2015 In the Rear View

I feel like this year has flown by so rapidly! As I get older, it seems like New Years Eve and birthdays come back to back, hardly giving me time to rest in between. The saying is that " time flies when you are having fun." So, I guess I must be enjoying my life. Well, I can certainly say I have had a good year but it has also had it's not so great moments. For quite some time now, I have tried to keep a positive attitude and go with the flow when ever possible. This year I didn't get to do everything I wanted to do but I did a lot. I am ever so grateful for the great things I got to experience but also for the chaos because it turned into opportunities to bond with my family and friends.

In 2015 I made my first snowman who was actually a snow-woman. She was fabulous! I treated my guy to a Tesla concert in Troy, Ohio. It was my first Tesla concert and our first time in Troy. The city of Troy is beautiful, by the way. I saw Chris Brown, Trey Songz and Tyga in concert with my sister. I started a list of 101 Cool Places & Things in Ohio. I saw the legend,Stevie Wonder,in concert and was surprised by his special guest India Arie. I saw White Snake & Scorpions in concert. I got to hang out with my nephew all summer for the second year.  I took my nephew to his first concert to see Fall Out Boy and Wiz Khalifa where I blushed and cringed at the sight of large blow up joints being thrown around. I grew great tasting vegetables and fruits in my garden and my parents garden. My family took a trip to Orlando and introduced my nephew to Disney World. I saw my grandpa Robinson who I hadn't seen in ten years also while I was in Florida. My sister and I started a sister trip tradition. We spent a weekend in the Cincinnati area where we checked off four places on my to do list: Loveland Castle, Newport Aquarium, Jungle Jim's International Market & Findlay Market on a tour with Cincinnati Food Tours.  I took a meditation class to introduce the art of meditation into my daily life. To end the year I did my second list of residential holiday light displays and it became the most viewed blog post of any of the ChristinaKristin blogs in three days. Yay!

left to right: Frostine the Snow-woman, Tesla concert, Wiz Khalifa, My veggies, Epcot, Disney, Newport on the Levee with my sister, Findlay Market in Over the Rhine & Columbus KTC Buddhist Center

It has been an amazing year, full of love and color and hope. I can't wait to see what 2016 has in store for me, other than a trip to the dentist next week. Lol. I look forward to spending more time with my friends home and away. I look forward to more travel and more learning. I look forward to really living my life and learning to be more independent.

What were your 2015 highlights?

The Castle of Loveland

Imagine having lunch in front of a real castle! Friday this was reality when my sister and I made a stop in Loveland, Ohio to visit Château Laroche. Known to most people as Loveland Castle, it was built by Harry Andrews with the help of a group of young men he taught in Sunday school. The group of young men called themselves Knights of the Golden Trail. While on a tour of duty in the Army stationed in Europe during World War I, Andrews was inspired by the castles of France and decided to build  his own. Andrews spent over fifty years working on the castle. He started the construction in 1929 and he was still working on the castle just before he died in 1981. Though he did not completely finish the castle according to his plans, the Norman style castle contains 15 rooms which includes the bedroom that Andrews slept in, a banquet hall, a great hall and a small dungeon. The grounds outside include a rock garden with a Loch Ness monster, flowers and gorgeous vibrant plants.

For a fee of $5 for adults and $3 for children 12 and under, you can tour the castle and the grounds. This is a beautiful place with plenty of photo opportunities. I recommend packing a lunch and picnicking on the grounds. When you are asked what you did that day, you can casually reply, "I had lunch at a castle".

 

 

 

For more information check out the Loveland Castle website.

Be blessed! Be free! Be adventurous!
Kris,