Friday Fun Day

Sometimes, you just need to be a kid!

Yeah, I know, these pictures aren’t real great.

Well, just pretend I’m a little kid today, sharing with you my new fun surprise!

“Look, everybody! 👀 👀

I’ve got GLOW IN THE DARK chocolates!!

Woohoo!”

… and my grown up kid self says, “And it was all on clearance for $1.20/bag!!” … 😉

What will you do today to remind yourself of being a kid??

Have a great Fun Friday!!

Whimsical Wednesday

*yes, this pic has markup to protect identity and privacy.

What we will do for our children and our pocketbooks…

These little gems cost me about 45 minutes of search this morning, as I dug through 4 bags of trash (2 recycle and 2 NASTY), only to realize my son and I had had a miscommunication! 😳

I hadn’t accidentally thrown them away the other day; his dad had, and they were simply in a much cleaner bathroom trashcan rather than the great big garage trashcan of kitchen trash! 🤦‍♀️

I am so very thankful, but Wow. Not exactly the Whimsical Wednesday morning I had been looking for! I am so grateful to not be headed to the dentist for a $300 replacement pair; however, I about lost my lunch, or rather almost didn’t eat lunch, over that little treasure hunt!🤢

I do hope your Wednesday was much more Whimsical than what mine was, and if not, we always have next week to which we can look forward!😉

Tuesday Treats #190

Luciano’s Ristorante Italiano

Location: Lawrenceville, GA

*Oops! My apologies for the delayed post!*

We visited this restaurant quite a while ago, and honestly, we weren’t highly impressed on the first run, but this return visit is proof that, sometimes, you have to try a place twice to be sure it’s not a place you will actually enjoy. This time around, it was quite amazing! I gave a review then, and you can read about it here.

The only drawback I can see is the seating in the house. There are no booths, all tables and chairs. It’s very much a fancy cafe style setting (white tablecloths), and if you like that, then you’ll have no hesitation. My husband, son and I prefer a bit more cozy settings, but we did get a table in the corner, against the wall, and it was perfect.

Once seated, we were greeted by an incredibly friendly server, and we ordered a Caesar salad, lasagna and two small pizzas, one with only pepperoni, and the other with pepperoni, mushrooms and peppers (they do yellow peppers here instead of the common green). Everything was absolutely delicious. One interesting thing this restaurant does is if you ask for crushed red pepper, they bring you a huge bowl of it! (See pic) I wondered if it was “fresh,” because of how it was served, but I forgot to ask. It provides just the perfect kick for our pizzas, and our youngest enjoyed the fresh Parmesan they brought him as well. The pizzas are cooked in a wood fire oven; so, they have that delicious brick oven flavor. The Italian bread and dipping sauce, marinara and spices, is incredible. The lasagna is savory, meaty, cheesy and scrumptious.

I will have to say, the desserts were the “icing on the cake,” no pun intended. I had a cappuccino, and we ordered the zeppole for everyone to enjoy. Oh. My. What a delight! These ricotta cheese filled Italian doughnuts with Nutella were phenomenal. We definitely made ourselves overstuffed with those. The cappuccino was yummy served with a crunchy and very tasteful (cookie) biscuit.

I’m so glad we were in the area, in the mood for Italian and decided to give this restaurant another shot. We will definitely be back!

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Friday Fun Day

Somedays, you just need to put in your fuzzy lounge pants and fuzzy socks, grab a hot cup of coffee (or tea), cover up with a warm quilt, and curl up with a good book or a classic movie…especially, when it’s cold and rainy outside!

Can you feel a Friday Fun Day comin’ on?

Let’s go! 😊

Whimsical Wednesday

Maybe it’s a bit colder than you’d like

Maybe it has a bit more rain

Don’t let the wind hold you back

Never let the wet lead you to lack

A brighter day is just around the corner

A shinier future is just around the bend

If life feels a mite disappointing right now

Just step back and blink; you might just say, “Wow!”

Penned – MG – 11/12/19

Friday Fun Day

When you go on a little birthday celebration trip, and dad says, “You can fill up a cart with anything you’d like.” So, they use “1/2 buggies,” as I call them, to complete the task, and they get as many items as they possibly can, especially those that I won’t normally buy for them!

Now, that’s what I call a Friday Fun Day! 🎉

… even though, it was Thursday night…just a few hours early! Lol! 🤣

Whimsical Wednesday

The weather is fine

Let’s go and dine

Let’s go and have an adventure

Before all the leaves turn to winter

The drive is divine

We don’t need the wine

We don’t need the activity center

As long as with love we can venture

Penned – MG – 11/5/19

Tuesday’s Treats #188

Bare Bones Steakhouse

Location: Buford, GA

*If you’re a regular reader here on Tuesday’s Treats, you will recognize this name from a post quite a while ago, Tuesday’s Treats #28. I am reviewing this again (or maybe just adding to), because we ate here again a few days ago, and it’s worth telling. Also, sorry for the lack of pics for this Tuesday’s Treats, we were eating with friends and enjoying such great fellowship, I didn’t pull out my phone even one time! You can see a few of the pics on the TT #28. 😉

This place is still ABSOLUTELY AMAZING! It is very rare that you can go to a restaurant over the course of several years, and it still be as good as the first day you walked through the door. Yet, this business is worthy of that notation.

