Hot Tub Weekend = Happy Roni!

   Ahhhhh! No achy knees, no cramping feet, no grinding shoulder joint, no knotted neck muscles, no stiff low back -- it's a hot tub miracle!! And all for the reasonable price of $59.99, plus hotel tax and tourist fees!
   My hot tub miracle was courtesy of The Stone Castle Hotel and Conference Center in Branson, a place DMan and I found last winter as a getaway from the cold winter blahs and liked well enough to go again. Our arrival on Saturday wasn't without a few snafus: the hot tub in our building wasn't working, then the balcony room we booked didn't allow smoking on the balcony (what's the freakin' point in having a balcony in the dead of winter if you can't smoke?!). So here we go, back to the lobby. The front desk lady re-books us in a non-balcony room in the building WITH the working hot tub, in fact right down the hall from the pool room. Things were looking up. Then we couldn't get into the building, our key cards wouldn't work on any of the doors. DMan calls Irma -- by now he's on a first-name basis with the front desk lady -- and she sends the maintenance man to unlock the building since no one had been staying there. For being in a vacant building, our room was toasty warm. The hot tub? Not so much. More like a warm bath than a hot tub. We got in anyway and huddled around the one jet shooting out warm water -- at least it was warm most of the time -- and left the rest of the jets off so we didn't freeze. DMan was kind enough to brave the cool hallway and bring us a glass of Cline Cashmere (a lush, silky on the tongue red wine blend!) to share, which helped me to relax even more. Despite the less-than-ideal water temperature, I stayed in the hot tub nearly an hour. My cuticles were so waterlogged I thought my fingernails would float away! When we finally got out, we asked the housekeeping lady if there was a thermostat to adjust the hot tub temperature, but she either didn't understand us or didn't know. Oh well, any hot tub is better than none at all.

Bikini on -- hot tub here I come!

DMan is hot tub ready, showing off his toned calf!

Stone Castle pool and hot tub (back in the right corner) -- sheer heaven!

   We cleaned up and headed out to our evening destination: Branson Landing. The wind was chilly and whipping through the Landing, but we walked all the way to the south end so DMan, undoubtedly the #1 Cardinals fan ever, could check out the Cardinals Clubhouse store. Then back to the north end for supper at Black Oak Grill, which was definitely worth the walk for the delicious food, spicy Bloody Marys, and fabulous view of Lake Taneycomo from the fireplace sun room. DMan had baby back ribs -- I swear, all he said through the whole meal was "These are so good!" as his eyes rolled back in his head -- and I had the pulled pork with jalapenos and jicama slaw sandwich. Savory and sweet at the same time, my favorite combination, that is until a jalapeno got lodged against my upper palate and set my mouth on fire. By the time I downed enough Bloody Mary and ice water to squelch the burn, my innards were shaking like a bowl of Jello. I couldn't wait to get to the hotel and hop back into the hot tub!

Welcome to Black Oak Grill!

View of Taneycomo from the fireplace sun room

The cozy fireplace sun room at Black Oak Grill

Lake Taneycomo -- see the ice hanging from the rocks? Thanks Polar vortex for the ice sculptures!

Selfie from Black Oak Grill -- I'm not crazy about the horns hanging over my head!

   Another hot tub miracle -- this time the water was steaming! While we were gone the maintenance man must have tweaked the thermostat to hotter-than-hell because it wasn't long until DMan and I were sitting on the side with sweat dripping off us and only our feet dangling into the blazing bubbles. Sheer heaven!! It was for me at least, DMan is hot-natured anyway and got overheated in a hurry. A cool shower when we got back to our room revived him enough to have hotel sex -- we might as well get our full $59.99 worth out of staying in a hotel, right?! -- and then he was stretched out on the pillow-top bed and snoring away through a quick nap. When he perked up, we watched a couple of episodes of "Big Bang Theory" (our favorite show) and finished off the wine before calling it a night. A very good night!
   Stone Castle does a nice free breakfast -- eggs, sausage, gravy, biscuits, cereal, yogurt -- in the Drawbridge Room. To get there from our building, we walked by a lovely outdoor courtyard, surrounded by decks, a gazebo, and a waterfall, flowing even in through this frigid winter with the help of a few heaters according to the maintenance man. The sound of the water trickling down the rocks and around the mounds of ice was so peaceful! We enjoyed a light breakfast and several cups of coffee before our last hot tub trip. The water was blissfully hot, melting away any residual tension in my body and giving me a steam facial as a bonus. I did not want to leave -- EVER! -- but check-out was at eleven o'clock, so we hit the shower and hit the road back to Springfield. Our hot tub "weekend" was barely 24 hours long, but it did a winter's worth of good in reviving my body and spirit enough to get through until spring. Hopefully!

Walkway to the Drawbridge Room -- if you look close you can see the hunks of ice in the waterfall pool.

Courtyard and gazebo surrounded by the waterfall

   If you're planning a trip to Branson, give The Stone Castle Hotel a try.  The rooms are a bit small, but the lovely grounds, nice staff, and spacious pools and hot tubs (when they are working) more than make up for being a bit cramped. Plus it is off the strip far enough to feel peaceful and secluded, but close to all the attractions. Tell Irma we said "Hi!" and we'll be back soon so keep that hot tub fired up. And definitely stop at Black Oak Grill in the Landing for lunch or dinner sometime! We plan to dine out on the patio and enjoy a sunset on Lake Taneycomo some evening as soon as it gets warm. Can't wait!   

