Happy Monday Friends! Hoping that Monday has you pumped and ready for a new week, but if not, maybe a little dose of happiness will help! Today is the first of my Happy Things for 2016! I would love to have you join and share yours too!
These 5 things made me really happy in January!
1.) Flo's first out of state adventure was a huge success!! We loved our trip to Georgia and can't wait to adventure again soon!! 2.) It is finally cold enough to have a fire in the fireplace! Not only that, it has stayed cold enough! Florida is freezing y'all!! We have had a fire in the fire place every night for the past week. And the make it even happier, we moved our bedroom into the living room. We usually do this once it stays cold enough. We take the mattress off the bed and plop it right next to the fireplace. We build a fire big enough to last well into the night and I fall asleep with my face only about a foot or two away from the flames! It's absolutely lovely; the flames dance and create a colorful display behind my closed eyes, while the pop of the burning embers play music that lulls me to sleep. Seriously, if you have a fireplace and have never done this, you need to! Especially if you have kiddos! We don't, but piling into the living room when my nieces and nephews are over and having a "camp-in" by the fire while play games and watching a movie= perfection!
3.) Teaching my niece to play Sorry! Sorry was the game we grew up playing as a family. Last week I ran into her and her mama at Publix and they came over to play by the fire for a bit. She is almost 5, so it was really fun to have her actually grasp how to play and for her to get to play by herself (with our help). We would give her the best options and she would get to pick how she moved. It was hysterical to see her little brain decide who she would "Sorry!!" Apparently, I was the big target! But in the end it came down to the two of us (kicked poor Uncle Andrew right out of the running), literally both of us waiting on a 3 to get our last man home. Ultimately I ended up winning, so it was also really neat to get to teach her how to be a good sport. It's something I have trouble with myself sometimes, so I told her it was ok to want to win but that a true winner is one who can lose with grace! A good lesson for both of us for sure!!
4.) Seeing The Sound of Music with my sweet mama!! I love going to plays and this was the first time getting to see the stage version of Sound of Music, as well as the first time in our new downtown Orlando theater! My Sound of Music loving heart was very happy!!! 5.) Orlando day hikes!! I love adventuring and I love getting to go away in Flo, but it also makes my heart really happy when Babe and I have days off together to explore in our own backyard! So the other day we did just that and headed up to Little Big Econ State Forest to go to Kolokee Trail that a coworker had recommended to me. It was a beautiful day! Weather in the high 60's and sunny. The loop cuts through some of the Florida trail and was really well maintained (probably one of the most maintained trails we have done). It was a great area to check out for any of you local Orlando hikers! Other happies: beautiful sunsets, lots of oyster eating, best woman wedding accepting fun, farmers market days, 4Rivers dates with friends we met on the road
What are some of your happies?!
I would love to see!
Join the link up and share your happy things for 2016!!
Link Up Rules:
- Share a post (up to 2) about anything happy; it can be 5 happy things, 1 happy thing, really just anything for the month that has made your heart smile!
- Feel free to share the image above so that others can link up their happy things too!
- Leave a happy comment on at least one other post
- I will interact with all posts in some way (comments, pinning to Happy Things 2016 board...)
- Share your happy things on Instagram using #happythings2016
- Come back on the last Monday of each month to share your happy things for that month and start a community of people who are adding a bit of cheer to Mondays! - Link up will be run through Friday of the same week
I love Florida! Oh so much! Yay for strawberry season!!
I was so excited to see that Brook Hollow Farm would be starting their season early this year. They are a hydroponic farm in Orlando and I LOVE them. I love not having to bend down to pick berries!! The farm is run by the sweetest couple, who live on property. While the majority of their farm is geared towards strawberries, they will also have blackberries and tomatoes soon! They make my heart (and belly) very happy! If you live in the Orlando area, you have to check them out! Needless to say, I have been strawberry happy over here!! So I thought I would share with you some of my favorite ways to enjoy their red and juicy goodness!
Fresh!~ I mean this needs no explanation! Fresh strawberries each morning are bliss! Right off the plant? Even better!! Smoothies!~ I always freeze a good handful or two so that I can keep them for smoothies!! My favorite is banana and strawberry with a hint of tangerine. I do the following...
1 half frozen banana
1 half fresh banana
3 frozen strawberries
1 half of a vanilla Greek yogurt
about 3/4 cup almond milk (add more or less for desired consistency)
1 drop of tangerine oil (smoothie must be in glass cup if oil is used)
Honey Mustard Tilapia with Strawberry salsa!~ This dish has been a favorite of mine for a while. I had found a similar recipe along time ago in a cookbook I had checked out from the library and tweaked it to create one more my style. Here's the recipe:
For fish baste-
2 small/medium tilapia filets
3 or 4+ tablespoons honey
1 small squeeze yellow mustard (could change mustard based on taste preference)
Garlic Salt
Season all Salt
Preheat Oven to 420. Line pan with aluminum foil and coat with a bit of oil. Place fish on pan and season both sides with garlic and season all salt. In a small bowl mix honey and mustard together. I do a tiny squeeze of mustard because I prefer mine more of a honey base, but Babe like mustard so once I have basted my fish I will add a larger squeeze of mustard to baste his. Make sure to coat both sides of fish. I will also add a little pepper to his fish. It's great because you can really play to taste preference. Once preheated bake fish for 5-6 minutes on one side, then flip and bake for another 5-6 minutes.
