It often seems that there are not many things that call my attention, that is – unless it’s something I really like. Back ground: when I was little, my Dad took the family out to mud races, monster truck shows and had us watch NASCAR.

Advance Auto Parts Monster Jam came to Laredo Spring 2011. My Dad called telling me he was taking all the grandkids out there and my son, Alex, went along for the ride. Fast forward to 2012, my Dad called telling me Monster Jam was coming and I was invited! We bought our tickets.

The Friday before the weekend shows, the Monster Jam trucks were parked at various Advance Auto Parts locations throughout Laredo, but they were only going to be there until 6 p.m.! I clocked out at 5, picked up Alex, picked up my baby girl and we took off in hot pursuit for a sneak peek of some trucks.

First stop, store location on Guadalupe Street to see Superman. There were quite a few Laredoans stopping by to see the truck and to take pictures. Me being one of them of course…

Next stop, store location on Calton Road to see Grave Digger.
 

Unfortunately, it was almost 6 p.m. and they were getting ready to transport the truck back to the Laredo Energy Arena (Monster Jam event location) to be there on time for the Friday night show. I was able to hang around long enough to see the tire changing to see how they load the Monster Truck into this other giant truck – look at the tires!
 

Well, that was the end of our sneak peek. There wasn’t enough time to make it to another location. But at the show, we were able to see King Krunch and El Toro Loco.

The finale? Grave Digger, driven by Mr. Pablo Huffaker, ended up stuck on top of another vehicle – it was awesome! Take a look: 

According to the Monster Jam website, they’re coming back to Laredo March 8-10, 2013… and we’ll be there with our Monster Jam Tire Ear Muffs!

 http://www.monsterjam.com/

My nephew loves, loves, loves DINOSAURS!! He’s all about wanting to be a paleontologist when he grows up. I’m crossing my fingers and toes that he stays on this track because I don’t think I personally know anyone who ever grew up to be what it is that they wanted to be when they were a child.

I remember I wanted to be a nurse when I was young. Then I realized I was too squeamish to ever be around blood and sick people and the fact that I’m a cryer doesn’t help. I wasn’t born with the instinct to bring on super hero mode whenever I see someone who is hurt. I was born with the crying instinct. I get all teary eyed, worry and panic. I’m assuming those are qualities that don’t make very good nurses.

Everyone should be able to breathe a sigh of relief knowing I’m not the person in the ER and instead I’m just the girl in an air-conditioned office behind a desk.

So really, this is a win-win situation.

OK, so where was I???? Oh yeah, DINOSAURS!

Did you know that Texas A&M International University has a planetarium on campus? Yup, it’s the Lamar Bruni Vergara Planetarium. My nephew calls it the “cemetarium.” When I heard that Paleo Paul was coming to town with some replica fossils, and educational presentation and there was going to be a screening of Jurassic Park this was a no brainer. I had to take the kid.

I graduated from TAMIU back in 2002. Go Dustdevils! I try to make it back to the campus whenever I get a chance. I remember when I was attending, the campus was fairly new and now the place is absolutely amazing and still growing! If you’ve got a chance, stop by, take a stroll or take a virtual tour online. I can’t say enough of my Alma Mater and maybe one day if my nephew decides to begin his studies here in Laredo, he’ll attend TAMIU just like his Aunt.

Paleo Paul brought some pretty neat replicas with him and even I learned a couple things from his presentation. I even noticed how some parents were more eager to partake in the question and answer session than the kids were.

After we were done with the presentation it was time to see the movie. My nephew and I were on total opposite pages. He was all about the exhibit and I was all about the movie. I had never ever seen Jurassic Park and seeing it inside the planetarium I was totally stoked. Unfortunately, the kid was over it. Half way thru the movie, he whispers to me and says “I want to go rest at home.” What 4-year old says that?

The Lamar Bruni Vergara Planetarium has different shows just about every weekend. You can go on a journey to the center of the Earth, deep sea dive through the ocean or catch a Pink Floyd laser show. It’s awesome! You can even book class field trips and private parties. Here’s their number 956-326-3663. I’m still not sure what I’ll be doing this coming week. Where do you like to go when you’re in Laredo? Thanks again for stopping by and reading about my adventures. And don’t forget, call me, tweet me, Facebook us, send smoke signals, whatever the case may be, don’t hesitate to contact my office if you need any help with an itinerary or hotel arrangements for that matter.

