October 30, 2009

Easy Peasy - Mummy Pizzas

The Hubs' office is a lot larger than mine and they do fun things, like have potlucks on Halloween. Last year we made Mummy Dogs and they were a BIG HIT! I know this because the Hubs was sick last Halloween and I dropped them off at work for him. When he got back to work the next Monday they had taken a picture of the dogs and put it on the company server.


Pretty creepy, huh?

This year he couldn't very well show up with some boring 7 layer dip so we made Mummy Pizzas... gotta sick with the theme, right?

Ingredients
English Muffins
Pizza Sauce
Sliced Mozzarella, cut in strips (we used a pizza slicer)
Sliced Black Olives

Directions
1 - Cut the English Muffins in half

2 - Spread on desired amount of Pizza Sauce

3 - Arrange Mozzarella slices

4 - Add 2 Black Olive slices for eyes

5 - Place under the broiler until the cheese melts.


Creepy and Tasty!

Five for Friday

Previous Fridays

1 - You love Halloween
2 - You like to make Halloween themed food for your office Potluck
3 - You taking me to get Kogi BBQ tonight
4 - You take care of me when I'm sick
5 - You close the shower curtain after your shower because you know I think it makes the bathroom look nicer and helps with the mildew.

October 28, 2009

Nutritious & Delicious - Vegetarian Spaghetti

A couple weeks ago the Hubs and I had were hanging out at home. We'd have a late lunch so around 8ish I wasn't starving, but I was hungry again and wanted a light dinner. I whipped up this little dinner because we had all the necessary ingredients on hand. Since then the Hubs has asked me to make it about 5 different times, so last night I picked up some Spaghetti Squash and mushrooms on my way home and surprised him.

Ingredients
1/4 c chopped Onion
1/4 c sliced Mushrooms
1 clove Garlic, minced
EVOO
Red Wine
2 8oz cans Tomato Sauce
1/2 Spaghetti Squash

Squash Directions
1 - Cut the squash in half, longways. I have to have the Hubs do this, I'm just not strong enough.

2 - Put 1/2 of squash cut-side down in a glass baking dish with about 1/4 cup of water. Cover with plastic wrap.

3 - Microwave for 10-12 mins. You may need to microwave longer depending on the size of your squash.

4 -Use a fork to scrap and remove the squash.


Sauce Directions
1 - Thinly coat the pan with EVOO and sauté onion, mushrooms and garlic in a little red wine. The longer you can sauté, the better this will taste. You may need to occasionally add water to the pan.

2 - Add Meatless Meatballs, continue cooking.

3 - Mix in tomato sauce and continue cooking until hot.

It looks like a ginormous amount of food because it's on a little plate... I promise.


October 27, 2009

He Cooks - Zucchini Casserole

The Hubs also LOVES to cook and he is really helpful and makes dinner without me on nights I really need to work on homework. This week I have a CRAZY amount of homework, Boooo! So, the Hubs made us Zucchini Casserole (from Gina's WW Recipes) and tomato soup.


Ingredients
4 cups grated zucchini
1 cup bisquick
1 small onion, grated
3 egg whites, 1 whole egg
1/4 cup olive oil
1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese
1 tsp salt
1 tsp parsley

Directions
1 - Preheat oven to 350°.

2 - Mix everything together in a bowl.

3 - Spray a pie dish or a casserole with Pam and pour mixture.

4 - Bake approximately 45 minutes, until golden brown.

5 - Put a toothpick in the center to test if it is done. If it comes out clean, it is ready.

Servings: 10-12 servings • Cooking Time: 45 minutes • Points: 2.5 ww points


The Hubs rubbed EVOO on the bottom of the pan because we don't have Pam. I think that is why this burned to the bottom of the dish, next time we will try Pam or margarine.

October 23, 2009

Around our Nest - The Beginning

Mr Frenchie and I love our apartment complex and even our tiny-one-bedroom apartment. Although, we I sometimes wish we had one more bedroom for an office, our apartment is the perfect size for our little family, right now.


