Back for some more New York City action, huh?  Well, I can’t blame you!  In yesterday’s post, I gave you the lowdown on our first day and night in the big city.  Boy, did we have a great time!  We checked into our lovely and fabulously located hotel, we had a quick and delicious lunch at Cranberry Café, we witnessed the grandeur that Times Square has to offer and we enjoyed a laugh-filled dinner at Connolly’s Pub and Restaurant.  But that was just the tip of the iceberg! Thank goodness, we all got our much needed beauty rest.

After getting a good night’s sleep in preparation for our Sunday celebratory festivities, we were refreshed and had a full tank of gas, just rearing to go.  With our breakfast scheduled at 9:30am, I knew we had to be up by no later than 8am to get our day started.  However, I’m not sure if it was the cool temperature in our hotel room or the fact that I was electrified by the fact that we were in the New York, but I was wide awake at 7am (that’s not a normal thing without an alarm clock for Healthy Chow).  Patrick must have been on the same sleeping pattern as me, because he was also ready to greet the day before the alarm went off.  That said, we jumped into our workout clothes and made good use of the hotel’s fitness center.

The Millennium Broadway Hotel’s fitness center was pretty impressive.  There were two separate areas to work out in: one was for weights and weight training and the other was for cardio.  The gym was clean and had multiple televisions available for use.  Other than two other people, Patrick, David and I were the only ones in the gym.  It was great! No lines and no incessant yapping from other guests.  Plus, I got to stare at the tops of the New York City buildings as I was speedwalking and working up a good lather.  With a few yoga stretches, 25 minutes of speedwalking and regular walking on the treadmill and some cool down stretching, I was completely energized.  While I got a good workout in, I probably could have pushed myself further.  But, I also didn’t want to be tired (or sore) for the rest of the day.  My quick cardio session was just enough to get my blood pumping and to do some much needed detoxification.

Wow, it looks like we both worked up a good sweat!

After quickly showering and getting dressed, we only had a few moments to spare before it was breakfast time.  And this wasn’t just any ordinary breakfast, it was a special breakfast for a special girl.  In addition, breakfast wasn’t going to be served at just any ol’ restaurant, it was being held at a place that is undeniably, a little girl’s fantasy.  For Casey’s 5th birthday party, Lisa and David planned a breakfast at none other than American Girl Place.  I really wasn’t sure what to expect, but when we arrived, I was blown away.  To be able to see all the children so giddy with excitement and joy was truly endearing.  Plus, this place was amazing and huge! There were about four or five floors filled with shopping, activities for girls and their dolls, a restaurant and more shopping.  I could not believe how popular this store was – it was filled to the brim with families and dolls! Crazy!

Our breakfast destination!

Not only did the guest of honor, Casey, have a blast at her birthday party, but we all did as well.  The staff was hospitable, friendly and prompt.  In a large restaurant with so many customers, one usually expects and receives less-than-stellar service and not-so-great food.  This was the complete opposite!  Our main server, Anthony, couldn’t have been more accommodating and polite.  Plus, the menu offered more than ‘kid friendly’ options and everyone seemed quite pleased with their selections and the quality of the food.  The decorum of the dining area was also fantastic.  I felt like a doll living in a dollhouse or at least, a big (but not that big) little girl having her dreams come true.  As the conversation flowed, the coffee flowed and the good times and laughter were continuously being rolled out much like our hot breakfast entrées.  There were even souvenirs (a hair elastic with a hot pink bow) for all the guests and fun little conversational question cards available at the table.  It’s truly a blessing to be able to spend time with your family and to be able to be in the presence of such wonderful company.  I can only imagine the greatness that both Dan and Ellen felt just watching their family interact and have such a joyous time and knowing that this all stemmed from the love they created 40 years ago.

The guest of honor with her dolls

Taylor with her Papa

Taylor with Grammy

Who’s the bigger doll?

Everyone smile for the camera and say, “Healthy Chow!”

How’s that smoothie?

The American Girl Breakfast Menu

My Breakfast: Eggs Benedict Florentine - poached eggs served with wilted spinach and English muffin topped with hollandaise sauce (I had mine on the side) and accompanied by home-style potatoes and fresh fruit

Flower Power Pancakes with Fresh Bananas and Whipped Cream – served with fresh fruit and sausage links (and some Country Breakfast Eggs)

Country Breakfast - scrambled eggs with home-style potatoes, onions, sausage and peppers topped with cheddar cheese and served with a side of avocado, salsa and sour cream

Classic French Toast – topped with warm apples and cinnamon fresh fruit kabob, served with a side of apple wood smoked bacon and maple syrup

Chocolate Mousse Flowerpot with Butterfly Cookie

The whole gang

Question: Who would you want to trade places with for one day?  Why?

Taylor’s Answer: “I pick you, Nicole, because you’re a lot of fun and you look like a teenager.  For real!”

Too much!