Join us on our next adventure…

See you in Laredo!

For more information on the Lamar Bruni Vergara Planetarium call us at:

800-361-3360 or visit our website www.visitlaredo.com

It’s no secret that I’m a huge music fan. And I don’t discriminate. Rock, Tejano, Pop, Country, I love it all!

When I heard that Mana was coming in to town I made sure to get my tickets the same day they went on sale. If you’re not familiar with Mana, here’s their website: www.mana.com.mx

The show was amazing! I have to admit that I’m not like a 100% devoted fan, so I’m really not familiar with the current hits, but when
the past hits came on it’s as if my friends and I traveled back in time. We laughed, sang, reminisced and had way too much fun.

I don’t think we sat down once during the 2 hours that they played. The beauty of going to a live show is that you have something in common with everyone in the venue that you are in. Regardless of age, race, whatever, you can strike up a conversation with just about anyone and talk about the band that you’re there to see.

The Laredo Energy Arena has a capacity of about 10,000. The place is perfect to enjoy any type of show. You can be attending a concert, a wrestling match, hockey game or a musical and every seat in the venue is great seat.

I’ve been browsing the arena’s website  and some amazing acts are heading our way, The Gipsy Kings, Staind, Godsmack and Pepe Aguilar to name a few.

Feel free to give our office a buzz if you want to know more about what’s taking place around town. You can also find us on Facebook  and Twitter.

We’ve got a new guy on our team, his name is Xavier. He’s been charged with updating our social media outlets and website. I’ll keep bugging him to hurry up and post something on this blog. If you happen to Facebook us or tweet us, more than likely he’ll be the one replying back to you.

I’ll let y’all go now. I gotta get back to the real world and continue on my merry way. Email me, tweet me, call me 956-795-2200, we’re here to help and make your time in Laredo more enjoyable.

Join us on our next adventure…

See you in Laredo!

For more information on concerts call us at:

800-361-3360 or visit our website www.visitlaredo.com

Hey guys! So, the other day I was thinking about things that are distinctive and great about Laredo.  Well, there are a lot of things about Laredo that I love but by far the thing that I most enjoy doing is shopping!  And I’m not talking just about the mall where you can find the most popular brands but about those others with unique offerings. Laredo has several great boutiques to shop at that offer different styles.

So I went shopping to my three favorite places; Sara, Bejewled, and Regina’s Boutique. If you want to be unique and make an impact with what you wear these are the places to go to!

Sara Boutique was my first stop. Sara is full of bright colors and amazing jewelry that almost everyone would like. As soon as you walk they welcome you in and offer to help with anything that they can! Michelle, the owner’s daughter-in-law, can help you put together an outfit that you will love.

To tell you the truth, the thing that I enjoy the most is just going in and trying on all the different clothing!  I’m a little too old to play with Barbie dolls
so being able to go into the store and trying on all that clothes makes me feel like a life size Barbie.

When you walk into Bejeweled Boutique you feel like you’re in a different world! Rocio and Claudia have created a great environment to shop in and the best thing about it is that their style is very unique.  It’s style is inspired by Indian designs which adds an extraordinary appeal to the boutique.

I felt like I was in The Cheetah Girls One World movie that I use to watch as a pre-teen dressed like this. Shopping can bring back so many great memories.

Last, but definitely not least, I stopped at Regina’s Boutique. The one thing that you can’t go wrong with at Reginas is glamour. The Boutique is filled with Jewelry, Miss Me jeans, and great fun styles for every season.

 …and with Mother’s Day so close I found the perfect gift to get my mom on that special day!

 Bejeweled and Sara Boutique can be found on 1705 E. Del Mar, Laredo, Tx. 

Regina’s Boutique can be found on 7913 McPherson, Laredo, Tx. 

