Travel, Runs, and CLE's Favs!!!

Hey friends!

I have been seriously slacking with the busy schedule I took on this year but on the plus side school is going great! On to my third class...business law...lots of reading. I thought going back was going to be a hard transition but so far so good. My goal is to get an A in every class. The goal is still going strong!!! I have kept up with new workouts and have a couple 5k runs and a relay marathon booked for the summer/fall. We are traveling a bit this year, I will keep you all posted on the best stops in our travel zone and of course the wonderful stories with them.

If you are interested in joining, the following runs are:

Color Vibe, Akron 5K color run on April 27, 2013: http://www.thecolorvibe.com/akron.php You are able to donate to varies charities  Our group has picked the Ronald McDonald House in Cleveland and the local charity for Make a Wish. You can donate to the local charity the run has picked which is the Akron Food Bank. Our team name is Every Weekend Homies, if you would like to join please let me know!!! The more the merrier. 

The other is the Akron Marathon on September 28, 2013. I have my cousins wedding this same day so it should be pretty interesting day but I am very excited for my first marathon. Here is the info if you are interested http://www.akronmarathon.org/team-relay/

DON"T WORRY we will still be going the 5k for the yearly Making Strides Against Breast Cancer. They moved the run to October. Once the date is confirmed I will start posting. Thank you again to everyone that donate last year and that was a part of the team. We raised over $2,000 last year and hope to double it this year. 

OH and lots of recipes to come....I have been experimenting!!!

2012-The Year of Change-

Happy New Year!!! I took a break during the holiday season but I wanted to get right back into the blogging for the new year. Last year I started setting goals for myself. Not so much resolutions but ways I wanted to change my life. 

I wanted to become stronger spiritually, mentally and physically. I kept the goals broad to see what I could accomplish, and I have to say it was a successful 2012.

Spiritually, I started going back to church a year prior to 2012 but I wanted to increase my knowledge in the Word, get more involved and change my thinking. To my surprise I wasn't the only one. In February a few of my friends and I started a bible study and it has been going strong ever since. We have welcomed new members along the way. Side note is that I have been friends with these ladies for 2-6 years. We started talking and realized we may not all be the same denomination but we all wanted to learn more. Our bible study has raised money for families in need during the holiday season both in our area and internationally. We have donated to families with children in the hospital that are part of the Ronald McDonald house. It amazes me every time I think about how blessed we are to be able to help others and each other. The bible study was not my only spiritual strength I learned this year, it was one of many. The one that has been a testimony to myself and my husband is our finances. I wasn't planning on sharing this but if it helps someone else....why not? I gave our finances to God about a year ago. As a result we have seen Grace, favor and prosperity in every area of our life. 

We had gotten ourselves into a substantial amount of debt. In less than 2 years it is almost gone. Mostly due to the blessings from this year. In a few short months we will be debt free. This is just one example of many. Our house payment has been lowered to a third of what it was before.We have had debt free vacations and another debt free Christmas. We are truly blessed and I could not thank God enough. 

Mentally, I have changed my way of thinking...staying more positive and forgiving others. I also started taking business classes. Ohh and I start Grad School next week!!! We decided to travel more with friends and family. We went to Nashville, Morgantown, Key West, Gatlinburg and Pittsburgh. Lots more to come in the new year. 

Physically, I don't set goal weights anymore. My work requires a certain BMI but I noticed when I focused more on that it was harder for me to lose the weight. This year I wanted to become stronger, healthier and more fit. I learned about clean eating and we are working on complete clean eating for both of us. I pushed myself with weight lifting and running the end result is a 10 lb weight loss in 2012. I weighed myself today to confirm!!! should I have lost more? Well sure but I also had a lot of fun and travel this year lol. 

For 2013 I am magnifying my goals from 2012. I plan to grow more spiritually, straight A' s for my MBA program, travel to three new places, run a half marathon and sign up for warrior dash. Stay tuned to see how the journey goes :). 

Love you all and may you have a blessed new year!!!

NE OH spot of the week: Playmakers Sports Grille

Ohhhh what a weekend. A wedding and tailgating! As you know my husband DJs the home games at the PIT. I did not make it at 7:30 in the morning but non the less I got there at 11:00am. I am sooooo glad I did not miss my boys play! Our first W for the season. More to come...I can feel it! Around half time we headed back home but decided to stop at Playmakers Sports Grille. 

I give this place a 3.5 star rating. 

The food was good and moderate price, the fog horn under the bar after every touchdown was great! They got really excited at one point and horn was going off for every 1st down. 

The service was good but I was surprised you needed to print the yelp deal. Side note-They don't offer the special for Sunday games. At least this was my impression.

HD TVs everywhere and more seating in the back. On Monday night they offer FREE beer until the first team scores. We will be back on Monday night football!

It is worth checking out, located in Garfield Heights right off Transportation Blvd.

http://www.playmakersportsbar.com/

CLE spot of the week: West Side Market

West Side Market

The best part of this blog is it is about living life to the fullest. Believe it or not there are people out there that live in Northeast Ohio and no nothing about it. 

The city of Cleveland is usually one that gets a bad reputation. The city has a lot to offer-great restaurants, local markets, art walks, local runs, sporting events (I know I know even if our team is not that great it is still fun), museums, historical venues and much more. 

I hope to showcase that for you every week with a new place to check out in CLE and places throughout Ohio.  

First up the West Side Market. I usually shop here every week. Here are some tips for shopping at the market and a few of my favorite vendors. 

Tips and Timing:
The market gets packed by 10am on Saturdays no matter what the weather is like. It will not slow down until after 2pm. If you want good deals go around 4pm. The vendors are trying to get rid of their products by the end of the day. Otherwise I recommend going in the morning prior to the rush. Total there are three lots you can park in. If you go at noon you are going to park on the street. 

Top Vendors:
When walking in from the main parking lot the top two vendors for produce are located right when you walk in. The first one is located on the left aisle. They will be your first vendor on the right. Everything is local and organic. Their herbs are $1 each and fresh, you can not beat that! 

If you go straight (a little to the right) the first vendor on your left has excellent pricing and local produce. Make sure no matter what stand you go to check what you are buying first. Once they get to know you they will hook you up with great deals. 

Gyro Stand

Get there before noon. I would try for 11am. I recommend trying these Gyros at least once! It is worth the early lunch. I have not been here since I moved out of Tremont but the line is always long. I assume they are just as good!

Smoothie Stand

A little on the expensive side but it is a tasty treat! All fresh and local fruits. Note:It has the ability to rejuvenate any fun you had the night before :) 

Popcorn Stand 

Over 20 flavors to choose from. Free popcorn samples (to see which one you like of course). 

There are more vendors to choose from and you will get to know your way around after a couple of visits. If you are familiar with the market share who your favorite vendor is! 

Pulled Pork Recipe

Hi friends! 

I told you I would share my pulled pork recipe, here it is!! It is a favorite and affordable. I usually spend $15.00 to feed 10-15 people with 3-4 lbs of pork shoulder.

Easy Crock-Pot Pulled Pork

Ingredients

1/2 Cup Ketchup
1/3 Cup Worcestershire
1/3 Cup Apple Cider Vinegar
1 Tablespoon Ground Mustard (optional)
1 Tablespoon Garlic Powder
1/2 Teaspoon Paprika
1/2 Cup Sugar/Cinnamon Mix
1/2 Teaspoon Liquid Smoke
Red Chili Pepper Flakes (add to your liking)
Little season with Salt and Pepper
1 Medium Sweet Onion, Chopped
3-4 Pounds Pork Shoulder, Trimmed of Fat.

1. Combine all ingredients except for onion and pork into crock pot. Whisk all ingredients until well blended.
2. Place pork and onions into mixture, coating both sides of meat.
3. Cook for 8 to 10 hours on low or 4-6 on high.
4. After meat is cooked, remove from slow cooker onto plate and break apart with fork. If meat has any bones, discard.
5. Place meat back into warm sauce to reheat.
6. Serve on hamburger buns or Kaiser Rolls and Sweet Baby Rays if people like more sauce.

Optional: I usually top the sandwich with coleslaw (recipe below)

This is ALWAYS a crowd favorite.


Coleslaw Dressing

Ingredients

1 c. mayonnaise
1/2 c. sugar
1/4 tsp. salt (or to taste)
1 tbsp. white vinegar
1 tbsp. white grated or pureed horseradish
1/4 tsp. celery seed

Blend thoroughly and chill.

Hope you enjoy!!

Bye Bye September, Hello October

Hi Friends!!

September was a busy month-fall festivities, beginning of football season and a trip Gatlienburg, TN. I have said it many times and I will say it again I absolutely love fall!! To start off the Fall season my husband and I went to a few of our local favorite places and of course the Brown's home opener. One of the places if Patterson's fruit farm. If you have not been than you must go! The apple fritters alone are worth the trip. We take our God daughter every year but we went a bit early this year so we will be making our way back this weekend. 

Feeding the goats at the Trout Club in Chardon, Ohio

As for the Browns games...we are die hard fans. We tailgate for pretty much every home game in the PIT with DJ B-low (my hubby). We are part of the greater Bacon Brown's backers-you will see a lot of these guys in the upcoming posts.

We finished up September with a trip to the Smoky Mountains. It is a great experience every time we go. Add this to your bucket list if you have not been there already!

Hillbilly Deluxe

Welcome new members! Just a little update, we finished up the summer at our friends' parents' cabin! Thank you again Jerry and Diana for letting us stay there. It was so peaceful and the perfect way to end the summer. We made some delicious food which I will share on the blog later this week...stay tuned.

Being surrounded by 25 acres of land with nothing to do but relax, ride ATVs, drink and have fun with friends was exactly what we needed. I came back from the weekend well rested and ready for the fall season. Of course we had to go to the air show as we do every year. My husband is a giant fan of planes...you will see this through out the year. Looking back on the summer we did quite a bit and only more to come this fall. 

Enjoy the pics from our hillybilly deluxe weekend!!

Our lovely dog Harley!!!

Hubby getting in some
target practice!