travel
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Butterflies and Flowers
One of my goals this years has been to delight in the little things and to find contentment in moments in my day. One of the ways to do that has been to sit outside with my coffee in the morning and to plant some zinnias and sunflowers near the house and the patio. These have brought the butterflies even if a little later in the season than usual. Last week, I took a few moments to take some snapshots. When I plant something, it has to be resilient and need little care. Zinnias are easy to plant, come up fairly quickly and come in a variety of colors. My…
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Daily Exercise: A Walk with a View
I have been working on making sure I move everyday now that the boys are in school and I have extra time and no excuses to not exercise. I like to make sure to do a variety of activities from running and walking, doing a workout on my rebounder (trampoline) or doing a quick 5 to 10 minute workout on you tube. I often times do a combination of these. I am also incorporating some bike riding to some weeks. On this day, I decided a walk at a local trail would be fun as it was overcast and not overly hot and the views are always pretty. The walk…
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Impromptu Float Down the River
This past weekend, my Goddaughter came for a visit. I have seen her grown from a cute little baby to now a beautiful young woman who will get married in 6 months! On Saturday, we decided to go float down the river. I usually am a planner but try to be more spontaneous and when my husband made the suggestion, we decided to give it ago despite threats of rain. It was an overcast day not too hot so it would make the float more pleasant. Since it was imprompu, we didn’t really think it through and had to go back to the house for our river sticks and paddles,…
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Coolidge Park, Chattanooga
When I met up my friend Rachel (My Faux French Girl) in Chattanooga at the end of July, I couldn’t believe I had never taken the time to go to Coolidge Park while visiting the city. We met up and park (for a very low $2) on the street and let the boys enjoy the fountains before eating a picnic lunch. My boys, ages 4, 8, and 11 had a ball! They didn’t want to come out of the fountains and asked to come back when possible. I am not sure we will find the time before the fountains close for fall but if nothing else we will come back…
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Soak Up the Little Moments: Allatoona Lake
A few weeks ago, I planned a short overnight trip south of us to visit Providence Canyon. After looking at the forecast the day before, I canceled the trip thinking it would be storming but it reality it would have been perfect. Instead of moaning and groaning about canceling our trip for no reason I decided to drive to the nearby lake and just enjoy a few moments there as it was a short drive. I’ve been wanting to bring the boys here to picnic at this spot before the entrance to Red Top Mountain. It is a mere 10 minute drive from home and very picturesque. There are rocks…
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Weekend at the Lake
Weekends at the lake never turn out the way I expect them too. I actually did not look at the forecast when we decided to visit our uncle at his home on the lake in Alabama and we ended up being rained out the first day. We still managed to have some fun and were able to go out on the pontoon twice. The boys favorite activity was the boat ride taking us to a small island with a swing rope they could use to jump in the lake. I brought some books along to read so the half day it rained and thundered, I enjoyed some quiet time with…
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ZooAtlanta and Sean Kenney’s Nature Pop (Legos)
We were due a visit to the zoo so we took advantage of a Friday to head early to ZooAtlanta to enjoy the Sean Kenney’s Nature Pop lego exhibition. There are 40 sculptures spread around the zoo in bright colors. The exhibition will be there till August 8th. There were some 3D sculptures as well as some 2D ones and the children and I definitely had a favorite which I will share first! I think the polar bears were made with more than 100,000 lego pieces and we loved how it depicts a mama bear with her 3 cubs. My husband and I often call our boys our bears so…
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A Hike at Stone Mountain Park, GA
We hadn’t visited Stone Mountain in quite a while so I took advantage of meeting up with a new Instagram friend nearby to plan a hike. Now, going up Stone Mountain on the hottest week of the start of summer might not have been the best idea but we came prepared with water, snacks and gatorade. We also made sure to wear hats and wear sunscreen. We also make sure to walk in the shade as much as possible. For the first part of the hike, we were able to do that by sticking to shade of the pine trees. Stone Mountain boast the largest exposed mass of granite in…
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New Orleans: A Stroll in the French Quarter
We visited the French quarter twice on our vacation, once taking the trolley down from the garden district and a second time parking several blocks away from the touristy area. It was hot but we enjoyed the architecture and the sights. While we did see some homeless population, there were a lot less people on the streets than I expected. We did a quick walk down Bourbon Street (my least favorite as it is of no interest to me with all the bars and smells) but mainly we enjoyed the picturesque buildings in the French Quarter. The trolley ride was enjoyable as all of the windows were down and you…
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The Sculpture Garden In City Park, New Orleans, LA
You might have had a glimpse of the sculpture garden in Monday’s blog post: this was another of my favorite spots we visited in New Orleans. It is free (donations are appreciated) and quite a large garden with water features, sculptures and walkways. It is located in the City Park area in New Orleans which is a great spot for families with playgrounds, the botanical gardens, the museum of Art and much more. The setting for the garden is quite beautiful. I am always taken by water features whether it is a fountain, a river, a pond or lake. Add a bridge and will sit there and enjoy the scenery!…