Grade: A

For the past 2.5 years, I’ve only gotten my hair cut at either SuperCuts or HairCuttery in DC — I usually keep it very low maintenance and just get my hair cut straight across, let it grow out and then chop it off.  Over Christmas, my mom suggested (as only family members can suggest) that I try out a new hairstyle…and get a haircut that costs more than $17.95.  Soon after this suggestion, I found out I was moving to Charlotte, and added getting a haircut to my list of things to do during my “settling in week”.  During my last week in DC, I found Cirrus on Groupon and decided that this would be the Salon for my “new style”…especially given the fact that I could spend the same amount of money that I did at SuperCuts or HairCuttery, but get a much better quality cut.

Yesterday, I booked an appointment with Josh at Cirrus Salon in Charlotte.  I must admit that I was a little nervous beforehand, not because I was going to a new salon, but because I was going to be trying a new hairstyle — my plan was to chop my hair a little above the shoulders and layer it — but what if I didn’t explain it right and came out with a terrible hairstyle?!

Josh sat me down, discussed what he thought would work best given my not-so-great description of what I wanted.  Throughout the whole haircut, I felt like I was in great hands and in the end, I loved my new haircut!

Before

After

The entire experience was great — the salon was very clean and the people working there couldn’t have been nicer, and as a Groupon customer, I got the option to book my next appointment at 30% off.  While I’ve tried many awesome Groupons, this is the first yet that I plan to return to and use again.

If you’re looking for a salon in Charlotte, check out Cirrus Salon!

This weekend Ted, Betsy, Robbie and I headed up to the Omni’s Bedford Springs Resort in Pennsylvania.  It was the perfect weekend getaway from Washington, DC — just a 2 hour trip.  While the hotel was very cozy and the accommodatations lovely, I would not suggest Bedford Springs if you’re looking for an action packed weekend (unless it’s warm and you like to golf and hike), however, if you’re looking to relax — I certainly was –  this is the place for you!

I’m still a rookie at this blog stuff and showed up with a dead camera battery…so I took the liberty of borrowing some pictures from others…

Omnihotels.com

The Accommodations: The first of the hotel’s buildings was constructed in 1806.  Since then, 10 US Presidents have visited this hotel.  In 2007, the current renovations were complete.  The accommodations at Bedford Springs were fantastic — on the same level as The Homestead or The Greenbrier.  The lobby was very welcoming, with tons of areas to sit and relax and the rooms were also comfortable, clean and appropriately up to date.

The Food: We ate dinner at The Crystal Room, one of the three dining options for dinner.  I ordered a “Maytag Bleu” salad (similar to a wedge)  which had way too much dressing and cheese.  For my entree, I had the pork tenderloin which was way overcooked.  Breakfast was also in The Crystal Room.  While it was a step up from dinner, it wasn’t the best breakfast buffet I’ve had.  Overall, I thought the food was very overpriced for the quality.

Omnihotels.com

I do have to brag on the Tavern’s onion rings.  Robbie had spotted the onion rings earlier in the day, so we decided to have a pre-dinner appetizer at the Tavern.  They were DELISH!  I’ve also heard they serve a mean cheeseburger — guess I’ll have to go back to check it out.  (I also loved the Tavern because they let us bring our own bottle of wine — cheap, cheap cocktail option before dinner!)

Spring’s Eternal Spa: The four of us booked spa appointments on Saturday afternoon and spent most of our time there.  Although I was expecting the spa to be a little bit bigger (the relaxation room got very crowded at times), the amenities were superb and the staff couldn’t have been more helpful.   If I have the opportunity to return to Bedford Springs, I plan on spending most of my time in the spa!

Omnihotels.com

Overall, Bedford Springs was a hidden gem in the Pennsylvania mountains and I would recommend it to anyone wanted to getaway for a short trip.

Grade: A-

I decided to send my 2 Dozen Cookies from Feed Your Soul home over Thanksgiving to help satisfy the sugar cravings of all my mother’s side of the family.  I requested the package arrive the Wednesday before Thanksgiving…and sure enough, there they were on November 25th.

We broke into the box of cookies that night after dinner.  They were a little tough to open…but we tore into them eventually.

Overall, the cookies got positive reviews from everyone, with the exception of Dad, who wasn’t a fan of the Chunky Peanut Butter Cookie.

Dad wasn't a fan....but what does he know!

Signing up online was a breeze, the cookies were delivered on time, they tasted delicious, and I got to pick a charity to donate a portion of my purchase to!

Need a gift to send to a colleague or client over the holidays?  Know a sick friend that could use a pick-me-up?   What about a child in the middle of exams?  Who doesn’t love cookies?  Check out Feed Your Soul for your next gift purchase this holiday season.

Grade: A+

Let’s Dish! was AWESOME!  Definitely the best Groupon I’ve used so far.  Signing up for the in-store session on-line was simple — I chose our date and time, selected 4 dishes and entered my Groupon code without any issues.  On Wednesday, we showed up, had a brief orientation and got to work preparing our food.

