So, did you guess Savannah????  Cuz that’s where we are! 

The title of this post seems to be the phrase down here in the South.  Well, at least in Savannah!  Also, everyone keeps calling me Maam.  WHAT IS UP WITH THAT??  Do I look like a Maam to you??  Ugh……….so depressing……. 

Anyways, J was mean and made me drive half of the 4 hours it took us to get from Charlotte to Savannah.

Haha, I’m just kidding.  Well, about the mean part, not about the making me drive part! 

Once again, I think I did pretty darn good job picking our hotel…..

Beautiful, no?  I swear the whole city is this beautiful!

Our room wasn’t quite ready yet so we immediately set out looking for a place to eat.  The hotel recommended a diner that had been featured in the movie, Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil, called Clary’s.

As soon as we sat down we knew this wasn’t really the place for us.  It was total old school, heavy diner food.  But we felt rude getting up to leave after we had already sat down so we toughed it out.  Not what I was hoping for our first day in Savannah, but oh well – we didn’t let it ruin our day!

Once our bellies were full of heavy food, we checked into the hotel and headed out to tour the city. We needed to walk that food off!!  So we walked towards the River, and ran into this:

Lady & Sons!!!!!!!!!  I heart Ms. Paula Deen!

I have read that the wait to get into this place is ridic.  There wasn’t much of a line yet since we passed by in between lunch and dinner.  But they even have misters set up outside to cool off the people waiting and complimentary ice water.  J stole some water on our walk by since we were both seriously melting from the heat. 

Right next to the restaurant is Paula Deen’s store.  You know we had to go in.

The store is nothing special, basically just a tourist trap.  It was fun to look around but we didn’t buy anything.

We walked down to River Street for some more touristy (yes, that’s a word) viewing.

It’s the cutest street (on the river, of course).  Check out the trolley tracks!

Of course we had to stop into the old fashioned candy store!

It was so hot out we rolled with the ice cream instead of candy.

It’s vacation, right?? 

The ice cream ended up being our dinner, as we never really got hungry again after that heavy lunch from Clary’s (and the ice cream!).  It all evens out in the end, I guess.

Yesterday was a long, HOT day.  I have more pictures to show you from our walk around the city, but those will have to wait until the next post.  Besides, I need something to keep you coming back for more, right??  Haha. 

Do you get called Maam or Sir??  Do you mind as much as I do?

Hi!!  I can’t believe that it’s Tuesday already!  I know it’s cliche, but time sure does fly when you’re having fun!

So, to continue the adventure, yesterday morning J and I drove the 2 hours from Asheville to Charlotte because we were headed to the US National WhiteWater Center for the day.  The All Sports pass was $49.00/person (no tax!) and included:

• White water rafting
• Mountain biking
• Kayaking
• Mega Drop
• Adventure course
• Zip lining (which was under construction – boo……)

Not a bad deal!  The first thing we did was sign up for a rafting time.  We had some time to kill before our start time so we decided to explore the park, but it was seriously so hot we couldn’t even stand in the sun without sweating like we had just run 10 miles!  No exaggeration.  It is seriously H.O.T. down here.

So, we waited it out in the shade and before we knew it, it was our time to go!  I wish I had some pictures, but there was no way to have our camera out there.  Here’s a picture J took of other rafters:

It was pretty sweet.  Our guide, Captain Dan, was awesome and super fun.  It was funny, he was such the “surfer type” – and was totally flirting with the 3 single girls in the back of the boat every chance he got!  Those poor girls……….I really felt bad for them – he just wouldn’t let up.  But it was very entertaining for the rest of us in the boat!

After the rafting we grabbed an early dinner at the restaurant at the park, which was surprisingly good.  They even had my favorite, edamame, on the menu!  Not bad for an “amusement park”!

We then headed over to the Mega Drop.  See this contraption?

Well, yeah, that’s me on the top platform.  You have to just step off the platform and free fall to the bottom!  The first time is the hardest because you have no idea what to expect.  But once I started to fall it was fine (not without a scream, of course!).  It’s hard to explain, but as soon as you start to fall the rope tightens and the tension helps you land softly.

The park was pretty empty at this point, so J and I were able to go 3 times each without having to get back in line or wait for anyone else to go!

