One of the oldest...

restaurants in Louisville is the Cottage Inn located on Eastern Parkway. It has been family owned and originally opened in 1929. It definitely has that "homey" feel going on...no doubt because it IS a house! You walk in, sit where you like and prepare your bellies for REAL down home cooking. Which is a little oxymorish (is that a word? LOL!) because it's now owned by a Bosnian family that immigrated here about 15 years ago. BUT, the food is AWESOME! They say they have the best fried chicken, and while I'm not a big fried bird fan I must say it was the best I had ever had. I'm telling you, this is how grandma used to cook and they have perfected it. They have a variety of entrees to choose from all of which where mouthwatering making it hard to choose when Blake and I visited on Saturday. They have many sides as well...all the regular country sides including their homemade mashed potatoes!!!! WOOHOO!!! And you all know how fond I am of smashed starches. :) The most amazing thing about this place is how cheap it is! Most entrees are around 9 to 10 bucks and the portions sizes are huge. You can't beat this place, especially if you are on a budget in this economy. Let's keep Louisville's little piece of history alive and be patrons of the Cottage Inn!!! Tell em' Dana sent ya. Yeah, you won't get anything for doing that but it would be fun!

New favorite thing to do....

If you've got extra time to spare go to my new favorite website www.faceinhole.com. Hours of fun will ensue! WOOHOO! You can pick from various layouts from celebrities, tv shows to costumes and add your adorable face and create some FUN FUN FUN! Here are some of the pics that I've created so far. You can even change the hue, contrast, brightness, etc. of your own picture to match the colors in the layout. HILARIOUS!

Why do people have to be so mean?

This is a rant so just stay with me and I'll be fine tomorrow. I just don't understand while people feel the need to be so mean sometimes. I know dealing with the public can be a very hard but it has been absolutely ridiculous at work lately. There is no reason that because you are so miserable that you have to try to bring me down to your level. I'm very blessed in the fact that I have super awesome clients that I love, but there is always one person every now and then that puts a kink in my happy chain. I'm here to tell you mean people : Arrogance, having a huge ego, flaunting your money, and acting like a queen bitch is not attractive. You ARE NOT special and are no better than the bum on the street begging for money. In fact you are a piece of dog poop on the bottom of that bum's shoe that has been rotting in the hot sun for a week. I despise you and I hope that you learn to be a happy person or you will die an early death....which now that I think about it wouldn't hurt my feelings that much. I guess I'm being mean (sinking down to their level) with this rant but I just had to get this out before I haul off and bitch slap (like in the picture) the next hoity toity (spelling?) rich bastard that walks through the door at work. It's not that hard to be pleasant, happy, smiley, sharing, joyful, etc. It's quite simple really and it's infectious. Enjoy your life! Awwwww.....I feel better already.

We got to meet Jules!

One of the most beautiful babies I have ever seen!!! 8lbs 11oz of pure cuteness with a head full of hair. Mom and Dad are doing great and Jules is as healthy as can be. When we got there she immediately opened her eyes and looked at us and of course made the cutest faces. Her Dad Jay told us that she had been asleep all day long until we got there. I FEEL SPECIAL. I say she knows us because we talked to her so much while Ashley was pregnant. :) Wishful thinking I'm sure. Blake went crazy with the camera and we have so many pictures of the little bundle of joy. Of course Blake made the comment on the way home to "not get any ideas". LOL!

Jules has arrived!!!

8 lbs. 11 oz and as cute as can be. This is the first and only picture I have of her since she was born too late and I couldn't visit. :( Her momma sent this over her phone. I can't wait to see her in person!!!! We're going tomorrow to the hospital and I'll have updates then! Congrats Jay and Ashley, she's gorgeous. :)

Baby Jules is on her way!

1. Sometime tomorrow little baby Jules will be here for all the world to see. Her Mom and Dad, Ashley and Jay are have been waiting with excited anticipation!! Ashley will be induced tomorrow and Jules will be here before we know it. I will update this blog with tons of pics of the new happy family. WOOHOO!! She's going to be beautiful.
   

