Travel Archives | Page 2 of 3

Beach Bum!

June 16, 2014

Hello there! We’ll, all good things must come to an end and our 1st summer vacation was officially over last night! Bummer! I am already missing the beach, the sand, the sunrises and sunsets and just doing nothing! I could easily live the life of a beach bum but work and responsibilities are calling. I’m going to ease back into the work week (which of course is slammed with to-do’s) and take one more opportunity to relive our vacation. Join me why don’t you!

This was our first time visiting Jacksonville, Florida and it did not disappoint!

The sunrises were spectacular…

as were the sunsets.

The palm trees were ginormous…

and the sand was soft and filled with beautiful seashells.

The dolphins came out to play. The morning that we were leaving there must have been 20 or more just off the shoreline.

Even when the skies were grey the beach was beautiful!

One day we made the 40 minute drive over to St. Augustine, the oldest city in the nation. OMG is this city stunning.

Some of the most beautiful architecture I’ve ever seen.

You can see the Spanish influences in the colors and details of the buildings.

St. Augustine has one of the oldest churches in American with the largest collection of Tiffany stained glass windows.

The old stone fort that protected the city during battle.

The bay was filled with beautiful sail boats and ships.

I’ve got dibs on this as my retirement home.

Old stone drinking well for the horses that pulled the carriages in the streets.

We stopped by the oldest home in Florida.

One of the stops on the trolley ride we took was at this winery and distillery. Funny how most of the passengers got off here to take the tour and do some sampling!

A beautiful peacock perched on an entrance post!

You never know who’s looking!

Of course I had to do some antique shopping while on vacation. We popped into about 10 antique/thrift store and I found a few treasures.

If you ever visit St. Augustine be aware that they know there antiques in this city. The collections are vast and the prices can be steep but there are treasures to be found.

We had a great time on vacation and it can be summed up by the beauty of this image.

all images by ConfettiStyle

My DC Trip Part 2–Memories and a Thrill of a Lifetime

April 21, 2014

Happy Monday!

Today I’m going to share part 2 of my DC trip. As I told you last week, I had a fantastic time and so enjoyed seeing the city and the cherry blossoms. I arrived in DC on a Thursday morning and after dropping my luggage off and stopping for a little lunch, the walking tour of the city began. During my 5 days in DC, my brother and I walked, walked and walked some more, visited all the major attractions and we also experienced something that was totally unexpected and thrilling. Here’s my trip in pictures (lots of them) and words.

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A City in Bloom–Highlights from my Washington DC trip!

April 18, 2014

Happy Friday!

We’ll I’ve finished going through the hundreds of pictures I took in Washington DC and have decided to break my blog post into two parts. Today I’m going to share the beautiful Cherry Blossoms that graced the city and next week I’ll be back with the highlight of the attractions and places I visited and a really cool thing that happened while I was there.

Enjoy part one of my adventure!

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SIX Essential Travel Accessories

April 2, 2014

I’m already preparing for my trip next week to Washington DC which tells you how excited I am about going to visit my brother, see the city and hopefully see the Cherry Blossom tress in full bloom.

After many years of traveling both domestically and to the far east I’ve pretty much mastered the art of packing and traveling. One of the things I do to make packing easy is to always have my toiletry bag stocked and ready to go. I fill it with smaller sizes of all the items I use. The other thing I do to make traveling more relaxing is to pack a few travel essentials. There are SIX TRAVEL ESSENTIALS that you’ll always find in my bag.

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Food On The Go–Atlanta Food Truck Park

July 31, 2013

I was just saying to someone the other day that so many people who live in large cities like Atlanta don’t take the time to discover all that the city has to offer. The hubs and I have been in Atlanta for 13 years and while we’ve seen the big attractions like the World of Coke, the Aquarium, CNN Center and MLK Center we haven’t really gone beyond the city limits to see what’s Atlanta has to offer.

A couple of weekends ago that changed and we experience a really cool spot just a stones throw from downtown Atlanta.

