A Fall AirBnB Getaway to the Original Hob

Last weekend, instead of a weekend beach getaway, my boyfriend and I decided to spontaneously seek out some peace and quiet in a cabin in the woods near Deep Creek Lake.

We found a cozy cabin through AirBnb in Oakland, MD — a town a few miles away from Deep Creek. This hidden gem of a cabin, named the Original Hob, was approximately 2 hours and 17 minutes from Pittsburgh via the country back roads route.

As we entered the driveway of our AirBnb, we were greeted by a playful and happy Australian Shepherd, Arlo! He and our guest host Terry were wonderful hosts in lieu of our AirBnb hosts Sue and Bill’s absence. Terry was kind enough to even give us a tour of the nearby town and Deep Creek.

Prior to our tour of the town, Terry gave us a tour of Hobbitat Home Place. Neighboring our Hob was a more industrial and contemporary cabin named Molly.

The kitchenette and bathroom were located in a cabin between the Molly and Hob overlooking the recreational area and grill. Space heaters were located inside our Hob, the kitchenette and bathroom to keep the spaces cozy and warm. As you can tell by the photos, it was a rather rainy, cold and wet weekend so those space heaters definitely came in handy. 

The kitchenette certainly added an extra sense of coziness and nostalgia for our childhood camping days.

Charlie always makes me a cup of coffee in the morning when we’re together. We did not break our morning ritual during this weekend getaway!

After our tour of Hobbitat Home Place, Arlo took Charlie and I on an adventure to the creek at the bottom of the hill beneath our Hob. It was such a beautiful sight! You could even see and hear its rippling sounds from our Hob patio and the recreational area between both cabins. Throughout the weekend, Arlo frequently stopped by to check in on us and present us with a new stick he found.

Our escape to peace and quiet gave us time to read, play card games and fetch with Arlo, listen to the serene sounds of nature, get creative, and engage in deep and emotionally intimate conversations. For dinner, Charlie grilled hamburgers for us on the grill, and for brunch, we found diners in town, Englanders and the 3rd Street Diner, to indulge in some pancakes, eggs, omelets and bacon, of course! We explored some of the local shops as well, and I purchased an autumn candle. I’m excited to get my home smelling like autumn leaves and pumpkin pie soon. On our last day at the Hob, we met Bill and Sue, and they were a lovely, friendly and hospitable couple! It was a pleasure to have them as our hosts!

Charlie and I intend to return to Hobbitat Home Place in the coming months. During our next visit, I’d love to check out The Cornish Hen Cafe! It’s a quaint coffee shop and cafe in town across from the museums under construction. We had a spectacular weekend getaway thanks to Arlo, Terry, Sue and Bill! If you’re a couple or single looking for some peace and quiet amongst nature, then I highly recommend visiting this hidden gem!

 

Made with Love and Fire,

Photography by Nicole Bruno

My Weekend Getaway to BeautyCon NYC

Hello friends!

I cannot believe it’s May and almost June!

Despite all of the showers in my personal life in April, I found time for a weekend getaway to NYC with my best friend Quortney and her friend Naomi.

Let me start by saying this, my girls and I went on a journey before revelling in our weekend getaway excitement and fun.

On the day I was supposed to leave for NYC, I ended up in the hospital after having a panic attack over an infection in my foot at work. The doctors relieved me of my pain, and thankfully, I was able to head back to work and received the doctor’s approval to still travel to NYC. Of course, my foot had to stay wrapped in gauze and an ace bandage, and I had to walk around NYC in a walking boot. It was miserable, but I would not have made the trip without that ugly blue walking boot.

Anyway, fast forward, I almost missed my bus, and I rushed all the way to the bus station only to discover our bus had been delayed by 2 hours. Apparently, our bus driver was stuck in traffic so another driver had to come in his place. The characters in line made the wait quite amusing as they speculated and made jokes about his whereabouts on April 20. Laughter was much needed in order for me to bear the pain of standing on my foot as we patiently waited to board the bus. I was supposed to end up on the same bus as Quortney and Naomi, but that didn’t happen as a result of the delay. Their bus coming from Baltimore was on time, and they caught an earlier bus headed to NYC once they arrived in Philly. I was disappointed to say the least, but everything happens for a reason.

Quortney and Naomi arrived in NYC around 2 a.m., and then made their way to the Airbnb we booked in Weehawken, NJ. I will be uploading a video of Quortney and Naomi describing their first Airbnb experience in the near future. For now, let’s just say, the area was sketchy and they opened the door to a filthy Airbnb with pubes on the bedsheets and dishes in the bathroom. . . (cue laughter) As you might have guessed, I was up at 3 a.m. on the phone with Quortney as she was trying to get a refund, which we successfully received. Luckily, I was able to find a hotel that would take us in at the last minute. God is so good!

Well, I finally made it into NYC around 6 a.m. (even though I was supposed to arrive by 4 a.m.), and then I made my way to the hotel to join Quortney and Naomi for breakfast.

Quortney made a video documenting our BeautyCon experience I’m sharing that with you all instead of writing a long blog post. Enjoy the video below!

Two major highlights of my BeautyCon experience include meeting @ColorMeCourtney from the Microsoft Surface TV commercial and being an audience member of a beauty chat between Phillip Picardi and Paris Hilton. Despite the rough start to this trip, I’d say our BeautyCon NYC experience was a major success!

I was only in NYC for a day; however, we stopped by many places I’d highly recommend tourists visiting! I will write a follow up blog post for you all about places you must visit in Chelsea, NY.

Stay tuned!

 

Made with Love and Fire,