Bless Your Heart

Living out loud in the Carolinas

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January 2026
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  • Disney Fantasy/ Florida Trip Day 3

    Today we woke up early, had breakfast, and checked out of our hotel. Then we drove from Winter Haven to Kenansville, Florida. I had a big day planned for us and we had a reservation at 12:30 PM. It took us about an hour and a half to make the drive through central Florida. Lots of small, rural towns, no highways. On the way there, CSP said to me “You’ve researched this place right?” He was a bit nervous. Finally we turned down a two lane road and saw a sign for our destination- Wild Florida! We parked and went inside the gift shop to check in for our 12:30 air boat ride. We had about 45 minutes before the boat ride so we checked out the animal exhibits. You could spend all day there just looking at all the animal exhibits! They have everything from raccoons to bobcats to albino alligators.

    Bobcat
    Albino gators

    We were blessed with another perfect day weather wise. It was mid 70s and partly cloudy. I knew it might get chilly on the airboat so I wore a hoodie. Neither CSP, nor I had ever been on an airboat ride. We waited in the designated area until our names were called then made our way down the long boardwalk to the dock and boarded our boat. There were about 10 people on our boat plus the captain. We had a quick safety talk then popped on our protective headphones and we were off!!!

    Our captain was Captain Lauren and she was amazing! She knew all sorts of facts about the wildlife and could spot a gator from a mile away!

    The boat ride was on a HUGE lake called Lake Cypress. It’s amazing what those airboats can do! Captain Lauren drove us right over all sorts of vegetation and in water that was only a couple feet deep in places! At the start of the ride we saw our first wild animal- a cow! Bahahaha!!! I couldn’t believe it! It was a cow in a lake! He was just munching on some vegetation apparently. I was worried he’d become gator food but Lauren said gators don’t bother with cows- they are too big.

    We would go pretty fast and the motor is super loud!

    We spotted a bald eagle too. Hard to see in this photo, but he’s there! Lauren said there are 24 nesting pairs that live at that lake.

    Apparently the main states where you can view bald eagles are Alaska, Minnesota, and Florida! Who knew???

    We would be flying over the water then suddenly spin around and Lauren would point out a gator. HOW??? Eagle eyes I tell you!!! We saw full grown gators, yearlings, and newborn alligators.

    Yearling gator babies

    Apparently alligators grow about a foot a year until they are full grown. And mama gators keep their babies with them for 3 years.

    adult alligator
    Look to the left and right of the tree trunk where the trees criss cross. You’ll see the newborn gator babies! Black bodies with yellow stripes.

    Our boat ride lasted a little over an hour. We had the best time and learned so much!

    After the boat ride, CSP made sure to take a couple of pictures of my windblown hair!

    CSP got a big kick out of that! We then hopped in the car and drove through the drive through safari. It takes about 90 minutes to get through and you get to see so many different animals!

    gators with green heads from the algea!
    I like this guy’s swirly horns and coloring
    zebras!
    Elk!
    Giraffes loving each other!

    When we were finished driving through the safari we drove to Cocoa, Florida (about an hour’s drive) and checked in at Holiday Inn Express, Cocoa. This is our room:

    Nice room, but the entire hotel smelled weird. I mentioned that on our post stay survey and they wrote back and said they’d just had their carpets cleaned and it left an odor. Odd. But everyone was really nice.

    After we checked in we freshened up then met up with another cousin of mine, John, and his wife Amy, plus their kids for dinner. It was so great to catch up with them and hear all about their recent Royal Caribbean cruise that I helped plan. After dinner we went back to the hotel and fell into bed. Tomorrow is another big day! We are embarking on our Disney cruise on the beautiful Fantasy!!!

  • Disney Fantasy/ Florida Trip Day 2- Part 2

    We freshened up after our Legoland visit and drove from Winter Haven to Lakeland, Florida. We went to Skate World to meet up with my cousin, Chanel. A little about Skate World- when I was a baby, my paternal grandfather bought and opened a skating rink and named it Skate World. My parents worked there when I was born. I was skating by age 2! A few years later, my Uncle Adonis bought the rink from my grandfather. Uncle Adonis was Chanel’s father. When I was a teenager I’d spend the summers in Lakeland and work at the rink. It was SO MUCH FUN!!! Back then there was orange and blue shag carpet on the walls and orange booths, also a real DJ booth where the DJs would spin actual records. During our breaks between skate sessions we’d play all the classic video games like Centipede and Ms Pac Man. It was an 80s DREAM!!! Uncle Adonis created a safe place for teens to hang out and became a beloved fixture in the community.

