Magnificent Marco Island

Posted in Travel & Adventure by listen2mama

I love the west coast of Florida. I have often blogged about my love for Sanibel, Captiva, Naples and Marco Island. So, when my husband asked me how I wanted to celebrate my birthday last month (given Covid-19 is limiting our options right now) I immediately chose to spend some time at the beach, where I am always happiest! We decided to head over to Marco Island and stayed at the JW Marriott Marco Island Beach Resort, which is absolutely stunning. We have stayed there in the past but had not been since 2015, and boy has it changed. The property was completely remodeled in 2017 with the addition of a gorgeous new building, new restaurants, event spaces and an arcade for kids. We stayed in a beachfront view room which had amazing views and celebrated my birthday at the hotel’s signature restaurant, Ario, which I highly recommend.

Hotel lobby (Photo courtesy of JW Marriott)

The beautiful beach resort (Photo courtesy of JW Marriott)

Our room

Ario Restaurant (Photo courtesy of JW Marriott)

Sunset view from our room

We also tried out a few restaurants around the island and one that we really enjoyed was Fin Bistro. We each had the Panko Herb Crusted Yellowtail Snapper over rock shrimp and squash risotto served with coconut brown butter sauce. Delicious! And of course we had to end the meal with a Key Lime flan, which was delectable. Take a look:

Snapper with Risotto

Key Lime Flan

Next came the cute shops which I always like to peruse. Now I will say, Marco Island doesn’t seem to have that many specialty shops or boutiques, when compared to Sanibel or Naples, however I did manage to find a few interesting places.

Beachworks. Located in the Marco Town Center Mall, Beachworks carries a good selection of Fresh Produce clothing and Big Head t-shirts. They also offer a variety of summery tops, dresses, sandals, a few small souvenirs and SunBum suntan lotions.

Butterfly Beach. Located at the Esplanade Shoppes, (they also have stores in Naples, Sanibel, Fort Meyers and soon Sarasota) this cute boutique carries adorable bathing suits and clothing for kids and adults, as well as jewelry; as their website says, bringing West Coast style to the beaches of Florida.

Blue Mangrove Gallery. Blue Mangrove Gallery is one of my favorite places to visit on the island. Many local and Florida artists are on display, including original oils, photography, stain glass, jewelry, ceramics, notepads, a kid’s section, books, accent furniture & more.

Here are a few more photos from our beautiful weekend trip:

View from our balcony

The beach in the afternoon, the water was so warm.

The shells I collected…

One of the many gorgeous homes throughout the island

Another gorgeous home

Have you visited Marco Island? I would love to know what you enjoyed most?

18Aug2020

Summer of Sanibel

Posted in Travel & Adventure by listen2mama

The Summer of 2020 has definitely presented some challenges for vacations and trips, as my family will not be flying anywhere just yet. Thankfully, living in Miami allows us the flexibility to drive over to the Southwest coast of Florida often. We love all of the towns in that area, Naples, Marco Island, Ft. Meyers, Sanibel and Captiva. But by far, Sanibel has always been our favorite. Given the current situation, we took advantage and recently spent a few weekends in Sanibel, as it is also a great place to escape the crowds. A few years ago I posted some of my favorite Sanibel shops. Sadly, a few of those have since closed but I did find some more new shops and restaurants when we visited recently. We also stayed at the Sundial Beach Resort & Spa for the first time, which was really nice as well. There is lots to do on this tiny island, something for everyone, great restaurants, awesome little shops, bike-riding, shelling (some of the best in the world), swimming, kayaking, you name it. And one of the things I love most is the laid back, cozy (almost bohemian) lifestyle of the island.

Sundial Beach Resort & Spa
Most of the accommodations that you will find in Sanibel are typical 2-3 story motel type properties. Many of them are in need of some major upgrades or remodeling as they are quite old. But then one doesn’t come here for the luxurious high rise hotels. However, this summer we stayed a few times at the Sundial Beach Resort, which we really liked. We reserved a one-bedroom suite with a pullout couch. The room was very clean and comfortable. We didn’t use the kitchenette (I do not cook on vacation), but it can come in very handy if you are traveling with young kids and are staying for a week.

