Hello From the Other Side

Hello from Spring!  Sorry I have neglected this blog.  I think with the warm weather I'm up to being a better blogger.  Here's how the past winter months were spent.

First of all, my brother got married!  Below is Steven with his *new* wife Lisa and her daughter, Audrey.  They had a tiny, sweet courthouse wedding in DC.  Then they traveled to Thailand for their honeymoon and had a wedding ceremony there.

Jaw dropping. 

Aaron and I traveled to Denver to spend President's Day weekend with my college buddies.  It was SO wonderful seeing all my friends again.  I went to a HBCU (historically black college & university) and it was such a great experience.  Not too brag -okay, totally bragging- but the group below features lawyers, doctors, a pharmacist, a pilot and just all around awesome people.  It definitely surprises people when I tell them I loved the diversity of my college...diversity is more than just the color of your skin!

Jon & Amena got ENGAGED! #HUlovestory

 on the lift to go tubing

 with my sweetheart.  so much fun.

some of the slopes

I was really excited to try some of the food in Denver.  We met friends at a restaurant, Acorn.  It was delightful.  I had a pork belly BLT sandwich and the meat was charred perfectly.  Check out the homemade donut below.

 



We spent one weekend at home before we were off traveling again.  We traveled to Lansing, North Carolina and shared a winter cabin with friends.

Aaron splitting wood.

At the beginning of March my siblings and I threw a birthday party for our parents.  They both turned 60 in February!  The party was Motown themed, had a great turnout and steady action on the dance floor.  We actually had to swap out stereos because halfway through the first overheated! It was fun to have all of my parent's friends in one place. 

And then the rest of the month has just been hanging out with my core group :-)

 at our top secret Sunday spot ;-)

 girl's night



Yesterday, just making some St Patty's punch :-)

and unwinding later that evening

So happy to be back on the blog!! 





Superbowl 50

Yes the Carolina Panthers will be there! KEEP POUNDING! #dabonem

Snow Day

It's a snow day in South.  We got a thick layer of ice yesterday topped with a light dusting of snow today.  I dutifully went to store on Thursday to prep, so Aaron and I have been coming up with different ways to the cook pork tendorloin - I braised one yesterday, Aaron has our second one smelling divine in the slow cooker right now.  Speaking of Aaron, his coworkers and him drove 8 hours through the night Thursday to get home before the snow.  They were supposed to fly out Friday but with all flights cancellations there was no other choice.  I'm so happy he made it here in time to get snowed in with me!

This snow has been a great time to relax and catch up on tasks.  Also to sit down and chat with y'all!  Here's what's been on my mind lately ...

I miss my niece's hoverboad.

I also miss bread after giving it up for consecration for our church.  At World Overcomers, we always start the year by giving up something to God for the first 10% of the year, the first 36 days.  I gave up bread and Aaron gave up beer and wine.  The fast ends Superbowl Sunday which works out perfectly!

I laugh everytime I look at this post on when baking a potato goes wrong.  It's reblogged on my tumblr.

Still so impressed by Jamie Foxx!

This post on makeup really got me thinking about how safe are these cosmetics that place on my face every day.  I've already started being mindful of the new products I'm purchasing.  I've been trying a lot of the Tarte products - their foundation, foundation brush, mascara and sunscreen - and honestly I'm loving them so far.  Special shout-outs for their foundation brush and mascara.

That's all for today!  Later this week I am going to share from photos from our post Christmas trip to Asheville.  Take care and stay warm!

New Year's Resolutions

It's that time again!  I looked back and completed about 75% of my goals last year.  Not bad.

2016 Resolutions

1  Be 10 minutes early.
To work, to church, to meetings.  I can do this.

2  Get up when planned, stop snoozing.
I ordered an alarm clock for my bedroom and a radio for my bathroom.  My hope is to exclude my cell phone from my getting ready routine to be more efficient.  No more checking trend topics in the morning.

3  Assume others have the best intentions.
I don't know what's going through other's minds, so why not assume the best?

4  If Aaron and I don't go to church on Sunday, stream the service by Tuesday night.
This was a 2015 goal and not a bad one to carry over.

5  Continue taking care of my body.
Eating less than 25g of sugar a day at least 4 days a week, cutting back on carbs, less processed foods and more whole foods.   As for exercise, at least 2 days a week!

6  Make my mom a wedding photo album.
Sadly another leftover 2015 goal.  It's only been 2.5 years...

7  Make more photo albums in general.  
One for our London and Italy trip, a photo album for every year of my life (past high school)...why not?  There are too many digital photos on my computer.

8  Get my splits by March.
More on this later! :-)

9  Give myself an hour before bed to take care of myself.
Turn off the computer and give myself time to stretch, meditate and wash up before bed.

10  Spend less money on food and material items and focus more on saving.

10 goals, 12 months, let's make it happen!

Glory

For to us a child is born, to us a son is given, and the government will be on his shoulders.  And he will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.  Isaiah 9:6 

Christmas Musings

This year I am loving Christmas.  It wasn't always like that-there were times med school and residency had me so rundown, when the holidays came around I really wanted to cover my head and sleep through it.  Christmas wrappings, anyone?  Thankfully this year isn't anything like that.  The tree is up, the halls are decked.

So far the holidays have included lots of yummy food, seeing old friends, cheering on the Panthers, cuddling on the couch and even a singing Santa.  Thursday we're stepping things up with a holidays lights booze cruise (via party bus).  If anything I wish these days could go by a little slower and not slip by so fast.

Goals Check In

It's December 2nd and a great time to check in on my 2015 goals.

2015 Resolutions

1  Clean the office in my apartment and dispose of unneeded items.

Check - the office is still a mild reservoir of junk, but it's much improved

2  Arrive at places 10 minutes early.

Looking like a 2017 2016 goal.  I accidentally typed 2017 the first time and had to come back and revise this post...is my subconscious trying to tell me something?

3  Focus on being a considerate and caring wife.

Progress - This is a weird goal, because it's kind of like a continual goal.  I think marriage is definitely work and it's important not to slack or take your partner for granted.

4  Focus on one cookbook a month and cook at least 2 recipes from this book a week.

I've only been able to partially do this - with our work schedules finding time for dinner together at home has been hard.  We usually only cook 2-3x a week.  I was able to really focus on some of my recipe books, in particular Thug Kitchen and Southern Cooking Bible.  I didn't really reach this goal though.

5  If Aaron and I do not go to or stream church on Sunday, watch the sermon by Tuesday that week.

Sigh.

6  Finish my South Africa photobook.

Complete. :-)

7  Regularly limit my sugar intake to 25g a day, at least 4 out of 7 days a week.

Check - this is another continual goal but I think I've been really working myself towards it and can consider it achieved.

8  Work out twice a week and weigh myself weekly. 

Check - whenever humanly possible I'm at the gym twice a week.  Weighing myself is still kind of painful though.   

9  Instead of feeling like getting ready for bed is a burden, make it more of spa and pampering experience with music and candles.

Progress - I noticed this goal has been neglected so I've been working on it this week.

10  Work on building a nest egg with Aaron outside of retirement - rainy day funds, future house fund. 

Progress - Aaron and I have gotten better at monitoring our spending so we can tuck away money.  Our nest egg got set back when Aaron's car broke down and we decided to get a new car.  However I think that in general we're wiser about our spending this year.

11  Make my mother a wedding album.

Really need to at least order this by Christmas so I can give her an IOU.

12  Redecorate the bedroom.

Check - pretty happy about that!

5 goals completed.  3 goals in progress.  4 goals that were not really addressed.  Some I'm definitely rolling over into next year - getting places 10 minutes early, streaming the church service by Tuesday.  I'm not really sure what new goals I'll incorporate.  Right now, it's crunch time and I still have time to make some of these happen.

Thankful

Thanksgiving weekend has been great.  On Thursday we headed to Chatham, Virginia to spend the day with my grandmother.  She always throws down for Thanksgiving and this year was no exception.  Last year I went up early and spent Wednesday with her to take notes on her recipes for the stuffing and other sides.  This year I just marveled at how much I still need to learn!

obligatory family photo 

My siblings, my brother's fiance Lisa and her daughter, Audrey

Friday was ridiculously awesome.  Monkee's was having 25% off of everything, starting at 9am.  It was nice to get to "sleep in" on Black Friday.  I got there right at 9 and it was definitely crowded, but in a fun way.  I splurged and got a pair of Tory Burch Minnie leather flats and Frye Ethan double zip ankle boots.  I can't believe how much I love the Frye boots.  I'd been looking online for some ankle boots for quite some time, but the best things really come when you're not expecting them!

Then I met my mom, sister, cousin and aunt at Belk for some more shopping - window shopping for me, after I spent all my money.  Then I got the best text of my life - Congratluations, you've won a $500 giftcard!  I won a Black Friday contest I had signed up for.  The mall would send you a text between 6-11am and you had 15 minutes to get the mall service desk to claim it.  By the grace of God, my text came at 11 when I was actually there.  I was being silly when I pulled out my phone announcing we all needed to check to see if any of us had won, then lo and behold I did! Cha-ching.  

grainy photo, here I am taking some paparazzi shots

On Saturday, we went to the last State game of the year against UNC.  Unfortunately we lost but that didn't taint the tailgate.

when will I decide I am too old for flip cup?

I'm finishing the week off with night float at the hospital.  Only 3 nights in a row and the perk of being a third year is seeing some extra moolah for every inhumane hour they ask you to work.  Not bad at all.  Hope everyone is having a great holiday too!

Wild Wonderful West Virginia

Last month Aaron and I visited Charlie and Lillian in West Virginia.  Lillian has a baby on the way!  West Virginia was beyond beautiful.  For anyone who has never been, I highly encourage you to visit WV in the October, it's just stunning.  No need to stay in a fancy resort, just pick a bed and breakfast and enjoy a state park.  Here we are at Sandstone Falls.  That night we did a haunted coal mine - riding in the carts through the damp mine was so creepy.  The state is definitely underrated.  It's just as beautiful as the song implies

Country roads, take me home to the place I belong

West Virginia, mountain mama, take me home

Travel Tips for London, Positano & the Amalfi Coast

So, as you saw, our last night in Italy was positively amazing--but the next day, our last morning in Italy, was not.  We missed our flight!  For reasons that can be basically summed up as being irresponsible.  Hey, it happens.  From that morning and our trip as a whole, here are some travel tips for traveling abroad.

-arrive to all airports 2-3 hours earlier.  No matter what!  Add more time if you need to return a rental car

-find your gate before shopping or eating, just to gauge how far away it is 

-when booking your flight, remember that if you book 3 flights home and miss one, 3 change fees will occur multiplied by your number of passengers.  It may be easier just to pay a little more for a direct flight when planning your travel

-in foreign countries, try to speak their language.  This is really hard for me because I get really embarrassed.  However Aaron is pretty bold and always tries hard, which everyone appreciates

-to check bags versus carry-on is up to you.  Sometimes checking bags is nice to be able to bring souvenirs home

Travel tips for London

-stay  as close to the historic areas as possible - Tower of London, Westminister Abbey, those are a good area to stay in.  London is a huge city, much bigger than NYC, so just staying in the city is not enough

-I found the bus pretty easy to navigate so don't shy away from it.  The subway was okay too but the bus just seemed to be so straight forward

-everyone talks about fish and chips, but London also has fabulous Indian food so eat that too!

-British people have a very dry sense of humor.  Good Morning Sacramento wasn't having it when they interviewed Cara Delevingne

-I never figured out how to order coffee in London.  Apparently "coffee" isn't clear enough like it is here.  Drip coffee worked for one place, but as for the others, I still have no clue.  People eventually just make you an Americano because "you're American after all" but in America, Americano isn't our go to coffee.  Our go to coffee is coffee and the Brits don't understand that. I still like them though :-) 

must do: Tower of London, British Parliament or Westminister Abbey (both buildings are pretty similar)  

Travel tips for the Amalfi Coast

-don't ignore the small places.  Neill booked some bed & breakfasts in Italy I would have never considered - they were so small and something about being in a foreign country made me nervous.  However they were awesome!  So was their food.  At home, when I think of hotel restaurants I normally don't think much, but the hotel restaurants in Italy were top notch.

-driving in Naples is very scary.  I made Aaron do it as I insisted on getting pizza from L'Antica Pizzeria Da Michele but he was really frazzled  and possibly traumatized from it all.  I don't think he would ever recommend it!  

-in Positano, we just parked our car for the entire time.  However it was nice to have as we used it to travel to Herculaneum

-Going to Positano in the summer: I debated this one a lot.  I was really worried about the crowds, but I also really wanted to swim in the Mediterranean.  Positano was pretty crowded, but we really didn't mind.  I attribute this to our hotel, La Fenice.  With air conditioning (key!), our own pool and private beach, it was heavenly.  If we hadn't of had those amenities we would have been battling the crowds at the beaches or restaurants all day.  The water was so warm and pleasant in July, a summer trip was definitely worth it.

-going to Capri: as I said in my original post, Capri is like an Italian Fifth Avenue.  It was just full of shops and nothing else.  If I did it again I think we would have just paid for a boat tour along the coast instead.  We loved seeing the sights along the boat and swimming in the sea

must dos: boat tour + swim, Path of the Gods

enjoy your travels and comment with any questions!  

The last night in Italy

The last night of Italy, we stayed in the sweetest, most special, quiant bed & breakfast ever.  Domus Agricolae Corallina.  It was a tiny family owned place in Torre Del Greco.  We were actually the only 4 people staying there that night.  Our hosts were so sweet!  They cooked us the best dinner I had my entire time in Italy.  That night their family and friends came over and we all bonded, laughed, listened to music and enjoyed wine.  It was such a special place and truly a wonderful ending to the trip. 

down a trail is where they kept their donkeys! <3

View from the roof: on the left, Mount Vesuvius, on the right, the Mediterranean  

enjoying the teeny tiny plunge pool :-)

<3 <3 <3

simple, delicious pork chop

 the best dessert ever.  no clue what it was! 

Selfie with our amazing Italian family :-) thank you for such an amazing night!!!

Herculaneum

As soon as we agreed on Italy, Neill asked if we would mind visiting Pompeii or Herculaneum, towns that were destroyed by the eruption of Mount Vesuvius in 79 AD.  Neill ultimately decided Herculaneum would be preferable as it is better preserved than Pompeii.  I would have never picked it for myself so I am really grateful Neill suggested it because it was awesome.  Visiting Italy and England made me realize how many things in America are just imitations and homages of splendor from the past.

Herculaneum was buried by the eruption and then later Ercolano, a town on the outskirt of Naples, was unknowingly built over top.  Much of Herculaneum still remains still buried underneath but there isn't money available to uncover it.  

Alison and I at the ladies' bath house

The ornate tile floors of the bath house

Fertility symbols on the bath house floor

A beautiful city with a tragic ending.