Detroit is one of our favorite places to go and visit family. Each trip brings new adventures and new memories. This was a quick weekend trip, but boy did we pack it full of fun.
We left Fort Myers at an unbearable 6am and flew direct to Detroit. We couldn\’t stand how hungry we were when we arrived, so we drove to Downtown Detroit to find a breakfast spot. We stumbled into the Cadillac Square Diner on a whim. With our family of 8 eating here, we had almost every breakfast menu item on the menu and it did not disappoint. Definitely comes highly recommended from me if you are in town during brunch.
This diner led to a walk around downtown, a tour of the Renaissance Center and had a great view of the bridge to Canada {it was news to my husband that you could see Canada from the US – obviously he wasn\’t paying much attention in geography class}. We also took pictures in front of the huge Christmas tree at Campus Martius Park. Right across the street from the park is this awesome coffee shop called the Roasting Plant Detroit. You can literally watch the coffee beans you choose come out of the bean holder, through the ceiling and into brewing for your cup of coffee. That\’s serious coffee brewing if I do say so myself.
Since we were already downtown, we simply couldn\’t leave without a stop at the Eastern Market. This is one of the largest farmers markets that I have ever been to and I just want to buy everything there. I had really great intentions of taking a picture in front of my favorite beignet truck, but cold weather and warm beignets and it just didn\’t happen. So just picture really yummy beignets out of a food truck – just yes! But here is us keeping warm in front of an open fire at the Eastern Market.
Of course, no trip to Detroit is complete without a trip to the East Detroit Bakery. You really can\’t get anything bad here. Josh came for the first time this trip, and he would completely agree with me. Guaranteed.
The rest of our visit was full of family and memory making that I just can\’t put on paper. So here are a few pictures to leave you with.
Is there really anything better than spending the day outside with your two favorite guys? One of the local places that allows dogs is Ding Darling on Sanibel Island. We have gone twice now and did two different experiences. The first time we paid the $5 per car fee and drove through the park. We would stop and get out and take walks on the trails every 0.5 miles or so. The second time, we paid the $1 per person fee and took a 3 mile trail walk through the park. Both times, we saw a ton of wildlife – birds, snakes, alligators, and other creatures. With the weather changing and my two favorite guys, what would be better than a day outside? If you\’re ever in town, you got to check it out!
Check out these photos to see some of the trails we hiked.
Here in Florida, it doesn’t really feel like fall yet (read: it’s still 90 degrees outside), so we have to participate in fall activities just to feel like we are participating in this season that the rest of the country gets oh so excited about.
When we are kids, we most look forward to dressing up, trick or treating, and coming home with way too much candy. But as you get older, what do you have to look forward to? You can’t really trick or treat – and before kids, you don’t really have any reason to. So how do we “celebrate” Halloween as we grow up?
You betcha – by scaring ourselves to death in Haunted Houses. If you know me at all, you know that scary things and I don’t mix. I think the only scary movie I ever saw until I met my husband was Signs and most people tell me that falls more under a thriller than a scary movie. Needless to say, I’m a baby about anything scary, so making a decision to go to Howl-O-Scream took a lot of convincing from my friends.
For those of you that don’t know what this torturous activity is – there is this thing people like to do in the month of October that involves going to a theme park and walking around at night, riding rides, AND WAITING FOR PEOPLE TO JUMP OUT OF THE BUSHES AND SCARE YOU TO DEATH.
From my small amount of knowledge, there are two of these theme park after dark events in Florida – Howl O’ Scream at Busch Gardens and Halloween Horror Nights at Universal Studios. Since we are way closer to Tampa than Orlando, we chose the first.
Friday after school (thank goodness for Football bye weeks, can I get an AMEN?) we got in our car and headed up to Tampa. We met up with friends, walked in the park, and of course – it started pouring! It was still light out so we decided to walk through a Haunted House. Waited in a little line, went through it, not terribly scary. I survived without a heart attack. Decided to go ride a bunch of roller coasters (found out my husband is actually terrified of roller coasters which is why he isn’t pictured below – who knew!) and pretty much forgot about the “haunted” park. It’s darker now and we walk out of one of the rides and as luck would have it, there are a group of people dressed up like they are cast members of the Purge walking around just staring at us. I scream. Sarah runs away. And so it begins…
Don\’t we look so happy?
