a birthday trip for a birthday boy.

I am a little extravagant and sometimes I exaggerate or overly indulge in experiences but one thing that is always worthy of that extra-ness is Cade. He's my best friend, my secret keeper, my anxiety relief and husband. Sometimes I want to tell him that I don't like him but that's usually just the heat of the moment and a little bit later I'm back to thinking he's the entire world. So we'll focus on the positives all the time, right?!

Anyway, for his birthday I wanted to surprise him in a big way and boy did I do that ;)  ... We went to Salt Lake City! Neither of us have ever been and so I bought our plane tickets, reserved the hotel room and did some scoping on the internet to figure out what we could do. The trip was incredible and having that weekend to ourselves with no responsibilities was exactly what we needed and exactly when we needed it. 

The flight into Salt Lake was about as beautiful of a flight that you could possible imagine. Once we got below the clouds it was just mountains. Big, beautiful mountains that completely surrounded us. It was a moment and it I might have shed a little tear just thinking about how grateful I am and how incredible the opportunity was to be able to do something like this with someone I genuinely adore and love. It was touching and I'll never forget it.

After we landed and got to our hotel we got ourselves checked in and situated. At this time it was probably near 6PM which, to our bodies was actually around 8 and we decided that we needed dinner and to rest. Unfortunately I don't really have any pictures from dinner but we went to Squatters Pub and it was a great time. The food was delicious and the beer selection was vast and plenty. We both tried different things and we loved it all! 

DAY ONE: 

Coffee: Blue Copper Roasters

This was a few blocks from our hotel so we decided to go here for breakfast and coffee and it was such a cute little place! We got a little travel mug to take back with us but the best part was definitely shared between the coffee and the friendliness! We sat at the coffee bar and during conversation with the baristas we explained that we were from out of town and wasn't sure what to do. They gave so many great ideas and a stranger sitting at a table even chimed in AND showed us on his laptop where to go and how to take certain transit lines that tourists may not be too familiar with. I should mention now that I was completely blown away by the kindness and patience that I received from the locals. It was terrific! 

This was taken with an iPhone. Not zoomed in whatsoever and not edited. SAY WHAT?! 

 

I'm not sure if this video will work but I thought I'd need it for proof to show that the mountains really were this overwhelmingly beautiful and big and magnificent! 

Salt Lake is nothing if not a city for every kind of person. Sure there is a temple and large Mormon population and yes there is obviously skiers and snowboarders but also there's many mom and pop shops and breweries and restaurants for those of us who aren't necessary active (in religion or sports, get it!? get it?!). Anyway, we went to the breweries and local shops, it was perfect for us! 

Uinta Brewing
Epic Brewing Company
Proper Brewing Company
Lucky 13 Bar and Grill

 

DAY TWO: 

On day two we decided to travel up to Park City after receiving this suggestion from nearly ever Uber driver, waiter/waitress and helpful passerby. So off we went and just a little tid bit, if you find yourself in SLC then you should absolutely check out Park City. They're not lying! 

Coffee: Atticus Coffee, Books and Teahouse

We walked up and down Main Street and just took in these amazing views! How can you describe it other than doing your best to capture the beauty?

For lunch we checked out High West Distillery

We slowly made our way back to Salt Lake and decided to check out Red Iguana after (again) everyone told us to go and it lived up to the hype! The wait was a quick 25 minutes and the food and service were equal parts fantastic! We really hit the jackpot with this trip with regards to where we went. I know I sound like a broken record, but it was all worth our time and money. Not a single complaint! 

In Temple Square we visited the Temple ^^ and the Mall (below)

We were sad to leave a great trip but also SO ready to see our Frankie and get back to normal life and our bed! We already want to go again and there will be quite a few places that we will be going to again! 

Oh, and Cleveland welcomed us back with quite the sunset over Lake Erie.

DC Recap! [mom + daughter date]

Hey there! Back towards the end of October the dearest mother and I went on a weekend getaway to Washington DC! There was no real rhyme or reason to the location other than the fact that we both LOVE history and sight seeing. We stayed in a great area and were able to get a lot done in our short 2 days there. 

I've shared some of the information below as well as pictures! Please enjoy and if the opportunity presents itself and you are able to do it then I'd HIGHLY suggest going on a random weekend trip with a parent. It was a blast! 