We had quite an assortment of appetizers this time: fried green tomatoes, onion rings, fried mushrooms and cauliflower, BB shrimp and lobster rolls. A few of these items were on special; so, you may or may not find them on the current menu. Let me describe them to you anyway. The fried green tomatoes were made to perfection and topped with a homemade pimento cheese that has just a little kick which makes for a delicious combination. The onion rings are piled high and roped with Grana cheese, Georgia honey and red pepper flakes. This is a surprising blend of sweet and spicy that makes your taste buds long for more. The fried mushrooms and cauliflower are exceptionally good, and that is coming from a couple whose favorites aren’t in the mushroom or cauliflower departments. The BB shrimp are similar to a common spicy shrimp found in a nearby franchise restaurant, but in my opinion, these are a bit more crispier and tastier. The lobster rolls were a special being tested for the evening, and we were asked if they should add it to the menu. Considering, we ate six of the twelve brought to the table and consumed the last six the next day at lunch, I suppose, their answer may be found in the disappearance of those little goodies.

The entrees came next, and after all those delicious appetizers, I’m not sure how we consumed all that we did, but everything was incredible. We ordered pan seared salmon, filet mignon, NY strip and the Hawaiian ribeye. The steaks almost made you want to cry, they were so good, and the salmon was probably the best I’ve ever put in my mouth. It is made simple, pan seared with salt and pepper, but the flaky goodness of the salmon is rivaled as the best in my book of comparison. As sides, they served us fried okra, Mac and cheese, green beans, mashed potatoes and grits. There wasn’t one item that was just so-so or even below the top notch on the scale of perfection. It seems everything they do, from the greeting at the door to the goodbye is done with the utmost spirit of excellence.

Now, I cannot finish without describing the decadent desserts we had. As times before, I ordered the blackberry cobbler (in the little white crock), and I’m not sure it could have been any better. The fresh baked blackberries with the perfectly crusted topping just about sent me to heaven and back. (*Do be careful how quickly you take those first few bites. The crock definitely holds in the heat; it would be a shame to singe your tongue as you get started!) I still cannot believe I consumed almost that entire thing! My husband wanted a few bites, and honestly, I had to resist the thought of a selfish growl thrown in his direction. He ordered the special apple cobbler, also baked in those sweet little crocks, and it was just as scrumptious. It was almost a struggle for me to choose my favorite. Our boys ordered the flourless brownie and cream puffs, and let me pause right here to say, my whole brood of guys never want any kind of dessert described as “flourless” cake, believing it to not be of much tasteful worth; however, our youngest already having had this, knew what to expect. Well, let me assure you, there wasn’t a drop of chocolate left on the plate, and my husband had to instruct our youngest to slow down on his consumption. Our oldest thoroughly enjoyed the cream puffs filled with delicate, creamy, whipped chocolate.

If you haven’t been to this restaurant by now, you are surely missing out on a delectable and exquisite fare. Everything is still farm to table and a made from scratch precision. The staff is incredibly friendly; the manager, who is also the owners’ son, is engaging, helpful and enjoyably conversational, and the owners are kind and wonderful to meet, as well as, to get to know. Their business seems to be thriving, and I hope it will continue for many, many years to come.

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*I do not possess nor do I own this picture. This is from the website.

Friday Fun Day

What’s fun for one person may not be all that fun for another. Activities are subjective to the likes and dislikes of an individual, I suppose. What you enjoy doing doesn’t, necessarily, have to be perceived by everyone else as an exciting fan fare. Just have fun. Enjoy yourself. Even if you’re doing it alone, as long as you’re having fun, that’s what matters!

What are you doing on this Friday evening?

Are you with a group, with a friend, with a loved one or all alone?

Are you having fun?

Tuesday’s Treats #187

Four65 Woodfire Bistro & Bar

Location: Highlands, NC

This place is very nice, albeit a bit pretentious, but you are in Highlands, and that’s just a bit pro quo in the restaurant business. It’s a pretty new bistro in town and on of the few open for lunch on Mondays; so, we decided to try it out. The menu is incredibly limited, and the wait staff is a bit slow, but the food is delicious.

We ordered the Caesar salad and Margherita pizza with pepperoni. Both were very, very good, and if we want pizza again while in Highlands, we will be back. If you’re into wine, beer and charcuterie, this will probably become your go to. They seem to have quite the selection.

As this isn’t quite our style, the rest of the menu was a bit too selective. A handful of salads and pizza choices, and what is on the menu is what you are allowed to order. NO SUBSTITUTES AND NO CHANGES is marked clearly on the menu, and it’s accurate. Missing the note on the pizza line, “(One item choice),” we asked for two toppings instead of one, and we were denied. It just is what it is.

Like I said, the food was really delicious; so, please, don’t be put off by my honest review. It’s worth going one time, and that must be a common thought, because it was quite packed when we went; although, it is a smaller restaurant. The grilled cheese selection with the root vegetable stew did look delicious, as well as, several other plate that went by.

I do hope they do well. They are located right beside the very popular Old Edward’s Inn that has Madison’s and the Wine Garden Cafe (don’t remember official name), which has been open for years, and Wolfgang’s and Restorante Paoletti’s is just across the street; so, the competition is tight. I just wish the chefs/owners would realize a bit more variety might allow for a bit larger clientele; but then, what do I know, I’m just a Georgia girl who loves traveling to Highlands to enjoy the day…many times, eating somewhere else before we arrive.

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