Our Weekend Wanderings

It's been too long!! My oh my was August a crazy busy month for my husband and I. Between work, family, and catching up on sleep, the weekends passed by without a mini-staycation. I can't say we are pleased with that. The family time is always welcomed, but the work scheduled on weekends?!? Let that be a reminder that healthcare professionals might look like they have dream schedules but it's also often times unpredictable, leaving my hubs with 12 hour shifts blocking out our weekends together.  I haven't found out how to feel comfortable doing things alone. I've taking my pup for a few walks a couple times to national parks and stuff, but it's still a tiny bit weird now having my husband there to share the time with. I'm working on it though! Once I get passed the endless excuses like "I neeeeeed to fold this laundry" or "I don't want to waste the gas money".  To what matters this post: WE WENT OUTSIDE! No seriously, Florida has been...

Let's begin with Happy Fourth of July ! (belated, I know, the whole "job" thing has had us wiped out this week). For the long holiday weekend we decided we'd brave the 11 hour drive overnight with our trusty pup and go see the in-laws and other family members who reside in Cookeville, TN. Now I don't completely advise traveling over the holidays because it always seems to be a pain in rear, but sometimes ya gotta do what ya gotta do. Just a quick word for the wise, Atlanta is ALWAYS horrible to drive through and if you cross paths with it, go in the middle of the night. Literally our whole departure time is geared around Atlanta traffic, and though it's still crowded at 1am, it's typically pretty smooth.  Anyways, lets get to the good stuff! Cookeville, TN! Okay I'm aware that it's not exactly "Nashville" popular or even close... but it should be! For such a tiny little town there is so incredibly much to offer! Waterfalls with f...

After a day of walking and sightseeing and trying to figure out a way to leave Central Park, the first thing you want to do on a Sunday morning is.... BREAKFAST! Yeah so if you find yourself randomly in New York without any idea of what you're doing or where you plan to go, you might find yourself scrolling through Yelp! That does nothing. There's like 23 restaurants on every street, half of which are closed on Sunday mornings, including coffee shops. I'm serious... out of 5 coffee shops I walked by, one was open. Why does New York not like Sunday mornings?!? Regardless, our group decided to walk until we found a place that was open and had some non-overpriced bacon to offer and WE FOUND IT!!!  Times Square Diner & Grill is the place to go if you're looking for a non-fancy, fresh, pretty cheap but seriously awesome breakfast!! Their portions were huge, which is perfect after a night on the town, and the staff was super friendly. They're also open 24hrs ...

Let me start with saying "woah". Before going to New York we've been pretty new to the travel game. We typically drive everywhere, even if it's to Colorado... And this was our second flight. Awesome! From the biggest cities we've been to previously being Denver, Atlanta, Nashville, and the cities in our home state of Florida, New York City made everything else feel so incredibly small. It's hard to grasp that you're in a place that's larger than life. Words of advice:  Go to the Empire State Building. There might be lines, it might be expensive (we paid $32 for the 86th floor observatory deck) but you must go. And go late at night. The building is open until 2am so after about 10pm the crowds die down a bunch and you can walk around the deck (that circles the building) and you'll see the city lights go on forever in every which way. It really leaves you speechless being the highest thing in the sky. It's oddly quiet too, except fo...

Today I was solo. Brett had the luck of working all weekend so it's just me and our baby (our dog, Fiona). That's not such a bad thing though! It's nice to go off and do your own thing every once in a while and just be alone and get lost (literally...I got lost for 3 miles). Anyway, I randomly found this preserve in Bradenton (Fl) called Robinson Preserve. Very nice! It's a little weird feeling to me to just take my camera and dog and hike on my own, but after about 20 minutes it becomes less awkward and more peaceful. It's incredible how many things can grab your attention when you're not chatting the ears off someone or frolicking through meadows (confession... I can be embarrassing). The preserve was free to get into, dog friendly, and had all paved paths perfect for a bike and running (or walking like me and Fee). There's a kayak/canoe launch and it looks like it would be awesome for that because there are so many mangrove looking trails and pull-off bea...