Amy J. Bennett

This is the report of my other blog where I spend most of my blogging time.

This will be a short one.  As predicted, July was not nearly as good as June.  Ads just weren’t good although in good news, page views stayed up if not went up.  We almost had 1 million hits for the month and averaged almost 31,000 page views a day.  To say I’m happy with that is an understatement. I can’t imagine when the season starts!

Unfortunately ads weren’t as good and I didn’t get paid as well for all those page views like I did in June.  Also, I upgraded the server again so I’m now paying $165 a month for that.  In really good news, the site is lightning fast.  So the final tally is right over $1,000 which believe me, I’m ecstatic about!  The way I look at it is June paid for our anniversary trip and July paid for my ring.  Not bad for blogging about a tv show, huh?

I got the call today.  The one where a very nice lady called from the AT&T store and told me that my shiny new white 16GB iPhone was patiently waiting in the back room for me.  I had to force myself to stay at work and not make the 30 minute trek across town to rescue the little guy from his new white box.  But alas, work and little people I call my children had to take priority and I had to wait until this evening to claim it.

Three hours later I’m STILL syncing.  Something weird happened after it first activated.  It must have gotten impatient and shut itself down in the middle of restoring.  It came back up with my apps installed but had decided to leave out my contacts and music.  Weird.  At this point I’ve reactivated the sync hoping it will be a patient little phone so I can burn through the battery in a matter of hours tomorrow.  It may be acting a bit testy here at the start but I just know we’ll be BFFs soon.

Unfortunately they don’t allow any electronic devices in The Spa so I don’t have a single picture to share.  If you google it on the web, you can find a few and I can say I will vouch for all of them.  Sometimes hotels can make something look better than it is, but really this is as good as it looks.  There was stone and beautiful wood everywhere.  The lighting was low, the music was nice, the sound of the waterfalls in the pool area was so relaxing.

So about half of the spa is a women’s/men’s only section which I guess surprised me. I thought we’d be able to do it all together but not so.  In there you have upstairs with a locker room where you are given your own robe and slippers for the day, a set of showers and bathrooms where they have everything from shampoo and razors to combs and body lotion for you to get ready with, a waiting area plush with leather chairs, blankets and a fire place, and then downstairs which includes the dry sauna, a eucalyptus steam room (way too hot for me) and a set of contrast pools as well as another set of shower.

Also downstairs is all the treatment rooms which has another waiting room with chairs, blankets and a fireplace for couples.

In the mixed area, underneath the glass roof, you have two pools and two hot tubs.  The first is a lap pool that is 84 degrees and has water playing under water.  The second pool is a mineral pool at 88 degrees and also has water playing under water.  Then there are two theurapeutic hot tubs.  Basically the are halfway under the rock and they each have two waterfalls down into the water where you can stand under them and let them massage your back.

Outside there is a large hot tub as well as chairs and sets of tables.  Most people seemed to eventually congregate there as there was a waiter outside taking order from The Spa Cafe.

That is basically the rundown of the place.

When Scott and I got there, we went in the hot tub for a bit before going to our couples massage.  Two ladies did our massage.  We were in the same room with our heads towards each other.  We were however, about 6 feet apart.  We may as well have been in separate rooms.  Didn’t have too much couple in the couples massage but that is the ONLY complaint I have about it.  It was absolutely wonderful. I actually enjoyed it much more than the hot stone massage I had done locally.  These people were definitely there to make you SO happy.  Any whim you had, they were right here.  Some of the staff had in-ear communication device thingies so they could talk to each other.  There were at least two people just making sure the snacks and drinks were refilled properly.  The massage just about put me to sleep.  I really could barely talk when she was done. It was incredibly relaxing.  One of the first things people ask when getting one done is what, or what not, to wear.  I went nude and was completely comfortable.  They did some massaging in the hip area and it would have been impeded had I had undies on.  And they were extremely sensitive to your privacy and only took off the covers in sections and when necessary.

After the massage, they put us back in the couples’ waiting area, put neck roll thingies on us gave me a rose :).  It was a very nice touch.  I curled up with a blanket (which they sell for $200) and rested in one of the large leather chairs for a bit.

Scott and I parted ways then and agreed to meet back in an hour.  During that time, I grabbed a snack from upstairs and then tried out the sauna, contrast pools and steam room.  The steam room was unbearable.  I couldn’t breathe in there.  The sauna was nice but made me dizzy.  The contrast pool was basically a regular hot tub you are supposed to stay in for 15 minutes and then there is a 2ft round, 5 ft deep 64 degree thing you dip down in for 15 seconds.  It was cold!  I got down to my waist and that was it. Scott said he did it all the way twice and it literally took his breath away.

After that, we spent the next few hours in all the pools, hot tubs and outside.  We both have a nice sunburn to prove it.  I absolutely loved the music underwater. I have no idea but it was one of my favorite parts.  We seemed to gravitate towards the hot tubs as well.  Other than that, I really wished we had been prepared to lay out outside. I would have brought some music or some books to read.  We were a little bored just lying there after a bit.

After that, we went back upstairs and did our own thing. I sat at the fire and read a magazine front to back.  I haven’t sat and done that in FOREVER.  I also grabbed some tea and trail mix type stuff to eat.  I finished up by taking a shower and getting ready.  I walked out of the spa and Scott walked out at just the same time as me! Perfect timing as I had the room key in my bag!

I can’t express how nice the day was.  I think everyone should do it at least once!  If we were to do it again, I would make sure to take books, take sunscreen and plan dinner much, much later so we could spend more time there. I also might schedule another treatment later in the day.  Another lady told me the facials were wonderful.

So that’s about it, everything and more about our spa day!

I already know sitting here I can not do this weekend justice.  It was EXACTLY what Scott and I needed.  It was unbelievable.  I guess to start out I’ll go for a rundown of what we actually did..

Friday – We checked in and then went to a few local shops on a tip from Jenny O (thank you!).  We found an old metal glider there that we bought.  We had dinner reservations at 7 so we came back and got ready for that.  The restaurant was on a terrace and it overlooked the entire place as well as the nearby mountains.  The view was awesome, the food was awesome and I got my ring!

After that we walked around a bit and then headed down to the piano bar a bit early.  Maybe too early as we were the first ones there.  So much for cool points.  We were there to see the dueling pianos and stayed for about an hour and a half.  It was fun but I think might have been more fun with some friends or maybe some alcohol ??  We sang along and clapped and laughed but all I could think about was Simon telling them how they sounded like dueling piano singers and not in a good way.  We stopped at the bar and got a toffee bar cake we shared and then headed back to the room and enjoyed the chocolate covered strawberries and piano/nature sounds CD that my friend Melissa had delivered to us (major surprise and awesome!!)  We turned in pretty early as Scott had only 5 hours asleep that morning from working a 12 hour shift the night before.

Saturday – We had to wake up by 8:15 to get up and get ready for the big day at the spa.  We made some coffee, finished off the strawberries, packed our bag with a change of clothes and headed out.  I think I can make an entire post about the Spa. Let’s just say it’s one of the best experiences of my life.  Seriously.  We didn’t get out of there until 5.  At that point, we hung out in our room, took a little nap and got ready for dinner.  That night we went to a buffet.  Two entire rooms of food.  Just about anything you can imagine.  Among other things, I had shrimp, crab lets, prime rib, chicken, mashed potatoes, mac & cheese and dessert.  Yeah.  We were full.

We headed back to the room and changed, came back out and walked around a bit, grabbed a Daiquiri from the bar and then headed back to the room.  I think we were asleep by 11 again.

Sunday – We slept in this morning and got up just in time to get ready and head to brunch about 11.  Brunch was in the same place as the buffet the night before.  We got smart and asked for a window seat this time as it had a great view.  Brunch buffet took up 2 rooms.  I had a ton of stuff. I mean, really, just about anything you could think of you might want for breakfast they had.  It was amazing.

By that time, I think Scott and I were vacationed out.  We stopped by the store to get our glider and headed home!

Overall, the Spa was definitely the Star of the weekend.  It was just amazing. I really felt like a Queen for the day.  A very relazed Queen.  Scott was amazing the whole weekend.  He even got a few plates of food for me at the buffet on Saturday since I was a little self-conscious in my dress.  And if you know Scott, for him to stop and happily do something for someone else in the middle of eating a plate of food, well that’s just love there (well, and a lot of sex and a tight dress LOL).  It really was just what we needed though.  We had a great time together.  I don’t think we argued once and we were side by side for 48 hours :).