Once we had our fill, we headed over to the Adventure Course, which was basically an obstacle course up in the trees on tightropes.  The guide timed us (b/c I was totally trash talking) and I beat J by a LANDSLIDE!!  YES!!  Victory is so sweet, isn’t it? 

Don’t worry, I only rubbed it in a little………  (we’re not competitive at all, can you tell?)

We were beat at this point so we called it a day and headed to our hotel.  I think J fell in love with Charlotte as soon as we checked in because they were having “social hour” with a free taco bar and beer!  Does it get any better than that??  I think not!  So after a little food and drink we headed to the pool to cool off. 

Well, I cooled off.  J goofed off.

Love it!

We relaxed the rest of the night and got up early this morning to hit the hotel’s gym.  It felt so good to get my sweat on (that wasn’t because of the mad heat!)!

After a quick bite at the hotel’s continental breakfast, cleaning up, and packing up the car, we headed out for the 4 hour drive to our final destination. 

Can you guess where we are??? 

Hope y’all are having a great week so far!

Happy Monday, Friends!!  How is the start of your week?  Things here are fantastic (still)!

So, last I left you J and I were leaving for dinner after our long day of hiking.  We were more than ready to eat!  I hadactually read a review of Bouchon on Kath’s blog awhile back, and we had passed it while walking the day before, so we decided to try it out.  The patio was beautiful!

Not sure why I look so angry in this picture.  Maybe I was just hungry??  Anyways, Bouchon is described as a French Comfort Food restaurant, so you know we couldn’t pass up the french fries!

They were as good as they look – yum!

Our food was also FANTASTIC.  J and I both absolutely LOVED our food.  I can’t tell you enough how pleased we were.  I’m honestly not sure if it was because we hadn’t eaten since breakfast, or if the food was really that good, but I’m making the decision that it was the latter.   

Our waiter recommended the French Broad Chocolate Lounge when we asked about dessert in the area.  How cute is this??

I am so glad we decided to try it out because it was amazing!  We bought one single truffle to share:

The salted honey caramel dark chocolate truffle, to be exact.  A.freakin.Mazing!  I am not even exaggerating.  The guy who sold us the truffle said he can’t go home to his girlfriend without one of these at the end of every night because she loves them so much.  I think her and I would get along… 

It was the perfect foodie night in Asheville, and a perfect way to end our visit.

This morning was beautiful, per usual.

Breakfast was amazing, too.  I know I keep saying all the food we had was great, but the chef at our B&B was seriously the best – J and I can’t stop raving about the breakfasts we had there!  If you’re looking for a beautiful city with great food, Asheville is your place.  I’m already planning our next trip back!

So sad to leave……….

But excited for this:

The US National WhiteWater Center!  Whew, what a day!  Recap coming tomorrow…..

Hope you all are having as great a day as I had today.

What is your favorite foodie city/area/town??

Hey, hey!!!  How is everybody??

Things here are pretty darn fantastic.  I can’t lie.  I mean, what could be bad about walking downstairs to breakfast on this beautiful front porch?

I ain’t lyin when I say it’s beautiful, y’all!  Haha, just kidding (but I wouldn’t be surprised if we picked up some sort of slang after being down south for a week!).

After breakfast we headed straight out for some hiking! 

So, remember when your grandparents/parents used to tell the stories about them having to walk to school uphill both ways, barefoot, in the snow?  Well, today I can definitely say J and I walked uphill both ways.  How??  Let me try to explain:  We decided to hike a 4.5 mile loop.  We started at the bottom, hiked our way up to the top of the mountain, and looped back down.  Well, what happens is that on the way back down the mountain, the trail takes you below where you started.  This means that when you turn onto the final trail, it’s all uphill again!!  AND, according to my Garmin, we hiked 5.75 miles, not 4.5 like we were told!! 

Here’s a little picture story:

It took us 3 hours to hike almost 6 miles.  Some parts of the trails were pretty intense!  We were VERY lucky that we had a hearty breakfast because we did not get back to the B&B until 4:00 (and we left at 10!).  We shared a Cherry Pie Larabar at the top, but that was it.  We were beyond hungry when we got back!

