Dining Out While Out of Town

I have totally changed my views on eating out due to this weekend.  I finally decided I am TIRED of getting sick and ending up in ridiculous amounts of pain due to eating out.  

This weekend was spent in Kissimmee because Mantha had a cheer competition.  With 3 dogs and 3 kids I really didn't want to make the 4 hour round trip drive in 1 day.  {I also didn't want to have to fight with everyone trying to get out of the house at 7 AM}  We opted to stay the weekend down there.  We stayed at the Studio 6 in Kissimmee.  It was a pretty decent hotel and it had a kitchen.  

After the competition we had 3 meal ideas.  Joe's Crab Shack, Chinese buffet, or pick something up at Publix and cook it in the room.  The room only had 3 of everything so we crossed Publix off the list of options.  The girls wanted to go swimming after dinner so we decided that the buffet would be quicker and would allow us to swim for longer.  

I chose what I thought would be the safe options.  Cold shrimp, crawfish, and clams, a few pieces of sushi and seaweed salad.  Halfway thru my first plate I was in doubled over pain.  When we got back to the hotel room I started sobbing.  

I'm sick of the pain.  I'm done with it!  I can hear you now "just stop eating out".  Honestly, we go out once a month.  I cook dinner 29 days out of the month.  I need 1 day that someone will cook for me.  

I have come up with a few tips on eating out.

1)  Never choose the buffet
       You don't honestly know what is in the food.  The fat content could be outrageous and you'd never know.

2)  Do your research
      The internet is your best friend when you want to dine out.  Look at every single restaurant's website and see what they offer.  Most of the chain restaurants have the nutritional information available.

3)  Be THAT person
      When I first got sick I vowed to not be the person who goes into a restaurant and completely customizes a meal to fit their diet.  SCREW THAT!  I make sure that my meal will not hurt me when I goto a restaurant.  I also tip more if a server deals with my demands nicely.

4)  Mom and Pop restaurants are good options.
      Alot of times the food is made to order so, go in and explain your situation. Many times the chef will whip you up something special.  

5)  Head to the grocery store seafood counter
      This sounds odd but, if you can't find any restaurant that will work for you, goto the local grocery store (or seafood market) and have them steam you some shrimp.  That and a bag of microwaveable vegetables is a great dinner!

A Fat Free Vacation 2013

I just got back from vacation yesterday.  We had fun.  Nothing went right but, I would do it again.  I would have posted a ton of photos for y'all but, we had no cell service at the cabin.  Here's the daily recaps of what we did.

Travel Day

We left the house at 8:30.  I packed some fun stuff for the girls to do in the car.  A US map to track the license plates with, a game of Bingo and some questions for them to ask the family.  The best answer we got from the questions?

Question:  If you won the lottery what would you buy with the money?
Sunny’s Answer:  “A beach towel, A RAINBOW, jewelry and Monster High clothes.

They also had books, coloring books and crayons, a notebook, and their MP3 players to keep them occupied. 

I packed sandwiches and a ton of snacks for the car ride.  We ate at a rest stop somewhere in Georgia.

We arrived at about 4:45.  The drive was supposed to take 7 hours and 45 minutes.  We made it in 8 hours and 15 minutes.  {30 minutes to stop and pee a few time and eat lunch, not too bad!}  The last quarter of our drive was on and off rain.  We decided to ditch the tent camping idea and rent a cabin.  I had a bad experience camping with the Girl Scouts in the rain when I was younger so I didn’t want our stuff to get soaked.

The cabins we stayed in were called The Happy Valley Cabins.  I highly recommend this place!  The owners were Walter and Rhonda.  Super nice people.  They treated us like family.  We met their 2 dogs, Roger and Angel.  CLICK HERE to be taken to their website.  
There is no Internet or cell phone service at this place so you are completely cut off from communication with the outside world.  {For all you Candy Crush addicts, it still works without phone service!}

The name of our cabin was the RoadRunner.  It was 2 levels.  It had 2 queen sized beds, one upstairs and one down.  Electricity, running water, a full kitchen and a bathroom.  Oh!  And it had a hot tub!  It was $80 + tax a nite.  Not too bad. 

They have a catch and release stocked pond, a pool and a couple little hiking trails.  The cabins are only 15 minutes from Tallulah Gorge State Park. 

After we unpacked our stuff we went to the local grocery store, Ingles.  OMG.  Ken and I contemplated moving here just because of this grocery store.  It’s Georgia’s version of Harris Teeter.  HUGE produce department, and some harder to find things.  {I found my fat free cheese and Smart Squeeze, a fat free butter}  We spent a little over $100 for 3 days worth of food.  Not too bad!  It would have been lower but, we got a couple extra things since we had a full kitchen. 