Once breakfast was over, the gang broke free to explore the rest of American Girl Place.  While the little ladies got their shopping on, I managed to check things out and get a lay of the land.  Holy moly, words can’t describe the magnitude of this place.  If you have an American Girl doll, this is the place to go for your doll.  There is everything and anything you could possibly want or need here for your American Girl.  I think both Taylor and Casey were more than happy with their purchases.

An hour and a half?!

The Doll Hair Salon

After getting back to the hotel to drop off our purchases, we freshened up and decided to make a trip to the Empire State Building.  While most of the group was in on visiting this tourist attraction, some decided to make good use of the amazing weather and make a visit to Central Park.  Since my MIL and I love shopping and enjoy each other’s company (we share the same sense of humor!), we decided to branch off from the group and have some mother-in-law and daughter-in-law time.  We ventured off and hit some of the nearby shops as the rest of the group made the trip to the top of the Empire State Building.  Patrick was in the Empire State Building group and thus, became the interim photographer for my blog.  He did a pretty fancy job snapping some great pics.  Thanks Patrick!

By the time all of our tours were over, it was late in the afternoon.  But with our dinner reservation at 6:30pm, we had only a few moments to rest and recharge.  But when you’re in New York, who needs to rest, right?  For our final dinner and celebration in the big city, we decided to have dinner at the Italian restaurant, Becco (thanks for the recommendation, Billy!).  Becco was about a ten minute walk from our hotel, which was key since it was about 6:15pm by the time we left.  We made it just in time and with even a few minutes to spare! While we all congregated in front of the restaurant, we decided it was the perfect time to take a group photo. Don’t you love it when you can grab a complete stranger off the street and ask them to take a picture and it actually turns out well?

What a night to remember!

Becco’s menu was incredible! There were so many delectable sounding choices and quite fairly priced for a New York City restaurant.  After much deliberating both to myself and out loud, I finally chose the Pesce Spada (grilled swordfish paired with spaghetti squash, stewed cherry tomatoes, roasted pumpkin seeds & pumpkin seed oil).  It was divine and certainly had its fair portion of both vegetables and fish.  Not to mention the swordfish was grilled to perfection and the stewed cherry tomatoes were deliciously sweet.  While I originally thought I had ordered ‘the best’ entrée on the menu, I soon questioned my belief after sampling some of Patrick’s Sinfonia di Paste (Becco’s renowned unlimited table side service of Becco’s Chef’s Three Daily Pasta Preparations) and David’s Costolette di Maiale alla Maniera dello Chef (brined double cut pork chop grilled, topped with figs poached in Apianae & roasted fingerling potatoes), I soon realized that there was just more than one ‘best’ entrée at Becco.  Actually, everyone was more than thoroughly pleased with both the food and the service at this restaurant.  You really could not go wrong with any item ordered off the Becco menu.  Our waitress, Anne, was a pleasure and was gracious throughout our entire meal.  And while the food was excellent, the restaurant itself was quite charming as well.  It had a rustic feel and almost felt like a North End restaurant with it’s exposed brick and close fitting dining area.

Our coat check tag and table reservation number from breakfast- both were 40, like Dan and Ellen’s anniversary!

Fresh mozzarella with roasted red peppers, toasted pine nuts & golden raisins

Fresh prosciutto

Caesar salad – very tasty but way too much dressing for my liking…

Now that’s a meatball!

Pesce Spada – Grilled swordfish paired with spaghetti squash, stewed cherry tomatoes, roasted pumpkin seeds & pumpkin seed oil

Costolette di Maiale alla Maniera dello Chef - Brined double cut pork chop grilled, topped with figs poached in Apianae & roasted fingerling potatoes

Sinfonia di Paste - Becco’s renowned unlimited table side service of Becco’s Chef’s Three Daily Pasta Preparations

Trancio di Salmone – Pan-seared salmon with braised cauliflower & extra virgin olive oil

Bistecca – Grilled Black Angus rib eye, dry-aged & rubbed with porcini mushrooms
with garlic mashed potatoes & seasonal vegetables

Of course, we had to have dessert!

Happy 40th Anniversary!

Once dinner was over, we made our way through Times Square once again to get one last look at the the city lights.  They were as bright as ever and the city was even more jammed with people than when we last saw it.  I saw a bunch of cameras and even brighter lights at the center of Times Square and people clamoring around as though there was something being filmed.  As we made our way over, I realized that it was Entertainment Tonight’s The Insider being filmed.  With my MIL, Ellen, being a huge fan of The View, as soon as I realized it was Star Jones sitting on stage, I just knew this would be one of the highlights of her trip.  Not only was Ellen excited to see Star, but she was even more thrilled to see that the guest anchor was none other than Levi Johnston! Ellen, I will have to admit, Levi was pretty cute!

Hey there!

Our trip to New York City was certainly a memorable one.  We shared as many laughs and smiles as we did bites of food and dessert.  When you’re in a special city celebrating occasions such as a wedding anniversary and a birthday with your entire family, everyone is lucky enough to receive a gift.  I am truly blessed to have such a wonderful family and to have been able to be a part of the New York trip.  It is sure to go down as one of my favorite family vacations.  And while we were able to see so many sights and do so many things in the city, there was one common theme that remained throughout and that was love.  Like the lights in Times Square that brighten up the sky morning, noon and night, and guide the city’s people, it is the love of family and the love between an extraordinary couple, like Dan and Ellen, that remains a constant and continues to fuel the fire of life.

