Vacation in a #photo summary

A gathering of photos from my trip.

Starhill Brewery | Crozet, VA

Starhill is awesome.  You walk into the brewery and you're immediately in the middle of the bottling plant.  You come up to an open bar area that appears as if the bartender just grabs the nearest keg and hooks it to the tap.  I don't even like beer most of the time, but I found my new passion.  It's called Smoke Out, and has a delightfully smoky taste to it.  The after taste: bacon.  

Floydfest 12 | Rise & Shine
This 4 day journey was the muddiest I've ever been.  It occurred to me on the 3rd day that it could have kept raining, it could have stayed cold, and it could have been a very dangerous time getting out of the parking lot.  But with a mile and a half hike in with all of our camping gear, 4 days of amazing music, and time with my 3 favorite boys, it was an incredible weekend to remember.


Montana | Big Sky State
While we were in Montana, I got the pleasure of meeting the hubs' best friend's newborn baby, I ate at one of the most wonderful pizza joints in Billings, explored the plains on a 4-wheeler, ate my first crawdads, floated several miles of the Madison River, and tasted some of Montana's finest huckleberry beers.  All in all, I'd say it was a pretty good little trip!

And of course... relaxation.

Adventures in the Big Apple

I love celebrating New Years Eve whenever I can.  Hosting a party, going to a piano bar, or spending it on a cruise; I've had some excellent NYE celebrations.  Bringing in 2013 takes the cake.  

First off, I've never been to New York before.  I've lived within a day's drive of it for most of my life, and never took the opportunity.  About a year ago, a good friend of mine got a job in the city and joined the race in corporate america.  This year, he invited myself and a few others to join him in his office's conference room.  Here's the view we had:

The street front and center there is 43rd street, also known as Times Square.  Does the pole look familiar   This picture was taken 12 or so hours before the crystal ball was raised to the top of it.  I don't think I've ever been so high up in a building before!  It made me think of being in a man-made version of the Grand Canyon.  It was incredible.

With a couple hours to kill in Manhattan, we did a little sight seeing... 

Christmas Tree at Rockefeller Center

Radio City Music Hall

 Once night was beginning to fall, we decided to make our way back to the office and watch the crowd below.  Turns out there were 1 million people in the span of 8 blocks.  Incredible!

Ball rising around 7 or 8pm. 

Fireworks blasted off every hour, on the hour.

There really are no words to describe how beautiful the ball was from eye level.  With those bright LED lights, pictures also don't do it justice.

Happy New Year!!!  At the stroke of midnight, we watched the fireworks from right in front of us, and also over in Central Park.  

With a whirlwind trip, the hubby and I decided we have to make it back up for another trip.  It was excellent!

Swimmin with de fishes | Vacation Time

Well, swimmin with de dolphins!  (and we snorkeled with de fishes)

A couple weeks ago, I brought my husband, parents and mother-in-law to a place in Florida called Discovery Cove.  There, I had the most incredible experience of my life.

Meet Jenny.  She's one of the first dolphins to be a resident of Discovery Cove, and she was one of the friendliest (and smartest) creatures I've ever met.  You could tell she really enjoyed the time that she spent with her trainers, and there was an incredible bond between Jenny and the lead trainer.  Jenny would roll over and show her belly to let everyone rub her.  She would put her tail in the trainer's hand and let the trainer pull her backwards through the water.  We also learned that Jenny had watched the trainer's daughter grow up through life just as the trainer had watched Jenny's calves grow older.  

She loved men.  Especially Jason, my hubby.  You could tell when Jason went to give her a hug- she rolled herself into his arms, and held her head and tail higher in the air than for anyone else.  Maybe it was his stronger touch.  Or maybe she saw the same things in him that I do.... :)

The whole experience was pretty incredible.  

Here's the rest of the trip summed up in a few snap shots:

Left to right, top to bottom: 

Flamingos | SeaWorld Orlando

Mt Everest Ride at Animal Kingdom | Disney World

Fireworks over the Magic Kingdom | Disney World

Shamu | SeaWorld Orlando

Crabby Joes | Daytona Beach

Jet Skiing | Daytona Beach

Ponce de Leon Inlet Lighthouse | Daytona Beach

Ascending stairs in the lighthouse | Daytona Beach

Jason vs ocean | Daytona Beach

Oh, the places you'll go

A big part of who we are includes where we came from and where we've been, right?  I think a really neat little bit of home decor with a personal touch can come from something as simple as a map!

When we move into our new house, I want the decor to speak of where we're from and where we have gone.  I think a map can tell a great deal.  If anything, it's definitely a conversation starter.

[source]

These little screen printed maps are really cute and customizable.  I can see one in our future.. yes.. one with a heart in Virginia and one in Montana..  :)

[souce]

Another really great idea is to frame satellite images of places that have special meaning.  Check out this tutorial on Five Sixteenths Blog by guest Jen from Motu Viget

[source]

This map is a really cool idea for an over-the-couch framed piece.  Scratch off the countries where you've been.  If you mount it with cork board or cardboard behind it, you could even put pins where you've lived or exactly where you've visited.  I can see part of the most exciting part of the trip being the opportunity to scratch off the new place.  How fun!

Song of the hour: Fly by Sugar Ray.  Yesterday I called into a radio station, and won tickets to go to the Summerland Tour with Sugar Ray, Gin Blossoms, Lit, Marcy's Playground and Everclear!  Super excited for an excellent evening of throwbacks.