Friday Things
Weโve been in Florida for two full weeks now and have another week to enjoy the warm weather before moving our road trip north to Washington, DC for a long weekend and then heading back home. The weather has been spotty this week with a lot of rain and some storms. While itโs not ideal weather for being outside, it does make perfect SHOPPING weather! Weโve done a lot of browsing, hit up the massive Sawgrass Mills outlets (a shopperโs paradise), and have had quite a few nice lunches at new and different places. I have a lot of fun tidbits for you belowโฆ enjoy and have a fabulous weekend!
1. A few glimpses of our second week in Floridaโฆ
2. I miss this little guyโฆ
3. Our limoncello is officially limoncello-ing.
We figured since we were going to make it, we might as well make a triple batch. Go big or go home, right?! Iโm looking forward to filtering and tasting next week!
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4. One of my absolute favorite things to do when weโre down here in Florida is go to Lion Country Safari. Itโs a drive-through animal preserve located in West Palm Beach and is just so cool. You drive your car through a four-mile area where almost all of the animals can roam free (only the lions are in a fenced area). You can see them eating, sleeping, running, mating, nursing, and just about anything else that animals doโฆ right next to you. Itโs such a cool experience โ if youโre going to be in the south Florida area, definitely check it out!
5. Iโve been agonizing over the decision to buy a new laptop, and since Iโm quite possibly the most indecisive person on the face of the planet, I canโt seem to make up my mind. Iโm on my 3rd or 4th laptop that has begun a quick downward descent less than 2 years after my purchase. During a stormy afternoon this week, we hit up the mall and I browsed around the Apple store looking at the new MacBook Pro, and then went to Best Buy to check out the PC laptops. Iโm hesitant on pulling the trigger on an Apple โ itโs definitely priced at a premium and Iโm wondering if having a machine that lasts longer might also mean that the technology becomes outdated. Gah! If only it didnโt take me forever to make a decision! Back and forth, I goโฆ
6. Speaking of the mall, have you ever heard of the store Charming Charlie? They have one at the local mall here and itโs new to me, but after looking at the โstore locatorโ map on their website, it seems that theyโre just about everywhere (including Pittsburgh, in the Mount Lebanon area, which may as well be on the dark side of the moon, since I live in the northern suburbs โ Pittsburghers understand). The entire store is dedicated to ladiesโ jewelry and accessories, but โ and this is the best part โ the store is completely organized by COLOR. There is one whole section of turquoise, another entire section of red, black, and so on. I could spend hours (and a significant amount of money) in there. Love it!
7. I always forget how much I love football season until the very first Sunday of sitting in front of the RedZone. We made our favorite football crock-pot mealย and I whipped up some potato skins for the early games, while we waited allll day for the Steelers game. Such a bummer that we lost! This cartoon is spot on, but include hockey season, and suddenly Iโm only classy and graceful during the summer monthsโฆ sometimes the truth hurts ;-)
8. Iโve been eating an ice cream cone nearly every single night weโve been in Floridaโฆ this is obviously something I have no trouble making a decision about. Edyโs Chocolate Peanut Butter Cup in a waffle cone has been my flavor of choice. Looooove ice cream on vacation!
9. I keep intending to complete a photo challenge, but am admittedly horrible when it comes to actually doing it. Iโm gung ho for a week or so, and then fall off the wagon. With the holidays coming up, Iโm making a renewed effort. I love the monthly photo challenges by fat mum slim, and recently found aย color-themed Project 365 challenge from positively present. Have you ever successfully completed a photo challenge? Are there any youโd recommend?
10. TGIF! I hope you have a swimmingly-good weekend!
:D Thanks for sharing!
Go Mac for sure! My husband just bought the MacBook pro and handed down his old Mac heโs had for 5 years to meโฆโฆโฆโฆโฆโฆโฆ.itโs running faster than my 2 year old HP. Itโs a great investment and in the long run you will actually be saving money :))
i have the SAME PROBLEMโฆ computer is dyingโฆ. donโt know what to do! Iโve had mine for about 3 or 4 years now and itโs basically a glorified brick. well, a heating brick. i could probably bake cookies on it if i really wantedโฆ. (itโs an HP for the record, but itโs from the brief period of time that they were using AMD processors instead of intel)โฆ not to get too nerdy on you bug UGH, AMD, GROSS.
flroida looks amazing!
and oh my goshโฆ charming charliesโฆ i just went in for the first time a couple months ago and i donโt know how i lived my life without it.
Have fun in DC! Florida looks fab.
I would definitely recommend Apple computer products. My family has used Apple computers since the 90โsโฆI find them to be much more reliable (and aesthetically pleasing!) than PCโs. I had a MacBook for years (until it got stolen :-() and was very happy with it. And donโt worry too much about technology becoming outdatedโฆtheir computers arenโt like the iPhone that keeps updating itself year after year :)
Hi there. I love your blog so much! You have so many amazing recipes that actually work out :)
Just thought iโd input since iโm on my 4th year with my Apple Macbook. Iโm still on the original software, have had no problems or maintenance and it still runs great!
