jillivictorio@gmail.com / October 6, 2018

District Preview and Chef’s Tasting Event

The Restaurant District brings chef-driven cuisine to the Shops at Willow Bend, opening mid-to-late October. As part of a $125 million renovation, The District adds a unique dining experience to Plano and the North Dallas area. Leading the culinary side is Knife, a steakhouse by celebrity chef John Tesar, along with local favorites Terra Mediteranean and Whistle Britches. So when we were invited to experience a preview of The District and private Chef’s Tasting of these upscale eateries, I knew we were in for a treat!

When you enter the District plaza, the courtyard is stunning. Landscaped grounds with a water feature, modern architecture, exterior art, outdoor decor with modern accents welcome you to a unique dining experience and a an environment where family, friends, and communities can gather, discover, and share.

The courtyard at the District is bright during the day and lights up at night setting the tone

The evening started with a cocktail reception in the courtyard followed by the first tasting from Mexican Bar Co. Cocina, then Whistle Britches, and finally Knife. The evening culminated with live music and a fireworks finale.

Outfit Details: asymmetric slip skirt , Booties: Spendid LA, Sweater: Zara

The Chefs

First tour and plated tasting at Mexican Bar Co. Cocina

Mural art along the perimeter walls of Mexican Bar Co. Cocina

Second tour and plated tasting at Whistle and Britches

Third and final tour and plated tasting of Knife

Knife ranks #1 in Texas and #6 nationally for best burger! Photo by Carter Rose Photography

The star of the show for me was the burger at Knife. Simply the best. Don’t get me wrong, I love me some Shake Shack, but this burger is just special. There are no bells and whistles. It’s just pure 44 Farms beef, thick, salty, with a pure, clean meaty aftertaste, topped with two slices of American cheese.

All the new restaurant additions are perfect for casual dining with friends for breakfast, lunch or dinner. Reservations are not required so you can pop in after work on the weekends, or before a game. Opening mid-to late October.

A brief description of what you can expect by the amazing chefs from Knife, Mexican Bar Co. Cocina, Whistle Britches and Terra Mediterranean, which will all be opening in phases throughout this month.

Knife – @KnifeSteakhouse

Chef John Tesar (@ChefJohnTesar)
Knife offers state-of-the-art steaks that guests can either enjoy in the dining room or take home and cook themselves. Knife Burger offers walk-up burgers, shakes and fries. This is the second Knife location.
Opening date – mid October

Mexican Bar Co. Cocina – @MexBars

Chef Patricio Sandoval
Mexican Bar Co Cocina brings authentic Mexican flavors to Plano. The Picnic will offer walk-up tacos and Mexican street foods. This is the first Mexican Bar Co location.
Opening date – mid October

Terra Mediterranean – @TerraMediterranean

Chefs Adam Shanaa and Jalal Chanaa
Terra Mediterranean serves classic and authentic dishes featuring staples of the Mediterranean diet. Terra offers a lunchtime buffet and terrace-level patio seating. This is the third Terra location.
Opening date – late October

Whistle Britches – @whistlebritcheschicken

Serving the tastiest, juiciest and crunchiest bird in town; the pickle brined bird, farm-fresh ingredients and soulful cooking will leave you wanting more.

Thank you Shops At Willow Bend for having us for a preview of your new restaurants and delicious tastings! The District at Willow Bend is just what the North Dallas area desires for a place to gather with family and friends, and a new retail plaza serving the DFW metroplex as a dining destination. I wish all the restaurants all the best in success and I hope to see you all soon for many memorable meals.

Go taste and see for yourself when the restaurants open later this month and let me know what you think!

jillivictorio@gmail.com / August 20, 2018

We Bought A Cabin!

After nearly 2 years of searching, and a few close calls along the way, I finally found the cabin I loved and we were fortunate enough to close on it last month. It’s a cute and cozy A-frame on Harstine Island, nestled in the woods above the Puget Sound and Case Inlet –pinch me!

My heart was really set on a waterfront beach house or cabin. We spent many months on and off looking at several properties around Puget Sound, before deciding to start searching around Hood Canal and South Puget Sound with beach access, and boy are we glad we did! I spent some summers in my youth at the Canal so I’m familiar with the area and have gained a better appreciation for it as I got older. The water body temperature of Hood Canal is considerably warmer than other Puget Sound regions, allowing for comfortable swimming and water activities. Hood Canal is a 2-hour drive from Seattle which isn’t too bad if you’re looking for a weekend getaway, and access to fresh oysters from the beaches is a bonus – I LOVE oysters. We stumbled upon Harstine Island by way of our Shelton and Belfair search. I had never heard of this island before and learned that it was connected to Shelton via a bridge. Shelton is part of Hood Canal, often referred to as the Gateway to the Olympics, and is commonly known for its Taylor Shellfish Farm empire. Harstine Island itself is more remote and an insanely beautiful, quiet, peaceful area. While most of the properties in that area weren’t any where near our price range for a second home, this one popped up and we had an agent video tour it for us immediately, loved it and put an offer in that day!

