All In A Days Work

I love to go out and have fun and try new things when I’m not working (which seems like all the time!) But I have to watch my wallet – surprisingly there is TONS of free or budget-friendly fun to be had in Kernersville.

Korner’s Folly
Jule Gilmer Corner built Korner’s Folly in the late 1800s to showcase his own designs in interior design, furniture and painting. The quirky home features 22 rooms and 15 different fireplaces across seven levels of architecture – a beautiful place to visit!

Paul J. Ciener Botanical Garden
A new and still-growing garden, the Paul J. Ciener Botanical Garden boasts 15 gardens featuring 1,300 varieties of plants including a large spring-flowering bulb display. Educational programs are available for adults and children as are self-guided and guided tours.

Countryside Lanes
Countryside Lanes is a local bowling alley that provides fun and entertainment through bowling and other amenities. These include a snack bar and a drink selection with beverages including beer.

Bucked Up Super Saloon
Bucked Up Super Saloon is a live music park that hosts an array of music including country, southern rock, southern-style hip hop, and rock. Every Friday and Saturday, the park hosts a live local, regional, or national act.

All-A-Flutter Butterfly Farm
All-A-Flutter Butterfly Farm is a nature park housing thousands of butterflies. Visitors can take a tour of the grounds, which includes an interactive educational presentation about butterflies, and the opportunity to feed and release them into the wild.

Oak Hollow Park
Located on 1500-acres in total, Oak Hollow Park is a public park complex along the Oak Hollow Lake. The park features a large marina which is popular for boating, sailing, kayaking, or fishing in the nearby lake.

Winston Salem Ghost Tour
Actor Mr. Heizer entertains as well as educates on the 90 minute walking Winston Salem Ghost Tour including the Single Brothers House. Mr. Heizer also does daytime historical tours of Winston Salem.

Old Salem Museums & Garden
Visitors to the Old Salem Museum and Gardens can experience life as it was in the 1800s as Moravian settlers explored the area. At the Miksch Garden and House, visitors can see daily life, while at the St. Philips Heritage Center, visitors learn about religious life.

Taste Carolina Gourmet Food Tours|
Visitors can enjoy guided tours of unique restaurants and shops in North Carolina with Taste Carolina Gourmet Food Tours. The tours make 5 to 6 stops and provide behind the scenes chats with chefs and artisans.

World’s Largest Chest of Drawers
The World’s Largest Chest of Drawers is an incredible 32 feet tall, and it was constructed to symbolize High Point as the Furniture Capital of the World. Guests can visit and take interesting photos in front of the landmark.

Southeastern Center for Contemporary Arts
Part of the Winston-Salem community, the Southeastern Center for Contemporary Art is a contemporary multimedia art gallery. Exhibits showcase the works of film-makers and experimental artists and art-related events are held regularly.

The Bog Garden
Greensboro’s The Bog Garden is an extensive wetland nature conservatory. Its network of elevated pathways make it easy to explore over 7 acres of swampy territory without donning waders or renting a canoe. The Bog Garden is a free attraction.

This post is sponsored by Kernersville Dodge Chrysler Jeep Ram.

Off the beaten path, down the narrow lane, and mere minutes away from the hustle and bustle of the city, the Brandywine Valley prides itself on being an oasis of genteel living along the I-95 corridor, with a pace, a history and a beauty all its own.

Whether you’re coming to town for a long weekend, a week-long stay or just a night in the city, you’ll find exciting things bursting to life in all parts of Wilmington, Delaware and the Brandywine Valley.

The Candlelight Theatre
located in historic Ardentown, DE, just minutes from downtown Wilmington and a short drive from Philadelphia, combines fine dining with superb musical theater entertainment. Attend a truly spectacular Candlelight experience and enjoy the magic of live theater!

Delaware Art Museum
Founded in 1912, the Delaware Art Museum is best known for its large collection of British Pre-Raphaelite art, illustrations by Wilmington native Howard Pyle, and urban landscapes by John Sloan and his circle. Visitors can also enjoy the outdoor Copeland Sculpture Garden and special exhibitions

Harvest Ridge Winery
Spanning the border of Maryland and Delaware, the winery is on the Mason-Dixon line and has an original Mason-Dixon crownstone marker (#47) on the property. For this reason, the #47 is featured prominently in the company’s logo. The winery has 15 acres of vines planted, a full production facility, a tasting room, and event/banquet space. The winery is open daily for tastings and guided tours are offered Saturdays and Sundays at 1 and 3PM.

Amstel House
Among New Castle’s few surviving early colonial buildings is this elegant brick, early Georgian mansion. Built in 1738, the house is graced with original woodwork, fine architectural details & open hearth. The house’s history is linked to many of town’s prominent colonial families.

Brandywine Festival of the Arts
n annual arts festival in Wilmington, Delaware. Featuring hundreds of juried artists exhibiting one-of-a-kind art, the festival is a Delaware tradition spanning over half a century. Now regionally popular and nationally recognized, the Brandywine Festival of the Arts boasts participants from across the United States and perennially ranks in the top 100 shows in the country. Each year, up to 20,000 visitors flock to Brandywine Park’s Josephine Gardens for an end-of-summer celebration. The BFA has something for everyone: over 250 artists exhibiting in a wide range of styles and mediums, live music performances, children’s activities, and a selection of local food vendors.

Delaware Beer, Wine and Spirits Trail

Visit featured Delaware wineries, breweries, distilleries, meaderies and cideries for a tour, a tasting and a memorable experience while traveling this tempting trail. It is a unique collection of over 20 breweries, wineries, distilleries, cideries and meaderies across the state that will quench your thirst for fun and discovery.