We love the spacious balcony, the island in the kitchen and ALL the storage!

I'm always curious to see how people decor their space and how a space evolves over time, so I thought I'd show you how our apartment started out. Hopefully, if I remember, next week you can see it's current state and I'll tell you what we plan on doing. Since we do live in an apartment, and in CA that means you don't own it, we can't change much but the paint color there won't be any drastic changes, but there will still be changes.

The Living Room...
  • The sofa was our first major purchase as a couple and a piece we'd had our eye on for awhile. We bought it right before the Hubs moved so we'd have a place to sit.
  • The coffee table is a piece the Hubs bought way back before we met and he was living in Las Vegas, it has a matching bar too.
  • The mirror is something I won on Tara's blog, Two Wishes. I want to put it above the fireplace but the Hubs wants to put something else... we'll see who wins.
  • The shoes, belong to the Hubs and I'm pretty sure they are in that exact same spot right now.
The China Cabinet...
  • This china cabinet, or I should say one exactly like it, was given to me by my Grandmother when she past away. I say one exactly like it because this one was actually my parent's they have the exact same one and pulled a switch-a-roo when her's was in better shape.
  • The upper part is now COMPLETELY filled with glasses now. We have an obscene amount of glassware... it's a little embarrassing.
The Bar Table...
  • The Hubs found those Vintage Chess Piece booze containers on eBay a year or so ago and they now reside on the left side of the bar. The right side is where the real booze hang out now.
  • We still need to get proper pots for our plants... the plastic pot and paper plate just isn't classy.
  • My shoes now reside next to the Hubs' under the coffee table.
  • The paint color is something we are pretty proud of. Paint color is the only thing we can change about our apartment and the first thing we did once we move the Hubs in. P.S. We are excellent tapers. Here's a better picture...

  • The dinning table also used to be my Grandmother's and I love it. One of the six chairs is still being used at my parent's house... I think I'll get it back this weekend.
The Kitchen...
  • Yes, we were registered at Crate & Barrel.
  • The vintage toaster used to be the Hubs' Grandmother's. It still works, however we're afraid to use it.
  • Where there should be a fridge, there is just a pile of boxes. The Hubs lived there for about a month without a fridge. I don't know how he did it, but it left a great storage place for all our empty boxes.

  • Yes, that is a gnome in the corner by the knives. George (the gnome) doesn't want to be outside, or so the Hubs tells me. He also tells me George is guarding the knives. Here is a better picture...
  • The "Red Thing" is a coffee grinder. The Hubs takes his coffee seriously.
  • I got that lime Le Creuset stock pot on sale at Sur La Table a couple weeks for our wedding. It came in pretty handy when we got back from our honeymoon,tried to make soup and realized we didn't receive any pots.
  • I love that wrought iron Cookbook stand. My mom has one just like it fromSouthern Living at Home. I wanted one so badly but never said anything and someone gave to it me as a shower gift.
Up next, I'll show you the balcony and how everything looks now. Do you feel like a house is every finished or is it always a work in progress as things get relocated and your tastes change?

Five for Friday

Previous Fridays

1 - You LOVE it when I cook
2 - You tell me the things I cook you are tasty
3 - You help me with my homework
4 - You get me wine when I'm stressed
5 - You give me shoulder squeezes

October 21, 2009

Hummus is Yummus - Sun Dried Tomato Hummus

True story - The main reason I registered us for a Food Processor was so I could make my own hummus. (This is where you tell me I can make it with a blender and then I tell you, yeah, well not as well).

I've had this hummus recipe (from Lauren's Kitchen) saved in my reader since May! My goal has been to use her recipe as a base to make Sun Dried Tomato Hummus. A week ago, or so, I tried just that - made her hummus and then added sun dried tomatoes and basil. While it tasted good, it was WAY to acidic... to be honest it tasted a little like sick. I knew there was a good hummus in there, it just needed less lemon, or no lemon at all.

Determined to master my sun dried tomato hummus, this past Friday I bought more chick peas and sun dried tomatoes on my way home. I hate to toot my own horn (okay, I LOVE to) but the second time around I hit it out of the park!