Here are some things we considered:

1.) Our family isn’t getting any younger. John would fish 24/7 if he could, and Jonah and Baron would BE fish is they could. We all love the water and we try to get on it as much as possible. The Pacific Northwest is our first and original place we call home and we wanted a place to come back to during the kids summer breaks. We want to invest in our family….and we feel a cabin will create some fun memories for us.

2.) We view it as an investment. Not only is real estate property always an asset, we also want to make some updates to the cabin and rent it out a portion of every month and as a summer Airbnb vacation rental. We have an opportunity with a great platform to reach a large audience who may want to enjoy cabin life and beach living as much as we do….and the fact that we can potentially have a cabin that could pay for itself, WHILE we still can enjoy it? It’s a win-win in our book! As we look to the future, this could be another great opportunity to generate additional income while not taking away from our family.

3.) Accessibility. I love riding the ferries, but I was looking out for the ability to rent it out and the accessibility factor for potential tenants and guests for this home. Not having to rely on a ferry schedule was one less thing I had to worry about when managing a vacation rental from out-of-state.

As avid users of Airbnb, VRBO/Homeaway ourselves, and working in the OTA industry for many years, I felt I had a good grasp on what it would take to manage and market a property of my own from both the traveller’s perspective and from the accommodations side.

With all of that thinking…a lot of discussing and researching, we purchased the cabin for exactly what we were hoping to get it for.

While the A-frame alone excited us, what sold us was the beach access and private community. The beach! I grew up in Seattle, and even having lived in the NW all my life, I’ve never seen anything quite like this beach and forest combination in a unique island community. The water and salty air is just as crisp as I remember, and the view of Mt Rainier is remarkable.

Our plan is to Airbnb it (listing here!), then rent it out (you’re invited!) and continue to enjoy it as a family, too. We already spent a wonderful weekend here with the kids and are looking forward to making more memories starting now. While this post doesn’t include any mood boards, my plan is to produce a cozy cabin vibe. We love the natural wood walls in the main areas and can’t wait to add in more modern, nautical style touches to our forest island getaway. Here’s how it looks on the inside now.

The front door, per se, is actually in the back of the cabin, and upon entering, the wood paneled walls and wood floors and bright room is the first thing you notice.

The cabin came furnished and I packed and travelled with my own decor items, some of which I’ve had in storage and some I acquired and saved knowing that we’d own a vacation cabin one day. The only items I needed to buy were the essentials: linens and towels, toilet paper, paper towels, soap, etc. Thank goodness for AmazonPrime! I wonder if the driver was beginning to think I was a crazy lady ordering every day all day with packages arriving every day when we were at the cabin.

Small yet functional kitchen. The a-frame windows really bring in a lot of natural light.

The main floor bedroom also has a door to the bathroom.

The bathroom had an older sliding shower door that we removed and replaced with a curved shower rod and a crisp white shower curtain.

The fun part is the loft. I wanted to create a fun sleeping space for the boys and with kids in mind decorating with fun modern nautical decor. The colors are classic and fun for any age and gender.

Loft or kids sleeping area

The Community

As a bonus, the cabin is in the Hartstene Pointe community, a private gated community with tons of amenities we knew the kids would enjoy as would we. There is a seasonal outdoor heated pool if the kids ever get tired of the beach (highly doubt it) but nice to have the option, along with a children’s playground and a clubhouse with a library, pool table, ping-pong, foosball and good old-fashioned board games. There is also a boat launch, a marina, picnic areas and gazebos on the beach, sports courts, a lagoon and spit, walking trails, and miles of private beach. The island is home to many wildlife with deer, fox, eagles, and cougars, while the Sound is home to the occasional orca sighting.

Puget Sound Case Inlet on the North Point

The boys loved the pool and playground and we think our guests with kids will love it too!

The photo above is the from NWMLS and is the perfect gathering spot for summer bbqs.

During our first week at the Pointe, our nightly routine consisted of going down to the beach after dinner to play in the sand, hop on the rope swing, play in the fort and watch the sunset.

We even dug for dinner one of the nights – fresh clams off the beach!

This is the entrance as you enter the island. How cute is the oyster shell covered median with a little row boat? Of course we had to get out of the car for a pic!

