Tuesday Tell All: Hometown Favorites

Favorite Place To:

Grab lunch: I LOVE to go out to eat and yet we rarely do anything fancier that fast food. I guess that is what happens when you have 5 kids and living on a resident's budget. My favorite place to eat is Cafe Rio, but we don't have them here in KY, so my replacement for that is Chili's and Qdoba. I love Chili's queso and salsa and get so full on that and my diet Coke with lime (the only time I really drink caffeine as it gives me a HUGE headache, but I digress...) that I am left wondering why I ordered a meal. Qdoba is not as good (the dressing is terrible) but I have come to enjoy the beef salad. As for fast food, I like Wendy's the best and enjoy a slice of Papa John's pizza once in a while too. I think Rich would vote for Panera Bread as his favorite and we talked about going last week, but it never worked out. We'll have to grab a sandwich there sometime soon without the kiddos.


Go for Date night: Wow. This question is a hard one seeing that we rarely go out. Huh. I'm a bit stumped. Sad huh. We usually go out when we are in Utah and when we are here we just take the kids along with us. I'd have to say dinner anywhere with Rich that I don't have to cook or clean up. It just tastes so much better when you didn't fix it or have to scrub pans afterwards. We rarely go to movies and that's fine by me. I can rent them later. I love being with Rich and visiting and talking instead of sitting in a theater. The best place would be going to a session at the Louisville Temple with Rich. I love being there with him and getting that spiritual recharge we both need.

Pick up some creative goodies: I have a new found love for this one. It's a store that's like Garden Ridge and Michael's combined and it's called Hobby Lobby. They too have 40% coupons and I can print them off and use one everyday. What a bargain and it's only a 3 minute drive from my house. I haven't been in a few months, but when I needed a painting for my bathroom I found one there. I got the girls' Easter baskets and candle holders for on top of the piano. I also got Pine Wood Derby decals and ribbon and fabric. The place is great and is like a one stop shop for crafts and home decor.


Keep the kids busy: I love, love, love museums, so after years hauling my kids to everyone we can find they enjoy them as much as I do. Locally I don't mind taking the kids to the Explorium, but it's a bit small so we only go once in a while. My favorites are the Louisville Zoo and Science Center. We still get to those place every other month or so making my year pass worth every penny . If we can drive a bit further I love the Cincinnati Museum Center at Union Terminal. We went the day after Thanksgiving and I'm dying to go back. I also really enjoyed the Indianapolis Children's Museum and when we were in Louisville we had a year pass to that as well. It was a bit of a drive, but since we went up 3 times it paid for itself.

Get wet: I love that our neighborhood has a pool. Since my boys are doing swim team again I am sure we'll be spending 95% of our summer swimming and splashing close to home. I also love the Calistoga Splash Park at Glacier Run at the Louisville Zoo. The kids had a ball getting wet there last summer. They were disappointed it was closed the last few times we've been but I don't think getting wet would be as fun when it's only 50 degrees!

The next stop for having fun getting wet should be Wolf Lodge in Ohio. We have had lots of friends visit that place and they have all loved it. We also have heard good things about Holiday World up in Santa Clause, Indiana. It seems that we still have a lot to see and do around here before we are done!

Buy a treat: Graeter's ice cream. They have seasonal flavors and I love their Pumpkin Spice ice cream. Divine. I also love getting Jelly Belly candies at little candy shops at the mall. In college I would hit a candy store at the Ala Moana Mall. The only bad part is I am terrible at rationing goodies and they never last a long as I'd planned

Shop for fun: I really shopping at Pottery Barn, but since the closest one is in Louisville I find myself searching for things on their online site. I really like shopping at the Fayette Mall that is about a 5 minute drive. My favorite stores are the Gap, Ann Taylor, Gymboree and will usually window shop Dillard's, Bath and Body Works, Build-A-Bear, Dick's, Payless, Eddie Bauer for Rich and end at the food court for Chick-Fil-A for the kids. Old Navy is across the street, Target and Toys-R-Us are just north of the mall and Wal-mart and Lowe's are just south. It's so nice to have it all close together. But don't try driving through at Christmas time. It's a nightmare!


Get some fresh air: We spend at least 4 nights a week at the ballpark and I love it. Of course I don't love chasing the girls around, but I love watching baseball. I love going to a Louisville Bats or Lexington Legends game as well. We went up to the Great American Ball Park in Cincinnati and watched the Red play the St. Louis Cardinals a few years back and I'm hoping to go back this year. That would be really fun.

I love taking walks and love strolling through the UK Arboretum that is on the south side of campus. There are fantastic trails, flowers and scenery.

We also have a great little park near our home in the Heartland neighborhood that has a great play set and a huge area of grass. I love taking a picnic (OK, that really should read take out) and enjoying the cool summer nights together as a family.

Splurge: I love Louisville Stoneware. When we lived in Louisville I would often head to the factory store with the boys in tow in search of discounted pieces. I have given our moms, grandmas and a few sister-in-laws pieces from the store. I need to buy a new Derby Pie plate since it was the only thing that broke in our move to Lexington. The Bachelor Button design is my favorite.

Drive for a weekend away: If we drive a few hours in any direction we can visit so many amazing cities. I have spent time in Nashville, Indianapolis, St. Louis, Cincinnati and Chicago. It seems the only direction we haven't been is east. We need to drive to the Carolina's soon. (Beach house rental Kristi?) I love that I can get to all those places, excluding Chicago- but it's only a hour long flight, in less that 4 hours. So amazing since 4 hours in any direction in Utah means you're still in Utah.

Before we leave KY I would love to check out Lake Cumberland or visit Cumberland falls. Lake Cumberland has no restrictions for houseboats so you can find some of the largest ones around there. My friend Traci has been to Cumberland Falls and gotten a cabin. I'd love to check that one out too.