Dear hubby had a convention to attend near Jacksonville. I was able to go with him to the Sawgrass Marriott Golf Resort & Spa in Ponte Vedra Beach.
I have never been able to go with him on trips like this because of the kids being young & in school. But now that they are older it's easier to make arrangements.
Dear Hubby and I have NEVER been away together (alone) in our 25 years of being married! So I thought the time was right and his work paid for all the rest!
Our "villa" was just beatiful! Such luxury and being pampered was something I could get used to!
We had a one bedroom luxury style apartment.
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| Living Room |
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| Living Room |
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| Kitchen/Dining |
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| Bedroom |
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| Spa like Bathroom! |
I spent about 90% of my time on the porch. The weather was a perfect 80 degrees the whole time and I had a wonderful view of the water, a golf course, trees, birds and squirrels with plenty of peace and quiet!
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| Outside porch |
We were treated to dinner one night by a very generous CEO/Owner of a medical company to Ruth's Chris Steak House. This was the nicest, fanciest restaurant I have ever eaten at. They are known for the best steakhouse experience. The Prime steak arrives on sizzling 500 degree plate and offers a dining experience you will long remember. It did not disappoint!
We ate with 27 other guest and Dear Hubby has a hard time hearing in room with so much noise but he did ok with small talk and once dinner service started all talk halted anyways. We were served a limited menu but it was delicious!
We started with Shrimp cocktail and blue crab cakes. I LOVE both but the shrimp were the biggest I had ever seen. They were the size of chicken tenders. They tasted like heaven! The blue crab cakes were good, I thought they were very fishy tasting, I don't eat fresh blue crab very often so maybe that was why the smell was so strong to me. Dear Hubby didn't eat either since he will only eat seafood fried.
Our salad was a choice of either Caesar or a House salad with a balsamic vinaigrette. Dear Hubby & I each had a different one but my Caesar was better.
For the main course, we had a choice of stuffed chicken breast, salmon, petite filet or a petite ribeye. Of course we had the not so small petite 12 oz. ribeye . The most beautiful piece of meat, served on a sizzling hot 500 degree plate with butter. We had mashed potatoes and mushrooms served family style for sides but the best was they surprised us with their signature creamed spinach. The whole table laughed when I clapped with joy when the waiter brought out the creamed spinach. I make creamed spinach at least once a week at home. Theirs was very good but I really think I could give that chef a tip or two!
Dinner finished up with cheesecake with fresh berries which I did not eat. I try my hardest to make good choices with our Keto style diet and I am proud to say that in the last 10+ months I have not cheated. I've lost close to 50 pounds and I am not going to sabotage myself. Sticking to my way of eating is now easier after all these months and cheesecakes and sweets no longer tempt me.
I really enjoyed the experience for Ruth's Chris Steak House and now I can say I've been there and done that.
To keep with my sewing, I did sew a nightgown for the trip:
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| Satin & Mesh knit nightgown |
I used my TNT tank pattern, made it v-neck and sleeveless, empire waist, lace mesh skirt and serged all the seams. I didn't even hem the bottom. It's prettier on but that's not to be seen here!
The last night we went out with another group to Clark's Fish Camp. They are "Rumored to be one of the largest privately owned collections of taxidermy in the country, Clark's menagerie of preserved animals includes lions, tigers, monkeys, bears, giraffes, deer, bobcats, and a flock of birds that gaze eerily at guests in the bar area and dining rooms."
Clark's Fish camp was an experience I can't wait to share with my kids. This is a must see & eat at place! We all joked that for a 40 minute drive from the resort this better be worth it and it was!
This restaurant/bar/museum/oddity sits ON the water. Not near or next to but ON the water. It was dark when we arrived and I think that helped with the mystery of the place. It's so full of everything your eyes can't land in one place long. After walking through the bar of cypress tables and stools the server walks you through a museum of china plates with different fish displayed in rows from the floor to the ceiling. I'm sure there were over 300 plates.
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| Clark's Fish Camp-Entry Hallway |
Once entering the dining room it's like WOW!
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| Welcoming Opossum |
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| Dining Area |
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| Dining Room |
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| Wow! |
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| I'm thinking this is me protecting Dear Hubby................ |
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| More amazements |
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| Wow! |
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| Photo shoot? |
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| Beautiful! |
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| This one is alive! |
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| This giraffe was HUGE! |
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| A truly amazing collection |
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| Dear Hubby doesn't like bears, this one was for him! |
The bathrooms didn't disappoint either, but I didn't think it was appropriate to take a photo in there!
The food was very good & so many choices. There was seafood anyway you like it and exotic meats (I don't think so!) This is a definite come again.
I must say for my first mini-vacation is was very nice & such a treat.
But I want to go home and see Girl M & my Bobo and my own bed and my sewing room!
Until next time......
Bonnie
