Life as I know it: Road Trip!

Last week I went on a little road trip.

First I drove down to the Cincinnati area. I stopped by Krista's after lunch. We walked through downtown Covington and Main Strasse. Then we walked the bridge to Cincinnati. We went to the Morelein Lager House for a drink. I ended up having a flight and it was pretty good. Only one wasn't a flavor I enjoyed...it had hints of banana in the mix and beer shouldn't have that flavor. Then while walking back to KY on the Roebling Bridge, the skies opened up. We're talking sheets of heavy rain! We were totally soaked through!! Krista was flippin out, but I found it hilarious. A little rain never hurt anybody!!

Then I quickly changed my clothes into dry ones and met with my old co-worker ladies for dinner. We went to Dewey's Pizza and I have to say, it was pretty good! I had a delicious veggie pizza! It was great seeing them and catching up. They truly are my KY family. I loved hearing their stories and sharing some of mine.

Once I came back, Krista and her husband Chris had me watch Arrested Development. I've been meaning to watch it, but hadn't gotten around to it. I can proudly say, since then I've finished all of season 1. I totally love the dry humor!

On Monday, Krista and I went out to breakfast and the aquarium. For the first time ever, I finally saw the penguin parade. As Krista said "it was more of a penguin drive by", but it was still cute. Then I went up to my old branch to get lunch with my old co-worker. We went to Barleycorn's. I had never been there before, but the food was decent. Then Krista and I met up again at the mall once she got out of work. We did a little shopping before meeting up with her mom & sister for dinner. We ended up going to the Yard House in Cincinnati. It has a ton of drinks on tap, so I went with a hard cider I've never had before and street tacos. A bit pricey, but you're paying for the atmosphere and river view.

On Tuesday morning, Krista and I went to Jungle Jim's before she had to go to work. It's basically a wacky type of grocery store with things from all over the world. After that I made my way to the new Horseshoe Casino in Cincinnati. It was really nice. It was bigger and cleaner than expected. Plus it was smoke-free, which is always a bonus in my book! After that, I went down to Louisville to see Tash. We ended up getting a late lunch at a local cafe, then kind of vegged out for the night.

On Wednesday, Tash and I had breakfast at a cute little place called "Wild Eggs". Their everything muffin was the bomb! Then we made our way to the Huber winery in Indiana. We ended up doing the 8 wine tasting. Then we bought a bottle and sat on their deck outside. The weather was absolutely beautiful! We chatted for awhile, then decided to get a cheese plate and another bottle. We ended up eating enough cheese to feed a small village, and only drank half of the 2nd bottle. It was super fun. Then that evening we went out to get sushi.

On Thursday, Tash took me to downtown Louisville for the Kentucky Derby Festival. Everyone has to buy a Pegasus pin for admission. If you get a gold one, you get entered into a special drawing for a car. I got a pretty blue one. Tash got a red one. So, no cars for us, but all good! It was super cheesy, but I enjoyed it. I also scored Melissa and me the cheesiest t-shirts on the planet. Then Tash had to work that evening, so I went out exploring her neighborhood. She lives super close to the Crescent Hill branch of the Louisville Public Library--so you know where I spent some time!

On Friday, I made my way up to South Bend to see Julia, Brad, and Ben. Brad had to work til 5, so Julia took me and Ben to the Notre Dame campus. It is quite beautiful. I can totally see why people would want to go there. Then we went to a local irish pub. It was great! I had fish and chips served to me in newspaper. DELICIOUS! Then Ben practiced walking between me and Brad. Since he's just learning, it was super cute. He's basically a walking baby zombie! That night we watched the movie, Bottle Shock. It was okay, but I don't think I'd watch it again.

On Saturday, Julia and I went to the farmer's market. We had breakfast at the market cafe, then I helped her pick up her garden plants. There were also some animals there, so Ben got to see some farm animals. Since he's 17 months, he was totally mesmerized! That afternoon, Julia made us salads for lunch with all the fresh veggies from the farmer's market. Her little 7-year-old neighbor, Gracie, also came down to see us. She is cute as can be! That night we made our way up to Michigan City, IN. Julia's parents are there and it was her aunt's 40th birthday party. So, I got to meet a lot of her extended family. It reminded me of the way my mom's family used to be before all the drama. We stayed for a little bit, but left before the cake because it was getting late. To make up for it, we had mini blizzards from Dairy Queen! Then Brad picked the movie, This Must Be the Place. I still have NO idea what this movie was about or what happened. It totally went over my head. I guess you could say, I didn't get it. It was just soooooo weird.

On Sunday, Julia made us all crepes for breakfast. The fresh berries made them delicious! We hung out all morning, then I made my way back to Michigan that afternoon. All in all, it was an awesome trip!

The Penguin Parade: