When Olive Garden breadsticks call my name...

I just have to go!

And Fritz and his Daddy don't mind going either. Oh Fritz, where is your smile??

Mini-Vacay Day 3-Part 1~~~Luxury!

Relaxing for a few moments to pop a few pieces of salt water taffy in your mouth whilst staring at the waves crashing and hearing the roar of such a powerful water source drown your ears. Yep, that's definitely the best way to spend a day/night at the beach. Beach front resorts!!

My cousin had planned for us a night away from Portland to drive to Cannon Beach. I have been to a couple other towns in that area, but I don't recall being at this particular one. Having so much fun, laughing and car dancing on the way over, we were greeted with beautiful sunshine and awe at the luck of such awesome weather. Granted, it did only last about an hour, but hey! Can't win it all! Being too early to check in to the resort we started to journey towards the town area and find a place for lunch. Such cute stores and businesses there!

Wandering up and down streets after a yummy lunch, camera in hand, the middle part of the day being the best so far. Heading back to the hotel to check-in, a small detour to head to the beach to gaze across the ocean and feel the sea-spray slap your face.

Dressed up and feeling all girlie, and evening of something new awaited us. A cooking class/dinner combo with amazing food and wine. Trying things new for the taste buds. Some scrump-deli-umpcious, some... not. But hey! Anything once right?

And dessert... nothing more really to say about that, except maybe YUM.

Tummy's full and heads swimming with good wine, the hotel suite was beckoning us with soon to be sleep. The best part? Falling asleep to the waves crashing on the beach.

But before that, to take a few moments to myself, I ventured out side. Late in the evening I wandered down the sandy path to try to see the moonless night ocean. Standing with the wind, sand, and sea spraying me down, my hair tossing in circles, the darkness of night gave me those few moments to let my mind find that calm, quiet place it so rarely has.

Beach photos tomorrow!

Mini-Vacay Day 1--Let's get some Jo.

These next few posts were intended for last week, but alas... I was down with the sickness. Boo.
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All flights were on time and tiredness from the early morning was pushed aside with excitement of the weekend. First stop was for Thai food. I have never tasted this cuisine so my mouth was all ready watering with possibilities of new found flavors. Coconut soup and jasmine tea were starters. Different, not wonderful, but so glad I tried them.

After unloading suitcases and bags at my cousins wonderful, beautiful new house we both needed a bit of a pick-me-up. Luckily the weather was quite perfect for a walk to a shopping center close the the house. And even better the walk was with such a picturesque street!

Enjoying the walk and the scenery, the buzz and energy of a bigger city, the best though, was just sitting down with a nice hot latte and chatting away an hour with one of my most favorite people.

Later that day, back at the house, I ventured outside to my cousins vast back yard. Ahhh... what a place!! Grape vines, mixed types of trees, flowers galore. And of course with the Portland weather, droplets of rain to be found on everything.

A quiet evening then was spent with family and their new wee one. Taking pictures of cute little hands and a smiling face. Home cooked dinner and laughter. And finally a bed to pass out on from exhaustion.

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First day?? Awesome.

Friday mix up...

Finding a snack on a vacation, buying a package, realizing months later that that snack was incredibly awesome and wondering where the !%$@ to acquire here. Luckily, convincing your parents on their next trip to visit Sis to please track down incredibly awesome treat. But maybe... find a way to just fly to Spain and buy truckloads there?? That would be incredibly awesome as well. Finally finding my cutters/benders to whip out three new bracelets. One for the shop, and two for fairs. And falling in love with this new one listed in my shop. Sparkle.

And lastly... getting rid of ugly, clown, crap hair. Finding myself, for one day, beautiful. I'm gonna call this new hair my Kardashian do.

Oh Ice Tea, How I Have Missed You

Taking advantage of the first few days of really warm weather, I just had to get the love back on from my favorite summer drink. No lemonade for this girl here! My father and I have been known to go through two gallons in one day, we like it that much. Although, I do believe I have a wee bit of an allergy to it (thanks to my Mom-she is really allergic to tea. As in, not even suppose to touch the tea bags kinda allergic).

The first couple of times that I drink ice tea for the new season, I become sick to my stomach for a day or two. I put up with it year, after year just for that cool, crisp taste. Complaining often during the winter months for the lack of sun tea, my Aunt clued me in a few weeks ago that there is such a gadget as to brew sun tea in the house!!! Oh my, oh my!!!! I never knew such wonders existed and will have to shop around for one for the next snow months later on this year!

P.S. Please note to any and all who drink sun tea this way.... sugar and lemon... g r o s s

Orange Ya Glad I'm Glowing

Some how the little tangelos and oranges looked extra wonderful to me and so much more extra delicious. Very late in the evening sun the warm glow turned from a light yellow to that deep orange hue. Yes, I did enjoy two or more right then and there. Yum...

Fruit, Fruit, and More Fruit!

The spring and summer seasons bring to mind, besides blossoming trees and bumble bees, fruit that is ripe for the eating. One of my most favorite times last summer before we moved would be when Fritz and I would walk over to the local grocery store that was just across the street from us. They had the best selection of fresh fruit so at least once a week we would seek out anything looking really yummy.
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Now that we are living in a new town, and the grocery store here is two or more miles away (also note that the new closest store has a produce section that makes me shiver in ugh, yuck-ness) I know that Fritz and I won't be able to do what we had in the past. Of course we will still go for walks, but sadly now we will have to drive almost ten miles to find yummy fruit goodness.

Side note... The pictures were taken at a Giant Eagle store where the produce selection was in a bigger area than my house! They even had room for an old time tractor to be decorated with fresh flowers to buy.

This Will Make You Hungry

Yes, I am sure that there were a few vacation pounds put on. Especially with all of the yummy goodness that was to be had in the big city.
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My sister and I took the kids to what she claims is her most fave place to eat in her new home of Pittsburgh, PA. And it was good too. The first three pics are of some of the tasty treats we had at that particular lunch. The chocolate moouse (yeah, I have no idea how you spell that) was heavenly and I had to put the picture first as it looks so pretty! Fritz had just as much good time eating this as I did. His face was proof afterwards!

A very awesome fried zucchini appetizer that we shared. Never had zucchini made this way but of course anything fried is going to be good.

My chicken parmigiana that was so big it was not to be finished. In fact, except for the dessert we were able to make a meal out of all of the leftovers for five people later that night!

This creme brulee was at a downtown place in Columbus, Ohio. Martini something. I only allow myself to have this goodness once in a couple of years as it really does not love me back. That's ok though, as I will put up with feeling sick for a couple of hours just for that 10 minutes of eyes closed with mouth watering delight!

My first chocolate martini! My sister made me one and although I am not one to sip coolly out of an actual martini glass, this was just fine and dandy to me. Sadly (I guess) I stopped myself at only one. Boo.

Simple & Nice

It was such a lovely evening last night that I didn't want to spend too much time making a grand dinner. The Hubs and I both love caesar salad so we thought that would be a nice treat to eat! I made some olive oil and garlic crostinis and busted out a nice Gewurztraminer to tone down the spicier caeser dressing that we had. I really wanted to complement this dinner with this organic Chardonnay (Bonterra) that I am currently in love with, but didn't have a bottle on hand. The "gavurtz" is more suited for spicier foods (think curry) but it did nicely enough.

And tonight we are going simple again. Barbecue and beer. Tasty!!!

Gross? Nah...

My friend Monica makes fun of me when I mention to her about one of my favorite "snacks". In fact, a lot of people have told me that they think this is weird, but why? Peanut butter and carrots. Yum! Why would people think this is so odd/gross? We put peanut butter on celery and apples, right? So why not carrots!?! I had gotten a serious craving for this they other day, so I had to bust out the ingredients (can't be easier than two!) and chow down. Ah... food heaven. Go ahead, try it. You will like it! Monica did end up trying it once after many times of me trying to get her to, and she did finally admit that it wasn't as bad as she thought it would be! Hmm.. now where did I put those carrots?

The Love of a Good Cup

It was a coffee day yesterday. I hadn't had any home-brewed for awhile, so out came my favorite cup from my favorite coffee place. Unluckily for me, Montana does not have Moxie Java coffee here. When I lived in Boise, ID, it was my "place" to grab an awesome cup 'o joe. One of the last times that the Hubs and I visited I had to buy this beautiful tall orange cup as a memento of times past.
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The second favorite part of the experience was the actual coffee. I can make do with any brand but my all time love is from down south. Waaay down south. My best friend/sister (not blood related) is from Bogota, Colombia S.A. She was and exchange student that came to live with my family when we were seniors in High School. We have kept in touch over the years and I miss her like crazy! (love you Cris... T.Q.M.) A summer ago, a work colleague of hers had a sister that was going to work in Yellowstone National park for a few months. This girl needed a place to stay before and after her season working for a couple of nights. I was happy to oblige as I love meeting new people. We welcomed our home to her and now have another friend to add to see on visits to Bogota. This wonderfully spirited young woman brought us many packages of fresh Juan Valdez Colombian coffee. Now, of course you can buy some in the stores but usually these have traveled very slowly over many miles so their taste is something to be lacking (still decent thought). The packages that we received seem to be much "fresher" in their deliscious smell and taste. Ahhh... exquisite!
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Sadly, however, I am running very low on that special coffee. Maybe only a few more pots of coffee can be made, but I will enjoy every last drop!

'Tis the Season...

...For awesome fruit smoothies! Making these in the Winter time is just plain no fun-ners, but once the weather starts getting nicer, mmmm... tasty!
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The Hubs and I make these quite a bit for a snack or breakfast/lunch thing. Our favorite is strawberry banana. It's best with fresh fruit but more expensive. When the grocery store has frozen fruit on sale (for pie making-I don't bake) I grab those up.
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My most tasty recipe is two bananas, one small cup of plain yogurt, a bit of apple juice and lots of strawberries. It is also really good with a mixed berry combo. Blackberries are a nice treat!
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I'm off to enjoy!

Cold Snowy Day - Again

Oh, gloomy days. Please go away!
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The sky has put upon the dreary colors of sadness once again. Over and over like a mantra in my head, I am screaming for a few rays of blistering sun to heat up my winter skin. The one good thing? Perfect day for soup.
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One of my favorite kinds is Cream of Broccoli. Not the cheese and broccoli kind, although it is rare to find one without some kind of cheese in it. I don't mind this kind too much but prefer the more simple recipe.
Over ten years ago, my family went to St. Louis, Missouri for a convention. My sister and I would have to find things to kill the day off with boredom when the parents were in meetings. There was a restaurant next to our hotel that we ate at everyday for lunch. They do not have that chain up here in MT (I think it was called Coco's?) but I guess you could compare it to a Perkins or JB's. Nothing special but for their Cream of Broccoli soup. Oh, how I would love to have some of that again! I ate that every day and couldn't get enough. So sad on the last day there knowing it would be my last cup-o-soup.
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Anyway...When I was at the grocery store yesterday I spied some tasty lookin' broccoli soup from their deli. I thought, ok, I have tried a hundred different kinds with cheese in the recipe looking for something that isn't too "cheesy" to resemble the bliss from Coco's (I've been searching a loooonnng time) I have even attempted to make my own cheese free kind (won't be doing that again!) but have never found one tasty enough. So I thought I would give this one a go. It wasn't too bad, but not the best I've had. Really gritty bits and the florets were pitiful.
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Anybody know of a good recipe or store bought kind?

My snack. Isn't it beautiful?!

Rosemary Bread and French Fries

A couple of weeks ago in the mail, I received a card from a local restaurant saying to come on in for a meal on them for my birthday. How awesome is that!? It was from a place that the Hubs and I rarely go to so a good change for us. We have been there once or twice as it was only half a block away from my old work place and they have an awesome outdoor section for the warmer days. The card was only good for your birthday month and with two days left to go we didn't want to let it go to waste!
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Also on the card was for a free loaf of bread, sweet treat or slice of pizza from a local bakery that is sooooo yummy-filled with all of their baked goodies. Yippee for us! What a good day out and half of it was free!

I had to have the Rosemary bread. I have been craving spaghetti so this is perfect for a good dinner. And the smell is so earthy and herb-y, I am salivating just thinking about it sitting on the counter. Hmmm... I might have to sneak a piece.

Warning... Cell phone picture. NOT GOOD! (I forgot the camera once again on our outings)

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Fritz was being so good during our lunch date, never screaming or crying, just playing with his toys that I brought him and his binky. He watched us eat with much patience so as a reward I scraped off all the salt on a fry from my plate and gave him his very first one ever to see what he would do. He gobbled up three of them!

A Feast of Sweetness

A couple days ago, looking at some sad ugly brown bananas, I decided to make some bread with them. Getting out my supplies (Fritz helping out of course) I started to put together the makings for some delicious B-Bread. After a few of the ingredients went into the bowl I realized I didn't have enough flour to complete my task. Loading up Fritz in the car for a quick trip to the store across the street I knew we could still have some good smelling stuff coming from the oven in an hour.
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When I walked into the store I spied a glorious color popping out and calling to me. AHHH... Strawberries! When I was pregnant with Fritz I rarely craved anything. Chinese food was occasional but I had so many food aversions during my entire pregnancy it was hard to eat really anything! I had two other cravings that were quite enormous. One was beer! I am not much of a drinker, a glass of wine here a beer there, but of course being with child this really wasn't an option. How funny to crave something that I normally don't eat/drink. I did succumb and treat myself to half a beer twice. Man it tasted soooo good. But the other thing I craved was, thanks to my friend Monica (who I worked with side by side for a couple of years) was Strawberries! She would bring in these perfect absolutely beautiful Strawberries and I would stare at her with drool running down my chin every time she would pop one in her mouth. Monica of course was so kind and would always take pity on me and hand over some of her treasure. After the first few I couldn't get enough! I think I must have ate well over a couple hundred towards the end of the pregnancy. After Fritz was born and Fall/Winter set in, I didn't have the craving anymore and out of season Strawberries are not that appetizing.
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So as I am standing in the store to grab some flour I impulsively grab a box of some yummy goodness. I was so excited to eat these that even putting them in a drab old bowl would not do. I busted out one of my Grandmothers candy dishes to do the job. Somehow I think they tasted better this way! I also wanted to grab some Moet & Chandon that I have chilling in the fridge, but alas, still on cold medicine this probably would not have been a wise decision. Hopefully next time I grab some awesome fruit like this I will bust that bubbly out and have myself a real treat!