A couple of months ago we celebrated our 10th anniversary and throughout the past ten years, I’ve learned that anything feels possible with John by my side. We are so excited to be able to create a place for not only our family to enjoy, but for any of you to eventually come and experience, too. It’s something I’ve wanted to do for so long and I can’t wait to get started. Now, pass me a hammer!

Thanks for reading and following along this new project as we enter the world of vacation home ownership. Follow @harstineislandbeachcabin on Instagram!

jillivictorio@gmail.com / July 24, 2018

Aulani Anniversary Trip

Photo by Disney Aulani, by @lottiedoesdisney

It’s already been one month since we’ve returned from another amazing week in Hawaii, staying exclusively at the Disney Aulani for our family vacation, and the kids are already asking to go back. As we save up and plan for our next trip, I love that we have all these fun memories from this vacation that the kids can remember and talk about from photos taken and stories told.

From our first visit to Aulani last spring of 2017, we fell in love with the resort and immediately knew we would return the following year to celebrate our 10^thwedding anniversary. The week was nothing short of amazing. From the service to the food, drinks, hospitality, and activities, we could have easily spent an entire week here and still not get to do/experience everything. The weather was a perfect 85 degrees all week – a nice break from the 105+ degree summer weather in Texas! My only complaint is that there’s never enough time in the day to enjoy all that this resort has to offer.

At the time of this trip, Jonah at 8-years-old and Baron at 2-years-old, both kids could experience a variety of attractions at the resort. I feel that their age is ideal for the attractions that the resort offers such as separate age-appropriate pools and water features in the water park and activities at Auntie’s Beach House, while the resort also offers family attractions such as the luau, character dining, character events, and other family activities that the entire family could participate in and enjoy together.

Some of our favorite memories during our week in paradise:

Check-In

From the moment you arrive to the front doors of the Aulani, you immediately experience a unique check-in process unlike any other Disney resort offers. After a long flight from Dallas-Fort Worth, we especially appreciated Aulani’s warm welcome with their traditional lei-greeting, fresh cold citrus infused water, and being ushered by the friendly staff. The 10-year anniversary pins the staff gave us were a nice surprise and delight!

Cute souvenirs at check-in and love these 10 year anniversary pins the staff made us!

The Olelo Room & Lounge

After checking in to our room, unpacking and freshening up, our first night was spent unwinding at the Olelo Room enjoying pupus, drinks and live music on the patio.

Outfit details: Floral Top: Who What Wear for Target | Pants: Mossimo | Sandals: similar here

John’s Shirt: sold out, similar here

Jonah and Baron’s Outfits: Shirts Toddler here

The food at The Olelo Room features island favorite pupus (appetizers) such as poke, sliders, wings, etc. There’s also a simple kids menu to accommodate smaller appetites.

Chicken & Waffles for the kids, poke and Korean fried chicken wings for John and me!

Nothing more refreshing than Sangria on the patio and the soothing sounds of live Hawaiian music playing

Beach Day

One of the days was devoted to an entire beach day. According to Jonah and Baron, the beach was their favorite thing to do while at Aulani. John and I enjoyed watching the boys play from our Beachside Casabella lounger and enjoyed drink service. Our Hawaii family also joined us at the beach for a beach picnic and brought all the local grinds – fresh poke, manapua, noodles, short ribs, garlic chicken, mango from auntie’s tree, and malasadas from Leonards! Jonah and Baron really enjoyed playing and bonding with their cousins too.

Outfit details: Swimsuit: Becca Swim | Hat: Brixton

The Beachside Casabellas were a great amenity to have for the day. It was our base camp for our beach day where I could lounge while keeping an on the boys playing on the beach right from my casabella.

Boys at the newly remodeled Menehue Bridge

Makahiki Character Breakfast

The character breakfast at Aulani is one of our favorite dining events at the resort. It features a delicious breakfast, photos with Mickey, and interactive entrainment for kids.

Outfit details: Dress: Who What Wear Ruffle Hem Maxi | Mules: Universal Thread

John’s Shirt: his own

Jonah and Baron’s Outfits: Shirts | Junk Food Boys’

The breakfast fare at Makahiki features an extensive selection of traditional breakfast favorites such as bacon, sausage, scrambled eggs, pancakes, eggs Benedict, a custom omelet station, pastries, fresh fruit, and of course, Disney’s signature Mickey Waffles, along with Asian and Hawaiian dishes such as congee, fried rice, Loco Moco and Portuguese Sausage. You’ll definitely need to come here hungry as there is more food than you can handle!

When in Hawaii: Loco Moco and Portuguese Sausage!

A Crowd Favorite: Mickey Waffles

We love how the characters make their way around to each and every table to visit with families, interact with the kids and pose for photo opps. It’s a great incentive to get your kids to finish their meal before Goofy arrives!

