E. L. Lane Writer

My husband, my three-year-old daughter, and I were in Key Largo visiting my in-laws, when my father-in-law suggested we go to a new restaurant where he and his wife had dined recently. I thought, YES! I can take a few pics for a quick review on my blog . My previous blog posts included beautiful photos of mostly uneaten food because these were times that my husband and I had gone on date nights. But this time, I had a very different experience. My daughter is on a nap strike (or is perhaps weaning herself off of naps altogether) at the moment, and she will fight sleep like it’s her arch nemesis, so her mood during our meal changed from moment-to-moment and fluctuated quite drastically. I’ll be including a description of my toddler’s mood at each stage of the meal, and, as an extra bonus, an actual pic of my little munchkin at the very end. We arrived at Sundowners and the sign immediately stood out to me. It shows sun setting into a calm, blue ocean with the s...

Contents are more delicious than you expect . After our two-hour spa retreat and lunch in Coral Springs, and our stay at a hotel in Fort Lauderdale , we head back to Miami. But before picking up our toddler from grandma and grandpa’s house, we decide to make a quick stop for a snack at Honeybee Doughnuts . There was a line, so I read the menu patiently and tried not to drool. They serve special doughnuts (not on the menu) that are available only certain days of the week. It’s almost my turn and I notice that they have two Fruity Pebbles doughnuts left, and I intend on ordering one, but the family ahead of me, takes both of them. Nooooooooooooooooo… Taken from:  https://memecrunch.com/meme/BH5VM/noooo/image.jpg?w=400&c=1 You can read the rest of this post at  ellanewriter.com.

Image taken from:  https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/32/Hilton_Fort_Lauderdale_Beach_Resort.jpg This post contains affiliate links.* After our  two-hour spa retreat  and our delicious  lunch , we drive to the hotel. We already had our  Groupon  to stay for one night.*  We arrive at the  Hilton Fort Lauderdale Beach Resort  and the valet, Kathy, let’s us know that parking is available as valet only and costs $39 plus tax per night, but that we can go in and out as we please(The cost of parking was mentioned in the e-mail when we booked the hotel, but who reads emails anymore?). We give Kathy our car, and head for the lobby. We didn’t get a chance to check out the “‘smoking oasis,’” but it did pique our interest. It’s not a huge lobby, but it looks clean and smells fancy. We wait for our turn to check in. The pleasant woman checking us in at the front desk explains that our room isn’t ready ye...

Tijuana Taxi Co. Look at the pretty lights in the window. I was like a moth to an arc of colorful lights. After our relaxing 2-hour couple’s retreat , we had quite the appetite. We didn’t get a Groupon for lunch, but we did get a Groupon for the hotel (which we planned to check-in to after our feast; link to the blog about the hotel coming soon). As we were driving into the shopping center, we saw this place with colorful light arcs on the windows. Just like the spa, the exterior of the restaurant was underwhelming, except for those fun-looking colorful light arcs. Tijuana Taxi Co.? Is it a Mexican taxi company? No. It can’t be. So, I Googled it, and it was a restaurant! Say what?! I had to see what those arcs of lights were all about, so we walked over there. “Hi. Welcome,” said a waiter that stood by a group patrons seated at a table on the patio. We walked in, and a hostess greeted us, “Hi. Two?” She grabbed a couple of menus and directed...

Don’t be like me. Don’t judge this book by its cover. This post contains affiliate links.* Bored and stressed with the drudgery of the everyday grind, my husband and I agreed that it was time for a getaway. No toddler, dog, or responsibilities — only he and I. We wanted to do something relaxing, so we took to the internet to see what affordable options were available for a couple who wants to relax. I suggested a couple’s massage because what’s more relaxing than a couple of strangers feeling us up in the same room? (All joking aside, massages are a must for me — they’re like little stress release tune ups that I must have once or twice a year in order to function like an almost-sane adult human being, instead of an uppity adolescent porcupine.) We looked at Groupon and found a lot of inexpensive local couple’s massages, but one particular deal stood out to us for two reasons: (1) it was an hour away from our immediate neighborhood (Exotic, no?), and (2) it in...