I got tagged again! There are questions to answer this time, so here I go!
1) What did you do 10 years ago?
Ten years ago, I was almost 12 years old. It was the summer between my 6th and 7th grade years, and I was excited about going to junior high! I played the flute in band, and my best friend lived one street over from me. I had no idea what the future held for me, but I'm very pleased with how it's turned out so far!
2) 5 Items on Your To-Do List for Today?
a) take a shower
b) eat lunch
c) go to the bank
d) meet JoyGotDots!
e) hang out with Tyler
3) Snacks I Enjoy:
There are really too many to list. I love any kind of sugary treat, from Mike N Ikes to cookies, cakes, pies, pastries of any kind. I recently fell in love with Jell-O rice pudding cups in Cinnamon, and I also love cottage cheese, puffy Cheetos, and ice cream!
4) What Would You Do if You Were a Billionaire?
I would first pay for the rest of my grad school, and then put a ton in savings for a baby someday. I would also buy a new car, the house of my dreams, and a new wardrobe. I'd donate to the church, travel around the world (lots of times!), buy my mom whatever she wanted, and hire a live-in masseuse. The rest would go in savings and investments for retirement and our children's future.
5) Places I Would Live
Colorado, Lubbock, Florida, California, Seattle, France, England, everywhere and anywhere that isn't freezing all the time.
I'm not going to pass this challenge on to anyone, because nearly all the Nesties have been tagged that I can think of, and those are the only people who read this! :-)
6.11.2008
6.03.2008
Fredericksburg is Fun!
OK, I'm finally getting around to writing that post I've been promising. Don't laugh, but I'm typing this as I listen to an hour-long lecture for one of my classes, while wearing a gaming headset. I'm also drinking some wine. ;-)
So, our trip was pretty awesome. We left EARLY on Saturday morning to drive down. We stopped about halfway to get some IHOP, and then continued on to Johnson City, where we checked out the LBJ Visitor's Center/Museum. It was pretty cool. Then we drove the last 30 minutes or so to Fredericksburg.
We couldn't check in to our B&B until 3PM, so we decided to grab some lunch. We went to the Auslander, which serves German food and also has an outdoor biergarten. We both got different sausage plates, and we were very pleased with the results! Tyler got the knockwurst (sausage with cheddar inside!), and I got Opa's sausage. While we were at lunch, a guy came up to the window we were seated next to and practically put his face on the glass to look inside. It was kind of funny and a little creepy.
After lunch, we decided to walk Main Street and see what was there. There are tons of cute shops, with everything from antiques to dog accessories. We walked for a really long time, seeing what was what. Then we decided to get a coffee, and then go to check in to our B&B. We walked down to the inn, but the owners weren't there, so we had to walk a LONG way to their antiques/home furnishings store. By this point I was already sunburned, but we got there finally and received our keys and instructions. Then we had to walk back down Main to get to the inn.
Once we got there, we unloaded our suitcase and other stuff from the car and went inside. Our room had its own entrance off the veranda, which was nice. We put our stuff away, and then decided to read a little while in the air conditioning. After that, we took a shower and then took a nap. All that walking in the high heat (probably 95) made us tired, not to mention getting up at 6AM on a Saturday.
After our nap, we walked down the street to the Fredericksburg Brewery for dinner. We ordered some beers while we waited, and then got down to the good stuff. I had jagersnitzel (breaded pork loin with mushroom sauce), and Tyler had the uberbacken scheinesnitzel (a baked porkchop with mushrooms, cheese, and other stuff on top. For dessert, we ordered the German chocolate cheesecake to go, since we were too full to eat it after our snitzels.
Later we walked back down Main to the B&B, where we met all of the other people staying there. We had 3 couples staying in the upstairs suite above us. All of the husbands knew each other growing up or from school. 2 of the couples had 8-month old twins, and the other couple had a 4-month old. All of the babies were present with the parents. They were all adorable and did NOT help my baby fever. The people were very nice, and we had a good time talking with them and drinking some more beer. We went to bed pretty early while listening to a really loud bullfrog in the fountain outside.
Sunday we woke up to the smells of breakfast cooking and coffee brewing. We went out into the dining room and greeted everyone, and then went through the buffet line. We got a little history of Fredericksburg from the owner, who also told us about some of the restaurants in the area. After that, we ventured back out onto Main Street to really check out the stores. First we headed to Der Kuchen Laden (The Kitchen Store). This was located in the old Keidel Memorial Hospital, which was in honor of the same people that originally built and owned the B&B we stayed in. This store was a-mazing! It was like the kitchen section of Bed, Bath, and Beyond times 10! They had every conceivable kitchen gadget you could think of or want. We got ourselves a few things: a tea infuser ball and some loose tea, a splatter screen for our skillet, a spoon rest for the top of the stove, and one of those measuring cups like Alton Brown uses:
From there, we continued down the street, checking out shops here and there, as well as taking frequent breaks to sit and rest. We really learned our lesson after the first day! We also found a store that had an awesome gnome lawn ornament with a built in solar lantern. Just like the one featured here on my website! Unfortunately, it cost $100, so we didn't buy it. I did find it online later for around $60, so it's on my wishlist for later! I did take a picture with the gnome, at least. I also took a picture with some local landmarks, one of which was necessary due to my job/schooling.
I also bought some lavender sachets for my dresser drawers and linen storage, so I'm pretty excited about using those at the new apartment! We ate lunch at a place called the Buffalo Nickel, where we both had salads. We needed something light since it was so hot. Mine was called the Pocahontas Salad, which was spinach with sliced strawberries, candied pecans, goat cheese crumbles, and raspberry vinaigrette on the side. It was AWESOME. DH had a club salad and a Blue Moon wheat beer, which was served properly (with an orange wedge!), and was very refreshing. :-) We wandered some more after lunch, stopped at the Fredericksburg Bakery for some pastries and candy, tasted some wine and bought a bottle, and then headed back for a shower and reading. For dinner we ate in the cellar of Der Kuchen Laden at a restaurant called Rathskeller. We ordered some spinach artichoke dip for dinner, which was the best we've ever had. My entree was excellent as well, it was a hollowed-out eggplant, which was then fried and filled with crab meat and shrimp and covered in white wine cream sauce and some cheese. Tyler got German food, but this was not the place for it, so he was kind of disappointed. After that, we returned to the veranda of the B&B and joined our upstairs neighbors for some drinks and conversation before turning in for the night.
That was the bulk of the trip. The next morning we woke up, had breakfast with everyone, and packed up our stuff. Then we took one last walk, stopping in at a store called Dogologie to pick out a new collar for Pongo and some bakery treats to bring home to him. I'll post a picture with his new collar once I get one! Then we headed to a hidden bakery/cafe I had read about on TripAdvisor. It was the best decision of the entire trip, I do believe! We both ordered sandwiches, which have since been declared the best sandwiches EVER. I don't normally like sandwiches for the most part, but mine was amazing! It was fresh mozzarella, fresh basil, and tomato, with field greens on focaccia bread. Simply.amazing. We really wanted to buy a loaf of the bread, but they don't normally sell it until after lunch. The waitress took pity on us and asked anyway, but they had just started another batch in the oven and it wouldn't be done before we left town. :-( Maybe next time! They also had amazing looking pastries and desserts, but we were too full.
All in all, we had an amazing time. We definitely want to go back as soon as we get a chance! There are lots of places we want to stop at again, and more places we'd like to buy stuff when we have the extra cash.
That's all for the trip. I'll probably post some more fun pictures later on. Also, I'll update about what's happened since, and our moving adventures after this coming weekend! Stay tuned. :-D
So, our trip was pretty awesome. We left EARLY on Saturday morning to drive down. We stopped about halfway to get some IHOP, and then continued on to Johnson City, where we checked out the LBJ Visitor's Center/Museum. It was pretty cool. Then we drove the last 30 minutes or so to Fredericksburg.
We couldn't check in to our B&B until 3PM, so we decided to grab some lunch. We went to the Auslander, which serves German food and also has an outdoor biergarten. We both got different sausage plates, and we were very pleased with the results! Tyler got the knockwurst (sausage with cheddar inside!), and I got Opa's sausage. While we were at lunch, a guy came up to the window we were seated next to and practically put his face on the glass to look inside. It was kind of funny and a little creepy.After lunch, we decided to walk Main Street and see what was there. There are tons of cute shops, with everything from antiques to dog accessories. We walked for a really long time, seeing what was what. Then we decided to get a coffee, and then go to check in to our B&B. We walked down to the inn, but the owners weren't there, so we had to walk a LONG way to their antiques/home furnishings store. By this point I was already sunburned, but we got there finally and received our keys and instructions. Then we had to walk back down Main to get to the inn.
Once we got there, we unloaded our suitcase and other stuff from the car and went inside. Our room had its own entrance off the veranda, which was nice. We put our stuff away, and then decided to read a little while in the air conditioning. After that, we took a shower and then took a nap. All that walking in the high heat (probably 95) made us tired, not to mention getting up at 6AM on a Saturday.
After our nap, we walked down the street to the Fredericksburg Brewery for dinner. We ordered some beers while we waited, and then got down to the good stuff. I had jagersnitzel (breaded pork loin with mushroom sauce), and Tyler had the uberbacken scheinesnitzel (a baked porkchop with mushrooms, cheese, and other stuff on top. For dessert, we ordered the German chocolate cheesecake to go, since we were too full to eat it after our snitzels.Later we walked back down Main to the B&B, where we met all of the other people staying there. We had 3 couples staying in the upstairs suite above us. All of the husbands knew each other growing up or from school. 2 of the couples had 8-month old twins, and the other couple had a 4-month old. All of the babies were present with the parents. They were all adorable and did NOT help my baby fever. The people were very nice, and we had a good time talking with them and drinking some more beer. We went to bed pretty early while listening to a really loud bullfrog in the fountain outside.
Sunday we woke up to the smells of breakfast cooking and coffee brewing. We went out into the dining room and greeted everyone, and then went through the buffet line. We got a little history of Fredericksburg from the owner, who also told us about some of the restaurants in the area. After that, we ventured back out onto Main Street to really check out the stores. First we headed to Der Kuchen Laden (The Kitchen Store). This was located in the old Keidel Memorial Hospital, which was in honor of the same people that originally built and owned the B&B we stayed in. This store was a-mazing! It was like the kitchen section of Bed, Bath, and Beyond times 10! They had every conceivable kitchen gadget you could think of or want. We got ourselves a few things: a tea infuser ball and some loose tea, a splatter screen for our skillet, a spoon rest for the top of the stove, and one of those measuring cups like Alton Brown uses:
From there, we continued down the street, checking out shops here and there, as well as taking frequent breaks to sit and rest. We really learned our lesson after the first day! We also found a store that had an awesome gnome lawn ornament with a built in solar lantern. Just like the one featured here on my website! Unfortunately, it cost $100, so we didn't buy it. I did find it online later for around $60, so it's on my wishlist for later! I did take a picture with the gnome, at least. I also took a picture with some local landmarks, one of which was necessary due to my job/schooling.
I also bought some lavender sachets for my dresser drawers and linen storage, so I'm pretty excited about using those at the new apartment! We ate lunch at a place called the Buffalo Nickel, where we both had salads. We needed something light since it was so hot. Mine was called the Pocahontas Salad, which was spinach with sliced strawberries, candied pecans, goat cheese crumbles, and raspberry vinaigrette on the side. It was AWESOME. DH had a club salad and a Blue Moon wheat beer, which was served properly (with an orange wedge!), and was very refreshing. :-) We wandered some more after lunch, stopped at the Fredericksburg Bakery for some pastries and candy, tasted some wine and bought a bottle, and then headed back for a shower and reading. For dinner we ate in the cellar of Der Kuchen Laden at a restaurant called Rathskeller. We ordered some spinach artichoke dip for dinner, which was the best we've ever had. My entree was excellent as well, it was a hollowed-out eggplant, which was then fried and filled with crab meat and shrimp and covered in white wine cream sauce and some cheese. Tyler got German food, but this was not the place for it, so he was kind of disappointed. After that, we returned to the veranda of the B&B and joined our upstairs neighbors for some drinks and conversation before turning in for the night.
That was the bulk of the trip. The next morning we woke up, had breakfast with everyone, and packed up our stuff. Then we took one last walk, stopping in at a store called Dogologie to pick out a new collar for Pongo and some bakery treats to bring home to him. I'll post a picture with his new collar once I get one! Then we headed to a hidden bakery/cafe I had read about on TripAdvisor. It was the best decision of the entire trip, I do believe! We both ordered sandwiches, which have since been declared the best sandwiches EVER. I don't normally like sandwiches for the most part, but mine was amazing! It was fresh mozzarella, fresh basil, and tomato, with field greens on focaccia bread. Simply.amazing. We really wanted to buy a loaf of the bread, but they don't normally sell it until after lunch. The waitress took pity on us and asked anyway, but they had just started another batch in the oven and it wouldn't be done before we left town. :-( Maybe next time! They also had amazing looking pastries and desserts, but we were too full.
All in all, we had an amazing time. We definitely want to go back as soon as we get a chance! There are lots of places we want to stop at again, and more places we'd like to buy stuff when we have the extra cash.
That's all for the trip. I'll probably post some more fun pictures later on. Also, I'll update about what's happened since, and our moving adventures after this coming weekend! Stay tuned. :-D
6.02.2008
Bad blog mom!
I STILL haven't updated about our anniversary trip. :-( I haven't even had a chance to look at all the pictures yet. Hopefully I'll get it done this week, but don't count on it, because I just started my online classes AND we still have barely anything packed and we're moving on Friday.
On a separate note, we went home this weekend and watched my little sister graduate HS. :-) I'm excited for her.
On a separate note, we went home this weekend and watched my little sister graduate HS. :-) I'm excited for her.
5.27.2008
5.21.2008
I've been tagged!!
By mrs.leah.maria! So, here are 9 random thoughts from me. :-)
1) I am a very impatient person. Once something is on the horizon of my life, it can't get here soon enough. Some examples currently: I can't wait for my trip this weekend (our 2nd anniversary trip!), I can't wait to be moved into our new apartment, I can't wait for the summer semester to begin and end, I can't wait to be done with graduate school (and I don't even start until the fall), and I can't wait to travel, buy a house, and have kids. OMG.
2) My aunt writes children's book. Her first one was inspired by my birth, of all things. She writes mostly spiritual books, but the kind of spiritual book that works for any faith or denomination. She's also written one book about the annual migration of Canadian geese to Texas. It has super-cute illustrations, and is one of my favorite books by her.
3) I am an aspiring librarian. This seems a strange thing to aspire to, in a way. I have worked in a library for about 3 years total, and while it gets boring at times, I still love it. I'm currently enrolled in the three introductory library science courses, which I'm using to fulfill my electives for my undergraduate degree. My classes start on June 2, and go through August 8. I will graduate August 9, either cum laude or magna cum laude, depending on my grades this summer. Then I will start my master's degree in library science. My concentration will be youth librarianship. I have always loved reading, books, and libraries, and they have been a huge impact on my life. I'd love to have that kind of impact on kids.
4) I have been neglecting this blog, and it' doesn't deserve it! To make up for it, here are some pictures of my recent DIY attempts! I finally spray painted my EW tiles, and they will eventually be hung in our new apartment, either over our bed or above our dresser, depending on where they look best. I also painted this microwave cart from Ikea, with help from Tyler. It will be the perfect addition to our kitchen in the new apartment!
5) I am in love with dessert. Seriously. Tonight I had a chocolate pastry at Panera Bread Co., but it did not live up to my desires. I'm seriously thinking about baking up some brownies right now, because that was my original idea tonight. DH doesn't want them around the house, because we're both trying to diet, but I think that's lame. I may just invite some of my ladyfriends over to help me eat them! I got a great recipe from abby that I might try out. I also found one on allrecipes.com that sounds great!
6) Tyler and I are on a mission to lose some weight and get healthy. He's been on a "Fat Boy Challenge" with a few of his friends for the past two and a half months, and has lost nearly 20 pounds! I'm really proud of him. I've been on my "Sexy Wifey Challenge" for about 19 days, and have only managed to lose 3 pounds. I am jealous of how much easier it is for men to lose weight than it is for women. I'm hoping once we get moved and settled in, we will create a better schedule for ourselves, including meals and exercise. I think living on the third floor as opposed to the first will help, too! For now, we're just trying to eat breakfast more regularly and have fewer snacks and more veggies. Any encouragement or tips would be greatly appreciated! (I'm very inspired by mrs.leah.maria and her running, but I'm not sure running is for me. Tips?)
