Every few months we make sure to have some time just the two of us.
Working + parenting + life is tiring and it's important to us to spend time completely focused on each other.
A few of the get-a-ways we've enjoyed in the past few years...
Sweet Gum Bottom Bed and Breakfast in Andalusia, AL
The Folkstone Inn in Bryson City, NC
Andon Reid Bed and Breakfast in Waynesville, NC
Governor's House Inn in Charleston, SC
Victorian House Bed and Breakfast in St. Augustine, FL
Twelve Oaks Bed and Breakfast in Covington, GA
Cave Hill Bed and Breakfast in McGaheysville, VA
I think it's safe to say that we enjoy spending time together and investing in our relationship. Since it had been a few months since our last get-a-way, RA planned a weekend for us to relax and reconnect in Dahlonega, GA.
Aunt Hartley came in town Friday afternoon to hang with the boys and RA and I headed off for a few days away in the north GA mountains.
Friday
Welcome to Dahlonega, GA!
We made it to Long Mountain Lodge!
So beautiful and very cozy...
Our room for the weeknd - the Whissenhunt suite...
Very mountainy feeling from the decor...
Sitting area and desk...
A really comfortable bed!
Good sized bathroom
With a jacuzzi tub!
And herbal bath salts...I will definitely enjoy a hot bath this weekend!
We changed clothes and headed out for dinner on the square in downtown Dahlonega.
We found a New Orleans-style restaurant, Broad Street Grille. Anytime New Orleans-style food is an option, the 'where should we eat dinner' question is an easy one to answer!
A nice glass of wine to unwind from the week...
Mr. Hawk ordered shrimp and grits...
And I ordered a cajun-style pasta with chicken...delicious!
We wandered over to the Holly Theater for a comedy show with James Gregory...he was hilarious, as always.
A stop at a local Irish pub after the show for a night-cap before heading back to the lodge for a good night's sleep before a day of exploring on Saturday.
Saturday
Sunrise out the window of our suite...
Beautiful Saturday morning in the mountains...
Enjoying a few minutes of quiet on the balcony of our room...
Beautiful, isn't it?
Living room of the lodge...
Looking out towards the porch, where breakfast was served each morning...
Looking out towards the amazing front porch...
Wood-burning fireplaces are my FAVORITE!
We grabbed a cup of coffee and wandered out onto the front porch to check out the views...
Perfectly clear morning...
Time for breakfast!
Granola and fruit...
A homemade banana muffin...
Egg puff with pepper jack cheese, breakfast potatoes, and kielbasa. YUM!
After breakfast we headed downtown to check out the sights and sounds of Dahlonega on a beautiful Saturday.
The Hawks can't go on a get-a-way without visiting every antique store we come across.
Found a very fitting book for the day since today was the day of his memorial service in Washington...
After wandering three antique stores, we continued around the square and stumbled across the Dahlonega General Store.
MARBLES! Ellis would have gone crazy! We picked up a few postcards and a sucker and small piece of fool's gold for both of the boys...
Time for lunch at the Crimson Moon!
A really yummy buffalo chicken wrap...
We walked across the square to the Gold Museum after lunch...
Beautiful building...
A great map of the state in the museum...
Gold!
After the Gold Museum we decided to venture over to Amicalola State Park to see Amicalola Falls. Unfortunately our navigation decided to take us on an unpaved "service road" into the park. It was incredibly steep, rocky, and curvy. When we got to the top, a gentleman told us that we couldn't go any further in our vehicle as we were now on the Appalachian Trail...#facepalm.
We had to drive back down the steep, rocky, and curvy "service road" to get back to civilization.
Nice, quiet, FLAT part of the road that our navigation told us led into the state park...
Roadside river that we stopped to admire...
Lots of butterflies along the way...
And roadside waterfalls...
And an old covered bridge...
We finally got back to a paved road and re-routed our navigation to take us to Amicalola Falls...
Mountain stream leading to the falls...
You can BARELY see the falls in this photo, but the park was insanely busy and there were folks everywhere. This was as close as we could get...
We decided to head back to the lodge for wine, cheese, and freshly baked chocolate chip cookies.
I enjoyed a nice soak in the tub and then we enjoyed a cookie and a few minutes of the Georgia game...
Headed out to dinner with my handsome husband...
GrapeVines Italian restaurant for dinner!
Sunday
Sunday morning on our balcony...
We wandered the property for a little bit and stumbled across a small pond...
Splitting wood to get ready for the north GA mountain winter!
Their chicken coop is called the Chick Inn...
A nice side view of the lodge as we wandered...
Sunday morning coffee...
There was a baked pear in this cup, but I devoured it before I remembered to take a photo...
Homemade blueberry muffin...
Waffle and bacon!
After breakfast we packed the car and got ready to start the drive back to Covington.
But first, a stop by the post office to mail our postcards of the trip...
We arrived back in Covington about lunch time so that Aunt Hartley could get on the road back to AL. After lunch we all piled into our bed and took a nice Sunday afternoon nap.
Thanks RA for planning another get-a-way for us. You're the best. :-)
