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My entire life my going to my Grandparents' house has always been a destination vacation.  A lot of my friends had just gone down the street to see their family members, but not me. I had to travel North to Minnesota. Going to my Grandparents' house was always a treat and all these years later it still is.

Driving up the little driveway to home that has been in the same spot for 50 years every little detail on the outside is just as I remembered it to be. As soon as the car pulled up in the garage and the cold winter air was shut behind us I stepped out of the car and into the garage. Walking into the house I'm greeted with a view of the church pew that has sat in the entry my whole life.  And the house was just the same. Decorations change with the seasons, but everything else remains the same. 

The Sun Room

"Are you taking one of those selfies?"

The Living Room

Artwork from the Grandkids

I was obviously destined for artistic greatness at a young age. 

Grandma's Quilts 

Down in the Root Cellar. On the floor four out of five sisters left a handprint and a signature. My mom was the weirdo who left a footprint. 

Where I would sleep whenever I would visit. Also where I would watch Bugs Bunny!

What a good looking family!

I remember trying to stay up all night to see Santa come down the chimney. He must of snuck in when I dozed off a little. 

When it's not so cold the garden is filled with beautiful flowers. 

I love you Grandma and Grandpa!

Thanks for letting me visit for a while and share your cute little home in the country that you built all those years ago!

This home has always been so special to me and I can't wait for my next visit!

About a month ago now, my parents and my little brother were in Florida for a day and came to visit me. Of course we had to decide what to do and I suggested we travel to Tarpon Springs. It is  about an hour drive out from where I live. My mom asked me what they have there, and I responded with "I keep hearing about the sponges and the Greek food in Tarpon Springs." 

She responds back with "What do you mean Sponges?"

 I follow up with "I don't know... sponges." 

Next thing you know we're on our way to Greek sponge town settled off the Gulf of Mexico. 

Once we had arrived in the town the Greek influences where definitely noticeable in the names on the storefronts. Just trying to pronounce some of the names was fun. 

Then we spotted a sign that pointed us in the direction of the sponge docks. Several people tried to lure us into their parking lots. We finally settled on one and the lady running the lot tried to sell us on a dolphin sight seeing cruise. (Several people up and down the  strip would also try to get us on their dolphin sight seeing cruise as the day progressed.) We opted out, but one day I plan on going back to try one of the cruises. We walked for a little bit trying to decide which of the many Greek restaurants to eat at. Finally, my parents stopped a police officer and asked for his opinion of the best one. 

We took his advice and tried Mykonos Authentic Greek Cookery. The food was fantastic and the platters were quite full. Because of our waitresses thick accent ordering our food was an intense process. But she was very nice and I wouldn't mind stopping back here one day.

Continuing down the docks we found all of the little tourist shops that sold cute little knick knacks made with sea shells, soaps, tee shirts and of course sponges. I bet you never realized there are so many different types of sponges. Some are better for cleaning dishes and some are better for cleaning your body. And some just look nice with a little succulent plant inside of them. I left the city with little sponges that are great for washing my face and applying makeup. 

Of course where there is Greek food involved I have to get myself some baklava. Thanks to my Mom I left with a nice big tray and a smile on my face.

 My Dad couldn't help himself and had to go into the Spiceman's Kitchen and try all the hot sauce. The ghost pepper extract almost defeated him, but he managed to power through. 

The day was nice and breezy and even though we didn't go to the beach and lounge around all day we managed to have a great time being tourists in the "Sponge Capitol of the World."

What nearby places have you day tripped to? What were your favorite parts of the trip?

Do any of you know of places in the Tampa Bay Area that little mini tourist traps? 

Let me know in the comments below!

We went thrift shopping this morning. We had $20 in our pockets.
Macklemore - Kaitlyn

This morning we stopped and got our ice coffee and drove out to the local drive in. On the weekend they hold a flea market where people sell things out of the backs of their vehicles. We only bought from one of the vendors. He was selling DVDs for $1 each. We picked out four of them. The only one I really wanted was "Earth Girls are Easy." I had actually been planning to look up that movie on Amazon and adding it to wish list. I saved myself about $14. Not bad if you ask me. My only suggestion for buying DVDs or any discs when thrift shopping is to check the back of the disc, or if the vendor keeps the discs until they are sold ask to inspect it. This will help you save your money if the movie isn't playable. 

Our next stop was a large thrift store that sold a lot of collectibles.  I really lucked out here. Now here is a nostalgia moment for all you girls that grew up in the 90s. Two words... Lisa Frank. I remember having all my notebooks and folders and stickers having technicolor baby animals all over them. I have been searching for the perfect way to organize all my projects that I work on and this thrift store came through with a Lisa Frank trapper keeper for $1.50. Now I don't know if you've noticed but you can't buy Lisa Frank trapper keepers at the anymore. So the next option would be to go online and search for it. I found new Lisa Frank trapper keepers going for almost $300. More big savings for me today! 

After the first thrift store we came across a church yard sale. We found a Old School Olympus camera (i forget the name) for $0.50 Not Bad! expecially since they go for $50-$70 on eBay!   

 

Chris Also Decided he wanted this wheel of Fortune Game but he wasn't sure why.

For only $0.25 he walked away with it and a free cartridge in the game it self 

together both items where worth $100

"Nostalgia at its finest"-Chris

The next thrift shop we hit up had even more surprises for us. Chris found a PlayStation that he was able to talk down from $20 to $10. That will look nice in our gaming console collection. The best find all day however was a camera lens. We found it on top of a speaker and the lady that worked there sold it to us for a dollar.  After doing some research on it we got an idea of what this lens sells for. This is an item we would

have to have appraise, so hopefully we found something valuable there. 

At the last thrift store Chris found a portable bar for $3 that he just loves. I'm not really sure why anyone would need one, but hey, if he's happy so am I. 

I was hoping to find some clothes to refashion but it would seem only petite people have donated recently, which doesn't help me out at all. Maybe next time.

We love thrift shopping and we are pretty good at combing through the junk to find the treasures. It just takes a lot of patience and don't forget the hand sanitizer! 


Do you frequent the thrift shops in your area? Do you love to brag that you found the coolest thing at the Goodwill like I do? 

Whats the coolest thing you've found?
Let me know in the comments below!

Here in my mid- twenties I find myself in the small town of Dade City, Florida. Right in the middle of all the touristy spots you would probably rather visit. Orlando is one hour in one direction and Tampa is one hour in the other direction. When having asked someone who has grown up in Dade City I am told the city is most know for its Kumquat Festival and the amount of elderly who chose this area to retire. After reading the wiki article for Dade City I find my Dade City information from my source was basically the same. Now like I said I’m in my mid-twenties, I have a boyfriend and I like to go out, but in a town with little nightlife you have to find the charming parts of it.

In the middle of Downtown Dade City is the courthouse.  The stunning architecture and beautiful clock tower reflect the style and feel for the whole downtown area.

Taking a stroll you will come across many small businesses. Boutiques and craft stores and antique shops and cafes and restaurants (oh my). There are so many awesome small shops that I don’t feel bad that there isn’t a nightclub in the middle of town.

On the top of my to-do list is to eat at Kafé Kokopelli. The entire side of the building is covered in vines and it is just visually pleasing to look at. I have found

so many places in this town that I cannot wait to share with you in future posts, but for now I will leave you with the knowledge I have come across. For those times that you find yourself in a small town with nothing to do, just remember there are the charms that make your town yours. Go out and find them. That is certainly what I plan to do!

What are the charms in your home town?
Let me know in the comments below!