The Atlanta Food Truck Park

I’ve seen food trucks around Atlanta for some time now and have even been to a few charity events where food trucks supplied the food but I wasn’t aware that there is an area of Atlanta dedicated to these trucks.

The Atlanta Food Truck Park is on Howell Mill, just off of Hwy 75 and is open for lunch and dinner. The park takes the concept of outdoor dining, in the city to a new level.

The park is a permanent food truck site with up to 15 trucks selling food at any one time. There are a total of 32 food trucks that rotate through the park so the variety of food changes weekly.

The food park also has some other cool features like live music on Thursday nights, a DJ on the weekend, an artist farm and a weekend farmers market.

The park sits on about 3 acres and there is covered seating for you to dine at, but people are also encouraged to bring blankets and coolers and hang out on the grounds.

We had to walk around the park a couple of time before we decided on what food to try. There were so many unique options, lots of home cooking and several great dessert trucks. Most of the food vendors have restaurants or catering businesses in addition to the truck so you know the quality of food is good.

The taco truck was a bit hit.

The owner of Sweet Auburn BBQ started the food truck park as a spin-off to his restaurant. There was a line at his truck and the food look so good. You can learn more about him and the park on the Facebook page.

The hubs and I decided to try the meatball truck. We got meatballs wrapped in lettuce which were really good but a bit messy.

The outdoor picnic tables are positioned off to one side of the trucks and are near the DJ booth.

It was kind of cool to be sitting there listening to music and seeing the freeway traffic wiz by.

The concept of the food trunk park is a really cool one and a great alternative to restaurant dining. The prices are a bit high but the food quality and variety make it worth the money.

If you live in Atlanta and haven’t checked out the park yet, it is definitely something you want to put on your to-do list.

Hours: Tues-Wed. 11-3

Thurs.-Sat. 11-9

Sun. 12-7

Guest Room Essentials

July 29, 2013

Happy Monday! I hope you weekend was stellar!

We’re planning a little road trip in August and it got me thinking about guest bedrooms. Whenever we go visit my mom in Oklahoma she always has everything we could possibly need set out and ready to go in the guest bedroom. She makes it easy for us to settle in, feel comfortable and enjoy our stay. She also has a little gift for me and the hubs sitting on the bed to welcome us! There’s no place like home!

I’ve taken cues from my mom and when we have overnight guest, I try to make them feel as welcome as possible, as if they were at home. I stock my guest bedroom with fresh towels, magazines, extra pillows and a few other essential items I know my guest will appreciate, enjoy and use.

Here’s my list of Guest Room Essentials….

I love to have a tray sitting on the end of the end or the night stand so that my guest can use it while lounging in bed or with their morning cup of coffee or tea. A tray is also great as a writing surface if my guest want to write a postcard or letter.

I’m always cold and in case my guest are too, I always have a beautiful throw blanket available for them to use. A decorative throw allows me to dress up the bed along with giving my guest something to snuggle up with.

Candles are a great way to give my guest a little ambience in their room. I opt for a clean scent that’s soothing and not overpowering. A candle in a pretty container adds to the décor of the room too.

Call it a personal pet peeve but I do not use bars of soap in my guest room. I don’t want anyone to use soap that someone else did not do I want to throw away a half used bar after my guest leave. So for me its all about a great bath and shower gel. {when I travel I take my own bottle}

Since I give my guest a luxurious shower gel to use during their stay I also give them a wonderful body lotion to use as well.

{If my guest are only staying for a short time, I sometimes will put out small hotel toiletries for them to use}

Another personal care item I have for my guest is a room spray which allows them to keep the bedroom and bathroom fresh.

Another pet peeve of mine is drinking water from the tap. We drink bottled water and I mostly drink from my own personal insulated water bottle. One of the things I have added to my guest room amenities is a personal water bottle. It prevents a mix-up of bottles and my guest can take it along if they are out sightseeing around town.

Just in case my guest want to write a letter or send a note to someone during their stay I always have a few notecards and pen available for their use.

And finally, I love to give my guest their own coffee or tea cup. Often times I will give them a monogrammed one that they can use during their stay and them take it when them as a little token from us.

