My healthy happier life

ashleyd / January 17, 2011

All Four Parks in One Day: The Walt Disney World Fun Continues

When Bo and I decided to head down south to visit Derek and Meghann in Orlando, I was excited but apprehensive. He hadn’t been to Disney World in years. What if he didn’t enjoy the parks and magic as much as I did? What if he thought it wasn’t worth the money?

Well, needless to say, by the end of day 2 he was couldn’t stop singing the “ Carousel of Progress ” theme song and his excitement for the “extra magic hours” couldn’t be contained!

Needless to say, our spur of the moment trip down to Walt Disney World was the best choice, not only for our skin’s vitamin D needs but also our mental state!

After yesterday’s breakfast, we were excited to embark on Day 2 of our Walt Disney World adventures with Meghann and Derek.

We started our day at the Animal Kingdom as it is often recommended to get to this park early due to Expedition Everest’s long lines and the animal activity.

After entering the gate, we headed towards Expedition Everest , the park’s high speed roller coaster, which features more than a mile of track! The line normally ranges from 60-120 minutes so we were ecstatic to jump in line when it said it was only 20 minutes long!

It was awesome. But, unfortunately, I couldn’t say the same for the rest of Animal Kingdom. Our entire group agreed that it doesn’t have the same magic and charm that the rest of the parks have. Therefore, after a few other rides, we posted in front of The Tree of Life, and then high tailed it to MGM for lunch and an afternoon of rides!

Once we arrived at MGM, lunch was the only thing on our mind as Derek has a bad habit of not eating breakfast. Don’t worry, we have done our best to educate him on the benefits of starting your day with energy!

Finding lunch wasn’t as easy at MGM (Hollywood Studios) as it was the day before. But, after careful deliberation Meghann and I found salads and fruit that fueled us for an afternoon of screams, laughter, and park hopping. Derek and Bo were even able to find their lunch of choice from the same stand. While we munched away on our salads, filled to the brim with lettuce and topped with chili, they split one order of chili dog and barbecue pork sandwich. Needless to say, they were very happy guys.

After that, we spent the rest of the afternoon hopping around from ride to ride. We started with the stunt show, per the guys’ request, and then spent the rest of the afternoon taking in every attraction we wanted. I even ran into a friend from Savannah who I hadn’t seen since college! Hi Stephanie!

We even saw a famous face heading into the top attraction, Toy Story 3!

I saw a vaguely familiar woman walk buy, flanked on either side by two men with whom she was laughing. I saw that she had braids, no eyebrows, and then heard her laugh. There was no question that I’d just spotted WHOOPI! I grabbed Meghann and dragged her ahead of where I saw Whoopi, hoping we could grab a good picture or maybe even an autograph. Unfortunately, she went in the secret Toy Story entrance before we could reach her.

Since the lines at MGM kept growing, we decided to head over to Epcot for a dinner break. Luckily, our dinner spot was an easy choice as Meghann had heard great things from theDisney Food Blog about the new Via Napoli .

Open for lunch and dinner, Via Napoli features mouth watering pasta dishes, fresh wood fire pizzas, and fresh ingredients. In fact, it is even the sister restaurant to Naples 45 in New York City! Bo figured this out due to the similar logo!

We started with a few appetizers, split among the group.

We were all starving, therefore these appetizers only whet our appetite for dinner versus satiating our hunger. Luckily, within a few minutes we had this gorgeous entree adorning our table.

Delicious.

Surprisingly, we were all able to agree on one pizza, the Quattro Stagioni (eggplant, artichokes onions, prosciutto, mushrooms). We were surprised to see that the toppings weren’t mixed but instead quartered atop the pizza. Regardless, we each loved the pizza’s perfect crust which was doughy on the edges but thin and crisp on the inside. The thin crust towards the center allowed for each topping to stand out against the fresh tomato and cheese versus overpowering it like basic pizzas where the crust ends up being the center of attention. What is your favorite type of pizza? Sicilian? Thin crust? Authentic? Domino’s?

This carbo load left us ready for a few more rides in Epcot and MGM. In fact, we were lucky enough to use our fast passes to the RocknRoller coaster and then receive a pair of fast passes for the Tower of Terror a few seconds later. Two awesome rides back to back? Yes please! Can you spot us in the below pictures?

Around 8:30, we bid Meghann and Derek adieu as they both had to work today which meant Derek had a long drive to Tampa and Meghann had to prepare for her first day on the job! But, Bo and I had other ideas.

Magic Kingdom was open until 2am!

We spent the next few hours enjoying a few of our childhood favorite rides, skipping down Main Street USA, and singing along to the tunes at Disney’s Dueling Piano bar. I can’t imagine a better end to our vacation.

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ashleyd / January 15, 2011

Long Run #4 and The Hurricane Club

I think Theodora says it best in her post today, but she’s right, I really do love the internet. Most of my friends in New York City were originally met through the blog or a blogger meet up. In two weeks, Bo and I are spending three days in Vermont for a long weekend with 15 other friends, 9 of whom we originally met through the blog. It really is an amazing way to make connections which can sometime evolve into deeper friendships.

This morning I spent an hour catching up with these lovely ladies (Theodora and Emily) while completing the first half of long run #4. Central Park’s path was still a bit slushy and the hills were tedious, but the company made it all worth it, including the early start which was even more difficult due to last night’s spontaneous plans.

