Monday, March 14, 2011

3.14

Happy Pi Day!


We celebrated by eating
homemade chicken pot pie
made with sweet potatoes and lots of veggies.
Maybe next year I'll attempt my
favorite dessert: homemade peach pie.

Sunday, March 13, 2011

29 for reals

January 21st came and went again this year.
This is the ONLY year I'll be able to say 
that I'm 29 (that magic number that people pretend
to be every year after they turn 30) and mean it.

Since Jake and I celebrated my birthday last year in
New Orleans, we decided to have a 
New Orleans style celebration again this year.

We made beignets and hot chocolate for breakfast
(notice the cute bouquet of flowers from Jake).


Jake surprised me with dinner at a fancy
New Orleans style restaurant at Universal's City Walk
called Emiril's.  I enjoyed some delicious seafood.


Jake was a good sport and accompanied me
to get a pedicure, the only thing I really
wanted for my birthday.  


I wish I had taken a picture of Jake taking
a nap in the massage chair next to me!

Anyway, it was a great birthday.
Thanks to Jake for making it so special, 
and thanks to all my friends and family
for the phone calls, cards, and gifts!



Sunday, March 6, 2011

Lights up on Washington Heights...

...up at the break of day
I wake up and I got this little punk I gotta chase away
Pop the grate at the crack of dawn, sing
While I wipe down the awning
Hey ya'll good morning

These are the opening lyrics to a musical
called "In the Heights".  Jake and I are HUGE
fans.  I'd seen it in New York back in 2009,
but Jake had only listened to (and memorized) 
the soundtrack.


So when we found out that "In the Heights" was
ending its Broadway run, we immediately (or should
I say impulsively?) bought plane tickets to 
New York and tickets to the show.

The show was amazing.  
I think that seeing it helped us get the music out of our 
system a little (let's just say that Jake has finally picked 
new music to sing in the shower in the mornings).

While we were at it, we enjoyed checking
out the sites in Manhattan.  I had never
been there at Christmastime before, and it 
was fun to see the changes that the 
holidays brought to the city.

Like Times Square...

And the Rockefeller Tree...


The skating rink (Aw, we witnessed a 
happy couple get engaged)...

The Macy's holiday windows...


And even the annual SantaCon pub crawl.

Only in New York!

Not only did Jake get to see "In the Heights,"
but he had another dream come true when
we found Pommes Frites, a tiny hole in the wall
that specializes in french fries and sauces.

Jake was in heaven!

We taste tested many sauces, and ultimately
picked Dill Lemon Mayo, Pomegranate
Teriyaki Mayo, and Curry Ketchup Especial.

Another food highlight was wining (with
complimentary sparkling water) and dining
at a little Italian restaurant that we happened upon.

It was the perfect place to rest our feet after 
walking all day and enjoy a hot and delicious meal.

We capped off our weekend by going 
to church downtown and then grabbing burgers
before heading to the airport.  

Almost missed our flight home, but that's another story...

Welcome to Miami

Oh man, I knew I would quickly
get behind in the blogging world.
Especially now that I'm working (I finally
found a nanny job in Orlando, hooray!).

Anyway, in December Jake and I drove 
down to Miami (3 1/2 hours away)
for a weekend getaway.  
Dr. Deines had a free 2-night stay at the Marriott 
left over from his interview trail last year.
It was a quick trip, but we fit a lot in. 

We tried Cuban hamburgers for the first
(and probably last...) time.



Jake finally got to see Dolphin stadium.
He's been a fan since childhood.  He had
to pick some NFL team to cheer for since
Utah doesn't have one.  Why Miami, you ask?
"Because the colors are cool."  


I got to see the newest Norwegian ship, 
the Epic, which was docked in Miami that day.
Wow, what a monster!


We walked along South Beach,
and I found a particular BBQ salmon salad
that I had tried there 4 years ago, which was exciting.
It was just as delicious as I remembered.


After that, we weren't quite sure what
else to do in Miami, so we took it to Google.
We were led to "Coral Castle," a weird but 
interesting historical site built in the early 1900's 
by an eccentric man named Ed Leedskalnin.



He apparently worked alone, at night, to move 
and position slabs of coral (each weighing several tons)
and create this "castle," (complete with 
furniture), in which he lived.



When asked how he did this, he claimed he knew 
"the secrets of the pyramids," which he never shared.
There are a lot of theories people have come up with 
to explain how he created Coral Castle,
but his methods remain a mystery.


Kinda strange, but we enjoyed it.

Hoping to get down to Miami again
during our time in Florida.