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North Carolina Family Trip

Shannon Jenkins of Upbeat Soles does a West North Carolina travel guide with what to do in Cashiers, Highlands, Asheville, and Franklin

Happy Monday loves! I hope you all had a great weekend! We got back from our North Carolina trip on Saturday and then had a lazy Sunday since we were getting hit by Tropical Storm Inaias. The storm ended up being pretty much nothing besides a few light showers. I thought I would do a quick recap of our week in West North Carolina. This trip is just what I needed and it was great to feel a little normal again while being cooped up for months! We had so much fun, but I am exhausted!  I thought I would do something a little different and post only unedited iPhone pictures (the photographer in me is cringing haha) but I thought it would be a more personal look into our trip.

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Universal’s Endless Summer Resort – Surfside Inn

Shannon Jenkins of Upbeat Soles stays at the best Universal Hotel Endless Summer resort and talks about how it has transportation to Universal Parks

Happy Friday Eve loves! Was it me or did this week fly by?! So if you follow me on Instagram you know Griffin, Sawyer, and I went on a little staycation 2 weeks ago to Universal and had the most amazing stay at the new Universal’s Endless Summer Resort – Surfside Inn! Seriously it felt like a beach vacation with the fun beachy decor! We stayed in a two room suite, which was perfect for putting Sawyer to bed early and getting to enjoy some take out and scary movies in the evening just the two of us! During both days we spent the whole day at the parks! It was so easy to get to the parks from the resort since they have a shuttle bus that takes you right to City Walk that run every 10 minutes! Last year when we took our Universal staycation I was pregnant so I couldn’t ride any rides so I definitely made up for it this year! We rode every roller coaster, some twice, and it was so much fun!! Before heading to the parks one day we spent the morning by the amazing pool at the resort, that is surfboard shaped! Also there is a Starbucks in the hotel and the amazing Beach Break Cafe so we were able to get breakfast and coffee to bring by the pool! We definitely kept it more low key this year, because parent life, but we still had the best stay at Universal’s Endless Summer Resort – Surfside Inn and the such a fun time at the Universal Parks! I cannot thank them enough for being such a fabulous host for our staycation! I hope you all have a fabulous weekend! <3

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Weekending in Boston

Shannon Jenkins of Upbeat Soles talks about what you must do and eat while in Boston and Salem for a long weekend like the freedom trail and shopping

Happy Hump Day ya’ll! As you know Griffin and I took a quick trip to Boston to celebrate my birthday and we had so much fun, even if it was freezing! Griffin and I are undercover history buffs so we love going to cities with rich history, which Boston has a ton of! The first day we got there was my actual birthday so we checked in to our hotel, The Liberty Hotel, and relaxed a bit after our flight and enjoyed some champagne. The Liberty Hotel is so beautiful and actually use to be an old jail! They even have some of the original cells and iron balconies! If that creeps you out don’t worry they actually had monks come and bless the place to get any evil spirits out! After some relaxing we headed out for drinks and $1 oysters at State Street Provisions. We bar hopped a bit and then headed out for a nice dinner at Mare where I had the yummiest lobster ravioli! After dinner we hopped over to Yvonne’s for an after dinner fancy cocktail, which is probably one of the coolest/prettiest bars ever! Sorry for the lack of pictures of the first day but you will have plenty to come! ;)

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What to Do in Sarasota

Shannon Jenkins of Upbeat Soles talks about what to do and eat in Sarasota Florida and Venice Beach including The Ringling and Marie Selby Botanical Gardens

Happy Hump Day loves! So as you all know Griffin and I had a little staycation this week over in Sarasota County. It was my first time visiting Sarasota since I was super young and I forgot how breathtaking the west coast of Florida is! We arrived early afternoon and decided to get a kick start to our day with some coffee from Perq Coffee Bar. Definitely a cute place with lot of different freshly brewed options. Also, how fun is that chandelier!?

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Guide to Savannah GA

Happy Friday Eve loves! And yay for the weekend almost being here! The good thing about coming back from vacation mid week is that you blink and it’s already the weekend! Can we always have 3 day weeks?! So as you all know Griffin and I just got back from beautiful Savannah. We go at least once a year since its only a 3 and a half hour drive for us so we have been a lot, and trust me it never gets old and there are always new things to see! Since we go so much I do get a lot of questions about the best things to do and eat in Savannah so I figured it was only right to make a guide of my own! Savannah is known for their delicious food and of course rich history, oh and a few ghosts here and there! So Lets jump into it! <3

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Guide to Rome

Shannon Jenkins of Upbeat Soles talks about what to do, eat, and drink while in Rome Italy, like go to the Vatican, Colosseum, and Roman Forum

Happy Hump Day babes! Today is my Friday and I can’t wait for our mini family getaway tomorrow! So we are officially on the last city of my Italy trip, Rome! Rome is pretty much THE city you have to see when going to Italy! The history is just out of this word and there is so much to see in so little time! We jammed it in while in Rome but also found some time just to relax since we were pretty exhausted at this point! Let’s get started!

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Making the Best of the Amalfi Coast

Shannon Jenkins of Upbeat Soles talks about what to do in Amalfi Coast, some of the best places to eat and drink in Positano, and Capri

Happy Tuesday babes! I hope everyone is having a wonderful start to their week! So we are on to 5th region of my Italy trip and this time we are heading way south to the Amalfi Coast! If you missed my first posts you can check out Venice, Cinque Terre, Florence, and Tuscany here! Ya’ll the Amalfi Coast is what dreams are made of, it is that gorgeous! I felt like I had to keep rubbing my eyes to make sure all the views were real! I tried to be as selective as I could be with my pictures, but it was really tough since they were all so gorgeous! Ok let’s get started!

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Wine Tour Through Tuscany

Shannon Jenkins of Upbeat Soles talks about the how to do a wine tour around Tuscany, Italy in 3 days and see all the wineries in Montalcuno & Montepulciano

Happy Hump Day loves! So we are halfway through my Italy trip recap and today is all about our 3 days in Tuscany! If you missed out first half of our trip you can check out Venice, Cinque Terre, and Florence here. Tuscany (even though it is very close) was my absolute favorite part of our trip! I mean gorgeous views, tons of wine, and the cutest villages is just too hard to beat! Ok so I had to pop a bottle of wine for this one to really get me in the mood (I’ll take any excuse) and I am sorry that this recap is going to be a little picture heavy, but I mean…. Tuscany!

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Two Nights In Florence

Shannon Jenkins of Upbeat Soles talks about must dos in Florence Italy for two days, Accademia Museam, Uffitzi Gallery, Brewdog, and Duomo

Happy Tuesday ya’ll! I hope every one’s week is off to an awesome start! So if you have been following along on my Italy trip recap you know we are on city number three, Florence! If you missed the first two you can check out my recap of Venice and Cinque Terre here! Florence, the capital of Tuscany, is a big city, but full of Renaissance history and art! I just love that is was a fun mix of old and new with some cool hip bars and restaurants. Lets dive right in!

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Exploring Cinque Terre

Shannon Jenkins of Upbeat Soles talks about what to do and eat while in Cinque Terre for two days and how to explore all five towns

Happy Wednesday loves! I hope everyone had a wonderful 4th of July! So today I am recapping our second destination from our Italian getaway, Cinque Terre! If you missed our first destination, Venice, you can read about it here! Cinque Terre, which means Five Lands, is five small towns set along the Italian Riviera that are just breath taking! Our goal was to experience each town in just two days and of course all the pesto we could eat since pesto was created in this region! I’ll just say it definitely didn’t disappoint! Here we go! <3

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