What’s your favorite city you’ve ever visited?  Do you wish you could live there or would you rather keep it as a favorite vacation spot?

Namasté,
Nicole

No, this isn’t a post on the 2009 World Series Champions, The New York Yankees.  I think my family, both immediate and extended, would definitely might give me a stern talking to if that were the case.  This past weekend, my family and I traveled to New York City to celebrate two very special occasions, my mother and father-in-law’s 40th wedding anniversary and my niece Casey’s, 5th birthday.  Not that we need special occasions to celebrate in order to go to New York, but since they happen to occur on the same day, it just makes the trip that much more extraordinary.

(sidebar – Guess who I saw while waiting to board my flight to New York?  Ellie Krieger! Can you believe it?  I so badly wanted to take her picture but since she was VIP, she boarded before anyone else and I missed my chance.  But, when I walked by Ellie to get to my seat, I smiled and she gave me a head nod.  Then I shouted, “check out HealthyChow.com…”  Just kidding, I wish I had the nerve to say that!)

While Times Square was our meeting place and where our hotel was located, we were all coming from different directions and via different modes of transportation.  Ellen and Dan, my mother and father-in-law, were coming from Springfield, MA via train, my brother and sister-in-law were coming from Atlanta via plane with my nieces, my other siblings-in-law were driving in from Boston, and Patrick and I took the shuttle.  Needless to say, by the time we all finally arrived at our hotel, The Millennium Broadway, we were excited to see each other and excited to see the big city.

On the bridge heading to Times Square

The lobby area of the Millennium Broadway Hotel

The Dolls with their dolls

Thanks to Travel Agent Pat, our hotel could not have been better situated.  We were literally in the heart of Times Square and within walking distance from anything we could possibly need.  But then again, when you have a bird’s eye view of the heart of New York City, what more could you possibly need or want?

View from our room

Another angle…

Check out all those taxi cabs!

Are those people or ants?!

I think my nieces, Casey and Taylor, love being in NYC!

Well, there was one thing we wanted and needed and that was a quick bite to eat.  We had all been up since the crack of dawn traveling, so some much needed food was definitely on the menu (lame pun intended).  With the suggestion of the concierge, the eight of us walked across the street to the Cranberry Café.  It was a hungry traveler’s dream come true! The deli offered every kind of hot and cold sandwich, wrap and sub you could imagine while there were also stands for custom made salads and pre-made sushi.  And if sandwiches, sushi and salads didn’t float your boat, there was also the largest of hot bars and a pretty hefty salad bar.  And if you wanted even more bars, there was a whole wall filled with protein/convenience bars.  Because I was overwhelmed with all the choices, I decided to make it easy on myself and went with the salad bar.  I really got a nice myriad of everything – just the way I like it!

Once we purchased our food, we ventured upstairs to the dining area and had a relaxed lunch.  It was a ’seat-yourself’ type of restaurant and we grabbed the largest table we could find and chowed down!  While we were all so excited to catch-up with one another, I don’t think a word was uttered from anyone (including the kids) for at least 1o minutes.  We really needed the nourishment and the Cranberry Café definitely fulfilled that need.

Hungry!

My lunch: romaine lettuce, cucumber slices in vinaigrette, grape tomatoes and 1 small mozzarella cheese ball, a hard boiled egg (minus the yolk), salad of chick peas, red kidney beans, peas and carrots, grapes and cantaloupe

Travel Agent Pat’s Lunch: YUM!  Nothing like corned beef on rye! Hi Billy!

After lunch, one of our hotel rooms was finally ready for us to check in and we were able to freshen up and head back out into the city.  I couldn’t believe how many people were out and about.  You would have thought it was a holiday or that there was some event going on in Times Square, but it was just an ordinary Saturday afternoon.  Because the weather was unseasonably warm, we were able to walk through the city with just light jackets.  It felt like spring and we certainly had a spring in our step.  Just to be able to be in a wonderful place such as New York with our family was enough to put a permanent smile on our faces.

David and Dan

Me and Patrick

After taking a tour of Times Square and the Marriott Marquis hotel’s upstairs lounge, my sister-in-law along with her boyfriend, and my brother-in-law along with his fiancée, arrived and finally, the whole clan was here!  Since one of my brothers-in-law and his family live in Atlanta, we don’t always have the entire group in one place, at one time.  Thus, to have everyone together in one spot was a momentous occasion on its own.  I grew up with only my twin sister and while we were always thicker than thieves, it’s nice to be a part of a large family.  I love the different dynamics that occur within a big family and I love having a large group around.  Nothing is ever boring and there’s always something new to learn about another person.  With my extended family, there are always plenty of laughs, fun, good times and a shoulder to support you whenever you need it.  It’s truly a magnificent feeling to have.

Look at all those floors!