State Park

I think this will be my last post about vacation. I'm running out of pics to share with you guys and there really isn't much more to tell you about. One thing I can share is our amazing trip the State Park which was right down the street from where we were staying. One of the closest things that we did visit! It was absolutely gorgeous!!! We visited the Bay side of the Cape in the State Park and saw many natural wonders including, calm seas, pelicans, hermit crabs in the biggest shells you have ever seen (weird seeing this huge shells just walking around), live clams, and other sea life. But the best part was our hike down a trail. We saw a bald eagle (no kidding, they do live close to the beach) and we were even warned about the bears!!! WHO KNEW!? It was a beautiful day and a lovely hike and I wasn't aware of how much flora grows at the beach. BEAUTIFUL! OH and since we are on the subject of flora and fauna...did I ever mention that we saw a 6 foot bull shark 2 days in a row at the beach?!?!? It came up so close one time that it almost got completely beached. It was really neat to see it but it was also really intense! Well I'm signing off on the vacation pics and stories, I hope you guys have enjoyed taking part in our wonderful week of rest and relaxation!

What kind of bird WAS that?

One of our funnest....or funniest nights we had at Cape San Blas was at a local restaurant (which took us about 45 minutes to get to) named Toucan's. Now let me explain this place to all of you so you will appreciate the story. This place is huge and has an outside deck on the beach where you can eat and also a bar overlooking the beach and a gift shop. Something different on every level. The name "Toucan's" is splashed everywhere on the actual building...on signs, painted on the side of the building, on the gift shop, all over the menu, on their shirts, etc. I mean there is no mistaking that this place is called Toucan's which is obviously paying homage to the cute tropical bird which graces the ever memorable Fruit Loops box. You can even meet Tookie the Toucan down in the gift shop and hold him and watch him catch bracelets in mid air. Okay, I'm not one for exotic animal ownership but he was so damn cute! So after a couple of shots and drinks and a seafood dinner we wander to the giftshop, meet Tookie, take some pics and try on the ultra luxe white flip flop. I can't believe that had it my size!!! We pile into the car to make the 45 minute trek back to the condo and Brandon has the most mind blowing profound question EVER asked on the face of the Earth. He sincerely asked...so what type of bird was that back there anyway?ARE YOU KIDDING ME? Bursts of laughter ensue and last for several minutes. I mean tears running down our face laughter. Tookie certainly couldn't have been a Toucan right?!?!

GOOD TIMES!

Just thought I would share some of the random pics from vacation. Wouldn't be the beach without some Corona and lime and then trying to recreate the commercial ( I know, it failed horribly but just humor me). Then some pics of the hotties.....er.....the hottie Kristen and me. We honestly did spend MOST of our time at the beach being complete bums so it was nice to capture some of the funny random moments that we would otherwise forget. Check out my "bear claws" as Blake would call them...LOL...and how many cards they are holding!!! I'm obviously losing a round of the card game bullshit. Cards, beer, sun, hotties, sand, surf...what more could you ask for!?!?

FIRE on the beach!!!

One of the funnest things we did while staying at Cape San Blas, FL was building a fire on the beach at night! Even though the days were warm the nights were pretty cool, so building a small fire directly on the beach was the best remedy. We just sat around and talked, laughed, devoured some libations and had a great time! I will NEVER forget the fireside chats on the beach. This was a new venture for me and I'm so happy that we were able to do it. It's the little things in the life that make the biggest impact....or I'm just easily amused. LOL!

Did I mention that the sunsets were amazing???

Every single evening and night at Cape San Blas, Florida was an amazing sight. Our eyes feasted on the natural beauty of the day ending and everywhere you gazed it looked like a postcard. A mixture of orange, pink, gold, blue and purple was enough to make you stop in your tracks and "experience" the beauty of our planet. Our last night there was one for the books! It was the clearest night sky with the most stars I had ever seen. We all sat out on the deck just gazing at the sky in all it's glory and saw about 10-12 shooting stars. Simply magical (unfortunately I missed out on most of them because of Blake's big head blocking my view..Sigh). Almost makes me hate living near a major city...we really do miss out and take these things for granted. Florida I miss you.

30 miles away from civilization...