Then this happened. See the clown who disrupted our selfie?
Creepy much? As you can tell – totally caught off guard.
Look closely. Freaky, right?
But in all seriousness, this was a total adventure and we had a ton of fun. There were 7 Haunted Houses that you could choose to walk through and there were 3 or 4 walkway areas where the cast members were dressed up ready to pounce on you. All the rides kicked butt and the houses were incredible. If you want to be a part of a really great time and be amazed at how real some of these costumes and characters can look, hit up one of these evenings in the park and enjoy some “adult Halloween time.” Even this scaredy cat had a good time 🙂
Enjoy this season & think of me as the leaves are falling.
Hilary & Josh
You first need to know that I have never had a pet (besides fish and a turtle) in my life. My family was always traveling too much, too busy, or not home often enough for pets. We used to beg my mom to let us get a dog, but I think we all understood that it wasn\’t fair to the pet to lock them in a kennel all day. Pets need love too, ya know?
Needless to say, I married a dog lover. Josh’s family has always had dogs (sometimes multiple dogs), and since the first date we went on, I knew that as soon as he moved out, he would want one as well. Before you start judging about how quickly I gave in, he moved out last July. We adopted this July. I stood my ground for just under a year. I stood my ground because I never let myself walk into a pet shop or shelter. I made this rookie mistake on July 9th.
We were up in Georgia at my family cabin for a little get away together. It was a rainy day and we were looking for something to do indoors. We were driving down the road when we passed a billboard advertising Rabun Paws for Life. Josh (dog-lover) insisted that we go visit immediately. Unable to deprive my husband on vacation, I obliged. Mistake #1. If you\’ve never been to a pound, don\’t go unless you are willing to have your house overflowing with dogs or your heart so full that it might overflow. The people at Rabun Paws for Life are just the sweetest ever and we visited with all of the dogs as they showed you their best tricks and left feeling like you could\’ve taken all of them home with you.
Well I left with the above feelings (not figuring we would ever adopt a dog that we then have to put in a car for a 10 hour drive), but Josh didn\’t feel the same way. He gets in the car and turns and looks at me and says, “I love that Cinncinati, the coon hound. I think we need that dog.” Obviously I wasn’t sold on the idea so I asked him to think about it over the next few days. (This was a Tuesday and we were there through Sunday.)
As we talked more about him over the coming days, we worked through some of my questions about dogs and how we would train him and how he it would be okay to leave him kenneled form 7 when we leave for work until after 6 when we get home from practice (we both coach). We also seeked out wise council from some people we respect in our lives. I could go ahead and tell you all of the questions that we considered and all of the conversations we had, but all you really need to know is that Josh called the shelter every single day after we visited asking if Cincy was still there.
Needless to say, I didn’t have much to say when we went back on Saturday to visit him and I could tell by the look in my husbands eyes that we wouldn\’t leave the pound without “the one who would complete our family” (his words, not mine). So we visited with him in a room, and then outside and watched him run around like a crazy person (yes, he still does this from time to time) and Josh walked back inside and said we will take him. {I’m pretty sure this was probably (looking back) the best $90 we ever spent}
This is the first picture that we got with him. Funny story actually – we hadn’t bought a collar for him because we didn\’t know what kind we should get (not a dog person, remember?) so that pound offered to give us one. We were standing in the door of the shelter to take a picture together and Cincy saw a squirrel and took off. Collar snapped. Josh and the guy from the shelter went running. I turned and looked at the secretary and asked “What have I gotten myself into?” They came back and we walked outside with Cincy to try again. He ran away. Again. Third time is a charm and Josh decided the best way to go about this was to just hold him for the picture and then go immediately to get him a collar that wouldn’t snap every time he pulled on the leash.