After a long week of stress, Bo surprised me with a dinner date last night. He took the initiative, found a restaurant, and made reservations for the two of us which was the sweetest gesture. I’m so glad I was able to get excited about the evening. At first, I told my friends at work that it wasn’t the best idea since the restaurant he chose is known for their drinks which wasn’t a perfect match due to my early morning running date. Luckily, my friends quickly knocked some sense into me and we enjoyed a wonderful dinner at the Hurricane Club.

The restaurant’s decor immediately transports you to the South Pacific upon entering through a huge wooden door. Through palm frawns, contrasting wood, and beautiful floral arrangements, the space quickly made us forget the cold New York City weather outside. We arrived a few minutes before our reservation which gave us time to enjoy their bar area. In fact, I think the bar is their waiting area as they directed everyone in the same direction upon arriving.

Unfortunately the bar area was too crowded to snap a picture of our cocktails but Bo enjoyed a dark and stormy while I sipped on a Corona Light. It was the perfect way to toast a Friday night. I want to return to the Hurricane Club just to enjoy some of their liquor based drinks as each of them looked amazing! Just check out the drink menu below. While it looks like something you’d find in a Florida tourist trap, it features everything from drinks served in hallowed coconuts, adult Jell-o shots, and tropical beers.

By the time we were seated we were both famished but happy to be in the main dining room versus a bar area two top. The main dining room was decorated with mirrors, tropical flowers, and dark leather, reminiscent of something you’d see on a cruise ship.

The menu was absolutely gorgeous and every item sounded more delicious than the last.

We had read in reviews that Chef Koketsu wants to allow New Yorkers to enjoy his take on Polynesian cuisine and the menu reflected that perfectly. Each pupu (appetizer in Hawaiian), wrap, salad, and entree took the Polynesian theme on a fresh trip, bringing back a delicious bite of textures and flavors.

We chose quickly, due to our hunger levels. Luckily, in our haste, we chose well!

We ordered 1 item from the pupu platter section, Peking Duck sandwiches for Bo. They were rich, crisp warm sandwiches. I chose the flowering shrimp wraps from the summer wrap section and was thoroughly impressed. These could have easily come out looking and tasting like a P.F Chang wrap but instead they were deconstructed and the shrimp, or prawns, were huge and fresh!

We shared our main course, the 20 oz miso glazed lobster tail. I was shocked when they set it in front of us due to the sheer size. Cooked shell-on and then finished with a sweet mizo glaze, it looked delicious. Needless to say, a few bites later we were thankful we took our waiter’s advice when we ordered. This was cooked perfectly and some of the best lobster I’ve ever enjoyed!

Next time you’re looking for a place to escape the hustle of New York City, grab a group of friends and enjoy a fun dinner at The Hurricane Club. Warning, if you go any later than 9pm you want to dress for the occasion. When we entered at 8pm my jeans and sweater were perfectly acceptable attire. When we left the bar and lounge were definitely a scene!

The Hurricane Club

Location: 360 Park Avenue South (Flatiron District)

Price Range: Most main dishes under $40 (large portions)

Last but not least, congratulations #34:

liane Says:
28. January 2011 at 11:56 AM e

I love Jo Malone I have a few different of her fragrances and I mix and match and layer them!

Please email me your mailing address (healthyhappierbear at gmail dot com) and I will send your new DDF Revolve 400x your way!

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ashleyd / January 11, 2011

You Have to Wok Before You Can Run: A Lesson In Kitchen Humility

This evening, after a long Monday of work, I headed straight to the grocery store. This is a big accomplishment because most Monday nights all I want to do is head home and relax.

Luckily this grocery cart had space for my heavy bag AND groceries!

Within 30 minutes, I had all the ingredients for a delicious, healthy dinner sitting on my kitchen counter.

I still had plenty of time, an hour, to cook dinner before Bo walked through the door around 8pm! I was so excited to surprise my husband with one of his favorite meals, hibachi style chicken and vegetables.

Before leaving work, I found this healthy recipe on the Weight Watchers website. As soon as I walked home, I organized all my ingredients, ensuring I had everything I needed.

First up on this evening’s to do list, was lots of practice in the art of chopping!

After chopping, squeezing, and organizing all my ingredients I lined them up since the recipe said it was a “quick-fire” recipe and required lots of fast movements.

For the next 25 minutes, I carefully followed the recipe’s instructions to the tee.

This should have been a delicious meal, reminiscent of our favorite Savannah Japanese restaurant, Hirano’s.

Instead, I ate these leftovers for dinner.

Unfortunately, my Japanese attempt was horrible. The chicken was overcooked while the beautifully sliced vegetables were too crisp. The vinegar didn’t evaporate as it should have so the flavor tasted more of vinegar than soy sauce. Bo attributed some of the recipe failure to my new to me kitchen tool, the wok. Tonight was the first time I’ve used our wok and I didn’t realize that “pile high” doesn’t work well in a wok. Unfortunately, I overfilled it which caused the uneven cooking and lack of carmelization.

At first, I started crying. I felt defeated.

But, after a quick phone call with my mom and dad, I realized that this was actually a great learning opportunity. I enjoyed an hour chopping practice, relaxed in the kitchen, and learned something at the end of it. I also found a great Japanese Hibachi Chicken recipe to try again soon!

Have you ever learned a hard lesson in the kitchen? How do you handle kitchen failure?

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