    Sadly, Uncle Adonis passed away quite a few years ago. Chanel, his daughter, took over the rink and in recent years did a big renovation on the building. I was SO excited to see the rink and show CSP the updates!

    The rink was closed as they had just wrapped up a private party, so Chanel gave us a private, VIP tour. It looks AMAZING!!!! I’m so proud of her! It’s so modern and bright and fun!!!

    All new neutral booths! No more shag carpet on the walls!

    The skate floor!

    Chanel designed the carpet
    The skate rental room

    The game room is so modern now. No more quarters needed!

    The prize counter.

    The party room with standard lighting…. and below- with the black lights!!!

    Chanel designed the wall mural too. SO cool!!!

    After our tour we went to dinner with Chanel at Spice Thai. SO yummy! We spent over 2 hours catching up. It was a lot of fun and was so good to spend time with my cousin!

    After dinner we drove back to Winter Haven and our hotel for bed. Tomorrow…. WILD Florida!!!

  • Disney Fantasy Bahamas & Florida Trip – Day 2, Part 1

    This morning we woke up early and had breakfast at the hotel. Then we drove about 5 minutes and we arrived at Legoland, Florida! CSP grew up playing with Legos and he’s always wanted to go to Legoland. We woke up to gorgeous weather and got to the park just after it opened. It was about 75* and sunny.

    I’d bought our tickets online and ordered a mystery Lego figure for CSP so we stopped in at the first store to pick that up. Every where you look at Legoland are Lego sculptures! Big, life sized ones, and small ones. It’s amazing!

    Legoland, Florida was built at the site of the old Cypress Gardens. You can still see remnants of Cypress Gardens, like this huge tree and the lake beyond.

    The crowds were blessedly low today, so we didn’t have to wait in line to see anything! We made our way through the park to Miniland, USA. Miniland, USA is a huge tented area that houses over 32 million Lego bricks!!!

    They have all these American icons like the White House and all the monuments in Washington, DC. New York City. Hollywood, California. Las Vegas, and more!

    After we explored Miniland, USA, we walked around the big lake and came upon the Pirate River Quest- a boat ride.

    That’s some good looking pirate booty!!!

    So we waited in a short line and boarded our boat.

    Each wee boat held about 8-10 people (mostly kids & parents), and a captain.

    We sailed through the jungle.

    The boat ride took us out into the larger lake.

    After our boat ride we walked through the original Cypress Gardens.

    At the far end of the path is the Banyan Tree. The biggest tree I’ve ever seen! It was brought to its spot in a 5 gallon bucket and grew and grew!

    You can literally walk through it!

    That Banyan Tree is so amazing!

    Before we left, we stopped in at the big Lego store and CSP bought 2 Lego sets- a Stitch Blockhead and a Lucky Bamboo. Here they are all put together plus his mystery characters that I’d pre-ordered and CSP picked out.

    All in all we had a wonderful, relaxing day at Legoland! By this time we were starving so we found our car (in the now full parking lot) and found a fantastic local restaurant called The Krazy Greek. I normally can’t stand a misspelled restaurant name, but this place is amazing! Such good flavors! 5 stars, no notes.

    Then it was time to go back to our hotel room to freshen up for the next part of our day! Coming up….mini trip to Lakeland, Florida!

  • Disney Fantasy Bahamas & Florida Trip – Day 1

    Today we hit the road for Florida! We have been waiting for this vacation for a long time- it’s been a year and 9 months since our last vacation! We had a long drive ahead of us, as it would take at least 9 hours plus stops to get to Winter Haven, Florida. We stopped at Buc-ee’s in St. Augustine and Daytona Beach, FL for snacks and gas. We had great weather for the drive down. It was slightly chilly today with mostly sunny skies.

    A note about this trip: I’m the vacation planner in my family (it is my actual job, after all), and I booked this cruise about 18 months ago. Since it’s just a 5 night cruise, I asked CSP if there was anything he’d like to do while we are in Florida. He had 2 requests- go to Legoland and go on an airboat ride. So I got to work researching and planning and that’s why our first stop is in Winter Haven, Florida instead of the usual cruise port.

    Once we made it to I-4 and the Orlando area, my GPS betrayed us! I followed the directions which told me to get in the toll lane. But the stupid toll lane ran parallel to I-4 and didn’t save us ANY time or miles!!! We’d missed rush hour so we didn’t need it! UGH! You KNOW I made sure to turn on that Avoid Tolls button after that!

