Exploring

3.19-23: Seattle Weekend Recap

March 24, 2015

{Thursday Night}

{Friday}

{Saturday}

{Sunday}

{Monday}

Monday Munchies: Floramo’s Restaurant- Chelsea, MA

March 16, 2015

As part of my Monday Munchies series, I will feature a different eatery for a review on the third Monday of every month. Hope you enjoy!

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Price and I have only had a few ‘Date Nights’ since Autumn was born. I think 4, maybe 5 of them. And 2 of them were on the cruise that we took in January. And since then we have been talking about how we needed to get a babysitter so that we could have a Date Night soon.

As it was our first time using our sweet babysitter at night so we wanted to pick a place that was close by. We weighed our options and decided to go to Floramo’s restaurant, which is about a 3-4 minute drive from our house. We’ve lived in Chelsea for about 3 years now so we were excited to try a local place.

When we arrived shortly after 7pm we were told it would be able a 25-30 minute wait. We took our pager to a bench off the lobby to wait while discussing upcoming wedding stuff. But before we knew it a few minutes had passed and our pager began to go off. I’m glad our wait was much faster than originally predicted.

We debated getting an appetizer but once we checked out the Appetizers menu we decided we had try the Buffalo Fried Calamari ($9.95). We both really like traditional calamari that is fried and served with marinara sauce. Or the Rhode Island Style that has spicy cherry peppers.

But this was different as the crispy fried calamari was tossed in Buffalo wing sauce and blue cheese dressing was for the dipping sauce. It all worked together perfectly. A cool mashup between calamari and buffalo wings.

As Floramo’s is known for their steak tips and delicious meats, Price decided to order the Mixed Grill ($16.25) for his entree. It included Sausage, a Steak Tip, a Turkey Tip, Chicken a Tip, 1/4 Rack of Ribs. It was a good introduction to the selection of meats that they serve. All of their barbecue is meat that is cooked to your desired level of done-ness and marinated in Floramo’s secret barbecue sauce recipe.

Price really enjoyed everything on the mixed grill. He was really impressed by the amount of food served, although he wished there was more steak tips as the piece was really good. The piece of sausage was really big and grilled nicely. The slogan for Floramo’s is “Where the meat falls off the bone!”and it really is true as the meat on the ribs was fall off the bone tender.

As well, Price decided to get a baked potato, between his choice of fries, rice, mashed potato, baked potato, or pasta. It was served with butter and sour cream on the side.

I had originally thought I’d order steak tips, but once Price ordered a meaty dish I decided to check out their selection fish entrees. I ordered the Haddock Italiano ($13.95), which was lightly battered and sautéed haddock served over pasta with onions, diced tomato, spinach and crushed hot peppers in a wine based sauce. It was fantastic! I picked angel hair pasta and I think it worked well with the sauce. The 2 large pieces of fish were tender and very flaky. The sauce was spicy from all the crushed hot peppers in the sauce. It all just worked together really well.

Both of our dinners came with a simple salad. There were a handful of dressing to choose from, like ranch, blue cheese, Italian, but we opted just for oil and vinegar.

Even though both of us only had half of our entrees we were stuffed. I would have loved to have hung around and ordered dessert but we were just too full.

As the entrees were so large (for us) we enjoyed the leftovers the next day, making our dinner a great deal.

I’m so glad that we finally had a chance to make it to Floramo’s Restaurant. I’m already thinking about the next time we can go so I can have some of my own steak tips!

Floramo’s Restaurant

213 Everett Avenue

Chelsea MA, 02150

617-889-1330

Monday- Wednesday: 11-9pm

Thursday – Saturday: 11-10pm

Sunday: Closed

Our 2015 Vision of the Seas Cruise: Days 5 & 6 Recap

March 13, 2015

We took a 7-day Royal Caribbean cruise on the Vision of the Seas to visit the Western Caribbean for my 30th birthday/pre-wedding honeymoon. We visited Cozumel and Costa Maya in Mexico, Georgetown in Grand Cayman, and Belize City in Belize, sandwiched between 2 days at sea cruising.

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{Wednesday – Costa Maya, Mexico}

While we were eating breakfast we noticed this rainbow that was shining brightly over the coast of Costa Maya. I was so glad to capture it We learned our lesson of sticking to the rule of ‘bring the camera with you everywhere!’ as Price missed getting pictures of dolphins swimming and jumping along side the ship on our day at seat and I missed a double rainbow over Grand Cayman when I ran up for lunch that afternoon. Still so bummed about the dolphins!

Costa Maya was the first, and only, cruise port that was docked. This truly made the process of getting on and off the cruise ship so much easier than the previous tendered days. Instead of having to wait your turn to get on a small boat to shuttle you to and from the port, you just walk right off. Simple as that!

There was a free trolley from the ship to the port entrance, which we didn’t use, as we didn’t think the pier was too long, but others with limited mobility might have found the trolley useful.

The most amazing thing about the Caribbean to me is the crystal clear water. We got to see a school of Moorish Idols (I think!) bobbing around the long pier on our walk into the port.

When we arrived in port we are greeted by a grand entrance and men adorned in ancient native dress. You could take pictures with them but we just breeze by as we were on a mission to get to the beach as soon as possible. Top priorities!

There are shops, a craft market, restaurants, a hotel, and a pool in the port area. We were blown away by the fact that pool was free and so well maintained. We briefly considered stayed there to hang out at the pool and the beach, but there is a rock wall preventing access into the water.

We took a $2 per person trolley ride to get to the beach. While you can actually see the ship from the beach the trip is far too long to walk, so the trolley ride was worth it.

The trolley makes several stops along the beach before going into downtown. We decided to just get off the first stop, which brought us right to the beach that ran in front of a Senior Frogs Restaurant and Bar.

Just like the beach in port, the beach and the equipment were free. There was a cabana set up on the beach where there were some women giving out massages. I was tempted to inquire about prices but I really just wanted to relax with Price and Autumn.

I swear there is nothing better than enjoying a cold beer while on the beach.

While we were on the beach we ordered a plate of chips, salsa, and guacamole. The drinks were dirt cheap. Super, super cheap! Our bucket of 4 beers was just $5. But the food was pretty expensive, which is why we only got the plate of chips for $10.

The only thing to note about the beach where we were is that there is a big section where there was plant growth. There were some people snorkeling along the edges to check of aquatic life but most of the small fish I saw was right along the water’s edge. We had water shoes, which I highly suggest if you get the least bit squeamish when stepping on unkonwn squishy stuff (like me!!!). In general I found them to be a great investment just to avoid some of the sharper rocks on the beaches, which was very prominent in Grand Cayman as well.

Autumn did amazingly well at the beach as she played in the sand with her toys, enjoyed dips in the water, and playing on the beach chair.

It was such a wonderful day at the beach. Our beach babe was so tired afterwards! Thankfully, the reentry on to the boat was just as easy as getting off. Just through security and we were on our way back to the room. Much easier than being tendered!

We enjoyed a leisurely afternoon and the time to rinse off all the sand and salt water. Endless

It was formal night so we were a bit under dressed, at least compared to the couples wearing tuxes and ballgowns, but at the same time we were on par with others on the ship too. At least everyone loved Autumn’s frilly aqua dress.

I started to not feel that great later on in the afternoon so I kept dinner pretty plain with some chicken and rice. It was done beautifully, but I just wasn’t feeling so great. Maybe a combination of the foods I had been eating, the sun, or the fact that there was a small out break in Norovirus on the ship on the cruise prior to ours. I never got sick but just felt off, which is why we also, sadly skipped dessert.

