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When we want to go to the movies, we usually go to Regal Arroyo Grande as they have a lot of restaurants and grocery stores close by! The restaurants list that are close include: In N Out, Urbane Cafe, Red Dirt Coffee, Palo Mesa Pizza, Blaze Pizza and Jamba Juice.

Tesla Charging Stations for Electric Cars Right Next to Regal Arroyo Grande

If you have an electric car, they have Tesla Charging Stations right next to this Regal Theater, which makes it very convenient to charge up. The charging stations are located to the right side of the building if you're facing their entrance. (We don't have an electric car but it always fascinates me when I see charging stations.)

We typically watch new Marvel movies and DC movies here at Regal Arroyo Grande. For the last couple of years, since the pandemic, we've been having to buy tickets at the concession stand. You don't buy tickets at the window in front, even though it looks like you would. You could probably save more time if you buy the tickets online instead. Exact seat selections have to be picked upon buying tickets so that is another step you have to consider now.

We have a Regal Cinema account and you can earn points for a free popcorn or other concession goods if you accumulate enough points. I think it's worth joining. It's free to join currently.

Kid Friendly & Arcade Inside of Regal Arroyo Grande

The seats are nothing spectacular than the usual fold up theater seats you would expect. They have a small arcade area that's kind of tucked in the far corner. They have about 10 different games, which is great for kids if you happen to arrive too early before the movie starts.

Regal Arroyo Grande Address: 1160 W Branch St, Arroyo Grande, CA 93420

Reading Suggestions:

• We've had a movie date at the movie theater in Downtown San Luis Obispo and enjoyed bringing our own food in and sitting in reclining seats. Read about my experience at The Movie Experience.


• Read about my movie drive-in experience at Sunset Drive-In in San Luis Obispo.


• See upcoming free events throughout San Luis Obispo County.

There's only 6 weeks left for the school year and I'm starting to look back at how much has happened for my two kids.

For the first half of the year, all of the kids were required to wear masks. It feels like that was so long ago but it was only a few months ago that the masks mandate was lifted for the kids around this part of town. 

It never bothered my kids that they had to wear masks. Since the start of the pandemic, I sewed their fabric masks with 100% cotton fabric, as I've read it's a great fabric for filtering what comes in and still comfortable for breathing out. They've watched me used my sewing machine in the dining room (I have a small home) and used the clothes they've outgrown to size the masks to fit their little faces. They didn't like the disposable masks very much so I'm glad the fabric face masks worked out for them; and maybe they saw that I sewed them from clothes that they used to wear, so they gravitated towards the familiar?

After the masks mandate has been lifted, they welcomed the change as it's one thing less to remember to bring to school.

Interestingly, I had grown used to wearing a mask and usually have seasonal allergies. I think it has helped me so much in the last couple of years because I did not have hay fever from pollen in 2020 or 2021. Now that I'm not wearing a mask anymore, my allergy symptoms have been terrible for this spring of 2022! Read about my recent wheezing issues at night on my Madonna Inn Staycation blog post. However, I've adapted to not having to wear a mask and have less fabric masks to wash for laundry.

Now that my kids and I are mask-free, everything seems to be back to normal around SLO County.

Looking at the big picture, I'm proud at how much my kids have learned and grown socially this year. They've become adaptable. Watching them become better readers, spellers and problem solvers has been such a great joy! I'm hoping that after they've finished a full year of in class learning, they will become more mature and responsible little people next year. This will be the first time both of my kids will finish a full year of IN-class learning!

I'm excited for summer break, more beach days (see all local beach pictures that I took), special summer events and letting my kids have no alarms to wake up to soon. 

Suggested Links for the Summer:

See a schedule of free concert series all around San Luis Obispo County.

See a list of 20 summer day camps for kids around San Luis Obispo County.

See a list of attractions around San Luis Obispo County.

Find suggested things to do for teens around San Luis Obispo County.

See pictures that I've posted on my Instagram @sanluisobispomom

I was checking out my food items in my drawers earlier today and noticed that I had a can of pumpkin puree that was. expiring soon. I didn't want it to go to waste, so I baked a pumpkin pie today in the middle of spring!

I used this one recipe from Minimalist Baker that's vegan and gluten-free for last Thanksgiving and my older son liked it. I also enjoy it as I find that vegan recipes can be much better for my waistline! I don't always eat vegan but I do have a high cholesterol problem, so I enjoy my vegetables and the art of different ways of cooking things. The link to the recipe is here: https://minimalistbaker.com/vegan-gluten-free-pumpkin-pie/ but in the event that the website is down, I'm going to list the ingredients down below too in this post.

