what to do: st. louis, mo | forest park

When my parents first moved to STL in 2006 they bought a condo right across the street from Forest Park.  And since my first visit, the park is somewhere I like to see each time I am there.  

Forest Park opened in 1876 and spans a little over 1300 acres of land - larger than New York City's Central Park - and hosted the 1904 World's Fair. The park is free and home to the St. Louis Art Museum, the St. Louis Science Center, the Missouri History Museum, The Muny, and the St. Louis Zoo.  Admission to the different museums and the zoo is free with the exception some of the special exhibits.  The Muny even offers free tickets to shows on a first come first serve basis.  I mean how awesome is that?  

Also, meandering throughout the park is dual path that is welcome to both leisure walkers and serious workouts.  It does not matter what time of year it is, hot or cold, there is always someone walking, running, or biking the paths.  Since my parents have moved a bit further - a whole 2 or 3 miles away - we don't go as much as I would like.  I do, however, want to make it a priority next week though. 

^panorama of the Grand Basin from the hill/Art Museum on a beautiful afternoon. July 2013. 

^Instagram of the Art Museum from the other side of the Grand Basin. December 2012. 

^Saint Louis statue in front of the Art Museum.

^wine, apps, and books with the family on the hill.  April 2012. 

^World's Fair Pavilion.  December 2013. 

You could seriously spend hours wandering around the park.  With all of the free options, everyone is bound to find something to do.  

Have you heard of Forest Park?

Do you have a park like it near you?

Linking up with Bonnie and Tiffany today!

what to do: st. louis, mo | travel tuesday

Since we are heading to STL for Thanksgiving to be with my family in a couple of weeks, I thought I would share some "what to dos" if you are ever in the STL area.  Today: The City Museum.

I think the word museum doesn't accurately portray what it really is.  Like I have mentioned before, I am not a fan of museums, so if you are anything like me then the word museum could possibly scare some people away.  In fact, the husband was not too thrilled when I made him go.  He ended up loving it though.  It is more like a giant playground - for all ages - with wire tunnels to climb through and 10 story slides to go down.  It is a place where everyone in your family will enjoy.

***WARNING: poor quality, grainy, iphone photos ahead***

 Source via Google Images
^view from the parking lot. 

 Source via Google Images
^when you first walk in. 

^Flying and heights are not my favorite thing.  If it seems like I am a little tense it is because I was. 

^circa May 2011. my mom and I pretending to be little kids.

^Instagram circa Dec. 11.  View from the bottom of the 10 story slide. 

^Instagram via December 2011.  Sliding partners.

I guarantee your family will be talking about the fun you had while climbing throughout and exploring The City Museum.  It is kind of place I wish we had in Pittsburgh (and would totally get a membership to for unlimited access).  As far as I know there is nothing like it anywhere else. 

What is your favorite museum you have been to?

 Have you ever been to The City Museum?

Linking up with Bonnie and Tiffany today!

st. charles, mo | travel tuesday

One thing I did hope to do during my trip to visit my parents was to find a sunflower field to photograph.  Once I realized sunflowers were in bloom when I was visiting I did some research and happened upon some recent photographs taken in a sunflower field in St. Charles, Mo., the next county over.  However, after further investigation and research by both me and my Mom, we were not able to pinpoint an exact location.  But we decided, after some lunch and rest after our trip back from the lake, that we would give it a go and ask around when we got to the area.  

However, we were unlucky.  We did stumble upon a roadside market with fresh fruits and vegetables though.   The fresh tomatoes, corn, and fruit we bought made the trip worth it.  As we were leaving we spotted these amazing fields of corn (pictured below) that were so tall that I would not have been able to see over them if I stood on my mom's car.  I kept waiting for Shoeless Joe Jackson to walk out. 

St. Charles is an adorable little town with cobble stone streets lined with shops and restaurants that look like they are straight from the Wild West.  My mom and I spent the rest of the afternoon walking around, stopping in the different shops to cool off - and to buy a few things - and taking in the scene.  We ended the afternoon with some drinks at a bar while we watched the Cardinals play.  

pose

^check out that pups face!  totally posing too. 

^view of the Missouri River from one of the pathways to the park behind the main street.

As always, the night ended with wine and a game of rummy.  I have already asked my mom if we can visit St. Charles the day after Thanksgiving when we are there.  I think it will be so cute all lit up for the holidays.

 What are some of your favorite places to revisit?

Do you have parents/relatives that live away that you enjoy visiting with?

Linking up with Bonnie and Tiffany today!

St. Louis, MO | travel tuesday

Back in July, I visited my parents in St. Louis.  It is still one of my favorite cities to spend time in and explore.  Since I have already done the whole arch thing I never want to really do anything but relax and play games (with drinks of course) when I visit.  This time was no different.  However, I was thrilled when my Mom called a few days before my trip to tell me to pack my swim suit because we were heading to my dad's friend's lake house for the night.  Since my parents sold their lake house in Arkansas a few years ago I have missed lazy days on the water so I was pretty pumped.

^view from the window seat:)

^Charlie, my mom's cat, chillin' waiting to be fed.

^morning sunshine in University City.

^morning sun from my parent's front yard.

^Charlie's morning photo shoot.  