Entrance to the hotel (photo courtesy of Sundial Resort)

Pool/cabana area (photo courtesy of Sundial Resort)

The comfortable king size bedroom.

Our daughter kayaking, one of the many complimentary activities provided by the resort.

Traders Sanibel
We finally got around to having dinner at Traders. I have to say it’s now one of my favorite places on the island for a nice meal. They offer a variety of great starters and many yummy seafood dishes. I had the scallops and ravioli and my husband had the macadamia encrusted grouper with mango sauce and yellow rice. Our daughter opted for a parmesan encrusted chicken breast. Everything was delicious and we also loved the decor of the place. Make sure you also check out the amazingly beautiful gift shop on the way out, selling everything from stuffed animals to sea salt scrubs. Definitely one of our favorite stores in Sanibel.

Traders Restaurant (photo courtesy of Traders)

All so yummy!

The gift shop

Synergy Sportswear
Synergy is located in Tahitian Gardens, one of the small shopping centers on the island. Synergy is a “Life is Good genuine neighborhood shop.” They carry a large selection of men’s, women’s and kid’s Life is Good clothing, apparel, and accessories. Synergy is also Sanibel’s only authorized Alex & Ani retailer.

Life is Good stickers

Great selection of t-shirts

The Blue Giraffe
We had heard of this place many times but had never tried it. We decided to have lunch here one day after a morning at the beach. The food was really good. I especially loved the Mexican street corn, charbroiled corn on the cob, topped with queso fresco, avocado cream, cilantro and blacked spice. As with all places in Sanibel, the decor was also very cute. The menu offers many different items to choose from.

Club sandwich, Mexican street corn and shredded pork sliders

The interior dining room

Outdoor dining area

Whims
Tucked away in the corner of the Bailey’s shopping center, you will find Whims. Whims sells unique clothing and accessories, as well as some decorative home items, along with some distinctive Sanibel keepsakes. The saleslady (possibly owner?) is also a sweetheart. My daughter found some beautiful little bracelets for her baby cousin and she also purchased a very pretty small leather purse.

Whims

Lots of items to choose from.

Sea Glass Lane
We stumbled upon this gorgeous (and a bit pricey) shop while browsing through Periwinkle Place. The store sells beautiful resort style women’s clothing and accessories. The decor is also beautiful, very beachy.

Sea Glass Lane

Bailey’s General Store
And last but certainly not least, Bailey’s is amazing! Not only do they sell anything you may need in terms of food, sundries, liquor and gifts but they also have a coffee bar at the entrance (many consider this the best coffee on the island) and the bakery makes all of the donuts, pastries, muffins, cookies and fudge (yes fudge) fresh daily! You can also order amazing cakes and pies for special occasions. We bought some amazingly yummy key lime cookies on our last visit.

The coffee bar

Variety of fudge flavors made fresh daily.

Here are a few more photos from our various trips this summer:
We love Sanibel and visit every summer. Have you been to Sanibel? I would love to hear what you enjoyed most.

21Sep2015

Sanibel Shopping

Posted in Beauty & Style, Travel & Adventure by listen2mama

Sanibel is one of my favorite places to visit for a quick, relaxing vacation. Living in Miami, we have the luxury of being less than a 3 hour ride away, so we take advantage of this, and spend many weekends (sometimes even day trips) in Sanibel. If you’re not familiar with the area, Sanibel is a barrier island located near Fort Myers off the Southwest Florida Gulf Coast. The island has a laid-back tropical, Caribbean feel that also offers breathtaking sunsets, great eateries (my favorite being The Island Cow) and fantastic shopping. It’s no wonder Sanibel was recently named the #1 family-friendly vacation spot in the country during NBC’s Today show. We love everything about the island and while we also enjoy visiting Naples and Marco Island, Sanibel remains our favorite. It’s so relaxed and cozy, I just love to spend my days on the white sand beaches collecting shells or riding bike through the adorable streets with the beautiful houses, and finishing off the day with a great meal and some fun shopping. And if you’re looking for beachy themed and preppy stores (think Lily Pulitzer, Vineyard Vines and Spirit Jersey), look no further. On our last trip it rained pretty heavily, so I had hubby take me from shop to shop (after all, I had to make use of my time there). Here are my favorite stores on this amazing little island.