This post is sponsored by Sheridan Ford.

The foodie in me just can’t visit chain restaurants when I’m traveling; Where is the adventure in that?! Finding good places to eat is my speciality – and I have the top 5 places you need to check out in Waldorf Maryland.

Dat Jerk Caribbean Chargrill
2716 Crain Hwy Waldforf, MD

Original Jerk is a Process. It’s not just jerk sauce. It’s all in how you cook it. How you add different elements to create that Jamaican jerk flavor of being slowly cooked over pimento wood. Dat Jerk uses that process to prepare their homemade jerk sauce, that’s slowly rubbed into their signature chicken and pork, then smoked in the rotisserie and over the grill. Creating jerk flavors that will send your taste buds buzzing!

Silver Skewers
2788 Old Washington Rd. Waldforf, MD

Longtime locale restaurant in a strip mall – but oh soo good. They prepare traditional Persian specialities. The menu is comprised of simple food done well –  Meals begin with a bread basket featuring tandoori, a spicy dip of jalapenos, garlic, spinach, mint, cilantro and nine herbs. Pats of butter for bread help cool the heat. For the main course, patrons choose from seven meats to create their perfect kabob: shrimp, chicken, salmon, rib eye steak, filet mignon, lamb and ground beef — the house specialty. A meatless option features grilled vegetables like onion, squash, zucchini and tomato.

Kabobs are served with light, fluffy rice accented with Persian saffron and dried lemon that makes the rice buttery without the fat.

Chicken Rico
3310 Crain Hwy

Chicken Rico is proud to offer our customers the best Peruvian style rotisserie chicken in the world. Marinated with a 50 year old family recipe, our chicken is cooked over fiery charcoal in our large rotisserie ovens.  Our stores also offer traditional Peruvian dishes, along with sandwiches and salads.  We promise to work tirelessly to deliver you the best quality food in the area. 

A family business in every sense, Chicken Rico opened its doors in 1970 in Lima, Peru with Dora Giordano at the helm. Dora quickly won over customers with her signature mouth-watering chicken and welcoming environment.

Kodori
2792 Crain Hwy Waldorf, MD

Korean plates, sushi & hot Japanese dishes offered in a small, no-frills restaurant with takeout.

Silver Diner
3081 Festival Way Waldorf, MD

There is something special about a diner; from nostalgic tabletop jukeboxes to comfortable booths to the friendly people. This one is even more special because they shop fresh and local – which is a lot ot be said for a diner. Lots of delicious food like the classic burgers, fries and shakes.

This post is sponsored by Waldorf Dodge Ram.

McDuffie Museum
121 Main St. Thomson, GA

The mission of McDuffie Museum is to instill in the residents of McDuffie County, especially its youth, an understanding of their heritage and sense of pride in the history of their community. The McDuffie Museum’s programs, exhibits and activities advance and promote public knowledge and appreciation of McDuffie County’s heritage and the importance of a local history museum in general.

In January 2009, McDuffie Museum opened its doors on Thomson’s Main Street with “Key Ingredients: America by Food,” an exhibit that came from the Museums on Main Street division of the Smithsonian Institute. Since then, McDuffie Museum has hosted several other exciting exhibits, the most important telling the story about McDuffie County’s history, including its first inhabitants — Native American tribes — its lost Quaker colony of Wrightsboro, and its residents that played major roles in the nation’s history.

Aunt Tique & Uncle Junks
210 First Ave Thomson, GA

Always a bargain to be found – old new, antique and eclectic. If you like old and rustic, and country-themed, this is definitely your place! Be your own “American Picker” and forage through the treasures!

Wrightsboro Church
The Wrightsboro Methodist Church is located on a small hill in a fascinating historic setting.  On this site in 1754, Edmund Grey, founded the Quaker town of Brandon.  At this time, the area would have been inhabited by Native Americans and not open to legal settlement.  In 1768, following the Treaty of Augusta which ceded this land to the swelling tide of European settlers, forty thousand acres of land was given to Joseph Mattock and Jonathan Sell by Royal Governor James Wright, who were also Quakers.  A thousand acres of this land was set aside for the Town Proper, which was later incorporated as the city of Wrightsboro in 1799.  The first meeting house would have been constructed at about this time, and some records show that two buildings were built and burned before the church now standing was constructed.

The Wrightsboro Methodist Church of the Thomson Circuit, on the site of the now dead town of Wrightsboro, has been an active organization for over 200 years. In its historic churchyard are buried several veterans of the Revolutionary War and some who died at Gettysburg, Shiloh and Fredericksburg in the War Between the States. The founders of some of the oldest and most prominent Georgia families are buried here.

MAC on Main Art
107 Main St Thomson, GA

MAC on Main Art Gallery and Studio showcases the best local and regional art in a restored gallery and studio located in the the heart of downtown Thomson. Meet the artists at work!

Laura Lane’s Home Decor & Gifts
117 Naussau Place Thomson, GA

Laura Lane’s Home Decor and Gifts offers home furnishings, accessories, gift baskets and more. This place has great finds but is also one of the only places in Thomson to get Chinaberry Foods products, including their signature cheese straws. Lots of other great finds, as well.

Peacock Hill & The Frame Gallery at Peacock Hill

Shop for the latest in seasonal decor and gifts at this local gift shop and interiors boutique. The Frame Gallery – located inside Peacock Hill – offers custom framing and prints by local artists, including watercolor prints of Thomson heritage sites like the Rock House.

This post is sponsored by Thomson Chrysler Dodge Jeep Ram.