Category Archives: Travel & Leisure

Texas Road Trip During COVID-19

 

A TX road trip is never complete w/o a pit stop to Buc-ee's!
A TX road trip is never complete w/o a pit stop to Buc-ee’s!

Stay Safe. Wash Your Hands. Wear A Mask.  These are the most common words we hear this year.  Thanks to COVID-19 our lives will never be the same.  In my world, travel is a huge part of who we are in my family. We love adventure and experiences.  Plus, sometimes we just need a little break from every day life.  Since hopping on an airplane is not so fashionable, we are now opening our minds up to some convenient road trips. Honestly, since we have a toddler who cannot sit still, short road trips is truly the way to go for us anyway.

 

Hyatt Lazy River
Hyatt Lazy River

First stop this year we chose San Antonio. This is a place we can go to many times and have a different experience each time.  Since most large public places are closed such as Sea World and Fiesta Texas, we chose a hotel resort with some amenities to keep us occupied and safe.  We tried out the Hyatt Residence Club at Wild Oak Ranch.  In a perfect setting, this place has all you can offer to a family. They have a golf course, put put, fire pits, pools, slides, horseshoe games and corn hole, sand volleyball, restaurants, club house, and more.  But due to social distancing restrictions the only attractions open were the golf course and the lazy river.  We seriously went just for the lazy river!  It was awesome!

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Aspen Adventures

Aspen 2019A Schmidt family trip to Aspen to celebrate our son’s 1st birthday, why not? After all, he only turns one once! We wanted to go BIG for our ONE and only! Even though it was considered “off season” in early October we felt like we got the best of both worlds!  Our first few days we caught the Fall golden foliage… then it snowed! It’s like Fall and Winter all packaged in one week!  We stayed at the Hyatt Grand Aspen which was centrally located….a perfectly walkable spot and convenient to everything! We felt blessed! Our three bedroom unit had a balcony facing the pool, it had a cozy fireplace in our living room and bedrooms, plus the kitchen / dining / living room was spacious.  And, travelling with a kid we were very grateful for the washer and dryer.  No joke, out little one blew through 3 outfits just from Houston to Aspen!  We made the mistake of renting a car and driving though Independence Pass….that very narrow, winding, high elevation route made our son VERY car sick.  Oops…we won’t make that same mistake twice!  Gorgeous scenic view, but it was NOT fun.

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Heroes And Handbags Kickoff Event

Ashley Seals, Hannah Thibodeaux, and myself enjoying the event!
Ashley Seals, Hannah Thibodeaux, and myself enjoying the event!

A sassy crowd on Thursday, September 26th at the 29 North boutique located in the Post Oak Hotel in Houston for the kickoff to Heroes And Handbags event benefiting Heroes For Children.  Heroes For Children South Texas Manager Meredith Segal and this year’s Heroes And Handbags Event Chair Ashley Seippel welcomed guests as they sipped, shopped, and were entertained with a mini fashion show and lesson by a local style expert on “color blocking” which is the current trend.  Think paring bold colors like green and yellow or pink and orange.  Have fun with the color wheel she tells our colorful crowd!

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Feeling Blessed At Priest Lake

priest lake 2019 hills resortA treasure in my family for generations is the opportunity to visit Priest Lake, Idaho. My father, keeping tradition alive, rents cabins at Hills Resort during July and again in September and shares this sweet spot with our family and his special guests.  From Houston we fly to Denver then to Spokane, Washington then take a 2.5 hour scenic drive to Idaho.  Nestled near cities you might be more familiar such as Sand Point and Coeur d’Alene,  consider Priest Lake the “Crown Jewel” of the Idaho Panhandle! The history of Priest Lake dates back almost 10,000 years at the end of the ice age. Glaciers once covered this area. Jesuit Priests would eventually settle the lake in the 1840’s and the rest is history!  Literally, I tell anyone I know that this is the only lake that I trust!! Ha Ha. The water is crystal clear.  I grew up on this lake water skiing, jet skiing, boating, and swimming.  I never once felt a fish nibble on my toes.  Besides boating, the area lends itself to outdoors seekers for hiking, fishing, motorbiking, skiing, and snowmobiling.

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Seductive Sedona

Sedona 2019 red rocksEnter the trance of exotic Sedona, Arizona.  A flight to Phoenix then a few hours drive, you will enter this fire-like magical wonderland.  A peaceful place, many come to meditate, hike, retreat, and heal.  There are magical powers we hear coming from the five area vortexes.  A many “psychics” call this place home too.  They must know something?  I really wanted to find out, but it will have to be a reading on another trip!

My husband just celebrated a “round” birthday.  So, we decided to take a nice vacation to a place we have never been.  So, Sedona here we came!  And, somewhere not like Vegas I might add!  It did not take us long to agree on Sedona, and the Hyatt Vacation Club Pinon Pointe was perfect for us and our sedona 2019 hyatt+1!  Located in the heart of the city, walkable to restaurants and attractions, we could not have landed in a better place.  Breakfast and Starbucks coffee at 7am, then a dip in the pool, then exploring the beautiful town and surroundings.  Not a bad view anywhere, including the gas station! Also, the property had an activities center which included ping pong, pool table, free internet, grilles, and a fire pit.

Since we have an 8-month old son, we knew this trip was more of a test than a full on eventful adventure.  We used our days to discover what we  can do in the future!  Hiking is definitely an attraction, including their “pink jeep” tours, helicopter tours, river rafting, etc. We very much enjoyed just driving our rental car anywhere and everywhere.  Popular sites include Maroon Mountain, Thunder Mountain, Coffee Pot Rock, Cathedral Rock, Snoopy Rock, and Bell Rock.