For our first family dinner in New York, we decided to go casual and quite local.  We headed across the street to Connolly’s Pub and Restaurant.  Since this restaurant is right in the middle of the theater district, it was packed when we arrived at 7:30pm.  But since there was now 12 of us, we managed to snag the front tables and basically had the whole front area of the restaurant to ourselves.

Taylor and her grandparents

Kevin,Vanja and Taylor with Casey climbing the stairs in the background

Greg, Carolyn and Taylor - so cute!

From the ATL, David and Lisa

Your girl, Healthy Chow, and Travel Agent Pat

Connolly’s is an Irish pub with live music and pretty good food.  In addition to their traditional Irish dishes like beer battered fish and chips, Irish beef stew and bangers and mash, Connolly’s also serves burgers, wraps, salads and other comfort food dishes.  Everyone seemed to find exactly what they were looking for within minutes and the friendly Connolly’s staff was able to serve our enormous and hungry party almost immediately.  I ordered the Mediterranean grilled vegetable wrap with eggplant, zucchini, tomato, mushroom, roasted red pepper, carrot, romaine lettuce, goat cheese and a balsamic glaze on a honey wheat wrap.  All the sandwiches and wraps came with french fries and while they did sound and look good, I asked if I could substitute the fries for a vegetable.  The vegetable was a carrot and parsnip purée and it was delicious! I think I preferred my side dish of veggies over my sandwich.  Wow!  Those must have been some vegetables!

Once we all finished eating, we decided to have a few more drinks before calling it a night.  Since it was Casey’s birthday the next day and Ellen and Dan’s anniversary, we had a day filled with festivities planned and wanted to be bright-eyed and bushy-tailed.  Plus, Casey’s birthday breakfast was set for 9:30am and we could not be late for our reservation.  But we were all pretty tired from traveling, so we were ready to hit the sack.  Our first day and night in the big city was great and if it was any indication of how the rest of our weekend was going to be, we were going to have a blast.  The city that never sleeps seems to have some sort of a power over the people.  And we were ready for this city to take us over…

“These streets will make you feel brand new, big lights will inspire you, let’s hear it for New York, New York, New York…”

***BTW, while we were celebrating Dan and Ellen’s anniversary and Casey’s birthday in NYC, it was also MHC’s boyfriend’s birthday in Boston.  Happy belated birthday, Darrell!***

***Don’t forget to come visit me tomorrow to see what else Healthy Chow and the gang did in New York…stay tuned…***

Do like visiting and exploring big cities?  Do you like to have things planned and mapped out or do you like to plan as you go like me when you’re on vacation?

Namasté,
Nicole

A couple of weekends ago, after Patrick and I were out in Orlando for a conference, we decided to take advantage of the unusually warm temperatures down south and headed even farther south by spending a few days in Miami.  We love Miami, not only for its proximity to Boston, it’s wonderful culture and ever so upbeat nightlife, but it’s also where we eloped close to 4 years ago.  Plus, when the weather starts getting tough up East, we snowbirds need a taste of that spicy weather before it’s white and bland up here.  Sorry to all you who <3 the snow and frosty weather, but I’m all about the sun!

Image Credit – allposters.com

In the past when we’ve vacationed in Miami, we’ve stayed right on ‘the strip’ in South Beach and we’ve stayed in downtown Miami.  Both are great for their own respective reasons, but we decided to mix it up this time and stay at a place a little bit off the beaten path.  When I say ‘we’, I have to chuckle to myself because I am a lazy bum when it comes to making travel arrangements.  My mother spent over 25 years working in the airline industry, so as a kid, I was well-traveled and flew in style.  In addition, she always took care of our hotel arrangements.  And now, I am even more spoiled.  Since Patrick finds enjoyment in researching our travel destinations and finding the best rates, I never have to worry about a thing.  I find out where we’re going and when and then I all have to do is pack my bags.  Nice life, huh?

Through my husband’s diligent research, we stayed at the aptly named, The New Hotel.  This hotel was located in North Beach, about a five minute drive to South Beach and was truly a hidden gem!  I tend to get a little ’snotty’ when it comes to where I stay when I’m vacationing.  I like big bathrooms, comfy beds, good service and clean everything.  So when Patrick told me we were staying at a ’smaller’ boutique hotel a few minutes down the road from South Beach, I was a bit skeptical.  As usual, Travel Agent Patty, proved me wrong by booking us a room at one of the coziest and stylish hotels I’ve had the opportunity to stay at in quite some time.

Normally, when you check into a hotel, you have to wait in line at the front desk and walk through a few long hallways and maybe even endure a couple of elevator rides before you get to your long awaited room.  Because The New Hotel only has 10 rooms in total, the hotel is small and much of the unnecessary ‘extras’ just aren’t there.  For example, Ann, the general manager of the hotel, greets you when you walk in the from the entrance and immediately shows you to the room.  During your brief walk to your room, you get to see the lovely pool area along with the hotel’s bar and bistro and what The New Hotel affectionately calls, ‘Lou’s Beer Garden’.    The pool area is clean, tranquil, chic and relaxing – much like the vibe for the rest of the hotel.

