This past week I was in Orlando attending a conference for work. The conference was held at the Lowes Pacific Royal over at Universal Studios. I wish I could say I popped over to the parks, but the weather was awful. On Monday night I was out for a run and ran past the entrace to CityWalk CityWalk is part of Universal Studios and consists of many restaurants, bars and other entertainment. One restaurant in particular caught my eye, The Toothsome Chocolate Emporium & Savory Feast Kitchen. Did someone say chocolate? I have quite the sweet tooth and love anything chocolate. Once I was back in my room, I looked up the menu and thought maybe I would check it out.
My original plan was to spend my last night in Florida at Epcot. I am a Disney girl through and through and go every chance I get. I am also an annual pass holder, so not having to shell out $100 or so for a park ticket is appealing. However, as I mentioned, the weather was terrible. There was a tornado warning! I decided to wait out the weather and walk over to this intriguing restaurant with chocolate in the title.
As I entered, I realized this was much more than just a restaurant. Upon entering, to the right is a shop with candy, freshly-made desserts, popcorn, novelty items, and more. To the left is a counter where one can order fantastic sundaes and milkshakes. Before I took a look at any of this, I went up to the hostess and asked for a table. She informed me there was a 40-minute wait, but I could head upstairs and eat at the bar. There were high top tables, where the full menu is served. Off I went!
I grabbed myself a high top and had fun perusing the menu.
The restaurant has an extensive menu that includes an all-day brunch. The appetizer selection was quite big — a favorite on the menu, Warm Chocolate Almond Bread that comes with a salted caramel butter. I was about to order that when I saw a Baked Brie En Croute. It is made with raspberry marmalade, berries, almonds, chocolate almond bread, and oven-baked lavosh. I had to try this. As for my drink, I ordered a Vanilla Chocolate Cocktail. The drink consisted of Madagascar vanilla vodka, Trader Vick’s dark chocolate, Faretti chocolate, and chocolate bitters.
As I was eating my appetizer, my server came over and asked how everything was, and we got to talking. He told me that the restaurant has a backstory. Apparently, characters walk around, including Penelope Tibeaux- Tinker Toothsome, creator of the restaurant and her robot Jacques. Unfortunately, I did not have the pleasure of meeting her or her friend.
I had a hard time deciding what to have for dinner. There were sandwiches, flatbread pizzas, pasta, burgers, and entrees. I asked the server for his recommendation and he said I could not go wrong with the braised short ribs. I was sold.
As I waited for dinner, I snapped some photos of the seating area. The bar is pretty big, and the seating area around it is very nice. The view is great.
My ribs arrived, and he was right, it was delicious. Though I have to admit, I am not a fan of grits. The grits were mixed with cheddar cheese, and are not my thing. Other than that, the meal was excellent. When it came down to dessert, I said no, but not because I did not want to try something, but because I wanted to see what was downstairs.
I headed downstairs where I roamed the candy store.
Candy Bars 
Macarons 
OMG!
I ultimately decided to order a sundae. Though, let me tell you, the milkshakes looked amazing as well.
When I saw the May Contain Nuts Sundae, how could I resist?
This sundae is made with peanut butter ice cream, Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups, chocolate peanut butter pie, fresh whipped cream, peanut butter sauce, topped with Reese’s Pieces and a piece of peanut brittle. It was a shame I was there alone. I could only eat half and had to throw the rest away.
If you are ever in the Orlando area, I would highly recommend this restaurant, even if it is to just grab a fun dessert or two.
Last week I shared a Summer Bucket List of Ideas for Teens. It consists of a list of things I would like to do with my boys this summer. In addition to that list, I have created my own bucket list. Though I adore being with the kids, I have my own list of things I would like to accomplish this summer. Some involve them and some do not. Believe it or not kids, this Mom has her own life! Now before I dive into my list, I want to explain why I have a bucket list.
