Coffee with Kel

Building relationships, encouraging hope

travel

Impromptu Family Adventures

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The girls have this week out of school and we haven’t yet had much of a chance to have any family adventures during this break. So, on Sunday Mickey and I cooked up a plan to change all that. We decided to take a day trip up to Chattanooga, TN and visit their kids’ museum and aquarium. I am SO thankful that we came up with that plan because we all had such a GREAT time!

Chattanooga is a really fun place to visit. We went a couple of summers ago and have been wanting to go back for awhile now. We really didn’t want to be gone long, so a day trip was the perfect family get-away. We left on Monday morning and arrived in Chattanooga in time to have lunch at Big River Grille &  Brewing Works. It’s been awhile since we’ve been to Big River (the last time we went, Macey was less than two) and it was just as good as we remembered. After lunch, we made our way to Creative Discovery Museum. This is one awesome children’s museum, y’all! We were there for about two hours and never once did the girls get bored. We didn’t even get to everything, to be honest, but the girls had a blast with the things we did. (We didn’t miss much – I think just the outdoor play area and it was COLD, so that was okay.) I would highly recommend this museum to families. I have heard great things and it lived up to every bit of the hype. Well worth the trip just for the museum.  After we played at the museum, we hit up Chili’s for some quick desserts and then checked into our hotel. I had booked online through Hotwire and gotten us a room at the beautiful Sheraton Reed House. We stayed there the last time we went and really enjoyed it, so it was nice to go back. The only bummer for the girls was that I didn’t pack swimsuits, so they missed out on the great indoor/heated pool there. The hotel is right downtown and is convenient to great attractions, so it’s a fantastic place to stay in Chattanooga. Once we checked in and freshened up, we were ready to set off on another adventure. Chattanooga has a free electric shuttle bus system called CARTA that runs downtown and we took the shuttle bus down to the Tennessee Aquarium. The Tennessee Aquarium is always a lot of fun. We all enjoyed it. I can safely say that the girls’ favorite exhibits were the butterfly garden, the penguins and the octopus. We also loved seeing the sharks! The whole aquarium experience was a lot of fun! We had dinner at Mellow Mushroom after the aquarium and then headed back to our hotel where we watched Rio and had some good chill time together. It was a great little day trip full of adventures for our family!

If you’re looking for a great family vacation spot, consider Chattanooga. There is so much there for families to see and do together. We only hit two of the highlights, but there are MANY more nearby attractions such as Coolidge Park, Lookout Mountain/The Incline Railroad, Ruby Falls, Rock City and more! If you stay downtown, think about catching the CARTA shuttle buses when possible because they are free and energy efficient. It’s an easy way to get around downtown Chattanooga. There are great places to eat in Chattanooga too. It’s really a fun place to hang out and have fun as a family.

I hope everyone’s week and year (wink) are off to a great start!
Kelly

 

New York Trip

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Mickey surprised me at Christmas by planning a trip to New York City for us in February. I have wanted to see a show on Broadway for the longest of times, so he got tickets for us to see Wicked at the Gershwin Theatre in NYC!! He did his research and found a great hotel for us that was very nice and also incredibly convenient. What a WONDERFUL surprise!

Our trip was this past weekend! It was the first time either of us have ever been to New York City. It was a lot of fun! We arrived on a Friday and traffic was a nightmare, but we got the whole NYC cab experience that way, I guess. We got to our hotel and found out that our room would be ready in an hour, so we took that opportunity to go out for lunch. We asked the concierge for a recommendation and he suggested Thalia, so we went there. It was fantastic! We really enjoyed it! After lunch, we got settled into our hotel room and then decided to go walk around and explore. Here are some photos from our first exploration around the Times Square area:

Radio City Music Hall

Mickey in Manhattan

The skating rink at Rockefeller Center

We took MANY self portraits on this trip. Here is one of Mickey and me at Rockefeller:

We visited Top of the Rock which is the top observation deck at Rockefeller. Here are some shots from there:

Another self portrait

In this photo you can see the Met Life building

The Empire State building is shown in these photos:

Saint Patrick’s Cathedral

That evening, had dinner at Rosie O’Grady’s and then we went back out to the Times Square area. Here is a couple of shots of Times Square (not the best quality – sorry):

Yet another self portrait:

Times Square is really cool. SOOOO much going on at all times. It was fun to hang out in the area on Friday and just take in the sights. We didn’t stay out long because we were pretty tired from traveling, etc. So, we went back to the hotel and chilled while watching the Olympics. Okay, so it wasn’t the most “happening” way to spend a Friday evening in NYC, but we enjoyed just having some nice down time.

