After four hours on the road, we made it!
A little before lunchtime, I drove south to meet up with my sister, Leslie, in Sarasota. First, I dropped off my car at my mother-in-law’s house before hopping in my sister’s car to head the rest of the way to Sanibel Island together. (If the previous two sentences confused you, it’s all about logistics, baby! We’re pre-planning cars for when Ryan and Leslie’s boyfriend/our friend Ross drive down together on Thursday night so we can get the most people here possible in the least amount of cars possible.)
I actually arrived in Sarasota before Leslie and decided to stop at Subway and grab myself a ham sub while I waited.
I know it sounds kind of silly, but eating this sub alone in Subway was kind of nice! I usually eat lunch while working at my desk, surrounded by distractions and sitting in a booth just enjoying a sandwich without any stimulation was oddly relaxing. When was the last time you sat down to eat a meal without distractions? I bet it has been a while!
Once my sister arrived, we drove the rest of the way to Sanibel together, chatting away and discussing last night’s episode of The Bachelor. (Courtney is crazy manipulative. Such a winner.)
Our drive flew by and we pulled into the condo complex in no time.
We arrived to a condo decorated for Valentine’s Day! Clearly the day is not lost on my mom and grandma.
All of the whites from the candy heart collection are officially gone thanks to yours truly. They’re the best, by far.
Time to unpack and get situated before a special dinner this evening!
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Ah, your grandma’s the cutest!
I know what you mean about eating lunch on its own, too. I work from home most of the time so on days when I have to grab lunch at café around the city, it’s such a treat to put the laptop away and dine solo.
Happy Valentine’s Day to you and your loved ones 🙂
I love the way you write, not only that your posts are well-written but you shine through. You seem like such an amazingly kind and adoarble person, a true role model.
I agree!
I know it, too. I rarely eat lunch without any distractions. Really bad habit.
I love eating food without distractions–makes it that much tastier!
Have a fun DAY all together 🙂
ive started to make a more conscious effort of eating breakfast undistracted and it so nice!
I always eat the white ones first too 🙂 And Subway for lunch – your day sounds a lot like mine haha.
So cute!!
Every now and then, I really like eating lunch alone. It lets me clear my head, enjoy what I’m eating, and gear up for the rest of the day!
Aww! Your mom and grandma are adorable! I actually don’t like conversation hearts, never have! As a kid they definitely ended up on art projects more than they ended up in my mouth! lol
I had lunch alone today! It was really nice 😀
Man, I am always doing something else when I’m eating! I know what you mean how nice it is to just sit, undistracted, and eat by yourself. I use to feel bad for people eating out alone, now I see the other side of the coin!
Mmm I haven’t been to Subway in forever but I think I should go soon- back in college I went there at least once a week and kind of burned out! And omg how much do you hate Courtney? I could not believe last night’s episode and who he sent home!! And aww your Grandma is so cute! You are going to have such a fabulous time!
Your grandma is adorable!
Yeah! I’m not the only one who picks out all the white hearts first. I almost bought a bag of the conversation hearts today while getting my husband some candy, just to pick out the white ones and disgard the rest!
Have lots and lots of fun Julie! I love when families do things together ….. especially on Valentine’s Day!!
Wow …. it’s been forever since I had a sammie at Subway. Tuna was always my fav …. no salt or cheese! Haha.
Keep having a great time!
P.S. Ohmygosh ….. where is Sadie? So sad she is definitely missing you.
Sooooo jealous! I love Sanibel and Captiva and have many amazing memories of times spent there with my grandparents and vacations with my in-laws(when I was married although I have to admit, I definitely DON’T miss the marriage!) and children. We spent many dinners at the Bubble Room, The Mad Hatter and The Green Flash-love those huge green windows!!
Have a great time, relax and enjoy the time with your family!
Bridgette
How cute are they! And your right- the white ones are the best 🙂
I always eat breakfast in front of my computer as I catch up on emails. I know it’s a bad/necessary habit! Fortunately I have a fantastic lunch buddy who I can chat with for a technology-free meal.
I love that you eat all the white hearts too! My sister used to get soo mad when I had eaten everything but the purple and green.
If you’re in Sanibel go to the Lighthouse Cafe and order their world famous whole wheat blueberry pancakes. AMAZING!!!!! Next door there’s an ice cream shop called Pinocchio’s. They make fresh ice cream on site. Ask if they have Gator Tracks. It’s pistachio ice cream with chocolate pb cups!!!! Go to Billy’s and rent some bikes to ride on the island. It’s a great way to
work off those treats.
I loooooove Sanibel! I go every year at least once. It’s a nice change of scenery from Miami. Have fun!
I couldn’t agree more the white conversantion hearts are the bomb. have a fun trip!
White heart candies are my favorite too!
Ah, I just love Valentines and that Subway sammie looks delish.
totally agree on the white hearts!!!
I can’t believe everyone likes the white hearts?! More pink for me 🙂
ha, that’s so funny….i pick all the white ones out too!
Have fun with your family! It sounds like a blast!
I know what you mean about eating alone. Usually I’m in my office or running around and eating on the go. It’s nice to sit in a quiet place and eat alone every once in a while!
Enjoy your valentines! The yellows and oranges are my favorites! hah!
and Julie! We need some more video posts! haha!
Is that spinach on your Subway sub?! We don’t have that option at our Subways!
ohh i couldn’t agree more – the white hearts are truly the best. i actually bought a huge bag of those hearts to make a little poster thing for my husband using the hearts like you did for ryan! it turned out really cute. thanks for the idea! 😉
i nibbled a white heart to see if you were right.. but i still love the pinks the best.. which are all gone from our bowl.. 🙂
I like the white ones too!!!! haha
This Iowa girl was just in Sanibel last week! I love that I know where you are talking about! It was beautiful and I’d go back in a second! Enjoy!
The whites? I’m all about the yellows!
OMG….SUBWAY….mmmm. Their veggie delite subs have been a staple in my diet in my second trimester.
Awwww that is so cute! and I’m with you on Courtney, although now I can’t wait to see her family….
White?!?! That’s like the worst color ever to eat!! 😉 have a fun trip!
I like you Julie but I can’t stay silent on this any longer… WHY must you ALWAYS address Ross as your friend before Leslie’s boyfriend? It’s like you just can’t bear to not mention that he was your friend first. It’s “simply” juvenile.
Ross was Julie and her hubby’s friend before he became Leslie’s bf. Calm !!
Aware… Can you read? It’s needy and weird that she must constantly remind everyone he was HER friend first. God forbid someone not know that they introduced him to Leslie.
Aw, I love the festive place-settings! Enjoy your family time.
ick..never liked those candy hearts. bring on the dove chocolate!
Why are the white ones so good? I love them
So glad you got to enjoy lunch! I totally know that feeling! And I LOVE sweethearts. My boyfriends parents just surprised me with two big bags of them and I am going to go to town.
Sometimes eating a meal alone is the best way to do it 🙂 Love what your mom and grandma set up – so cute! Happy Valentine’s Day!
Although I don’t do it often, I always enjoy a meal even more when I eat it without any distractions!
oh my goodness, I just noted how whites were my favorite moments before reading this post! happy valentine’s day! 🙂
That is so sweet that your mom and grandmom decorated for Valentine’s Day! The whites are always my favorite too 🙂
Found your website about a month ago and LOVE it! You are such a great motivator and I love how consistant you are in posting several times a day.
I am suprised that you eat ham and that you are ok with eating at places like subway that use deli meats that are highly processed and high in nitrates. I’m curious to your take on this.
Thanks for all you do!
I actually find that I eat waaay too fast if I have no distractions. I get super bored and find that my chewing and hand-to-mouth motions pick up speed. It’s funny, distractions slow me down!
We love Sanibel.. some of our favorite places to eat are the Lighthouse Cafe (breakfast), Sanibel Cafe, Cheeburger Cheeburger, The Island Cow, Mucky Duck (Captiva), Gramma Dot’s and for desserts we like Pinocchio Ice Cream Shoppe, Bubble Room (Captiva) and The Bean.
Enjoy….I have never had the pleasure of going this time of the year. It is usually in the summer months.