FantaSea
2075 Periwinkle Way, #37
239.395.3300
www.fantaseasshells.com

This has to be the store that I loved most on my last trip. Everything in this shop is beach themed, including gorgeous bedding, scented candles, bath & body products, clothing, home accessories….you name it. Simply gorgeous, both the items sold and the store layout. Trust me, once you walk into this place, you will convince yourself you need to by a beach house and completely decorate it with items found here. Take a look at these…

I just had to buy the wooden sign and add it to my beach life collection on my windowsill.

Naples Soap Company
2075 Periwinkle Way
239.312.4236
www.naplessoap.com

So lately I have been coming across so many new soap, bath and body products stores (I have blogged about a few already). And I can’t help it, I love them all. On this last trip to Sanibel I came across The Naples Soap Company, offering all sorts of sea salt scrubs, bath bombs (I love those), olive oil soaps, body butters and shampoo and conditioner bars. Their soaps are all hand made in the US, and they use quality ingredients, which are all vegan-based, eco-friendly, and never tested on animals. Well, all of this sounds terrific, but all I know is that I bought my daughter a lavender lime bath bomb, which was literally…the bomb. The scent was amazing and she loved her bath. I also splurged on a Lavender Vanilla Sea Salt Scrub, which I just fell in love with.

Sand Castle Gifts & Gourmet
2075 Periwinkle Way, #20
239.472.2201
www.sandcastlegiftsgourmet.com

When you walk into Sand Castle Gifts & Gourmet you are immediately drawn in by the spicy scent, a result of their Sand Castle Seasonings, party dip mixes and seasoning blends, made in small batches on Sanibel, and sold exclusively in this store. This terrific little shop also sells many other Floridian treats like coconut patties, salt water taffy, Tortuga rum cakes, local honey and drink mixes in beautiful gift packaging. They also sell adorable coastal themed home accessories and gifts such as tumblers, kitchen towels, mugs and beach bags. You can’t miss this place.

I had to by one of these starfish kitchen towels, so cute!

Gifts for all!

Three Crafty Ladies
1628 Periwinkle Way
239.472.2893
www.threecraftyladies.com

OK, so I am super crafty, but sewing and knitting have unfortunately never been my thing. I can barely sew a button on. However, when I came across this beautiful shop, (the name of course caught my eye), I just had to stop in. The store had an incredible and unique selection of quilting fabrics, sewing notions, cross stitch patterns, scrapbooking papers, paints & canvases, arts and crafts supplies and so much more! They specialize in high-quality cotton fabrics, including a large selection of batiks and tropical prints. And if you have time and love to craft, drop by and create one of their Make-it-and-Take-it Souvenir Crafts, available most Thursdays from 10:00-4:00! I actually found some very unique Sanibel and Captiva scrapbooking papers that I had never seen anywhere else. Definitely a place to make a stop at, especially if you enjoy sewing.

My daughter, being the crafter that she is, loving this store!

Sanibel Island Bookshop, Jewelry & Boutique
1571 Periwinkle Way
239.472.5223
www.sanibelbookshop.com

The Sanibel Island bookshop carries a large selection of books, many by local authors, of which I picked up a few and can’t wait to read and review on the blog soon. They also carry some exclusive lines of jewelry, including Trollbeads, Kameleon and Lovelinks, as well as, Lindsay Phillips switchflops, Spartina bags, candles, toys and stationery items. Definitely a very unique bookshop, as their tagline says “A Great Place To Be Stranded”. Also worthy of a mention is MacIntosh Books & Paper.

Beautiful notebooks and journals for sale.

Many books by local authors.