Saturday morning, we had breakfast at Route 66 Cafe which was recommended by the concierge on duty at the hotel. It was SO good!! I had the Challah French Toast and it was delicious! We really enjoyed Route 66!

After breakfast, we decided to take a bus tour. Since we only had Saturday to tour, we decided to just take the downtown loop tour.

Here is our first tour bus:

And, here we are on the bus – yes, another of our self portraits:

The tour was really fun! A friend had given me the tip about taking the tour as a good way to really see some sights and she was right. It was great! Our first tour guide was really witty and knowledgeable. We really enjoyed his tour narrative. I wanted to go shopping at Century 21, so we got off the bus at a stop near that store. Century 21 is crazy! It is HUGE and just full of clothes, shoes, etc. at discounted prices. Mickey was truly a good sport about me shopping there. I have to give him all the credit in the world because he is NOT a shopper at all. The store was a little bit overwhelming, but it was fun! I walked out of there with some great stuff at even better prices. Yes!!

After C21, we walked by Ground Zero and saw the construction sight there. It’s still surreal, even more than eight years later, to see where the Twin Towers once stood.

We got onto another tour bus to complete our downtown tour and this time we had a guide that was politically motivated and cynical. We didn’t enjoy his tour guiding as much. We saw some cool NYC sites, but could have done without his rants. We had considered getting off at Central Park, but by that point in the tour we were starving and ready for lunch, so we decided to finish the tour out back around Times Square and get lunch in that vicinity so we could get back to hotel and relax. We went to Ray’s Pizza and it was VERY good. I had a cheese calzone and Mickey got pizza by the slice. YUM! That really hit the spot!! As we were walking back to the hotel, we decided we wanted something sweet. We were heading towards Europa Cafe which we had been into the day before when I got a nice cafe au lait, but on the way there we saw Crumbs, so we stopped in for cupcakes. Their selection of cupcakes is amazing! We wound up getting a four pack – brownie, Oreo, chocolate chip cookie and Reese’s. We split the brownie cupcake back at the hotel and it was delicious! We brought the other three home with us. What a fun and yummy treat!!

We relaxed in our room for awhile on Saturday late afternoon. I actually took a nap which was NICE!! That evening, we went to Azalea for dinner before going to our first ever Broadway show. Azalea was also recommended by the hotel concierge. (See a pattern here? Always talk to the concierge.) Our food there was very good! I had the Pollo con Carciofi which is a chicken breast with artichokes and tomatoes in a white wine sauce. My dish was very simple and very tasty. I really enjoyed it. Mickey had a great steak there as well. It was a nice meal to have prior to a show and very convenient to the Gershwin Theatre where we saw Wicked.

Wicked was absolutely amazing!! We had seen it when a touring production came to the Fox Theatre in Atlanta in October 2008. Seeing it on Broadway was definitely a hit for us! It was beautifully done. And, now that we have had a taste of seeing a show on Broadway, we definitely want to see more in the future!

On Sunday, we got up bright and early. Our concierge had suggested leaving the hotel via cab by 7:30 in order to get to the airport and through security in plenty of time for our 10am flight back home. So, we got up with the chickens – except that there obviously aren’t any chickens in NYC. 😉 We went to Junior’s for breakfast. We were the first ones to arrive. Our waitress was super sweet. Being a good Southern girl, I had to ask her how their grits are because I was surprised to see grits on a menu in New York City! She said that for New Yorkers, the grits are good, but a Southern girl like me (I told her I am from Georgia) wouldn’t like them. I had to laugh. So, I ordered their griddle cakes and turkey sausage while Mickey got an omelet. Our breakfast portions were really big and the food was delicious! It was definitely the right place to go for a nice filling breakfast before leaving the city. We also got a cheesecake to bring home because we had been given the advice that their cheesecakes are amazing.

Here we are in front of Junior’s:

We left our hotel right around 7:30 on Sunday morning. Traffic was really easy and we got to the airport and through security by just after 8am! When we got to the gate, another flight was finishing boarding for Atlanta. Mickey asked if they had room on that flight for us and, sure enough, they did. A really nice man changed seats so that we could sit together and we were on our way home earlier than anticipated. (Better than sitting in the airport for two hours any day!)