We assembled 4 different dishes into 8 meals and froze them to cook later — Chicken Parmigiana, Tomato Herb Flank Steak, Chile-Lime Pork Chops with Black Bean Salsa and Pork Tenderloins with Stuffing.  We also got to bring home a pre-made side of pasta, scones and cookies!

While waiting for our final cooking station to clear, we took advantage of the snack area, where Let’s Dish! features some of their deserts.  Everything was delicious!

My freezer is stocked with 8 meals — now let’s hope I don’t burn the kitchen down when I actually cook them!

Grade: A

I’m going to start by apologizing for not having very many photos or very much gossip about Peacock Cafe —  I was enjoying myself so much during dinner that I almost forgot that about this blog.  I also get very awkward when taking pictures of my food, out of fear that I’m being watched by the restaurant staff (we were seated almost right next to the hostess stand) so only a couple pictures turned out.

A few years ago, I had a delicious brunch at Peacock Café in Georgetown, so when I saw that they were being featured on Groupon, I knew I had to buy the deal.  This time around, I decided to try out their dinner and couldn’t have been more pleased.

Ted and I started out with the calamari.

I’ve had my fair share of  calamari around town but this was the best I’ve had in DC.

Ted ordered the New York Strip and I ordered the Steak Salad.  Both were delicious and perfectly cooked.

Again, I apologize for the lack of photos…but trust me, the steak salad looked and tasted amazing (although slightly heavy on the dressing)!

I could kick myself for not checking out the Peacock Cafe website gallery before going to dinner there.  These two dishes look divine!

Peacock Café was AWESOME!  The atmosphere was perfect for a nicer week-day evening (or weekend!) and the service and food were exceptional.  Even if they are not featured on Groupon again, I plan to return!

Grade: A

I’ve been somewhat of a “Debbie Downer” about the Groupons I’ve used recently — however, this week, I’m excited to tell you all about 2 deals I’ve used that have been awesome!  First one…Newseum!

Sunday afternoon I redeemed my Groupon at the Newseum and thought it was AWESOME.  During a high school field trip to DC, I went to the old Newseum, but all I remember about that visit is recording a video with a friend in which we pretended to be weather people on the news.  The newly renovated Newseum exceeded my expectations.  I went in expecting to see just the history of news — radio, television, internet, etc. — but the museum had so much more.  Six floors of news — top headlines throughout history, international media, ethics in the news, a memorial to those lost while reporting the news, and more.  They also had awesome exhibits on significant events throughout history, in which they focused on how these events were covered by the media, such as September 11th and the fall of the Berlin Wall.

Looking down into the Newseum from the top floor

The front pages of today's newspapers from around the world and U.S.

Pieces of the Berlin Wall

September 11th Headlines/Front Pages

My favorite part of the museum was the “News History” portion, which started with newspapers from 1455 and worked its way up to this year.  I was never a “history buff,” but looking through all of the newspaper headlines brought so many historical events to life.

The Newseum is my new favorite museum in Washington, DC.  If you live here and haven’t visited or if you’re planning a trip to the district, I highly recommend visiting the Newseum!

Grade: A

I’m not handy at all, but I love hardware stores…you can find almost everything there!  I was pumped when the Washington, DC ACE Stores were featured on Groupon.  I’ve been to the Glover Park ACE tons of times and the people there are always SO helpful…this visit was no different.

My roommates and I had been planning on carving pumpkins, so I decided to stop by ACE to see what they had in the Halloween category.  I bought a large pumpkin, a small pumpkin, a pumpkin carving kit, candles and some tic-tacs to put me right at $20.28 (actually $10.28 thanks to Groupon).

We ordered in pizza, had some wine…and started carving!

Roommates getting started!

The Pumpkin Carving Kit!

The Stencil

Almost there!

Caroline and her VERY happy pumpkin!

Finished!

The Final Products!

Thanks to ACE and Groupon we had a successful evening carving pumpkins at a low price!

Grade:  A-

CityCentric was not prepared for the Groupon rush – I had trouble redeeming my Groupon on their website and receiving their confirmation e-mails.  After several attempts to sign up online, I began to get frustrated…almost to the point of giving up (yes, I was being a baby)…so I decided to call CityCentric.  I cannot speak highly enough of both people I spoke to — they were eager to help and walked me through the online setup and the pick-up/delivery process.

I did not want to exceed $30 worth of their Delivery Dry Cleaning so that I could test out their service before spending more.  I sent a suit (two pieces), a dress and a blouse…just under $30 according to their price list online.

The white blouse has two faint stains from coffee, which I marked with tape.

I then put all clothes in a plastic bag, attached a piece of paper that said “CityCentric” and my name and left it on my front porch.

(Yes, I know our porch is disgustingly filthy…but Hey! It’s hard enough to keep a house of 4 girls clean on the inside, much less the outside.)

To my surprise, my clothes were delivered the next day!  The clothes looked and smelled great (no nasty chemical smell that you sometimes get from other dry cleaners).

No more coffee stains! Ta da!

The laundry even came with a laundry bag for future use with a name tag and account number.

All I have to do now is fill the bag and set up a pick up time.

Even though I have a Dry Cleaning Shop in my office building (which is pretty darn convenient), I will definitely use CityCentric again.  I highly recommend their service!