story… His family history, his sob story, his girlfriend…. Shouldn’t a good sales person be a great listener first? I thought so. Not happening here.

My favorite part was when he pulled up the BBB website to show their A rating… but when I asked him what the comments/feedback section said about them – he had no idea such a thing existed. Yeah, 74 negative votes, 5 positive votes, and 600 COMPLAINTS. Not a strong selling point for you friend. KNOW YOUR PRODUCT. Another note to that, he kept getting up and leaving me in the cubicle for random 5 minute increments… like he had to keep checking what he was doing with the powers that be…

He still took me upstairs to look a the exact same room I was already staying in… and then back down to try to close the sale. No luck – a point system based on how much you decide to buy into – and while usable around the world, nothing is all inclusive. You’d still be paying for your flight, your hotel room (deeply discounted), but all your food & entertainment is still extra.

I appreciate the insight – but while I’ve got a few adulty plans of my own (like buying a house) I’ll pass on the time share $40k contract this year. Thanks anyway.

On my way out I made sure to grab a couple Krispy Kreme donuts to bring back to the room and after a quick wardrobe change we all found ourselves at the pool. IN APRIL! Also, an exciting first-timer experience of Nugget on a water slide. He didn’t exactly remember that he needed to hold himself upright – so here he came starfished out and spiraling around the slide as I caught him at the end. Giggling the whole way. Princess was not having the fact that she was too little to try, but no chaperone was safe once Nugget realized he was safely caught – again! again! again! The kid has no fear.

It started getting a little chilly and when toddlers lips are quivering it’s time to go. Another wardrobe change – Philippe went out for dinner, and so BigSeester and I took the kiddos back downstairs for some playground time. We also witnessed a new talent in Princess’ arsenal…. rock climbing. Our brother would be so proud!

  Our Orlando time had come to an end after a funny/awkward Brazilian Steakhouse dinner date with me and Philippe – BigSeester stayed back to relax, and the following morning we were all packed into the car for the ride back to Charlotte. Snug like bugs in a rug.

Its a long time in the car… so toddler play time was needed before attempting bedtime in big kid beds/same room.

Enter Monkey Joe’s inflatable play place!

*no, adults are not technically allowed on the inflatables.

We were pooped by the time we finally returned to the Queen City – the Trusty Bucket catered dinner for us, I got to finally use my bench seating and we all slept hard.

Another weekend for the books! Lot’s of memories to hang on to and plenty more where that came from!

#Disney

I came across the following video today and it started the wheels a turning…

(more…)

I thought I understood what I was getting into when I moved to Cackalacky last April. To say my predacessor was always busy is an understatement.

You have to understand the nature of this position, or any sales position in general. People do business with people they know and like – so you have to be on and in front of people every day of life. Sadly that also sometimes means you don’t have a life of your own.

I honestly respect and am mystified by the managers who have families and social lives. One day I aspire to be like them. Until then, I will continue on my overtaking of the Carolinas by working tirelessly through 39 straight days until my first day off of 2018. Does that mean I can give up work for Lent!?

Yes, that’s a lot, but when you see the immediate positivity it’s pretty cool. A lot of what I do helps people create the best memories of their lives – they ask questions and have all their worries carried out on the waves as soon as they set foot on island. That breeze blows over them and all of a sudden they’ve adopted a Caribbean accent, and lost all sense of time. Island Time in full effect.

I’ve enjoyed watching concerned travelers be completely turned around by answering a few of their questions. I love building success through my territory based on solid foundations and hard work. Yes I get tired and cranky, that’s why I have a hedgehog to snuggle with while I’m relaxing with a movie. 🙂

The beginning of the year is always tough, it’s Bridal season – that means bridal shows every weekend – Saturday AND Sunday. But we’re not talking about root canals here, we’re talking crystal blue water, white sand beach and all the sunshine you can wish for. I finally got to see the last of the 16 resorts in December. And the one question I always get is “what’s your favorite?”, it’s tough to decide – but I tell the guests that they really have to understand who I am as a person to understand my favrites (yes plural). I tell them “Because I talk to people all day, every day of life, when I go on vacation (like for my birthday in December) I just like to sit my happy butt in the sand and look at the water, listening to the waves. I grew up with a pool in my backyard, so I want to see beautiful beach and dive all I can”. I then give a couple options that fit that criteria.

It helps them narrow down what experience they’re looking for too. I will admit, getting positive feedback from prospective clients makes me happy. If someone finds their happy just by listening to me babble, I’ll take it. The best is when they come back to you after a conversation and say they’ve booked their vacation through the travel agent I’m supporting that day. I beam with pride – it’s a small difference I might be making, but it could mean a whole different thing to that couple, or family.

And I’m all about making a positive difference in the world.

Veterans Day (more…)