Believe it or not, Austin has so much to do!  A must do is to visit breweries, distilleries and wineries! They are all around the same area, so you can just have a day trip and hop through them all!  All of the locations I mention below are dog friendly, just make sure to bring your best friend on a leash. 
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1.) Jester King Brewery- This one is my favorite! While I do not drink beer, their location is just spectacular. They are huge (so much land) and you can literally be there all day!  There are various picnic tables in the sun or the shade and people even host events there such as birthdays or bachelorettes! Jester King offers food, so don't worry about being hungry! They also serve wine for those like me, that aren't into beer. Their Rose is just delicious. 
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2.) Treaty Oak Distillery-  Treaty Oak is sweet! Firstly, their spirits are quite tasty.  But you can have a tour and then have a tasting, yum! They have a bar area that is covered but without walls, so therefore you won't find A/C in this area.  But, it is set up so nicely with very cool comfy sofas and even TVs! Perfect for Sunday Football. They also have a restaurant that serves great food. For those that want a family fun day, there is a play ground for the kiddos as well.
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3.) Solaro Estate Winery- This winery is very pretty and laid back.  If you are wanting something more intimate and/or romantic or even just a quite place for a nice conversation, I would recommend this place. Their environment is just phenomenal, calm and relaxing. Their wine selection is fantastic.  Make sure to book your tour ahead of time!
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4.) Deep Eddy Vodka Distillery-  Deep Eddy is must! Because let's be honest, their Vodkas are SO GOOD!  Going to the distillery and doing a tasting and drinking the cocktails is a lovely experience.  While this distillery isn't very big, it is still a great time. There are bean bag toss games to make it an even greater day.  They also have a food truck by the parking lot in case you get hungry.  
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​Those are my top selections.  However, there are plenty more that you can visit.  Remember to not drink and drive :-) Have a blast!

Since Labor Day is around the corner and Las Vegas is a very popular destination during this time, I figured I would share where you can get the best deals for some booze.  I mean who doesn’t like bottomless mimosas?  Here are my top 5 brunches:

1.) Terrance Pointe Café at Wynn- I will say I love this place.  The view is amazing, the food is great and you can get bottomless sparkling wine, Bellini AND mimosas for $22.00 bucks.  What a deal!  The only thing I will say is that some of the servers have a bit of an attitude and sometimes you feel rush.  That would be my only complaint.  But maybe it was just our waiter? I will say: we were outside, it was hot and I will give them the benefit of the doubt. But only this one time!

Everyone always talks about the extreme gain weight on a cruise.  I’ve heard people say the rule of thumb is usually 1 pound per day.  I have been trying to take care of myself this past month and I was a little nervous to gain weight as I had already lost 8 lbs.  Overall, I ended up gaining 1.5 lbs and only because the last 3 days I gave up and I wanted to eat some Jamaican food, some pasta and some dessert.  Hey 1.5 pounds it’s a lot better than 7 pounds!  Below are my recommendations:

1.)   Gym- The gym is absolutely beautiful!  The gym usually has clear windows that allow you to look at the ocean while you work out.  It is truly relaxing and breathtaking.  Get your day started by a work-out and follow it with the sauna and/or the steam room.  The cruise also offers classes such as yoga, aerobics and boot camp. 

2.)    Stairs- No one likes to take the stairs.  However, it is a great way to burn those extra calories!  Especially if you are only going 3 decks down.  Just remember that burning 3 calories is better than burning 0 calories.  They will add up!

3.)    Activities- The cruise ship offers various activities that are fairly active.  For example, you can do rock climbing, surfing, mini golf, volleyball, basketball and even nonstop dancing at the nightclub.  Participate in as many activities as possible.   

4.)    Food- Food is of course the hardest part of the trip.  You have to stay focused and committed. Everywhere you look there is food.  Even when you go to the dining room they offer you multiple meals.  We told the server we did not want dessert and he brought us 3 desserts!  They want you to eat as much as possible and it is so tempting.  For example, I would eat egg whites, yogurt and fruit for breakfast.  My lunch would be a salad without dressing, without cheese and with tilapia.  My snack was usually alcohol because who doesn’t want to drink on vacation?  My dinner was usually chicken, salmon, shrimp or lobster with a side of veggies and a carb.  My dessert was sherbet or sugar free ice cream.

