Ski Trip 2018

The first time I ever tried to snowboard was when I was 18 and at my parents house for Christmas break in college. My family had recently relocated to Michigan and my brother had really taken to the sport, so he wanted to show me up me to try it.  A couple of my friends from high school who had snowboarded before were in town we we loaded up and headed down to the majestic Mt. Holly (aka a former garbage dump turned into a ski hill) near my parents house where I attempted to snowboard! The key word here is attempted...in reality I spent a couple of hours attempting to stand up on a snowboard without falling before giving up and retiring to the lodge for the day while my brother and friends spent the day on the slope. At that point I decided that snowboarding was not my forte and that I'd stick to summer skiing.

Fast forward about 7 years when my BIL and (now) SIL asked us if we wanted to take a trip to Sugar Mountain, NC to ski/snowboard. Eric had never been and I only had my one completely unsuccessful experience under my belt so naturally we said "heck yes we want to go!" Clearly the mid-20s versions of us were lots of fun and had no trouble throwing caution to the wind, so we loaded up and headed to the mountains for a weekend on the slopes!

Sunset on the slopes!

Now you may be asking why we opted for snowboarding as opposed to the much easier snow skiing (or so I've been told)...well it's because the people we were with who had experience on the snow were snowboarders and could teach us. I've thought over the years that I should try skiing but we only go once a year and I'm not willing to give up half a day to learn something else when I can get myself down the mountain on a snowboard without falling. At this point in my life I would be considered a geriatric Olympian so there is really no need for me to progress to backside 1440s or 900s with a front-side grab.

For 4 years in a row we made a ski trip part of our annual trip rotation with friends.  We did Sugar Mountain twice (2011, 2013), before we took the plunge and spent a week in Steamboat Springs, CO, and then spent my 30th birthday weekend on Ober Mountain in Gatlinburg. But then life got in the way and all of a sudden it had been 3 years since our last ski trip, so when some friends of ours suggested a trip this year we jumped at the chance, to head back to Sugar Mountain for a long President's Day weekend (which tends to be our ski weekend with the extra day off and works out as a nice birthday trip for me!)

We headed out early on Friday morning and got there just before dark....thank goodness because our cabin was at the top of a steep, narrow, curvy road with no guardrails....gulp.  There was actually one switchback that Eric had to back up and re-position his truck every time we went up. But our view from the Owl's Roost was 100% worth it!

 I could stare at mountains like this all day long!

 The cabin on top of the hill....

Since we were exhausted from our travels and first night revelry (as all ski trips go) we slept in on Saturday before heading to the ski shop and the slopes.  Of our crew almost half had never skied or boarded on snow before, so we stuck to the easy hill until they got the hang of it.  However, we were quickly reminded of why we are typically night skiers.....the lift lines were absolutely ridiculous.  I'm talking 30 mins of waiting to go up....I was thrilled when the majority of the crowd left after the night ski session and we were able to hit lots of different runs during the evening session.

Obligatory lift picture

All smiles after the first evening on the slopes!

We made it home late that night and thankfully had the presence of mind to throw dinner the the crock pot before we left, so we refueled and then fell into food and exhaustion-from-skiing comas.  The next day we decided to forego the afternoon ski session and head to Blowing Rock, NC to see the sights and grab something to eat. We made a stop at the Jerky Outpost on our way, and the guys got to sample several varieties.....

 We preferred to take in the views while the guys shopped

So many pretty mountains!

Some of the more unique varieties included python, shark, camel, kangaroo, emu, and ostrich jerky.

We ended up having a delicious lunch at The Speckled Trout Restaurant and Bottle Shop before we headed back to the slopes via the scenic route.  We took a very windy mountain road (thanks Google Maps) and took an alternate route via a literal gravel/dirt road.  It was not as mountainous, but we were very thankful we were in trucks with 4 wheel drive.  I believe it was on the 2nd or 3rd switchback on a steep decline that we were all laughing so hard we were in tears because we realized how ridiculous the situation was.  But we made it out and back to the slopes for night number 2!

Scenes from The Speckled Trout....the taps were old tools, and some of the fare: Drunken Brussels Sprouts (sprouts and pork belly in a whiskey reduction) and the prettiest deviled eggs I'd ever eaten!

We had a very successful evening this time around despite the ice that had formed on the higher slopes....I did one of the icy runs and did not go back up that high the rest of the night.  As expected we were even more exhausted after our second night on the mountain, and despite wanting to enjoy our last night of vacation we raised the white flag of surrender and went to bed.