The rooms of the hotel were beautiful.  The dark floors, which I thought were hardwood but were actually tile, were pristine and matched perfectly with the simple and stark linens and bedroom furniture.  While the bathrooms weren’t as large as I would have liked, they were decorated in a funky blue tile with a big glass shower stall and a wall-to-wall mirror.  Plus, the bathroom was sparkling clean, which more than made up for its size.  And while the bed resembled a cloud with its all white exterior, it also felt like as if we were sleeping high up in the sky.  There was also a refrigerator and bar area in the room which was a nice convenience.  Being that there was a Walgreen’s right next door (and where we parked our car for free every night) and a supermarket a block away, we were able to grab bottled water and snacks for the beach.  And speaking of beach, that was literally steps from our room.  We honestly rolled out of bed and onto the endless sand in about a hot minute.  Our gracious manager, Ann, was kind enough to loan us her beach chairs so we were not only able to get to the beach quickly, but we were able to sunbathe in comfort.  And you know that’s how Healthy Chow likes to roll!

One of my favorite parts of the hotel was that it was entirely green.  From the linens to the building material – just about everything was sustainable.  When you left your hotel room for the day or night, all you had to do was remove the card located in a stand next to the door and all of your lights and television were immediately shut off.  With this cool technology, you didn’t have to worry about shutting off the lights nor did you have to remember.  By just taking the card out of the stand, you were immediately saving energy.  It was that easy!

While the hotel was aesthetically pleasing and hygienically sound, the staff was what truly made the hotel.  Because Ann knew when we were checking in, she called and asked us in advance if we wanted tickets to the jazz concert that was being held across the street.  Ann was also available around the clock (I don’t know if she ever went home?) if we had questions about where to go, if we needed additional towels and even tidied up our room when she was short-staffed.  Luis, the chef of hotel (and whom the Beer Garden is named after), even volunteered his services and offered to carry my bags up the stairs as Patrick was parking the car.  And after dropping off my things in our room, Luis invited us to join him outside for some lunch and a drink.  Can you really get any more hospitable than that?

Our trip to Miami was wonderful.  We relaxed, enjoyed the hot sun and took advantage of being on vacation.  It was a great time and we thoroughly enjoyed ourselves.  But when the the weather is perfect, the hotel is more than comfortable and inviting and the company is not so bad either, what’s there to complain about?  When you can “party in the city where the heat is on, all night on the beach until the break of dawn, I’m going to Miami, welcome to Miami…”

Would you rather stay in a large chain hotel or in a small boutique hotel?  What’s your favorite hotel you’ve ever stayed in?

Namasté,
Nicole

Do you remember your prom?  I do.  I spent so much time thinking about it, shopping for the ‘perfect’ dress, dieting, dreaming of the ‘best’ hairstyle, finding the matching ‘perfect’ shoes for the ‘perfect’ dress, making sure I had the limousine reserved, making sure my corsage was just ‘right’, making sure I had plans post-prom, making sure my date had a tux that matched me, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah…And after all that, the night just turned out mediocre.  I mean, nothing bad happened but nothing all that wonderful occurred either.  I guess that goes to show that sometimes it’s better to go with the flow than to plan every last detail.

This past weekend, Patrick and I were undecided as to what we wanted to do.  The weather was way too nice to be sitting indoors and yet, we didn’t have any reservations or plans made to travel.  After we both had our morning workouts, showered, had breakfast and got our acts together, we decided we just had to go ’somewhere’.  That said, we jumped in the car and Patrick randomly asked, “Hey, wanna go to Newport?”  It seemed like a good idea to me!  So, I said yes, and we hopped on the highway.

If you’ve never been to Newport, RI, it’s about an 45 minute to an hour drive from Boston.  Many Bostonians/New Englanders rent houses in Newport for the summer and spend their weekends there with friends hanging out on the beach and simply enjoying the hot weather.  Because it was Labor Day weekend, the unofficial last weekend of the summer, we weren’t sure what the traffic would be like.  We didn’t hit much traffic at all and we made it there in about and hour and 15 minutes.  Not bad!

Because we got such a late start and had eaten a late breakfast, we held off on having lunch when we arrived and decided to take full advantage of the fantastic weather while it lasted.  But what were we going to do?  We weren’t prepared for the beach (we didn’t have swimsuits, towels, sunscreen, or flip-flops) and wanted to do something a little more exciting than just walk around the shops.  So, we kept driving until we saw this:

Sachuest Point is located in Middletown, just a short drive from Newport.  We sort of just stumbled upon it as we were driving along the beaches.  People were walking and biking along the road and we just decided to follow where they were going.  Boy, did they know where they were going!  Sachuest Point was as equally breathtaking as it was interesting:

The refuge sports a newly renovated visitor center, over 2.5 miles of nature trails, viewing platforms, and a number of Refuge volunteers present to help visitors and to help in management of the refuge.

Sachuest Point National Wildlife Refuge is renowned for its fantastic saltwater fishing, and the presence of the largest winter population of harlequin ducks on the East Coast.

The visitor center had information on the Refuge, as well as the various bird and plant species that one might find on the trails.  There was even a mini-theater available that showed videos on the history of the Refuge.  We didn’t stay to watch but it was nice to know there was so much available to see and learn – all for free!

The sun sure did sneak up on us that day.  Because I wasn’t paying attention to misjudged the weather, I was dressed in long jeans and told Patrick to wear a long sleeved shirt.  I held out for as long as I could before I finally had to admit to Patrick, “yes, I goofed.  It’s an absolute perfect summer day and I’m literally dying in my jeans right now…”  Luckily, the slight breeze from the ocean managed to cool us off a bit and we were able to fully explore the trails.  It was so cool and like nothing else I had ever had the chance to experience.

We walked around the trails for about an hour until we decided to start hiking on the rocky cliffs that beautifully lined the water.  I was a bit scared at first, thinking I was going to slip and fall and plunge to my death, but Patrick tested it out to make sure it was safe.  What a guy!

“Oh cool, my iPhone works out here…”

My Captain Morgan’s pose…arrrrgh!

Two roads diverged…

When I saw this, I knew I had to capture it.  I felt it was so symbolic of how our day started out.  If we had made rushed plans or reservations to go and stay on the Cape or some other New England summer hot spot, we would have missed out on the spontaneity of going on our spur-of-the moment car ride to Newport and may not have had as good of a time.  Instead, we chose to relax and not stress about our plans and everything seemed to just fall into place.

By the time we finished walking and hiking, we were famished and in desperate need of water.  We pulled over to a convenience store and chugged a bottle of water and then drove until we laid eyes on this:

We split a jumbo-sized frozen lemonade and I swear, this tasted like the nectar of the Gods! It was so light and refreshing and the perfect snack after our sweat-induced hike.  We drove along the beach roads looking at some of the most gorgeous homes I’ve ever seen.  But because I was so enthralled with my frozen lemonade, I neglected to take any pictures. Sorry! But the lemonade sure was dee-lee-shus!

We then decided to head back into town to get an early dinner.  At this point, I just needed food.  So, I was pretty easy going on our dining selection.  We found free parking and this:

Tickets Bar & Grille was a cute little restaurant in Middletown that was right across the street from the beach and had outdoor seating. Perfect!  They had the usual bar/pub fare – pizzas, burgers, sandwiches, finger food, salads, etc.  I chose the vegetarian wrap that contained zucchini, roasted red pepper, tomatoes and mozzarella cheese and came with a choice of either cole slaw, potato salad, french fries or sweet potato fries. I chose the sweet potato fries – obvi!  Patrick went for the classic turkey club and regular french fries.  It was sheer bliss for Healthy Chow!

My meal was huge!  It basically was a sandwich and a half.  I love that fact that it was chock full of vegetables but in hindsight, I think I should have asked them to go lite on the cheese.  It made the sandwich a bit too greasy.  The vegetables could have also used a bit more seasoning, but it did the job.  The sweet potato fries were cooked just right – of course!  They were crispy, not too salty, sweet enough and hot from the kitchen. They more than made up for the average tasting wrap.

Patrick’s turkey club was quite good.  The whole wheat bread was toasted just right and the crispness of the bacon, lettuce and tomato was a nice complement to the moist and juicy turkey. His french fries weren’t so bad either, but I preferred my sweet potato fries.  We also had just the right seats for people watching; we were across the street from the infamous Atlantic Beach Club.  Let’s just say if I was eating crackers, there was more than enough cheese!  Gadzooks!  It was a scene but the perfect entertainment for our late lunch/early dinner.

After we finished eating, we drove over to Goat Island.  This is where all the mega yachts are docked.  I don’t think I’ve ever seen so many yachts of this stature ever.  They were all quite extraordinary, to say the least.

With only a few more hours left until sundown, we walked into the center of Newport to explore some of the shops.  There was such a buzz in the air.  I guess everyone wanted to take in every last second of the pleasant weather.  I popped into a few stores and ended up hitting a fabulous sale at Kristina Richards.  Everything was in my size, which is never usually the case, but I managed to narrow my choices down to this:

If you can’t tell, it’s a knee-length blue dress with 3/4 length poet sleeves and a pretty back ruffle. Score!

When my shopping finally started to wind down, we knew what we needed next.  We had worked so hard walking, hiking, and shopping that day that we felt we needed to end the day with a sweet treat.

I chose to have a little bit of frozen yogurt with my purple sprinkles. Jeez!  But they were the best darn sprinkles ever…maybe that’s why they named their ice cream shop, ‘Sprinkles’!  To boot, sprinkles are complimentary…how can you resist that? But in all seriousness, this was one of the best frozen yogurts I’ve ever had.  It was creamy, had bits of mocha blended in, tasted just like a cappuccino and if I didn’t know better, I would have thought I was eating ice cream.  Patrick suggested I order a large so that we could share.  It was a great idea, except I had about 80% of it.  But that’s OK, because I enjoyed every bite of it!