A few years ago, I was asked this very question, why a bucket list? Why do you feel the need to plan every moment of your life? Well, besides the fact I am a Type A personality, there is research that shows how beneficial a bucket list can be. A bucket list can help create a fulfilling life. It is essential to take time for things that we enjoy doing. Fitting in things like vacations and hobbies bring happiness and satisfaction in our lives. It makes life FUN! By fitting these things into our every day, we reduce stress and enhance our lives. Less stress??? Sign me up!
Here are the top things I want to accomplish this summer.
- PR in a 10k race.
- Road trip with the family.
- Finish my 2018 scrapbooks.
- Date night with the hubby and friends in the North End.
- Visit the new wax museum in Boston.
- Hit the beach at least every other weekend.
- Read six novels before Labor Day Weekend.
- Girl’s night once a month.
- Try the Alice Tea Room at Patriot Place.
- Visit some local craft fairs.
- Attend the Scrapbooking Expo in New Hampshire.
- Try a new restaurant twice a month.
- Freedom Trail Tour in Boston.
- Food Tour in Boston.
- Water Fires in Providence.
- Stay club level at Disney’s Beach Club Resort.
There you have it, my 2019 Summer Bucket List. Between this list and the one I did for the boys, it is jammed packed with activities. Will we do them all? Maybe not, but it will be fun trying. Now tell me, what is on your summer bucket list? Post a comment here or hop on over to one of my social media pages and let me know. Happy Summer!
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Happy June! Summer is upon us, and you know that means summertime travel! I am sure many of you are looking forward to some weekend escapes this summer. Or perhaps you are a light traveler and don’t want or require a lot of luggage. The more I travel, the more I try to consolidate and try to keep the packing to a minimum. It has been a bit easier with my discovery of the TLS Mother Lode Weekend Convertible by ebags. This backpack has changed the way I travel.
With this bag, I can bring everything I need without having to check a bag. The bag is lightweight at almost 4lbs. It fits nicely in the overhead bin on the plane.. It comes equpped with a fold down shelf and a divider to separate items. It is roomy inside and my packing cubes fit perfectly
There is a padded sleeve for a laptop, several interior pockets for documents and keys, and an expandable and stowable water bottle pocket.
It also comes with stowable back straps and a removable padded shoulder strap.
There is so much to this bag. In my opinion, you really can’t go wrong with this bag. Hence why it is this week’s Love of the Week!
I don’t know about you, but I love the character meals in Disney. It is a perfect way to meet the characters and to have a relatively good meal all at once. Plus, if your teenagers are like mine, neither are big fans of waiting in line for these meet and greets. They much rather go on the rides. With the character meal, they are there to eat, so they might as well have their pictures taken. It is a win, win for this Mom!
Last December, Disney opened a new character meal over at the Wilderness Lodge. It took the restaurant, Artist Point, and transformed it into the Enchanted Forest from Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs. The new character meal features none other than Snow White, Dopey, Grumpy and the Evil Queen. While down in Disney for the Star Wars races, we had dinner here to celebrate my race weekend.
Upon entering the Wilderness Lodge, head over to the desk to check-in. Once your name is called, you are escorted into the Enchanted Forest.
The attention to detail was incredible. We walked over to our table, and each plate was set with a red napkin with an adorable napkin ring and a leather-bound menu.
This is a Prix-fixed dinner. The price is $55.00 per adult (10 and over) and $33.00 for children (3-9). Guests are offered their choice of entree, along with shared appetizers and desserts for the table. Children are offered a slightly different menu that includes appetizers, entrees consisting of prime rib, pasta, a vegetarian meal, or grilled chicken. The desserts remain the same. First, let’s look at the drinks. We started with the Wickedly Refreshing Cocktails. These signature drinks are offered, along with a nice beer and wine list. Non-alcoholic beverages are also available for purchase. I tried the Enchanted Apple, and my friend Tricia tried the Evil to the Core.
As you can see, on the menu are three different appetizers. The table receives a plate of all three to share. There is a mushroom bisque, a shrimp cocktail, and a chicken, black truffle, stone fruit preserve, house-made pickles. While I enjoyed the bisque and the shrimp, I was not fond of the chicken and black truffle.