The last 7 weeks with this guy have been some of the best of our lives. It has had it\’s fair struggles also {like the 16 times he ran away and Josh had to track him down, or the 3 times he has peed on our in laws carpet, or the time he was at the dog park running around and took a lady out, or the time he attacked Josh\’s hand at the dog beach causing him to lose his wedding band}, but we are just glad that he is mostly kennel trained and that he has come so far. Over the last weeks he has gained lots of weight and is way healthier now. Here’s some of our favorite Cincy pictures. Just keep scrolling if you aren\’t a dog lover (or just adopt a dog and see how long it takes you to change that).
Hi guys, I\’m Cincy.
Cincy likes to cuddle with me while daddy watches football film before bed
Sleepiest dog around
He waits for dad to come home from football practice everyday just like this
Despite what his face says, he loves his daddy
Cincy’s Officially Part of the Family
Cincy’s First Beach Trip
He is also happier because Josh & I’s family’s spent two long weekends building a fence for Cincy to run around in the backyard of our house. This has helped tremendously with him not running away and with the training process. He also has a way to let his energy out. My grandparents (who were instrumental in the fence building) also come over and spend an hour each afternoon with Cincy while he runs around in our backyard. They are retired and enjoy spending time with him. They are the biggest blessing and allow us to continue to work and coach without feeling like we are abandoning our puppy.
Now they can run around and practice football plays outside in our backyard 🙂
Like I said, almost 8 weeks later, he has gained about 30 pounds and is adjusting quite well to living with us. {Josh says his weight gain has to do with the amount of treats I give him on the daily, but I always plead ignorant.} The transition would not have been as easy if I hadn’t had the summer off of work, but each day of torture is well worth it now. Cincy will be joining us on most of the rest of our adventures so you\’ll be seeing more of him. {We even camped in the house the other night in a tent to see how he would fare – he didn’t hate it}
**Oh and a total side note – I think my parents are kinda coming around to the dog idea. They both enjoy time with Cincy which is a huge blessing! We weren’t sure how that would all work out.
No matter where you live, I guarantee there is a shelter close by housing animals that are in need of adoption. If you are in the Southwest Florida Region, Gulf Coast Humane Society covers most of this area. I urge you, if you are looking for a dog, please look to adopt before you shop. I guarantee it will change your life. I know he changed mine.
Sanibel Island is one our favorite local places to visit on the regular. About a 15 minute drive from Fort Myers, this beach is PERFECT for a weekend getaway or family vacation.
A few things you should know about Sanibel Island:
1) Most of the restaurants there are 100% local. DQ and Subway snuck their way onto the island before the bill passed, but one of the things we love most about Sanibel is the food and how you are supporting locals. The other best part about local restaurants is the customer service is typically superior because they truly rely on your feedback and business to keep them open. Try new places and eat like a local 🙂
2) Cars are not the norm — bike, everywhere. Really though, those who live on the island and commute to work drive, but the quickest and more effective way to navigate the island is to bike. Everyone yields to you and it really helps you focus on being on vacation when you aren\’t sitting in traffic. And just think about the great workout you will get (to help burn off all of the calories from the food you\’re devouring!) There are a few bike rental places on the island that will let you rent by the day or for the week. Billy’s Rental is one of the most popular!
3) There\’s really no wifi – which we love because less phone usage means more time together, but if you must use it, you need to hit up the public library, a few restaurants, or Jerry\’s!
Love boat ice cream is potentially the best homemade ice cream you\’ve ever had in your entire life. Try the CHOCOLATE BROWNIE BATTER or the SMORES (if you\’re a chocolate lover like me). It is worth the calories. Just a heads up — if you eat there early on in your trip, don\’t be surprised if you end up here every night after dinner. Just know I warned you — it\’s addicting and delicious!
Biking is one of my favorite things to do on Sanibel Island. Josh and I love to bike to Bennett\’s (more on that later) for breakfast and then head out toward the lighthouse (pictured below). Then we take a walk on the beach, and bike the boardwalks through the sloughs. Then we head back home before headed to the beach.
When we are on the island, we want to spend most of our time with family. This means that we usually eat light lunches and big family dinners around the dinner table. That being said, we usually only eat out for breakfast while here on vacation (but we will drive out for dinner on a date night any other time of the year).