Join us on our next adventure…

Every 3rd Saturday of the month, Laredo’s downtown hosts the Laredo’s Farmer’s Market. It is quite an exhilarating experience, as a matter of fact, very friendly too. This past weekend was my very first time attending, but I have to say, I regret notgoing the previous months.

Upon arrival, you get this sensation of clean air like never before, or at least that’s the way I felt. I expected to come out of there with nothing in my hands, other than some concessions, but I ended up leaving with a couple of plants and a lavender drinking mix, all for only $14 from what I recall.

Now, you may think that all you’re going to find at a farmer’s market is just some fruits or vegetables, which still sounds pleasant to me, but actually, there is a great variety of produce. Anything from homemade medicines to young trees is what you’ll find. One thing that is true, though, is that you’ll never get tired of looking around.

Aside from all the organics and stuff, there was also live music and an entertainer. I didn’t quite hear his name, but apparently he was a world champion free stylist in trompos (tops). His performance made everyone double-glance. He would actually “defy physics” with several tricks he showed! He had an impressive talent…reminded me of when I was a kid.

So if one day you wake up early and it’s a Saturday, take a look at your calendar. If you got nothing to do and it’s the 3^rd Saturday of that month, then head on over to Jarvis Plaza in historic downtown for a worthy event.

The Laredo Farmer’s Market is held every third Saturday of the month, all year long. See http://www.laredomainstreet.org/ for details.

Schedule includes nine post-game Fireworks nights.

 Laredo, TX – The Laredo Lemurs are looking forward to a great inaugural season, with dozens of incredible theme nights to help ratchet up the fun and get you ready for some baseball.

 The Laredo Lemurs kick off their inaugural season against the Grand Prairie AirHogs on Thursday, May 17th at 7:30pm at the brand new Uni-Trade Stadium. Highlights for opening night include free magnet schedules to the first 1000 fans and an appearance by the world famous Jake the Diamond Dog. Opening night at the new ballpark will be brought to you by Uni-Trade. All home games begin at 7:30pm with the only exception being May 23rd which is slated for a 10:00am start time for LISD Education Day.

 The fun will continue Friday, May 18th, with a post-game fireworks show sponsored by Whataburger, the official hamburger of the Lemurs. Also on Friday night, the world famous Jake the Diamond Dog will make an encore appearance to help keep the opening festivities going.

The excitement will continue through opening weekend with magnet schedules being handed out to the first 1000 fans every night through Sunday, May 20, so everyone will have a chance to get one of these highly sought magnet schedules.

Besides opening weekend, other events you will want to mark on your calendar include an appearance by the Famous Chicken (www.famouschicken.com) on Sunday, June 10, as the Laredo Lemurs take on the Amarillo Sox. The Inflatamaniacs (www.inflatamaniacs.com) will make two trips to Laredo this season, with the first coming on Wednesday, May 23, as the Lemurs take on the Winnipeg Goldeyes with a special start time of 10:00am. The second performance will be on Saturday, July 28, brought to you by La Posada with the Lemurs battling the Winnipeg Goldeyes.

 Promotional highlights that run throughout the season include post-game Friday night fireworks on every Friday home game. We will also have the ever popular Two for Tuesday, with two tickets for the price of one. The Lemurs are also proud to present Miller Lite Thirsty Thursdays with $1.00 beer all night long. Every night after the game the kids will be able to run the bases of the all new Uni-Trade Stadium.

 If you’re a fan of free stuff make sure you’re on hand for these great giveaway nights. The Lemurs will have a Mini Bat Giveaway to the first 1000 fans brought to you by Whataburger on Saturday, June 2. The Lady Lemurs team photo giveaway will take place on Saturday, July 7, sponsored by Gateway Electric. On Saturday, July 14, Family Chevrolet will be bringing you Baseball Cap Giveaway night to the first 1000 fans. Other giveaways that you will want to get your hands on include soft baseballs presented by Ashley Furniture, Koozies presented by Mike’s Paint Place, and Thundersticks presented by Miller Lite.

The Laredo Lemurs will also be celebrating the local community throughout the season with theme nights like Armed Forces Night, Police & Fire Department Night to get the season started. We will also have Youth Baseball Night, Border Patrol Night, Freight Forward Night, Military and Veterans Night, Youth Soccer Night.