We strolled around while savoring my our frozen yogurt and I was amazed to see so many people were still buzzing about town.  There was live music playing (there was a concert going on in a nearby tent), the shops were still open, people were drinking and dining in the outdoor restaurants and bars, college football was on television and people were simply happy to be spending their ‘last’ few moments of summer in such a relaxing, yet fun atmosphere.

What a perfect way to ‘end’ our summer.  I think at the beginning of summer, we, New Englanders, were a bit stressed due to the lack of sunny and warm weather. However, once we sort of ‘got over’ that, the hot and humid weather kicked in and summer was in full swing.  I think when we focus too much on how something ’should be’ or how it ‘ought to be’, we tend to lose sight on allowing things to just ‘be’.  I expected my high school prom to be such an unforgettable night and hoped that it was going to be something so magical.  Perhaps if I would have just gone in without having any expectations, I would have had a better time.  Patrick and I jumped in our car that afternoon just looking to get out of the city.  We weren’t sure where we were going to go exactly or what we were going to do.  But, we knew we had great company and the whole day wide open for anything and everything.  And sometimes, that is the best road to take…

What did you do this Labor Day weekend?  Do you like having plans or would you prefer to fly by the seat of your pants?

Namasté,
Nicole

Remember when I said that there are just some foods that signify ’summer’ to me?  Well, there are also restaurants that do the same.  Kreme n’ Kone is one of those places.  When we were vacationing on the Cape a couple weekends ago, this party-packed place was just a hop, skip and a jump away from our hotel…how lucky for us!

Don’t get me wrong; I know Kreme n’ Kone is by no means fine dining (although Phantom Gourmet has awarded them the ‘Great Ate’ for fried clams since 2004).  But when you’re staying on Cape Cod for just a few short days, how can you pass up fried seafood?  OK, maybe you don’t have to engulf yourself in it but you’re doing yourself a disservice if you forego it completely.  Trust me!  When in Rome…

I don’t think there is an ‘off ‘ time to go to this place.  When we arrived, there was a line out the door.  And, the place is huge – it has indoor and outdoor seating and both were filled to the gills (insert lame seafood pun here).  While waiting in line, I had the chance to study the menu and figure out what I wanted to eat.  I know I wanted to have some fried fish/food, but wasn’t sure if having that as my entire meal would be a very wise idea.  I always often have to remind myself that too much fried goodness can be a bad thing.  So, I went with the broiled salmon plate.  Since Patrick was definitely ordering the fried clam strip plate that came with onion rings and french fries, I knew I could sneak a few nibbles and get my needed dose of the golden greatness that is fried seafood batter.

At Kreme n’ Kone, you order and pay at the counter and then they give you your number which you leave on your table.  Within a few hot minutes, a server walks over and dinner is served!  I’m not sure how the servers are able to locate the numbers so quickly since it seemed as if there were about 100 tables in the restaurant but they managed to find us (and not a moment too soon – lounging around produces big appetites).

My salmon was the size of my head!  It was huge but nicely broiled.  I liked the fact that it was a plain piece of cooked fish.  There were no seasonings or sauces on it other than the lemon juice I squeezed all over.  Also, my salmon was crispy enough where there was some crunch but not so much where all I could taste was a burnt mess.  It was however, a bit too greasy.  I know salmon is a greasy selection of fish but this was a bit too much.  The rice pilaf that came with it was average but helped to soak up some of the grease from the salmon.  I ditched the cole slaw as soon as I saw it, so I’m not sure what it tasted like.  Ironically, while my salmon was too greasy for my liking, I managed to scarf down four of Patrick’s onion rings, a handful of french fries and two clam strips (and maybe a bite or two of fried haddock but who’s keeping track anyway?).  My stolen treasures were delicious BTW.  Kreme n’ Kone knows how to batter-fry!

A hunka salmon...

Perfectly broiled and seasoned...

A plate of golden love...

Phantom approved!

There's fish somewhere in there, I promise...

Because there were so many patrons at Kreme n’ Kone, I had the chance to snap away at the dinner table without any odd stares.  I don’t think a soul noticed.  Maybe they were just too busy and hungry to tell?  All in all, the dinner was right on par for fried seafood.  I mean, I did stray from the norm and ordered a non-fried item.  So, one might say that that it isn’t surprising that my dinner wasn’t 100% to my liking.  But for what we wanted to feast on for our first night out on Dennis Port, Kreme n’ Kone did a good job.  The service was quick (although my non-fried dinner came out a few minutes later than everyone else’s fried seafood plates) and the restaurant was run like a tight ship.  Once a group was finished eating, the plates were cleared and the table was cleaned for the next party.

Kinda funny that they used a picture of a hamburger, don't cha think?

We left feeling as full as the bellies in the fried clams…buh-da-bump! Another taste of summer is done and crossed off the list!

And if you needed a reminder after eating your glorious meal, this is the sign that is posted over the dining room.

Do you ever order the ‘non-specialty’ item from the menu?  If so, do you ever feel weird doing so?

