My suitcase is packed. My books are packed in my favorite weekender. I have my sunhat ready to go. Wearing my comfiest shoes and yoga pants for a roadtrip!
I’m off on another adventure. Technically, it’s my first adventure of the year. The year rolled over while I was on my last adventure. I’m spending a few days with family in New Orleans before heading on my first cruise. A bunch of my mom’s side of the family are taking a cruise to Mexico to celebrate my grandma’s 80th birthday!
I am working the next couple of days, but I am not working while on the cruise. Well, I’m not working three of the four and a half days on the cruise. Those three days will be the first days I’ve not worked in…. years. I’ll be doing work for the blog like taking pictures and writing. I like to think of that as fun(work). It’s work, but I love it.
I will actually get to sit down and read. Actually dedicate time to reading. I’m super behind on my reading list, so hopefully, I can catch up over the next few days. Fingers crossed. Besides reading, I get to actually put on clothes and look like a human being!!!
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Work Optional: Retire Early the Non-Penny-Pinching Way Tanja Hester I’m currently reading this. It’s full of lots of great ideas. I kind of feel like I’m living a work optional life because I have the freedom of taking my work with me everywhere I go.
There’s just something about a sleigh and a Christmas tree that makes me happy. | Standing in Von Maur at Valley West Mall in Des Moines. | These BCBGeneration Pumps are the literal best!!!
Christmas was one month ago. The holiday season has passed. I’m finally going through all the pictures I took over the holidays and finishing reading my Christmas list. I was so busy traveling, moving, and working during the first three weeks of January, so pretty much nothing else was accomplished. I had planned on writing a post about my favorite holiday traditions before Christmas. I failed. So here it is a month later. Let the spirit live on!
I have spent every holiday season in the Midwest – either Iowa or Chicago – outside of the Christmas of 1999. I’m big on traditions. I like them. They make me happy. Of course traditions have changed and varied over the years along with where and who I spend them with. I’m gonna talk about the traditions I have in my hometown with my family.
Von Maur is the Macy’s of Iowa. At least, I think it is. It’s a high end department store with several locations around Iowa. My favorite location – I have been to many – is at Valley West Mall in Des Moines. It’s two floors full of pretty things. The decor has not changed at all in my life time, but that doesn’t mean it’s not luxurious. Personally, I think their dedication to Christmas decorations is what everyone should aim for. In the center of the ground floor between the two escalators, a tree is set up every Christmas. A black grand piano is always there along with couches and chairs for shoppers to rest their feet. Growing up, my family would always go to Von Maur to sit and listen to the pianists play Christmas tunes. They were almost always elderly and so very kind. More than anything, they were phenomenal pianists. I still love listening to them play. This past year, I was in Iowa for Christmas, so I took myself and Dylan on a mini shopping spree to Von Maur and listened to the Christmas carols.
As Des Moines has changed over the years, I have started going to the East Village more and more. I now love heading there at Christmas time because it looks so beautiful covered in snow. This past year, there was no snow. Not only the was the wind bitter, but so was I.
Christmas Eve in the Rekemeyer family has always been pretty formulaic. I have helped bolster this formula by insisting certain things are traditions after I enjoyed it the year previously. You just can’t mess with tradition guys!!! Growing up we would always head to the 4:30 church service, followed by dinner, then a movie, and on our way home we would drive by Christmas lights. My mom used to make my brother and I Christmas jammies, so we would get to open them on Christmas Eve before heading to bed. As I got older, my mom and I started going to midnight mass at church, which is candle lit. That became a tradition after one year because I liked the singing. This past year, we did all of those things, but everyone was too tired to go to midnight mass, so I took Dylan. I’m not at all religious, but I like going to see the people I grew up loving and see so rarely now I live across the country.