Salsa-
Handful of strawberries cut up
Pineapple chunks
Lime juice
1 tablespoon honey
While fish is cooking mix strawberries, pineapple, a few drops of lime juice and 1 tablespoon honey in a small bowl. Put in fridge until fish is done. Once the fish is cooked, top with salsa. I usually serve over/ with rice. I know you might be thinking, fruit and fish?! But oh my, is it delicious!! When in season I will also use kiwi or peach in the salsa.
Strawberry, PB & N Flatwich~ I discovered this delectable treat one afternoon while making Nutella sandwiches for the kids I nanny. You simply take the FlatOut pita wraps, swipe some peanut butter on one side and Nutella on the other and then slice strawberries and spread them across the middle and then fold in half. This is my favorite hiking day snack, because unlike a meat sandwich, the warmer the sandwich gets the better it is!! When I am eating it at home I will often put in the microwave for a few seconds (between 9-12). It makes the perfect little treat or a sweeter lunch! Great option for picky kiddos too!
Strawberry Water~ I have the hardest time remembering to drink enough water during the day, but when I have strawberries in the house it makes it A LOT easier!! I love strawberry water! Just cut the top off a fresh berry and plop it in the water! Keeps me refilling that water all day! Yay for hydration! To vary it up every so often I will add cucumber or blueberry with the strawberries. I also love to plop in a drop of grapefruit oil too to give my metabolism a boost (always use a glass bottle when adding essential oils)!
Strawberries make me happy and I can't wait to get back to the farm!
I have always loved this quote by Roald Dahl. There is something so magical in this world, something so unique and wonderful and I pray that I always have eyes (and a heart) that are open to seeing it. There is beauty and magic all around us... It is that beauty that leaves me without a doubt in my mind that we have the most wonderful Creator; there is too much imagination in the colors of a sunset, the immensity of a mountain landscape or the music that is made by the crunch of Fall leaves underfoot for me to ever think otherwise. And I pray I am imparting that onto the next generation. Hearing my niece get so excited about Flo and adventuring and seeing the world makes me think that maybe I am doing my small part!
Happy Friday Folks!! It's Friday, it's Friday! And Monday is a holiday! Do you know what that means?! That means adventure!! We are looking up local hikes to do this weekend and I can't wait to get out there! Especially now that we have our new adventure rings!
I am partnering with QALO Rings today and am super excited to share them with you! I found them when I started looking for a ring to get Babe for Christmas. He lost his wedding band years ago while wake boarding and, being the "on the ball" wife that I am, we never got around to replacing it. Sure, it was sad when his was gone, but after the initial loss I didn't really think it was that big of a deal and had just planned to get around to it sometime or another. Then we hit year 3 with no ring and I thought to myself, "it is time to do something about this!" Insert QALO! QALO rings are the bomb! I know I just totally brought back 90's slang, but I am not kidding! These babies rock! QALO rings are a silicone based ring made for the adventurer in all of us! There are so many colors and styles to choose from. I figured the best way to share the love with you is to share some of the reasons I think QALO rings are so great! So here they are....
5 Reasons I Love QALO Rings
1.) They are perfect for all sorts of adventures!! Hiking, climbing, wake boarding, going to the gym, working with your hands... QALO makes it super easy to be active! Each ring comes with it's own zippered pouch that can be clipped onto anything (gym bag, hiking backpack), so that when you need to switch out your metal band for your adventure ring (if you don't just wear it all the time) you can easily switch them out and have a safe place to store your other ring until you switch back.
2.) The quality is superb! The rings are made of medical grade silicone; yes they are bendable and pliable, but that is their purpose. They are made to move with you! Though they are flexible, they are also strong! I will let you in on a little secret. Prior to finding QALO I had stumbled upon a set of rings on Amazon and thought I would give those a try. Bad idea! Babe took one look at them, tried one on and said nope! They were more rubber band than ring. QALO rings are well made and you can feel the difference. They sit more like a metal ring, don't squeeze your finger and allow for some give and take.
3.) They are super cute! Yes, I said cute! I love the availability of choices they provide. Each ring comes with a small imprint of one of their signature symbols (a heart, kettle bell, compass or axes). The color selection is right up my alley! I love a little color pop for adventuring!! 4.) They are really reasonably priced! Perfect for a money saving heart like mine! With rings ranging from $16 to $25 you won't feel bad roughing them up too much!! They are built tough anyways and made for getting active!!
5.) And a personal perk! I love seeing a ring on my man's hand again!! Friends were always saying to me, "Why don't you get him a ring?! Isn't that kind of a big deal?!" And really it wasn't, I knew we were married, other people knew we were married, the ring was just the thing. But then I saw a ring on his finger again and my heart got way happy! It was nice to see that symbol of our promise to each other sitting right there on his finger!
QALO rings really are wonderful and they stick by their motto: Quality*Athletics*Love*Outdoors=QALO
The second leg of our Georgia adventure took us, about 40 minutes south of Savannah, to Fort McAllister State Park! Babe would probably be rolling his eyes at the fact that I am about to use the word LOVE again in response to our trip, but we did, we LOVED it there too!
In all honesty, this is much more our pace! Don't get me wrong, we loved Savannah and the food A LOT! But there's something about the calm of a state park that just sets my heart at ease! I love the sounds of fellow campers; no devices, no kids holed up inside. Instead it's bike rides and noise and laughter and play! It's parent riding by on bikes and stopping to chat to fellow campers, asking "you haven't seen our kids ride by have you? We haven't seen them in over an hour." They aren't worried or frantic, they continue to chat with the people the stopped to ask, because they know their kids are ok and that they are just off exploring somewhere. There are older couples setting up by the fire, birds chirping, bats flying by and an owls hooting in the distance. I seriously can't get enough!
Our Spot!
Our campsite view was beautiful! While there had been an overbooking problem with the park and we had to find a temporary spot when we pulled in the first night, we got up the next morning and secured a spot that had just been vacated. We had a stunning view of the marsh and even though we were right by the entrance, it was pretty quiet and secluded! All the space is one of the reasons we prefer state park stays over RV campgrounds.
What We Did!
Fort McAllister had all sorts of things to fill an adventurous heart!
We started with a tour of the fort itself. There is a fee, as the park itself is only loosely affiliated with the campground, but it was worth it! The fort is so neat! They took advantage of the natural elements and the fort was actually built into the ground. Going inside made me feel just like a hobbit! There were tunnels to explore, living quarters to give you a glimpse at what life was like when soldiers were there and there was a lookout tower on the grounds that gave a beautiful view of the river! There is also a museum that gives you a more in-depth history of the fort that made Babe very satisfied! We watched the short video before we went out to explore the grounds and it even kept my attention!
Cost: $9 per person
The hiking trails at the park were great! There was a shorter one (a little under a mile) right by the campsites, with two different legs you could take. One leg included little animal inspired workout activities, while the other (not marked on trail map) ran along side the river. The longer (3.1) miles, was up near the entrance to the park itself and was one of my favorite hikes! I love wet trails, especially when they aren't so wet that your shoes get soaked! This trail had the perfect mix of wet spots with rocks to skip on, or fallen trees to use as bridges, and nice easy, dry walking!
The pioneer trail loop is not included on the trail map. It is a little ways into the mapped trail and is the fork off to the left. More rugged and windy than the mapped trail, but a lot of fun! It meets back up with the other trail towards the end of the mile.
An example of the animal inspired workouts found along the mapped trail in the campground.
Bikes!! I definitely recommend bringing bikes! We biked to the fort, to lunch, to the trails, everywhere! While you don't need them it does save a lot of extra walking. The public part of the park and the campground are separated by a long, bumpy road. It took us about 5 minutes to bike from the campground up to the park, but would have at least doubled walking.
We also kayaked, but unless you have your own or know you are going to spend a full day on the water, I wouldn't recommend it. The least amount of time you can rent them for is 4 hours, which we paid $40 for. We were only out for a little over an hour and it just wasn't worth the cost for the amount of time we were out. I am keeping my fingers crossed that we purchase an inflatable stand-up soon!!
The park (both public side and campground itself) also has great playgrounds for people traveling with kiddos, as well as wooden bench swings at the public end of the park for people to enjoy. There are also cabins that can be rented that house between 8-14 people depending on the size of your party. Looking at the prices they seemed a little steep in our opinion, but if everyone splits the cost it isn't that bad and a great option for glamping!
Where we ate!
We mostly ate at the site; Babe tried out the new grill with some yummy lobster tail and then made burgers over the fire pit our last night. However, there was an awesome restaurant right outside the main entrance to the park and we knew we just had to go for lunch one day, mostly because we saw the sign that said oysters!! So our last full day of the trip we biked up to Fish Tales and enjoyed a lovely meal on the water before heading back to conquer the longer hike!
Fish Tales was delicious! We got some yummy drinks, an oyster appetizer and then a full bucket of steamed oysters! I don't know what it is about Georgia, but they sure know how to properly fill an oyster bucket!! It was brimming with glorious shells of yumminess for only $15! Fish Tails gets their oysters from Florida, so it was a good mix considering the oysters we had in Savannah were from Georgia. We ate to our heart's content, enjoyed the beautiful view of the marina and biked back to the park.
*We did try to bike up to restaurant the day prior to when we actually went, but they are only open for lunch Friday-Sunday. During the week they don't open until 4. Seating is mostly outside, though they do have a bar inside and an enclosed patio with large glass windows that still offer a great view!
*There is also a bait and tackle shop that is open during the day for anyone looking to fish.
We loved everything about Fort McAllister and I definitely wouldn't mind going back!
But it's off to plan our next adventure!!
Where have you been lately?!
Feel free to link up for my new #TravelTueday link up in yesterday's post!