We were all quite satisfied with our meal, and our day, and I think that Autumn’s happy, smiley face shows it.

{Thursday – Belize City, Belize}

Autumn is normally an early riser so it was no surprise that she was up early on the cruise but at the same time she never slept well at night so we had been hoping for some ‘later’ mornings to make up for it. Sadly, that was not the case, but we did get to enjoy some amazing sunrises while on the cruise.

To change things up a bit we took our breakfast (6.15-10.30am) out of the Windjammer Cafe to enjoy the fresh morning air as we approached the port in Belize City. Plus, this way we could see all of Autumn’s best friends on the deck. She took a liking to an older gentleman named Michael. So sweet.

After breakfast we went back to the room to stick to our morning routine of Autumn napping while I pumped. And then we’d gear up for the time in port.

While going to the beach would be have been great, I still wasn’t feeling too well so we decided that we would keep our time in Belize quick. Plus, Price had to do his time sheet for vacation week, so we’d have to bring the laptop with us. We figured the laptop and beach sand wouldn’t be a good mix.

We had wandered around the Belize City port a bit trying to find a good spot to stop and use Wifi before we settled on a friendly open air bar that had a $10 minimum for Wifi (pretty average rate in port) and a 2 of $10 drink special. Perfect. Plus, the friendly waitress also gave Autumn a cup of mango juice, which she really enjoyed on the hotter than normal day.

“You have a baby… in a bar.”

We didn’t spend too much time in the port area as there honestly wasn’t too much to do. It seemed that the excursions required a taxi or bus ride to get there, which would have been fine to experience but decided it was too much to juggle with Autumn, our stuff, and a laptop. Next time Belize, next time…

I’d suggest keeping an eye on the schedule for the ferries that bring you back to the boat as we got on one immediately, and then had to wait and wait and wait for it to leave, which is hard with a frigidity 1 year old.

I kept my lunch simple with some plain pasta as I was feeling off but Price and Autumn enjoyed their lunches in the Windjammer Cafe. Autumn tried jello for the first time and loved it so much that she had a bowl and a half.

After lunch we spent some time during the afternoon enjoying the Open Play Session (1.15pm-5.15pm) in the nursery. They has set up musically themed toys that day. And then it was time for Autumn’s nap. As usual, Price and I took turns resting or roaming around the ship during the afternoon naps.

Stripes and baby shorts. Perfection.

We took advantage of the daycare provided by the nursery staff for another ‘date night’ dinner together. We dropped Autumn off right at 5.30 with some snacks & yogurt (for her to have as dinner), her bottle, and diaper bag before we headed over to the Aquarius dining room.

During the afternoon, we had scoped out the menu on the information screens located outside of the dining room so that we could learn what the theme was for the dinner that night. We figured that with the Italian themed dinner we would best enjoy the bottle of red wine that we brought on board.

Man oh man, it was so enjoyable to enjoy a dinner together without having to get up to allow Autumn to stretch her legs and burn off that frigidity energy. Plus, she enjoyed her time at the nursery watching some Mickey Mouse, reading stories, and cuddling up with the sweetest nursery staff.

A couple that stripes together, stays together. ha!

After dinner we strolled around for a bit while Price finished off the bottle of wine. Wine and the fresh Caribbean breeze… to die for! We picked up Autumn from daycare and got settled back in the room.

Another very fun day on our cruise!!!

Our 2015 Vision of the Seas Cruise: Days 3 & 4 Recap

March 2, 2015

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{Monday @ Georgetown, Grand Cayman}

Our first stop on the cruise was Georgetown in Grand Cayman.

I had been there previously about 15 years ago but was really looking forward to the 3 of us going to explore together. Our main for the day was to enjoy the beach. We felt that we couldn’t pass up having a beach day when Seven-Mile Beach was a short cab ride from the tender dock.

We headed to the Aquarius dining room shortly after it opened for breakfast at 7.00am. We wanted to give the service and food a try to change things up from going to the Windjammer, where you serve yourself. It was nice to get the service and different selections, includng the best sugary donuts, but it was tough to wait for the food to come with Autumn getting frigidity.

After breakfast we headed back to the room to give Autumn time to nap, for me to pump, and to get ready for the day on shore and at the beach. We packed up the canvas beach tote (my dad lent us) with our water shoes, sun blocks, water bottles, snacks for Autumn, and her bottles.

Price grabbed us tender tickets while Autumn was finishing up her nap so that we would be in the queue and ready to go when it was our turn. It worked out well as we were ready to go when the tender before ours was called. The only ‘issue’ we ran into was that I completely forgot that the towels were handed out right before you got on the tender, and not on the 9th deck, where they are kept. So I sprinted up 5 flights of stairs and ran to the towel hut for no reason. ha!

When we arrived in port we walked around a bit trying to get some wifi as the Jimmy Buffet’s Margaritaville advertised wifi, but they were not open yet. So we headed back to the cab area to get a cab to bring us to the free public beach at Seven-Mile Beach. We grabbed a cab for $4 a person for the 10 minute cab ride.

The public beach was clean and adjacent to an open area that had a playground for little kids. There were vendors there that rented out jetski’s, snorkel equipment, beach chairs, and umbrellas. We rented a pair of chairs and an umbrella for $20.

Naps on the beach are the best.

We stayed at the beach for several hours taking turns layout out, taking dips in water, and playing with Autumn. It was so relaxing and fun. It had started to drizzle when we first got there but it quickly stopped. It was rather cloudy, but it just meant that the sun wasn’t too intense, thankfully.

There was an adjacent pavilion like restaurant that I considered getting food from, especially since the vendors that rented out the beach chairs and umbrellas were running orders back and forth. But we decided just to grab a snack at one of food trucks. They had a lot to ofer from fresh mad conch salad to fried fish, but I just grabbed us some fries to share for $4.

We shared a van back to the port with a few others as there were a few vans stationed at the lot near the beach. It was more affordable at $2 a person, plus the driver didn’t charge for Autumn as she was on a lap.

We grabbed some Tortuga Rum Cakes on the way back to the tender dock. They are a classic delicious souvenir to bring back home. Or just eat in the cabin!

As we only had shared a basket of fries while at the beach, we were still really hungry for lunch when we got back. We were cutting it close to make it to the Windjammer before it closed for lunch service (12.00- 3.30pm) so I ran up first to grab food, and then Price took his turn while Autumn napped through our running around.

The rest of the afternoon was about showers and enjoying the nice weather up on deck in between lounging around in the room. Not a bad way to spend the afternoon.

The Caribbean sunsets are hard to beat!

We were greeted with friendly hello’s when we arrived for our dinner at 5.30. The hostess and our servers remarked how they missed us as we had dinner at Izumi the night before to celebrate my birthday. Everyone’s enthusiasm is just fantastic, as well as the service and the food.

Mom, you didn’t want your dessert, right?!?!?

We were so tired from the day in the sun that we made it an early night. We went back to the room to get Autumn down for the night as close as possible to her normal bed time, but it was still a tough time (and night as a whole). Price headed up to talk a walk and I crash hard… before 8! Oh man, I’d almost feel bad about it but it’s vacation and my real chance to catch up on sleep. ha!

{Tuesday @ Cozumel, Mexico}

I might have felt bad for going to bed really, really early the night before, but Autumn slept poorly and was up early. So going to bed before 8 (oh, boy!) was totally worth it!