One of our favorite sit down breakfast places is the Over Easy Café. Although they are typically on a decent wait on weekends, trust me – it\’s worth it. Their omelets are delicious and so are their pancakes. They cook everything right there in their open kitchen. You can even sit outside on nice days. If you really want to treat yourself, get a mimosa! As far as I\’ve found, it\’s the only place you can get one on the island.
If you aren\’t up for a sit down breakfast, head over to Bennett’s French Roast for THE BEST donuts you\’ll have here in Lee County. My family would recommend the Cinnamon Sugar, Peanut Butter, Chocolate Chip, Orange Coconut and Maple Bacon. It\’s right on the island and you can either sit down and grab a donut and a cup of Joe (free refills) OR take them to go and enjoy them while listening to the crashing ocean waves at the beach. They also have breakfast sandwiches (including egg white and wheat bread options) if you are looking for a healthier option.
When we aren’t eating, or biking, we are spending our time at the beach floating in the waves, baking in the sun, reading books, listening to the ocean waves.
Here\’s a few pictures from my family’s trip! Next time I’ll share some of the best places to watch the sunset out here. That is one of our other favorite things to do 🙂
Here is our adventures for the second half of our Georgia trip once my family joined us 🙂
Bull Sluice – There is this hidden gem right inside the South Carolina state line that you could pass and never know what you are missing. Bull Sluice is a popular white water rafting rapid, but there is an access point right off the road where you can hike a short trail down and take a look into paradise. Not only are there great low currents for floating down the river, but there are large rocks to layout on and even rocks to jump off of into the rapids. Guaranteed any summer day that you will find lots of locals enjoying the beauty of the sluice. This particular place is also dog friendly, and it is super fun to watch dogs jump into the rapids on a hot summer day to cool off!
After an afternoon in the sun, swimming up the rapids, stop by Downtown Clayton and visit the newly opened Wicked Pig BBQ. A few years back, we would always stop by and visit their food truck for some of the best BBQ in Clayton, but now we can sit in their country restaurant while getting served some delicious BBQ. Added bonus — they have local brews for you to try out!
As I mentioned last time we went, we had such a great rental experience with LaPrade’s, but due to some last minute change of plans, we were trying to locate a pontoon boat for our family of 8 only two days before renting it over the 4th of July weekend. Not a good idea, but luckily, we found a great guy who lives right off Lake Rabun and rents boats right out of his home. His company is Bear Gap Outfitters. He is a great source of information about the lake and was a complete pleasure to work with. Again, we rented a pontoon boat (this time we got a tube too), and we packed lunches so we didn’t have to battle the crowds at marinas. We enjoyed our time in the sunshine getting pulled on (and flung off of) tubes around the lake – this is definitely the best way to bond with family.
As we are a very adventurous family, we love to do outdoor, active adventure type things for fun. This trip we really wanted to white water raft, but unfortunately on the day that we chose, we didn’t have many great options due to water levels. My recommendation (if you are planning ahead) is to either check out the water schedules or to call and ask for a day when the water will be high (if you are in for a full adventure). Due to low water levels, we chose two person kayaks for our adventure. Note: Low water levels does not mean the water was not flowing, it just meant that there were a lot more rocks for you to get stuck on (and more chances to flip out of your boat due to hitting rocks that flung your yak around). We rafted with Dillsboro Rafting Company. They are one of the most economical ways to raft and are great if you are looking to raft with young kids or are looking for a way to see if you are even interested in white water rafting. Either way, get in for the ride of your life – it is FUN!
After you ware yourself out on your raft, drive into Slyva for Speedy Pizza. They have great lunch specials if you make it in time and their pizza toppings are all fresh and to die for. We have a very diverse group of pizza eaters in our family of 8 (one doesn’t like cheese, one doesn’t like sauce, and one only likes cheese and sauce. This doesn’t even begin to describe the way we all feel about toppings). Needless to say, their $5 personal 2 topping pizza lunch special was a sure fire win for our family! We have been there a few times now and they never disappoint.
