Charlotte, NC // Gadsden, AL

In January I took my last part of my board exams. This one required traveling to Charlotte to spend 2 hours showing observers and cameras that I can, indeed, perform an eye exam. It was a quick trip, but we tried to make the most of it. After my exam I picked a restaurant for us to enjoy: Futobuta - a homemade Ramen and Sake bar. It was one of my favorite meals to date. We has the Miso Ramen, Pork Belly Steam Buns, and Sesame ice cream for dessert. (I am excited to find a similar concept restaurant closer to home in Montgomery. We haven't tried it yet, but definitely will in the near future!)

The following day we went to the Billy Graham Library. We are senior citizens at heart. It was a really interesting place, though. Our generation did not grow up hearing much of Billy Graham, but he is truly an amazing man who lived to tell the true Gospel of God. It's incredible how many people he reached through his crusades, and he was so humble he never took credit for anything.

We had to catch one more hot restaurant on the way out of Charlotte. We chose Luna's Living Kitchen for lunch - a vegan restaurant and juice bar that serves mostly raw ingredient foods. Their dishes are so creative and delicious. I love when simple, fresh ingredients are used in non-traditional ways to get the most flavor out of each product. Luna's does this very well. I had the lasagna (zucchini noodles, topped with a pesto, cashew nut "cheese") and a side salad with hemp seed dressing. Jesse had a quinoa burger with a beet salad side. Everything was beautiful and amazingly delicious!

We took the long route home and stopped to visit with one of Jesse's coworkers. They have a lovely secluded cabin that has been featured in Country Living magazine. They were kind enough to invite us to stay and gave us the tour of the property the following morning. Look how charming!

On the drive back to Birmingham we drove through Little River Canyon, starting at the top and stopping to take a peek at the falls. LRC is on of the deepest and longest canyons in the southeast. It starts at Lookout Mountain near the triad of Georgia-Tennessee-Alabama and eventually empties into the Coosa River near Leesburg, AL. There is an 11 mile parkway that follows the canyon with lookout spots along the way. We started at the top, at Little River Canyon Falls.

We wound down, down, down - the end of the drive getting a little scary with steep hills and rocky roads.  We stopped in Gadsden to see Noccallula Falls at sunset.

There are so many beautiful places to explore in Alabama. We are looking forward to finding more gems like these now that Spring is finally here!

New Year, New Post, New Hampshire

Welcome back everyone (and myself)! I've really let things slide around here. I could give you some excuses, but really it boils down to my lack of motivation. I've had more time on my hands in the past 6 months than I have in the past 3 years. Somewhere along the way I decided no one really cared what I put out on this blog, but to my surprise a few of you have expressed that you actually miss it! So I thought I'd get back at it.

For now, let's catch up!

Way back when, over Christmas break, we spent some time at home with family and got to see a few friends as well. We then headed to New Hampshire to visit Mike, Kelsey, and Addy at their new home. Even (Brother) Mike was also there for a few days!  Since we've gained quite the reputation for long road trips, I will clarify that we flew this time.  :)

I did not plan a single thing for this trip. Not one. My only goal was to soak up quality time with these friends. I was giddy with excitement just to be in the same place for an entire week. This excitement even held us through a plane delay, midnight flight, and arrival time of 3:00 am.

We did lots of things Northerners do, while there. Two days in, we received their first snow fall of the year, which greatly enhanced the experience.

Addy was excited to go out into the snow. Not to play, but to eat a "snow clump." She did want to follow this up by drinking hot cocoa. (Told you she was smart.)

Mike plowed the driveway, like Northern gentlemen do.

We ventured out on the roads- all plowed. And I admired, as all the people went about their daily lives. I thought about rolling down the window and yelling, "It's snowing! Go home!" But, alas, schools and businesses still run, people still go to work. It's hocus pocus up their. (Insert non-so-faint memories of Birmingham's Snowpocalypse 2014.)

I took my first toboggan ride. Exhilarating and terrifying all at the same time. Thankfully two local kids tested it out first to make sure we wouldn't die in the brush at the bottom.

We drove to Newburyport and ate true New England clam chowder, and were also introduced to maple candies. Jesse went snow-shoeing, and we played a game of candle-pin bowling (which is like normal bowling except with tall skinny pins, and you don't have to wait for the pins to be reset; however New England people think this is normal bowling.)

We flew out of Boston, so we spent our last day exploring there. Boston is a beautiful place that holds so much history, and you can tell the friendly people are proud of their city. We took a hop-on, hop-off trolley tour, which was a great way to see the highlights. Our tour guide had the ultimate Boston accent, which made the tour extra exciting! The Old State House was built in 1713, and in 1776 the Declaration of Independence was read to the people of Massachusetts from the front balcony. Today it is towered by skyscrapers. The upper levels can be toured, and the basement is now a city subway entrance.

We toured Paul Revere's home.

And the Old North Church where Paul Revere hung the lanterns and began his journey to warn that the British were coming. 

We ended our tour at the Boston Harbor, then warmed up with a cup of tea.

And in case you were wondering....while in Boston we had more clam chowder, a lobster roll, and a lobster tail pastry and cannoli. (The best cannoli of my life.)

New Orleans

Last month I headed down to NOLA for the first time ever. The annual American Academy of Optometry meeting was held there this year, and I had a great time meeting up with some of my classmates and attending many hours of continued education - most of which were enjoyable and beneficial to my ever-increasing ocular wisdom! And we got to play with new diagnostic equipment (that's my retina below).

Thankfully this meeting coincided with fall break, so Erika and I decided to make an extended trip out of it. The girls and I enjoyed a few nights in the part of town we could access by foot near the convention center. Then, on Saturday afternoon Jesse and Brian drove down to meet Erika and me. We had a cute home rented for the weekend through AirBnB. As soon as we settled in, we were ready to explore.

We had lunch at Mother's where we all scarfed down po'boys. But first, you must wait in line outside until you're called, about 10 customers at a time. Then you're allowed in and instructed to stand single file along the counter until your turn to order. And they weren't kidding. The kitchen crew is running about delivering plates of food to customers and to the front counter, so it's best to stay out of their way. But we quickly forgot the brash attitude as we ate our po'boys, which are topped with "debris," This is a scoop of the tiny, tender fibers of meat left in the bottom of the pan. Delicious.

You can't go to NOLA without walking around Jackson Square. The adjacent streets are lined with artists, musicians, and street performers. And if you're lucky (as were we) you might even walk right into a wedding (or three)! This is the heart of the French Quarter, and rightfully so with a backdrop as beautiful as the St. Louis Cathedral.

Just across the street is the famous Cafe du Monde. It's on every list of "must-do/must-eat." I've heard about these beignets for years, and couldn't wait to taste them! We took the impatient route and chose the "to-go" line, where we (somewhat) quickly had our beignets and coffee in hand. If you're not familiar, they are also known for their chikory root coffee. Y'all, the beignets were incredible. They are served in orders of 3. They're so simple - fried dough fritters covered in powdered sugar, but they know just how to do them at Cafe du Monde.

We strolled the streets and admired the French-inspired architecture.

Then we had to experience Bourbon Street at least a little. As you can imagine, it's not my preferred scene, but it was quite the place to people watch! Where else might you see an 80 year old lady in a red tutu have a crowd dancing with her in the street?  You have to walk around a while to absorb it all, except the smell - try not to absorb that (although inevitable). Also worth noting was the number of babies and strollers on Bourbon Street, as evidenced by the photo.....

For brunch the next morning we took some local recommendations and ate at the Ruby Slipper. Our wait time was an hour and a half (!!), so we grumbled and walked with growling bellies all the way to the Super Dome and back. It was chilling to think that people made that same trek to "safety" during Katrina.

The Ruby Slipper's specialty is their take on eggs benedict, which they call "bennies." I had the Smoked Salmon and Eggs Blackstone bennies. Everything on the table was delicious and worth the wait!

We spent the afternoon at the WWII Museum. I will be the first to tell you that history is not my forte, so I enjoy going through museums like this and learning along the way. The museum is stretched out over three buildings and is rather new and impressive. Their display of various aircraft is really neat.

On our way out of New Orleans we stopped for a swamp tour near Lake Pontchartrain. This was my favorite part of the trip. It was a perfectly beautiful day outside, and the boat ride was relaxing. The swamp is not like anything I've experienced before. Our guide would bribe alligators toward our boat with marshmallows, even getting them to jump up out of the water!

I'm really glad we went to New Orleans, and I'm happy to have experienced it with friends!

Seattle / Food

By now we all know we love finding good food, and vacation is no exception. In fact, it's a priority on vacation to eat some of the best meals in town. Sometimes this takes determination and patience to wait in long lines, but my taste buds are rarely let down. Seattle is home to a sprawling selection of good food and drinks, so I thought I'd follow up my last post with our foodie experience. I got over being embarrassed of photographing my meals long ago. Jesse doesn't mind so much either, except he is usually ready to dig in while I find just the right angle where the food looks as good as it does in person (or at least, I attempt).

Below is our sampling of Seattle, listing what we had (not necessarily what you should order...unless I get demanding):

Skillet Dinner - "the burger" with bacon jam, arugula, bleu cheese; "the basic" burger with lettuce, house sauce, pickle, American cheese; sides of lentil soup and fries
Did you read that - bacon jam! That's what that aweful-looking pile of goop is, but let me tell you, it was awesome! The burgers were amazing - nice and juicy. The sides were great too. As stuffed as I was from eating most of my burger, the lentil soup was so good I wanted to finish it too!

Molly Moon's - I'm not even going to lie, I don't remember what flavors we had. Mine had something to do with apples. They are known for their Honey Lavender ice cream, but I was not a fan - it tasted too much like old lady soap in my opinion. As with any ice cream bar, sample away until you find your favorite! They have traditional and seasonal flavors, and a cute little freezer to buy by the pint!

La Panier - a small french bakery near Pike Place market. These guys have tourism down to a science. The line may be out the door, but only for a moment. Due to other blogs and food reviews, I knew I wanted a croissant, but I had to pick up a couple macarons from their pastries section too. Lemon and Passionfruit, I believe. We had one almond croissant, then on our last day in Seattle went back for a chocolate croissant (and another almond). If you are in Seattle, you must try these. Warning: no croissant will ever be the same.

Serious Pie  - known for their pizza, however they have an extensive biscuit menu for breakfast/brunch at their Westlake location. As a Southern girl, I have to admit I was a bit skeptical of the quality of these West Coast buttermilk biscuits. To test the fates, I ordered the Southern-most listed biscuit - fried chicken and tabasco black pepper gravy. Jesse had the ham, egg, cheddar, and apple mustard biscuit. These biscuit sandwiches were truly something serious. Their texture was a bit thicker (not denser) and the tops had a greater golden crust than the buttermilk biscuits I was raised on. The gravy had a bit of a kick from the tabasco and pepper. Overall - great dish. I only wish we had also been able to try their pizza.

Chandler's Crab House - oyster platter (not pictured!), crab bisque, grilled octopus, famous crab cake. This is one of Chase's favorite places, so he took us here for a fine dining experience one night. We started with the oyster platter to sample a few different types of raw oysters. I didn't realize there were so many types of oysters, but we could definitely taste a difference between them. The octopus was tender and cooked very well, with the tips a bit charred which enhanced the flavor. Then, the crab cake. It is nearly 3 inches tall, packed with fresh, delicious crab meat. The garnishes vary with the season and however the chef prefers to change the menu. We were so glad we ate here and enjoyed this special meal.

Beecher's - cheese curds. This was one of our last stops on our second run through Pike Place. You can stand outside the windows and watch the cheese-making process. Thankfully there is a separate line for their food menu and their cheeses. We walked right in and bought these super fresh and squeaky curds! Apparently they have an awesome mac and cheese, but we didn't have time to try it.

Lowell's - creamy clam chowder; mixed seafood grill.  As I mentioned in my previous post, we waited quite a while to be seated here. Lowell's is in the heart of Pike Place and therefore a very busy place. If you sit on the upper levels of the restaurant, you get a waterfront view with your meal. We were pleased with our lunch choices, but thought we could have gotten seafood just as good at other places. For the wait this restaurant didn't blow us away. I'd say, stop in and enjoy if you can walk right in, otherwise keep moving.

We tried to make the most of our meals for the days we were in the city. While camping, we had many dehydrated meals prepped over our camping burner or in the town of Forks. Yes, from the Twilight series. Those were not worth talking about though. Except for one of the reasons I love camping...