7) I am slightly embarrased by our video collection. We have maybe 20 DVDs (or sets), total. Most of these are various TV series such as Gilmore Girls (my FAVORITE!), Smallville, and The Office. We have a few movies, several of which we've never watched. My friend Ashley makes loads of fun at our expense because of this. But she also has around 200 movies and shows on DVD or VHS. Any suggestions to help beef up our collection? We're better at renting.
8) Our weekend is going to be fabulous. We are staying at a B&B about four hours from here, in a historic town. The town has lots of German heritage, shopping, and sites to see nearby. We have only been on one other vacation by ourselves in the 8 years we've been together (our honeymoon!), so I'm excited to see what it's like. We don't have any real plans except for where we're staying, and that we want to eat some German food and drink some beer. We're just going to see where the weekend takes us! The only sad part is having to leave our pooch behind. Here's a picture of the room we're staying in. We believe we have found the only B&B in the whole town that is not plastered with flowers on every surface, and we're pretty darn excited about that.
9) Looking back 10 years ago, I could have never imagined what life had in store. Of course, what 12 year old imagines that they will be married at 19, much less for 2 years? I am so happy that I found the husband God intended for me so early in life. I know that He has great things in store for us.
And now, I would like to tag leslie and McCoffee.
1) I am a very impatient person. Once something is on the horizon of my life, it can't get here soon enough. Some examples currently: I can't wait for my trip this weekend (our 2nd anniversary trip!), I can't wait to be moved into our new apartment, I can't wait for the summer semester to begin and end, I can't wait to be done with graduate school (and I don't even start until the fall), and I can't wait to travel, buy a house, and have kids. OMG.
2) My aunt writes children's book. Her first one was inspired by my birth, of all things. She writes mostly spiritual books, but the kind of spiritual book that works for any faith or denomination. She's also written one book about the annual migration of Canadian geese to Texas. It has super-cute illustrations, and is one of my favorite books by her.
3) I am an aspiring librarian. This seems a strange thing to aspire to, in a way. I have worked in a library for about 3 years total, and while it gets boring at times, I still love it. I'm currently enrolled in the three introductory library science courses, which I'm using to fulfill my electives for my undergraduate degree. My classes start on June 2, and go through August 8. I will graduate August 9, either cum laude or magna cum laude, depending on my grades this summer. Then I will start my master's degree in library science. My concentration will be youth librarianship. I have always loved reading, books, and libraries, and they have been a huge impact on my life. I'd love to have that kind of impact on kids.
4) I have been neglecting this blog, and it' doesn't deserve it! To make up for it, here are some pictures of my recent DIY attempts! I finally spray painted my EW tiles, and they will eventually be hung in our new apartment, either over our bed or above our dresser, depending on where they look best. I also painted this microwave cart from Ikea, with help from Tyler. It will be the perfect addition to our kitchen in the new apartment!
5) I am in love with dessert. Seriously. Tonight I had a chocolate pastry at Panera Bread Co., but it did not live up to my desires. I'm seriously thinking about baking up some brownies right now, because that was my original idea tonight. DH doesn't want them around the house, because we're both trying to diet, but I think that's lame. I may just invite some of my ladyfriends over to help me eat them! I got a great recipe from abby that I might try out. I also found one on allrecipes.com that sounds great!
6) Tyler and I are on a mission to lose some weight and get healthy. He's been on a "Fat Boy Challenge" with a few of his friends for the past two and a half months, and has lost nearly 20 pounds! I'm really proud of him. I've been on my "Sexy Wifey Challenge" for about 19 days, and have only managed to lose 3 pounds. I am jealous of how much easier it is for men to lose weight than it is for women. I'm hoping once we get moved and settled in, we will create a better schedule for ourselves, including meals and exercise. I think living on the third floor as opposed to the first will help, too! For now, we're just trying to eat breakfast more regularly and have fewer snacks and more veggies. Any encouragement or tips would be greatly appreciated! (I'm very inspired by mrs.leah.maria and her running, but I'm not sure running is for me. Tips?)
7) I am slightly embarrased by our video collection. We have maybe 20 DVDs (or sets), total. Most of these are various TV series such as Gilmore Girls (my FAVORITE!), Smallville, and The Office. We have a few movies, several of which we've never watched. My friend Ashley makes loads of fun at our expense because of this. But she also has around 200 movies and shows on DVD or VHS. Any suggestions to help beef up our collection? We're better at renting.
8) Our weekend is going to be fabulous. We are staying at a B&B about four hours from here, in a historic town. The town has lots of German heritage, shopping, and sites to see nearby. We have only been on one other vacation by ourselves in the 8 years we've been together (our honeymoon!), so I'm excited to see what it's like. We don't have any real plans except for where we're staying, and that we want to eat some German food and drink some beer. We're just going to see where the weekend takes us! The only sad part is having to leave our pooch behind. Here's a picture of the room we're staying in. We believe we have found the only B&B in the whole town that is not plastered with flowers on every surface, and we're pretty darn excited about that.
9) Looking back 10 years ago, I could have never imagined what life had in store. Of course, what 12 year old imagines that they will be married at 19, much less for 2 years? I am so happy that I found the husband God intended for me so early in life. I know that He has great things in store for us.
And now, I would like to tag leslie and McCoffee.
5.16.2008
New furniture!
Since we're moving into a new apartment soon, we've decided to replace a lot of our furniture. We are getting a new sofa and chair set from Ikea:
We're getting the sofa, chair, and two storage ottomans. We'll also be getting new bedroom furniture and a new mattress. The bed will be from JCPenney, and the wood furniture is from Ikea.
I'm pretty excited about all the changes that are coming up! They've already started, really. The end of the semester from hell (as I like to call it) has come and gone, thank goodness. My last projects turned out better than expected, and I ended the semester with 3 As and a B, which is excellent considering how stressful this semester was.
Tyler just graduated with his bachelor's degree on Saturday, which was super-exciting. My mom and his parents were in town for it, and it was nice to get to hang out with them. We ate lots of good food, talked a lot, and played the Wii a lot. :-)
We begin moving on June 6th. We will be VERY busy that day, because we have to rent the UHaul, load up the big furniture at our current apartment, go buy our mattress at Mattress Firm, drive 20ish minutes to Ikea and get all of that stuff, stop by JCPenney to pick up our bed, and then drive to our new apartment and unload everything to the second floor. All this has to happen in the 6 hours we have the UHaul for. EEek! If anyone has any tips to make this go smoothly, I'd love it if you would enlighten me.
OK, that's it for today. I'll be updating again shortly!
We're getting the sofa, chair, and two storage ottomans. We'll also be getting new bedroom furniture and a new mattress. The bed will be from JCPenney, and the wood furniture is from Ikea.
I'm pretty excited about all the changes that are coming up! They've already started, really. The end of the semester from hell (as I like to call it) has come and gone, thank goodness. My last projects turned out better than expected, and I ended the semester with 3 As and a B, which is excellent considering how stressful this semester was.
Tyler just graduated with his bachelor's degree on Saturday, which was super-exciting. My mom and his parents were in town for it, and it was nice to get to hang out with them. We ate lots of good food, talked a lot, and played the Wii a lot. :-)
We begin moving on June 6th. We will be VERY busy that day, because we have to rent the UHaul, load up the big furniture at our current apartment, go buy our mattress at Mattress Firm, drive 20ish minutes to Ikea and get all of that stuff, stop by JCPenney to pick up our bed, and then drive to our new apartment and unload everything to the second floor. All this has to happen in the 6 hours we have the UHaul for. EEek! If anyone has any tips to make this go smoothly, I'd love it if you would enlighten me.
OK, that's it for today. I'll be updating again shortly!
5.06.2008
Upcoming entries!
Soon I will be making frequent posts to my blog. Some of the topics soon to come:
-DIY projects I'll be working on
-tales from getting ready to move
-plans for decorating/furnishing the new apartment
-recap of DH's graduation!
-my wishlist (mainly clothing and accessories)
-my weight loss plan
-plans for the summer
I plan to start working on these topics tomorrow, so be on the lookout for a new post soon! :-)
-DIY projects I'll be working on
-tales from getting ready to move
-plans for decorating/furnishing the new apartment
-recap of DH's graduation!
-my wishlist (mainly clothing and accessories)
-my weight loss plan
-plans for the summer
I plan to start working on these topics tomorrow, so be on the lookout for a new post soon! :-)
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