Next, we each chose our entree. You may choose from six entrees. I ordered the Royal Prime Rib Roast, and Tricia ordered the Brother’s Grimm Roasted Chicken. The prime rib was served mashed potatoes, smoked carrots and a popover. Who doesn’t like a popover? The chicken came with potatoes, golden raisins and snap peas. Both meals were delicious.
Of course, no meal at Disney is complete until dessert! I have to admit, I was looking to this the most! I have such a sweet tooth, I had run a 10k the day before and a half marathon that morning. I was ready for my treats!
All three were good, but the Miner’s Treasure was my favorite. I had never tried gooseberry before and while it was tasty, it is not something I would order again. To be fair, I am a chocolate girl. The Poison Apple is a white chocolate apple mousse with a sour center. I did not find it sour. It was quite tasty. The Miner’s Treasures was sponge cake, with pieces of chocolate gems and berry pannacotta. It was amazing!
Now, what about those characters? Snow White is present at other character meals. However, the dwarfs rarely make an appearance. Typically, they come out at Mickey’s Not So Scary Halloween Party or one may see Dopey during the RunDisney races. The Evil Queen is also one of those characters seen only during special events or along the course during one of the races. This is what made this character meal so special. Snow White and the dwarfs come to each table for photos. They also danced around the room and put on a little show.
Now, where is the Evil Queen? She does not roam about but stays put and you need to approach her. She is very tall and a bit intimidating to the little ones. Even I was a bit awkward around her! When we met, she said, “Oh you are a short one”. I said, “Yes, small but mighty.” Her response, “We shall see about that.” Too funny!
Just as we think we all are set and have paid the bill, we are presented with The Hunter’s Gift to the Queen. This is crackled maple popcorn, with two ganache hearts. Both were delicious!
Overall it was a pleasant experience. The food was excellent, and the interaction with the characters was great. It is a bit pricey, and if you have picky eaters, this may not be a great choice. I can’t see taking my boys here, as they are incredibly picky and I would not want to spend $55.00 a person on them. However, I would go back with my husband or a group of friends.
Are you looking to plan a trip to Disneyland or Disney World? If so, then you will not want to miss this! I, along with some fantastic bloggers, are being featured over at Planningaway.com. Here, my friend and fellow blogger Lisa, has compiled a dozen or so articles about the most magical place on Earth. From making last-minute dining reservations to hearing about yummy dessert parties to tips on traveling to Disney with your teens, to an interview with a Disney addict. This is your one-stop shop for all things Disney. Check it out here.
Ahhh.. we had our first real taste of summer this weekend. I am so excited for the season. The days are longer, our schedules are relaxed and we live life at a different pace. The kids are out of school in a few short weeks and it is time for me to create my summer bucket list.
When my boys were small, I had an endless list of things I wanted to accomplish over the summer. It would include play dates at the playground, a day at a spray park, the children’s museum, etc. Now that R&N are 18 and 14, it gets a bit harder to come up with something that we would all enjoy. It is not impossible, but it takes a bit more planning and in some cases more money. Below are some ideas I have planned for my boys and I would love to hear your own ideas.
- Hit the beach! We get up early, spend most of the day at the beach, have a yummy dinner, and hit an ice cream shop on our way home.
- Try a different ice cream shop each week. We love ice cream, and though we have our favorites, we want to explore and see what else is out there.
- Attend a professional sporting event, like a baseball game or soccer match. I see a visit to Fenway Park in the future.
- Be a tourist in your own capital city. This summer we plan on walking the Freedom Trail with the boys. We also want to check out the new wax museum and a few new restaurants that have opened up in town.
- Go for a hike.
- Have a family movie night outside. Rent a projector, set up a white sheet as a screen, make some popcorn and you are good to go.
- Attend a firework show. Every July 3rd, my family gathers at Gillette Stadium for the local fireworks put on by the Kraft family. Harvard Pilgrim puts on a 5 and 10k race, Finish at the 50, on the same night. I run the race, my family cheers me on and then we stay to watch the fireworks. We set up a picnic, meet friends, and ring in the 4th a day early.
- Visit an amusement or water park.