This was the view from my airplane window when we were on the runway:

A few aerial shots of the city from the plane:

We had a very easy flight home. My ears hate flying, so they were popping and achy, but the flight itself could not have been more smooth. Here are some shots I took from the window.

A partially frozen river – I have NO clue where this is actually located:

Our Creator is such a beautiful artist! I am awed by how different and yet beautiful things look from the air. Check out these mountains:

We arrived home and were greeted at the airport by Mickey’s parents and our girls. It was a VERY happy reunion after a wonderful weekend! We all had lunch together and then we came home while Mickey’s parents stayed at the airport to await their flight home.

NYC is definitely a world unto itself. I really enjoyed our visit there and I had a lot of fun. I’m enough of a country girl at heart to know I couldn’t even begin to think of living there. However, I’d love to visit again. I’d like to see more of the sites, take in some more shows and show our girls around the city. I’m so thankful to have had this travel opportunity and thankful that Mickey put together such a fantastic surprise for me!

Summer Mini-Vacation Photo Recap Part 1 – Nashville

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Be prepared for photo overload. That’s all I’m sayin’. 😉 These are some of the highlight photos from our trip to Nashville, TN. We went up on Thursday, June 18th and stayed in Nashville until Saturday, June 20th. We had a wonderful time. Nashville is GREAT!! Love it there!!

Our first adventure was dinner at Rainforest Cafe. Here are Mickey and the girls heading in:
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Here are the girls in front of the sign:

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The girls LOVED Rainforest Cafe. They loved all the animals and decor of the restaurant. It was a lot of fun!! After dinner we hit Build-a-Bear Workshop and each girl got to create a stuffed animal. Macey chose a frog which she named Freddy. Mariana chose a HSM bear which she named Gabriella. We walked around Opry Mills a bit and then called it a night. Our first evening in Nashville was quite fun!

On Friday we got ready to head out to the Nashville Zoo . We stopped at a Shoney’s near our hotel and had their breakfast buffet and then went right out to the zoo so we could be there when they opened. That was a wise plan because it was already HOT first thing in the morning.

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We really enjoyed the Nashville Zoo. It was beautifully laid out and had so much to see and do! Here are some highlights from our visit:

Hyacinth Macaws:

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Mariana looking cool in the play area:

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Macey in the snake tunnel:

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Macey talked her sister into coming into the snake tunnel too:

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How cool is this play structure?!
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There were flowers and plants all over the place. So pretty!
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There was also beautiful scenery such as this wagon near the old plantation home and barn:
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We got to see so many animals. I won’t post pictures of all of them, but here are a few.

We all thought the girafffes were cool and, of course, we thought of Grammie (Mickey’s mom) when we saw them. She loves giraffes!
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The elephants were so pretty too:
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Alligator Cove had quite a few gators in a pond. The girls were very fascinated with them.

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I thought this stump was pretty cool looking:
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Macey pointing up at the gator that was floating “above her head”

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The girls got a souvenir cup with fun straws. What is better than a cool drink on a hot day?!
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Loved the lamps in the Asian section of the zoo:
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The photos don’t cover nearly all of what we saw and did at the zoo. Our visit there was SO much fun and I’d highly recommend the Nashville Zoo to anyone visiting or living in that area. We would love to go back and may visit again in the fall when it’s a touch cooler.

On Saturday evening, we went to Aquarium for dinner. Another hit with them – they loved it!! The atmosphere there is what really makes it. The food is okay (somewhat spendy), but it’s a lot of fun to see all the fish, etc. My camera battery went kaput when we got there, so these are the best photos I have from my phone.

The view from our table:023

The girls thought it was VERY cool when the SCUBA diver swam by our table:
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Here are Mickey and the girls as we were getting ready to leave after dinner:
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After dinner, we went to Stingray Reef to feed the stingrays and ride the carousel. The girls weren’t altogether too sure about feeding stingrays, but they liked it when other people did it. The stingrays literally come right up to the edge of the tank to be fed shrimp. It’s cool to see! The carousel was a hit with the girls too – they always love carousels. Our second night in Nashville was a lot of fun!!

On Saturday morning we went to breakfast at the “famous” Pancake Pantry in Nashville. Our friend Christie had recommended it and said that we’d probably have to wait in line, but that it was worth it. So, we tried to get there early in an attempt to beat the crowd. I have to say that we did NOT beat the crowd, but we only had to wait about 10 minutes and we did beat the “big” rush. The lines was super long just after we got there and was even longer when we left. The food was fantastic! I asked our waitress about the sweet potato pancakes and she recommended them highly, so I got those with some traditional buttermilk pancakes too. DELISH!!

