Freaky Fridays!!! LEGOLAND California Resort Adds Two Friday Nights to Its Brick-Or-Treat ...

CARLThe biggest kids’ Halloween celebration in San Diego, Brick-or Treat and Brick-or-Treat Party Nights, presented by Shutterfly, is about to get bigger at LEGOLAND^® California Resort. The family theme park is adding two Friday nights (Oct. 17 & 24) to its Halloween festivities.

Now six nights in October, Brick-or-Treat Party Nights features a variety of family activities including the Ghost Cruise Scavenger Hunt,  Brick-or-Treat Trail including a LEGO^® Legends of CHIMA™ toy giveaway, a new bonus treat station and dance party at SEA LIFE^® Aquarium and LEGOLAND Hotel is joining in the fun with its own Brick-or-Treat entertainment.

Every Saturday night and two Fridays in October from 5 to 9 p.m., the Park transforms into a not-too-spooky Halloween celebration. Brick-or-Treat Party Nights is a special event and admission can be purchased for as low as $30 if purchased online in advance.

Special event ticket holders can enjoy costume contests, nighttime trick-or-treating for children 12 and under at 12 treat stations throughout LEGOLAND California Resort where kids can gather goodies, tasty treats and other surprises.

The LEGO themed treat stations offer a safe, fun and entertaining trick-or-treating experience for all to enjoy during Party Nights with festive music, live entertainment, interaction with the “Boo Crew,” the animated light show “Spirits of Halloween” and fireworks capping off the night at 9 p.m. 

During Party Nights, guests can “boo-gie” down at three frighteningly-fun dance parties: the new Hubble Bubble’s Dance Party, the Monster Fighter Mash Character Dance Party or Wanda’s Jellyfish Jam in SEA LIFE Aquarium.  

Several ghostly fun areas of LEGOLAND are open late and included in the  Party Nights special event ticket on October 11, 17, 18, 24 and 25, including Land of Adventure, Castle Hill, Imagination Zone and Park favorites: Coastersaurus, Safari Trek and Fairy Tale Brook. Kids can participate in fun activities like Hubble Bubble’s Ultimate Dance Party, mingling with the “Boo Crew” including Silly Scarecrow, tap dancing skeletons, Dr. Hyde’s percussion cart plus the interactive show, “Mail Order Monsters.”

Special event guests can also enjoy entertainment from the “Witchettes,” a splash artist creating Halloween-themed paintings to music and master ventriloquist Kevin Johnson returns to the stage at LEGOLAND.

Also new, an additional treat station at SEA LIFE Aquarium giving guests two bonus treat stations filled with treats and other surprises to its Brick-or-Treat Party Night festivities. Admission to SEA LIFE is included with a Brick-or-Treat Party Night special event admission.

Daytime trick or treating is available from 12 – 5 p.m. on weekends in October, with three treat stations at LEGOLAND and one  treat station at SEA LIFE Aquarium. SEA LIFE also offers a special themed daily dive show featuring underwater pumpkin carving, a Halloween puppet show and daily creepy creature appearances every weekend in October adding to the Halloween fun!   

LEGOLAND Hotel also joins in Brick-or-Treat spirit with Halloween decorations, nightly entertainment from the Boo Crew’s Dr. Rodney Rathbone and his monster fighting crew and Halloween building activities for the kids.

In the Halloween spirit, community sponsor Union Bank is donating 300 tickets to local Boys and Girls Clubs allowing members to visit this year’s Brick-or-Treat festivities during the first weekend of the month-long celebration.

During Brick-or-Treat, LEGOLAND is open from 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. on Saturdays and 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Sundays.

SEA LIFE is staying open until 8 p.m. on Saturdays for those wanting to explore the Aquarium after dark.

Admission to Brick-or-Treat Party Nights can be purchased for as low as $30 if purchased online in advance. For exclusive savings and more information on Brick-or Treat and Brick-or Treat Party Nights, visitwww.BRICKORTREAT.com or call 760-918-5346. 

LEGOLAND^® California Resort includes LEGOLAND California, SEA LIFE^® Aquarium, LEGOLAND Water Park and LEGOLAND Hotel. All are geared for families with children between the ages of 2 and 12. At LEGOLAND California, you’ll find more than 60 rides, shows and attractions including LEGO Star Wars™ Miniland Model Display, Pirate Reef and Dino Island.  SEA LIFE Aquarium is home to more than 5,000 living creatures and incorporates LEGO^® models into a child’s voyage to the depths of the ocean featuring play zones, fun facts and quiz trails. LEGOLAND Water Park features more than seven slides, sandy beaches and the unique Build-A-Raft River. New this year, LEGO Legends of CHIMA Water Park presented by Cartoon Network where guests splash about in a Lion Temple Wave Pool, slide out of a crocodile’s mouth and race LEGO boats. The nation’s first LEGOLAND Hotel features 250 rooms, all themed either as pirate, adventure, or kingdom plus more than 3,500 LEGO models throughout the three-story hotel. For more information, visit  www.LEGOLAND.com or call (760) 918-LEGO (5346).