Our morning was pretty lazy, as pictured above, so we didn't get as early a start as we had hoped.  Which is pretty  typical and not really a surprise.  The first order of business before hitting the road was to stock up on beers for our lazy afternoon on the lake.  We hit up Craft Beer in Clayton.  Heaven for any beer lover.  And the staff were so helpful and friendly.  They found me a good gluten free beer to get. We then hoped back in the car and were on our way.

^there are few things better than a good book, a hammock and a sunset.

After a day of water biking - yes there is such a thing - and a delicious dinner of Mexican and giant Margs the intention was to play shuffle board.  However, the Cardinals were playing so my parents had to watch some of it. Of course my Mom fell asleep on the couch while watching the game so there was no shuffle board.  So I headed out to get some photos from the dock and the cool moon.  A beautiful night to end a great day on the lake. 

Are you a lake or beach person?

Do you have a favorite place to visit in the Summer?

Linking up with Bonnie and Tiffany today!

en route

Woke up to a snow covered ground.  Apparently Mother Nature missed the memo that Christmas was yesterday.  Oh well.  Better late than never I suppose. 

Today I am heading to STL to surprise my Mom and few days early for post Christmas celebrations

copyright: acornphotography

then to Memphis over the weekend for a surprise brunch for my Grandmother who is turning 90 at the beginning of the year.  To say I am excited to spend the rest of 2013 with my family would be an understatement.  I just wish the husband was coming with me. 

Hoping to either fast for a few hours or maybe find a delicious green salad at the airport because I pretty much feel like I am completely devoid of nutrients.  But hey, that's what the holidays are all about, right?  (please tell me I am right.) 

Anyway, I will be back in the new year with more posts and loads of more photos.  So until then,

Happy New Year!  Cheers to making 2014 your best yet!

until next time,

Necessary Evils.

I cannot believe Christmas has come and gone again.  Always comes and goes way too quickly.  Why can't January and February (and March) go by as quickly?

I have already gone through the post Christmas hangover and slowly starting to look forward to what the new year has to bring.  With that being said, I would like to share with you our adventure to STL for Christmas.

Since I recently decided to quit my job with the airlines, our decision to spend Christmas in STL with my family was made a little late (like 1.5 weeks before Christmas late).  Needless to say the airfare was outrageous so we decided we would drive.  I mean we drove to FL this summer so we figured the 10 hrs 13 min (according to Google) would be a breeze.

Me excited for our 10+ hour road trip to Christmas, family and booze. 

Husband not so sure about NSYNC singing about happy holidays 

Well, as with most travel plans, it didn't work out how we planned.  We had just gotten my car (our chariot for the road trip) from the shop Saturday.  It needed inspected and 100+ wah wah wah done to it so we thought we were being good and responsible road trippers.  Until the obnoxious beeping that had been given us problems returned with it's "STOP car immediately" warning.  Like other times, we just ignored the warning because it seemed to be running smoothly.  It wasn't until we started a slight incline up the hill that poor Passat started to make a sound like we were hurting her.  We pulled over at the first rest stop we saw and parked the car.   As we pulled into the parking lot, Passat was starting to sound pissed.  So husband, pretending to know what he was looking for, lifted up the hood and quickly remembered he didn't know what he was doing called AAA. 

Thank goodness for smart phones and the iPhone's decent picture quality to keep us both entertained while we waited only 45 mins (which in AAA time is record breaking) for our tow to pick us up.  

I kept looking back and thinking "man, some asshole is really riding this guys ass" until I realized I was looking at my poor car that kept looking longly into our new ride sadly from the back.  

Luckily we purchased AAA before we headed down to FL over the summer and luckily we got the second best option which covered us for a free tow up to 100 miles away from the car garage of our choice.  We pulled over in a small town in OH (just 16 miles West of Wheeling, WV) 89.3 miles away from the garage.  Phew!  Anyway, we ended up catching a flight early the next morning thanks to my Dad and his points.  

We, and by we I mean husband, hasn't heard from the garage yet.  We are both hoping this does not mean the end for Passat.  She has been good to me over the past 120,000+ miles and I hope to experience a few more thousand with her before I have to say good-bye.  

Hope you had a nice holiday and drama free travel experience!  

Cheers!

STL for Easter: Forest Park

My parents moved to STL six years go and since I have been visiting we make at least one trip each visit to Forest Park, the Central Park of STL.  When they first moved there, my parents lived in a condo literally across the street from the park.  They have since moved a few miles away (something about an unstable neighbor and PODS) into a house that is within biking distance to the park.  There is so much to do in the park with people year around running/biking/roller blading/walking around the 10k trail.  A great place to sit and relax, with a good book and/or some wine and people watching:)

I did not get around to doing much walking for working out purposes this visit - just wanted to do A LOT of relaxing so that is what I did.  But I did walk around the Grand Basin a little to capture these photos.

Love the pictures of the kids feeding the ducks.  Love both their reflections in the water and their shadows on the walk

There they are again - benches.  I love these benches.  

And I also have a thing for Weeping Willow Trees. 

The next group of photos are from my handy dandy iPhone using the Instagram, Cross Process and Hipstamatic apps.

Again, if you are ever in the STL area, this is a place definitely worth a visit.  Have children?  Perfect.  The Zoo is free.  Yes, F-R-E-E. 

Hope everyone had a great weekend!  My trip is coming up - WEDNESDAY!!! Time to start thinking about packing:)