Memorial Day Weekend Part II

After Kati and I hiked around Ha Ha Tonka State Park, we settled in at our hotel and got ready for a lakeside dinner. We went to the Bagnell Dam area for dinner and enjoyed the beautiful view. Crazy enough, it was quite chilly our first night there, and we needed fleece jackets as we dined! Not typical temps for this time of year.

 

We called it an early night since we were exhausted from all the hiking around at the state park.

Saturday we woke up early and enjoyed the complimentary breakfast at our hotel before setting off for a full day of fun.

 

First, we went back to the Bagnell Dam area to stop at some touristy shops. Touristy shops included a stop for candy.

 

After the first round of shopping, we went to my favorite stop of the whole trip, Shawnee Bluff Winery. 

We went inside for free wine tasting, and of course I had to buy one glass (I mean it was a beautiful day and I needed a reason to sit outside and enjoy the view, right?). 

The winery also had some lodging, which is why they had this cute pool, complete with a wine bottle fountain. The deck area with seating offered a spectacular view of the water and honestly I could have hung out at this place all day.

 Kati enjoying the view:

 We did eventually have to leave because we had shopping on the agenda, so after a quick glass of wine we were off again. We spent about 4 hours shopping at the big outlet mall in the area and thankfully didn't do too much damage to our pocketbooks. I ended up buying 3 tops and one pair of shorts and all were good prices. 

Last, but not least was another lakeside dinner and a beautiful fireworks display. We went out to a lodge that was a bit of a drive, but we had heard they put on a good fireworks show. We enjoyed a drink and relaxed by the water.

Funny moment from the night: Our waitress was young and at one point she asked us where we were from. Conversation turned to school-where did you go/where are you going and Kati and I revealed our ages. The girl looked surprised and said, "Really? You look young!" So it was a funny combo of look young/but you are old. Haha, made us chuckle. 

Of course we had to try a crazy drink (this one was named after a piranha):

This was our third annual Memorial Day weekend trip and this might have been my favorite yet. It was a relaxing weekend that I needed and actually a nice break from rushing around a new city, like we usually do (Nashville and Kansas City in the past). 

As we get older and busier these trips may not happen anymore (at least a full weekend) but I'm thankful for these memories!

Aunt Martha "Steal Back"

Everyday I listen to Spotify while I'm working. I usually pick music that is a bit on the mellow side so it is not too distracting for me while I work. Today I set up the Spotify radio to a Cataldo station (love Cataldo) and this song popped up. Thought it was pretty:

Aunt Martha "Steal Back"



Side note: I love Spotify and I'm hoping when I figure out my new budget this month I can still manage the $10 per month premium membership!

Memorial Day Weekend Part I: Ha Ha Tonka Castle

Memorial Day weekend I took a day off work and headed to Lake of the Ozarks in Missouri with my friend, Kati. Normally when I go to Lake of the Ozarks I spend my time boating, but since we weren't going with boaters this time we made plans to hike, dine at the lake, and shop at the local outlet malls/tourist shops.

I took quite a few picture during the trip so I thought I'd break them up into a few posts.

The first day at the lake we headed to Ha Ha Tonka State Park. We didn't even stop at our hotel before going to the park. It was a gorgeous day and we wanted to take advantage of the weather.

 

Besides having several trails and beautiful views of the spring and lake, you also get to see the stone castle ruins. This makes for a beautiful mix of architecture and nature. The ruins are from an old hotel originally designed by a prominent Kansas City businessman. It is my understanding that this was going to be his house, but he died before the completion. The hotel was finished in the 1920s and it was destroyed by a fire in the 1940s. Thankfully, the state of Missouri purchased the grounds and castle in 1978 and made the area a state park (Wikipedia). 

 

 

The views of the lake and spring below the castle were gorgeous! There were quite a few great look out points near the castle ruins.

 We walked a few trails-a lake trail which took us down to a little dock, and another trail which took us to the old water tower and a cool cave area.

I was very impressed with this park and I'm looking forward to exploring it more someday!

Pattern Mixing

I was inspired by this photo on Pinterest.

 

So I went with the black and white pattern mixing idea yesterday, and I think I found my new "go to" weekend outfit. For Spring, I'm thinking of pairing this black and white striped top with a ballet pink linen tote. 

Kishi Bashi

Current music fave: Kishi Bashi

I was lucky enough to be able to see Kishi Bashi when he was in St. Louis a couple weeks ago. The venue was small and my friends and I were at a perfect spot by the stage. I was blown away by the performance! I had been listening to his music for a couple months before the show and had high expectations, but the show definitely exceeded my expectations!

Currently he only has one album out, but I will be eagerly waiting for some new songs. :-)

Rereading the classics

Today, while listening to NPR, I caught a segment about the book, Practical Classics: 50 Reasons to Reread 50 Books You Haven't Touched Since High School. The author, Kevin Smokler discussed what this process was like, and how you can take away something completely different from these books a second or third time around.

I recently reread To Kill a Mockingbird and I hadn't read that book since 7th grade. Perfect timing, because a student I was tutoring happened to be reading To Kill a Mockingbird for class and I was able to go to work and discuss the book with the student. How lucky was that? I did have a deeper appreciation for this book the second time around, and it got me thinking about what other books I want to reread. Thankfully, I have a Goodreads account and I can continue to add books to my "To Read" list as I think of them.

Some of the books I would like to reread are:

The Great Gatsby (before the new movie hits theaters!)

Cold Mountain (ok, not quite a classic yet, but I had to read this book my senior year of high school)

East of Eden

For Whom the Bell Tolls

Things Fall Apart

Wuthering Heights

I'm sure I will be adding more to this list!

Golden Globes 2013

Red carpet favorites from the 2013 Golden Globes:

1. Emily Blunt in Michael Kors

2. Jessica Alba in Oscar de la Renta

3. Kate Hudson in Alexander McQueen

4. Anne Hathaway in Chanel

5. Claire Danes in Atelier Versace

Photos from Just Jared and People