Whata Trip

David and I took a super fun trip to Georgia/the beach last week but I haven't been able to update this yet because I couldn't find my camera cord - I just found it. In the camera case. Right where it belongs. Apparently I've become so good at living in total chaos that putting things away is something my brain just can't comprehend. Oops.

Anyways, the first leg of our trip (after a pit stop to Publix in St. John's) was to Kingsland, Georgia (just north of Jacksonville) because I needed to get a Georgia driver's license with my new name to match my credit cards. We got a late start and then had a hard time finding the place (because apparently there are 2 roads with the same name in the same city...brilliant!) but eventually we found our little treasure chest and got everything taken care of. And, of course, the people there were just as strange as every other DMV in the world. They're like magnets for weirdos.

So, our next stop was to the BEACH! We got distracted by this little gem though and just had to go inside to scope it out.

Whata place! There is nothing quite like heading to the beach after you down a humongous cheeseburger and a ton of fries, but hey, it's vacation. We decided to go to Amelia island because it was the closest beach and we were sick of sitting in the car. Hooray!

The weather was BEAUTIFUL (much better than the 100+ temps we've had in Orlando lately), the water was warm and we had a great time splashing in the ocean and napping on the beach.

The last leg of our trip was to St. Augustine to be tourists and have a nice 2 month anniversary dinner. We got to see the lighthouse (...from a distance, we're too poor to pay $20 to go to the top) and drive/walk around the city for awhile.

For dinner, we tried to be bold and try a place called the Bubble Room. It looked like a modern little Greek Fusion type restaurant and the menu sounded good, so all was well until we met...our "bubble scout." Seriously, the waiters/waitresses are dressed up like scouts like crazy colored socks and bunny ears on their heads. This should have been our first cue to leave but we let them take us upstairs, where we found this:

Yes, that is Mickey (because we want to see some more of him) surrounded by pepto bismol pink walls, neon lights and strange pictures. The other side of the room featured creepy marionette dolls that stared at me while I ate. This is how David feels about the Bubble Room...

He got over it when they gave us the biggest piece of red velvet cake I ever seen (...and I've seen a lot of red velvet cake...). Check out the decorations in our table - yes, that's Santa. He also adorned our salt & pepper shakers and made a few other apperances around the room. In June.

Anyways, it was kind of a strange, not-so-romantic dinner but the food was really good and we definitely made some memories. Overall it was a really fun trip and a good reminder of how lucky we are to live so close to the beach. I definitely want to start going more often...but maybe next time we'll skip the Bubble Room...

Gracyn

Last Sunday at church,we heard the story of 10 year old Gracyn, who received a new heart on April 15. She has been the source of a lot of local news coverage and you can read more about her story in the Orlando Sentinel here or her CaringBridge site here

At the end of the service, she did an awesome job of singing "Healer." We go to a really cool church and are fortunate that a huge congregation allows for a lot of awesome stories, like Gracyn's. Here is her performance - the sad part is that she sings a lot better than I do and I have had 13 more years of practice...and didn't just get a heart transplant :)

Asian Persuasion

There has been a lot to blog about lately but nothing really worthy of an entire post. In the past week, we've cooked a delicious strawberry pie, went for an evening stroll and saw a snake and an owl, went to cooking class last Saturday night, and are going to the beach later this week.

However, most importantly and most worthy of a blog post is....Jon & Kate. I mean, really. These people are completely ridiculous but it is like some sort of sick train wreck that I can't quit watching. Apparently America feels the same way too, because it's all anyone can talk about on facebook. Surely there is something more important going on in the world.

In other news, if you are looking for entertainment that doesn't involve 8 half-Asian children, I highly recommend reading "My Sister's Keeper." It's coming out as a movie but it is a super fabulous book.

Oh, and speaking of Asian, we had Pei Wei for dinner. Not in honor of Jon & Kate, but quite appropriate!

A Delicious Delight

With gas prices on the rise, we have been trying to be smart about making unnecessary trips. So this morning, after church we stopped at Wal-Mart on the way home (because the one closest to us is gross) for what seemed like an ordinary trip.

Until we found these bad boys...

That's right - you don't have to go to Checkers for greasy, delicious french fries anymore! They come in a frozen bag! We were super excited but a little skeptical. Could this bag o' taters possibly compare with the drive-thru delicacy we all know and love? We cooked some up for lunch and the answer is YES! In fact, they may be even BETTER than the real thing - all the deliciousness, much less grease (plus you don't have to deal with grumpy employees or your car smelling like fast food for days). This is one of my proudest discoveries yet :)

In other news, with my family hopping all over the world this summer, I have had a major urge to do some traveling of my own, and I am excited to say that we just bought plane tickets to go visit David's family over the 4th of July. Roanoke may not compare with Italy, but it is a trip and I am pretty pumped nonetheless! Bon Voyage, Orlando!

TGIF

Happy Friday! I am officially done with my internship!

David had to work tonight, so I celebrated my Friday/first day of freedom by taking Jackson & Anna for a walk (me)/scooter ride (Jackson)/bike ride (Anna) so Joe and Christina could have some time together.

To be fair, I was warned to only go a little ways, but I let a 5-year old talk me into going all the way downtown. Of course, we got there and then they were too tired to walk back. Then Jackson had to pee, so I let him go in the bushes and the next thing I know, Anna is in the bushes with her skirt around her ankles too. Of course, she made a huge mess and had to walk home in her underwear.

We finally started the journey back (I got to carry Anna's bike. Yay!), and then got attacked by a family of ducks (probably because Jackson chased them) - the dad duck started hissing at us, which made Anna cry, which made Jackson cry. Nobody wanted to finish the rest of the walk home but thankfully, just as we were all about to have a meltdown, Joe came to the rescue. Thank goodness.

I don't want kids for a very. long. time.

Bon Appetit!

My family is busy globe-trotting this summer (apparently you get kicked out of family vacations once you tie the knot...), so David and I took advantage of our situation and had lunch in France (okay, in Epcot) yesterday!

We were late to our reservation (surprise!) so I forgot the camera, but believe me, we sure did look Frenchy dining in front of the (fake) Eiffel Tower with our waitress, Chloe. Even Chef Remy came to join us!The rest of the weekend was fabulous, as always. David is exhausted from work, so we took a big nap today :) This is also my last week at work, which is bittersweet. I'm really sad about leaving everyone I work with (and a steady income) but I'm excited to learn what the next chapter of my life holds.

Keep us in your thoughts and prayers as we figure out what is in store for us. It's scary to face such a big adventure but we are thankful to be healthy and together - everything else will be okay!