We were up early walking around on the 9th and 10th decks killing time before the Windjammer Cafe opened. We even enjoyed the sunrise (6.25am) out on deck.

The one thing that really bugged me was that the crew would wash down the deck in the morning. I understand why the do it and when they do it but it was really tricky to get around without the fear of slipping as the deck was soaked as it was power washed. I really just felt bad for the runners and power walkers as they were constantly adjusting their routes to avoid the wet spots and the guys doing the power washing.

This face just kills me. Oh, she has my heart.

And the sunrises too! Just incredible.

We headed into the Windjammer (7.00-11.00am) when it was open to have some breakfast. The best thing about having a buffet right at your finger tips is that it gives us plenty of options for Autumn to try a bunch of different things. The tater tots were always a big hit. but it was nice to get her to try different kinds of pancakes, eggs, fruit, sausage, and biscuits.

While it would have been nice to have had breakfast and gotten off the boat with the first tenders, it worked well to let Autumn nap. Interrupting her napping schedule can make things tricky for us so it was important to give her that opportunity to get a solid nap in. Plus, it gave me a chance to pump and Price to pack us up for the day off the boat.

Having to use a tender, instead of docking at a pier, requires a lot more coordination and planning as there are a limited number of people that can get on a boat at one time. This means there can be some waiting for your turn, which is why you should get a tender ticket to hold a spot for you. As well, loading the ferry-boat, getting ashore, and unloading can take quite a bit of time, so that is important to plan for. That does effect your time ashore. For example, if everyone is to be loaded on the ship by 5, then the last tender is 4pm to provide enough time for the boat to be fully loaded, get to the boat, and unloaded. You always have to keep that in mind!!

During the shopping information session on Sunday the head of onshore shopping explained to everyone that there is not too much shopping to do where the port is. The best shopping is a cab ride away. I asked him about this later as a mile and a half walk for us is no big deal and I was hoping to get some real exercise in, but he really pushed that we should just take a cab as the road is busy and rough. He wasn’t exactly saying it was unsafe but he wasn’t a fan of the idea of us walking.

As well, when asking for a cab it is important to ask to go to the “Forum Shops“, a high-end shopping center, as it is a specific destination, instead of asking to go ‘downtown.’ This prevents the cab driver for taking you to some random place. Also, asking to go to the Forum Shops basically brings you to the end of the main shopping district, which allows you to shop along the way as you head back towards the port. There are several taxi stands along the strip, which will allow you to get a cab in various spots along the way. Our cab ride to the Forum shops was $7 a person (not including Autumn).

We had lunch as Palmeras Restaurant while in Cozumel.

I’m honestly not a fan of buying lunch while in port as we have paid for all our meals on the ship, but when it’s lunch time, it’s lunch time! Thankfully, we had a great lunch at Palmeras. We shared some chips and salsa, fish tacos, and a chicken caesar salad. Autumn helped herself to all our guacamole.

We had talked about going to the beach while in Cozumel but had decided that it would be our shopping day instead. We had hoped to find wedding bands while on the cruise as shopping in the Caribbean is duty and tax-free. As well, different ports are known for different things, like gold, diamonds, tanzanite, etc.

Unfortunately, we did not find rings that we liked as the majority of the rings had diamonds on them, even the men’s. Plus, we wanted brushed white gold bands and not many shops carried brushed things. As well, we had continued to search for an anchor necklace for me, but didn’t find one that was the right size of the right price.

Tired babe? ha!

After our adventurous cab ride back to the port, we boarded our tender to take a ride back to the ship. Once through security (very similar to security at the airport), we our way back to the room to give Autumn a chance to take her afternoon nap. Which really meant that Autumn and I napped and Price snuck away for a pina colada. Perfection for both of us.

We just about missed the “Renaissance Aerial Spectacular” show in the Centrum, but we caught the end of it. The artistry of the dancers and aerialists is amazing. They perform several times throughout the cruise, even 2x a night (5.15-5.30pm & 9.45-10.00pm), so there are quite a few chances to see them perform.

Good bye Cozumel!

As usual, dinner was amazing.

That food theme for the night was shitaki mushrooms, which were featured in the dumplings that I ordered. I could have easily eaten 2 plates of these, especially since I shared with a little hungry babe! I had the strawberry topped pavlova for dessert. It was the first time I had a pavlova, but now I am in love with them.

Another day down! It’s so fun to go from place to place but it just means that vacation is speeding along.

Our 2015 Vision of the Seas Cruise: Days 1 & 2 Recap

February 9, 2015

We took a 7- day Royal Caribbean cruise on the Vision of the Seas to visit the Western Caribbean for my 30th birthday/pre-wedding honeymoon. We visited Cozumel and Costa Maya in Mexico, Georgetown in Grand Cayman, and Belize City in Belize, sandwiched between 2 days at sea cruising.

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{Saturday- Embarkation}

Our cruise departed on Saturday from the port of Tampa. As my dad lives about 30ish minutes South of Tampa we stayed with him prior to leaving for our cruise. We left Boston on Thursday night so that we could spend Friday with him checking out Tampa, doing some relaxing, and having dinner with family. Plus, it gave us plenty of added time to ensure that we wouldn’t have any issues making the cruise in case of bad weather and our flight down was greatly delayed/canceled.

He dropped us off at the port and we said our good byes for the week.

We only dropped off our BIG bag at the curb and took the rest (carry on sized suitcase, a stroller we borrowed from one of my dad’s friends, Price’s diaper bag, my diaper bag, and a big canvas tote that held my pumping bag, packages of wipes and diapers, and wine) with us through security. It all was pretty painless with quick moving lines and accommodating Port of Tampa staff who bumped us to the front of the line as we were traveling with an infant (win!).

Once through security and on the boat we headed up to the 9^th deck to have lunch and kill some time until our rooms were ready at 1pm.

Autumn had her first try of ice cream. I wish I was recording and not taking pictures because her reaction was priceless. She definitely didn’t like how cold it was. ha!

As soon as we were done with lunch we headed to our room on the 4^th deck. Our room 4010 was located near the bow (front) of the boat and on the port (left) side. Our big bag was in a staging area on its way to get delieverd to our room so we grabbed it on our way. We then spent the next hour or so getting all unpacked and getting our stuff organized in the room.

The pack and play had not yet arrived so Autumn took a nap on the bed. The pack and play actually gets delivered with the luggage that gets delivered to your room so they have until 8pm to do so. I didn’t know that but it makes sense considering everything that the house keeping staff has to do that day as one ship of passengers disembarks and shortly afterwards another ship of passengers embarks.

Price hung out in the room but I took a walk around the boat while Autumn napped before out Muster station (station 2) drill. I took that time to make a 5.30pm at the Aquarius dining room (4^th and 5^th decks). As we had the flexible My Time dining serve we have to make dinner reservations for when we want dinner. I picked 5.30 as it was when they opened and at Autumn’s normal dinner time

Thankfully autumn woke on her own before the Muster drill sounded so it didn’t scare her and we were ready to bring her up. The drill was run quickly and efficiently. Before long we were back to the room to get ready for dinner, stop by the nursery to sign up to use it, and watch as the boat left Tampa.

While at dinner, our mini fridge, for storing my pumped breastmilk, arrived and within about 10 minutes of getting back to the room our room steward Julio Benjamin, who went by Benjamin, brought in a set up the pack and play. As this was about an hour after Autumn’s normal bed time, she was exhausted so she easily went to bed.