Ingredients
1 12-oz can chick peas
2 large cloves garlic
1/3 cup sun dried tomatoes
3-4 leaves fresh basil
2 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil (or sun dried tomato oil)
2 tsp+ tahini (sesame paste)
salt
Pepper

Directions:
1. Drain water from the can of chick peas into a small bowl and reserve.

2. In a food processor, mix together the chick peas with garlic, tomatoes, basil and oil.

3. Add tahini. Start with a tsp and add more to taste.

4. Slowly add some of the liquid from beans for correct consistency, (about 1-2 minutes) until a smooth.

5. Add salt and pepper to taste.

6. Refrigerate for at least 30 mins before serving. This changes the taste of the hummus by allowing the flavors to form.

Taco Tuesday - Light Turkey Tacos with Veggies

Last night I was craving tacos, but healthy ones of course. I looked all over Cooking Light, since that is my go to recipe source right now, but the Hubs found a great recipe on Gina's WW Recipes.

These Turkey Tacos with Veggies is adapted from Gina's Turkey Taco Lettuce Wraps. Which, if your interested are 3 Weight Watcher's points, but I have no idea how many points are in my adaptation.

Ingredients
1.3 lbs 99% lean ground turkey
1 clove garlic minced
1 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp salt
1 tsp chili powder
1 tsp paprika
1 tsp oregano
1/4 cup sliced mushrooms
1/2 small onion, minced
3/4 cup water
4 oz tomato sauce
1 large zucchini cut longways about 1" long
1 tomato chopped
8 large lettuce romaine lettuce leaves

Directions
1. Brown turkey in skillet, breaking into desired pieces, until there is NO pink.

2. Add garlic, cumin, salt, chili powder, paprika, oregano, mushrooms, onion, water & tomato sauce. Mix well and simmer for 10 mins.

3. Add zucchini and and tomato. Continue simmering for 10 mins.

4. Wash and dry lettuce. Place meat in the middle of lettuce and add your choice of toppings. We chose 2% reduced fat shredded cheese, a tiny bit of avocado, salsa and a little Tofutti Sour Cream.*

I cannot believe a meal with absolutely no carbs was this tasty! AND that the Hubs discovered it! We will definitely be making this again :)

* The Hubs has a very picky stomach... he is lactose intolerant, but can handle cheese with lactaid pills. However, no amount of lactaid can save him from ice cream, sour cream, butter or cream. This makes cooking for him very interesting.

October 19, 2009

Cooking Light: Quick Meat Loaf

As promised I started cooking recipes found in my Cooking Light Magazines. This Sunday, the Hubs and I made Quick Meatloaf, smashed potatoes and green beans. Well, I made the meatloaf and he made the potatoes & beans.

You may be thinking - smashed potatoes don't sound like the most healthy option. The hubs is lactose intolerant (if you haven't figured that out already) so we make them with chicken broth and a little margarine.

Sadly, I forgot my camera's memory card in my printer at work over the weekend so you'll have to imagine that my meatloaf looked as good, or better, than the one on Cooking Light's website.


Yield
4 servings (serving size: 2 slices)

Ingredients
1/3 cup chopped green onions
3 tablespoons dry breadcrumbs
2 teaspoons minced garlic
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon dry mustard
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper
1 pound ground sirloin
1 large egg, lightly beaten
6 tablespoons ketchup, divided
Cooking spray

Preparation
1. Preheat oven to 400°.

2. Combine first 9 ingredients in a large bowl; add 1/4 cup ketchup. Mix beef mixture with hands just until combined. Shape beef mixture into a 9 x 4–inch loaf on a broiler pan coated with cooking spray. Bake at 400° for 20 minutes. Brush top of meat loaf with remaining 2 tablespoons ketchup. Bake 7 additional minutes or until done. Slice loaf into 8 equal pieces.

3. About 10 mins into baking the meatloaf I added thinly slices mushrooms to the top of the meatloaf. If I can add more veggies to something, I'm all over it!

