Where the Heck Am I?

This thought pops up in my head rather frequently these days... I think it might have to do with the fact that we've stayed at least one night (usually many more) in 13 hotels this year.  That doesn't include any of the homes or the 5 more hotels we will add to the list before 2013 comes to a close. Needless to say, it is occasionally difficult for me to quickly remember that we are currently living in Augusta, Georgia.

We arrived less than a week ago for my husband to begin his general surgery rotation here at Eisenhower Medical Center on Fort Gordon.  It is very hot here. Our hotel room has many pros and cons... so far, the cons have the upper hand. However, the air conditioning is working beautifully! Hallelujah!

While my husband was busy settling in at the hospital, I went down to Florida for a couple of days to visit with my in-laws. I got my cooking, wine and yoga fixes before coming back north to GA.

Although there isn't much going on in this area (so it seems to me), I am trying out a new yoga studio this week and will keep you posted :)

Our Seattle Anniversary

For our first anniversary, we went into Seattle to eat dinner at Sky City, the restaurant in the Space Needle. We were VERY grateful that my husband actually had the day (June 30) off! Hallelujah! 

Side note about the Space Needle elevators... remember the time we talked about my death screams on a certain Universal Studios ride?  Well this elevator gave me flashbacks to that moment.  Luckily I just turned away from the windows and stopped myself short of a full on meltdown. I was fine once we were in the restaurant because it's easy to forget that there is nothing beneath the floor... it seems like your everyday skyscraper. Thank goodness... I was a little worried about how this would turn out when we were on our way up!

Without a doubt, the meal was memorable.  Not only was the view unbeatable, but the food was marvelous, too.

A sweet touch- Sky City had a photographer walking around taking photos that could be emailed to you free of charge. This amazing view only got better as our meal continued because the restaurant turns 360 degrees! I believe they said it takes 47 minutes to make the full rotation, so we made it around twice during our dinner.

One of our favorite appetizers, burrata mozzarella, done extremely well!

Fresh Alaskan Halibut (mine), frites, and a sirloin/lobster tail (his)... yummy!

Just to the right of the skyscrapers, faint in the distance, is Mount Rainier! It didn't photograph well, but it was really spectacular/bigger/easy to see in person.

The same view approximately 47 minutes later.

 It really felt like an 'escape' to relax and dine so far above the city.

Back at our hotel room after a wonderful evening in Seattle. We definitely won't forget this wonderful experience on our first anniversary!

Lazy Magnolia

Alrighty, y'all... last throwback post, I promise.  At least for awhile. Or until tomorrow when I get a stray hair and decide to post about Salem Academy or something. You never know what I might get into!

Anyhow, when my husband and I were in Biloxi, Mississippi, a couple months ago, we randomly (again, you never know!) ended up driving 30 minutes away to Lazy Magnolia Brewing Company one Friday afternoon to take a tour.

We'd seen their beer at a couple of restaurants in the area, so we made our way to Kiln (known as "the Kill" to locals, apparently) to check it out.

We each got a pint glass as part of the tour. They are both filled with "Southern Pecan", which is their signature brew.

When we pulled up to the brewery, we were slightly skeptical of a few things:

1) They shared/split a warehouse with the Coast Guard?

2) The parking lot was not paved, and it was very muddy due to recent rains.

3) We did not see another living soul.

However, we had come this far, so we made our way through the mud, through the production area of the open-air brewery, and into the office to check in for the tour (we gathered these directions from a rain-streaked handwritten poster at the 'entrance).  I am very glad that we persevered. Neither of us had ever been on a brewery tour before, and our tour guide, Ginger, was as sweet as honey from start to finish.

We sampled and asked questions and walked around for about an hour before leaving the down home brewery, which was breaking ground on a massive expansion the following week.  I wholeheartedly recommend stopping by the brewery if you're ever in the vicinity, and keep a lookout for their beers that are distributed throughout the southeast!

Universal Studios

This past weekend, my in-laws went to Universal Studios in Orlando, FL. Hearing about how lovely their trip was made me think way back to this past January (2013) when my husband and I made the same trip to celebrate his birthday.

So here are a few throwback tidbits from our couple of days at the parks.

I would highly recommend staying at the Loews Royal Pacific Resort (in these pictures, we are having drinks at one of the restaurants on the resort property).  Not only is it convenient and beautiful, but guests staying there also receive express passes to skip the longest lines in the parks! 

I would also suggest eating dinner at Emeril's at Universal's Citywalk. Like Commander's Palace, the meal at Emeril's is in my top 5 best list.  The food I expected to fabulous, but the ambiance was superb, with a view of the Universal studio fireworks out the window behind my husband. 

Sidenote: looking at these pictures is making me nostalgic for something other than vacation- my long hair! Remember when I chopped it off in Texas? Who let me do that? Alright, my fault... enough vanity for now.

It was a beautiful January day in Florida (can you tell?), so we really enjoyed walking around in between rides. Our favorite in Universal Studios was the Despicable Me ride.

 In Islands of Adventure, the Harry Potter section of the park was, surprisingly, our hands down favorite.

 Although my husband (and the small children sitting next to us on the ride) sure got a kick out of my death screams on Dr. Doom's Fearfall! I might have a minor fear of heights... or elevators... or both. Just maybe :)

Lunch at Mythos was a nice departure from the hustle of the park.  Reservations are a must at this restaurant that is a prior winner of the title "Best Theme Park Restaurant in the World."

Don't we look like we're having a good time?! I think I'll start planning our next vacation, now...

Commander's Palace

On our brief Friday trip over to New Orleans, we made special lunch reservations at Commander's Palace at the recommendation of his attending. Oh Commander's Palace... easily in my list of top 5 restaurants ever visited!

The thing that made Commander's a refreshing fine-dining experience was that we went for lunch, not dinner.

This was completely key for several reasons:
1) Less pretentious dress code (Jackets are required for men at dinner)
2) 25¢ martinis
3) More reasonable menu prices

I'm tasting the creole bread pudding soufflé... what a treat!

Happy guy all finished with his crawfish grilled cheese and roasted corn and tomato bisque.

Everything was truly perfection. The meal, the drinks, the service, and the atmosphere were all superb.  Everyone in the packed restaurant seemed to be imbibing the 25¢ martinis (there was a limit of 3, thank goodness) and celebrating something or another.  It was a really fun energy for a fine dining establishment.  I guess I should have expected nothing less from NOLA!

The French Quarter

When my husband was assigned to Keesler AFB in Biloxi, Mississippi, for the month of April, he had every other Friday off. He was excited for an extra day of studying (woo hoo! right?), but I convinced him on one of those Fridays to go to New Orleans with me.  It's only an hour or so away from Biloxi, and I drove so he could study on the way there/back.  Have I mentioned lately that I am REALLY good at the whole medical-student's-wife thing ;)?

My first priority in NOLA was to go to Cafe Du Monde.  I don't care that it is always jam packed and touristy.  I could eat their beignets and drink their cafe au lait every day.  We grabbed ours to-go and sat overlooking the canal as we had the healthiest, most nutritious breakfast in the world.

Part of the joy of beignets is the powdered sugar that ends up everywhere- pants, shirts and hair included.

After getting loaded up on carbs and caffeine, we walked around the French Quarter shops. My favorite find was Santa's Quarters because I have an unhealthy obsession with rather expensive Christmas ornaments. Michael preferred the open air French Market where he purchased an actual alligator head. Yikes! His only reassurance to his freaked-out wife? "The eyes aren't real, they're black marbles." What a relief. 

These pictures were taken in Jackson Square Park which overlooks the beautiful St. Louis Cathedral. All of this is in stark contrast to the activities a few streets over on Bourbon. We walked through (briskly because of the smell) for the heck of it, but found to need to linger in a bar at 10 am to drink Hurricanes and Daiquiris.  We were saving our day drinking for lunch at Commander's Palace!

We also caught the St. Charles Streetcar to take us to lunch, and I don't think there is a better or more picturesque way to travel into the Garden District!

Our day in NOLA was absolutely lovely... everything from the weather (70's and sunny) to the food was perfection.  Except for the silver dollar sized blisters I got on the BOTTOM of my feet from all the walking. Worth it!

The End of a Long Hiatus

Hey y'all! I am terribly sorry for the extended pause in my posts while I dealt with some health issues (all is well thanks to the marvelous Dr. Lipari).  I know this blog is probably the most important and exciting part of your day, so never fear, I'm back :)

The last time I wrote we were in Fort Bragg, NC.  Needless to say, we are not there any longer (however, we did discover the moniker of that Army base- "All the Way"... I think its an airborne thing, but Michael and I really did get a kick out of it when they would shout it at us when we drove on base).  Because I was dealing with some health issues and Michael was handling a pretty hectic schedule, we did not enjoy Fort Bragg as much as we may have otherwise.  Here is one instance of getting out and enjoying Fayetteville a bit:

We went to Joe's Crab Shack once, right after Michael finished with work for the day.  The food was nothing spectacular, but my margarita that came in a mason jar was AWESOME!  My mom and sister have had the mason jar margarita on separate occasions and rave about it, too... we know a good marg :)

Since leaving Fort Bragg at the end of March, we have spent time in Bethesda, MD, Jacksonville, FL, Biloxi, MS, New Orleans, LA, and the Bahamas.  Some of those were dictated by the Army, and others were dictated by some time off and vacation... you can guess which is which :) There are so many things that I want to blog about from that time period, so I'm going to attempt some catch-up.  Here are a few topics for which you can keep an eye open:

Juicing
Home Decorating (Homegoods/TJ Maxx/Marshalls centric)
The Commanders Palace/Cafe du Monde/The French Quarter
Indian Recipes
Other Recipes
Lazy Magnolia Brewing
Royal Caribbean Cruise
My 24th Birthday
Furniture Refinishing
The Beau Rivage
The Shed BBQ
The Still
Weddings

One thing y'all won't be hearing about anytime soon is crock-pot cooking.  I haven't (completely) given up on the appliance yet, but it was banned at our last location (Biloxi, MS) and our current one also.  Right now, luckily, I have access to a kitchen at my parent's home, which is 15 minutes away.

We are now in Portsmouth, VA, where we will be located for the next 4 weeks. I'm really enjoying being close to my parents, who live in Norfolk, despite the lack of AC in our Navy Gateway Inns and Suites room, and my husband is thoroughly enjoying having a light schedule while he rotates through General Internal Medicine and Sub-specialties outpatient.

I promise it won't be another two months before I post again!!

We made it! Part 2

Move number two is on the books, folks! We are currently residing in Fort Bragg, North Carolina for the next five weeks.

The actual moving part was easier this time around, and I can only imagine how streamlined my/our process will be by the time we do move number 9 (yikes!). The leaving a wonderful experience and lovely people part was, as to be expected, not as pleasant. I have found myself missing Fort Hood a little bit... Mostly the warm sunshine (it averaged in the 70's when we were there... Today was overcast and in the 40's/50's at Fort Bragg) and people. However, I never thought there would be anything to miss about "The Great Place" for the first few days we were there, so I'll just tough it out until I can find the bright spots in Fort Bragg (unique moniker still unknown).

All I can say right now is that this place is definitely different from Fort Hood, in good and not-so-good ways.

Exchange here- better
Commissary here- better
Class six* here-better
'Commute' here- worse
Lodging here- worse

*For those of you unfamiliar with a 'class six' on an Army base, it is where you go to buy booze, or in my case, a bottle of wine. The selection was not stellar, but definitely superior to the offerings at Fort Hood (read here for more info). A nice glass of chardonnay can fix a multitude of things, if you ask me.

I'll post some pictures and more about our travels between TX and NC tomorrow after we're slightly more settled.

We Made It!

I guess that would be a more appropriate title for a post at the end of this year, but I feel so accomplished to say that we are officially settled (for the most part) at our first location: Fort Hood, TX!

Late yesterday afternoon, we checked in to our motel (Poxon House) on post.  Our room is about how we expected it to be... a semi-renovated space in a very old building.  Bottom line, though, is that it is clean and I was able to unpack all of our things this morning. Hallelujah!!

Memphis

Michael and I were so lucky that my sister, Kendall, opened up her cute condo to us as we passed through last night on our way to Texas.  Not only was I able to get an amazing night's sleep on her guest bed (a huge accomplishment for me), but she and her boyfriend showed us the town for a little bit before we crashed early from the one hour time change.

First up was Rendezvous! A famous Memphis bbq place located on a back alley.  We sampled their ribs, brisket, cole slaw, and baked beans. Everything was amazing.  We also tried a golden ale from Ghost River Brewery.  Also very good!  Trying local beer is always on Michael's list of things to do in a new city, so we checked that box.

Next was a "Diver" from Silky's.  I was skeptical of the bucket with six very long straws poking out of it, and even more so when I saw the slogan ("Guaranteed to make you go down") and heard the back story (I will spare y'all the details of that one).  It turned out to be pretty tasty, though!  Not too sweet, with an aftertaste of vanilla.  However, I have no idea what was actually in it, so I can't completely vouch for it.

Lastly, when we got back to the condo to hang out, Kendall and Brad introduced us to Pisa Liqueur. It was yummy! Michael said that it tasted how almond extract smells... pretty accurate, I'd say.  It would be really good in a cup of coffee :)

Thanks Brad and Kendall for such an awesome whirlwind tour of your town!!