Visitors!

I love having visitors!! Especially in Phoenix, because our house is perfect for guests and I like to think I know this town pretty well (hint: all are welcome!). One of JJ's former teammates and his beautiful wife came to town for some "unofficial organized team activities" (one benefit of this darn lockout).

They had never really been to Phoenix, so I wanted to make sure they got a great tast of what the desert has to offer. After a late night arrival Easter Sunday, we tried to let our guests sleep in a little bit. The goldens had other plans. Before I even noticed they were gone, they had rammed open the door and jumped in bed with our poor jetlagged friends first thing in the morning. Good thing they are dog people (although we don't ever really associate with people who aren't dog people).

Monday morning we went for a hike on North Mountain to show them some amazing views of the city and of course I had to take them to AJ's for lunch and iced tea after the hike. Its a Bliss tradition. The afternoon we took them on a quick driving tour and ended up in Old Town Scottsdale. We wandered around window shopping a bit before we need a chance to cool off. Lucky for us we were right in front of the Sugar Bowl, an adorable, classic ice cream/soda shop. After the afternoon sugar rush I wanted to show them the Arizona Biltmore, one of my favorite places in Phoenix. We drove the loop looking at the spectacular houses (read: mega-mansions) and then walked around the resort property. The boys couldn't pass up a chance to play with the giant chess set (JJ was victorious) and then all four of us played a game of croquet (JJ won again, of course). As the sun started to set, we headed over to Sierra Bonita for a classic Southwestern dinner. The food never disappoints.

Tuesday was a bit of a blur, JJ and I had to run around to different appointments and errands, and that was day 1 of the training activities they were in town for. We did go to the Diamondbacks game that night, and they won! Wooo!

Wednesday I had to report for jury duty (I got picked for a trial, but that's a whole different story...and possible blog post, still deciding) so we didn't get to do much that day. For dinner we went to Sun Up Brewing Co for burgers and (root) beer. They make their own, and it is fabulous!

Thursday we had the afternoon free, and made the boys take us to the Phoenix Zoo! I love the zoo, and anything slightly theme park related so it was a great way to spend the day. We even got snow cones! That night was the first round of the draft so we held a mini draft party at our house, complete with Uncle Sam's pizza and wings, a staple at our house.

The week flew by and I wish they could have stayed longer, but we are already trying to figure out when we can visit them on the east coast! God is so good, and we are so lucky to have such wonderful friends. It is crazy that even though we were only in the same place for such a short time, our connection was strong enough to last! Cheezy enough?

Just Wharried

Katie and Brian's wedding weekend was the most fun I have had in a long time. Seriously epic. I wish it could have lasted all week.

Because I wanted to maximize our time, JJ and I got into town on Thursday afternoon to explore Austin a bit. Neither of us had ever been and I hear only good (and weird) things about it. After checking in to our hotel we wandered around the area and stumbled upon Threadgill's Home Cookin' for lunch, where we both enjoyed Texas, on a plate. And then I found $10. No seriously, I'm not just making the story sound better. I found cash in the parking lot.

For dinner we went to Piranha Killer Sushi, a favorite of mine when I lived in Fort Worth. We walked around downtown for a bit and then discovered Emily's fiance Jacob was also in town and tracked him down at dinner with his family. Continuing our self tour of downtown, we wandered along 6th Street to observe the festivities. After getting plenty of tattoo and piercing ideas, we decided to pick a place for a drink. Of all the eccentric, weird, funky places on 6th Street, we ended up at The Driskill, a historic hotel with a beautiful, classic bar inside. I guess we should have tried to get a more authentic Austin experience, but I couldn't pass up drinking champagne in a beautiful old hotel bar.

The Driskill, downtown Austin

The next morning, JJ and I did something we have never done before...we went running together! JJ isn't a big distance runner (go figure), so this was a huge deal to me. I have been trying to get him to join me for a long time. Luckily Austin is a very runner friendly city, full of trails systems and parks. We stayed right on the lake downtown and we able to take advantage of the Lady Bird Lake Trails. We ran and walked about 5.5 miles total. It was a gorgeous day and the trail was full of runners, dogs, bikers and kids. For lunch we went to one of my favorite places in the world, Central Market...a must visit anytime I am in Texas.

Friday night was the wedding, at The Mansion at Judges' Hill. It was a beautiful outdoor ceremony and the weather was perfect. We had a sunset cocktail hour on the balcony overlooking where the ceremony had been, and then dinner and dancing in a gorgeous ballroom. It makes me so happy to see my friends marrying someone they were clearly meant to be with forever.

Katie and Brian's first married kiss

Theta Kite

As wonderful as the wedding was (and it was), the real madness began after the reception. It started innocently enough with a conversation with one of Katie's cousins from Chicago, who had never been to Texas. He was asking about where everyone was heading for the after parties and I mentioned the name of the bar where everyone was gathering. The exchange went like this...

Me: I think everyone is headed to a place called Union Park.

Awkward Cousin: Oh great...is that in a safe area?

Me: Um...I would assume so, but you should be fine. You'll be with a big group.

Awkward Cousin: Oh that's good. Its no big deal anyway...I'm packin'.

Me: That's cool, it is Texas after all. I guess everyone has a gun.

Awkward Cousin: awkward blank stare

Me: Oh...um...did you mean pepper spray? That would work too.

Awkward Cousin: No. I meant my penis.

Me: ...

That pretty much ended the conversation and I didn't see him at the bar later.

There were several other highlights of the evening. One (female) friend, accidentally tried to pick up a (female) hooker and then wandered off with another group of girls she thought was with us. Another friend spent a fair amount of time resting in the bar bathroom, then fell asleep on the couch in the lounge. JJ and I took her her back to the hotel and had a lengthy conversation about how she shouldn't take allergy medicine before a night of drinking, she did not remember that the next morning.

I love my friends.

Saturday everyone met for lunch at Cedar Door, where they had the best fish tacos and chips and salsa. Next we all headed to Lake Travis where we rented boats and spent the evening on the water. The water was chilly but I think I was the only one who didn't get in. The homes around the lake were gorgeous and I had so much fun taking in the scenery.

Katie and Brian (and their parents) did a fantastic job of hosting everyone for the weekend. JJ and I were so lucky to be part of the celebration and I loved seeing JJ get to interact with my college friends. I think he is finally accepted as an honorary TCU Theta. (Brian earned that distinction a long time ago after he took on all those sister wives).

Reading Railroad

I used to hate reading...I blame my Xavier freshman English class. There was just no way to finish 50-75 pages of a book every night with all the other homework they piled on. Thank God for Cliff's Notes. Maybe some day I will go back and actually read all those classics...

It wasn't until after I graduated from college that I began to appreciate it. Now, it seems like I can't get enough. I almost always have a book (or an iPad/Kindle version) on my bedside table or in my carry-on bag. I have read several really good books recently. Some are just light, fun, mindless entertainment. Some are financial. Some are spiritual. If you have a few extra hours, and reality TV re-runs just won't cut it check one out.

You Know When the Men Are Gone- An amazingly insightful depiction of life as a military wife. I don't know how much is accurate (it is fiction after all), but it really opened my eyes to the sacrifices these women make while their husband are off fighting for our freedom. I finished it in two days because I couldn't put it down.

I Loved, I Lost, I Made Spaghetti- A memoir of good food and bad boyfriends. It was full of good recipes and humorous stories of failed relationships. So much more fun to read about bad boyfriends, than to actually have to deal with them, haha!

You Can't Drink All Day If You Don't Start in the Morning- Another book with great recipes, this one is full of funny anecdotes about living in the South. The author is from North Carolina, which makes me love it even more. I have read a few of her other books and can't get enough, she just has such funny observations about life in the South.

Water for Elephants- It must have been good if they made a movie out of it! A wildly interesting book about life in the circus. Reese Witherspoon is starring in the movie adaptation, and I'm sure like always, the book is better than the movie so read it first!

The Richest Man in Babylon- If you have any interest in taking control of you own finances, getting out of debt, saving for retirement or learning about your own relationship with money this book is the perfect starting point. It puts everything in simple terms, using parables (like in the Bible) about the richest man, in the richest city in history and how he got to where he was was. Whenever anyone comes to JJ or myself for financial advice, this is the first thing we recommend to them. READ IT.

I just started a book by Beth Moore, who writes lots of Bible studies and books about faith, so I will let you know how it goes. I am trying to maintain a good variety for myself, switching between financial books, spiritual books, and what I like to call "mind candy"...perfect for vacation reading.

Georgia on My Mind

Last weekend JJ and I went to Georgia to go to the wedding of two of our friends from Charlotte and spend time with his cousin Courtney. We flew into Atlanta on Friday and went out to dinner with Courtney in Buckhead. I had been hearing about Seasons 52 for a long time, so we decided to try it. YUM! Their menu changes with the seasons in addition to the weekly specials and everything on the menu is under like 475 calories. Talk about guilt free dining. We had such a great meal and so much fun catching up. Because we weren't done catching up, after diner we went to Pub 71 in the Brookhaven area for beers. There is nothing like spending time with family you don't get to see very often. So fun!

The next morning we drove east to Woodville for the wedding. I had checked MapQuest the night before and saw that it was about 90 miles away, mostly on I-20, so I figured it would take about an hour and a half. That morning we got a bit of a late start and when I plugged it in to the GPS, it gave us an estimated drive time of 2 hours and 10 minutes...getting us into town about 10 minutes after the ceremony was to start. OOPS! Luckily, my original estimation was correct. I guess the GPS didn't take into account our slightly above the speed limit driving skills.

The wedding was in the bride's hometown at the church her grandfather helped build. It was a sweet little small town Baptist church about 3 doors down from the bride's parents house. The ceremony was beautiful, so relaxed and classic. To give you an idea of how relaxed the groom was, he was hanging out in the church snacking and making jokes with the guests moments before the ceremony started. No cold feet for this man. One of the highlights was when one of the groom's friends sang a song he wrote for the couple (he wrote it earlier in the week). The song was beautiful and funny at the same time. What a great idea :)

The brunch reception was held and her parent's house, a beautiful Southern home that belongs in a magazine. We had mimosas out on the front lawn and spent time catching up with all of our friends from Charlotte. The whole weekend made me miss our Charlotte friends and living in the South. Don't get me wrong we love Phoenix, but I just miss Charlotte so much!

After the wedding we drove back to Atlanta. We headed over to Hudson Grill, right around the corner from Courtney's house, to watch the NCAA tournament. All of our brackets were pretty much shot by then, but it was still fun to watch. We had a great dinner and fun drinks. They had a combo beer selection so I chose a Purple Helmet, a mixture of Blue Moon and Purple Haze. Beer perfection.

The next morning we slept in and went to brunch at The Flying Biscuit Cafe. Even though it is an Atlanta original, it is one of my favorite breakfast places in Charlotte. If you come visit us, you can count on going. We also took Courtney's dogs for a walk in the neighborhood, walking by some beautiful homes and a cute shopping/restaurant area. The pups loved it!

Got to love the South and seeing family and friends all in one trip. Someday soon we will be making our way back for an extended period of time...just as soon as this silly NFL lockout gets itself worked out.

California Loooove

This October I will get my first shot at bridesmaid duties at Emily and Jacob's wedding in Fort Worth (Another excuse to go back to Texas? Yes please!). The festivities kicked off over St. Patrick's Day weekend in San Jose, CA with the first bridal shower. The MOH, Robin, and I flew out for a much needed girl's weekend. JJ and a few of his buddies took the opportunity to have a boy's weekend in Vegas...yea. Needless to say our weekends were COMPLETELY different, but that's a whole different story.

We left straight from the airport and headed to the Santa Cruz mountains for wine tasting! We stopped off at a little grocery store/deli in Fulton, CA to pick up a picnic lunch to enjoy at the first winery. Hallcrest Vineyards was a beautiful place to start the weekend. We sat at a picnic table on the patio, taking in the breathtaking view of the surrounding mountains and vines, sipping wine. Their Sauvignon Blanc was fabulous, if you are looking to try something new. Next we headed to the Burrell School Winery for another tasting and dessert. Again, another fabulous view of the mountains and vines from the patio. They had great blends with fun school-themed names. My favorites were the Dean's List Cab, Spring Break blend, and Sweethearts blend.

That night was the St. Patrick's celebration at a bar near Santa Clara with Emily's law school friends. I loved all of the law school kids that we met...with the exception of one. I won't go there but the night ended with me covered in green beer, having to drag a drunken fool of a boy out to the bouncer after he groped just about every female in the bar. #can'ttouchthis

Not only does he dump beer on people and grope innocent females,

he ruins pictures too. EPIC FAIL

The next day I went for a run around the campus and took advantage of the nice weather, before the rain came. We drove to San Francisco for an overnight trip and luckily the rain stopped mid-afternoon so we could enjoy the rest of our time there. We had a yummy Italian lunch, then went to a wine bar to share a bottle of champagne. I think we were in an area called Soma? Next, we went to Ghiradelli Square to Crown and Crumpet (where JJ and I visited last year on our Valentine's Day trip) for tea and scones. This place is much more fitting for a girl's weekend, poor JJ had to tolerate the pink and lace. We headed over to Chinatown/North Beach to check into out hotel (S&W Hotel was a great deal for what we got). We did a tea tasting at Vital Tea Leaf, then went to happy hour until it was time for our dinner reservations in Little Italy. After dinner we wet out to a few of the bars, where we happened to see the guy who played McLovin in Superbad. He was playing drums for the live band. Sometime during the night while Robin and I were busy dancing, Emily snuck out for some fresh air and was joined by members of what I can only assume was the Latin Kings (gang), complete with tear drop tattoos near the eyes. They were surprisingly pleasant. Also, at some point a black man asked me to teach him how to Dougie. I did. Jokes on him though...I had no idea what I was doing, but he believed it.

Tea tasting man

After all of our activities, it was finally time for the bridal shower on Saturday. Each guest was assigned a room of the house to buy a gift for. Robin and I were assigned the BEDROOM. Woo hoo hooooo, scandalous! Just kidding, we will save those kinds of gift for the bachelorette party. We collaborated and came up with a "Breakfast in Bed" theme for our gift. Tea pot, matching mugs, breakfast tray with legs, and a bud vase. We also made a recipe book with fun breakfast foods and drinks that were super easy so Jacob has no excuses not to use our wonderful gift...no pressure Jacob!

My favorite picture of the weekend!

Next wedding festivity on the agenda is the Bachelorette party in New Orleans. Watch out Louisiana. You won't know what hit you :)

Orlando, FL...DISNEY!!

One of the reasons JJ and I get along so well is that we are actually little kids trapped in semi-grown up bodies. My inner little kid comes out anytime there is anything related to animals or theme parks around...puppies, zoos, aquariums, Sea World, Six Flags, and obviously, Disney anything. So what a wonderful coincidence that PAO was in Orlando and we could take advantage of all that it has to offer.

Before PAO started we were lucky enough to do a guided tour of Universal Studios with a few other Panther couples. Probably one of the coolest things I have ever done. We were able to go behind the scenes and to the front of the lines all over the park. This came in super handy when we got to Harry Potter world. The place was roped off from the rest of the park and you had to wait in line to get a special pass to even get into the general area. The line for the main ride was about an hour and a half, but we scooted right to the front, hehe. I have never read the books or seen the movies (I think one day I will get around to it), but the ride was fabulous and the scenery around the whole area was great.

Once we got back from the beach we stayed with JJ's aunt and uncle (we are professional moochers) for a few days and took advantage of their close proximity to all the parks. Two of JJ's cousins were in town for a few days because they had spring break so we got to spend time with them at the house and at the parks.

My favorite is still Epcot, followed closely by Magic Kingdom. I just love walking around the countries in Epcot and snacking on the "local" food. We basically ate our way through the park that day, snacking at a few different countries. China nailed the egg rolls, Germany makes the best soft pretzels and beer, France had delish pastries, and Italy made a killer Bellini.

Magic Kingdom is just wonderful because all the rides remind me of the trips we took as kids. You can't beat Pirates of the Caribbean, Haunted Mansion, and the Jungle Cruise. Honestly though, the best part is just walking around the park and enjoying the different "lands".

We really enjoyed all of our time with JJ's side of the family and we even got to see my cousin and her family too! We went to their house for a delicious buttermilk chile chicken dinner with black beans. I will def be making that again. We love getting to spend time with them, even if it is only every once in a while!

Rumor is the conference might be back in Orlando again next year, so maybe we will branch out beyond the main attractions next year and see what else Orlando has to offer.

Anna Maria, FL

After PAO was finished, JJ and I took a few days to unwind at the beach and absorb everything we had just learned. His aunt and uncle have a beautiful beach house on Anna Maria Island, about an hour south of Tampa on the Gulf coast. I love vacations where you can park the car and walk the rest of the trip.

We got there and walked straight to the beach to watch the sunset. Next, we walked across the island to have dinner at City Pier, which is at the end of an old fishing pier about 75 yards out over the bay. Nothing beats eating grouper that was caught that day in the water you are sitting over. Ice cream at Two Scoops was the perfect ending to the night.

The next morning, we got up and walked to breakfast at Ginny and Jane E's, a cute little boutique/cafe down the road. We spent most of the day at the beach then walked along the water to dinner at the Sandbar. We got our cocktails to go, and walked back down the beach to our chairs to enjoy the sunset. Life is good.

Our last day there, we borrowed bikes and went for a ride around the island and ended up at the Rod and Reel for lunch. Another restaurant at the end of a fishing pier. We watched the fishermen bringing in and cleaning their catches. We also watched about a dozen dolphins swimming around the pier. It was a beautiful day and so fun to explore the island.

We are blessed to have such generous family who would be willing to share their piece of paradise with us for a few days. Can't wait to go back :)