I don’t think I’ve ever gotten showered and ready for a dinner out so quickly in my life. 

Stay tuned for part 2 of our second day in Asheville!  I need to get off this computer and spend the rest of my night with sexy hubby…….

Did your grandparents or parents ever tell you that story, or anything similar??

Hello!!!  How is everyone??  I’m sorry if I haven’t commented on your blogs, but I have definitely been reading them during our downtime in order to keep up while we’re on vaca.  I’d miss you all too much!! 

So, this morning started off pretty uneventful.  Well, ummmm, until we got on the freeway WITHOUT GETTING GAS.  Honestly, I was the one driving, too.  I didn’t even look at the gas gauge until we were about 10 minutes into the drive!  I instantly panicked.  Even more so when the gas light came on!! 

Luckily we had the Garmin to tell us how close we were to a gas station, and it was only 6 miles away.  Whew!  That could have been a disaster.

After my heart started beating again, we got back on the road and finished the 3 hour drive to our destination:  Asheville, NC!! 

It was way past our lunchtime, so we headed straight into the city for some grub.

What a great place!  So vegetarian and local food friendly – right up my alley.

After our bellies were full we headed to our B&B.  J and I have never stayed at a B&B before, so this is an adventure for us.  But let me tell you, the place is gorgeous!  Check out our room:

 As I was busy, you know, taking pictures, J was hard at work bringing up the luggage.  It’s really great being a girl.  Haha!

 J caught up on the soccer game, while I relaxed.  It was nice!  Then we prettied ourselves up for a night on the town.

We walked downtown and had dinner at Mayfel’s.  It was a pleasant surprise!  We were looking for something easy, low-key, and casual, and this is exactly what it was.  My black bean burger was pretty great, and J’s muffaletta sandwich was awesome he said.  Plus we got seated right away, which was an added bonus!

Of course, we are on vacation, so we couldn’t pass up the local ice cream shop, Kilwin’s.  How amazing do these look??

Mine’s the chocolate one on the right.  They were both amazing, but I think J’s won the battle. 

All in all, it was a great day.  It will be nice to stay in one place tomorrow.  We plan on getting up for an early walk and then we’re headed to Biltmore Village for some exploring!

Cheers!

Are you doing any exploring this weekend??

Whew, we’re at our “halfway” point safe and sound.  Luckily we only have about 3 hours to drive tomorrow since we drove 5 today.  The drive was uneventful, and the weather was perfect!  It was easy today because we stayed on one highway the ENTIRE time.

J drove the majority of the time (thanks, Hubs!):

Sexy, no???  ;)

The view of the road wasn’t too shabby either.

We stopped in Charleston, WV for a quick bite at Texas Steakhouse (?).  It was surprisingly decent!  I left comfortably full and with a happy belly!

From there it was only a little over an hour to our halfway point of Princeton, WV.  So I drove that leg of the trip.  CONVENIENTLY it was the most hilly/windy leg of the drive today!  I think J scammed me somehow….  :)

We easily checked into our hotel and is it sad that the first thing we both did was try to set up the wi-fi??  No/Yes??  My husband has turned me into a big NERD!!!!

We totally geeked it up with the laptop, iPad, and our 2 iPhones.

Please tell me we’re not the only ones who do this.

About to get to bed so we can head out early in the morning!

Good night!!

Has it really been 2 days since I last blogged? I have no excuses except that we have been BUSY, BUSY, BUSY!!

Doing what, you ask??

Well, packing!

It’s VACA time!!!!

C is headed to my parents for 5 days, and then to his other grandparents for a few days, and J and I are headed SOUTH! C is going to be so spoiled. We’re all going on vacation!

So today I rushed home from work so I could pack. Yeah, I’m always a last minute packer, but this time it was a little ridiculous, I can’t lie.

I had a problem. How do I fit all of this….

Into this:

Plus, that was just my clothes!!! I still needed to fit my shower essentials, makeup, and hair products!

Still have a few more things to put in there, but I’ll make it work. I might not be able to lift it, but at least it will close!

Sidenote: I realized as I was closing my suitcase that more than half was workout clothes!! We all have our priorities, don’t we?? hehe

In addition to my clothes, I’m all loaded up with reading material (and secretly hoping J wants to drive the majority of the way)….