    We finally made it to Winter Haven and our hotel- the Best Western Plus. We don’t normally stay at Best Westerns, as we normally stay at Hampton Inns, but it looked so good online and I got a great rate. CSP was a bit dubious on the drive down about the hotel. But we checked in quickly and easily. We went to our room and were pleasantly surprised! SO modern and new and clean and LARGE!!! Plus, the staff are great! And breakfast is free! I HIGHLY recommend this hotel!!!

    Plus, the bed was super comfortable- our backs didn’t hurt at all after not sleeping in our own bed!

    Loads of counter space!

    And a huge bathroom with walk in shower!

    Once we got checked in and unpacked a bit, we hit the hay! We have an early morning tomorrow- we’re going to Legoland!!!

  • Golden Bachelorette Finale Part 2!

    BBs! It’s here! Joan’s finale! We start back on the Windstar cruise ship where Joan is reeling in self doubt because Pascal just broke up with her and she feels unlovable. Poor thing! Nancy comes to comfort Joan and reminds her that she IS lovable.

    Next we go to Bora Bora with the final two guys- Chock (groan), and Guy. Ok, so Bora Bora is incredibly stunning and OF COURSE they are staying in those over water bungalows that cost like $30k a week! Shout out to Michelle! Bora Bora is her bucket list destination! You’ll get there one day!!!

    Joan has 4 children. One daughter, a son, and their respective significant others are there in Bora Bora to meet Joan’s suitors. Chock is up first. When he and Joan sit down with Joan’s kids Chock kisses her on the mouth, much to her son’s surprise! Joan’s kids get to spend a couple hours with Chock and they seem to like him a lot. They think he seems like a good guy and they can tell Joan is happy. But her kids don’t know the controlling Chock like I do!!!

    Then Chock and Joan have their final date. They are hanging out at Chock’s bungalow when Chock gives Joan a card and a heart key chain with 2 keys on it, signifying their future home in New York. You can tell this really touches Joan. Chock tells her he loves her. He tells her he wants to marry her and spend the rest of his life with her. Joan doesn’t say it back and this worries Chock.

    The next day is Guy’s turn to meet the kids. It’s pouring rain and Joan is on her way to Guy’s bungalow when she tells us she’s found love with Chock. DANG IT!!!! Joan breaks up with Guy and he’s so upset. He gets v emotional, then walks Joan out. As Joan leaves, Guy stand there crying in the rain. It’s so sad! I sure hope he finds someone soon!

    You can tell that it’s really hard for Joan to break up with Guy, and she does it in the most gentle way possible. She feels a lot of guilt having to hurt him.

    The next day is proposal day. Joan looks beautiful in a long, white, sequined gown with a floral accent at the neck. Chock is wearing a nice blue suit. They meet out on this tiny island where Joan is waiting on the beach. It’s a stunning scene! Chock makes a speech and Joan tells him she loves him. He’s thrilled and proposes. Joan accepts. The ring is HUGE and a beauty! The proposal is v sweet and I can’t help it, I cry. But I’m worried he’s going to be a control freak with her! He’s v forceful. Ugh- he better treat her right!

    Back in LA, Chock and Joan come out on stage and Jesse tells them ABC is sending them and their families to Walt Disney World!!! So fun!

    There’s a preview for Grant’s season and LAWD the drama!!! After this sweet season of the Golden Bachelorette that was drama free, I don’t know if I can handle a bunch of mean girls fighting over Grant! Yikes! But let’s be real. I’ll be tuning in. I can’t help myself!

    Until January, BBs. xo 🌹

  • Golden Bachelorette Men Tell All

    BBs I was so thrilled to see all of Joan’s ex-boyfriends again at Men Tell All! And you can tell that they are all so excited to see each other again! They really made TRUE friendships!

    The episode starts out with a retrospective that is so sweet! The brotherhood is for real for real. Jonathan is in the hot seat, then Mark, Charles, and Pascal. At one point Jonathan tells us that he’s met someone! Yay! But I thought he was going to be the next Golden Bachelor! So, who will it be?

    Joan comes out on stage, and you can tell she still has so much love and respect for all the men, and they feel the same about her.

    They show cute bloopers and a preview of next week (Joan & Co. are going to Bora Bora!!!). And that’s it! No drama (unless you count all the snoring)! 😂. Until next week BBs! xo 🌹

  • Golden Bachelorette Finale Part 1

    BBs I can’t believe Joan’s journey is almost over!!! This week we’re in Tahiti and it is STUNNING!!! Joan is based on a Windstar cruise ship. Nancy from the Golden Bachelor comes to visit and counsel Joan on the ship. Joan is still dealing with a LOT of guilt because she is feeling real feelings for these men and how can she when she still loves John? Nancy reassures Joan.

