Birthday Festivities at Chateau Elan Winery & Resort

Well, I’ve decided that it is time for me to start sharing with you all some personal blog posts! I’ve been challenging myself lately as a photographer to blog more. I’ve slowly but surely incorporated recent weddings into my blog and I’m loving it. But instead of blasting your newsfeed with just marketing efforts, I thought I’d get personal with you guys. And plus, for any future or current clients, this will be a great way for you guys to get to know me and my sweet little family, my husband Brooks and our Shih-Tzu Sadie Belle.

So today I’m excited to share about a recent trip that I took with my husband for my 27th birthday!

For those of you who do know us, know that we LOVE to travel and experience the world! Brooks has been fortunate enough to have traveled practically all over the world with his family while he was growing up. While I’ve traveled to some beautiful locations in the past with my family, I still have plenty of places that I need to mark off my bucket list of “places to see.” So after officially tying the knot, Brooks and I made a promise to each other that we would spend quality time together by traveling as much as we can before we start planning to grow our family someday (sorry pals, no little Shaw babies right now).

So when it came time to my birthday, Brooks surprised me with a weekend getaway to the Chateau Elan Winery & Resort in Atlanta, Georgia.  Brooks knows that I am a sucker for nice resorts and a beautiful, relaxing spa. So while we were there, we were pampered with a couples weekend spa package. It included a one night stay in one of their suites, a 50 minute couples massage, bottle of champagne delivered to your room, dinner that night for two, and then breakfast in the spa for two the next morning.

First off let me just say….

Thank you to my Husband for taking me for my birthday to Chateau Elan! I absolutely loved every second that I got to spend with him while we were there.

Second…

Husbands or wives, if you want to take your spouse somewhere and spoil them but not break the bank with airplane tickets, you MUST check this place out! It was just about a six-seven hour drive to Atlanta from Jackson (depending on traffic).

So we packed up our bags, went to Atlanta to visit with family first, then headed off to Chateau Elan. The weekend at Chateau Elan was exactly with this lady needed…quality time with my Husband and relaxation! We ended up having to stay a bit longer there cause they had to push back our massage time, so we got to enjoy the beautiful pool and sunshine a few hours before our couples massage.

And to those of you who are foodies like we are, their food is divine! They have multiple restaurants on the resort that offer different menus, depending on what you are craving or like. For dinner that evening we got there, I enjoyed a bowl of Rigatoni pasta (NOTE: I NEVER eat pasta at home, so this was a treat). Brooks enjoyed their venison dish for dinner, which he loved considering he has actually never had venison. We were so full that we ended up skipping dessert that night. But we did have a delicious cheese platter for an appetizer…the cheeses were fresh and came with some freshly pickled olives which I devoured! If you keep scrolling down through my photos, you’ll also see a picture of a delicious salad I had before my pasta dish that evening for dinner. It was a fresh arugula salad with spiced walnuts and a lemon-herb vinaigrette. Let’s just say, seeing that I love me a GOOD salad, I ate that sucker up fast. I wish I had the recipe for the salad so I could make it at home!

So friends and family, if  you are looking for a relaxing, fun getaway with that special someone or spouse, Brooks and I would highly recommend you staying at the Chateau Elan Winery & Resort. They have different restaurants, a beautiful spa, golf course, winery where you can do wine tastings, outdoor pool, and much more. I wish I had taken more pictures, but I made a point to put my phone up while we were there to relax. So enjoy the pictures below!

ABOVE & BELOW: We managed to stop and take a few fun photos before our dinner when we arrived that evening. 

ABOVE: Me in front of some of the vines at the winery. This is a cell phone picture, so it is a tad blurry. 

ABOVE: A picture of the salad I mentioned in my post above. Oh if I could only get the recipe for this DELICIOUS salad. A great summer salad for those who love to eat organic and fresh like I do!

ABOVE: Yes, I was daring and posted a picture of me with no makeup. But this was before we were about to enjoy our couples massage. It was FABULOUS!

ABOVE: This is a panoramic photo of the entrance to the winery and some of the restaurants. It was so beautiful, especially at sunset. It’s a CASTLE!

ABOVE: Brooks and I grabbed my professional camera and took some pictures real quick before we headed back to Tennessee. 🙂