We’ll check quite a few things off our summer bucket list over the next few days. We’re road tripping south with my family to visit my aunt, uncle and cousins for a week. They live in Arkansas and own an amazing houseboat business on Lake Ouachita. We’ll spend a few nights on the boat and almost all of our time on the water. After a crazy summer, it’s just what we need!

Here some other things I want to do before the summer’s over:

1. Take advantage of Tiki Tuesday. 

Every Tuesday during the summer the amazing bartenders at Cardinal Spirits serve up some impressive beach-themed drinks. Just sipping them makes you feel like you’re on vacation. We went to Tiki Tuesday a lot last summer, but somehow we haven’t made it once this year. That needs to change!

2. SUP at Lake Monroe.

I haven’t been standup paddle boarding in a while and I’m dying to rent a board for an afternoon out at Lake Monroe.

3. Attend Cork & Fork.

I’ve only made it out to Oliver Winery once this summer and I want to make a return trip to hear some live music during their Cork & Fork series. The event is actually at their Creekbend Vineyard in Ellettsville, which I’ve never visited.

4. Hike at McCormick’s Creek. 

I absolutely love McCormick’s Creek State Park. It’s a short drive from Bloomington and offers great hiking trails and camping. We rented a cabin there with some friends last summer and had a blast.

5. Go camping. 

I have no idea how we’ve gone so long without doing this, but we have to take advantage of all the amazing camping spots near us! In addition to McCormick’s Creek and Lake Monroe, we’re a short drive from the beautiful Brown County State Park.

6. Participate in Tour de Upland.

We’ve talked about signing up for this event ever since we moved to Bloomington but have always had other plans. This year we’re free! Tour de Upland is a weekend of cycling, beer and camping. Does it get much better? There are several different routes to choose from based on your cycling level. If we’re going up and down Brown County hills, I think we’ll go for one of the shorter rides!

7. Plan a picnic. 

We’re lucky enough to live within walking distance of several great city parks at our new place. I’d love to throw together an easy picnic and walk down to one of them for dinner one night. There’s something about eating outside that’s just so relaxing and enjoyable — at least when there isn’t 90 percent humidity.

8. Bike to the Scenic View.

The Scenic View is a great restaurant that overlooks Lake Monroe. I’ve been wanting to bike out there forever and a summer evening is the perfect time to do so. You can’t beat the view or the food!

9. See a drive-in movie. 

When I was a kid my parents would take us to a drive-in movie theater about 30 minutes away from my hometown and it’s an experience I still absolutely love. We have yet to go to the Starlite Drive-In in Bloomington, so I’m keeping my eyes on their schedule over the next few weeks.

10. Host a cookout. 

We don’t have a grill, which means we only cookout when we’re at a friend’s house or visiting my parents. But we’re not going to let that stop us! I think it would be a blast to get a group together at a local park that’s equipped with grills and throw an end-of-summer cookout. You can’t beat hot dogs and s’mores.

What’s on your summer bucket list? Chime in by posting a comment below!

The post End Of Summer Bucket List appeared first on The Broadcasting Baker.

I feel lucky to live in a town with so much going for it — plenty of entertainment, no shortage of amazing food and a great local-first attitude. It seems all of that really comes alive in the summer with nonstop events and promotions happening. It’s hard to keep up with everything that’s going on!

James and I finally got a chance to enjoy a wonderful weekend at home after a month of constant travel. And it was an absolute blast. We basically biked and ate our way through town — that all balances out, right?

We started our weekend with Food Truck Friday at the Chocolate Moose, which is always a good decision. We try to make it once or twice a month and love trying out new types of food. There’s great live music, which makes for a cheap and fun evening out. This week I sampled beer cheese nachos from The Gravy Train and they didn’t disappoint. We worked some of our meal off with a 15-mile bike ride and got home just as the sun started to set. After showering and letting our legs rest, we headed to The Back Door for a couple drinks and a drag show. It was the perfect way to kick off the weekend!

We hopped on our bikes again Saturday morning and rode down to the Farmers’ Market for breakfast. It’s so hard to choose what to sample because all of the local vendors are amazing. I went for a pretzel croissant from Muddy Fork Bakery and a raspberry-hibiscus soda from Piccoli Dolci.

James opted for breakfast pizza from Muddy Fork and cold brew from Ule Zing. We felt a little less guilty about our indulgent meals after biking home and spending Sunday swimming at Lake Monroe. The wonderful weekend made me want to come up with a bucket list for the rest of summer.

What’s on your summer bucket list?

The post The Best Bloomington Weekend appeared first on The Broadcasting Baker.

After a couple of glorious weeks off, James and I both went back to work this week. We are happy to get back to our routines, but we’re already counting down the days until our Italian honeymoon in September!

Instead of jet-setting right after the wedding, we decided to schedule our honeymoon for a few months later and instead take the week after the wedding to just relax with no schedule. We had more fun than we thought possible!

For the first few days, we hung around the town we live in, beautiful Bloomington, Indiana. The Monday after the wedding, we slept in, had breakfast at one of our favorite breakfast spots, popped into shops on the courthouse square, went on a bike ride and then went out to a fancy (and super delicious) meal at Restaurant Tallent. We ended the night by popping a bottle of special Oliver wine we forgot to drink on our wedding night. It was the perfect way to unwind after the whirlwind wedding weekend.

The next few days we slept in before heading out to explore areas of South-Central Indiana that we’d always wanted to check out. One day, we headed over to Story to check out the famed Story Inn. It felt like we were in a movie.

The adorable, historic Inn features a restaurant, tavern and beautiful grounds. We were greeted by a loving German Shepard who stuck close to us while we sipped craft beers on the porch. While the tavern was small, it had a great selection of Midwest microbrews to choose from, which won us over right away. Story is one of the coolest places we’ve discovered since moving to this part of the state. We can’t wait to go back on a weekend when there’s live music! It’s the perfect place for a romantic getaway or fun girls’ weekend.

That same day, we decided to stop in nearby Nashville, Indiana on our way home. We popped in a couple of the shops, including the Nashville General Store and Bakery. It’s worth going inside for the smells alone — they offer up freshly-baked pies, apple dumplings and donuts. We resisted those temptations so we would have room for beer and pizza at the always amazing Big Woods Brewing.  We are huge fans of the brewery and have become regulars at their Bloomington brew pub, Quaff On. The food and drinks are top-notch.

We spent many of our other days off enjoying some of our favorite things about Bloomington — sipping island-themed drinks at Cardinal Spirits‘ Tiki Tuesday while munching on King Dough pizza.

We also spent a lot of time outside riding bikes, hiking through the Hoosier National Forest and smiling just about as much as we did on our wedding day.

Everyday since the wedding, I’ve woken up in disbelief of how happy I am. I have the best husband in the world and the most loving family and friends. When you’ve got that, you don’t have to go off on a luxurious trip to find bliss.

The post Our Minimoon: South-Central Indiana appeared first on The Broadcasting Baker.