Where we stayed: 

Hilton Garden Inn

What we ate: 

Peet's Coffee
The Capital Burger
Fire Works Pizza
Wunder Garten
Magnolia Bakery
Blue Bottle Coffee

Where we went: 

The National Mall
Ford's Theatre
Arlington National Cemetery

No exaggeration here: this was the best burger EVER! I don't know what they do that stands out amongt the competition but it was so perfectly grilled and served. I was so full but also desperately wanting to order another one (or 6 to stash away).

My beautiful momma and I on our walk to Wunder Garten just after dropping off our bags and checking ourselves into the hotel! It was probably 100 yards away so it was destined that we start our trip here.

The next day was the sight seeing and history. It was a lot more of an emotional day than I thought it was going to be. Just to see where our country has been and what we, as American's, have accomplished. It's truly a beautiful thing and whether you want to see it or not, we're still that nation that is working together... In one form or another. 

I tend to go for a good sour beer if given the chance and I tried this one at Fire Works Pizza. The taste was incredible! Very sour and fruity without being too sweet. The only downside would be the carbonation. Otherwise, it was worth sharing! 

There ya have it! It was a great trip and while I've gone on many vacations with my mom, it's never been just the two of us. DC may have been our first trip but it definitely won't be our last! 

life lately [HOW long was that hiatus?!]

My last post was almost THREE FULL MONTHS ago. WHAT? Why? I'll tell ya why... JK, I don't really have any great excuses.

Anyway, so much has happened in the last few months and I can't wait to share some of my highlights while simultaneously finally cleaning up my camera roll... hashtag: I need more space on my phone.

I could barely wait until September was coming to an end before putting up my Halloween decorations - this is the start of my favorite time of year! First Halloween, then Fall/Thanksgiving, then Christmas - and I'm only referring to decorating my house... not to mention all the other exciting parts of the season.

Here are a few shots I took of my Halloween decor.

I bought this porcelain jack-o-lantern a few years ago and it is, without a doubt, my favorite decoration piece. I love when it's lit up during the night:

We also attended two weddings in two weekends - talk about getting our fancy pants AND groove on. I love a good wedding! 

My dream of finally seeing Rainbow Kitten Surprise came true recently and they were incredible! What a show... 



Speaking of Halloween; I dressed up as Linda Belcher from Bob's Burgers and surprisingly only a few people knew I was. I thought for sure it would've been a little more recognizable but ALRIGHT WHATEVA, people don't watch as much Bob's as I thought. 

One beautiful fall day Cade and I travelled ALL the way down to a little town called Akron, OH (heard of it?!) You'd think for the city only being 30 minutes away that we'd make it there a little more often but then again I could surprise you with how little we go.  

During our day trip we went to the Akron Art Museum as well as a few breweries! 

Akron Art Museum
Akronym Brewing
HiHo Brewery & Taproom
Missing Moutain Brewing Company

Look at how cute he is! ISN'T HE SO CUTE!? Anyway, I like him.

 ^^ Got the whole family together to watch the Browns game on a beautiful fall Sunday! 

Cade and I have already been to a couple Cavs games this year and while they're not quite the team to beat they are always fun. PLUS, during this particular game my man (Channing Frye) waved to me and I made him laugh. The Cavs may not have won this evening, but I sure did! 

Again with the cuteness! 

OK, I already can't believe how far I've made it. This is insane and a really great reminder to never go this long without a blog post again. 

CHRISTMAS TIME IS (er, WAS) HERE! 

Per the usual, I over do it sometimes with the decorations but HEY what's a gal to do?! 

Cade and I finally made our way to the Grog Shop. You'd think for a couple that have been to so many shows and whatnot that we would've been here, right?! 

Also carried on our annual tradition of meeting up with the Kent gang at Bottles 101.  This is a great time and if it ever stops then I really won't know what to do with myself on the morning of Christmas Eve.

We even got the brother and Ash-kash to tag along! 

^^^ That was served to me by the husband and it was made using his own ESPRESSO MAKER BOOYEAH. Have I had espresso, yes! Have I had too much lately? Who's to judge?!

Finally (FINALLY!??!?!), We got all the Christmas decorations down and our house is back to normal now. Cade had a great idea to replace our Christmas tree with the fiddle leaf and honestly, I'm a little bitter that I didn't think of it first. Then to top it off he also threw up a fun Picasso print and now this continues to be my favorite corner of the house. Sorry IG people, you've seen enough of my living room already and I have no plans to stop.

OK, I did it! I hope that you had a Happy New Year and may 2019 bring you exactly what you want it to bring you. I hope it's filled with a lot of belly laughs, countless amazing nights and all the warmth and cuddle time that your heart needs.

Off I go now to write up some other posts that I've been lagging!