Dinner was made in the oven since we were starving and it was getting late.  Veggie burgers for me, beef burgers for the rest of the family, mixed veggies, salad and OF COURSE s’mores!


Day 2

My alarm went off at 5:30 in the morning.  {Yes, even on vacation I set an alarm}  Sunrise was at about 6:30.  I really wish I could have seen it rise over  the mountains.  The girls woke up around 7.  Breakfast was cereal for them and a PB2 sandwich with a  banana for me.  I woke Ken up at around 8 and we left for Tallulah Gorge to hike.  We hiked the North Rim Trail.  I have no clue how far we went but, we hiked for atleast an hour.  Sunny actually kept up the whole time. 

After we finished our hike we went and checked out the “beach area” for lunch.  I packed sandwiches, granola bars, and dried fruit.  We planned on going back to the beach so the kids could swim but, due to weather we never made it back.    We got back to our cabin at about 1:45 and went for a little hike through the property after we got back.  At 2 it started to rain so we went inside and let the girls watch some TV.  After dinner {veggie burger and a veggie dog, ½ a sweet potato and sugar snap peas}, we made s’mores and hopped in the hot tub for a few minutes. 

Oh and did I mention before AND after our hike we spent an hour on the phone with our bank because they froze my credit and debit cards due to our traveling?  Yeah, that was FUN  a pain in the butt.  Word to the wise, always call your bank when you are going to travel.

Day 3
I woke up at about 5:00 this morning.  The weather was not too great.  It was on and off rain.  I woke up this morning wanting to leave.  I seriously wanted to pack up and head to Atlanta.  We made the best of the day though.  The kids woke up between 6:15 and 8:15 and I woke Ken up at 9 after we had all eaten breakfast.

Even though it was rainy we made the best of the day and went to Goats on the Roof.  This attraction is about 10 minutes from Tallulah Gorge and 15 minutes from the cabins.  It's a total tourist trap but it's alot of fun.  The girls got to pan for gems.  You buy a bag of dirt from the local mine and take it out back to a trough and sift through the dirt for the gems.  1 bag costs $6 and 3 bags costs $15.  We got 1 and split it between the girls. 

When we got back to the cabins we took a hike to find the "river" that Kaylee and Mo had heard while they were exploring the woods behind the cabin.  We hike up the road and found a dirt path.  We hiked until we heard some people practicing their shooting.  When we got home Ken found a tick on his leg.  We did a tick check on the rest of the family and found that Sunny had one on her foot.  She was a trooper though.  She let him remove it without much of a fight.

Day 4
This morning I woke up at 4 with an upset stomach.  Luckily I fell back asleep around 4:30 and woke up with my alarm at 5:30.  After Ken woke up we packed the final bags into the car {we packed most of our stuff the night before}  We checked out at 9:15 and made it to Atlanta at around 12:30.  The trip was really easy. 

On the way we stopped at 2 little roadside attractions.  We saw a 20 foot rabbit in Rabbittown {an area of Clarkstown, GA} and we saw a random large rocking chair in a field in Lula, GA.  

We hit up the Super H Mart {a Korean store} to stock up on some things we can't get easily in Florida.  Ken was in heaven.  There was so much stuff to choose from.  I picked up a golden kiwi, golden plum, a Korean squash and Korean melon to try.  We are definitely making another trip back just for food.  We couldn't get as many things as we wanted because the car was already packed full.  

We grabbed lunch and headed to the hotel.  In downtown Atlanta we hit almost dead stopped traffic.  Traffic like that reminds me why I don't want to move back to the big city.  The hotel was AMAZING.  It was gorgeous.  The only downside was the fact that they charge for parking and Internet.  {$16 a day for parking and $15 a day for Internet}

We ate dinner at the restaurant downstairs.  I got the fish of the day.  On Friday it was Tile fish and it was DELICIOUS.  The best part about it?  It didn't cause me pain!!  It's a major score in my book.  They were very accommodating to my dietary needs.  They steamed the veggies and the rice was done plain.  The fish was seasoned and cooked without oil or butter.  If the prices hadn't been so high I'd go back again just for dinner.  

Day 5
The hotel had a breakfast buffet.  A variety or breads and muffins, fresh fruit, eggs, various breakfast meats, potatoes, biscuits, oatmeal, grits and an omelet station.  I got 2 big plates of fruit, a bit of oatmeal and an omelet.  They used pan spray for my omelet but, I think that's what caused my stomach pains after my meal.  