WOW, vacation was AMAZING!!! We had the best time at Cape San Blas, Florida and couldn't have asked for better weather. It was in the mid to upper 70's, no clouds, and not a drop of rain the entire time!!! We got sooooooooooo lucky, a local there said the week before we arrived it was in the 40's so we got down there just in time. Cape San Blas is unlike any place I had ever visited on the Gulf Coast. You are literally 30 miles away from civilization with no cell phone reception or internet connection. TRULY a paradise in some standards. If we wanted to go out and eat or get gas, groceries, etc. we had to do travel at least 30 minutes out of the way to do so. The beach, the surroundings, the condo was so beautiful though, you really don't want to leave. It was our home away from home and it was so hard to come back to reality. We enjoyed fresh seafood from a little market close to the beach, traveled to historic Apilachicola, took a hike in the State Park, layed on the beach, fixed dinners in the condo, played cards, took a horseback ride on the beach, laughed until we cried, built a fire on the beach, looked at the stars and just had an overall great time! Here are just a few of the many pics I took of our trip. I'll add some more each day as there are way too many to put on here at once plus I have too many stories to tell for one post! I highly recommend Cape San Blas to anyone looking for a Gulf Coast vacation and a different pace of life. This is the ultimate getaway with a clean beach and friendly people. I miss it already.

Leaving for Vacation...

Vacation...my favorite word in the English dictionary. Okay, well not my all time favorite but I definitely like the sound of it...well maybe more the meaning of it. :) Blake and I and his fam are packing the bags into the Ford Focus Station wagon (sweet ride....) and leaving for the beach!!!! We'll be making a stop in Alabama to visit Blake's Dad and Stepmom and I seriously can't wait! Getting together with family that we don't get to see very often is always a wonderful experience and spending time with them is never taken for granted. Kim and Steve, here we come!!!! WOOHOO!! Then we leave for the beach somewhere on a little cape in Florida for some rest, relaxation and of course some cocktails.Woohoo again! I'm so freakin' excited about this trip that I'm already dreading the day we have to come back. Unfortunately I'm sorry to announce that I have now come down with some sort of upper respiratory infection ( I think all of Louisville has had this) which includes a fiery earache and a sore on my throat. Oh joy profound...what impeccable timing you have allergies! I just love living in the Ohio Valley. And poor Blake is suffering for a clogged ear which he can't hear out of. We're falling apart over here!!! We'll make the best of it no matter what...you just can't feel that bad laying on the beach. I'm not sure how much I will be able to blog (if any) so I may be M.I.A. on here for a week or so. I'll miss you guys and I'll be in touch with the fam back here in Louisville. Love you guys...signing off...Dana and Blake.

Mimi my love.

While we are on the subject of furry friends I have to bring up our baby Mimi. She was Bab's sister and we raised them together. She did the absolute cutest thing last night and I just had to share. She somehow worked her way into the comforter on our bed and got completely covered with just her head and front legs sticking out. When I caught her in the act I ran for the camera and snapped these pics of her. SHE LOOKS TIRED! She is just adorable and warms my heart every time I see her. She's a very graceful and sweet kitty even though she's not friendly to new comers in the house. Most people don't even know we own her because she runs and hides when someone comes over. :( All her quirks set aside she is a precious treasure in our lives and we are so happy to have her.

I miss my baby.

They say time heals everything and while I think this is true, I've been finding it hard to think about anything else but my precious Babs. We lost her on December 13th and our household hasn't been the same since. I miss her waking me up in the morning (something I hated at the time) and I miss her cute little squeaky meow, the way she looked at me and Blake, I miss her laying with me every night and nudging my hand to be petted. There was something very special about her and I will never forget the happiness she brought Blake and I. She was my baby and being her mom brought me so much joy. The 3 years she gave us was something I will never take for granted and she will always hold a special place in my heart. I've been finding it hard the past the several days to think about her without crying like a baby so I'm hoping this post will help me heal in some small way. I feel like I need to honor her and this is going to be my way of doing of so. Bab's, daddy and me miss you so much and love you just as much as we did the first day we picked you up. You will always be our baby girl and we miss you. Thank you for being so strong and for trying so hard for us. I love you baby.

Cleanliness is next to Godliness

If the old saying is true...than I'm a Goddess. I've cleaned the house top to bottom and still have a multitude of things to organize and bring together before we leave for vacation. I do enjoy a clean house but using up an entire day off from work to accomplish this goal isn't my idea of fun. And a big shout out to Blake who did actually pick up the 3 pairs of shoes from the living room floor and took them to the closet. WOW! What a big help! Can you hear my sarcasm? I hope everyone is having a fantastic weekend and I sincerely hope that the upcoming work week is the fastest ever. We love you all!