Wine note: A value-priced cabernet or merlot, like Crane Lake Cabernet Sauvignon 2005 ($4), tends to be straightforward, lighter-bodied, and lower in tannins, ideal with the lean ground beef in this traditional baked meat loaf. --Jeffery Lindenmuth

Nutritional Information
Calories: 267
Fat: 13.1g (sat 5.1g,mono 5.5g,poly 0.7g)
Protein: 25.6g
Carbohydrate: 10.8g
Fiber: 0.7g
Cholesterol: 127mg
Iron: 3.4mg
Sodium: 679mg
Calcium: 44mg

I still cannot get over how freakin' tasty this meatloaf is! But, I guess I shouldn't be surprised because everything I've ever made from this Magazine has been tasty. The Hubs liked this so much I made him a container to take to work w/ a little smashed potatoes and 2 slices of meatloaf. He just emailed and told me how he was dreaming about his lunch.

Cooking Light Tip: One thing I've noticed when cooking the recipes in this magazine is they don't add a lot of salt. Totally understandable because sodium intake is something a lot of people watch. I however choose to watch other things more closely so, most the time, I'll add more salt than the recipe calls for. In the case of this recipe I doubled it.

And the Winner is...

Sorry this announcement didn't go up earlier this morning, I've been having serious technical difficulties with my work computer. I got in at 8am this morning and now (at 10am) I can use it to its full capacity, grrrrr.

Happy Monday everyone! I couldn't wait to get up this morning and announce the winner of my first Giveaway EVER! Thank you to everyone who commented with great healthy eating tips. I was really inspired by all your tips, especially the ones about smooties and fruits and veggies. The mister and I made meatloaf from the September issue of Cooking Light last night and I went out this weekend and bought apples for breakfast and/or snacks. I had one on my way to work this morning. I'd forgotten how much I loved apples.

Okay Allison, get to the winner.The winner is #5 aka Katie (aka The Indecisive Bride aka Latte Love)!!

Katie's advise...
Congratulations Katie, you are going to LOVE your new Cooking Light Magazine! Comments below or hit me up on Twitter with your email address so I can we can get this ordered!

Thanks again to everyone who entered!

October 16, 2009

Beef Wellington

The Hubs has been dying to make Beef Wellington for a little over a year now. However, without a place of our own (and a kitchen) it's been difficult to have a dinner party. Now that we're married and have said place (with said kitchen) we had our first dinner party.

Remember a few weeks ago when we went to Palm Springs and I learned that Easy Peasy Appetizer recipe from Tiffany? She also made us duck! We had to make something awesome to compete with that. Right? Enter, the Hubs' perfect opportunity for Beef Wellington.

He Googled all over the place for a good recipe and you would be surprised at all the different ways to make Beef Wellington out there! After reading a TON he decided on one from AllRecipes.com.

INGREDIENTS
2 1/2 pounds beef tenderloin
2 tablespoons butter, softened
2 tablespoons butter
1 onion, chopped
1/2 cup sliced fresh mushrooms
2 ounces liver pate (we used less than 1 oz)
2 tablespoons butter, softened
salt and pepper to taste
1 (17.5 ounce) package frozen puff pastry, thawed
1 egg yolk, beaten
1 (10.5 ounce) can beef broth (never used)
2 tablespoons red wine (we used Brandy instead)

DIRECTIONS
1 - Preheat oven to 425 degrees F (220 degrees C).

2 - Place beef in a small baking dish, and spread with 2 tablespoons softened butter.

3 -Bake for 10 to 15 minutes, or until browned.

4 - Remove from pan, and allow to cool completely. Reserve pan juices.

5 - Melt 2 tablespoons butter in a skillet over medium heat. Saute onion and mushrooms in butter for 5 minutes. (This is where we added Brandy. We also let it cook for much longer to caramelize the onions). Remove from heat, and let cool.

6 - Mix together pate and 2 tablespoons softened butter, and season with salt and pepper. (We didn't do this, we went for straight pate).

7 - Spread pate over beef. Top with onion and mushroom mixture.

8 - Roll out the puff pastry dough, and place beef in the center. Fold up, and seal all the edges, making sure the seams are not too thick.

9 - Place beef in a 9x13 inch baking dish (or any baking dish it will fit in), cut a few slits in the top of the dough, and brush with egg yolk. (We decorated the tops with the extra dough)

10 - Bake at 450 degrees F (230 degrees C) for 10 minutes, then reduce heat to 425 degrees F (220 degrees C) for 10 to 15 more minutes, or until pastry is a rich, golden brown.

11 - Set aside, and keep warm.

12 - (We also didn't to this) Place all reserved juices in a small saucepan over high heat. Stir in beef stock and red wine; boil for 10 to 15 minutes, or until slightly reduced. Strain, and serve with beef.



I'm not gonna lie, I'd had some wine before I took this picture...
A) Yes, I know the plate is dirty
B) Yes, I know that looks really red, but trust me it was safe - We took it's temp.

Things I've learned...
A) Pate is gross, it tastes like dog food. Unless, you spread it over Beef and cook it, then it is FANTASTIC! I found myself dreaming of other dishes I could add pate too... like burgers!
B) This is SUPER easy to do!

Giveaway - Cooking Light

I've been married what a month and a half and I've already noticed my waistline going to crap! So, I've decided to actually start cooking the recipes in my Cooking Light Magazine.
I freakin' LOVE this magazine! I've given gift subscriptions to two friends now and they freakin' LOVE it too!

So, in honor of me starting to eat better (again) I want to give one of you a (1 yr) subscription too.
A) Because I love my readers
&
B) Because I think it will encourage me to stick with it.

How to enter: Simply comment (only once please) below and leave me your favorite eating healthy tip. I'll select a winner using Random.org announce the lucky person on Monday!

Five for Friday

Previous Fridays

1 - You get really excited when I make you chocolate chip cookies
2 - You take me to fun new restaurants
3 - You call me Buck-a-roo
4 - You're trying to get me to take a trip to Big Texan
5 - We spent 30 mins last night brainstorming Halloween Costumes so you don't have to be a Flying Monkey for your office's Wizard of Oz theme

October 15, 2009

Chocolate Chip Cookies - Take 2

Technically this is Take 3, I attempted The Chewy and didn't follow the recipe exactly when I spaced out and put in the white of the egg instead of the yolk - D'oh... anyway, they looked EXACTLY like the first chocolate cookies I made, and tasted the same too!

This recipe is from my Bestie Feli and was part a of super cute cookie themed shower present she made me.

She put all the dry ingredients (and I'm assuming the vanilla) in a zip-lock baggie so all I had to do was at the butter and the eggs! Since I'm pretty sure I had the Flu on Tuesday it was nice that this was as easy as possible. (What? You don't bake when you're sick? I can't sit still).

Out of the 3 chocolate chip cookie recipes I've tried so far this is my favorite. I always like the dough more than the cookies, but these weren't bad. They have a saltier taste and are Tast-eee!

Here is the recipe if you want to try them...



Thanks Feli!

Frenchiemoon: Vermont, Part 3 - The End

The Hubs and I both agree that our last day in Vermont was the BEST day of our honeymoon.

When we knew we'd be starting and ending our honeymoon in Vermont, the Hubs tried to find a way for us boat around Lake Champlain... in hopes of seeing Champ. Sea Monsters have been an inside joke between the Hubs and I since we started dating and the Vermont Uhaul seems to follow us wherever we go.

The Hubs found a Lake cruise called The Spirit of Ethan Allen III. We took the "Lunch-On-The-Lake Cruise" - a 1 1/2 Hour Narrated Cruise with Buffet. Mr Frenchie LOVES buffets!

And Bloody Maries (Marys? What is the plural for that?). It was a gorgeous day and we saw and learned at lot about Lake Champlain.