Price wandered around a bit while I briefly read before taking a nap, which basically turned into going to bed around 8pm. HA! VACATION!!

{Sunday- Day at Sea Cruising}

Happy 30th Birthday to me!!!

As Autumn didn’t have her normal bed time bottle since she was so tired, she woke around 1.30am for it. Once full, she again went to sleep quickly and slept until about 6am. We gave her another bottle and she played around and kinda watch Tom and Jerry cartoons while I pumped. Ready to start the day we got ready quickly and headed up to have breakfast in the Windjammer restaurant (9^th deck).

After breakfast we headed up to the 10^th deck to walk around before heading back in to wander around the 5^th and 6^th decks. Basically we were just checking out the main atrium, casino, and shopping areas while we killed some time before getting back to the room for Autumn’s nap.

Autumn and Price napped while I read and worked on random blog stuff- sans internet.

After the morning nap session, Autumn and I got ready quickly and headed out giving Price some time to get ready. There was a sushi making demonstration from the restaurant Izumi in the main atrium so we watched that a bit. After the demonstration there were samples to try. Yum!

We met Price and then grabbed some cocktails to solidify the birthday celebrating. I had the cocktail of the day and Price had a Miami Vice- a strawberry daiquiri & pina colada combo.

And of course I had to wear Lilly pants on my birthday. They just make me so happy. Overall it was my goal to wear as much prep as possible during the trip and I think I nailed it with all my Vineyard Vines, Sperry’s, and Lilly.

We grabbed lunch at the Park Cafe, located on the 9th deck next to the Solarium (adult pool), which honestly was really bad. Thankfully it was the only bad meal of the whole cruise, but it was really blah and just bad overall. We ditched it and Price ran into the Windjammer Cafe and got other food for us. Much better.

As we finished up our lunch we got to enjoy the start of the belly flop contest.

The cruise director introduced crew that would help out judging in the contest. It was fun getting to see all the different people that help in the operations to run a fun cruise ship.

The group of guys that participated in the belly flop contest were hilarious dancing and strutting their stuff before taking that big, loud jump into the pool.

There are “Open Play Sessions” every day in nursery for the kids (6 months- 3 years) and parents to come in to play together. We wanted to check it out so we stopped by so Autumn could really stretch her legs to crawl around on a clean surface and play with a bunch of toys. And there were tons of toys! She loved it, so we all loved it.

Oh my goodness!! The cutest thing ever! Our room steward Benjamin really went above and beyond by always making Autumn’s crib up. Often Owl got tucked in. Adorable.

We came back to the room so Autumn could take her afternoon nap. Once she got settled I left so that I could check out a shopping information session put on by the shopping guides. While I knew that we wouldn’t be doing much shopping I wanted to have a better understanding of the islands we were going to. I didn’t stay for the whole thing since I actually started to get tired and was afraid I’d fall asleep in the auditorium (ha!), so I left mid way through. But it was successful as I got maps to all the places, which were really beneficial to have on hand for every stop.

We got ourselves ready for dinner and Autumn ready for her time at the nursery before we heading up to the 9th and 10th decks to enjoy the beautiful night. Plus, it was so much fun getting to watch the Seahawks play the NFC Championship game on such a big screen.

To celebrate my birthday Price and I went to dinner at Izumi, one of the specialty restaurants on the ship. We hadn’t had sushi in awhile so I was thinking that would be a fun dinner, and then I solidified my decision after trying the sushi after the demonstration I had seen that morning.

The food and service at Izumi was so fantastic.

We enjoyed drinks, appetizers, entrees, and dessert. The staff came out and sang happy birthday to me too. Normally that would give me the chills and make me want to hide under the table but I enjoyed it as 30 is 30 and, hell, I was on a cruise. Live it up!

After dinner we went up to the nursery to get Autumn, who did really well there. The nursery staff was awesome with her giving her dinner, a bottle, and putting her down. She snuggled in my arms on the way down to our room and went back to sleep really quickly.

And a towel animal to end the night.

It was such a wonderful birthday. I loved every bit of it.

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Stay tuned for my upcoming cruise recaps for the rest of the trip!

Monday Munchies: Dim Sum at Myers & Chang- Boston, MA

January 19, 2015

As part of my Monday Munchies series, I will feature a different eatery for a review on the third Monday of every month. Hope you enjoy!

I’ve slacked off on my Monday Munchies posts this past year. There are a few reasons but the main one is that we just don’t go out as much as we used to. We just don’t have the time or resources. I still love to share the great places that we enjoy in Boston and on our travels so I do want to keep up with this series, but I am going to switch it up and just post once a month instead of twice a month.

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To celebrate our 10 year anniversary on January 2nd Price and I decided to go out to lunch while Autumn was in daycare. We looked into a lot of places as there have been so many great new restaurants in Boston that we’ve been meeting to check out. You know, kinda busy now(!), but we kept coming back to a Boston staple that we have had on the ‘must’ visit’ list for a loooooong time… Myers and Chang.

When we got there we found out that they were doing Dim Sum instead of their normal lunch as a fun way to wrap up the holiday week. We had already scoped out their lunch menu and pretty much picked what we wanted but this was a fun change of plans as it gave us an opportunity to try a bunch of small things. Ah, variety!

They make ordering fairly easy if you have food allergies as they identify common allergies on the menu. They indicate which items can be prepared to address you dietary restrictions. Just ask how they can become: GF = Gluten Free SF = Shellfish Free
NF = Nut Free V = Vegetarian/Vegan

We scanned the options and then discussed what we would both really like to try. Everything sounded really good so it was tough to narrow things down. We picked a bunch of things as we were hungry and just so excited to finally be there.

Whenever we see fresh summer rolls on a menu we get them as they are some of our favorite things. So of course we got their Fresh Rolls with Spicy Peanut Sauce ($6- V, SF, GF, NF). These were a great start to our dim sum extravaganza! They were assembled neatly, soft, but not sticky. The veggies were fresh and shrimp was sweet. Peanut dipping sauce is a classic pairing with these rolls and this spicy sauce was a great compliment.

I love anything with vermicelli noodles so getting this Thai Ginger Chicken Salad with Rice Vermicelli ($8- NF, SF, GF) was an obvious choice for me. I loved it. So. Much. I loved the seasoning in the dressing and on the ground chicken that was hot compared to the chilled noodles. It was a great contrast of textures and temperatures. There was something crunchy that I should have asked what it was but I was too busy inhaling it to think to ask our server.

Our server did explain to us that they were making a big batch of stock using a big octopus when we inquired about what was going on in front of us. That’s why I love sitting right in front of all the action!! Dim Sum and a show!

And then Mama Chang’s Pork & Chive Dumplings ($6 – NF, SF).

Mama knows what’s up!! Oh man, these were great. I could have had a dozen of these. Maybe next time! ha! They were perfectly golden and crispy. The chives seasoned the ground pork with a sweet onion flavor that went so well with the dipping sauce. My general strategy was to get as much of the dipping sauce on the dumping as possible. I just love dipping sauces. They are a weakness.

We got two Bao’s because we had never had them before and were up to trying something new. Both the Nirvana Chicken ($5- NF, SF) and Asian Braised Beef ($5- NF, SF) sounded great to us so we got both and split them. Both of them were so good. I loved the chicken one as it had the pickled cabbage, which added great tart flavor and texture. The braised beef was super tender and the sauce on it was finger licking good.

Another one of our Asian go-to’s are Crispy Spring Rolls ($7) so we order them as well as the summer rolls. Kinda the same? Totally different! e 2 spring rolls were cut in half allowing you to peak inside to check out the stuffing made of vegetables, including swiss chard, and glass noodles. These were served with a rhubarb duck sauce.

Crunchy! Crunchy! Crunchy!

Wok Roasted Lemongrass Mussels ($7- NF) were also set down in front of us once we cleared off some of the dishes. Gotta make room!

The lemongrass broth was incredible. I contemplated just downing it all in a gulp at the end, but managed to restrain myself. Barely.

Oh how I loved thee, let me count the ways…

This Nasi Goreng, Pork + Pineapple, Fried Egg ($8- NF, GF) was our hands down favorite of the meal. We both loved it so much. I’m already plotting my next chance to get this.

The fried rice was seasoned well and had a great texture from it’s trip around the wok. But it wasn’t oily, which can quickly ruin a good fried rice. The pork and pineapple were such a great combination of flavors. The pineapple also help off set the heat from the sambal oelek that garnished the top of the rice. There were also chives and crispy, crunch fried shallots. And, of course, there was a fried egg on top. We broke that and cut up all up and gave it a quick mix through the fried rice.

We were pretty full but wanted a sweet treat anyway since it is a Joanne Chang restaurant after all!

We decided to finish off the meal with an anniversary celebratory coconut cream pie ($8). Stuffed but it was still so worth it. The crust was buttery and tender. The coconut cream filling was sweet, smooth, and the perfect amount of coconut flavor. It was delightfully topped off with a lime whipped cream.

The dim sum lunch was incredible. We were so glad that we finally got around to check out Myers and Chang. It was so nice that we got to try a new to us place, try dim sum, and celebrate our 10 year anniversary. It was so enjoyable all around. I can’t wait to get back and try their dinner. Or maybe just keep go back for brunch so we can keep trying new things. All the things! I’m so hooked!

Myers and Chang

1145 Washington Street

South End, Boston

617 542 5200

A Sweet Treat: The Boston Chocolate Workshop

January 5, 2015

I’ve lived in Boston for over 10 years and I’ve done my fair share of exploring around the city. Price and I spent a Saturday years and years ago being hometown tourists walking the Freedom Trail. I’ve been to a lot of festivals, I’ve shopped the markets, taken a duck boat ride, but I haven’t done any food tours. I’m missing out!!!

I recently heard of Boston Chocolate Tours and how they host tours taking people all around Boston’s Back Bay or South End to sample different chocolate delicacies. That sounds awesome but it’s the dead of winter now so that sounded delightfully horrible… brrr cold!… so next best option is their chocolate making class. Yes, please!!

Held one Saturday a month in a private function room of the Elephant and Castle, you take a 2 – 2 1/2 hour class where you learn about where chocolate is grown, how it’s made, enjoy hot chocolate (different than hot cocoa!), and you get to make your own truffles too!!

While I say you learn so much, it’s not boring, like being back in school, since the teacher keeps it fun, light, and not too technical. No slides or power points to fall asleep to, but you won’t leave scratching your head either.

Like, cocoa nib are just raw dried cocoa beans that have been broken up. We got to ‘make’ cocoa nibs and test out cocoa butter, which really is a wonderful moisturizer.

The class was taught by Chef Dorian McCarron, who has over 15 years experience as a pastry chef. As well, he competed on and won on the 2nd season of Sweet Genius, a Food Network competition similar to Chopped, but with sweets as the main focus.

His passion for chocolate is a pure as the chocolate we used in class. For example, he explained that REAL chocolate only has 5 ingredients in it – cocoa butter, cocoa liquor, sugar, soy lecithin, and real vanilla- and how a lot of chocolate companies don’t sell real chocolate. This really stuck with me as I have been doing a lot of baking recently and I have noticed that the chips I get from various companies have a different quality to them. If you are looking to use the best stuff then get Ghirardelli, Lindt, Green and Black’s (also organic!), Godiva, and Baker’s. And even Trader Joe’s sells the real stuff! However, Hershey’s and Nestle isn’t the real stuff… sad face. But lesson learned so I’m only getting the good stuff from now on! Thanks Chef McCarron!!

As well, I learned the ins and outs of tempering chooclate, in a pretty simple way.

I always took it for granted, but learning the science behind it has opened my eyes to why it’s so important. It makes me want to get a tempering machine. Just kidding! Those babies are like 3K! Whaa? But not to be discouraged, you can temper chocolate yourself as home with a heat safe bowl set upon pot with some water in it. The water CAN NOT touch the bottom of the bowl! You need a space for the steam to swirl around in between the surface of the water and bottom of the bowl. And a whisk. And your arm. Just start moving that chocolate- yes, even before it’s melted- and don’t stop! You’ll need to add more chocolate in when the chocolate is melted and at the right temperature. Chef McCarron broke it down in an easy to follow way that makes me want to really give it a try. And make more truffles!

Fellow Boston based food blogger Taryn attended the class as well.

She went with her mom, which is such a great idea. I think this class would be great for mothers and daughters to take. As well, it would be great for couples. A fun, sweet date.

There was various options for you to roll your truffles in or on after you dipped them in the tempered chocolate.

I generally just rolled my chocolate and them rolled them in the toppings- toffee, cocoa nibs, cocoa powder, toasted coconut, and powdered sugar- as dipping them in the tempered chocolate was quite stressful to me. I was so afraid that it would fall off the dipping fork and them mess up the tempered chocolate, ruining it. I’m just a ball of nerves for no real reason when it comes to stuff like that, as there were a few kids (I’d guess 8 years old?) and they had no problems with this task.

One of the 3 dozen tuffles I made.

This baby is hanging out in some powdered sugar. It’s important to coat the ganache after you rolled the balls out so that they don’t stick to each other. Either you coat them in a topping like the powdered sugar or in tempered chocolate.

See those lovely chocolates, those are Taryn’s. I told you her’s were so pretty. And she packaged them so beautifully too.

If you want to learn about chocolate and make some truffles of your own then I highly suggest attending their class. It was so much fun and it really opened my eyes to buying and working with chocolate. A sweet treat indeed!

I was invited by Boston Chocolate Tours to attend their Chocolate Workshop ($75) for the purposes of this recap and review. All opinions are my own.

Our Raleigh Trip

October 30, 2014

Price, Autumn, and I went to Raleigh at the end of September (over Price’s birthday weekend!) so we could check it out as a potential place to live. The thing is we know we want to move from our time by the time Autumn has to go into kindergarten. Preferably, we would move sooner so we are in the process of looking around at options of places were we can move. Ideally, we are looking to escape the winters, but who knows, we might ultimately stay up here around Boston. We’ll see!

Either way, we went and had a great time checking out Raleigh.

{Saturday}

Up nice and early!

Autumn did pretty well on the flight. She was a bit fussy because she wanted to crawl about but that’s a no-go on a plane. Thankfully, she did mellow out and napped in my arms, which gave me a mini nap as well. yay!

The umbrella stroller I borrowed from a coworker worker perfectly as we breezed through the airport to get to the car rental company.

We chatted with the fine folks at Alamo to get some suggestions for places to eat while we were visiting and then we were on our way!

Our first stop was Elevation Burger.

Prior to our trip, Price had turned to Yelp to look up some quick places to eat around the airport. He knew we would want to get lunch out of the way so that we could then just explore. So right.

They grind organic grass-feed beef at each location to make their burgers in house. You can really taste the quality. The meat itself is great but they also have yummy toppings too. I got a burger that had one patty of ground beef and the other was a veggy buger patty. So good! Plus they were pretty affordable considering the meat was from organic grass-fed cows.

I didn’t love the cheese fries (Shake Shack will always be my favorite) but the fresh cut fries were very good.

We then drove all around heading Northwest over to Durham and then we swung our way down to Chapel Hill before ending up at the house we rented for the long weekend. Durham looking great, as did Chapel Hill. I wante dot check out the old Lucky strike Factory that had been changed into a mix use entertainment complex a few years ago but it seemed liek there was a race going on in the city so there were a lot of road closures so we didn’t get to make it over there.

We ending up timing our arrival perfectly as we would check into The Olde Stone Guest House in Apex at 2pm. We found this house on AirBnB and knew it would work out perfectly for our needs. There was plenty of space inside and outside for Autumn to roam around. And it gave us the opportunity to cook if we needed, at the very least it gave me a convient place to tend to all of my pumping equipment and Autumn’s bottles.

The house was so much bigger than we anticipated, which was a real treat. It was in a great location with some shops across the street and a pond with a walking trail just a bit further. It gave us the space, privacy, and everything we needed for an affordable price.

We were looking for something to do and discovered that there was the Annual Apex Jazz and Music Festival was happening that very weekend. The town shuts down a bit of their main street (North Salem Street) so that musicans can set up along the sidewalk and play. As the night goes on the music goes indoors to the restaurants, bars, and tents.

I enjoyed the atmosphere and the opportunity to listen to the music while we checked out stores and drank some beers.

Grabbed some dessert for later from Buttercream Bakery.

After the jazz festival we headed over to Rite Aid for some forgotten incidentals. Did you know that they sell beer and wine in pharmacies in North Carolina? OMG! The best!! Sure, I really, really do love to support my favorite locally owned stores, but there is just something so nice about getting to 1 some one stop shopping as you pick up some Bud’s and Barefoot. You just can’t do that in Mass, so this was a real treat. Corny, I know.

Bevies in hand we went back to the house to get settled for the night. We just kept things low key with take out pizza Marco’s Pizza (similar to Domino’s). I called then just ran across the street to a small shopping center (with a cance studio- all the little girls in their ballet outfits… awww!!!) located across the street from the rental house.

We continued to enjoy some bevies outside after Autumn was asleep. It made me realize how we didn’t take enough advantage of our little yard and patio table this summer. Next year, baby, next year.

{Sunday}

While Autumn gets up early, it doesn’t mean we are always ready to start our day then. So we had a leisurely morning walking around the house searching for raspberries and Scuppernong grapes that were on the property and the owners said we could enjoy. It was our first time trying Scuppernong grapes so it was a pretty cool experience. They reminded me of cotton candy. We would nip our teeth into them and pinch out the seeds and then give the flesh to Autumn. She was quite excited about the whoel routine.

I had read all about the State Farmers Market in Raleigh and couldn’t wait to go so once we were packed up for the day we headed over there to check it out.

The 30,000 square foot Market is reason enough for me to move!

The lovely woman who was making BEAUTIFUL floral arrangements told us that the flowers pictured on the left were Asclepia Pods. They might just have been the coolest flowers I’ve even seen.

Typically, we would have done some shopping there to make dinner but we were far too scattered and didn’t want to have to head right back to the house, especially when we were so looking forward to brunch. But the bread was calling my name. And the apples. And the beans. Shoot, I don’t know what I even would have done with them but I wanted them.

While everything looked so good at the Farmer’s Market, we were determined to get to brunch. We decided to go up to Chapel Hill to go to Top of the Hill. This brewery was actually suggested to us by one of the nice folks at Alamo when we rented our car.

We arrived shortly after they opened for brunch at 11, so we were unable to enjoy any fun drinks like Bloody Mary’s since they can’t serve alcohol until noon. Either way, I am never going to not have a sweet tea so it was stll a win.

The food was incredible. We stuffed ourselves silly on biscuits. eggs benny, and pancakes. I highly suggest checking out Top of the Hill.

Post Brunch Bliss.

Again we drove around checking out different neighborhoods while we snaked our way down from Chapel Hill back to Apex.

This is my favorite photo from the trip. Autumn is wearing a mermaid shirt (win) and is giving that head over heels smile to Price, who had just walked into the yard (win win).

Since we hadn’t really yet been in Raleigh, we decided to head to the downtown area and have dinner at The Pit. While Autumn was wonderful out at brunch, she let everyone know that she was NOT in the mood to be there for dinner. So Price and I took turns eating and taking her outside for a walk. Well, we sorta ate. Mainly we took a lot of it to go.

We happily packed up our dinner and left so that we could enjoy the best pumpkin cornbread in peace. I’m still dreaming of it, and its maple butter. So good. Our waiter said we could find it online so I’m going to be making it really soon because pumpkin.

As well, the ribs (Price’s) and the fried chicken (mine) were awesome. I, and Autumn, loved the mashed potatoes but the corn was really lacking. But really, the hushpuppies and pumpkin cornbread made up for it. #carbs

The rest of the night was pretty relaxing as we caught the end of the New Hampshire NASCAR race and lounge around a lot once we got Autumn to bed.

{Monday}

Autumn didn’t sleep well. At all. Most likely since it was a new place, in a new bed (pack & play, not her crib), change in the routine, etc. She decided that being WIDE AWAKE from 1.00- 2.30 was a good use of all of our times.

And then she got up really early and decided that gnawing on Price’s leftover ribs at 6.30 was a good plan. It was an interesting way of kicking of Price’s birthday.

Yep!

Well, not to worry, Price’s 9.30am beer made up for the rough night. ha!

Once we were ready to go for the day we were off to get some donuts at Baker’s Dozen Donuts in Cary.

These donuts rocked my world. No fuss, no frills donuts that were executed perfectly. I don’t think you can beat that.

We filled our morning by driving through Raligh and up towards Wake Forest to check out nieghborhoods and houses there.

I had read some amazing things about Poole’s Downtown Diner but it is only open for dinner during the week so we went to another local Ashley Christensen restaurant instead. Beasely’s Chicken and Honey was a good pick as well. Christensen was the James Beard Award for “Best Chef: Southeast” in 2014 so her food is top notch. I think I am a convert to having a mushroom gravy with meatloaf now. The real deal!

We had been eating pretty heavy (hello fried chicken and donuts!) so I insited on walking around the pond across the get some steps in and to help burn off some of the good food we had been inhaling.

We wrapped up Price’s birthday by eating out take out from Danny’s Bar-B-Que in Cary. Price put autumn to bed so I got to blast some T. Swift on the way to dinner. As silly as it was it felt like a fun little adventure to get us dinner.

I brought us back a briskey meal that came with 2 sides and texas toast for us to share. And, of course, I grabbed a few different styles of BBQ sauce that they offered. The dinner and the sunset were fantsatic.

{Tuesday}

We had to check out of the house at 11 so we hung around there for the morning so we had time to get up, have breakfast, get Autumn to nap, pack up, and let me pump a few times before we left.

To change things up a bit we had lunch from Chubby’s Tacos. Not that we could really tire of greatSouthern food but we wanted some tacos. And, boy, these tacos were really good. They offered a large selection of salsas at a self serve salsa bar.

Super cute moment- Price went to get us a seat and I wet to the bathroom. I stopped by the salsa bar on the way to our table outside and grabbed 2 salsas, a verde for me and a pico for Price. When I sat back down Price went to the bathroom and he can back with the same salsas, the verde for me and the pico for me. Awww.

After lunch we went to the Marbles Children’s Museum. As Autumn was under a year old she was free, and Price and I were each $5, so it was a really affordable way to spend a few hours that afternoon.

The museum offered a great selection of things for kids to do. Most of the things were too old for Autumn to do but she just enjoyed checking things out and crawling around. There was a room for really young kids that looked like a forrest, which she did enjoy. The big mirror in there and stuffed animcals were huge wins!

Oh, that face!

The Marbles Children’s Musuem really wore Autumn out so she quickly fell asleep in the car. This gave me the chance to run into Videri Chocolate Factory. I had seen Videri while walking Autumn outside when we were having dinner at The Pit the other night. They roast, grind, process, and package their chocolates there. I grabbed 2 truffles, a chocolate bar, and a frozen hot chocolate for us to enjoy then and later on.

We decided to scope out some more neighborhoods while Autumn slept so we drove towards the Airport and scooted around some neighborhoods around there.

Ultimately it was really interesting to check out all the different nieghborhoods in the different towns we visited over the weekend. It was fun pulling up houses on the Trulia app on our phones and then checking out those houses. Maybe not a real practical use of time for the trip but it really did help us come up with some must haves for the house and neighborhood that we ultimately end up moving to, no matter what town or state that is.

We grabbed some dinner at the airport, which mighthave been some of the worst food I’ve ever eaten- correction, not eaten. I should have returned it but I didn’t have the engery to deal with it. Made me wish that we had scooted back to Elevation Burger before going to the airport. Dang.

It was not a fun flight home. Nope.

We had purposefully selected that flight as it was right around Autumn’s bedtime. So we had hoped that she would settle in and sleep in my arms, like she had done previously when the 2 of us went to Miami. She had different plans, which involved, screaming, yelling, and crying. She didn’t want to sit still so sleeping was out of the question. It was so bad that people moved away from us. The only thing that entertained her enough to quiet was raking her hand through my hair which made me want to cry out but you gotta do what you gotta do. (which reminded me of this A Cup of Jo post.)

While the flight home was down right frightful, the trip was so much fun. I always enjoy getting to explore a new place with Price, so it was so much more fun to do it with Autumn now. It changed the pace at which we did things but I think it was just as wonderful as our previous pre-baby trips.

I hope to go back to Raleigh in the future. Shoot, we might even end up living there!

Monday Munchies: Bakers Dozen Donuts- Raleigh, NC

October 6, 2014

As part of my Monday Munchies series, I will feature a different eatery for a review on the first and third Monday of every month. Hope you enjoy!

____________________

I’ve been trying to think of fun, simple ways of changing things up for the wedding, so I’ve been thinking we can ditch the cake and just enjoy some other sweets. Maybe pies? Maybe cookies? Maybe Donuts?

Man, I love donuts! So it comes as no surprise that I turned to Yelp to track down some great donuts while we were in Raleigh.

Reviews turned us to Baker’s Dozen Donuts. So we headed over there one morning to satisfy our donut cravings.

As we pulled into a shopping center and up to the simple storefront that is identified with a large sign simply stating “DONUTS”, I saw someone walking out with large boxes of donuts. A sure sign that people love donuts from here.

They have 2 kinds of donuts- a yeast donut and a cake donut. Both equally good. I didn’t find their donuts to be very large which was refreshing as I’ve been to shops were donuts are so big you can barely finish them. These were a manageable size so we were able to get a few to share.

Flavors include classics like glazed twists, French Crullers, and Boston cream. Donuts are covered in the perfect amount of glaze and sprinkles. They even fill the donuts to order. I swear you just don’t get that kinda of service and quality at a lot of places.

We shared 3 donuts (about $1 each) plus an apple fritter ($1.50). I had read good things about the buttermilk donut we got that, as well as a sugar coated one, and a pumpkin donut.

The yeast based sugary donut was light and fluffy, while the cake donuts were denser, as to be expected. The pumpkin reminded me of a pumpkin muffin with it’s pleasant pumpkin flavor. The buttermilk was my favorite as it was really light, evenly glazed, and had a interesting tangy flavor from the buttermilk.

I’m already missing these donuts. And that fritter… OMG that fritter.

The apple fritter was the best fritter that I’ve ever had. It was about the size of the palm of your hand. Well, maybe a bit bigger than that, but it again was a good size for a treat. The flavor was very sweet and apple-y. It was definitely not suggy from the sugary glaze as it has a nice crunch it. And yet it was still light as the texture of the fitter was very airy.

The shop has minimal decor with some cute pictures and fake flower arrangements, which is just fine since I think that most people just run into get donuts and go. We ate some of each of our donuts there and finished them up later.

Just hop into the shop and get yourself some donuts and you won’t be disappointed. I promise!!

Baker’s Dozen Donuts

1307 Buck Jones Road

Raleigh, NC 27606

919.377.1221

Apple Picking at Applecrest Farm- Hampton Falls, NH

September 29, 2014

I’ve been looking forward to going apple picking for a while. It’s one of my favorite fall things to do. The leaves underfoot are crunchy and colorful, I love the smell in the air, and snagging an apple off the tree is one of the best things ever. Of course, after hot Apple cider donuts.

This year Price, Autumn, and I headed up to Hampton Falls in New Hampeshire to meet his sister and mom to go apple picking. We picked Applecrest Farm Orchards because it was local to his sister’s house and it had great reviews.

The 101 year old Applecrest has acres and acres of Pick-Your-Own apple and peach trees, raspberry bushes, and pumpkins. As well, fields of produce ranging from tomatoes to onions, brussel sprouts to green beans, and squash to lettuces that they sell in their on site store and CSA.

Autumn was quite smitten with the big pumpkins.

We milled around the Farm Market for a bit before meeting Catherine and Elaine to go apple picking. The overflowing bins of fresh produce were so enticing but we held our horses and decided to get it later so it wouldn’t just be sitting in the hot car on the bizzarely warm fall day.

It did feel super weird to go apple picking in shorts and a tank top!!

I mean, these caulifowers… come on! So cool!!

To get to the orchards where you are able to pick apples you have to take a short ride on a tractor pulled trolley/train system. The ride was great because you are able to view all the different fields where they grow their produce that they sell.

We were greeted by super friendly staff that went over the rules of apple picking (no damaging trees, no climbing on trees, etc) and how to pick (twist, twist, pull!).

It is there where you are provided with a peck or a 1/2 bussel bag that you use for the apples. Since we were dividing this up among the 3 of us we went with a 1/2 bushel for $30. Thankfully, they accept cash and debit cards there.

Yep, she bit right into an apple as it hung on the tree.

I held her up so everyone could take a picture of her reaching and grabbing an apple, but she took it a step further and pulled it right down to her mouth. Ha! She loves apples so it was so surprise but so dang cute.

I think Autumn did a great job apple picking her 1 apple. She ate it for the rest of the time that we were there in the orchard and even on the train ride back to the main farm.

Oh damn, I love her so much.

Price dropped the apples off at the car and then we did some shopping at the Farm Market to get some produce. We picked up some purple cauliflower, carrots (with tops that we fed to Bunny!!!!!!), 3 types of squash, bussel sprouts, and a few tother things. And of course, a gallon of fresh pressed cider. All for less than $30. Not too bad!!!