    Date with Guy:

    Joan looks amazing as she and Guy take a yacht out onto the water. They chat and go snorkeling and see stingrays (love!) and little sharks! That night at Fake Dinner, Joan tells Guy there will be no physical hanky panky. He’s totally ok with that and says he is looking forward to the emotional intimacy. They retire to an over the water bungalow. The next morning Guy says he’s falling in love with Joan.

    Date with Chock:

    Chock and Joan go riding on an ATV all around the island of Moorea. It’s so beautiful. Then they chat while having a picnic. Back on the ship at dinner, Chock says “I’ve grown to love you” and Joan says “I know you will never hurt me”. Chock is totally love bombing her. He’s reminding me of Sam M from Jenn’s season. Joan tells Chock no hanky panky and he says he’s perfectly fine with it. They go to their suite and full on make out!

    Date with Pascal:

    Joan and Pascal go to a Tahitian welcoming ceremony and feast, then they have a Tahitian bonding ceremony. It’s v beautiful but it totally freaks Pascal out. He keeps saying “I’m not ready” to the camera. That night on the ship Pascal tells Joan “I got scared today. I don’t think I can get tot the place where you want me to be. I care about you as a friend…but there’s no spark and I need that spark”. Joan is visibly shaken and hurt and you can tell she was NOT expecting this. She walks him to the stairs and they say goodbye. It’s v sad. Then Joan tells the camera she’s not lovable!!! That’s so not true!!!

    Next week is the Men Tell All and the rest of the finale. Until then BBs, xo 🌹

  • Golden Bachelorette Week 6 Hometowns

    BBs it’s Hometowns! This is one of my fave episodes because we get to see behind the veil! Let’s dive in!

    First up we have Guy in Nevada. Joan and Guy take a boat out on Lake Tahoe and it is STUNNING there! Just gorgeous! I didn’t know Lake Tahoe was so large! Joan and Guy make a wish on the lake and throw in coins. After they chat for a while at a table on the beach and then go off to Reno to meet Guy’s family. Guy has a large family and everyone is so nice! They all love Joan! Everyone is so sweet. Guy admits he’s falling for Joan. He even sheds a tear. It’s sweet.

    Next is Pascal in Chicago. Joan and Pascal meet up at a coffee shop then go to his v busy and v large salon. Everyone is mobbing them with hugs and greetings. Then they go meet up with Pascal’s family and friends. His children are there and they are so cute! Plus his little grandson who is adorable. Pascal’s children fall in love with Joan and are so welcoming! There is a super sweet moment between Pascal and his son Maxim where they both get emotional and it really tugs at ye ole heart! Joan is not sure Pascal is ready for love.

    Jordan also lives in Chicago. He and Joan eat their way through the city. Although, honestly I don’t know how Jordan ate a THING with those EXTREMELY TIGHT pants on. These pants are v distracting because….let’s just say Jordan is super excited to see Joan and it SHOWS all day!!! He’s excited on a bridge while they eat cake. It’s a LOT. They meet his family, who is v nice. Joan is worried that if she picks Jordan he might not pick her back. This makes her v nervous but Jordan is excited again when he walks her to the car. Gross I tell you!!!

    Lastly we go to Wichita, Kansas for Chock. He takes Joan to meet up with his family and friends and BOY it’s a large group! Like 30 people! There’s a ceremony where they plant a tree in honor of Chock’s recently deceased mom. It’s v touching. I’m not the biggest fan of Chock though. Too salesy. Of course everyone loves Joan and is v welcoming.

    Rose Ceremony

    Chock gets the first rose. Jordan goes home.

    Next week….we are FINALLY leaving LA! Off to Tahiti!!!! Wooot! Chock says “She better accept my engagement”. SIR. That is not ok! I told you I’m not a fan!!! Until next week BBs! xo 🌹

  • Golden Bachelorette Week 5

    BBs! It’s been a busy week and I wasn’t able to watch right away on Thursday. A thousand pardons! So let’s get into it! First of all, this is the last week before hometowns. Now, they shorten the length of each Golden episode to half of a regular episode, and now they’ve shortened the season too?? Come on ABC!

    We begin with Joan meeting with Trista and sharing that she is still feeling guilty about dating again after the death of her husband. Which is totally understandable. Trista reassures Joan and it’s time for the first date of the week.

    Keith 1-1

    Keith and Joan take a helicopter ride over LA to a winery. They do a wine tasting and Keith gets vulnerable with Joan talking about his ex wife, who’s an addict. Keith had to raise his daughters on his own because of his ex-wife’s addiction.

