High Heels to Hiking Shoes

So when you're relaxing in the Caribbean what is the logical thing to do...plan your next vacation obviously!!!! I traded in my high heels for a pair of hiking shoes this time around.  We packed up the hounds and took a Road Trip to the Arkansas Ozarks for a camping trip. 

With the wind in their hair and their ears flopping in the breeze we were off!  I'm not too sure how much they enjoyed the road trip aspect of the vacation. 

 

 

Our first campsite was at Tompkins Bend at Lake Ouachita.  It was a nice campground that offered lake access and hiking trails with A LOT of RVs and people!!!  I guess what should we expect for going camping over 4th of July weekend? We decided to pack up camp the remaining days of our camping trip and trek into the Ozark Mountains and camp in the woods. I was in hopes to see a black bear the whole time, but no such luck :(

The next day we drove into the Ozarks and hiked into the woods and found this wonderful spot and popped up camp.

I think that Remington and Archie loved the second campsite much better!  Archie's alter ego "Mudspot" even came out a time or two.

We hiked, we swam, we relaxed, we ate!  Camping food is one of the best parts about camping.  Who doesn't love Puppy Chow, Trail Mix, S'mores and foods cooked in foil? Here's to sharing our adventure in camping foods...

The essential "oven"

Chicken and Veggie Kabobs

"Foil Packs" Turkey Patty, Carrots, Potatoes, Onions

Potato Packs

Strawberry S'mores

 

Banana Boats

Until our next adventure...

Waking up in Paradise

As my 29th birthday was approaching I realized I had not accomplished as many things on my 30 Before Thirty list as I would have liked to by this point. I did feel a little better though knowing that the week of my birthday I would be marking a couple things off the list, one of which was a much needed vacation!  On Friday, June 7th the Hubs and I jetted off to Trinidad and Tobago!  An island in the Caribbean...that's not in  Canada! Nothing against Canada, I have just been there too many times in the past few years.

We stayed a little over a week in Tobago, which was beyond beautiful and relaxing.  Trinidad and Tobago was the perfect Caribbean islands for us; they are off the beaten path and not overwhelmed with tourism, which is how we like to travel.  No chocolate on my pillow for this girl, instead I had beetles landing on my pillow in the middle of the night! That's part of the adventure right? 

"In the morning you will wake up in paradise," at least that's what the property manager of the cottage we stayed at said the night he dropped us off after picking us up from the airport.  I think he was right!  This was our view every morning of Englishman's Bay.

We took a boat out one day and went down the west side of the Island.  We went fishing and went snorkeling in a couple of the bays along the island.  We stopped at Paradise Bay and cooked our fish on the beach.

Enjoying my new camera on the boat ride

Happy Birthday to Me!  On my Birthday we spent the day at three different beaches swimming and relaxing.  I would have to say it was pretty perfect to spend my birthday in the Caribbean! The above Jetty is at Pigeon Point.

Beach #2 of Caribbean Birthday relaxing was Mount Irvine Beach.  We weren't the only ones relaxing and sleeping on the beach :)

Beach #3 of Caribbean Birthday relaxing was Englishman's Bay.  Here we watched the sunset on a perfect Birthday!

I went in for a little dip in my Birthday Suit on my Birthday! This would be the second thing I checked off my 30 Before Thirty list! :)

While in Tobago we also hiked around in the Rain Forest on Gilpin Trail.  It was a beautiful Rain Forest with lots of birds and waterfalls.

We also hiked up a river in Bloody Bay one day.  It was a little ironic due to the fact that after the hike in Bloody Bay I came out of it Bloody.  I slipped and busted my knee open, oops!

We also made our way into Trinidad one day and walked around Port of Spain.  We found a local street market and tried out some of the local street food.  One of my favorite parts about traveling to different countries is experiencing the local cuisine and street foods.

Until our next adventure...

 

Be Our Guest

How long does it take one to post pictures of their new house? After moving into our new home back in February I'm just now taking the time to put pictures and floor plans up.

Welcome to our new home...

Living Room, looking to the Foyer

Living Room, looking to the Patio

Family Room

From the Family Room looking into the Kitchen and Breakfast Nook. So Glad the Terra-cotta floors are gone!

Kitchen.  Next big project after the upcoming built-ins is to refinish the cabinets.

Laundry Room

Dinning Room

Bedroom #1 - Office

Bedroom #2 - Guest Room

Hall Bath

Master Bedroom

Master Bath

Look at that glorious shoe storage!!!

Exercise Room

Backyard and Deck, perfect site for a future Hot Tub!

Looking at all these pictures now it makes me want to work on a project...off to finish my kitchen table!

Build-A-Birdie

Are you ever too old for stuffed animals?  I think not! My "Best Friend" was made this weekend when I went to a Build-A-Bear Workshop.  The best part about my new bear...she was FREE!

While walking around the mall, my sister and I decided to go into Build-A-Bear to see what it was all about.  I had never been into a Build-A-Bear workshop before and have been wanting to make one for years, but what 28 year old goes into a Workshop to build a bear without a child in tow? While we were looking at the wall of unstuffed animals, a Bear Builder (that's what I am calling him) came up to us to see if he could help. I told him that I was just looking at the options they had for bear building because I have been wanting to make one for years and that Building-A-Bear was on my "30 Before 30" list.  Not prepared to actually Build-A-Bear that day he threw me off guard when he said he would give me a bear for free! Who am I to turn down a free Bear?

Step #1 - Choose Bear and begin to build

Step #2 - Proceed to Fill 

Step #3 - The Heart Ceremony. Yes, I rubbed a silk heart on my body so my bear could possess qualities like mine!

Step #4 - Insert your Bears heart

Step #5 - Dress and name your new Best Friend...Birdie Thirty was born on 4/27/13.

After the birth of Birdie I went to the cash register to pay for the outfit I dressed her in.  The Bear Builder checked me out an proceeded to give me Birdie's outfits for free too! You rock Bear Builder!

So just in case Seth MacFarlane's tale of a child's stuffed animal coming to life is true...I can't wait to be your Thunder Buddy Birdie!