The trip home was rainy.  But, Atlanta is only 6 hours from the house.  I was so happy to be home.  Until we actually got home and I found out that we had no electricity because of the storms.  {How ironic is that?  Camping with electricity and when we get home we have none?}  But, by the time we got the car unpacked the electricity was back on so I could make dinner.  


Even though nothing that I had planned went properly (I had also planned on stopping at the Bell Plantation place to get some PB2 but didn't because of the rain),and I was ready to leave the cabin a day early,  I had a great time with my family.  The kids were great, there were only a couple fights during the 5 days and Sunny had a blast.  But, to use Ken's words "we are beach people."  So we have already decided our destination for next year, Apalachicola {where the best oysters come from....Ken LOVES oysters.}

How do you feel about camping?  Where are you going for vacation?

Our Cabin

Ingles

Mushrooms!

The Gorge

Nature

The Interpretive Center at the Gorge

The beautiful scenery

Panning for gems at Goats on the Roof

Goats on the Roof

20 foot Rabbit

Rocking Chair

Super H Mart

Atlanta

Breakfast

Dinner
Top Left --Fruit plate
Top Right -- My Tile Fish, steamed veggies and rice
Bottom Left -- Kaylee's Pork Chop, mashed potatoes and veggies
Bottom Middle -- Ken's Steak, mashed potatoes and veggies
Bottom Right -- Mo's Hot Wings

It's getting closer!

1 month, 2 weeks and 2 days!
6 weeks 2 days
47 days
1128 hours
67,680 hours
4,060,800 seconds

Until what??  Until vacation!!  I'm so excited I could scream.  And as the days go on I find myself getting more and more excited.

The plans have been finalized, reservations have been made, now all we have to do is shop for the few things we need.

I read an article that said that families spend about $1100 per person on vacations.  REALLY???  I don't think I have ever spent that much on a vacation.  My budget for this whole vacation is a few hundred dollars LESS than what they claim is spent on 1 person.  

We are camping for 3 nite in Tallulah Gorge State Park.  Hiking, swimming, fishing, pure family fun.

On the fourth morning we are going to pack up and head an hour south to Atlanta and spend the nite in a hotel overlooking the runway of the airport.  {classy, right?}  We plan on sightseeing a bit, going to Build-A-Bear {an old vacation tradition of ours}, and trying out a local restaurant.  
We honestly have only 2 reasons for staying in Atlanta; 1)To get one actual vacation relaxing day {camping is fun but NOT relaxing....it's WORK} 2)To stock up at the local big name Korean store.

The next morning that's where we are headed before going home.  I plan on taking a ton of pictures for y'all and reviewing the restaurants we goto.

I know that some of y'all probably don't like camping but, who doesn't like roasted marshmallows?? Even though I can't do the complete s'more I still love roasted marshmallows.  But, I don't want to have to wait until Ken grills in order to get myself one.    Well, you don't have to wait any longer.  As long as you have marshmallows and an oven you can make one whenever you want!  

Courtesy of: Tumblr

Ingredients
Marshmallows

Directions

1. Turn broiler on high
2. Line a sheet pan with tin foil
3. Place marshmallows on pan and place on top rack of oven.  
4. Broil for 2-3 minutes watching them carefully (they burn quickly)
5. Flip over and broil another minute or so.

Eat and enjoy!  I have made myself a roasted marshmallow every nite since Kaylee's party.  I'm addicted to marshmallows!  How much do you love marshmallows?  Do you like them roasted?  Are you a burnt marshmallow person or a golden brown person {I personally am a golden brown person}  Lemmie know!

Grillin' and Chillin'

Not many of the NaBloPoMo prompts have really "prompted" me this month but, today's came at the perfect time.  The prompt is "How long can you last in a power outage?"  I've just begun to start planning our summer vacation.  I know you're thinking "what does power outages have to do with vacations?"  Well, we are unplugging, boarding the dogs and going on a 4-5 nite camping trip this summer.  We actually love to camp.  We've been a few times but, something has always caused us to cut our trip short.  This time we're boarding the dogs and making sure we have all of the necessary stuff.  

I love to camp because it's a healthy activity.  I always come back a few pounds lighter (and with slightly more toned glutes.  Hiking boots are HEAVY!)  There's a whole slew of reasons why camping is healthy [a quick Google search will bring up a bunch of sites]  

1)  It's exercise that doesn't seem like exercise.
Think about it.  What do you do when you go camping?  You hike. EXERCISE. You swim. EXERCISE.  You fish.  EXERCISE.  You bike.  Yet again, EXERCISE.  You might even go horseback riding.  Hmmmm.....I think that's EXERCISE.  There are a number of other things you can do while you're camping.  None of it seems like exercise but it is.  