    Back at the mansion, Mark is struggling with guilt over dating again after his wife’s death. Then he sees a hummingbird and feels it’s a sign from his wife that it’s ok for him to get back out there.

    Group Date

    Joan and the guys go bowling. Pascal is not impressed with the bowling shirts “they aren’t Gucci or Prada”, but he wears his anyway. Chock is campaigning hard for Joan to take him to hometowns. He’s hogging all of Joan’s time and literally has her cornered on the bench so no one else can talk to her. I don’t like it. He’s being possessive and weird. I’m not getting a good vibe from him. The other guys are annoyed by Chock’s behavior and let him know. He doesn’t care. Jonathan shares some family photos with Joan during some one on one time. It’s v sweet.

    Mark 1-1

    Mark and Joan spend the day on a yacht. There’s a LOT of uncomfortable, awkward silence. They just don’t have chemistry. Finally, Jesse sends them on a scavenger hunt around the yacht that forces them to answer questions and open up to each other. Then the conversation starts flowing.

    The next day Joan comes to the mansion to talk to Mark. She tells him she needs him to be farther along in his journey than he is and sends him home. It’s v emotional. She tells him he’s such an amazing, kind man. I’m glad she didn’t make him sit through a rose ceremony since she knew he wouldn’t be staying. I think he needs someone a bit younger than Joan. She’s 61 and he’s only 57. He was made a widower at such a young age! I hope he finds a good woman soon!!!

    He goes inside and tells the guys he’s going home and there’s not a dry eye in the place. Lots of hugs and I love yous. I know I’ve said it before but these are just SUCH good guys! Well, most of them. Apparently Guy’s ex wife filed a restraining order on him and he admitted he acted in a not so great way. Yikes.

    Rose Ceremony

    These men received roses and are going to hometowns: Pascal, Chock, Guy, and Jordan.

    Going home: Keith and Jonathan. I’m SO SAD about Jonathan going home! Maybe he could be the next Golden Bachelor!!! What do you think BBs?

    Next week is hometowns and I’m so excited!!! Until then, xo🌹 .

  • Golden Bachelorette Week 4

    It’s another emotional episode BBs!!! Let’s dive right in!

    Group Date

    Kaitlyn Bristowe joins Joan and the guys at a theatre where the Chippendale dancers come out and put on a mini show. The pros teach the guys some dance moves and then it’s time for our guys to put on a show! They are all raising money for Stand Up to Cancer tonight, which touches everyone since most everyone knows someone who’s fought cancer. Joan lost her husband to pancreatic cancer. All the guys are SUCH good sports and they do a great job dancing and stripping! Ha! Especially Jonathan! He is like a pro!!! He strips down to a gold speedo. He’s in fantastic shape! Charles and Gary both rip their shirts open and off and it’s hilarious!!! The guys are all dancing all sexy up on Joan. They really do a great job!

    Afterward Joan chats with each guy. While Joan is chatting with someone, the rest of the guys are just all soooo nice to each other- SO different from the regular bachelorette where the guys are all sniping at each other. These guys genuinely care about each other.

    Joan and Gary FaceTime Gary’s son for his son’s birthday. That’s really cute! Chock gets the group date rose. Joan says Chock is the first person she can see a future with since John died.

    The next morning Chock gets a call that his mom has passed away from stage 4 cancer this morning. All the guys are supporting him and comforting him. Chock decides to leave. Joan arrives for a date with Jordan and Chock meets her at the car. He tells her what’s going on and that he has to leave. She is v supportive and understanding, although she’s v sad. Chock leaves.

    Jordan 1-1

    Joan and Jordan go to an ice skating rink that is all decked out like a winter wonderland- it’s so pretty! They ice skate for a little while until Jordan wipes out pretty hard. Then REO Speedwagon (who knew they were still alive and kickin??) put on a private concert for them! It even snows! Jordan gets the rose.

    Guy 1-1

    Guy goes to Joan’s house and they cook a nice lunch. They make a lemon chicken pasta. Guy shares that his marriage ended after 34 years because his wife just said one day that she wasn’t happy. They tried couple’s counseling but it just didn’t work out. Guy gets the rose.

    Back at the house Mark is talking to his daughter Kelsey and her fiancee Joey. Mark sounds really happy to be here and excited about Joan.

    It’s time for the Rose Ceremony Cocktail Party and Chock comes back! Joan is so happy! Going home today: Gary, Gil the stalker, Dan, and the sweetest man alive Charles L!!! Charles and Gary need their own show!!! All of the guys are telling each other they love each other and are so sad to leave each other! It’s soooo sweet!

    And that’s it for this week BBs! Until next week! xo 🌹

January 2026
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