The Big Bang Theory

1. Big Bang:

2. Theory:
Hot sun + cold drinks (promise I didn't drive mom!) + good friends + oversized hats + big bangs = GREAT WEEKEND!

Ok, now to the real point of this post...America had a birthday! And we celebrated all weekend long!
This may have been one of the greatest fourth of July weekends ever...it was epic fun!
In order to cram all of the fun I had this weekend into one blog post I'm going to tell you all about it using just one single run-on sentence...ready, go!

I baked oatmeal chocolate chip cookies, and went to circus, and spent 5 hours poolside with some great people (silver, blake, gabe, amy), and got sunburned, and slept in, and met some fantastic friends at Kaboom Town where I spent an hour and a half in traffic to arrive just in time to see 30 minutes worth of fireworks (see above video) and then spend another hour and 45 minutes in traffic getting home (totally worth it!), and slept in, and went to the farmer's market where I bought some sweet strawberries and a refreshing mexican coke, and bet on Big Tony at the horse races with blake and leslie, where we wore giant hats and totally rocked them, and picnicked on the shore of the lake watching sailboats, listening to live music, and breaking our necks trying to watch all 6 fireworks shows at once, and came home and realized how thankful I am to have such wonderful friends in this beautiful city.  The end!

Accompanying pictures, in no particular order:

Party Now, Blog Later (Part 2) aka "Up, Up, and Away!"

Well hello again folks! I've been trying to decide if I should let you all in on more of the fun I've been having...but it's all "up in the air." 

No really...up in the air...in a HOT AIR BALLOON!
A balloon called Coyote Moon to be exact (see picture)

My awesome Uncle Glen (Sorry Uncle Allen, take me on a cruise and then maybe we'll talk :D) took me up in his beautiful balloon one very very very very early morning in June and it was ahhhh-mazing!

It's eerily quiet up there...everything is still and the balloon doesn't make a sound except for the occasional blast of hot air and the small creak of the rope against the basket...and you feel almost weightless as you float across the clouds.  It's such a cool feeling, and I can totally see how people get so hooked on it. 

And the views...oh the views! A gorgeous sunrise, a herd of cattle trying to run from us, people waving from their yards (I felt so famous!), the patchwork of the fields...it's just breathtaking. 

Of course, my company wasn't so bad either...

After a smooth landing (I even grabbed a souvenir tree branch on the way down!) it was back to reality (boohoo!) But boy what a ride!

Thanks Uncle Glen for the ride! I'll be stalking you until you take me again. ;)

I'll leave you with a video from my ride and a quote from the movie UP:

Ellie: [her last message to Carl] "Thanks for the adventure. Now go have one of your own."

Party Now, Blog Later (Part 1)

I think that's going to be my new motto...because it's just what I've been doing for the past few weeks...but after a rather long stint on the road, (3 weekends in a row to be exact...my personal best) it's time to settle back down in my "cozy" (that's the word I'm going to use instead of the more accurate "teeny") apartment and hit the keys.

So what have I been up to you ask?

1. HOT SPRINGS - Mom and I took a trip up to Hot Springs "Arkinsaw" for her birthday over memorial day weekend.
After a short pit stop in Hope, Ark. to see the birth home of William Clinton

we made it to our quaint little, well actually huge, bed and breakfast in historic Hot Springs.

We spent the weekend eating a lot, sleeping a little, and doing all the sightseeing we could handle.

We stood on top of Mountain Tower, 600 something feet in the air...Spent half a day at the Quapaw Bathhouse & Spa...And even took a duck tour on Lake Hamilton...

Our trip was over way too soon it seemed, but we had a blast and are both looking forward to going back...Plus, the Arkansites have great insight....I'll leave you with this one:

Please do not urinate in vapor.

Tales from the Trails

UPDATE: Wendi's blog about our day got picked up by a blog called "Simply Bike"...we're superstars!
Click here to read it


A couple weeks ago a friend and I embarked on Wendi & Courtney's Great Bike Adventure! We met on a Sunday morning, unloaded our bikes (I'm leaving out the part where it took me 45 minutes to figure out how to fit mine into my car!), and took off on a tour of the arts district, downtown, uptown, and deep ellum.

Now, if you're thinking "that's a lot of cycling!" you're right! It was about 6 miles all in all...what were we thinking?!

Anywho, we took our ignorant selves on an exploration of the city, stopping often to take lots of fun pictures for evidence for all those who were bound to give us a look of disbelief when we proclaimed we had just biked 6 miles.  So in lieu of a written blog on the day (and because I have to do something with all of these pictures taking up space on my hard drive) here's a little photo blog on the Great Bike Adventure:

We stopped at a playground in downtown and sat in these little mushroom cups that spun you around and around and around...sooo much fun!

Strauss Square...the outdoor amphitheater where I work :)

Sperry love!

If you want to see then entire album of 247 photos from the day (1. you must be really bored 2. you're so kind to spend so much time checking out my photos!) CLICK HERE

What's For Dinner?

An afternoon (or 3) by the pool
A sunburn :(
A trip to the Farmer's Market
A morning spent planting flowers
An afternoon spent sneezing :(
A crawfish boil...
Yep, I'd say it's officially spring! Alert the masses!

Let me just say how much I love the Farmers Market.  On beautiful spring days there are tons of people down there enjoying the amazingly fresh food, the craft vendors, th flowers, the random performances that happen in the square (this weekend's was traditional aztec dancers), and even the little old italian couple who run "Old World Sausage" who's line is always wrapped around the building. It's just a great place to spend time outdoors...and not to mention the free samples! It's like Olive Garden's slogan: Come Hungry, Leave Happy.


Speaking of food...I suppose I owe you all an update on my new year's resolution. 
It's been going surprisingly well...I've successfully cooked hamburgers, kabobs, french bread pizza, and even fried catfish for the first time in my life! (though it's still better when dad does it for me)

But even though I'm enjoying my fresh-cooked meals I still enjoy a good meal out every once in a while, so I thought I'd give you a 10-best list of my favorite restaurants in Big D for your mouth-watering enjoyment :)

In an effort to keep this post under novel-lenth, here are the first 5 of my list:

1. Babe's Chicken - You'll wait for hours to get in but these old-barn-turned-restaurants are worth the wait.  No menus, just pick your chicken and the rest comes family-style for the whole table while you're entertained by the singing waitresses, birthday folk wearing chicken hats, and the general atmosphere of country livin.  Aint nothin better.

2. Scalini's - Little more than a block from my apartment (and about the same size) this whole-in-the-wall italian restaurant is the best place for pizza and pasta (don't forget the "pink" sauce) in Dallas.  They'll make you an offer you can't refuse.

3. Jorge's - Aye Aye Aye that's good mexican food! Salsa, queso, tamales, tacos, they've got it all...and you can't pass up a blood orange margarita from "Nacho" the bartender...He'll do right by ya. Bottom's up!

4. Cafe Brazil - There's a reason this place is packed at every hour of the day with an array of people from teenagers to retirees...They've got great food!  My personal fave place for a Sunday brunch...you can't top the pancrepes (unless of course, you top them with strawberries and whip cream).

5. S & D Oyster Bar - With less than 10 main entree choices on the menu they've narrowed down what they do best and boy do they do it well! This is the place where I first tried fried oyster and I'm not sure I'll ever eat them anywhere else but here.  The choice between fried oysters and their seafood crab dip will stump me everytime I visit...but for sure it'll keep me comin back! Ahoy!

To be continued...

I'm Snow Excited!

And I just can't hide it! :)

By now you've probably heard of the crazy winter storm to hit Dallas...especially because it happened to fall on Super Bowl week...Hey, maybe Jerry Jones should bid on the Winter Olympics! (ok, I must admit I stole that line...but it's good isn't it?!)

Give me a couple days off of work, a half a foot of snow, and you'll be amazed at what I can do...
I made a new friend...my dvr.
I made a cupcake...with my knitting needles.
I made it half way through a book...(my dvr was being a little selfish)
And...
I tested my camera for it's ability to operate in 15 degree weather...success!

So please, enjoy the fruits of my labor:
Click here to see pictures of SNOW!

Is summer here yet?

Look Out Julia Child!

HAPPY BELATED 2011! 

I know I know...I'm shamefully late in posting this...but I've been so busy fighting off evil villains having fun that I'm just now getting the chance to hit the keys.
This month has been chock full of all things exciting...
Cabaret shows with the cast of Young Frankenstein/Riverdance/Game Night/Movies/Xbox Kinect/Hunting down Girl Scout cookies/Late Nights at the Dallas Museum of Art/Cirque du Soleil/Visits from Mom/74 degree weather/18 degree weather/Lazy Sundays spent making finger puppets/Failed pie-baking attempts/Successful trips to the store to buy said pie :/

But what I really want to talk about is my New Year's resolution...
drumroll please...
I, am going to learn how to cook!
Now I'm not talking gourmet chef classes at Le Cordon Bleu...I just want to be able to make an edible dinner for myself that doesn't come out of a frozen in a box.  Even I can only eat so many frozen pizzas a year.
I'd like to take this opportunity to officially apologize to Totinos for the inevitable failure of their business due to the fact that I stopped stocking my freezer with their pizzas.

Anywho, I'll be trying out all sorts of new recipes and sharing my successes, and likely more often failures, with you all here.
It's like my own little version of Julie & Julia...only on a more Kraft Easy Mac level ;)

Stay tuned...