Sunday, January 10, 2021

Sleep Inn Review, Millbrook, AL, Overnight Stay, Great Experience!

While en route to our destination, we normally stay at chain hotels such as Choice Hotels, Best Western, Marriot, the usuals. I generally do not review overnight stays. However, going forward I will pick at least one outstanding experience to feature on the site.
For the first overnight stay post, I have chosen the Sleep Inn located in Millbrook, AL. When we checked in at the Sleep Inn, the front desk attendant was super nice, and our check-in went smoothly. We made it to our room which was clean and well stocked with all of the standard necessities.

Much to my surprise, our printer was out of toner on the day we departed so I still needed to print our parking pass for our condo. After a failed attempt at using the computer located in the business center, the front desk was happy to help. She printed my document for me, and I was back to my room in no time at all.
The next morning, I went downstairs for a complimentary hot breakfast. They offered the usual oatmeal, yogurt, fruit, and a few pastries, but they also had biscuits. They had microwavable egg and cheese biscuits as well as chicken biscuits. I chose to combine the two and have a chicken egg and cheese. I also had a cup of hotel coffee. I am not sure if they use the same coffee as other choice hotels or if I really needed a cup of joe, but the coffee here was surprisingly good. I even took a cup to go.

We had been driving for around an hour when I realized that I had forgotten something important back in the room. It was something we could not leave behind, so we phoned the front desk and made our way back. The morning desk was just as nice and helpful as the night desk had been.

If I rated things on a star system, then this hotel would receive 5-stars. If I ranked from one to ten, then this experience would receive a ten. But I don’t, I simply share my experience and this experience was a good one. If you are in Millbrook Alabama, do not hesitate to stay at the Sleep Inn.


Monday, December 28, 2020

Road Trip Games with Kids, Scavenger Hunt, I Spy, Punch Bug, and More!

As our winter road trip approaches, I am looking forward to the fun times we will have while traveling. Over the years, we have become quite good at passing the time by playing silly road-trip games. 


Playing games while traveling is a great alternative to spending time on your phones, tablets, and gaming devices. By choosing to play interactive games over electronics, you will lower your overall screen time as a family. You will also spend more time laughing, enjoying each other's company, and making memories.

I Spy

This is a classic game that many parents have played with their children. I Spy is a really simple game that can be fun for all age groups and is easy to play when confined to a small area. I will give the description below, but seriously, who hasn’t played I spy? 

How to play:
Youngest goes first by saying “I spy with my little eye, something…”, complete the sentence with a color. The other passengers then start to guess what the object is until one person guesses correctly. The person who guesses correctly then gets a turn to spy something and give everyone else a chance to guess.


I Spy Animal Edition

For this version of the classic I Spy game, the spy does not need to see the animal but only think about it. The possibilities are limitless but for younger players the animal variety may be slightly smaller. This becomes a great teaching moment by simply showing them a picture of the animal on your phone or tablet. 

How to play:
Youngest goes first by saying “I spy in my mind's eye, an animal that is…”, complete the sentence with the color of the animal. The other passengers then start to guess what animal the person is thinking of until one person guesses correctly. The spy usually gives fun clues along the way until one person guesses. The person who guesses gets a turn to spy something and give everyone else a chance to guess.


Road-side Scavenger Hunt

This has quickly become one of our favorite games to play when traveling backroads or side roads. This fun and easy travel game allows us to really focus on the world around us and find some really interesting things. Not to mention we get to take a break from the near-sited tablet and give our eyes some much needed far-sighted exercise.

How To Play:
Simply make a verbal or written list of things to look for as you drive. Some of our favorites are, green mail box, barn with red roof, pink house, yellow car/truck, a tractor, etc. Keep in mind that it is fun to put some wierd but fun things on the list. At some point along the way, trust me, you will find it. Each time that someone does spot an item on the list, everyone celebrates like crazy. Everyone except the driver of course. 

The License Plate Game

This is a great way to pass the time while driving. By the end of your trip, you may be surprised by how many other travelers you share the road with. 