The trip home was pretty uneventful, but man did the Smokey Mountains show out!  They gave us quite the fond farewell, and I hope we get to see them again next year!

Christmas Recap Part 2

A couple of days after Christmas I set off for Christmas #2 or #3 or #4 depending on how you're counting, in Memphis with my parents and brother. There was more food, more relaxing, a puzzle (of course), and even a trip to IKEA! Unfortunately Eric had to coach a wrestling match that weekend so he had to stay behind for practice and the match.

Jones Family Christmas pic 2017

I am pretty sure LG and Maggie had the most fun of any of us while we were there. They played constantly, to the point that they both slept the entire day after we left.

And still shots of them were next to impossible to get (the dogs, not Mom and Dad)

Maggie taught LG how to dig holes and then got mad because 

all LG wanted to do was dig said holes.

Mom got a new cookbook for Christmas so she and Matt made quick work of trying out a few new recipes.  The Banana Roll was the winner....think pumpkin roll but made with banana bread....YUM!

Perfecting the roll

Top: the finished product; Bottom: Cheesecake Factory dessert one day included Vanilla Bean, Godiva Chocolate, Red Velvet, and Tiramisu cheesecake slices. 

Of course no trip to Memphis is complete without a trip to the Three Dog Bakery.  Since Maggie gets to go often, she begrudgingly let us take just Peanut and LG.  They're becoming pros at the bakery.  They jumped out of the car and ran right up to the door like they knew exactly what we were there for. Treats....duh!

 Getting their complementary treats.

LG said we were taking too long so she laid down to start on her bone.

 Side note - I found the winning combination for driving long distances with dogs: new bones + a 45 minute walk prior to leaving.  They didn't get restless until we were about 30 minutes from home.

Another highlight of the trip was our outing to the IKEA store.  I've only been to an IKEA once so I was pretty excited to go back.  We found a few things we could not live without (many we had no idea we needed), but one of my favorites were kitchen drawers that you can open with your hip (or knee if your tall like my family)....they were pretty amazing.

I am ready to schedule my kitchen remodel like yesterday....but we can't do white cabinets. Keeping those suckers clean with 4 dogs in the house??? Ain't nobody got time for that!

Minus Eric not being there, it was the perfect ending to our Christmases.  I packed up the pups on New Years Eve and headed back to Alabama because we had NYE plans that actually didn't involve a large group of people at our house.....(that never happens!)...I promise to have a full recap on that soon!

Mom and Dad's tree is the tree that keeps on giving (yes it's decorated with Lottery Tickets!)

One Last Summer Hoorah!

At the beginning of the summer some of our good friends who lived 2 houses down from us relocated to South Alabama.  Lucky for us they are not too far from our family who live down that way, so we knew it was not a forever good-bye, but more of a we'll see you next time we get down that way.  With the summer being as busy has it has been this year the only time either of us had a chance to make it down that way was when I went to PCB my mom and dad a few weeks ago, so had not seen them all summer!

The closest we came to a group picture....the guys never did cooperate like we wanted them to!

Lucky for us the boys had been scheming the past few weeks and this past weekend we were able to sneak away for a few days before the official start of football. We left Friday after lunch and headed down I-65 ready for some R & R.

We spent the weekend relaxing and enjoying each others company.  Another couple came too, and Eric's brother and his wife drove over one evening for dinner, so we got to see them while we were there.

I am pretty sure all of the kiddos enjoyed the trip as much as we did!

Saturday while the guys golfed, the girls headed down to a little town called Fairhope.  I'd been there before but it had been several years.  We walked around the downtown area that was lined with shops and restaurants.  After we found several things we could not live without we settled in for some wine and sushi (great combo if you ask me!) at a restaurant call Master Joe's.  I had a Titanic Roll with shrimp tempura and cucumber, stopped with crab, shrimp, avocado, spicy mayo, eel sauce, and tempura flakes.  It was fantastic and I wish I had one right now!  As with all good sushi meals we all got something different and passed the rolls around so we could try a bite of everything.

My Titanic Roll (soooo good!) and Kenzie kisses!

Sunday the guys went with Eric's brother to try their luck snapper fishing.  We decided we weren't in a rush to do much of anything so we piddled around the house before packing up the kiddos to head toward the beach.