What I especially liked about this recipe is it requires less ingredients than the typical pumpkin pie recipe!

For the crust, I used:

• 1.25 cup of gluten-free flour
• 1/4 teaspoon of salt
• 6 tablespoons of cold water
• 6 tablespoons of Miyoko's vegan butter

I knead that and then make it into a disc, wrapped it in plastic and chilled it in the fridge for 30 minutes.

For the pumpkin pie puree mix, I used just 1 can of pumpkin puree this time but the recipe calls for:

• 1.5 cans of pumpkin puree (about 2.75 cups)
• 1 teaspoon on pumpkin pie spice mix, 1/4 cup of maple syrup
• 1/4 cup of brown sugar, 1/3 cup of almond milk (unsweetened)
• 1 tablespoon of olive oil, 2.5 tablespoons of arrowroot powder
• 1/4 teaspoon salt

Mix all of that into a blender. (I have used a blender or a whisk for this part. If the puree is from a can, I just use a whisk to mix.)

After the crust dough has been chilled, I take it out and knead it a bit and used my rolling pin, using wax paper to cover the dough and roll on top of that to flatten it out. I have a square glass pan that I was using so I tried to roll it out to a square. With this gluten-free dough, it does break easily so I just try my best to shape it into the square to fit my pan but of course as I transfer it over to the pan, it broke in a few pieces. However, I just use my fingers to shape it back together. Then, I use a fork to crimp the edge of the dough.

After my crust has been shaped to my pan to my satisfaction, I poured the puree mix into the center of the crust and then bake the pie for 60 minutes in the 350 degree oven!

That's it! 

Once I take the pie out, I'll let it cool down for several hours before chilling it in the fridge.

See my instagram reel to see a video of when I baked this vegan and gluten-free pumpkin pie for Thanksgiving last year.

See a list of grocery stores that I've found gluten-free ingredients for cooking in San Luis Obispo County.

I called Madonna Inn this morning as I'm so excited about our upcoming and second Madonna Inn staycation! We've only stayed at the Madonna Inn once before at the room named San Francisco, Room #121. (Read my personal review of this other room;  Room #121.) They have an outdoor pool for room guests and last time we didn't bring any fun toys for the kids so this time, I wanted to see if we could bring them.

I called their main line and a lady answered. I asked her "We're checking in later today and I wanted to see if it's okay to bring our own pool toys for your pool there?"

She quickly responded back, "No, you may not." No sorry, or we apologize type of thing. I feel like it's a teacher scolding me. I was not shocked that we can't bring them but I was taken back by the abruptness of that response. Okay, I won't bring them, no problem.

I'm still excited about this staycation! We're staying in Room #111 this time. The theme is Antique Cars and the room is quite a contrast from the first room we stayed at. We had our Madonna Inn cake fix over the weekend when I brought home a Coconut Lemon Cake from their bakery for a family birthday (read about my experience with picking up a whole cake from Madonna Inn via this blog link) and I also reserved this hotel room stay as part of the birthday surprise for a few days later.

Before we entered our Antique Cars guest room, we ate at the Madonna Inn's Copper Cafe for dinner. It was a busy Monday night as many people are on Spring Break right now. I love how they have such a wonderful restaurant that's open from breakfast to dinner so we really don't have to go far to eat. However, during this staycation, we really wanted to also dine at a downtown SLO restaurant that we've never tried before as well. (Read all of my restaurant reviews.)

3 Days Later, Recollection of our Madonna Inn Stay at The Antique Room #111

When we entered our Antique Cars guest room #111, I really loved how it was literally across from the entrance to their Secret Garden! It's so wonderful! It made this staycation experience that much more memorable. The Antique Cars is definitely a more masculine theme, compared to many of the other guest rooms of Madonna Inn.

This weekend is going to be a very eventful Easter weekend with my husband's birthday tomorrow and Easter happening on the following day.

I had put in an order for a small Lemon Coconut Cake at the Madonna Inn online a month ago for pick up today at 11AM. I had a few things to do today so I decided to pick up the cake last to avoid any melting frosting. 