Helen Float – If you are up for a lower key and lower price water adventure, tubing in Helen, GA might be for you. This adorable town is full of architecture and is set up like an Alpine Village. Stop here to get your fill of fair-type treats such as caramel apples, funnel cakes, cotton candy, homemade chocolate, and delicious ice cream. While visiting this eclectic village, grab your swim suits and enjoy a float down the beautiful Chattahoochee River with Cool River Tubing. They have a one-hour float and a two-hour float that you can do for just $8 (tube rental included) OR for $12 you can float as many times as you want between 9 a.m. and 6 p.m.
Well that\’s all the adventures we had time for this trip! Stay tuned for our biggest adventure of this trip (which I left out of this post due to the mass amounts of pictures that will come with it!)
We are already planning our next trip to Clayton. Stay tuned for more fun Maricano adventures. We can’t stay put long.
Like I said before, I just can’t stay away. Josh and I were much in need of a “second honeymoon” of sorts and decided that we would escape for a week to my favorite place. We soon found out that my family would be joining us after our week there for a solid 5 days of quality family time (more on that later).
Josh and I really love the outdoors and decided that we would spend most of our days sleeping in, relaxing on the porch swing, taking long hikes, and cooking yummy dinners before cuddling up and binge watching anything that we could get from the Redbox.
Lesson Learned – never leave without a map or you will be in the middle of the trail and not know how long you have left, and trust me, that is very discouraging
Lesson Learned (part 2) – never underestimate what “very strenuous” means when it is stated about a hike. We may look really happy in this picture, but we could barely walk for the next 2 days due to extremely sore legs (and no motivation to get “lost” in the woods for 3 hours again)
But on a real note, if you aren’t in for this intense hike,
Nights spent with friends are the best! Especially when those nights include escaping the country and hitting the nearest city for some really yummy pizza and a movie. If you\’ve never been to Mellow Mushroom, try it out ASAP. You won’t regret it.
One afternoon, Josh had some homework to do, so I set out on an antiquing adventure. Antiquing at its finest in Dillard, Georgia where the streets are lined with shops full of antiques. They live by the saying “one man’s junk is another man’s treasure.” Growing up, my favorite books were Nancy Drew. I found these gems in one of the shops. You better believe I wanted to buy all of them.
Hike #3: Tallulah Gorge State Park
Who wants to climb 500 steps to see a gorgeous waterfall? Worth it. Totally worth it. But you might not think so on the way back up.
Lesson Learned – never go here on the 4th of July or you will be stuck behind really slow people who may have never climbed a set of stairs in their life.
Celebrating the 4th of July.
Best place in Rabun County to watch the fireworks (if you don’t have a boat) — Rabun Gap Natahoochee School. It’s a boarding school just North of town with some of the best fireworks around {even better if you’re watching with friends}
Goats? On a Roof?
Yes. Yes really. Goats on the Roof is full of all sorts of fun activities for the family. You can feed goats a multitude of different ways, get goat gear, and even eat at the local cafe. They have AWESOME Nitro Ice Cream and pretty good food also. Stop by and check it out if you are passing through town.
The BEST apple fritters & pies. EVER. Just trust me. Pick up some apple butter, fresh cider, or even some homemade salsa. Then enjoy snacking on your pies, fritters, or homemade peach ice cream while taking a walk to the petting zoo and around the creek.
We took on many more adventures this trip, but I will share those next time!
Warning: This post will be flooded with pictures of my family (like this precious picture of my 90 year-old Granny sticking her tongue out with me instead of taking a picture with me).
My southern, sassy granny
Detroit has such a bad wrap because of all of the foreclosures and bankruptcy. Most people don’t even know that on the outskirts of the city are these precious little towns full of great restaurants and things to do. There are so many places that we love in the suburbs of Detroit and I will tell you about each of those in between my obnoxious amounts of pictures of my family (Sorry, not sorry).
Cousins
Some smaller suburb areas that you may want to check out right outside Detroit: Grosse Pointe, St. Clair Shores, Rochester Hills, and Warren.
Like I said before, most of my time is spent visiting my relatives, but when I do get out, I love all of the outdoor activities and yummy restaurants that the suburbs have to offer. Below I will share some of them with you, in case you’re ever around the area 🙂
Twins? Or just sisters?