We'll be back when it's warm enough to dine on the patio!

Wine Cures The Whines!

   Finally, a new adventure! After weeks of holiday have-tos, despicable weather, and coordinating client and stylist schedules non-stop at Details Salon -- I swear, working in the salon biz during the holiday season is just as crazy busy as working retail! -- DMan and I got away yesterday for a winery road trip.

DMan and I sipping Retro Red at Shawnee Bluff Winery

    First stop was Shawnee Bluff Winery at Osage Beach, a new winery for us to visit. The weatherman predicted a sunny day in the upper 40s, so I envisioned sipping wine on their elaborate deck overlooking Lake Ozark, maybe even getting to watch the sun set. Um, no, the weatherman was wrong. Murky sky leaving Springfield, we hit a patch of beautiful blue sky with white billowy clouds around Lebanon, then we were back to murky, with steel gray clouds rolling turbulently and spitting rain by the time we made it to Shawnee Bluff. No matter, the wine tasting/dining room was cozy, with a real (if small) wood fire going in the fireplace. Nearly every table was packed with groups sipping wine or beer, having rowdy conversation and laughing. We wrangled our way through the crowd to the wine tasting area, which they offer four wines to try for free, add five more for $5.00. Several of the wines on the menu seemed familiar to us, and the sweet gal pouring up the wine told us that was because Shawnee Bluff is affiliated with Casa de Loco Winery, west of Camdenton, whose wines we have tried many times. Mysterious Beauty is our fave Casa wine, but they didn't carry it, so we just did the free tasting of four reds totally new to us. Retro Red was our top pick, a Pinot and Merlot blend, fruity bold but easy-sipping smooth. We both ordered a glass, found an empty table, and watched the people and what we could see of the lake. DMan ordered the meat and cheese plate off the tapas menu for a quick nosh. Hint: Don't waste your money on the meat and cheese plate if you visit Shawnee Bluff. All he got for $10.50 was a few squares of greasy summer sausage, a dozen or so squares of processed pepper jack cheese that looked and tasted like it came straight out of a cellophane wrapper, and a handful of flavorless purple grapes. After we finished our wine and he finished the tapas -- he doesn't like to waste food so he ate everything but a few of the grapes -- we bought a Retro Red and two wine glasses to take home. We don't even have room to display all the wine glasses we already have, but we can't stop ourselves from buying a set as a keepsake from every winery we visit. Finally, the rain took a break and gave us time for a quick stop out on the deck to peek at the lake before we headed on.
   If you are in Osage Beach, check out Shawnee Bluff Winery. It is quaint and cozy, with some tasty wines. Don't go by what their website (www.shawneebluffwinery.com) shows, though, as the wine and dining selections are not up to date, but the photos are breathtaking. They also have eight rooms overlooking Lake Ozark that are available for rent, with a cute little pool fed by a huge wine bottle and a hot tub just steps away, that would be great for a weekend getaway. The vineyard shop, located farther north near Eldon, has a working distillery with sampling available, if spirits are more your thing than wine. DMan and I will be back for another Shawnee Bluff experience, but on a hot summer day next time.

DMan (on the right) in the wine tasting/dining room of Shawnee Bluff Winery

   I was in the mood to play Skeeball, but we drove down the old Hwy 54 strip and couldn't find a single arcade open. And DMan isn't a fan of shopping, so stopping at the Outlet Mall was out. The only thing to do was hit another winery, Golden Rock, our fave in Camdenton! Scott Wood, the owner, called out, "Hey, welcome back! How are things in Springfield?" as we came in the door. What a pleasure to be remembered and welcomed so warmly! That's the spirit of Golden Rock, friendly and warm, that keeps us driving back to Camdenton as often as we can. That and the delish food and wines! Carol, our excellent server, got me started with a glass of Latin Grande, my choice wine of all that Golden Rock makes, while DMan went with a flight of three reds for tasting. For our supper selection, I had a hankering for pizza and boy, did I get satisfied with a Sicilian-style Veggie-normus! Scott and Carol both laughed because I only managed to eat two pieces, DMan helped by eating half a piece, and we still had two containers filled with pizza to take home. That is one humongous tasty pizza! DMan had beef tenderloin medallions in a rosemary mushroom sauce, salad, and garlic mashed potatoes. And he ate nearly every last bite again, even mixing his "taters" in with the "gravy" like farm boys are known to do. We had a nice chat with Scott, stocked up on Latin Grande, Amarosso, and California Syrah wines for our rack at home, and headed back to Springfield. If Lake of the Ozarks is on your road trip radar, make sure to drive the few extra miles to Camdenton and Golden Rock Winery -- you'll love it!

   A new adventure, big fun with my Sweetie, good food (at Golden Rock!), and excellent wines to cure my wintertime whines! I needed that. Stay tuned next week for our hot tub trip -- my body cannot wait!

The lovely spacious dining room and tasting bar at Golden Rock Winery

Golden Rock's awesome wine selection

Fun wine-inspired clothes, bags, and glasses at Golden Rock

Golden Rock is easy to find, on North Hwy 5 in Camdenton (near Bridal Cave)