- Buy a metal detector and go hunting. My son received one as a birthday gift and we plan to use it this summer.
- Volunteer. This summer I am looking for someplace to take my boys to volunteer for the day.
- Take a road trip.
- Get a job. This applies to my 17-year-old, but with college around the corner, it is a good one.
- S’mores over a firepit.
- Spend time with extended family, grandparents, aunts, uncles, and cousins.
- Go to the drive-in movies.
These are just some of the ideas I have jotted down. Ultimately, each summer the list gets a bit longer and we never accomplish it all. However, as I look at it, we are never bored.
Tune in next week when I share what it is on my personal summer bucket list. Yes, I have one for me and one for the boys. Until next time, happy planning!
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This week I kicked off a new training plan. I have been running for almost 7 years and it was time to try something new. I listen to Another Mother Runner, a great podcast about running. AMR designed several different training plans for purchase. Each plan includes expert, accessible coaching and fantastic support. I had heard several other runners speak highly of their heart rate training plans and decided to give it a try. My goals are to improve my overall running and fitness. In doing so, my hope is to achieve some PRs (personal records).
Heart Rate Training (“HRT”) is keeping your heart-rate, the number of times your heart beats in a minute, within a set range. The harder one works out, the higher the heart rate. The idea behind HRT is to train your aerobic system without putting stress on the rest of the body and risking injury.
How to calculate heart rate.
There are a few different ways to calculate your maximum heart rate (“MHR”). All of these require the use of a heart rate monitor. There are fitness trackers, like the FitBit Versa and the Garmin Forerunner 235 running watch, that have built-in monitors. However, a heart rate monitor with a chest strap is the most accurate. I use the Garmin Dual Heart Rate Monitor. The experts recommend that you run all out for about 15-20 mins, at race pace, and by the end, this will be your estimated MHR. Once you have this number, you multiply it by a percentage. For example, to find Zone 1 or Recovery Mode, multiply your MHR by 60%. Any number under 60% would be Zone 1. Zone 2 would be 60-70% of your MHR, Zone 3 70%-80% of your MHR, Zone 4 is 80%-90% of your MHR, and anything over 90% is in Zone 5. With HRT, Zone 2 is where you should be spending the majority of your training. Zone 3 is for tempo runs, where you are teaching your body to run for more extended periods. Zone 4 would be a 5k or 10K race pace.
Benefits of HRT
Besides keeping injuries at bay HRT helps improve one’s overall health and fitness. It teaches how to be in tune with our bodies and improve our cardiovascular health. By recovering properly with easy runs, it keeps the legs fresh and allows for the body to really push itself when it matters, like on race day.
I am excited to embark on this journey and will be writing about my progress along the way. Follow along and decide if HRT is for you.
On Day 3 of our Alaskan cruise, we spent a day sailing through Endicott Arm Fjords toward Dawes Glacier. Endicott Arm Fjord marks the southern edge of the Fords Terror Wilderness area in Tongass National Forest. It is located about 50 miles south of Juneau. Breathtaking, rugged mountains dominate the region with steep valleys sparkling with high waterfalls. There are pieces of ice scattered throughout the water. Mountain goats, eagles, and bears can be seen in the mountains. Seals sunbathe on top of the chunks of ice and whales can be seen swimming in the waters.
Whale! 
At the head of the fjord is the tidal wave glacier, Dawes Glacier. The glacier is over 600 feet tall and wide. There are approximately 250 feet of ice below the surface of the water.
Fun fact: Why are glaciers blue? According to the USGS, glaciers are blue because the red (long wavelengths) part of white light is absorbed by ice and the blue (short wavelengths) light is transmitted and scattered. The longer the path light travels in ice, the bluer it appears.
Our boat spent a few hours anchored, enjoying the views. There was hot chocolate served on deck. For the adults, a shot of Kaula could be added. It was yummy! Of course, these views made for some great photos with the family and some special friends.
This was probably my favorite sea day of all the sea days I have done on any cruise. The views were breathtaking. Seeing the glacier brought me back in time. It is an experience I will never forget.