Park Day with my Grandparents before we headed home
Josh & I’s first cruise was for our honeymoon back in February. We took a 5 day cruise on Norwegian Cruise Line (pictured on left). This time around, we were spoiled and treated for a 4 day cruise on Royal Caribbean to celebrate Josh’s grandparents 50th wedding anniversary (pictured on right). I will talk about both cruise lines & what we liked best on both.
First off, aren\’t my grandparents so precious?! 50 years of marriage?! Josh & I aspire to be like them one day. Second, yes, we are all in matching shirts. Go ahead and get a good chuckle in. They were awesome though and we loved bragging to everyone about Meme and Poppy. So the overall ship atmosphere was way more welcoming on the Norwegian cruise. I am not going to speak for all cruise ships because I have only been on two, but the Majesty of the Seas seemed to be WAY understaffed. When we needed help, there was never anyone around, where as the Norwegian Sky was almost overwhelming the amount of people offering to assist you at any time.
Next (and really most important) is food and beverage services. The food on both ships was fantastic. Overall, we thought that the buffet food was better on Royal Caribbean, but the dinner options were more plentiful (and tasted better) on Norwegian. Another thing we loved about Royal Caribbean was that you chose your dining time, and showed up at the same time each night. Although my my time dining was nice on Norwegian because we ate at different times each night depending on our schedule, there is just something special about having the same wait staff serve you each evening (we even got our waitress to take a selfie with us).
Family time is the best time, and that is what we lived by on this cruise. My recommendations for Nassau are book an excursion, or head to one of two places on the island: the beach about a half-mile walk down the coast, or the straw market. The straw market is fun for about an hour, then it can be overwhelming if you are not into people trying desperately to sell you the product they have (think people at those little kiosks at the mall chasing you down to sample their latest fragrance or lotion). We only lasted about 30 minutes in the straw market, got a souvenir each, and headed back to the boat. The advantage of not having an excursion booked — pretty much having the ship to yourself. If I was to go again, I wouldn\’t even get off of the ship.
Private island day is THE BEST DAY. Book an excursion OR take my recommendation and bring your snorkel gear, and enjoy some of the clearest water you have ever seen. Grab your lover and follow each other through reefs and the trenches of the ocean, all while seeing tons of beautiful creatures. Watch out for stingrays, though, they’re pretty prevalent in these waters.
The way I feel about excursions is this — if you can afford one, pick one or two and head out for an adventure of a lifetime. If you are just lucky to make your way onto a cruise ship, there is plenty of fun to be had by just taking part in everything that is included. Don’t spread yourself too thin, and don’t feel like you won’t have a GREAT time if you don’t do any of them. Josh and I have spent 9 days on a cruise ship and have yet to take part in any excursions, and let me tell you — we have had the time of our lives. Hopefully you catch the fever and are looking to book your next cruise before you\’re even off the one you are currently on.
No matter which ship or cruise you take on or whatever length you stay, the one thing you must do is get up early one morning and watch the sunrise. There is nothing more beautiful than watching the sun come up while watching the vastness of the ocean. Trust me, it’s breathtaking.
Must have cruise items:
Lots of sunscreen
A good camera (or your phone handy at all times)
Selfie Stick (to capture all the amazing views, and you too)
Something for nausea (sea bands, patches, ginger gum, etc.) — just in case
*Make sure to pack a separate bag with clothes & toiletries for the first day as sometimes you cannot get into your room until the late afternoon and you don\’t get your bags delivered until after dinner
Last thing I will note about the two cruises, there is nothing better than spending uninterrupted time in the middle of nowhere with close friends or family. I would highly encourage all cruises to be taken with those you love. There will be memories made in the middle of the ocean that you will NEVER forget. So until next time, I leave you with a picture of my family and those I spent 4 days on the high seas with.