When it comes to making my guest feel at home, I keep this in mind…

What little things do you do to make your guest feel at home???

Serenbe: A Hidden Paradise

May 29, 2013

I mentioned yesterday that the hubs and I took a road trip on Memorial Day to a small community outside Atlanta. Serenbe is located in Chattahoochee Hill Country about 45 minutes from Atlanta. The drive to Serenbe is really nice, especially when you leave the main highway and travel down country roads. You pass farmland, lush pastures, lakes and rolling wheat fields. All along the road you’ll find cute country cottages and a few large country estates. Just when you seem to be deep into the countryside you see the sign for Serenbe and immediately you’re transported to someplace wonderful.

The first stop at Serenbe was Greenhouse. My friend Kenya recently moved her store from Senoia to Serenbe and has created an even more adorable boutique. Greenhouse carries a wonderful selection of vintage, fair trade and handcrafted home décor and gift items and new to their mix is clothing and personal accessories. When you walk into Greenhouse you’ll immediately be entranced by the wonderful smells of fragrant candles and handmade soaps and you’ll want to look in every corner at all the fabulous vintage pieces Kenya has found. I am so grateful to have some of my jewelry pieces for sale at Greenhouse can’t wait to go back for another visit and more shopping.

Greenhouse

9117 Selborne Lane
Chattahoochee Hills, Georgia 30276
Phone: 678.857.9025
shopgreenhouse.blogspot.com

After our visit with Kenya, the hubby and I headed to the Blue Eyed Daisy Bakeshop for lunch. This charming café and bakery was the perfect spot to spend a leisurely afternoon sipping ice tea and watching the world go by.

The outdoor tables were just as cute as the inside of the bakery.

Wood framed ceilings, brick walls and lots of vintage charm.

After lunch we strolled the streets a bit and I was just in awe of the beautiful homes along the tree lined streets. What really gives Serenbe its charm is the uniqueness of each of the homes, townhomes and condos…no two are alike.

One of the features that Serenbe prides itself on is the lifestyle of the area…

“Outdoor Lighting Regulations=Clear, starry skies”

“Native Plates & Organic Landscaping=no front or back lawns, just natural foliage”

“Walkability=everything in Serenbe is connected via a walking path”

The streets are lined with benches,

and even the street lamps are charming and handcrafted!

After doing some walking we got in the car and drove around the main property. Beautiful farmland with lakes sprinkled about.

The buzzards sit along the side of the lake and in the trees and were pretty awesome to look at.

We stopped and petted the donkeys and the hubs gave me a lesson on the difference between a donkey and a mule, which was obviously needed since I thought these were miniature horses.

We also petted some of the horses in the riding stable

and that beautiful white horse came running towards me for a pet. It must know I have a love for horses.

We also stopped in for a visit at the Inn at Serenbe.

As we drove around the property, people in passing cars would wave and I felt like I was in an episode of Little House on the Prairie, on the million dollar version~

The stables….

and another beautiful home at Serenbe. More driving and more sights to see….

the General Store

and the farmer’s market field.

And isn’t this sign too cute for words. The Nest is a rental loft located on one of the main streets of Serenbe, above one of the shops.

Once or twice around the property and we headed back to the center of Serenbe and coped a squat to watch a little of the afternoon activities, Bocce!

Many of the homeowners ditch their cars once and Serenbe and get around via golf carts.

Serenbe is truly a special place and although it is just a short drive from the hustle and bustle of Atlanta, I felt like I was in a secluded paradise.

My new life mission is to win the lottery, move to Serenbe and own a cute little red golf cart!

While I’m Unpacking…

December 3, 2012

Hi Everyone. There’s so much I want to share with you from my trip to New York and my participation in the 2012 Scotch Most Gifted Wrapper contest but, I’m going to be a bit tied up today unpacking, doing laundry, sorting through photos, shipping backed up Etsy orders and nursing a cold that hit me last night as we arrived back in Atlanta.

Until I’m back in the swing of things I thought I’d share a few highlights from the trip.

Enjoy!