To wrap up the season at Uni-Trade Stadium we will have Fan Appreciation Night and the Road Jersey Auction on Saturday, August 25th. The final home game will take place on Sunday, August 26, with the Home Jersey Auction wrapping up the season.

Individual tickets for 2012 Laredo Lemurs baseball season go on sale Saturday, April 21, at 10am. You can get your tickets online at www.laredolemurs.com or at the office located at 6010 McPherson Ave. Suite 120, in Laredo. For a complete listing of the Lemurs 2012 promotional schedule, please visit www.laredolemurs.com or call us at 956-7LEMURS.

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For more information contact:

Bill Harrington  Director of Broadcasting/Media Relations

Laredo Lemurs Baseball Team

956-753-6877 Office

www.laredolemurs.com

http://www.facebook.com/LaredoLemurs

 The Laredo Energy Arena was at capacity the night of April 7, when over 9,000 fans from Laredo and all over South Texas were in attendance for an amazing show featuring one of Mexico’s hottest bands to ever explode into international stardom.

 Those who didn’t their tickets early faced the risk of not getting preferred seating, or not getting tickets at all.

 For those who did attend, the show was arguably the best concert of the year, thus far. About half into the show, the band disappeared from the stage, only to come out from within the arena concourse, where they greeted screaming fans, and jumped onto a smaller stage on top of the sound box, towards the opposite side of the stage. Vocalist Jose Fernando “Fher” Olvera even invited a very lucky young lady from the audience to come up on stage to sing with him.

Afterward the group ran through the floor and greeted fans once again before returning to the stage for their encore. They gave many shootouts to the two Laredos, a region they love and know personally.

Photo by Jacob Walters/LEA  – Maná vocalist Fernando “Fher” Olvera performs at the Laredo Energy Arena on April 7.

The arena has gained an impressive record of success in their shows recently. Back in September, the Euphoria Tour featuring Enrique Iglesias and special guests Pitbull and Prince Royce was also a record-breaker with over 9,000 in attendance at full-house capacity. Hundreds of fans were turned away at the box office due to the fact that the concert was sold out.

 Arena officials say the popularity of shows is all the more reason to remind fans to purchase their tickets early and to stay informed on event news, LEA officials say.

 “A lot of artists and shows have been eyeing Laredo again thanks to the success of our shows recently. Laredo is back on the map and we want to encourage fans to continue supporting their Laredo Energy Arena by buying their tickets early in order to ensure a great turnout early-on,” said Xavier Villalon, general manager for the SMG-managed Laredo Energy.

 A complete list of upcoming events is available at www.learena.com.

Photo by Jacob Walters/LEA -  Maná performs an encore for a sold-out show at the Laredo Energy Arena on April 7.

About SMG  

Since 1977, SMG has provided management services to more than 220 public assembly facilities including arenas, stadiums, theatres and performing arts centers, equestrian facilities and convention, congress and exhibition centers.  With facilities across the globe, SMG manages more than 11 million square feet (1.1 million square meters) of exhibition space.  As the recognized global industry leader, SMG provides construction and design consulting, pre-opening services, venue management, sales, marketing, event booking, and programming.  SMG also offers food and beverage operations through an in house catering company, Savor, currently servicing more than 100 accounts worldwide.  For more information, visit www.smgworld.com.                                                      

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For more information, contact:
Anissa Treviño
Director of Marketing
Laredo Energy Arena
(956) 523-7736
atrevino@learena.com

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I gotta be honest, I’m not all that football savvy. And whenever I’m asked if I’m a football fan I totally say yes and my favorite team is the Dallas Cowboys. I’ve been trained to answer without hesitation or else my entire family will disown me.

To let you in on a secret, my favorite part about football is the food that you get to eat while watching the game. Fajita tacos, sausage, hamburgers, buffalo wings, chips, dips, oh-em-gee my mouth is already watering. But since I was gonna write about my little outing I figured I needed to focus on the game so I stayed away from the concession stand.

Arena football is just like regular football except it goes way quicker and the field is only 50yards long. I think the regular one is 100yards. Or wait, is it yards? Feet? Whatever…it’s half of what it’s supposed to be.