How to play:
Each passenger will look at the license plate of passing cars. Each new plate is written down by a family member. At the end of the trip, you can tally them up to see how many states were represented on your trip. This is also a good game to play when stopping at rest stops, gas stations, and restaurants. 

Create a playlist

This started a few years back when my wife and I were planning our wedding playlist. Since then, this has become a sort of a road trip tradition. To do this, we simply start a Spotify playlist or modify an existing one. We each name songs that we like or have recently heard and after listening to each one we add it to the list. This is fun because we all have different tastes in music but we tend to like all genres. Our playlist will typically be filled with bluegrass, country, rock, and pop. Yes, we are a slighty weird family. 

How to play: 
Press play.


Dot to Dot Cheaters Addition

Dot to Dot is a game that my mom taught me when I was around 7 years old. It is a lot of fun when traveling because the sheet typically gets passed from the front seat to the back seat. Inevitably, my son will begin to make an extra line or two to get a couple of extra spaces. It is no surprise that his favorite game is Monopoly Cheaters addition. This game usually turns into a lot of laughs, but rarely it turns to huge argument. But in my opinion, every road trip needs a good argument.

How to play:
Simply make dots on a page, or print out several pages to take with you. Each person connects one line segment anywhere on the board. Eventually, boxes will be formed and whoever makes the box puts their initials in that box. The person with the most initials on the page wins the game.


Travel Bingo

This idea expands on the earlier mentioned license plate game. For our upcoming road trip I created travel bingo boards. The boards take on the appearance of classic bingo accept each square is filled with a state. Each time we see a license plate with that state we will each mark it off on the sheet. The first person to get 5 in a row wins. Whoever is in the passenger seat always helps the driver.

Punch Bug 

This is a classic game that my family has played for years. We generally don’t “punch” each other as much as tap, but we keep score to see who wins. We have made up some additional rules such as, 2 points for a vintage bug. We also add bonus points for things like convertibles or less common colors. To further complicate things there are made up penalties that causes the game to get completely silly. Needless to say, there is never a clear winner. 

How to play:
Each time you see a Volkswagen bug, tap the person next to you and say bunch bug. Only one tap if it’s a newer model, two taps if it’s vintage, if it’s pink then you get a third tap or maybe more. Be careful though, if that pink is a debatable shade of purple you could get a penalty and lose a stroke. On a side note, pictures of VW beetles shown on billboards or in magazine ads count too.

 

This vintage, multi-collor bug, with read wheel, a sunshine and flowers painted on it, should be would at least 5 points!   

 

Thank you for reading, please add your favorite road trip games or ideas in the comments! 


Tuesday, December 22, 2020

Maggiano’s, Little Italy, Nashville, TN

Maggiano’s Little Italy, located in Nashville, Tennessee has always been one of our favorite Italian restaurants. My go-to dish is the Ziti while my wife's favorite is the lasagna. Both are great and you will not go wrong by choosing either of these great Italian dishes. Maggiano’s is consistent; they use the perfect amount of flavorful Italian sausage and fresh tomato sauce in both dishes. 


Based on my experience, if you dine at Maggiano’s you will not leave hungry. If you do get hungry later, no worries, you will likely have a take-home portion riding home in the back seat. For years, the taken home portion was included in the price of your entrée. I am sad to say that the days of the free lunch are gone. Maggiano’s now charges five dollars for the take-home portion but it is still a great value. 

Maggiano's Taylor Street Baked Ziti

As our appetizers, we chose the calamari and stuffed mushrooms. I have had better calamari but the mushrooms were just short of being a delicacy. Speaking of delicacies, Maggiano’s offers a dessert sampler that allows you to choose five smaller portioned desserts. I highly recommend the sampler. My family of five split these up and in the end; I was able to try the crème brulee and the butter cake. Both of these desserts were delicious but I think I prefer the butter cake a little more.
 

If you have not tried Maggiano’s in Nashville, please do yourself a favor and make a reservation today!