First, I went to Ross, a block away from Madonna Inn, to pick up some small chocolate bunnies as it is Easter Day on Sunday and I still need to fill up some plastic eggs for an egg hunt at home. 

Then, I went to Buffalo Wild Wings, located in the shopping center next to Ross, to order 30 wings for take out. They said it was going to take 15 minutes for them to be ready so I walked over to Sprouts across the way to pick up some sushi to eat for those 15 minutes in their eating area. One thing that I want to note is that I prefer to order wings directly from Buffalo Wild Wings in person or on the phone versus online because the waiting time is noted less when I order it in person. I was already in the area so walking in to order was convenient for me. Remind them to include the carrots and celery! (This is now an extra cost at Buffalo Wild Wings but at the time the carrots and celery were complimentary with my order.) Wings is going to be my dinner tonight!

After picking up the 30 wings, I drove a couple blocks over to Madonna Inn to pick up my cake. I always love seeing the Tesla Charging area here as you enter the Madonna Inn property as it's like a fun display of a Tesla auto show. Today, it was particularly busy so I saw at least 20 Teslas being charged. 

Then, I parked my car on the second row from the Copper Cafe at Madonna Inn and there were a couple of people sitting outside so I knew it's going to be really busy inside, plus some schools are on Spring Break already. Madonna Inn is a top tourist spot and as a local, I love coming here too for their wonderful cakes. I went inside and people were walking around and exploring. The place was very busy with diners eating breakfast/lunch. It was around 11:40AM when I finally got inside after running a few errands. There was a line of 3 groups behind the bakery so I made my way to the end of it. I overheard someone wanting to order a cake and a Madonna Inn team member said their orders are full for cakes today so they were out of luck. Remember to order cakes online ahead of time if you know you want one from Madonna inn! I always order online at least 2 weeks ahead but usually, I do it a month ahead.

Since I was going to have to stay in that line for a little while, I couldn't help but eavesdrop the conversation the ladies were having in front of me about the shops inside the property. I chimed in and said there is a gift shop upstairs and she was excited to hear that and asked me where the stairs are. As a local I come here a lot so I knew and said it's past the EXIT sign in the back of the Copper Cafe and you'll see the stairs up immediately to the left. I also mentioned that even though there is hype about the basement restrooms downstairs, I actually prefer the restrooms right by the Copper Cafe that's closer to the entrance. It's much bigger.

After a few more minutes, a bakery chef asked the customers in front of me if they made an order. They didn't so the chef moved on to me and asked me if I had an order and to my delight of this expedited service, I said "yes" and showed my receipt on my phone. She asked me what time is pick-up and I said 11AM and since it was already around 11:45AM by this point, she was happy to get my Lemon Coconut Cake with my personalized birthday message to my husband. I watched her boxed it carefully. She walked it over to me and I happily accepted it with a "thank you". I walked out of the Copper Cafe at the Madonna Inn with my well-prepared cake order that's in their famous hot pink Madonna Inn box. I placed it carefully inside the cooler in the trunk of my car and still in a good mood, hit the highway and drove back home.

Read about my staycation experience at Madonna Inn.

Update: After hiding the cake in the fridge overnight, we were able to sing a "happy birthday" song and eat the Lemon Coconut Cake the next morning. Here's how it looks in the inside below. It was delicious!
 (Picture of the Lemon Coconut Cake that I pre-ordered from Madonna Inn)

See my pictures of the 6 different cake flavors that I've tried from the Madonna Inn.

Read About All of Our Travel Adventures and Reviews:

• Birthday Weekend at LEGOLAND Castle Hotel Review and LEGOLAND California Amusement Park Review


• Birthday Celebration at Great Wolf Lodge in Southern California


• Universal Studios Hollywood Family Trip During Spring Break


• Ensenada Cruise on Carnival Cruise for 3 Days


• Ensenada and Catalina Island Cruise on Royal Caribbean for 4 Days


• Alaska Cruise on Princess Cruise for 11 Days


• Moon Palace The Grand Family Summer Vacation in Cancun for 5 Days


• Cabin Trip in Monterey


• Staycations at the Iconic Madonna Inn in San Luis Obispo on the Central Coast of California: Madonna Inn’s San Francisco Room Review OR Madonna Inn’s Antique Room Review


• Staycation at the Granada Hotel & Bistro in Downtown San Luis Obispo


• Staycation at La Quinta Inn in Downtown San Luis Obispo


• Staycation in Atascadero at The Carlton Review