Tag Archives: Charlotte

I’ll Show You Mine if You Show Me Yours

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Grand Cayman Condo

Come on in. Stay for a few days. I’ll show you around and you can experience North Carolina from a local perspective. 

Two days ago, I posted on Facebook that I was interested in visiting the Grand Cayman and within the hour a reader offered for me to stay at her condo on Seven Mile Beach, Grand Cayman! It was a dream situation and I sat there shaking my head at the kindness of others. I’m going to do it and it’s going to be awesome. And the unbelievable part, I’m staying there for free. The situation left me thinking on a grand scale. Continue reading →

Where are all the Good Guys? At Charlotte Motor Speedway

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Charlotte Motor Speedway Goodguys

You got me; I admit it! I don’t know much about “Good Guys”, at least not the Goodguys Rod and Custom Association. Goodguys promotes and produces some of the world’s most dynamic automotive events, but I couldn’t tell you what’s under the hood of a custom car or what would make a car stand out for an award. So why did I want to go to the Goodguys Annual Southeastern Nationals at Charlotte Motor Speedway this weekend? Well, I don’t have to be a car expert to appreciate their beauty. Strolling along pit road looking at the top cars in the “Builder’s Choice” corral, I thought about the type of person that owned each car and the care they put into making it so special. I imaged what cars would make it to the top ten. But I’m not an expert; you tell me which cars are “top ten worthy”. Why would one make the cut over another? Use these photos as clues. Are there any “goodguys” car experts out there? Don’t blow a gasket, but I based my choices on a similar scale for judging hot men. I looked at the body, the muscle under the hood, the originality, its performance, and the overall maintenance.

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Up Close and Personal at Lazy 5 Ranch

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The Lazy 5 Ranch, just north of Charlotte, North Carolina, offers a unique 3.5 mile tour of Lazy 5 Ranchover 750 animals from all over the world. We explored the ranch on a horse-drawn, open-air wagon and went eyeball to eyeball with a Texas Longhorn cow as well as dozens of other animals. Lazy 5 Ranch was the most unique animal ranch that I’ve ever experienced. Have a look at a few of my up-close encounters below. Continue reading →

Discover Childlike Wonder

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Discovery Place, CharlotteStepping into a world where science is brought to life through interactive exhibits and explosive experiments sounds like a fun day for me. I love science and exploring how things work, but making that exciting for a 1.5 year old is difficult. The Discovery Place in Charlotte, however, manages to do just that. Yesterday, we spent the day immersed in a world of wonder where there was something for everyone… even Athena.  Continue reading →

Escape from the Stress of Moving

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Holes in the wall, lifting heavy boxes, scratches on the floor, packing, unpacking, North Carolina Dance Theatermisplacing screws… moving is stressful. My new house is absolutely beautiful and during the evening when I can look up at the stars from my bedroom window, it’s all worth the hassle but I needed a break. There’s no better place to get away from it all than Neverland. Jean-Pierre Bonnefoux’s gravity-defying Peter Pan tells the story of the mischievous boy who never wants to grow up, his spunky sidekick Tinker Bell, and the frightful Captain Hook. Last night, I escaped to Neverland with this whimsical ballet and my imagination took flight. Continue reading →

The Life of Our Home

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We wanted to build our first home as a family in Charlotte, North Carolina; why try to fit intoNew House, Charlotte, North Carolina someone else’s mold? We made a list of “must-haves” and wants and began our search. With tons of new houses and builders in the area, we had lots of options. A loft, 4+ bedrooms, a 3 car garage, 2.5+ bathrooms, walk-in closets, a fireplace, granite counter tops, lots of windows, high ceilings, hardwood floors, a community pool, walking trails, sidewalks, trees, a short driving distance from work, groceries, shopping, and food… the must-have list was hefty. Was it unrealistic? Of course. But a bucket list life comes with big dreams. And we’d left a life on the beach in California for a family environment and a roomy home for Athena. After searching north, south, east, and west over and over again, we found a builder. Ryan Homes offered a house in a community that had every detail we had listed on both the “must-have” and the “want” list and the life of our home began. Continue reading →

What Makes a Bucket List Day?

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A bucket list day doesn’t need to be an extreme adventure or traveling around the world.Freedom Park, Charlotte No… we had a bucket list day today. I spent the day with my family at Freedom Park in Charlotte, NC. We strolled along the pond and played with Athena on the swings. Athena is 10 months old so I obviously feel like a mother every day, but some days I realize that I am the world to someone. I am the most amazing, spectacular, beautiful, and caring person to another tiny human being. Athena loves me completely, without restriction or reservation. I am a mother, making every day a bucket list day. Continue reading →

Family-Friendly Charlotte, NC

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Charlotte is full of family-friendly attractions that will entertain all ages, including infants. Charlotte, NCFrom educational attractions to interactive, hands-on environments to fine dining experiences, a day in Charlotte can be packed with fun. We decided to test the “Charlotte’s Got A Lot” philosophy and see what family-friendly adventures we could have in one Saturday. Our line-up included: lunch at the EpiCenter, the NASCAR Hall of Fame, Discovery Place, and Harvest Moon Grill. Let me warn you though, both the NASCAR Hall of Fame and Discovery Place could each take an entire day, but that’s not the way we do things. We like to make each day as fun-filled as possible. Continue reading →

Cirque Dreams Holidaze – Where Even Seeing is Still Too Hard to Believe

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From the moment the curtain goes up until the last bow, Cirque Dreams Holidaze is tooCIRQUE DREAMS HOLIDAZE amazing to believe even when witnessing it with your very own eyes. It’s a dreamland of tinsel and glitter and candy cane flair. Acrobats twirled. Reindeer skipped. Gingerbread men flipped. Penguins teeter-tottered atop endless cylinders. And I sat in continuous awe while constantly saying, “oh my god!”, “wow”, “oh no they can’t be about to…”, and “holy sh**”. Cirque Dreams Holidaze makes the impossible, possible. Continue reading →

No Preparing for The Ultimate Christmas Show (abridged)

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There are no words to describe The Ultimate Christmas Show by The Reduced Ultimate Christmas Show Shakespeare Company that would truly prepare you for what’s to come. The slapstick interfaith holiday variety show and pageant sounds cute and family friendly, but the level of inappropriate social irreverence was extremely shocking yet absolutely hilarious. Continue reading →