On Christmas morning, my brother and I would wake up before the sun. A rule about not waking Mom and Dad up before 5 (then 6 a few years later) was instituted. William and I slept in the same room until I was eight, so we would play board games and talk about what we wanted. When we got older, we would always share a room on Christmas Eve in his bunk beds for old times’ sake. Although the no waking Mom and Dad up rule went out the window when we were teenagers because they didn’t have to worry about it. We’d have breakfast and hot cocoa in front of a fire while opening presents. We would open them one at a time, William went first because he was the youngest, then me, then Dad, then Mom, and back to William. It was great fun. Christmas lunch always varied in size depending on if people needed people to spend it with, and we’d finish the day with Christmas movies in our jammies by the fire.
This past year, nothing changed much. William and his wife stayed at my parents’ house on Christmas Eve and I teased them I would sleep in between them with their dog Frank. I didn’t, but I thought about it. Beau stole my breakfast, which was the last piece, so I gave her a stern talking to. We opened presents and hung out by the fire. A few people came over for lunch, and we finished the day with Christmas movies.
Things don’t change much on Christmas for me. I like progress and change in every other part of my life, but the consistency and traditions are something I crave at the holiday season. As I get older and have more money in my pocket, things will start to shift, but for now as the poor twenty-something I am, this is good.
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The BCBGeneration black patent leather pumps are one of the best footwear investments I’ve made. I found them at Saks Fifth Off Fifth for $49, which is a great deal because they’re not that cheap anywhere else. I wear them all the time. So comfortable and durable.
Caledonia, Minnesota is a small town in the southeastern part of the state. It’s almost as close as you can get to Wisconsin without actually being in Wisconsin. It’s the county seat of Houston County, so there’s a courthouse alongside all the other small town amenities. There are a few bars, a bakery, a couple restaurants, a grocery store, a coffee shop, and a few other things, but it’s not much more than a hiccup of a town.
Why, oh, why am I writing about Caledonia?
About eight years ago, my partner in crime, Alex, took me to meet his family in Caledonia, Minnesota. I was there often during college because it was only a few hours away. After college, it’s become a lot less common since he lives in North Carolina and I in Houston. This is the first time I’ve been back in a year.
My two favorite places in town are the cafe and the bakery. The bakery is open in the morning and serves yummy donuts, pastries, and cookies. The Wired Rooster is an adorable cafe in the middle of downtown. I had to buy one of the mugs because they’re cute/I have a mug addiction. The cafe is a fairly recent addition to the town landscape, but it is very cozy – especially now in the winter with the snow on the ground.
I have a turkey cookie!!!
I’m here for a little over a week and a half. It’s a calm and understated several days. It’s a nice break from the normal busy-busy-busy of my life at home.
Caledonia is a blip on a map, but it holds so many wonderful memories and feelings for me. It’s a place where I have no reception, so everything and everyone else fades into the other. The people are friendly and passionate about the Vikings. It is football season, you know. Everything closes early except the bar. It’s like many small towns. But this one is special. It’s the home of my person.
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After the Miami part of our trip (read here), Alex and I headed to St. Augustine, Florida. I have been hearing about this place for so long. My bestest friend, Kelsey, has named it her favorite place. As the good friend I am, I went without her.
I had no idea what there was to do or see or eat in St. Augustine. Other than it exists on a beach. I was told to go to Castillo de San Marcos. Beyond that, we were continuing the no plan theme indefinitely. The first day, I had a ton of work to get done. Alex was tired. We decided to grab food and drive around just enough to see what there was to do. Very exciting stuff… I was in bed by 9:30.
The birds watching for fish in the ocean.
On the second day, we went to the big, old fort. Castillo de San Marcos is very old and very cool. It started out as a Spanish fort because St. Augustine used to be a Spanish colony. As the land changed hands so did the fort. It was changed and expanded and all sorts of fun stuff. Unfortunately, like most super old, historic buildings, there was no air conditioning. This may come as a surprise, but Florida is super hot. We were dumb and decided to tour during the hottest part of the day. Fortunately, it started to rain. We wandered around the downtown – honestly, I don’t know if it’s the downtown area – or the historic area of St. Augustine. It’s so pretty. There is a college. The dorm is a reworked luxury hotel… It’s not fair. Actually, it is a disservice to those “poor” college students. They will never live somewhere that nice ever again. So ha!