Iโm updating this year to a newer software (lion I think?) just because of the extra features but that will only cost me about ยฃ70 :)
Enjoy the rest of your trip :)
When I was blogging, I was going through a laptop a year. I splurged on an iMac and have never looked back. That was 5 years ago. The thing about PCs is that parts for them are discontinued after so long, but with Mac, you can keep buying replacement parts (like RAM) for years! Itโs definitely worth the investment.
I totally vote for the Mac. We bought a refurbished iMac laptop in feb 2008 for almost $850 we still use it daily almost and itโs going strongโฆexcept the track pad dies on usโฆbut we just plugged in a wireless mouse and were good to go. :)
That animal reserve must be amazing! I would love to go there; so glad you shared the pics :)
Love the doggie!
I got a new Asus Zen Prime this summer and have really liked it. Itโs light, speedy, and the screen is awesome! (Helps with picture viewing/etc.) Itโs all about personal preference. I wanted a Samsung one I had my eye on for a while, and then I decided to test it on my lap like I would be typing at home, and the screen wobbled so much that it annoyed me. This one didnโt and was perfect for blogging and regular surfing.
nice moody shot of the beach
Charming CharliesโฆGalleria is five minutes from my house! I have some friends that shop there regularly. Great place to go if you are looking for color specific accessories for an outfit. Store does have an interesting layout. Just so you knowโฆthereโs a Trader Joes around the block and some great dining in the area if that further entices you to cross over to the South Hills! Also, thereโs an Anthropologie store upstairs and a Williams-Sonoma store as well in the Galleria!
What is that wonderful picture a breakfast you posted up in number 1?
And yay to ice cream every single day!
Hi Stephanie, That was cinnamon-nut French toast from a restaurant in Manalapan called John Gโs. I had it twice while we were away โ fantastic!!
Thanks for the reminder of the Beer and Brown Sugar Kielbassa bake. It is delicious. Will make it for Sundayโs game. We, also, live in the North suburbs and our friends in South Hills hardly ever visit, due to the distanceโฆMaybe thatโs why their son moved to North Hills..LOL. Enjoy the rest of your vacation.
Yay for vacation! We leave for ours in a few hours. I am going to have to follow your ice cream every day rule:)
I would go with the Mac. We bought a Sony Vaio and that died on us within a year (I paid $1400 for it!); we bought the MacBook Pro in June 2010, and other than the battery running out faster than it used to, itโs still like brand new. Itโs definitely worth every penny.
I try to block the Strawberry cupcakes at Sweet Surrender from my mind so I donโt head to Boynton constantly. But now I know where Iโm headed this weekend!
As a life long East Ender I couldnโt help but laugh at your dark side of the moon comment. I am not opposed to crossing rivers but donโt usually do it to shop. Enjoy the rest of your trip and GO STEELERS!
Looks like a great trip! Will you be doing a post on the food you packed for your road trip? Iโd love to get some inspiration for a future road trip!
Hi Ashley, I donโt have a post planned, but usually for road trips we like to pack sandwiches, granola bars or loose granola, pretzels, fruit, something sweet like chocolate chip cookies, water and Diet Coke. Thatโs usually enough of a variety and certainly enough food to keep us going. Sometimes we skip the sandwiches if we plan to stop and eat somewhere. I hope that helps!
LOVE the doggie swimming, made my morning. Glad you are enjoying your time in Florida. I love living here, and I love our visitors. :)
I am looking into buying a Sony laptop. Have had one before and never had a problem. I have a Macbook I bought 4 years ago and have only had minimal problems with it, but it does seem to have compatibility problems. Can anyone say Flash?! If you have an iPad, an iPhone and iPod, then it is a good move, buck I sway from the masses and have an Android. Good luck however you go and get the warranty!
I agree with everyone else about the Mac! Iโve had mine for 5 years now and itโs still going strong! Iโve never had any problems with mine and I absolutely love it :) definitely worth the investment!!
Go for the MAcโฆI have had a MAcBook since 2006 and it is still going strongโฆeven after spilling liquid in the keyboard.I abuse it way more than I should but it is tough. I have only owned Apple computers. I really think they are well worth the added expense. They are great machines and I never have to worry about getting a virus. enjoy the remainder of your vaca!
Neat photograph of the ocean! And the picture of the dog swimming made my morning. Thx!
I bought a Toshiba Satellite from Best Buy and I have had if for a couple of months and have been pretty happy with it. Mine weighs about 5lbs. I could of gone lighter but the guy at Best Buy told me it wouldnโt handle all of pictures ectโฆ that I would use it for. He said eventually I would have to by extra storage space. For some reason I wouldnโt get a MAC. I have issues occasionally with compatibility, but itโs a personal reference.
Good luck!!! By the way the picture of the dog swimming in the end is hilarious!!
Hard choice re laptops โ I would say go with the lightest as youโre a blogger, I have a pretty heavy laptop but a friend has a mac that is so light she can pop it in her bag โ jealous!
Seconding the mac. Just bought one last weekend. BTW, my six year old mac is still running fineโฆfirst hard drive died after two years, but the second is still working after four.
You should definitely go for the Mac!
Thatโs awesome youโre making some limoncello! Love that stuffโฆ
I am the same way with decision-makingโฆespecially when itโs such a huge purchase like a laptopโฆyou want it to be the perfect one!