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Galante Wine Gang

galanteOur trip to Carmel By The Sea would certainly not be complete unless we did some wine tasting! California does produce some of my favorite wines.  I was born in CA so perhaps their grapes are in my bloodline? LOL.

There are wine rooms on every block in this town.  We took a stroll into the Galante Vineyards tasting room.  There was a good social echo coming out of their propped open door.  It sounded inviting, so we literally followed the vibe thinking, we’ll just pop in for a minute.  Well, that minute lasted more than an hour and before we knew it, we tasted all kinds of wines from their extensive library, nibbling on cheese and snacks, chatting up the locals, and hanging out with wine guru Jack Galante himself! His family is some of the original founders of Carmel.  They have a deep history here and it was fun to hear his stories.  Did you know that a woman’s high heels is banned in this town?  A funny local law that is still in place but not enforced.  LOL!  Ok, back to the wine.   Our tasting only cost $30 by the way.  Not a bad deal at all!

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Carmel By The Sea: “Name That House”

Scenic Road
Scenic Road

My recent trip to Carmel, California was a real sea breeze treat!  Besides losing power at our highlands resort for 1.5 days due to bad weather, the stunning scenery was magical.  We even caught a glimpse of a rainbow a time or two!

The realtor in me had to take a road trip to Carmel By The Sea to check out some Pacific Coast real estate! Sotheby’s has an office in Carmel and Monterrey so I can help you with your RE needs here if you are looking, just an FYI!  Alongside Carmel Bay on Scenic Road we drove our rental car up and down and weaved in and out of the adjoining streets.  Look at this house as my main photo for this story!!!  This was by far my favorite.  Unobstructed views for miles out Continue reading Carmel By The Sea: “Name That House”

Louis Vuitton Launch Party

Photo booth fun with Laura Cernock, Hannah Thibodeaux, Anna Kaplan, and a snapshot with Tenley Huste
Photo booth fun with Laura Cernock, Hannah Thibodeaux, Anna Kaplan, and a snapshot with Tenley Huste

Louis Vuitton just got “smarter” but it comes with a hefty price!  July 12th I attended the launch party of the Tambour Horizon Watch at the Louis Vuitton boutique in the Houston Galleria.  All I can say is….WOW!!!  Apple you have some BIG competition in the smart watch division.

Sipping on champagne and cocktails mixed with music provided by a resident DJ made for a mix and mingling fashion forward unveiling event!  My friends and I had a great time browsing the latest inventory, socializing with fashionistas, and of course getting familiar with the guest of honor….the Tambour Horizon watch! Thank you Tenley Huste aka Regional Retail Training Manager of Louis Vuitton for presenting to us all of the benefits of this savvy new gadget! It’s a game changer!

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Relais & Chateaux World Tour: “Europea”

Me and my hubby indulging in Europea's 12-course chef's dinner
Me and my hubby indulging in Europea’s 12-course chef’s dinner

I recently traveled to Quebec in Canada and fell in love!  The whole Province is French speaking and everything about Quebec is simply charming.  The architecture, rich history, food, art, and culture, it is not what I expected for Canada.  My first stop was to the city of Montreal , and on the first night my husband surprised me with a romantic dinner at a renowned Relais & Chateaux restaurant.  I did not research for this trip at all (and on purpose) and had zero expectations, and I had no idea what was in store!

europea relais and chateau foodWe pull up to Europea in a charming neighborhood.  I am immediately drawn to the old world look of the building.  When we enter they take us upstairs to an intimate table for two.  As I look around I see a few couples, some business people, and all looked very entertained and pleased.  I glance at the menu (in French) and before I had to make any decisions my husband said “Let’s have the chef’s tasting dinner!”  Lo and behold, a 12-course meal was in queue plus wine pairing!  Celebrity chef Jerome Ferrer and his team of highly trained and engaging servers certainly put on a show.  An almost theatrical kind of affair one would say.  Each course had a surprise.  Courses were served in books, boxes, clay pots for us to hammer open, there was steam, and fire, and grand finale cotton candy trees.  Every plate was a work of fine art and tasted delicious.  They love their fois gras in this town and their dessert too.  Plus, the wines they chose were absolutely exquisite and the perfect enhancing match for each entrée it was served. We were overly stimulated I must say but in the best way and they even sent us home with wrapped gifts!

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John Hardy Workshop Tour In Bali!

john hardy workshop 1My love for John Hardy jewelry is so strong I had to fly across the world to Indonesia to visit their workshop!  Ok, my husband and I just happened to be honeymooning in Bali and lo and behold the jewelry company has a workshop in the country hills of Ubud on the island of Bali!  How convenient and coincidental for us!  “Rich in nature, beauty, creativity, tradition and culture, Bali continues to be our universal source of inspiration,” says the folks at John Hardy. It is known as the island of wonders.

john hardy workshop2Talking about entering a magical land!  This place might just be the most zen work environment I have ever experienced.  Taking it all in this atmosphere beyond the rice and bamboo fields is enriched with greenery and traditional Bali-style buildings. They have animals onsite such as rabbits for compost and every day over 700 workers are fed a wholesome vegetarian lunch prepared on property using fresh farm ingredients.  My hubby and I also experienced the sumptuous al fresco dining experience. It might have been the freshest meal I have ever enjoyed and in the company of the workshop’s senior management! Side note….through John Hardy’s  “Jobs for Life Program” they provide vocational training, financial support, and job opportunities to disadvantaged Balinese orphans.

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