Enjoying the ocean post food binge.
You can’t wander very far from the ocean. As we walked back to the car after bopping around town and being jealous of the privileged college students, we walked along the water. Things kept jumping out of the water. I couldn’t decide if it was a dolphin or fish or shark or what have you. We sat on the wall next to Castillo de San Marcos watching the birds hunt for fish. It turned out big fish were corralling little fish against the walls and rocks for. I saw my first live jelly fish in the wild. It was really interesting to watch.
We were actually supposed to leave after our second full day, but Hurricane Florence did not cooperate. The roads leading back to Jacksonville, North Carolina, where I was flying out of, were closed. I was unable to make my flight the following day. Once that was rescheduled, we extended our stay in St. Augustine’s by a day.
The super cool college dorm that’s setting expectations too high.
Our last day was a beach day. Before the beach, we stopped at a cute little coffee shop in the historic district. Then, we grabbed some sushi. I have a terrible tendency to eat a lot before going to the beach… Not good for bikini pictures, folks. Don’t do what I do. Alex and I played in the waves. I was hit in the chest by a jumping fish. He taught me -unsuccessfully – how to do a Marine take down thing. I ate some sand practicing. I should just practice my run away tactic. I feel that would have a higher success rate. Anyways… The beach was beautiful. The ocean was green-blue. The water was warm. I got sand in all my naughty bits.
St. Augustine was a really fun addendum to our trip. I would go back in a heartbeat for the architecture alone.
Touring the grounds and gardens of Vizcaya Museum.
I have been so busy working and catching up on my reading that I’ve been crappy on writing blog posts. So this is the first of several to come. Read an overview of the completely unplanned trip I had: here.
When I left for vacation, Florida was not on the radar. Let alone Miami. I’d only been to Miami once five years ago, and Alex had never been. It was a really fun part of our trip. The last time I went was to visit a friend from college, who had grown up in Little Havana. I hadn’t thought about what to do because he showed me around his hometown. This trip, I had to figure out what to do because Alex had no idea either.
Feeling hot and sweaty!
I, of course, reached out to my best friend. “Ok Google, what should I do in Miami?” Alex loves gardens and botany; I love pretty places. One of the top results was Vizcaya Museum and Gardens. It looked super pretty. Let me tell you, it is super pretty. Alex got in for free because he’s a Marine. Yay for military discounts! For us regular people, it costs $18. It’s worth it; I promise. The house was built in the early 1900’s on Biscayne Bay by James Deering. It’s ridiculous. Holy shit. The house is magnificent looking out onto the ocean. There’s a cement boat down stairs off the back terrace. It’s supposed to protect the house from swells, but I think it’s a rich person opulence thing. The gardens surrounding the house are incredible. Spectacular. The house is a big square surrounded a beautiful indoor garden. I can only imagine what it looked like when it was brand new. We wandered around for hours. I’m ready to move in if they ever decide to get out of the museum business.
Enjoying ice cream at Azucar.
After Vizcaya, we met our college friend at a local bar: Porterhouse Bar & Grill. I’m not a drinker, but they have ridiculously cheap drinks for Happy Hour 5:00-9:00 every day. Their coffee is good! We arrived at 6:00, and by 7:30, the bar was poppin’. The bar-staff is kind but very busy.
We ended up having a really low key weekend. On Sunday, we went to Shuckers Waterfront Bar to watch football with friends. The food is good bar food completely overshadowed by the awesome view. They have great virgin drinks, and my friends say their regular drinks are good too. The bar is literally on the waterfront. The seating area is open to the outdoors, and there is a terrace completely outside. Tons of docks are right along the bar, so boats are pulling up constantly. People coming and going in swimsuits. It’s kind of the perfect place to feel like you’re in Miami.
Standing on one of the docks at Shuckers Waterfront.
On Monday, the day we left, we spent the day doing super touristy stuff. If you’re in Miami, you need to go to Little Havana, also known as Calle Ocho. It’s just one of those things you should do. There are lots of places to park on the street. It’s for sure a tourist trap, but it’s a bright, fun tourist trap filled with locals. You need to try Cuban Coffee. I really liked it at La Colada Gourmet. It will put hair on your chest. The owners were really wonderful. They took the time to explain the significance of Cuban Coffee to Alex and I. You will only need one cup. Just walking around is fun. Azucar Ice Cream Company is a must. Their flavors have deep roots in Cuban culture. Super yummy and rich. I suggest sticking to one scoop. Worth a stop for sure. It took me awhile to find the Welcome to Little Havana Mural. The address is: 801 SW 27th Ave, Miami, FL 33135. It is in an alley next to a Chase Bank on the corner of 8th Street and Beacom. It’s the perfect Instagram spot!
Celebrating our trip to Miami.
We decided to head to Miami Beach and Lincoln Road. Lincoln Road is the Rodeo Drive/Michigan Avenue/Fifth Avenue of Miami. The buildings are bright white. Lots of people are bustling around shopping. I stopped into Starbucks to pick up a Miami mug because I’m basic. Alex and I meandered our way to the beach. It was a Monday in the middle of September, so the beach was very empty. The boardwalk was quiet. Walking along the boardwalk and beach you’ll see the pastel and art deco architecture Miami is famous for. The beach is pretty with blue-green water. We waded in, but I was too lazy to actually go for a swim. We didn’t stay long. It’s fun to just walk around, especially when the area is so quiet.
Ropa Vieja, Black Beans, and Cafe con Leche at Versailles Restaurant.
Before leaving Miami, we went back to Little Havana to eat some Cuban food. We went to Versailles Restaurant. It is one of the most famous Cuban restaurants in Miami. They’re open late, and I hear it’s the place to go for late night food. The place is giant. There are mirrors all around the main dining room, which is the Versailles influence, I think. The wait staff is friendly and efficient. We ordered, and the food was brought to us incredibly quickly. I love fried plantains. They have great ones. I’m a fan. I ordered Ropa Vieja because it’s my favorite, a side of black beans, and a cafe con leche. I ordered way more food than I needed, but it was worth it. Yumminess.
Miami is such a fun city. Five days is nowhere near enough to explore, but it was a blast!
Drinking Cuban Coffee at La Colada Gourmet.
Vizcaya Museum & Garden Instagram: @vizcaya_museum 3251 S Miami Avenue Miami, FL 33129
Porterhouse Bar & Grill 17004 Collins Avenue Sunny Isles Beach, FL 33160
Shuckers Waterfront Bar Instagram: @shuckersmiami 1819 79th Street Causeway North Bay Village, FL 33141
La Colada Gourmet Instagram: @lacoladagourmet 1518 SW 8th Street Miami, FL 33135
Azucar Ice Cream Company Instagram: @azucaricecream 1503 SW 8th Street Miami, FL 33135
Welcome to Little Havana Mural 801 SW 27th Avenue Miami, FL 33135
Versailles Restaurant and Bakery Instagram: @versaillesmiami 3555 SW 8th Street Miami, FL 33135
Getting ready for take off at Hobby Airport in Houston!
I wasn’t even in Houston for a full month, and I’m off again on another adventure. Alabama has been trying to kill me for a year every time I drove through it, so I decided to fly. Plus flying is faster and more convenient. I just can’t take my dog on the plane! So I’m a free mama this go around. Here are the books I’m going to try to read my way through over the next ten days. Wish me luck!