2)  You reduce stress.  
Believe it or not stress takes a toll on your health.  When you're camping there's rarely a cell phone signal, there's no place to plug up a laptop, and people rarely bring a TV.  [Anyway, if you're going to bring all that stuff why not stay home??]  There's no one to bother you, it's just you and nature.  Plus seeing a billion stars at nite will relax anybody.  

3)  You sleep better
All the extra exercise makes you sleep better.  

4)  Kids are kids.
"According to the Be Out There campaign from the National Wildlife Federation, the average time a child spends in unstructured outdoor play has plummeted to 4-7 minutes a day, while childhood obesity rates have skyrocketed."  (KOA site cited below)  When you're camping kids get to run around and play for hours on end.  They get to do what kids do best...play!  I know we always bring a few balls and various outdoor toys for the girls to play with at the campsite.  

You also get to reconnect with nature and the people you're with.  I learn more about  the girls in the 3 days we're camping then I do in a month at home.  But you wanna know Ken's favorite  thing to do while we're camping?  GRILL!  

He actually could survive without a stove at all.  But grilling is actually a really healthy cooking method.  Why?  Well, let's find out:

1)  Less fat
When you grill animal products (beef, chicken, lamb, etc) the excess fat actually drips off.  You get rid of alot more of it then you do when you cook any other way.

2)  More vitamins and minerals
Grilling helps food hold onto it's vitamins and minerals.  Other methods of cooking cause foods to leach out the vitamins and minerals due to the water and temperature.

3)  Less bacteria.
E coli, Salmonella and other icky bacteria are killed by the high heat.

4)  Moisture locking 
When you grill the high heat cooks meat faster so it doesn't dry out.  This means that you don't need to add sauces, butter or anything that ups the calories and fat.

Super health food on a super healthy vacation.  What could be better?  Do you like healthy vacations or do you relax on your diet and exercise regimen on vacation?

Links:
Akron Ohio Moms: Benefits to Grilling
Botsford Hospital: 4 Health Benefits of Grilling
BenefitsOf.Net: Benefits of Grilling
Grilling With Rich: Health Benefits of Grilling For the General Population and Those with Chronic Intestinal Disease
Rhode Island Roads Magazine: Many Health Benefits to Camping
Yahoo Voices: Benefits to Camping
Readers Digest: Health Benefits to Camping
Buzzle: Benefits of Camping
Koa: 5 Reasons Camping is Good for You

Vacation Picture Post

I was going to start doing "What I Ate Wednesday" today but I forgot to take photos after breakfast.  It still bothers me that I can't find my ring.  

Since nothing worth talking about happened today besides getting a wicked sunburn on my shoulders at the beach I'll leave you with a photo post from the trip.

Before I leave you with the photos, the prompt today is "What makes your heart leap?"  And honestly it's my family.  The people in these photos.  They "make my heart happy" (as Kai-Lan would say)

Our fridge before we left.  I used up everything that could go bad. 

Mr. Amazing and the girls in the hotel room

Mr. Amazing, Kay, Baye and me.  Mo wanted to take the picture

Pile up on daddy!

Kay and Mo being silly

 Mr. Amazing kills spiders.  He's the best spider killer I know.

 The girls under the manta in front of the aquarium

Big fish 

Glad that croc's behind glass.  It stared Baye right in the eye.

Bird

We kept joking that there would be a mermaid and low and behold there was!

Seahorse

 Baye and the manta

 Looks like a face doesn't it?

I want to hold my vow renewal ceremony here.  In front of this big window 

A SHARK!

Sea dragon

Jelly fish

Isn't this beautiful?

Kay at dinner

Mo at dinner

Baye 

Excellent place.  If you're ever in Clearwater, FL I highly recommend it.

Mr. Amazing with his oysters and beer.

My super grouper sandwich. I had them cook it with cajun spices and grill it.

Mr. Amazing also got wings.

Kay's burger and fruit

Baye had chicken tenders and fries

Mo's fried shrimp and fries 

We played on the playground by the Pier after dinner

She loves to climb

 Being a good big sister

The Acromaniacs 

Gorgeous sunset.  This was one of the things on my bucket list.  To see the sunset over the water.

The clouds were amazing

Sunset.

Me and Mr. Amazing with the sun setting behind us. 

My whole world.   

Mr. Amazing relaxing by the pool

Mo pretending to be a shark.

The breakfast at the hotel

The waterslide on the cruise ship at the Port of Tampa

Mr. Amazing and Baye playing shop

Me and Baye playing shop

I used the swings as workout equipment.  

Driving to the beach makes me go crazy!