Fresh Produce Sportswear
2075 Periwinkle Way, #33
239.395.1839
www.freshproduceclothes.com

This is one of the many locations of Fresh Produce Sportswear stores, offering fun, coastal designs and also a great selection of jewelry and Vera Bradley products (you know how much I love VB). Make sure to check them out when you’re visiting all of these great stores of Periwinkle Place. Also worth a mention, Simply Boutique, a few doors down from here, selling Lily Pulitzer, Spirit Jersey and various other accessories and clothing.

Great Vera Bradley selections at Fresh Produce.

Jerry’s Foods
1700 Periwinkle Way
239.472.9300
www.jerrysfoods.com

This is a charming grocery store, which anchors Jerry’s Shopping Center, also on Periwinkle Way, (most everything in Sanibel is located on Periwinkle Way), and it’s only one of two supermarkets on the island. The shopping center has a pretty courtyard, which offers outdoor seating for the eateries and also houses some gorgeous tropical birds in some very large cages, which attract a ton of attention from the tourists. You will also find some great shops in here, but the market is the main attraction. Oh, and inside the market, there is a café, serving local favorites such as the Grouper Sandwich. But what cannot be missed is their famous Jerry’s Key Lime Pie, voted the best in all of Sanibel, and trust me, I tried it and it’s got my vote as well.

The courtyard with outdoor seating in Jerry’s Shopping Center

One of the many tropical birds outside in the courtyard.

Jerry’s Cafe Interior; the best Key Lime Pie in Sanibel!

H2O Outfitters (Jerry’s Shopping Center)
1700 Periwinkle Way, #2
239.472.4717
www.beachstuffinc.com

Conveniently located inside of Jerry’s Shopping Center you will find H2O Outﬁtters, carrying a complete collection of apparel, accessories, swimwear and jewelry. Some of the premier clothing lines include Tommy Bahama, Tori Richards, Columbia, Billabong, Quicksilver, Life is Good, and the famous Spirit Jerseys (my daughter loved her Sanibel one). Definitely stop in if you’re looking for some good quality t-shirts and beach accessories. Owned by the same company, check out Beach Life in Chadwick’s Square, directly across from the South Seas Island Resort in Captiva, for additional brands from Lily Pulitzer and Vineyard Vines.

H2O Outfitters, photo courtesy of Beach Life.

H2O Outfitters, photo courtesy of BeachStuff Inc.

Sanibel Spirit Jersey

No matter what you like to shop for, I am sure you will find it in Sanibel. Have you ever visited Sanibel? I’d love to hear which shops you enjoyed most.

22Sep2014

The Island Cow

Posted in Food & Recipes, Travel & Adventure by listen2mama

Whenever we’re visiting a new place, we like to try unusual or local restaurants. Every time we visit Sanibel Island, we make it a point to eat at The Island Cow. We like everything about this casual, beachy, cow-themed (hence the name) eatery. My husband always says this place makes him feel happy!

Fun for kids outside!

This quirky family restaurant has a fun vibe, with its cow decorations, funny signs, and claims that the food is “udderly great”. I especially LOVE this sign:

The menu here can only be described as extensive with items such as Seafood Fajitas, Steak and Cake (NY strip steak and their famous crab cakes), Moolicious Meatloaf, and Po’ boys. Let’s not forget the extensive breakfast menu, and the appetizers, soups, salads and desserts! We love to start with the basket of muffins they put on your table. They are really yummy, but don’t overdo it, you want to make sure you have room for the main dish.

Yummy muffins!

For my main meal, I had the Islander’s Crab Cakes (I always order this), and hubby chose the “Fish’in Rules”, pick a fish from one of three groups:

Then choose how you want it prepared, however you want from broiled to barbequed, and then pick sides like cheese grits, island yellow rice or hush puppies. Whatever you eat, make sure you leave room for their famous Key Lime Pie, one of the best I’ve eaten in Florida!

Delicious Key Lime Pie!

The Island Cow is right in the middle of Sanibel on Periwinkle Way. Be prepared to wait a bit for a table, the place is usually quite busy, especially during the high season. However, the service is pretty good and fast, and if you get tired of waiting, there are plenty of games, activities and photo-taking opportunities available while you pass the time.

Here are a few more photos of this cute little place: