Miami Bound!

Tomorrow I head off to sunny Miami, Florida (why does Will Smith's "Welcome to Miami" song always play in my head when I mention Miami?) to welcome my sisters first baby boy.

Baby Nicholas is technically due to arrive on January 20th but he seems to be totally comfortable where he is. I am not complaining since that means I will actually get some quiet time with my sister and mom before we all become sleepless in Miami! So before he arrives, I know mom-to-be and I have a couple of to do's on our pre-baby list...

Having brunch at the Buena Vista Bistro.

Gorging ourselves on the best Argentinian empanadas outside of Argentina in Graziano's Market!

Taking the boat out for a little ride.

Enjoy our favorite Miami "sky scrapers".

Have our "last meal" at Michael's Genuine Food & Drink.

Hopefully be able to digest our yummy food by sitting by
the ocean with the warm winter sun shining down on us.

Who doesn't swoon over this view?



Even the birds love it here!

The only thing I don't like about Miami is that I miss my little girl MUCHO!

Please keep my little sister in your thoughts and wish her lots of luck and good health for our new family addition to come soon!!! We can't wait to meet you baby Nicholas. :)

 

Love,

Tia Gigi

The Stone Mountain...

As promised in yesterdays post I set out today to conquer our local landmark, Stone Mountain! Armed with a year long park pass ($35) I was eager to get my hike started. As I started my ascent to the top of Stone Mountain I regrettably had flashbacks to when I was a 1st year college student. In those days I ran to the summit in about 15 minutes, this was not the case today!

While the hike up was only 1.3 miles (2.1 km) it took me about 32 minutes to reach summit. I won't lie, I was breathing heavy a good portion of the hike. The granite rock was slippery wet since it had rained the night before and to be quite honest we weren't sure how long it would be before another downpour would occur. But lets stop the whining and set the record straight...a 7 month pregnant woman beat me to the top and as I was happily panting my way to the summit an older gentlemen, "Dale the plumber", had the audacity to ask me if I thought he was taking so long to climb the mountain because he was overweight? Folks, did I mention he was in FRONT of me?? I couldn't stop laughing. I have a long spring of training ahead of me!

                        Below are some snapshots along the trail I thought you would enjoy.

Cactus at the base of the mountain.

Slippery and uneven rocks on your way to the top.

The trail to the summit is marked by this yellow line.

 At its summit, the elevation is 1,686 ft (513m) and 825 ft (251.5m) above the surrounding Atlanta metropolitan area. On a clear day, minus smog, I am sure you can really make out the Atlanta skyline. The sunsets up here must be incredible as well. As a matter a fact, according to Wikipedia "Europeans first learned of the mountain in 1597, when Spanish explorers were told of a mountain further inland which was "very high, shining when the sun set like a fire." You see... those Spaniards know a good thing when they find one!

Even on a cloudy day the view was wonderful!
BTW, that is "Dale the Plumber" in the picture. :)

 It felt good to out in the "elements" this morning. Looking forward to heading back out again tomorrow, although tomorrow I may do the 5 mile walk around the base of the mountain and work myself up to a solid "take II hike" on Friday.

On our way home we even saw this Beetle on the road that just made me smile. The Beetle had one sweet eyelash and she winked at me. ; ) All in all, it was a good 1st try.

Nature's Path

Today my brother-in-law and I took a six mile walk through the Hahn Wood's trail near Emory University leading up to Candler Lake.

Peachtree Creek was our guide through the tidy walking trail and along the way we found beautiful blue birds, geese, and turtles lounging by the creek.

If you look closely you can see the 3 turtles on the tree branch over the creek.

We mainly walked in silence taking in the gentle lull of the creek and making sure we didn't take a fall on the muddy patches (big rain storm last night). However, both of us got a kick out of running across the suspension bridge and feeling it give beneath our feet.



This picture is of the suspension bridge in the spring/summer.
Last year the Atlanta Outdoors Club also hosted a walk through the park.

Sometimes it's easy to forget that even in the chaos of the city you can find these stunning retreats to escape to. We promised to do it again and now have a list of "must do" walking trails throughout the city of Atlanta. These trails will help us get ready for our Yellowstone and Inca Trail trip this summer. I will keep you all posted on our progress... tomorrow we conquer Stone Mountain!

View of Stone Mountain Park. Picture found HERE.