I got lucky and my new Runners World came in the mail today!

J and I aren’t that compatible when driving long distances (hence why this is our 1st road trip together!) so wish us luck!! I’m really looking forward to the trip, but I’m sure gonna miss this silly guy:

See you soon!

How are you with directions?

Wassup, wassup??? It’s Tuesday night, people!! Almost halfway through the week!

Today was a much better day than yesterday. After work I actually had time to catch up on Real Housewives of New Jersey (I can’t help it, I LOVE these ladies!) before I had to prepare to teach Group Power at 5:30. Class was PACKED tonight – I think the heat got to a lot of people today and they needed to move their workout indoors. Hey, whatever gets them to class…………….but I like to believe it’s me.

After class we had a special trip planned. J and I always talk about opening our own froyo place in Cleveland since we don’t have anything cool like that up here. Well, I found out this afternoon that SpoonMe opened in Westlake this month!!! My first thought was “Awesome!”, but then I though “Dangit, someone beat us to it!”

I love their slogan:

The inside was small, but cute:

Check this out. If your name is listed on the day of the month below, you get a deal of buy one get one free!

I think the napkins were my most favorite:

Wanna Spoon Me?? OH YEAH!!!!! hehe.

I ordered the chocolate with almonds and chocolate chips.

Honestly?? It was OK. I was expecting a lot more. Maybe I just ordered the wrong kind? C’s strawberry was a lot more flavorful I think. Hmmmm……I’ll have to try it again before I give a final opinion.

It was the perfect night to get froyo, though. We sat outside and just enjoyed the weather, and each other’s company. What a great day. HUGE improvement from yesterday.

What’s your favorite froyo flavor/combination?

Hey, hey!!! Hope everyone is enjoying their Mondays – mine has been a doozy.

Have you ever had a doctor appointment where you made sure you were there 10 minutes early, and then proceeded to wait 55 minutes AFTER your scheduled appointment?? Yeah, that was me today. It was a BEAUTIFUL day in Cleveland (which we don’t get many of, trust me) and I spent it in the waiting room of my dermatologist’s office. Can you sense my bitterness??

My appointment was at 3:10, which I figured gave me plenty of time to get to the 5:15 Group Step class I teach. Silly me. I guess that wasn’t enough time, because when I finally approached the desk at 4:05 to ask when I was going to be seen they told me at least another 20 minutes!!!! Ummmm, not gonna happen people. I hightailed it out of there right then and there. UGH, what a waste of my afternoon!

I headed straight to the gym and, like usual, class cheered me right up! I love the members at my gym.

You know what else cheers me up? Photo creepers!

Ha!! See my dad in the background?? Made me laugh out loud when I uploaded my pictures tonight.

Another thing that cheers me up?

Successful farmers!!! Check out that jalapeno! Ahhhhh…..so excited to see some progress!!! Our cauliflower and cucumbers seem to be doing well, too, but I don’t want to jinx it so I’m not posting any pictures until I see something concrete. Fingers crossed……….

Hope you all had a better afternoon than I did!

What cheers you up when you’re down?

Happy Father’s Day to all you Dad’s out there!! Or, more likely, to the dad’s and husbands of the girls reading this! If there are any guy readers, though, FANTASTIC!

This is how we started our Father’s Day:

A Father’s Day 5k!

We woke up bright and early this morning and headed downtown. The race started and ended right outside Progressive Field (where the Indians play if you’re not a Clevelander), which was great. It was a very small race, so there was no fancy chip timer, just the old school bib-pull off. Perfect for a relaxed, family run.

Once it was time, J and C put on their game faces.

C really wanted to PR today, so I got to be the pacer. It was fun!

He did great! FInished in 32:33, which is a whole minute and 21 seconds than the last 5k he ran in May!

I’m such the proud mama.

After the race they opened the field up for a “victory lap”. Pretty sweet deal if you ask me.

The field seems a whole heck of a lot bigger once you’re actually down there. I could never imagine having to catch a fly ball in that outfield!!

We are about to head to my parents for dinner in a little bit, and to spend time with my dad .

Haha! Don’t you just love the fro???

Hope you’re celebrating your dad today!

How did you start your Father’s Day??