5.)    Alcohol-  Alcohol is super high in calories especially if it is frozen or has juices.  Therefore, the best thing to do is drink the alcohol straight with lime/lemon, drink champagne or white wine.

Everyone wants to go on a vacation and eat and drink as they please.  However, if you do not watch yourself on a cruise ship you will find yourself gaining 1 to 2 lbs per day.   You can still enjoy some of the food as long as you stay active.   

On Christmas day, I woke up feeling very blessed and excited.  I was finally going to be able to meet the family I adopted on this wonderful day.  This is the first time I have ever adopted a family.  I have donated toys before and even volunteered in the past.  Therefore, this was definitely my first experience and it will not be my last. 

The family we adopted has been struggling for a few years and has not been able to provide their kids with any presents at all for Christmas.  Sometimes, they even struggle with food because their food stamps are not enough. I understand that Christmas has a deeper meaning than just presents.  However, these are kids that maybe do not understand that yet.  The mother mentioned that her kids would go to school and their friends would ask what they got for Christmas and they were never able to share those stories with them.   The kids would come home crying because they did not know any better. But this year, I hope I was able to change that!  The family allowed me to come into their home to deliver their gifts.  I bought them clothes, shoes and toys.  It was a family of 5 living in a two bedroom apartment but they truly looked like a happy family.  When the family saw me, they said I was their biggest blessing of the year.  I literally almost started crying and I truly got sentimental.  The kids seemed so happy, joyful and they could not stop smiling.  My heart was smiling super hard because I was able to make someone else happy and provide for them this Christmas.  The two oldest kids gave me a card and it truly touched my heart.  I wasn't expecting anything at all and these cards meant the world to me.  The boy even called me an Angel and it truly warmed my heart.  It was one of the best feelings I have ever experienced.  A feeling that I cannot even explain!  The only thing that I can tell you is that it was a GREAT FEELING.  I am truly blessed I was able to adopt them this Christmas and I am hoping I can adopt them for the rest of the year and help them as much as I can.

If you ever want to donate something for the family, please contact me.  They truly are such a wonderful and grateful family.

Note:  Thanks to everyone that subscribed to my blog! However, make sure you subscribe to my traveling blog.   Just click on Traveling Adventures and you should see the subscription box.   

I am sitting here thinking why do guys just stop talking to you and ignore you.  Is it that they are just boys and not really men? or maybe you are just a part of the game and being ignored is a part of their rules.  I totally understand that you can ignore someone depending on the circumstances.  But just random with no reason? Well maybe you do have a legit reason of why you are ignoring an individual.  But your reason should most definitely be shared before you take action.  You should at least grow some balls and say why you have decided to do what you are doing.  It is really hard for anyone to move on when you do not know what the reason behind someone's actions are. You give females, like me, a reason to retaliate.  Yes, revenge is sweet! Not good but sweet.  I am sorry, but me personally if you do not give me a reason I will do whatever it takes to get it out of you. When I say whatever it takes I definitely mean it.  I feel at the end of the day we should get as many answers as possible before being able to move on the right way. 

Explain to me, if you had the balls to approach a woman to get to know her why can't you grow some to tell her why you do not want to continue to get to know her.  Oh I think I know why, because you do not think with your head just your penis! Therefore, you have no balls maybe some raisins.  Guys are so backwards! Spit all that game for a number but do not spit game to prevent a female from going maniac on you when you mess up.  Did the mouse bite your tongue? Speak up!

I came to the conclusion that males are becoming the new female. The new female dog at that, poor bitches.  It seems like the trend is spreading pretty quickly and it is not very fashionable.  Snap out of it! You guys create monsters then the next man has to deal with them.  Would you honestly want your daughter to be dogged like that? How about being fucked and then then getting dumped?  I doubt it.  As a father you would want the BEST for your daughter.  So how about you stop treating females the way some of you treat them.  I hope that all of the guys that have treated a female wrong, played them or dogged them have a daughter; that gets done like or worse of how you've done us women.

I have yet found a man who is of his word and keeps a promise.  But I know they exist and they are just extinct. It will take the RIGHT man to prove it. 

Note:  Ignoring someone is not the right answer.  If you personally feel you got your point across and communicated with the other party then I can understand why you can ignore someone.  But sometimes when you do not give a person an answer, it can mess up their head, their way of thinking and the way they view the opposite sex.  Do not be a part of that.  Speak up the truth even if it hurts.