The plan was to go to Orange Beach where the guys were so we could meet up with them when they got back, but we never actually made it to the beach.  After making a pit stop at the outlet mall (because it was there of course!) we were headed to the beach until Eric called and said they were coming in from fishing.  Instead of going to the beach we detoured to the marina to see what they caught....a few red snapper, not too shabby.

I would have loved to have continued on to the beach, but Eric and I had to hit the road to get back home, so we jumped in the truck, went back to their house to pick up our stuff (and Beau), and headed north.

The only pic I got of us all weekend....he just loves pictures so much!

Why did we have to get home Sunday night? Well because football season officially started at midnight, and the team was having a midnight practice.... Yes midnight practice. I think he got maybe an hour of sleep from the time we got home until the time he had to leave for practice, and then got home about 2:30 a.m.  Although the public was invited, I told him just to let me know how it went because I had to be up at 5:15 a.m. the next day. He said it went well and that they had a nice little crowd, so I guess it was a success!

Sunshine selfie...we need to get the two littles some sunglasses!

Now we are officially in football mode for the next 4 months.  We're really kicking things off with our 5th Annual Football Coaches Cookout at our house on Saturday. For the 5th year in a row Eric is going to attempt to beat our head coach's ribs. He has come extremely close every year, but has come up short.  He's been scheming how to win this year, so we will see. As for the ladies, we've done potato salad and mac and cheese contests before, but last year we did dessert which turned out really great!  Since the only classic BBQ side dishes that were really left were slaw and beans and none of of want to deal with the aftermath of eating large amounts of either we deiced to do desserts again.Who doesn't want a table full of desserts to sample?!?

What started out as beginning of the season cookout has now become a tradition that we all look forward to every year, and I can't wait for this year's edition!

Beachin' It

A couple of weekends ago I snuck away to the beach for a few days.  Well I didn't actually sneak, it was planned, but still...  Eric had fishing trips to run that weekend so he opted to stay home.  As much as I hated to leave him, I needed some beach time desperately, so I joined Mom and Dad in Panama City Beach for an extended weekend.....and it was just what the doctor ordered.

Beach bums!

We got down there on Saturday evening and after spending hours in the car we opted to walk down the beach to grab dinner at Sharkey's for some delicious seafood.  You really can't beat fresh gulf seafood.  I never really ate fish until Eric and I started dating and now I can't get enough of it!  Of course it probably had something to do with the fact that we lived in Memphis and the seafood there wasn't exactly what you would call "fresh."

The next three mornings looked almost identical.  After donuts for breakfast (there was a new place right across the street from us) Dad headed off to golf while Mom and I got in a 4+ mile walk where we window shopped in Pier Park and solved ALL of the worlds problems....we get a lot done on our walks.  After we got back we'd head to the beach and stake out a spot to lay our chairs and sheet, and R-E-L-A-X. Dad would call when he got home and we'd meet him upstairs for lunch.

Sunsets, good company, and a wall of donuts....makings of a great vacation!

Our afternoons varied slightly, one day we beached all day and one day it rained so we checked out the Panama City Beach Winery and sampled some delicious fruit wines before beaching in the later afternoon.  We absolutely LOVED the winery.  The owners were really nice and very helpful!  I think we tried nearly half of the wines on the menu, and there were a bunch.

This is the third year we've been to PCB (Year 1, Year 2), so we're learning our way around, and discovering the best ways to enjoy the city. One thing we discovered last year is that going away from Front Beach Road is a good thing, especially if you want some really delicious local food. With traffic as bad as it is on the beach road, it takes just as much time to go elsewhere.

After dinner sunset at Uncle Ernie's

On Sunday we opted to head back to a restaurant that is becoming a favorite of ours called Uncle Ernie's.  It was recommended by a concierge last year, and did not disappoint!  It's on St. Andrew's Bay in Panama City (next to PCB).  We fell in love with this place last year when we celebrated Mom's birthday there.  They have a-m-a-z-i-n-g fried crab cakes (which was had to get again), and really delicious seafood dishes.  And the view from their outdoor patio is incredible!

Right: Crabcakes and grouper from Uncle Ernie's; Left: Southern goodness from Boondocks

Monday night we went for some southern seafood fare in the form of a little place called Boondocks. It's on West Bay - just north of PCB. We heard about it on a local tv program about hole-in-the-wall local restaurants and had to try it.  You can get just about any kind of seafood one of three ways: grilled, steamed, or fried.  We went all in and got everything fried because we could, so we shared platters of grouper, shrimp, crab claws, deviled crabs, and scallops, and then waddled home. I almost forgot, we did get one thing that was not fried - their Bacon Wrapped Shrimp.  I could have made a meal off of those alone!