Namasté,
Nicole

BTW, I just watched Cynthia McFadden on ABC discuss the new movie, Julie & Julia.  It looks great!  I can’t wait to see it.  Anyone else excited like me?

Well, the weather this summer in New England (and in many other locations) hasn’t been so stellar.  We’ve had way too much rain and some days, it felt more like October than it did July.  But enough about that, we need to move on.  That said, Patrick, his parents and I decided to test our luck and venture down to Dennis Port on Cape Cod for a long weekend last week.  While we didn’t get the usual torrential downpour, we did get a bit of wind and some haze but mostly, it was a sun and fun filled weekend.

If you’ve never vacationed on the Cape, I’ll tell you that most of the hotels are, to say it as nicely as possible, antiquated.  Now, I’m not trying to say that all of the Cape’s hotels are old.  There are some very new and contemporary ones available but most of the ones that I have seen (and stayed at) seem to think the 70’s/early 80’s need to be remembered forever.  But, I try to lie to tell myself that that’s part of the charm of Cape Cod and the best thing to do is embrace it.  So when we went on our little excursion last week, I tried to not have any expectations of the hotel or weather and just decided I would go with the flow.

My mother-in-law, being the experienced armchair traveler that she is, loves researching vacation spots and accommodations.  She has a knack for finding these hidden gems and thus, we all turn to her when it’s time to book our hotel.  This vacation, she discovered that the hotel, The Soundings, had just completed building a new wing to their hotel and that the weekend we were planning on going down was the first weekend The Soundings was allowing guests to stay in their new wing.  Score!

Gotta love that sign – so retro!

When we arrived, we tried our hardest to check-in before their 3 pm check-in time.  To no avail, we perused their tourist brochures and gladly took their welcome packets to read as we killed some time waiting for our room to be ready.

This is where we sat, read and enjoyed our welcome packets from the hotel…

Hmmm, yummy salt water taffy…

Look at the ad I found in one of the brochures!  I guess the ‘green’ chairs matched the green grass…

Finally, our room was ready and boy, was it worth the wait.  As I mentioned previously, the wing we were going to be staying in was brand spanking new – so new that we didn’t even see pictures and really weren’t sure what to expect.  It’s a good thing I didn’t have any expectations because if I did, they would have been blow away!  Check it out:

Our room (suite) came with two separate bedrooms, two full bathrooms, a complete kitchen that was fully stocked with cooking and dining utensils, a dining area, a sitting/tv area and a balcony that overlooked the ocean.  We felt like royalty in our suite and couldn’t believe what a deal we had scored (the going rate for our same room actually increased by $200 the same day we checked in).

I loved having our own private balcony.  It was such a treat to be able to make our breakfast every morning in our kitchen and have our sliding glass doors open with the crashing waves as the soundtrack to our vacation.  Not only could we eat a more healthy and economical breakfast, but we had the luxury of eating on the deck or at our kitchen table overlooking the beach.  I think I leisurely had about two cups of coffee over two hours.  It was such a perfect setting with the perfect company.  How I miss having my own deck!

Like I said, it was a tad hazy that weekend.  But that’s ok, because we were a tad lazy…

Brekkie on Day 1: Scrambled eggs (cooked by Patrick), half of an egg bagel with a light schmear of margarine, a piece of watermelon & black coffee

Brekkie on Day 2: Bowl of Cheerios with skim milk, fresh blueberries, more watermelon & black coffee.  Gotta love my MIL for bringing all this lovely food – she rocks!

And another fantastic thing about our room was that when Patrick and his dad went for their father and son tradition of jumping into the ocean, my mother-in-law and I had the option of staying in the room.  Because we could see the boys from our balcony, it was as if we were there in the water with them (without having to get cold and wet).  So while they chatted and swam, we ladies did some reading and had some much needed catching-up with one another.

The view from our room, and what a lovely view it ’twas!

Some good reads and some good snacks…

It honestly was the vacation that we all needed.  We were able to hang out on the beach, get some needed rest, take advantage of a ridiculously beautiful hotel room and enjoy each other’s company.  It was a simple and relaxing vacation.  And because I didn’t have any expectations of things such as what our room was going to be like, how the weather was going to behave, what we were going to do and what we were going to eat, everything turned out great.

I have a tendency to ‘expect’ things and to hope for certain outcomes when they are completely out of my control.  Things usually end up working out, but I spend a great deal of wasted energy worrying for no reason.  But I think with this blog and the fact that I’m becoming more aware of what I’m thinking and feeling, I’m finally starting to realize life is more fun (and relaxing) when you are able to live in the moment.  Instead of focusing on what will happen or what could happen or what happened before, it’s healthier to be in the present.  I know it’s much easier said than done but with one step at a time, I know I can get there.  I just need to stop worrying about getting there and reflect on the progress I’ve currently made.  You see, Healthy Chow is getting healthier by the moment!

The Breakfast Club (not sure if I’m Molly Ringwald or Ally Sheedy…)

What do you do to manage your expectations? Or, if that’s too deep, what’s your favorite hotel you’ve ever stayed in?

Namasté,
Nicole