Yesterday I turned 47 years old. 47?!?! My goodness, where has the time gone? It seems like yesterday I was graduating from high school, headed off to start my college years. Now I have a 17-year-old son preparing to do the same. I remember turning 30 and panicking that I was getting old. I was stressed about it. I walked into Origins and spent an obscene amount of money on anti aging products. I thought if I am this panicked over 30, what the hell will I be like at 40? I am happy to report, I survived, and, the older I get, the more I embrace it. I mean, let’s face it, it is better than the alternative.
Since turning 40, my life has become my own. I no longer do things just to please people. I do what I feel is best for my family and me. I don’t let other people’s opinions of me bother me. As Rachel Hollis says, other people’s opinions of you are none of your business. The last 7 seven years has had its highs and lows, each of which has caused to me grow into the woman I am today.
The most significant of these, the death of my Mom 5 years ago. Mom passed much too soon, at the age of 61. Though I would do anything to have her back, there has been some good that has come from her death. My sisters, Dad and I are closer than ever. It drove home the point that life is much too short and we must live it. Don’t let life pass you by, but seize opportunities and run with them.
Speaking of opportunities, I have done just that. I have taken chances professionally and personally, all having paid off. I can’t say I would have done any of these in my younger years. I cared too much of how it would be perceived or that I would fail. Well, as I said above, I no longer let what other people think affect me, and failure, well that is all part of growth.
In the last seven years, I have fallen in love with fitness. I became a marathoner! This is something I NEVER dreamed I would or ever want to do. I have a healthier relationship with my body. I have expanded my social circle, coming out of my shell, and connecting with others with similar interests and goals in life. I guess you can say; I found my tribe. I have raised babies into beautiful, kind teenagers. My husband, I reached 20 years of marriage. Twenty years is a long time! We have traveled to various places around the world as a family and continue to add to this travel list as the years go on.
What is most exciting to me on my birthday, the future ahead. There is still so much to do in this life, and I plan to make the most of it.
Before the start of our Alaskan cruise, we spent two days in Vancouver, BC, exploring. One of the things on our to-do list was a whale watch. We went back and forth on whether to do one in Vancouver or wait until we were in one of the Alaskan ports. We ultimately decided on Vancouver.
I booked the trip through Viator.com. Viator is a marketplace for tours. We used them for a couple of other tours with great success. The cost of the tour was roughly $100.00 per person. It included pick up and drop off at our hotel, bottled water, and snacks. The whale watch itself was to last anywhere between 3-5 hours, depending on the whales.
The tour left from Steveston, a little fishing village, 40 minutes away in the city of Richmond.
In addition to being a little fishing village, Steveston has been the site for various television shows and movies, such as The X-files, Godzilla, and Power Rangers. You may also know it by its other name, Storybrooke. Yes, this was the onsite location for Disney’s hit show Once Upon a Time.
We arrived in this quaint village, checked into our tour and was given some whale watching gear to put on. I must admit, I felt like Gorton the Fisherman!
The boat was a high-speed zodiac vessel. Let me tell you, this boat could move! After we went over a safety drill, we were off. As we were leaving the harbor, we saw this beauty.
The boat took us through the Strait of Georgia all the way down to the San Juan island, which are part of the State of Washington back in the United States. We spent a fair amount of time sailing the strait. Here we saw seals, beautiful scenery and a humpback whale.
After seeing the humpbacks, our guide received a call that there was a pod of Orcas further south. He sped the boat along and we were cruising at a pretty good clip. Soon we were back in the good old USA, off the coast of Bellingham, WA. Here we saw, what we all had been waiting for, Orcas.
Unfortunately, the whales did not breach, so this is all we saw. The photos do not do these creatures justice. I was mesmerized watching them swim across the water.
Our ride back to the port was just as pretty. We continued to see the stunning coastline and islands that make up this beautiful area of the world.
When all was said and done, the tour was about 5 hours. It was a great place to do a whale watch and I would recommend it. I wished we had spent a little more time in town, but we had dinner reservations and tickets to a show over at Canada Place. Next time we will know better.