Freaky Fridays!!! LEGOLAND California Resort Adds Two Friday Nights to Its Brick-Or-Treat ...

Backyard ponds bring the resort feel home

About this time of year, Lee Neiman walks outside to his backyard every morning and impatiently counts the days.

It’s not until late March or early April that the backyard paradise at his Pittsburgh home usually returns to life. The cascading waterfall starts running again and the pond catching it thaws. The fish that went dormant below a sheet of ice during the winter swim back into view.

• This pond was designed by Sonny Alansky for the backyard of his home in Rockledge, Fla. It measures roughly 37 feet in diameter, has three waterfalls and 14 koi fish.


• Sonny Alansky feeds the 14 koi fish in his backyard pond in Rockledge, Fla. It measures roughly 37 feet in diameter, has three waterfalls and 14 koi fish.


• This pond was designed by Sonny Alansky for the backyard of his home in Rockledge, Fla. It measures roughly 37 feet in diameter, has three waterfalls and 14 koi fish.


• This pond was designed by Sonny Alansky for the backyard of his home in Rockledge, Fla. It measures roughly 37 feet in diameter, has three waterfalls and 14 koi fish.

“I’m looking forward to that first cup of coffee by the pond,” said Neiman, a doctor practicing internal medicine. “What I really like is at night when I can open the windows and hear the waterfall.”

Backyard ponds, which range from the simple to the elaborate, can become a passion for many gardeners. And technological improvements over the past 15 years have made it easier and more economical than ever to build one.

“The pumps today are much more energy-efficient and last a lot longer,” said Randy Stewart, division manager for Pondliner.com, a Shawnee, Okla.-based company that has been selling such supplies since 1998. “As for the filtration systems, some can clean with minimal maintenance. You can now maintain your pond wearing dress clothes instead of standing in the pond, pulling out the system and getting dirty.”

Neiman was introduced to backyard ponds about 15 years ago when several of his friends had them. “I was envious of what I saw and decided to proceed and do it myself with the help of my son,” Neiman said.

Three years ago, he hired someone to expand the original pond. It now stands 6 feet wide and 12 feet long, and has 16 fish: koi, goldfish and one catfish. The larger pond is more practical and beneficial for fish and plants, Neiman said. Plus, it looks nicer.

Many people who build backyard ponds end up expanding them, said Bob Dorrance, founder and operator of www.backyard-pond-guide.com, a website devoted to amateur pond enthusiasts.

“The first one never seems big enough,” Dorrance said. “You’re always adding something little to it: lights, flowers, bushes, whatever your taste is. You can probably look at 100 ponds and they are all different. You can make it your own according to whatever you like.”

Getting started, he said, is the most daunting step.

Before you dig, design the pond, taking into consideration the surrounding trees and vegetation, he said. Be sure to follow any homeowner’s association or other regulations for the property.

Once the hole is dug, Dorrance said, line it with a quality, thick liner. Investing a little more will be worth it to avoid holes or tears.

It’s a myth that backyard ponds do best in warm climates, he said. They can thrive pretty much anywhere.

Northern ponds just need a little extra preparation for winter.

“All you have to do is get a lightweight net and put it over the top of the pond to keep leaves and debris out of it,” Dorrance said. “Also, make sure you pull any accessories out of the water, like filters or UV lights, so they don’t freeze.”

Winter should not hurt the fish that call your backyard pond home. “All the fish will go to the very bottom of the pond and go dormant for the winter,” Dorrance said. “You do need to have a small hole to allow any gases to escape.”

Algae buildup is usually the biggest problem pond owners face wherever they live, he said. The solution is a water pump and an ultraviolet clarifier, a small device that exposes algae to UV light and kills it. They can run anywhere from $100 to nearly $2,000.

Living in warm, central Florida, Sonny Alansky gets to enjoy his pond year-round. Just off his backyard porch, the pond measures 37 feet in diameter, and includes three waterfalls, 14 koi, and a plethora of tropical vegetation such as palm trees, hibiscus and birds of paradise.

Alansky, a retired electrician, designed the pond about three years ago when he moved into his Rockledge, Fla. home.

“I’m out here every day enjoying it,” Alansky said. “I love coming out and feeding the fish. They see me coming and they swim right up to me.”

He’s always adding something new, whether it’s more decorative stones or more devices to deter predators; he’s already lost one fish to a heron. Fake alligators and owls and even a motion-detector sprinkler help protect the fish.

He has spent roughly $20,000 on the pond so far. It has three pumps, which run constantly, resulting in a $100 increase to Alansky’s monthly electric bill. He said the extra expense is worth the enjoyment he and his wife get out of the pond. Friends and neighbors also admire the view and enjoy the murmur of the waterfalls.

“Nothing relaxes us more than watching the koi fish swimming among the lily pads with the brightly colored lily flowers,” Alansky said.

Backyard ponds bring the resort feel home