So, back to the game. It was great! I went along with my parents and some friends. It was a great family atmosphere and the kids and those who are kids at heart were having the best day ever. The Rattlesnakes won against the Amarillo Venom with a score of 63-60. With two minutes left to go at the end of the 4th quarter everyone was on their feet cheering on the Rattlesnakes. I was so into the game I had even forgotten that I totally skipped the concession stand.

After the game, all the fans were allowed to go on to the field to meet the players, get autographs, take pictures, it was great. The turf wasn’t exactly high heel friendly, but what’s wrong with this picture?? What was I thinking of wearing high heels to a football game? Oh well, lesson learned.

Another reason why I wanted to check out the team was because the evening was going to benefit the local March of Dimes chapter and the team wore jersey’s were going to be auctioned off at the end of the game.

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My friend Victor was lucky enough to catch a football that went into the stands and he got to know some of the players and even played catch for a bit.

I wish the Laredo Rattlesnakes the best of luck this season and look forward to attending another game. If you happen to be in town while there’s a home game, check them out! Here’s their website: www.laredorattlesnakes.com. GO RATTLESNAKES!!

Turns out that Old No. 2 was hosting the last evening of the Southbound Music Fest. Between you me and the rest of the internet, I love live music! The ambiance is exactly what a rock music venue should be, the adult beverages are ice cold and the staff is always eager to serve.

Local favorite Automatic Weekend kicked off the night. They’ve got a great bluesy-rock feel and fit right in with the rest of the evening’s line-up.

The entertainment continued with a stellar performance by The Black Belles coming to us live all the way from Tennessee! These southern bells owned the stage. They totally knocked everyone’s socks off.

The Strange Boys out of Austin, Texas closed the evening. These guys have toured all over the US and will be taking their act across the pond for an extensive European tour real soon.

This night would not have been possible without B Live Promotions. They’re a great group of guys who aside from having jobs in the real world from 9-5, they work extra hours to bring down live music acts to Laredo and share their love of music with the masses.

If you’re in town and happen to be visiting when a B Live event is taking place I gotta tell you, don’t miss it! You won’t regret it.

Here’s a heads up of some shows that are just around the corner:

Friday, April 6 | Outernational (from New York) | Free show at AJ’s

Friday, April 20 | The Happen-Ins along with Blind Pets | $5 at AJ’s

Tuesday, May 1 | Deer Tick with Turbo Fruits | $10 at Old No. 2

I invite you to keep coming back to our website. Browse around, click here, click there and don’t forget to check out our calendar of events. I look forward to making another blog-cameo soon.

Veronica and I were given a special assignment today. We had to tap into our inner child and go to the 4^th annual Spring Break Kite Festival at North Central Park. Not only did we have stop by, but we had to fly a kite. I volunteered to take the camera and I made volunteered Veronica to fly the kite.

We arrived to see the park filled with families enjoying themselves. The local firefighters provided bounce houses for the kiddos and free hot dogs, pizza and water were available.

Veronica quickly got to work and began assembling her kite.

In record time, we were ready to join in on the fun! We were going to show all those kids that we’ve been there, done that, bought the t-shirt and wrote the book on kite flying.

The weather was great the breeze was cool, we couldn’t have asked for a better day to enjoy the outdoors. Keep in mind that it was my first time using the new staff camera so just use your imagination and picture a bright sunny afternoon. I promise that I’ll read the handbook and deliver professional-like photos on my next assignment.

Much to our dismay, Veronica tried and tried to get the kite to fly but unfortunately it just wasn’t happening. It seemed like everyone else’s kite was soaring higher and higher and our poor little kite just never managed to find its way.  

This was the most successful try and she managed to keep the kite in the air for about 4.5 seconds.

All in all, Veronica and I had a great time! Next time you find yourself in our neck of the woods stroll by North Central Park. Pack a picnic lunch and bring out the whole family.

 Thanks for stopping by our website and taking the time to read about our little adventure. I look forward to my next assignment and if you ever need any ideas or suggestions on what to do in Laredo, Texas don’t hesitate to pick up the phone and call our office at 800-361-3360