#ThankYouMiami How-To: Staying Fit With Your Pet

As winter approaches, it is our duty as Miami-ans to find new, innovative ways to stay fit. After all, its almost a requirement for residency to maintain a bikini body year-round. The good news is that the weather cooled down this week, finally making it pleasant to go for a run outdoors. This afternoon I did a 6-mile jog from my place to the South Pointe Pier. It was glorious.

During my run, I saw a ton of people jogging with their pets and I got majorly jealous. I've been contemplating bringing home a dog or a cat to keep me company since my move. Unfortunately, my frequent travels and hectic work schedule have been two major and valid deterrents. Nevertheless, in moments of weakness I still hopefully peruse local adoption listings and sites like PuppySpot that connect responsible breeders with people like me that are searching for a new pet.

#ThankYouMiami for New Food Finds - Stiltsville Fish Bar

Before I begin today's post, I want to say #thankyoumiami. Thank you for believing in this blog and thank you for following along on our Miami journey. Thank you also for nominating us a second year in a row as Best Local Blogger in the South Florida Blogger Awards. Writing new posts is fun because you make it fun by allowing us to entertain you with our silly stories and our news about our beautiful coastal community. You smart, you loyal, we appreciate you. (And we'll love you forever if you vote for us!) And now, for our regularly scheduled programming...

When it comes to landmarks, nothing is more Miami than Stiltsville. Its seven weathered, wooden houses are beacons of "a rascally mischievous past". In its heyday, Stiltsville was a utopia for the seafaring bon vivant, a place with its own rules. Today the remaining structures are off-limits to most of us, but they are a friendly and familiar face in the middle of Biscayne Bay.

Since I moved to Miami in 2006, I have passed Stiltsville numerous times—on the way out to snorkel at Fowey Rocks, to sail in open water, and to dive the Miami Wreck Trek. But, until this past August, I had never set foot there. My first visit was everything I dreamed it would be. There were boats, there were babes, there was booze, and there was a buffet of fresh seafood. The occasion? The long-awaited arrival of Stiltsville Fish Bar to Sunset Harbour.

#ThankYouMiamiGoesToCA - Sister Roadtrip to Joshua Tree

Miami has many things but it severely lacks two: my sisters. My younger siblings Carla and Lucy, who are twins, live spread out across the country. Carla is in Boston studying her Master's and working towards becoming a dentist. Lucy is in San Francisco applying her passion and smarts for mechanical engineering with Sail Drone. I am here in Miami building a career as an environmental professional and writer.

The twins and I are almost six years apart in age so we haven't always been the best of friends. However, as we've gotten older, our age difference has become less significant and we've grown closer, making our geographical distance feel infinite. This past summer we decided to do something about it by planning our first ever sisters trip. It consisted of a road trip from San Francisco, stopping briefly in Los Angeles, and ending in Joshua Tree National Park where we rented this mid-century hiking and camping cabin on AirBnB.

The three of us have very different personalities, but we're all adventurous and silly. (The combination led to some really interesting scenarios.) In my first YouTube video since my Rivas, Nicaragua trip in June 2014, I share the story of our sister bonding in Joshua Tree. Where do you think we should take our talents to next?