The view and some of the local residents at Boondocks

I had to head back after lunch - perks of living 3 hours from the beach - so I did not get to partake in dinner that night at Shipyard Grill on St. Andrew's Bay, but some little birdies told me that it was amazing, too!

Besides the good food and beach I had some fantastic company in my parents! Whether we were on the beach, at dinner, sitting on the balcony in our condo watching the waves roll in, or sitting in the car trying to turn on to Back Beach Road watching all of the vehicles roll by (you have to catch it at the right time or you wait forever), it was so nice to get to spend some time with them.  The only thing that would have made the trip better would have been Eric and Matt there......next trip guys, next trip!

Until next time Gulf!

My Second Major

No I'm not going back to school to get another degree....a couple of weeks ago I was fortunate to attend my second major golf tournament.  We attended the Masters last spring, and when we realized that the 2017 U.S. Open was going to be just a couple of hours from my brother's house we turned it into a family vacation (minus Eric because he had to stay home and work).

I am not much for playing golf - I took lessons as a kid but never stuck with it - but I do enjoy going to tournaments. When I was in high school my track team always volunteered at the FedEx St. Jude Classic.  They paid/donated $3,000 to the track team and we ran around the tournament all week.  Our job was to tie up the full garbage bags and put them by the road. We had access to the entire course and I always enjoyed it.

We went to the tournament on Saturday...aka the day that Justin Thomas made his impressive run in his hot pink pants. While the course was no Augusta National, it was still quite impressive.  It was super hilly and there were 0 trees. But those poor golfers had lots of tall grass like marshy grass to deal with.  There were several spots where if they strayed from the fairway there was no recovering.

The 9th Island Green (and Justin Thomas in his hot pink pants on said green)

Since the tournament was only a couple of hours from Chicago, my aunt, uncle, and one of my cousins came up and joined us!

We walked the first few holes just so we could see the course, and then we split up.  The boys continued walking the course while we (the girls) found some lunch and posted up on a hill beside the 9th fairway to watch all of the golfers play through. The guys caught up with us with about 5 groups to go and we watched the leaders play through before heading back to the buses because we were pooped.

No doubt these two are related...like father like son

So I can now cross 2 of 4 Majors off my list (Matt and Dad can check 3 since they've been to the PGA Championship twice), so I guess it's time for us to take a trip across the pond for #4 and the British Open!  Anyone got any extra tickets, free hotel rooms, or a private jet to fly us over there? I'll spring for a couple of pints as a thank you!

Our crew....we missed Eric and Lily, but I guess someone has to stay home and work!

A Man Walks onto a Camper Sales Lot.....

When Eric and his best friend were younger they'd do things like go get new dirt bikes or 4-wheelers together because heaven forbid one did something without the other one. Because boys will be boys that has held true in adulthood as they both got new trucks around the same time and as of last month they (along with their wives) are now the proud owners of campers.

Gassed up and ready to go!

Yes campers.  They even went together to make their camper purchases and were told by the salesman that he could not believe they were both able to select and purchase their campers without their wives present.  Lucky for them they picked out the right ones (wives and campers) because it would have been a shame if they'd had to return their new toys if they'd purchased the wrong ones.

I was actually sitting on a hill beside the 9th fairway of the U.S. Open when I received a text from Eric with a video of our new 5th wheel camper, and sat there in complete shock before calling him and asking if it was a joke.  I knew he was thinking very strongly about it but figured it would blow over like it has in the past. But clearly it did not.....

Our set up at the campground

It took me a week or so to warm up to the idea of camping because we did not camp when I was a kid, so I had no idea what to expect.  Once I started filling it up with all of the things we might need....aka shopping for it I really started to get excited. It was love at first sight for Eric and he and his buddies used it as a Saturday night hangout spot in the middle of our yard the first weekend we had it.

We took her our for her maiden voyage this past extended 4th of July weekend along with Eric's best friend and his wife, and another couple.  Somehow we were able to snag 3 lots next to each other at a state park on Lake Martin.....several of the people we stayed near were shocked we were able to get our slots, too.

We packed up the truck with everything I hadn't had a chance to load the night before when Eric closed the slides and headed up to the lake bright and early on Saturday morning.  Once we got there Eric set up the camper - I have no clue how to do any of the backing in and leveling and hooking up to water/power/etc so I played with some fellow campers' dogs....there were so.many.dogs there, it was awesome! We only brought Beau and Peanut this time but I am scheming how to get LG and Hawk included on the next trip.

