Hey guys! Here’s part 2 of 2 for my Kiawah Island Birthday Trip 2017, featuring Days 4-6.
*VIDEO* Birthday Vlog
This video features even more footage of this trip, including a bikini beach workout for my No Crunch Ab Challenge.
Click here to view the accompanying vlog if the above player doesn’t work.
Breakfast at the Villa (Kiawah Island)
Mornings at Kiawah are so relaxing and peaceful.
Mom and I went 50/50 on an everything bagel and cheese bagel. It was mom’s first everything bagel! And she loved it!
Vegan Dal
After a nice afternoon at the beach, we headed inside for lunch – vegan dal with brown rice and tropical smoothies.
Biking Around Kiawah
I went back out for more beach and then headed back in to rent bikes.
We took them around the Sanctuary and made our way to a boardwalk. Unfortunately, the tide was unusually high due to the hurricane out in the Atlantic. We’d normally ride our bikes on the beach at this time.
I got a little trapped by the tide when I stepped over to take the photo two up. But I American-Ninja’ed my way back.
We found some interesting bike routes, including a couple narrow wooden bridges that I almost fell onto while trying to film. Lol.
We considered going to a watch tower, but we ran out of steam when we tried biking on the beach as the tide started to go out.
We headed down this golden-lit boardwalk.
And then onto the beach. But the sand was so wet, it was reeeeeeeally hard to bike through. I haven’t had a leg workout that good in a long time. My legs were on fire!
Dinner and Vegan Birthday Cake
For dinner, we had a cheesy chicken pasta bake with some of Justin’s leftover fresh pasta.
And sis made me this delicious vegan chocolate cake by Loving It Vegan. It was so good!
Spa Day at The Sanctuary
For breakfast, I got to enjoy some of sis’s vegan muffins with the usual fluffy-fried egg, organic blackberries, and coffee.
Dad and mom walked with me to The Sanctuary.
I checked in for a 10:45 am Classic Southern Massage, which is their version of Swedish. The massage was great, and stayed for a bit longer to enjoy the spa more.
I hung out in the Solarium, which is so peaceful and a great mental break since there are so few distractions.
There was an interesting note in an Eating Well article about how a magnesium deficiency can cause trouble with sleep. I’ve been having some issues here, so this was an interesting read. While making a smoothie bowl for blogging fuel (to write this post), I learned that hemp seeds can be a good source of magnesium. Nice!
Birthday Lunch at Jasmine Porch
After a bit, I headed downstairs to meet my family at Jasmine Porch for my annual birthday lunch. We’ve been celebrating here since pretty much we first started visiting Kiawah Island. It’s always a winner!
The weather was beautiful so we scored a great table outside.
We love their bread basket and herb butter and pimento cheese.
Dad and I shared a beet salad with the bacon and cheese on the side.
For my entree, I had the fish but subbed mahi mahi for the salmon. I eat so much salmon, it’s nice to try other fish when I’m out and about.
And for dessert, they gave us this complimentary slice of birthday chocolate chip cookie cake.
I didn’t know such a thing existed. It was goooood!
{The crew}
Our view
Biking Encore
Since we had a two day rental, we took the bikes out for another evening on the island. Justin found a beautiful stretch of bike path just next to the beach with a great view of the sunset. There’s a clip in the video above if you’re curious.
Dinnertime
For dinner, Justin made his famous fried shrimp. And I had leftover rice and veggies from lunch. Plus a salad on the side.
And of course there was more cake to be had.
Last Day of the Trip
I accidentally woke up early, which meant less sleep but also that I caught this pretty sunrise.
I managed to squeeze in one last bike ride on the beach, which was the perfect way to end the trip.
I thought the storm may cause my flight to be delayed or even cancelled. But we left nearly on time.
And if you’re looking for healthy airport food at the Charleston Airport, check out Caviar and Bananas. They had great options, like this salad. You guys know I’m not a big salad person. But this one had a great mix!
Click here for part 1 of the trip.
Thanks for reading and watching!