Like, do you know the whole lake freezes over in the winter? YEP, so much so that you can drive on it to go ice fishing! I wouldn't recommend that though, according to our tour guild if your car falls in the lake the State of Vermont gives you one day to get it out or they do it for you and send you the bill. Plus, that kind of thing is NOT covered by car insurance companies.

Sadly, we didn't see Champ. Although, The Spirit of Ethan Allen did see him back in 1984, we think it was too bright outside for Champ that day.

Next we drove over to Shelburne Vineyard. The vineyard had recently re-located to a new building, so new that they were still planting new vines out front.

Having been wine tasting in Napa, Temecula and Rancho Bernardo I wasn't expecting to be tasting alone. It was, however, a Wednesday, so that could explain why we had the whole winery to ourselves. If I remember correctly we sampled about 9 wines, including my first ice wine. I'm sure you can imagine, I don't see too much ice in Orange County, CA, so ice wine isn't very common.
This is the last picture I have of our trip in Vermont because my battery died. The Hubs was able to turn the camera on long enough to grab a shot of me in front of the winery and then it died.

Since I lack photographic evidence you will have to believe when I tell you when went to Shelburne Farms last for Cheese tasting. It happened I promise! We even bought some yummy mustard!

And that is the Frenchiemoon in a 8 post nutshell! Did you miss one?
Sheldon's Adventures
Vermont, Part 1
Canada, Part 1 - Quebec City
Canada, Part 2 - Quebec City/Montreal
Canada, Part 3 - Montreal
Canada, Part 4 - Ottawa
Vermont, Part 2

October 12, 2009

Cheesecake - Attempt No. 1

This weekend the Hubs and I had a tiny dinner party with another couple. I We couldn't wait to make a fancy meal and use as many new kitchen tools as possible.

Kitchen Too1 #1: My super sassy Black and White Polka Dot Apron. A shower gift from my sister.


The first thing I made Saturday, was the last thing we were going to eat... Cheesecake. I had dreams of making a pumpkin cheesecake or peanut butter cheesecake with strawberry topping, a PB&J Cheesecake if you will? But the Hubs really wanted me to make a cheesecake where he could really taste the cheesiness (his word not mine, although it does sound like something I would say). Anyway to make him happy, I made Chantal's New York Cheesecake from All Recipes.com.

Kitchen Tool #2: My Green Mixing Bowls


This is me mixing the melted butter margarine with the graham cracker I crumbed myself, thankyouverymuch.

This recipe also allowed me to break out Kitchen Tool #3: My Martha Stewart Kitchenaid Mixer!
No picture of me with it because the Hubs was too busy hooking the speakers up to his laptop... BOO!

INGREDIENTS
15 graham crackers, crushed
2 tablespoons butter, melted

4 (8 ounce) packages cream cheese
1 1/2 cups white sugar
3/4 cup milk
4 eggs
1 cup sour cream
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
1/4 cup all-purpose flour

DIRECTIONS
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease a 9 inch springform pan. (I failed here, I didn't have a springform pan, nor the desire to drive to more than one store to find one. I just used a 9" backing pan).
In a medium bowl, mix graham cracker crumbs with melted butter. Press onto bottom of springform pan. (I'm not gonna lie - crushed graham cracker and butter is GOOOOOD).
In a large bowl, mix cream cheese with sugar until smooth. Blend in milk, and then mix in the eggs one at a time, mixing just enough to incorporate. Mix in sour cream, vanilla and flour until smooth. Pour filling into prepared crust. (I would recommend not using the Kitchenaid mixer for this and using either a hand mixer or food processor because I had a lot of left over cream cheese stuck to the side of the bowl).
Bake in preheated oven for 1 hour. Turn the oven off, and let cake cool in oven with the door closed for 5 to 6 hours; this prevents cracking. Chill in refrigerator until serving.


The Strawberry sauce is just something I whipped up really quickly to make the cheesecake look better. It was Easy Peasy.

