Orchid show

Spending the day at the Cleveland Botanical Garden for the Orchid show!

photos from our road trip to Pittsburgh a few years ago...

snowed in....

Schools are closed and offices are shut down....

I drove to work this morning and it really wasn't that bad. After my morning meeting was cancelled, I came home and I'm finishing up some paperwork then doing some weekend cleaning. After all the work is done, then it's time to start the weekend! So excited for a relaxing weekend full of coffee, out for tea at my favorite tea cafe, new recipes, and the Orchid show at the Cleveland Botanical Gardens!

the most important part of our Mexico trip...

This is where we got engaged. That is my pearl ring that my husband bought from a small jewelery store on the board walk.

Even though I didn't hear enough real Mexican music or eat enough delicious enchiladas, I came home with a fiance and that's the best souvenir I could of ever expected!

Mexico

We went to Puerto Vallarta back in June 2007. I love Mexican culture. I love the food, the music, the language, the hospitality of the people, etc. In the summer, all I wear are Mexican-inspired sundresses and little white cotton tops embroidered with flowers. We play the Tejano station on our TV and blast Gypsy Kings and salsa in the car and when we eat outside in the summers. As for our trip to Puerto Vallarta, our biggest mistake was not looking for the locals enough. That I think is the most important part of traveling. Do as the locals do. We stayed at an all-inclusive resort. That came in handy when we wanted free drinks by the pool or a quick snack of chips and salsa. Bad idea when searching for real authentic Mexican food. The pool bars were even playing Top 40 pop songs. Blah! I wanted a mariachi band or some Top 40 Mexican tunes playing while I was sunbathing. We want to make a trip back to Mexico and this time we wont get too comfortable at the resort. We explored on this trip, but the next one we will search out all of the hidden gems.

dreams

I used to keep a dream journal back when I was 12 or 13. It seemed like almost every night I would have the most colorful and awe-inspiring dream. They were always very weird and quirky and I always woke up excited to record last night's adventure.

I still have some crazy/weird dreams here and there. Sometimes I have dreams where I wake up and I am really happy because my dream was so peaceful. That is what happened this morning. My dad was alive and we spent the whole day together. We took some karate class (weird) and hung out at home and watched movies because my husband won a plane ticket to Salt Lake City through work (weird again). I hit the snooze button at least 5 times this morning because I didn't want to wake up from my dream. It was so nice to see my dad and know that although dreams don't always come true, they are always there in your mind and heart.

Kind of a cheesy post, but I woke up feeling good and that inspired me to write!

Cleveland....

Voted the most miserable city in America by Forbes magazine.

Well that's just depressing!

Every city has their bad sides and things you just hate. I have definitely been through many phases that I wanted to leave and go somewhere "better". I have learned that this is my home and I will always love Cleveland even when I swear I hate the place and I want to move.


Cleveland has some of the most amazing restaurants in the country (with a hometown Iron Chef to prove it). We have beautiful parks and we even have beaches! (I'm well aware they aren't as beautiful as Southern California but don't make fun of them!) I ran across this article by my favorite columnist from The Plain Dealer that will hopefully convince the crabby Cleveland haters that this city isn't so bad after all.

http://www.cleveland.com/brett/blog/index.ssf/2010/02/post_5.html

road trips and cherry blossoms

I have never been to our nation's capitol which makes me feel like a bad American. There is so much history and so many things to do and see there. Last night, my husband and I decided that D.C. will be our first road trip of 2010. To make it even better, I suggested we go when the cherry blossom trees are in full bloom. I looked at pictures and I can barely contain myself. The trees are so breathtaking, I might faint when we get there. I go crazy over flowers and trees and especially flowering trees. This is going to be amazing and I'm counting down the days till we pack up the jeep and head southeast for Washington D.C!



Photos by National Cherry Blossom Festival