Here is my plate before:
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And…after:
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What can I say?! Those were some DELICIOUS pancakes! If you’re ever in Nashville for breakfast, definitely give the Pancake Pantry a try. Get there early, but still expect a line. 🙂

After breakfast, we went back to the hotel for a bit. Mickey took the girls to the pool while I got us packed up to leave. Our next stop was Chattanooga. And, that will be tomorrow’s update.

In case it wasn’t clear by the pictures, we had a ball in Nashville. There is so much to see and do there. We hope to go back in the fall, as I said above. Great city!!

Stay tuned for more pictures tomorrow…

The Good Kind of Tired…

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I haven’t  meant to leave my blog “unattended” for several days. I meant to post to say that we were going on vacation, but with all the travel prep and last-minute’ing I had going on last week, I just forgot.

So, yes, we did go on vacation and it was WONDERFUL. We went to Nashville, TN for a couple of days then to Chattanooga, TN for a couple of days. We had sooooo much fun! We are home now and we are all tired, but it’s the good kind of tired. You know, the kind of tired you can only get from having a lot of fun. This was our first family vacation and we thoroughly enjoyed ourselves. I will post a proper update with pictures VERY soon. In the meantime, it’s off to catch up on laundry. EEP.

Hope all is well all around,
Kelly

Praise Reports…

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I am going to do better about updating my blog.
I am going to do better about updating my blog.
I am GOING to do better about updating my blog.
Seriously…I am.
I hope. 😉

In all honesty, I have every good intention of writing more here, but the days are so busy lately. Life is good, in fact I’d say its mostly GREAT, but also very busy.

I have some praises to report since my last update.

  • Macey had a wonderful week of dance camp at our church last week. Two of her friends from school attended also and they all got to be in the same group. They just loved it! Friday was their recital and it was entirely too cute for words.
  • We got to spend all day Saturday with some great friends and we absolutely had a ball. We were as tired as could be on Saturday night, but it was the good kind of tired that comes from having FUN FUN FUN all day long!
  • On Sunday evening we got a house full of company. My best friend Terri came up from South GA with her two daughters. Also, our friend Hannah came to visit us from Missouri with her three daughters. So, we had a house brimming full and it was just incredible!! The girls ranged in age from almost-six (Macey) down to seven months old (Hannah’s baby girl) and they had so much fun playing together. Terri and I get together several times a year when I am in South Georgia, but neither of us have seen Hannah in several years. So much has changed in our lives, but the friendship has remained. God sure blessed us with a wonderful time together over Sunday evening and Monday morning.
  • This week Macey is attending the afternoon VBS sessions at our church. They are doing “Camp E.D.G.E.” this term and she is having a blast! In her crew, she has four friends from school so that is also exciting. She comes home each day telling us about what they did, what she learned, etc. It’s such a blessing! And, from what I have heard, over 900 (!!!) kids are in attendance. All those seeds of faith getting planted just makes my heart sing!
  • I have joined a Wednesday morning Bible study at our church. I have been wanting to do this for quite some time and it finally worked out. I am LOVING it! Our group is so sweet and we have all ranges from moms of young ones to grand-mothers and maybe even some great-grands. It’s absolutely blessing me more than words to be there!
  • We have a great babysitter that is watching the girls this summer so I can do things like go to Bible study. Her name is Kayla and Mickey and I have known her since we were Youth volunteers at the church several years ago. Kayla is fantastic with the girls. She is so much fun and so creative. Today she did tie-dying with them. How cool is that?!
  • The weather has been beautiful and summer is officially upon us. That is always a praise in my book as I just love summer. We’re getting a bit of rain today, but that’s always needed around here.
  • We have also planned a mini-vacation for our family. We are going to Nashville, TN for a couple of days and then back down to Chattanooga, TN for a couple of days before heading home. We are SO excited about this trip! I have used some online sources like Hotwire and Expedia to score some really great hotel prices as well. Can’t wait!!
  • This coming weekend is the Father/Daughter dance at our church. That will be Saturday evening and Mickey is taking both girls. This year it’s going to be a sock hop and the girls both have their cute poodle skirts, tees and scarves ready to go. I have been asked to take candid photos, so I can’t wait to see it all!

Those are just some of the many things I have to be thankful for in my life. I just had to share.

And, if you’re reading along, please  hold me accountable to posting. I need to and want to, so I should make time for it.

Blessings,
Kelly