I know what you are thinking…camping in the middle of the Florida summer? They\’re crazy right? We aren\’t too crazy (only a little), but when it comes to making trips as newlyweds, we know that we can travel more (and have more fun while traveling) if we watch where we spend our money. Camping was one way that we could make this trip affordable. After researching, we chose to stay at High Spring Campground. It is just north of Gainesville, and right off of I-75. It was gorgeous, clean, and the campers were very friendly. I would highly recommend it for anyone looking to camp in the area.
When you think of gorgeous springs and crystal clear blue water to swim, tube, kayak and dive in, Ichetucknee Springs should be one of the first places you think of. Living in Fort Myers, the body of water that I am around the most is the Gulf of Mexico. No hate here on the Gulf, but it\’s pretty gross. You can barely see a foot under the water and you can\’t walk out to waste deep without being covered in seaweed or some other floating substance. Needless to say, the words \”crystal clear water\” had never made much sense to me…that is until I hit the springs a few weekends ago. After this trip (further explained below), we will definitely be exploring more springs around us. There isn\’t a better way to spend a Saturday than floating down the river with close friends, drinks in hand, pub subs for lunch, and sunshine. That sounds like a perfect summer weekend to me. The springs are open 365 days a year, so if summer doesn\’t fit into your schedule, come anytime. They maintain a perfectly consistent temperature year round.
We woke up early on Saturday and rented floatation devices from this awesome place called Lowe\’s Tubeland (and even awesome(er) than their hospitality and good prices is this tree full of tubes on their property – totally selfie necessary). There are a TON of places that you can rent tubes from, but we just picked this one because of their great location and easy directions. They are a few miles from both the North and South entrance to the park. **There\’s a place where you can print coupons off their site for an additional discount on tubes
With little research (and by research I mean as much as I could do on my iPhone in the car ride from our campground to the springs) we discovered that the best place to go for ease of tubing (and most cost efficient) was the South Entrance. Only $6 to enter the park and unlimited tubing with our tubes tied to our car. The South entrance boasts a concession stand, restrooms, and lots of picnic tables and shelters. Although concession stand food is tempting to some, we much prefer to pick up pub subs on the way (our absolute fav travel food). With our food in our trusty yeti, we set to float down the the last take out. This float trip took between 1.5-2 hours (which was about all our stomachs could take without food). We decided it was a good idea (and would highly recommend) to walk instead of pay $5 per person for the tram. Although the tram is easier, there isn\’t anything better than a nice walk through the woods with your friends/family. The walk to the tubing drop off is only about 100 yards and the walk from the final drop-off back to the parking lot is only about 15-20 minutes. Totally doable and worth every penny. Just make sure you wear shoes as the terrain can be tough on the feet. **You can\’t bring anything disposable with you, so make sure to bring some water (or other beverage) in a reusable cup (our preference — our Yeti\’s!)
There are a lot of places that I enjoy eating when I venture through Gainesville (my parents are both Gator alumni, so we visit quite often), but my most recent favorite is 4 Rivers Smokehouse. Known for their beef brisket, this barbecue joint will not disappoint. Choose any of their scrumptious sides to pair with your meat, and you will leave in a food coma (yes, it\’s that good. Can\’t you tell by the fact that we didn\’t even take a picture prior to devouring our entire meals.) They also have a sweet shop full of cupcakes and pudding cups to cure the sweet tooth in anyone. If cupcakes, cakes, and puddings aren\’t your thing, then you need to make a stop at Midnight Cookies. These cookies are fresh baked right in front of you (and if you are staying in town, you can even have them delivered) and they\’re open sure late to cure your late night sweet tooth. For a totally reasonable price of $1.39, you may just need to try more than one. Allow yourself time to wait for them to cook, and then bite into one of the most deliciously fresh cookies you\’ve ever tasted in your life. You\’re welcome. *They even have vegan cookies (if you are into that sort of thing). **Pictured are (R) Cake Batter & Smores; (L) Snickerdoodle, Dirt, and the Midnight Cookie All of that to say, the Gainesville/Springs weekend with my sweet husband and friends was one for the books for sure. We even took a walk around the University of Florida Campus to burn off all of the calories that we ate between our BBQ and cookies — totally worth every bite. Can\’t wait to share about our next great adventure with you. Until then….
hrmarciano 