Part of our canine contingency....our dogs did not win the award for best behaved all weekend....clearly

When he finished up his jobs he headed back home to get his boat - the campsite is only 30 minutes from our house so this was a good "1st trip" distance for us - and I got to work setting up the inside. It didn't take me too long so by the time he got back I was kicked back in a lawn chair reading a book.  (I am working on The Alice Network by Kate Quinn and so far I am really enjoying it).

We spent the rest of our weekend hanging out, reading (me), fishing (Eric), eating (all of us), and not much else.  It was probably one of the most relaxing vacations I've been on in a while, and as packed as the campsite was (there are over 600 camping slots there) we never felt crowded or like anyone was invading our space.  Everyone there was super friendly and helpful too! We did get called out as newbies because Eric's best friend left the warranty sticker on his window, but we all got a good chuckle out of it.

The guys in their gifted "camper shirts"

After such a successful trip we are chomping at the bit to go again!  The boys have been searching for a place for Labor Day already (the place we stayed is already booked), and spent the good part of Tuesday evening looking up campgrounds in AL and GA for our next trip!

Our crew!

24 Hours in D.C.

This past week I had the opportunity to go to Washington, D.C., to speak at a conference for work.  Before 2014 I had never been to our nation's capitol, but I have been three times since 2014 and twice in the last 6 months. I consider myself an expert at Metro travel at this point despite the fact that I feel compelled to check my Metro map app at every stop to see how many stops I have left.

Can you spot the Capitol?

I even tried my hardest to blend in with the locals this trip. Since it was just an overnight trip I opted to take everything I needed (dinosaur laptop that weighs as much as a box of rocks included) in just a backpack - black of course so I would not stand out - that I purchased the morning of my trip...I literally ran to Walmart at 7:15AM and bought it.

Little did I know the one thing that would have solidified my "local" status would have been my running clothes and shoes which were both left at home since it was just one night.  I don't think I have EVER seen so many people out running as I did the night I was there. I guess everyone has a lot of stress to burn off!

I got to my hotel around 6 that night, and headed out to do a little sightseeing. I stayed at InterContinental The Willard, and it was AMAZING.  I felt like a little country bumpkin walking through it...despite my blend-in-with-the-D.C.-crowd backpack. I mean this was the back door entry.....

                                                                                                   via

I was told that the Indian Head of State stayed there the day before and security was outrageous; I am still trying to figure out how I lucked in to getting to stay there. Oh and did I mention it's a block away from a house you may have heard of at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue.

Yeah this house was right next door.

Because I'm not one to turn down a chance to see some sights I made the most of the daylight I had left to walk around the National Mall.  I started with the Ellipse, a grassy expanse just south of the South Lawn of the White House, continued on to the Washington Monument, took a detour toward the Capitol before realized I was going the opposite direction so I back tracked and made it to the far side of the WWII Monument where I could get a clear view of the Lincoln Memorial and then called it a night.  It doesn't seem like the all of the memorials and monuments are that far from each other, but you'll walk a good 10 mins between each one.

I did the entire mall on my first trip so I admired the Lincoln Memorial from afar.  I really wanted to go see the Korean War Memorial, which is probably my favorite one, but it was a good 20 minute walk from where I was and I still had to walk back to my hotel and grab dinner before it got dark.

One thing that really stood out to me this trip was the crazy number of people who were playing softball games right in the middle of the national mall. There must be a huge league of Hill Staffers and Interns because there were games being played on every open space of grass. Anyone who wasn't playing softball was running or biking.  Seriously, if you weren't, it was obvious you were a tourist.

Just a softball game in the shadow of the White House....nbd

I made it back to my hotel with just a bit of daylight remaining and scarfed down a burrito desnudo (burrito bowl) from a taco joint called District Taco right down the street.....it was delicious.

I was up early the next morning, but not for fun.  I had to go straight to my conference that was held at the National Press Club (which is also apparently a very important place).  As much as I wanted to sneak away to do more sightseeing, the day was full so I had to stay there. We finished up that afternoon and I headed straight to the airport to come home.  As much as I would have enjoyed having another night to explore the city, I was glad to be home with Eric and the pups 36 hours after I left them.

We have quite the weekend planned that is going to involve our newest "toy." I am sure I will come home with at least 100 stories about how this goes.....I know they'll be way too good not to share!