~Comfort and Joy~

Lucky for me, Patrick had work in Charlotte this month which meant that I got to come to North Carolina for a lonnggg visit this holiday season!  I spent the weekend of the 16^th-18^th in Charlotte and got to see so many old friends there before coming to Cary the following Monday.  Charlotte has two new stores – the SoBo Loft and Boutique and the Boulevard at South End, both of which have adorable home décor items and fun other gifts for anyone who is doing last minute shopping today ;)
 

I took the train for the first time since I obviously don’t have a car when I come home which was kind of fun!  It’s actually cheaper than driving since the $27.00 ticket beats filling up a tank these days.  You can check up to three 50 lb. bags for free and then get to relax in a fairly spacious seat and watch the world go by or read or catch up on email your whole trip.  They even have two outlets in each aisle so you can charge your phone/computer etc.  It’s not quite as cool as getting on at platform 9 ¾ and heading to Hogwarts, but it’s still a great way to travel and I highly recommend it!

After four straight days and nights of parties and get-togethers in Charlotte, I spent the first two days in Cary relaxing at home.  Tuesday night I went with a few girlfriends to Café Caturra which was so much fun, and good for the soul (you just can't beat old friends!)  A wine and tapas restaurant, there is a huge wood burning fireplace inside that we sat next to while we caught up (not that we needed the heat in the 70 degree weather…but the ambiance was nice!) Kudos to Cary on having such a fun, trendy spot!

There really is nothing like being home for Christmas… being with family and friends that are like your family really do bring the most comfort and joy J  I hope all of your final preparations are coming together and wish everyone a very Merry Christmas!

~The Life of a Housewife~

As someone who, until September, has never been married and never without a job since she was fourteen, “housewife” is definitely a new role for me!  While I am looking for a job and have a few prospects on the horizon (cross your fingers for me!), I am, for the time being, a housewife…weird. 

Maybe it’s my new found love of Mad Men, or maybe it’s the fact that I’m finally taking the advice of so many friends, but the last few weeks I’ve tried to let go of my impatience regarding the lack of bringing home a paycheck and actually enjoy this time (easier said than done).  I admit it's not exactly my first choice, I’m the type of person who's at a loss when she doesn't have a million things to do, but... I know as soon as I start working again I'll be wishing there were more hours in the day!  So I’m using this downtime to read, run, actually stay on top of things like wrapping gifts and mailing packages on time, cook, and of course spoil Sadie with lots of play time/long walks/etc ;).  Since I’ve been cooking so much, I decided to share a couple recipes I’m loving right now.

Our friends Ryan and Ashley are coming over tonight for dinner and I’m making wine stew.  I wanted to share this recipe because it’s perfect for chilly weather and takes no time at all.  I’m a huge fan of crock pot recipes because you can throw everything in and leave it for hours while you go to work (or you know, continue your job search and walk the dog..whatever). 

Ingredients

2 lbs. stew meat (find it in the beef section of the grocery store, already cubed)

1 can tomato soup

1 can cream of mushroom soup

1 can sliced mushrooms

1 envelope French onion soup mix

1 cup burgundy wine (I didn’t have burgundy and didn’t want to buy it just for this recipe, so I’m using Cabernet instead, which I always have on hand, naturally)

Instructions: combine all ingredients in crockpot.  If you’ll be around the house, put on high for one hour then low for several hours.  If you’ll be gone all day long, just put on low all day. 

Serve over rice… easy!

And for dessert… Pumpkin cake balls

YUM.  I love, love, love pumpkin bread this time of year however, my recipe makes so much that I had a ton leftover.  Enter pumpkin cake balls.  Easy, cute, and easily adapted to whatever your personal taste (I made two versions).  Basically take half a loaf of pumpkin bread (or chocolate cake or whatever you want, really) and combine with about half a container of icing, mixing together well.  I used half a loaf of the bread with cream cheese icing and half with coconut pecan icing.  Put the mixture in the fridge for a while to cool it down so it’s easy to form balls.  Once cool, form small scoops out of the mixture and place on parchment paper.  Put a toothpick in each individual ball then freeze. 

After freezing for a few hours (or overnight, it doesn’t matter), microwave your preference of baking chocolate squares in a small bowl.  Be careful as you do this, go for about a minute and a half, stir, then heat again in small increments of time to make sure the chocolate doesn’t burn.  Once chocolate is melted, dip the balls in the chocolate holding the toothpick and place back on parchment paper.   The chocolate will set almost immediately since the cake balls are so cold but if you’re quick and so desire, you can have a second bowl with finely chopped nuts or sprinkles that you can dip the ball in while the chocolate is still setting. 

And that’s all!  You can keep in the freezer right until about ten minutes before you want to serve, they thaw quickly.  It’s different and I think would be great at a party because you can grab a toothpick for a bite size of dessert instead of having to balance a piece of pie on a plate…. Enjoy!

~Thankful~

Well, it’s obviously been a looonnngggg time since my last post.  I don’t really have any excuse; there’s been a lot going on, plenty to blog about and I just.. haven’t!  Early New Year’s resolution: blog more? ;)

            I write now as Mrs. Emily Agnew (yay!)  The wedding and honeymoon were in a word; unbelievable.  Fabulous, perfect, and (in discussing places on our honeymoon) breathtaking also come to mind.  I suppose everyone has this mentality but our wedding weekend was everything we could’ve asked for and more from our vendors to having SO many of our friends and family there with us to celebrate, we both agreed that we’d do everything again exactly the same way in a heartbeat.  The honeymoon was perfect, having my husband (still get a kick out of saying that!) to myself for two weeks on a Mediterranean cruise with no cell phones, verrryyyy slow and limited internet and lots of great food, wine, and sightseeing is something that we’ll cherish forever.

            And now, somehow, it’s the holiday season!  Don’t know where this year went, but I am happy to celebrate my favorite time of year!  We decided to spend our first Thanksgiving as a married couple in Texas and headed to South Padre Island for a long weekend.  South Padre is about 5 and a half hours from Austin, but we were told that being from North Carolina and used to “beautiful beaches” that we should make the trek as it’s the nicest beach in Texas.  We were not disappointed!  I used vrbo.com (check it out for all your vacation rentals, love them!) and found a one bedroom, dog friendly condo right on the beach with a pool/hot tub, kitchen, and for a bargain.

            While it was definitely strange in a way to be away from NC and not with my family for the holiday, our weekend was amazing.  The weather was perfect, 80 – 85 degrees all three days we were there.  Our condo unit ended up being right next to a classic beach bar, the “wanna wanna”,  with the islands best shrimp, great drinks, and pretty awesome people watching ;)  We had a buffet Thanksgiving and consumed wayyy too much of all the traditional turkey, stuffing, mashed potatoes etc and loved the raw seafood stations included.  (No broccoli casserole which is my fave, but it probably couldn’t measure up to my mom’s anyway!).  Sadie proved that yes, she really is our “daughter” as she loves the beach as much if not more than we do!  Between taking her for walks, fetch in the ocean, not worrying about cooking, and just relaxing, it was an absolutely wonderful Turkey day!

~our beyond happy puppy on the beach~

            We got back in town yesterday afternoon to beat the traffic and went to dinner at a place I’ve been meaning to blog about for some time: Garage Mahal.  If you like Indian food, you HAVE, have, have to come here if you are in Austin.  It’s technically one of Austin’s many food trailers but it is a full service restaurant instead of a trailer where you order at the counter.  There’s a huge tent set up in front of the trailer and there is plenty of outside seating as well.  Heaters are on no since a cold front has finally come through to Austin and the place is always crowded.  They serve amazing naan and truly excellent curries.  To add to the restaurant’s appeal, it’s bring your own alcohol, so you bring whatever beer or wine you’d like to accompany your meal and the waiters are happy to bring glasses and an opener J  Patrick is obsessed with Indian food and since discovering this place, I am too so we’ve been here several times and each time have walked away amazed at how fantastic it is.

            I'm definitely overwhelmed with gratitude for all that has happened and that we've experienced this year.  I hope you all had a blessed Thanksgiving and are ready to jump into the Christmas craziness!!  I don't have room for two trees this year and have no fireplace in our Texas house, but I spent the day decorating and one tree is up, the stockings are hung (on the wall!) and my Yankee “Sparkling Pine” candle is lit… what a wonderful start to the holidays!

~ShOwErEd with lOvE~

So I woke up today with an email from the hair/makeup girl for the wedding saying that she won’t have enough time to provide services for everyone listed and she will “try and find an assistant to come and hopes they aren’t all booked”  this is after I reached out to her to touch base after already giving her this information in late May… total stress/frustration.  On top of the fact that work continually throws new projects my way that I can’t physically complete without working wayyy overtime (which frankly, I’m not motivated to do considering my last day is supposed to be August 31^st).  The same work that hasn’t even started interviewing my replacement which I’m afraid means they’ll want me to continue working… which I really can’t do full time because I have a million other details to finish for the wedding… AHHH!!  Why is it that no matter how far in advance I try to plan things, how on top of it I try to be there are ALWAYS  things that come up?  Life I guess??

Okay, venting time is over, time to remind myself that I am SOOO lucky because I have so many people in my life that are helping and making this entire experience (of getting married) even more exciting and special than I could imagine. 

I’m finally getting around to posting photos of the last few weeks and here are a few from the stunning shower a week and a half ago.

 I am lucky enough to have a mom who is a great planner and friend and even luckier that she has a circle of close friends that are literally like second (and third and fourth and ninth) mom’s to me.  These are women who’ve known me since birth and it means so much to have them be a part of the celebrations. 

~My mom and I~

~The four amazing hostesses~

I adore formal events and love any chance to dress up so the bridal shower was perfect!  The shower was held at McGregor Country Club and was just beautiful from the flowers and candles to the menu cards, to the adorable petit fours for dessert.  I was spoiled with gifts and showered with love!

 

~Last Fling before the Ring~

I spent 10 days back in North Carolina for my Bachelorette weekend, wedding planning, bridal showers and lots of family time.  I was definitely missing Patrick and Sadie while gone but there really is no place like home, especially when you’re home for such fun events! 

We went to Charleston for the bachelorette weekend and it was SUCH a perfect one.  I honestly can’t imagine being any luckier.  It’s been so long since I’ve gone to Charleston without having an agenda and to be able to spend a week in this charming town with 13 of the people closest to me was so incredible!  My sister did have an agenda however, and did such a phenomenal job organizing everyone and planning just enough for our time there while leaving the majority of the time for catching up.  The best part of the weekend was seeing everyone, but there were some other highlights as well:

Irvin House Vineyard and Firefly Distillery

As a surprise on Saturday, we piled into cars and headed about 25 minutes west to Irvin Vineyards, the only domestic winery in Charleston.  They grow the grapes, harvest them, make the wine, and bottle our wines on the property.  It is run by a couple who met while already semi-retired and when they married, decided to follow their dreams and passions of making wine (for Jim) and gardening (for Anne) and planted the grapes in 2001.  Pretty inspiring to take on such a project in retirement and definitely my idea of a retirement plan!  The woman running the little store/gift shop and conducting the tasting were incredibly gracious, so excited to host our group, and just lovely people.  Also helping in running the show are three dogs; Chloe, Cassie, and Harry Potter J. 

On the same property is the home of the Firefly Distillery, which also has a tasting room.  Jim is the co-founder of Firefly and they also have done an incredible job keeping this product local.  For $6.00 you can purchase a flight of six of the ten different varieties of the vodka (including Raspberry, Mint Tea, Peach Tea, and Lemonade) and then purchase what you’d like (the lemonade and spiced rum are only available here for purchase and I’d definitely stock up on the lemonade if you go!).

Dinner at Blossom: YUM.  Dining in Charleston is really always delish, and Blossom was no exception.  I highly recommend the she-crab soup, the yellow fin tuna Carpaccio, and the shrimp and grits (no I didn’t actually eat all of that; best part about going out to eat with 13 girls is sharing!).  We also had amazing BBQ and mac and cheese at Jim N Nicks and a fabulous brunch at High Cotton, which features a jazz band in it’s beautiful bar.

Between the food, cocktails, and best friends anyone could ask for, it was such an incredible weekend and one I’ll forever have wonderful memories from.  *But while it might be last one before I'm an Mrs., it better not really be the last fling - LOVE these girls ;) 

 

Weekend on the Water (and with Harry Potter ;)

SUCH a great weekend!  Our friends Avery and Luke were in town so I got to play hostess J.  This was amazing for two reasons; One- I LOVE LOVE LOVE when people come visit and entertaining (hint to anyone reading this!) and Two- it forced me to get unpacked last week ;)  They didn’t come in until Saturday so Friday night I convinced Patrick to go see the final Harry Potter with me - such a good fiancé! ;) It was a little easier to twist his arm, however, when I explained that we’d be seeing the show at the Alamo Draft house.  The Alamo is a chain of movie theaters in Austin that double as a bar/restaurant.  Between each row of theater seats is an aisle for servers to move between and in front of the seats is a wooden counter/bar.  So before and throughout the movie, you can order whatever drinks you’d like from their full service bar and/or food from their pretty extensive menu!  For some of the bigger movies (like Harry) they even have special event menus with food and drink items associated with the film – yes they were serving Butterbeer!  Check out the menu on the link below to see.  Once Patrick realized he could eat and drink beer while watching, it wasn’t too difficult to convince him to go with me. 

http://drafthouse.com/austin/south_lamar/Lamar_our_chef_menu/

Saturday we went with Luke, Avery and another couple Kacey and Kyle to kayak on Lady Bird Lake.  This is not an actual lake, but a huge river that runs through the middle of the city and extending outward from the middle of downtown.  There are several entry points to the water at which you can rent kayaks, paddle boats, or paddle boards.  $15 will get you a kayak for two for an hour and you can bring your own cooler as well if you so choose.  We ended up spending two hours paddling down the river and looking at the magnificent houses boarding it, sometimes getting a great arm workout, sometimes just floating along.  There are rope swings and little cliffs you can kayak out to and play on as well.  The best part is that there are literally people out enjoying this aspect of Austin All. The. Time.  Seriously, anytime you drive over the bridge into the city you will always see people out taking advantage of the gorgeous scenery and jumping in the water to cool off. 

After the lake, we went out to dinner and hit up several bars downtown.  The best thing about the nightlife in Austin is the abundance of rooftop bars and patios and naturally, the weather that allows you to enjoy them.  It’s definitely hot during the day, but the lack of humidity at night means that after dark, it’s perfect weather to enjoy being outside while out with friends.  Sunday we walked to brunch, discovered an old fashioned candy/soda shop with a generous serving ice cream for $2.17 (also within walking distance), and headed to Barton Springs for a little more sun and cooling off in the water (which is chilly!).  Grilling out that night was the end to a perfect weekend.  I made some (pretty amazing) white sangria too, recipe is below if interested. 

1 bottle of White Wine (Pinot Grigio)

½ C. Peach Schnapps

¼ C. Sugar

¼ C. Sprite

¼ C. Vodka

Cut up mango, peaches, and half grapes.

Prep: Stir all ingredients together, toss in fruit and let chill for several hours or overnight.  Add additional sprite or vodka/water to taste (depending on how strong or how sweet you like your sangria).  Serve over ice… and enjoy the fruit!

~Puppies and Produce~

We're here!  We left Charlotte last Sunday and drove three days, arriving in Austin Tuesday.  Since then, it’s been hectic!  There’s been a lot going on with the movers coming with only half of our items, unpacking, and starting to explore our neighborhood and city while also taking care of our new puppy! 

Sadie: 

10 weeks old, 16.8lbs, and the cutest dog I have ever seen.  I know I’m biased, but she is absolutely adorable.  We picked her up before even getting to Austin because I couldn’t wait any longer to see that sweet face.  She was born in Troy, Texas which is in the middle of absolutely nowhere and was part of a litter of 11.  Immediately sweet and cuddly in the car, we thought that maybe the transition from her farm to our house would be seamless…  NOT the case.  The first night she cried allll night long, whined when she saw her reflection in the oven because she thought it was her sister that she missed, and wouldn’t eat.  But since then, she’s gotten better every day, and now has a routine where she goes out around 2 or 3 a.m., and then wakes up at 6 a.m. and other than that sleeps through the night.  I think she is going to be high energy but she is so loving and follows one of us around everywhere we go.  She knows her name, and yesterday we discovered treats at this local dog store that she will do anything for!  We also had her first vet visit yesterday and she was incredibly well behaved.  I also realized if we ever have daughters, we are in trouble because Sadie is a total Daddy's girl and has Patrick wrapped around her little paw (he is sitting next to me with her and just told her that "Every day is Natinal Sadie puppy day because she is the most beautiful puppy ever" ha!  After 5 days, we already see her as such a gift, and are completely in love with her.

Whole Foods: 

We went here yesterday and I have to blog about it.  For those who don’t know, Whole Foods was started in Austin and the flagship store is in the middle of downtown.  Patrick and I went yesterday and it is simply awesome.  I have never seen a more beautiful, upscale, enormous grocery store!  They have produce you wouldn’t believe, each section of fresh poultry, meat, or seafood is bigger than all three combined at a normal grocery store.   They also have two cheese sections with wheels of every kind of cheese imaginable behind the counter.  There are counters scattered throughout the store (I counted 4 and I couldn’t even take everything in) with ready to eat items (vegetarian? There’s a counter with all white bean and spinach salads, quinoa, veggie and gluten free lasagna).  There is an olive bar with 20 types of olives to pick from.  Fill your own container stations with various types of nut butters (peanut, almond, cashew you name it) and olive oils and vinegars so you can pick your size and try away.  Spices I’ve never even heard of.  Two separate wine tasting stations and a huge selection to chose from (including racks of eco-friendly wines and local wines from Texas).  A desert bar where you can select truffles, candy covered apples, anything chocolate covered from their chocolate fountain they have running.  It is truly insane and somewhat overwhelming! 

Adding to the greatness of this Whole Foods is that they also serve food here at three different sections throughout the store.  I saw sections serving sandwiches and salads and sections serving amazing looking pasta dishes, you can come here for lunch or dinner and have a variety of options to choose from.  There are bars at the sections as well and one main bar in the middle of the store.  All were PACKED!  We were there on a Friday around 5:45 and it seemed like the place to be, tons of people enjoying their happy hour at the grocery store… amazing.  There is a section made to be a coffee bar like setting as well, where several people were finishing up their workdays on their laptops and sipping lattes or smoothies.

All in all, I’d say we’re going to love this city.  We’re slowly but surely getting everything unpacked (all of our stuff didn’t fit on one truck which we didn’t find out until the day before the truck got here so the rest of our things arrived Monday – the movers have been the low point of this move).  Our house is starting to look like a home; we adore our new addition to the family, and can’t wait to explore more!  A friend of mine from college and her fiance moved here recently too and they're coming over before we go to dinner tonight so hopefully I'll get everything else unpacked today and will upload pics of the house soon.  Have a fabulous weekend everyone!

Productivity + Creativity = A Fabulous Weekend

Condo is rented, house is rented and the movers are coming FRIDAY!!! 

One of the things I've really enjoyed the past few weekends is being able to take the time to enjoy them!  We're usually on the go so much that weekends consist of traveling somewhere, so it's been nice to be able to take the time and have a laid back, long dinner on the deck with friends like we did on Friday, take a yoga class, and still have two full days to get things done (PACKING!) that we need to.

Last night, I went to the Wine Palette in Noda.  What an awesome, creative business!  Every session features a different painting and artist.  Customers can bring in whatever food and beverage of choice that they’d like and the receive hands on help from the artist of the painting.  Wine Palette provides all canvases and paints, you just show up with your bottle of wine and ready to paint!  Last night, the painting was of the bridge at Freedom Park.  Freedom Park is definitely one of my favorite places in Charlotte and I’ll definitely miss running there when we move. For $25, this is such a fun alternative girls night that is also a perfect memory to take with me to Austin!

Patrick also got creative this weekend and stained our once light wood coffee table to a dark, cherry color and added new hardware.  It's a gorgeous coffee table that was his parents previously and we have been wanting to stain it darker to match our other furniture for some time.  I admit, I was a little skeptical about starting this project when we had so much else to do, but it actually ended up beautiful.  All it took was $40 for the stain and sanding items plus the 4 new pulls on the drawers and a couple of hours of sweat equity.  See below for the before and after pics:

Stressed but Blessed

Disclaimer – if you aren’t in the mood for sappy, don’t read this post! (or just read and roll your eyes all you want).   I am wayyy too emotional today.  Last night all I could think about was the things that I’ll be missing when I move.  Life just keeps getting more hectic the older we get and I feel like it’s hard enough to see people and keep in touch while living in the same city or state, how is it going to be once we move?  I HATE missing out on things and last night was the first time I got sad about it.

Luckily, I have friends that keep me grounded and build me up when I need a boost.  I have the best family in the world too, but they kind of have to love me you know?  The friends I have in my life I am just blessed to have…

A friend who I look to as a friend, a therapist, and an inspiration, because she moved out to New Mexico by HERSELF when she for a few years, which takes independence that I admire.  She’s honest enough to say that “yeah, you’ll end up missing out and it sucks because you literally can’t just go to anything and everything, but the relationship you gain with yourself and the experience you’ll get is completely worth it”.

Another friend, who somehow can verbalize what I’m thinking even if I can’t and who, no matter what kind of mood I’m in or what she’s going through, somehow knows the right thing to say and usually how to make me laugh if I’m crying.  Maybe because she’s known me since we were 14 and that type of connection only comes from over a decade of emotions, events, and experiences.   

A third friend, who is somehow the most blunt person I  have ever been friends with but who is also one of if not the most supportive people I’ve ever met.  Who can make me feel like I am literally super woman even I’m feeling like a failure.  Who I didn’t even know two and a half years ago but who now knows me probably better than the majority of people in my life. 

And a few more who are unfailingly loyal, who are inspiring because they are such strong people, who are just FUN, and who are really some of the best people I know.

To have one of friendships is rare.  To have multiple friendships like this is precious. 

Have a happy Friday, go give your friend(s) a hug, and enjoy the weekend!

~Love to the Queen City~

As excited as I am about our move, I’m feeling some bittersweet emotions as well since we’ll be leaving so many friends and a pretty great city behind.  This weekend definitely made me appreciate Charlotte so this post is dedicated to some fave places and some new things I just discovered… so if you’re here and haven’t already, check out:

The Wine Shop on Park Road Fridays from 4-7

In need of a low key weekend, this seemed like the perfect way to end the work week without getting too crazy.  From 4-7 they offer free wine and cheese tastings.  Some girlfriends and I went up Friday to check it out.

In addition to your tasting, or anytime you are there, they have Self Serve Tasting machines which are so incredibly cool.  I discovered these with my mom earlier this week and here’s how it works.  You put money on a card ($10 minimum) and there are 15 wines in the self serve machine.  Using your card, you can pay to taste (96 cents - $2.00 depending on the bottle), have a half glass (which is more MY idea of a taste!  ) or enjoy a full glass of whatever wines are featured in the tasting machines!  They have high top tables scattered as well so you are able to gather and enjoy your wine for awhile if you’d like.  This is genius!

Brunch at Pewter Rose:

I went here for the first time a few months ago and again Saturday to celebrate a friend’s baby boy coming in August!  Everything on the menu that I’ve sampled is incredible and paired with the double mimosas (you can get normal too if you want… but who doesn’t want the extra champagne?) it’s hard to go wrong. They bring each table butterscotch scones which are as incredible as they sound.  And I can’t resist ordering the Italian omelette every time (Italian sausage, basil pesto, fontina, spinach, and roasted red peppers)- it is to die for, and for a super carb loaded breakfast, they even feature a mash potato omelette! 

Divine Cupcakes and Yogurt Café:

I brought cupcakes from here to the brunch and you must, must go there.  Made fresh daily with no added preservatives, these cupcakes are delish.  Offered in their daily selection are vegan and gluten free options so everyone can enjoy!  They also serve up cake balls (mix of cake and frosting dipped in chocolate) and home-made frozen yogurt with real fruit… you literally can’t go wrong!  And for all of you that pamper your puppy, they even have “doggie delights” and “pupcakes”  Honestly, it cannot get any cuter ;)

Tip: I noticed on their website when looking them up that Monday is Buy one cupcake, get one free… what a perfect cure for case of the Monday’s next week!

~Austin!~

I had every intention of updating this twice a week and I’m already behind!  In my defense, I have been busy J

Over Memorial Day weekend, we went to Austin for the first time to house hunt and explore the city and are now even more excited to move there!  It would be an extremely long post to detail everything we did but let me just say thank GOODNESS that Austin is an active city because with all of the amazing food, you definitely need to stay moving!  Here are a few of the weekend highlights:

Rudy’s BBQ:  This ain’t NC BBQ ya’ll… but it is GOOD!  The line at Rudy's is always long, but it moves quickly and while you’re waiting, you wind past long rows of coolers filled with beer and a variety of soft drinks in glass bottles (why is it that sodas are so much better from a bottle?).  When you get up to the counter, you can order by the lb (or half lb) from brisket, ribs, chicken, turkey, or sausage.  They then pull whatever you order from where it’s been marinating/cooking and slice it then and there.  Served with their signature BBQ sauce, a variety of sides (the creamed corn was amazing), and literally a whole loaf of bread per order, this was unlike any BBQ I’ve ever had and I will definitely be back, and will take everyone who visits there to experience it!

Zilker Park:  this enormous (351 acres!) park is considered Austin’s “most loved park” and it’s easy to see why.  Located literally just outside of downtown, it provides hiking and biking trails, sand volleyball courts, a nine-hole Disc Golf Course, 2 Multi-use Fields, access to Town Lake for canoeing, playgrounds, picnic table and Barton Springs Pool.  About the pool – this is truly awesome!  It’s a natural spring-fed pool with a year-round average temperature of 68 degrees.  The main spring pumps an average of 27 million gallons of water a day!  We were walking around on the park on Memorial Day, so it was swarming with people.  There is even a separate area of the springs below the main area where dogs are allowed!  I definitely see a puppy in our future :) You can see a picture of the scene below with the buildings in the background.

702 Monroe:  a.k.a. our new house!!  We looked at houses in a lot of different areas around Austin which was helpful because we were able to get a feel for how the city and surrounding areas are laid out.  We found the perfect location at this house off of S. Congress.  It’s just under a mile outside of downtown and within walking distance to restaurants, coffee shops, bars, and stores.  It’s also about a fifteen minute walk or five minute bike ride to Zilker Park J  We put in our application and found out yesterday that we were accepted! The house is 3 bedroom/2 bath so we are anticipating visitors!  Front and Back views of the house are below...

~Current Obsessions~

 Some are chaos contributors, others are bringing JOY

~ 3 things that are making me happy~

1)      My attempts at “gardening” (Which means I am successfully growing basil, mint, and cherry tomatoes – hey I’ve got to start somewhere!)  I LOVE fresh herbs but they are expensive to buy and I tend to not use them all since I’m typically only cooking for two.  The basil and mint were pretty easy to grow – you buy, throw in a pot, place in sunlight, and water.  I was a little nervous about the tomatoes because I’ve heard they can be hard to grow but when I got home from out of town last weekend, the little buds sprouted and little tomatoes were on the vines!  I was seriously like a 5 year old, demanding Patrick come see what I’d grown immediately ha.  But it is pretty cool to actually be able to cook with something you’ve grown yourself!

2)      Summertime cocktails ;)  I love cool refreshing drinks that are made for sitting outside somewhere!  Plus, if you go with the two below, they are low cal too, so no worries about sipping while in shorts or on the beach

Two of my faves  - Cheers! 

·         Absolute Ruby Red and diet tonic (or diet soda if you aren’t a tonic person).  The grapefruit flavor scream summertime.  Squeeze a little lime (with tonic) or lemon (with soda) juice and add a sprig of the mint you’re growing to make it pretty ;)

·         Cucumber Martinis: See?  Drinking is good for you!  Muddle (read: mash) a few mint leaves and slices of cucumber with a little sugar (or splenda!) in a cocktail shaker.  Add 2 oz vodka and ¼ oz fresh lemon juice.  Shake shake shake and strain into your glass.  Garnish with a cucumber slice and mint sprig if you’d like!

3)      Hot Yoga:  Holy hotness…I recently got into this because Arrichion Hot Yoga had a groupon in Charlotte (they are still offering a great deal for newbies in Charlotte and Raleigh as an FYI).  I knew it would be a good workout and was looking for something different to get into but I am now obsessed!  They offer a variety of classes including pilates and circuit training as well as yoga and you literally look and feel as though you have jumped into a pool after the class – that is how much you sweat.  It is fantastic.  The classes range in difficulty levels and I’m telling you, the more advanced ones are some of the most intense workouts I think I’ve ever done!  Check them out if you’re in the area!  http://www.arrichion.com/

And the number one obsession that is making me a little crazy:  Trying to sell our house!

Check out the link here for the virtual tour.  It’s definitely a little stressful thinking about the possibility of owning two properties in Charlotte and picking up a rent in Austin.. plus the whole keeping it perfectly clean ALL the time (because you never know when someone will want to drop by for a showing) is hard! 

http://tours.tourfactory.com/tours/tour.asp?t=735602

~A Summery Sunday~

It's finally feeling like summertime!! :)  We headed to Charleston, SC this weekend for a wedding last night and stayed on the beach at the Isle of Palms.  We figured it might be the last time that we see the beach in the Carolinas for awhile :( so we spent a few hours on the beach yesterday before celebrating last night!  The wedding was gorgeous at the I'On Creek Club in Mount Pleasant.  It's actually the second wedding we've been to this month at the location and I would recommend it to anyone looking for a venue in the Charleston area.  It's a stunning venue, on the water, has indoor and outdoor space, and the caterer is wonderful!  The link is below:
http://www.ioncreekclub.com/site/

There is nothing I like more than winding down the weekend with some great food, friends and maybe a glass of wine or two ;)  Since it's so nice today, we decided to make sure we got back early enough to grill out and enjoy the weather!  We love entertaining and I especially love it in the summertime when you can have people outside, windows/doors open...plus I adore summertime food.  One of my favorites is Avocado Salsa.  It is super easy, healthy, and always a crowd pleaser!  Check out the recipe below next time you are having people over or if you're looking for a simple dish to bring to someone else's house to share.  All of the colors and flavors scream summertime and I guarantee you'll get compliments and requests for the recipe!

Avocado Salsa
Ingredients:
2 Medium avocados peeled, pitted, and diced
1 large tomato diced
1/4 cup finely chopped green onion
1 can yellow corn
1 can of black beans or chick peas (I like the black beans but you can use either...or both!)
2 Tbsp chopped fresh cilantro
Juice of one lime (or lime juice to taste)
2 Tbsp. red wine vinegar
Salt and Pepper to taste
Mango or pineapple chunks if you want to add some fruit - I've made it with and without and both are amazing!

Directions: drain ingredients in cans and combine it all together - that is IT!  Add more S&P if you'd like, I also sometimes use garlic salt instead of regular salt.  Serve with tortilla chips and enjoy.  I'll be enjoying mine with a glass of Montoya Cabernet tonight... (Tried this at a girls night last week and fell in love) Cheers!

~Why Blog Now?~

I was amazed at my life last year. 2010 was a complete whirlwind: We moved into a condo, got engaged, decided to buy a house, suffered the loss of Patrick's dad, bought and moved into a house, had new friends move to Charlotte and good friends move away...

At the beginning of 2011, I remember thinking, maybe this year we’ll breathe and settle/nest/kind of relax…. HA

Well, we are now selling our new house (I admit I’m a little sad about it!), packing up and moving to AUSTIN, TEXAS! Patrick got a fabulous promotion and come July, we will be living and exploring a brand new city!

I thought now would be the perfect time to start blogging so I can share our experiences as we move, meet new people, see new places… oh yeah, and finish planning the wedding and get married in September!