Here’s some other tidbits just as FYIs

• I guess I was surprised at the number of older folk there.  I’m not sure what I expected but we were one of only a few younger couples. The reason is pretty obvious with the next point.
• It is expensive.  When all was said and done, we paid $1600 for those 48 hours.  We had a package deal of two nights and Saturday’s dinner and Sunday’s brunch.  Other than that, we paid for the couples’ massage on Saturday which included access to the Spa all day, lunch on Saturday at the Spa, the cake Friday, the daiquiri Saturday and one gift at the gift shop.  It basically broke down to $415 a night.
• However, do not go there without going to the Spa.  It’s not the same without it.  It is worth every single little red penny you spend for that day.
• You can do the Spa without staying there.  We decided to definitely look into doing a B&B next time for a night and then spending the day at the Spa.  The room was nice but not that nice.
• Go in early fall. I can’t imagine how beautiful it would have been with the leaves changing.
• Ask for the new section.  I hear that over and over.
• Eat at the Sunset Terrace.  Scott loved the buffet but he loves food so that was paradise.  I liked the environment of eating outside.  Oh, and bring sunglasses.
• They have a Sports center where you can play tennis (indoors as well), ping pong, pool and they have a weight room with scheduled classes. I missed both their cycling classes I may have gone to (or not).
• I hear the golf is very good (although you couldn’t tell it by the guys playing outside our window lol) but I think it’s $150 to play.  Scott is not a golfer so I can’t provide any more info than that.

Here’s the whole set of pictures (adding captions there)

You may have missed the tweet about this ring while we were at the beach a few weeks ago.  I’ve been wanting a new set for a long time.  Ever since I had Lexi (I think) my original wedding set breaks me out.  I consider it a sign. A 2 carat would be expensive but not the ones from this site.

Well, I’ve been thinking our ten year anniversary is the perfect time to “upgrade”.  The store at the beach was the very first store I started looking in and I fell in love with this ring.  It’s actually three rings.  I walked back and forth down the cases and both times down picked out the same ring.  We talked numbers and it was definitely in our budget…actually only a few hundred dollars than he paid for the first one and he got that on a steal back when we were young.  Ok enough hints, we got this one for 1K!!  Can you believe it?  It has a multi-stone diamond on the top so it’s not as if it’s one huge stone but from a distance it looks like it!  I have no idea what the total size is or the clarity or any of that.  All I know is when he brought it back from the jeweler today after getting it sized, it fit like a glove.  Scott wouldn’t let me look at it again because he’s planning to give it to me this weekend when we go on a little weekend trip for our anniversary.

Our anniversary is not really until the 8th but he’s working next weekend.  This weekend we’ve booked two nights at Grove Park Inn in Asheville.  We’ve booked dinners for both Saturday and Sunday nights and brunch for Sunday.  Saturday we have scheduled a couples’ massage and plan to spend most of the day in the Spa.  That is literally part of the Spa we’re going to in the picture.  Wow, I can’t wait to get there!

The girls will be staying with my mom this Friday night and Saturday night with Scott’s mom so they are all covered and excited about it.  I think it will be a great weekend for all of us!

My family and friends that know me IRL will probably appreciate this post and add it to "the list".  Sometimes I try to make things a little harder than they are intended.  My mom and I were talking about this just the other night.  As she says, when someone says open a chip bag, just pull it apart, don’t invent some new tool that opens chip bags.  If someone says one thing, I take it ten levels past that on what they might mean.  Case in point, my mom asked me the other night to go for coffee which she has NEVER done and I thought someone was dying.  I still think I’m justified there, but anyway. 

This morning I was sitting in the kids’ bathroom and reading the back label of the kids’ detangler bottle as I’m wont to do while I *ahem* sit in the bathroom.  As I was reading along, it seemed to me that they had put both English and Spanish words on the label. 

 

 

So as I got here

I read the first line as "L’Oreal Kids Tangle (Tah-mar) is so gentle, it’s tear free."

as the word Tamer might have been Spanish.  Except I don’t even think that’s how you’d pronounce it Spanish.  Besides the point.

The second phrase wasn’t any better.

"L’Oreal Kids Tangle (Tah-mar) smells so good"

In my very small Spanish dictionary in my head I was cycling through what the word Tamer might be.  Because sometimes I do that.  I know.  No need to laugh.  I started to get suspicious of my thought process and why there might only be ONE Spanish word in the whole sentence and turned the bottle around.

Oh.  Tangle Tamer.  Got it.