Applecrest is currently under construction as they are building a restuarant, which I can’t wait to visit. I image they would serve produce from their farm and local meats and seafood from the same sellers that they sell in their Farm Market. OMG, I’m drooling just thinking about it.

The only really bummer about Applecrest is that the apple cider donuts are sold in a seperate shop from the main farm that only takes cash. As someone who doesn’t carry cash ever (really, really) I was heartbroken that I couldn’t get an inapporiate amount of donuts to binge on. Thankfully, Price’s mom, Elaine, had some cash so we did get donuts but that cash only situtaion was a killer for me.

They offer their donuts in 3 versions: plain, sugar, and cinnamon and sugar coated. Obvioiusly, you skip the plain. We got the cinnamon and sugar coated donuts which were mesy and delightful.

Considering that we hadn’t yet had lunch we passed up enjoying local ice cream from the creamery, but we did check out the flavors, which all sounds amazing. They had a apple cider donut sundae… be still my heart. Plus, they make their own waffle cones. I tell you, that smell is intoxicating.

Catherine did get a lemonade and Price got an Arnold Palmer. I skipped stealing a sip from Price since I think lemonade is ew.

It was such a wonderful time. I am going to enjoy making a pie tonight and some some crisps and breads this week from the apples we picked. I can’t wait!

And these babies were across the road from the parking lot. Beauties.

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Applecrest Farm Orchards

133 Exeter Road (Rt.88)

Hampton Falls, NH 03844

603.926.3721

Hours: 8 a.m. to 6 p.m.

Farm Market is Open Daily, May through December.

Feasting with Saint Anthony

September 4, 2014

I remember going to Feast of San Gennaro in New York City when I was going up. IT was always so much fun. I loved the hot pavement underfoot that I skipped along while taking in all the sights and smells of the Feast. I enjoyed it so much so I look forward to taking Autumn to cultural food festivals as she grows up.

Well 9 months old is the perfect time to start that tradition!

This past weekend my mom, Autumn, and I ended up at St. Anthony’s Feast in the North End as we were going into Boston to do some produce shopping at the Haymarket vendor’s market. Instead of going at the crack of dawn, like I normally do, we ending up going later in the day so we could enjoy the Feast as well.

The North End is such a fun place to go to in Boston. It’s the Little Italy of Boston. Italian restaurants, bakeries, and import shops line the streets. It’s best just to wander as you discover sandwich shops gelaterias. There are some much hyped about places, such as Mike’s Pastry, but every place has a special place in every Bostonians’ heart.

We did some browsing around the whole festival when we first arrived, which is when it first started, at noon. Of course, my mom couldn’t resist playing a game of darts to win Autumn a little prize.

People pin money to Saint Anthony in hopes that their prayers will be answered.

Ah, the real reason we came! THE FOOD!!!

We checked out all the different vendors that served Italian favorites. My mow was nostalgic for a Sausage, Pepper, and Onions sub so she grabbed one of those for her lunch. It’s just such a classic.

And then my mom spotted a stall that sold fresh sucked shell fish. She was commenting on how it had been ages she had little necks so she couldn’t resist getting some of those.

And once she polished off her first plate of little necks she turned right around and got another 6 of them ($8). The guy loved her enthusiasm so she gave her an extra on that plate. Even better!

I debated getting a slice of pizza or an Arancini ($7), but I ultimately decided on the arancini, a risotto rice ball stuffed with a filling and served with gravy (marinara sauce) and Parmesan cheese. I knew that I would be sharing with Autumn so I thought the arancini would be the best bet for her.

I was correct! Autumn couldn’t get enough of the Arancini. She basically ate half of it! Her little hands would flap around in between bites telling me she wanted more. So cute!!

And to round out the indulgence we got some fried dough ($5). I am still soo very sad that the vendors here in Boston don’t make Pizza Fritte, let alone that some of them have never heard of it. ugh. But thankfully this was so good so it momentarily had me forgive them for not making the best street food ever.

St Anthonys Feast-20

Once we had our fill we started to make our way over to the Haymarket produce market, but on our way we stopped by the fountain on the Rose Kennedy Greenway. I have always loved watching the kids playing in the fountain so it was great that Autumn had her first time trying it as well.

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I accidentally put on shorts that were so simailar to Autumn’s pants (just about the same color with pink details- mine embrodered anchors, her’s printed bikes). As soon as I came down stairs Price gave me a ‘really, you’re dressing the same now?!’ and so I ran back up and tossed on some blue Vineyard Vine shorts and all was right in the world. For a very brief moment.

No bathing so, no problem!

This little boy was running around in the fountain too. He ran over and asked to be in our pictures. Okay, well, why not? Everyone becomes friends while playing in the fountain!

It was such a great afternoon!

Monday Munchies: Skaneateles Bakery- Skaneateles, NY

September 1, 2014

Okay, I took the summer off from my Monday Munchies post because the summer is always super crazy and I just didn’t want to half ass these fun posts. I wanted to share some great places while writing thoughtful, helpful posts about them. So I’m back! Enjoy!!

Whenever we head back to Price’s hometown for a visit I go to Skaneateles Bakery for some breakfast goodies. I love to walk down there so I feel like I’m off setting the donuts that I’m about to consume. All about balance people.

But really my mile walk down there and back is hardly enough to put a dent into the calories for the pastries I get. I just go there and act like a kid in a candy store and go ‘ohh, I’ll take a half dozen donuts!… and a scone!… and a rice krispies treat!… and a cinnamon roll!… and a bacon egg and cheese!” As I walk down the counter I see more and more things I want so I just keep going ‘and’ as I add more and more things to my order.

Trays, platters, and pedestals display a fun selection of baked goods that range from scones ($1.90), muffins, and cinamon rolls ($2.50). Price loves rice krispie treats ($2.50) so I always get him one of their massive ones to enjoy later on in the day.

Their Bacon Egg and Cheese is elevated from your typical B.E.C as its made with Applewood Smoked Bacon, Cheddar Cheese, and Ciabatta. ($5.65) The cheese is melty and the bacon has a nice smoke flavor to round out the sandwich. The bread does a great job of soaking up the bacon grease and cheese too. Overall it’s a large sandwich so we end up splitting it as we are also enjoying a donut or two.

I love that you can watch them make their cake donuts from their front window. I love to watch the donuts happily floating in the oil in the machine before they get dropped off into the big catch basin for them to get topped. I always get a half dozen ($4.50) so I can get some variety in the box. They make a typical old-fashioned, powdered, glazed, cinnamon & sugar, as well as, glazed with cinnamon & sugar, chocolate-glazed, chocolate-glazed with rainbow sprinkles, and coconut.

They are light and airy with plenty air pockets under that slightly crunchy fried exterior. The donuts are topped with fresh toppings and are the perfect size for you to have easily have 2-3 of these hot from the fryer babies.

Sprinkles make everything better.

To round out a recent trip to the Bakery we enjoyed snacking on on of their home made raspberry poptarts. They make their poptarts with pie crust and their home made raspberry jam. It’s great for breakfast but also great to satisfy an afternoon sweet tooth craving. No matter when you enjoy it you’ll find that the homemade jam is the best filling for it.

The Skaneateles Bakery is a real treasure as it serves locals and area visitors with great breakfast and lunch pastries, sandwiches, and drinks. Be sure to stop by and have a fresh cake donut for me.

Skaneateles Bakery

19 Jordan St

Skaneateles, NY 13152

(315) 685-3538