Ingredients
Frozen Strawberries (un-sweetened)
Splenda
Cinnamon
Brandy
Water

I put the frozen strawberries in a glass measuring cup with about 1/2" of water and defrosted them. Then, with kitchen scissors (because that is how the pros do it) I cut the strawberries up. Added a shot of Brandy, about 1 Tbsp of cinnamon and Splenda to taste. I just reheated it when it was time to pour it over the cheesecake.

The Necessities

Yeah, so I'm pretty sure we need this.


The only problem, of course, it that the logical place to put it would be over our dinning table, but that is where our apartment complex put the only ceiling fan in an apartment without A/C. What to do? What to do?

October 9, 2009

Five for Friday

Previous Fridays

1 - You cleaned the carpets last night
2 - While you cleaned the carpets all I had to do was sit on the couch and drink wine
3 - You're just as excited about using our food processor this weekend
4 - You helped me find a place for ALL my cwrap (spelled that way on purpose)
5 - You have cute dimples

October 8, 2009

Frenchiemoon: Vermont, Part 2

Our trip attitude immediately started to change the moment we saw the US border.

We decided to enter in on the New York City of Lake Champlain, drive down the islands in the middle and then over to Burlington.

I've said it before and I'll say it again and again, we LOVE Vermont. These islands were completely charming.

We plan on coming back here in a couple years to say on an Inn with Adirondack chairs on the lake and go kayaking.

Doesn't that sound relaxing and fun?

Fun side story: We stopped just inside the border at the first gas station we found, obviously to get gas. Went inside to "Put $10 on pump 3" and the lady behind the counter said, "Is it not working? Did you lift the handle?" In California, you have to pay before you pump, in Vermont you pump and then pay! That was really hard to get used to, we felt like we were stealing, even though we fully intended to pay right after. Also, the Hubs couldn't get over the choices of unleaded gas.

Once we were in Burlington again we checked into another Marriott, in Williston. This hotel was night and day compared to the last one. The lady at the front desk was so pleasant, our room had a king bed, it was awesome.

We freshened up in the room a bit, planned out everything we were going to squeeze into our final full honeymoon day (the next day) and went to dinner. The Hubs and I still talk about the dinner we had that night, and it was the dinner we had the whole trip. The Vermont Brewery & Pub is tast-eee!

You better believe the first thing I ordered to drink was an Iced Tea! (What? were you expecting me to say, Beer?) Mmmmm Iced Tea, how I missed you.

Fun Bee Fact about Mrs French Bulldog: I don't like beer. True story. Hubbers is forever trying to get me to try his beer and see if I like it. They all taste the same to me, gross, I'm sorry.

So, believe it or not, I drank my fair share of this flight!

As you can see Sheldon helped, but I'd say the Hubs and I split this pretty evenly. I did drink the fruitier beers, but it was still beer goshdarnit! And, when our waitress forgot to put our order in and offered us a free pint each, I drank mine. Have I had a beer since? No, but I've had sips of the Hubs' beers and they just don't taste as good.

Moving on to the "and this is the food we ate"* portion of this post...
I still cannot believe we ate all of that, plus onion rings AND beer! Oink, Oink!

*The Hubs always makes fun of me and says, "and this is the food we ate" every time I take pictures of our food. He just doesn't understand that the hive wants to know what we ate!

Up Next: Our last day :(

Did you eat/drink something on your honeymoon you would normally never touch?

October 6, 2009

Fun with Wordle

Well, this is one way to do a shopping list. I call it Making Errands More Fun.


Thanks Wordle!

October 2, 2009

Five for Friday

Previous Fridays

1 - You run errands for me while I'm in class
2 - You pour me wine when I'm stressed
3 - You made a list of all the restaurants we want to eat
4 - You can't wait to unpack the Kitchenaid Mixer too (because it will look cool on the counter)
5 - You give the best hugs :)

October 1, 2009

How I've Been Feeling Lately...

I saw this post on Giver's Log and had to post the same thing.

While I love my school and everything I'm learning it always gets in the way of everything I want to do more. There are too many recipes to count, that I want to try, friends I want to see and call, and a list of books I like to curl up on the couch (next to the Hubs) and read. *sigh*

 

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