A special thanks to the staff at the Makahiki Restaurant for the special anniversary surprise. What a delight for the staff to remember our special day and another reason we let the kids indulge in as many sweet treats on this trip.

Sweet treat from the staff at Makahiki! Mahalo!

Ka Wa’A Luau

Outfit details: Dress: Mimi Chica

John’s Shirt: Junk Food Mens similar here

Jonah and Baron’s Outfits: Shirts: On Jonah Junk Food Boys and on Baron Junk Food Toddler

A new experience for the boys on this trip was attending their first luau, Aulani’s Ka Wa’A Luau. It’s a fantastic family friendly event and should be experienced at least once whether or not you are a guest staying at the Aulani. The kids loved the pre-show activities with Kakao tattoos, poi pounding, ukulele lessons, lei bracelet making, and paper stamping. We enjoyed the VIP experience. VIP ticket holders get a better luau experience overall: separate entrance, no lines, better seating closer to the stage, early entrance to enjoy the pre-show cultural and interactive activities, and an open bar for the adults – need I say more?

Lei bracelet making

Baron’s temporary tattoo

The setting of the Ka Wa’A Luau takes place on the beautifully landscaped Halawai Lawn at Aulani. The setting is just gorgeous and the vibe is luxuriously relaxing. Guests staying in rooms that face the lawn actually get a view of the show.

We had the best seats directly in front if the main stage.

Yummy Lechon!

The Kids’ Dessert Station

Toward the end of the show, the performers invite all the kids to come toward the front of the stage for a special kids dance performance.

The actual show was a deep storyline that was equally entertaining as it was educational. They told a great story that celebrated Hawaiian culture with lots of hula, fire, songs, and music. The story they told was so beautiful and the narration was very touching.

Vow Renewal Breakfast @ Ama Ama

As shared in my previous vow renewal post, we enjoyed a lovely breakfast at the Ama Ama Restaurant after our vow renewal ceremony. Ama Ama is another dining option at Aulani, and is the more formal of the three sit-down restaurants at the resort. The Ama Ama has stunning views with tables facing the ocean. We had a beautiful table set up on the patio overlooking the ocean and next to the fountain. Our view from our table was truly like a postcard. The cuisine at Ama Ama is also topnotch. Each main entree dish is carefully crafted and prepared with the highest quality and attention.

Special thanks to the Ama Ama staff for hosting our party and surprising us with some special tropical treats for our celebration. They make a mean tropical acai bowl that is always a favorite. The kids loved sharing the Mickey celebration dessert.

We also had cake! This was mostly enjoyed by Baron because he absolutely loves chocolate.

Looking back at our week at Aulani, we had such a memorable time, and it reminded me that no matter how busy we get with work, school and life, we all need to take the time to travel, rest our bodies and minds, and to celebrate every day. I will treasure this trip forever!

jillivictorio@gmail.com / June 22, 2018

Vow Renewal

While on our family vacation and anniversary trip to Hawaii, John and I renewed our vows after 10 years of marriage. It was a beautiful early morning sunrise overlooking Ko Olina Lagoon and the Pacific Ocean for our ceremony with our two children as our witnesses. Even after 10 years married, I still felt nervous and even teared up as we recited our vows. I think I’m just more emotional as I’ve gotten older. Well that, and I’m just a hopeless romantic!

We had a simple family ceremony and including our kids was just as important these past ten years as it was for my hubby and I for our family growth. It was a celebration of everything we have been though as a family during this first decade together, and a kicking off of the next chapter. After the ceremony, we walked over for family photos on the beach and a special breakfast at Ama Ama Restaurant. It was truly a fun and magical morning.

Outfit Details:

My Dress: Wayf

Flowers: Dale Flowers

On Jonah and Baron: Top and Pants: H&M

On John: Shirt Ben Sherman and Slacks Louis Raphael

Flowers

Can we talk about these gorgeous flowers?! I knew I wanted fresh flowers for our vow renewal and I chose the very same flowers we had at our wedding and on my bouquet 10 years ago, luscious pink peonies. Dale did an amazing job adding simple and modern touches of eucalyptus stems and a monstera leaf as the backdrop to give the classic flowers a tropical touch. The flowers lasted all week and I got to enjoy them in a vase for the rest of our trip!

Simple coordinating eucalyptus leaf boutonnières on the boys

Thank you Floyd for capturing our special day with these special photos. We are truly grateful.

jillivictorio@gmail.com / May 18, 2018

Favorite Spring Pieces

Spring in Texas arrives earlier and on time compared to the springs in the NW that I have been accustomed to. That means there are more opportunities to wear those cute sandals and spring dresses. I’ve rounded up my favorite spring pieces this season that can take me through to summer: