Downtown Volleyball

Good morning! On Monday a friend of mine asked me if I could substitute-in for her regular volleyball league. Normally, I shy away from playing sports or anything related to me playing sports . It is not that I don't enjoy playing sports, but mostly because I'm awful at playing them. Some people thrive on competitive pressure; I'm the complete opposite and tend to crumble under that pressure. This time I decided to step out of my comfort zone and play.  I figured if I suck ( which I did) then at least it would be mostly around people who I don't know, ha ha.

Luckily for me the rest of the team was really great. They were kind about my mistakes, and seemed to just really enjoy playing. So Thanks for a great night guys! I'll substitute-in anytime :)

The league takes place at a restaurant and bar called  Aussie's, and it's located downtown near the Congress Bridge. I've been there a few times to grab a drink and cheer on friends, and it's a really great laid back atmosphere. Hope your week is going well : )

-Love Di

PS- sorry for the bad pictures, but as usually I only have me I-phone on me 

Weekend Wrap Up

Wow, this weekend flew by fast : ) My mom came in right on time Friday night! I wish she could have stayed a little longer of course, but I think we used our time wisely. We woke up semi- early on Saturday and headed out to get grab something to eat. Brunch by far is my mom's favorite type of meal, and it just so happens to be very popular in Austin on the weekends . So we headed over to one of my favorite spots on a sunny day- Ables on the Lake.

 We stuffed ourselves silly, and decided we needed to enjoy the beautiful day outside. We grabbed Chloe and headed out to the Austin Green Belt.

**Side note** the Austin Green Belt is a large area of protected park that is approx. 8 miles long  and is filled with creeks, trails and cliffs. It's also right next to downtown ; )

We honestly could not have dreamed up of a better day to go out on the trails. It was around mid 60's, not a cloud in the sky, and best of all the water was flowing in all the creeks. It was beautiful, and Chloe had a blast playing in the water.

We finally wrapped up her trip watching the sunset at happy hour and ordered take-out for a good old fashion girls sleepover with a great chick flick and Sugar Mama cupcakes for desert. 

 Before we knew it I was at the airport dropping her off for her flight home. Hope you guys had a great weekend too!

Love Di

TGIF

Happy Friday y'all! Sorry I have been so MIA this week. Between Ricky getting ready to go out of town and getting ready for my mom to come into town, it has been a little hectic. Luckily, last night I was able to grab a few drinks with the ladies at a cute little Greek bar called Opa. It's conveniently located in south Austin near South Lamar and West Oltorf. We were officially the warmest place in the U.S. yesterday topping out at 90 degrees, so we could not have found a better excuse to hang out outside and have a few drinks : ) Thank goodness we took advantage of the weather yesterday because I woke up this morning to find that a cold front had came through last night, and the high is now in the 6o's - gotta love Texas's bipolar weather, lol.

A few weeks ago Ricky surprised me with letting me know that him and my mom split a ticket for her to come out this weekend. I am so excited for a girls weekend with my mom : )  Ricky and I are pretty good with seeing both of our families periodically every couple of months, but I am really looking forward to just having "me & mom time" this weekend;  I can't remember the last time we had this. My husband is a very clever man- he conveniently scheduled my mom to come into town while he isn't here, but I can't be suspicious about it because it's wrapped-up into a surprise. I'm on to you De Camps!

The place is perfect for some small appetizers and drinks

Most places with outdoor seating = pet friendly in Austin. Poor Chloe was so excited to be out and about last night that she tuckered herself out pretty early. She ended up passing out under Anna's feet, lol. Doesn't she look so cute with her hometown Team's collar - Go Noles!

I hope you have a great weekend- Luv Di

Weekend Wrap Up

The weather continued to suck throughout most of the weekend. It became salvageable with a great game night at our friend's house. Honestly how can you go wrong with home cooked food, decent boozes, and a competitive round of guys vs. ladies in Taboo ; ) Then we finished strong by having Sunday brunch @ Annie's downtown. Sprinkle in a little afternoon work around the house, and I think it came out to be a great weekend after all. I can't wait to the end of this week to see my mom, yay! I hope everyone has a great week!
Luv D
The pics below are of Annie's downtown. Sorry for no pictures of the food, but we were wrapped up in a conversation and before I knew it we were already done, oops. I thought about sneaking a picture of a stranger's plate for a second, but ultimately decided i didn't want to be the creepy l-phone camera lady, lol.

Mexican Sangria

picture curtsey of designsponge.com

  Today is all sorts of yuck. It's cold, wet and dreary outside. As you can see in my beautiful picture taken of our office parking lot today. Ugh, thank goodness these days are few and far between here in Austin.

 

 On days like this I tend to get a little home sick when I think about the awesome weather they have in my hometown of West Palm Beach, FL this time of year. For example, the picture I took below over Christmas break on a walk with my mom along Palm Beach.

So when I can't just hop onto my private jet and have my driver drop me off at the Breakers. I though everyone has these just waiting around?!( Just kidding!) The next best thing for me is to  get into a "tropical state of mind" instead. The best way I have found to do that is to have a drink  ( or two, ha ha). Responsibly of course ; )

This is a great twist on a go-to classic like Sangria.

Recipe and picture below from designsponge.com

Ingredients:
1 bottle of red wine
1 cup of tequila (I prefer to use 1800 Silver)
1/2 a cup of orange juice
1/2 a cup of brown  sugar
1/4 cup of fresh squeezed organic lime juice
1 sliced organic red apple  (and other fruit if you desire – raspberries, watermelon, oranges, mangos, etc)
Mixology:
In a pitcher mix the ingredients in the specific order listed above. Then add ice to chill.  The longer it sits in the pitcher the more flavorful it will be.  Using a little lime juice, give the glasses a nice brown-sugar rim and then serve and enjoy!
Happy Friday everyone- Luv D

If you ever come to Austin....

Good morning y’all! (see the Texan is slowly starting to come out of me, ha ha) Today I thought I’d share with you some information I put together recently for a sorority sister that is coming to visit this week.  You know- just in case you come to town and I’m not here, lol.

***Side note to a good friend - Beca I know you read this and this might make you a little homesick for the Austin, but these are all places you have already tried and loved. I am expecting  a new list about Hoboken, NJ  for Ricky and I to use when we come visit you , Eric, Mike and Lacy sometime this fall ;  )

When Ricky and I got married last September we made a small packet for all of our Out of Town  guests  of our favorite places and things to do around downtown Austin  ( we tried to make sure everyone got one; but if you didn’t I’m so sorry). We are both from South Florida and we knew that the majority of the wedding would be traveling into Austin from Florida. So here are a few of the  recommendations we gave out: 

P.S.  If you only want to explore a few things, and don’t really want to rent- try this place http://www.car2go.com/ (they allow you to rent a smart car by the hour and they are scattered all around downtown all you have to do is sign up and find any available one around you.)

Texas is well known for their barbeque and burgers, along with tex-mex food.

For barbeque:

1)      If you have a car and time then a small drive out to Lockhart, TX is A MUST. There are two establishments that have been there for over 40 years and are competitive family rivals, and it is arguably the best Texas barbeque in the state.

2)      If you need to stay around downtown then I suggest Ironworks or Franklin’s barbeque or Billy’s Barbeque and Brewery (but keep in mind Franklin’s is very,very, popular and they only serve "X" amount a day. They usually sell out within a few hours of opening and you can stand in line for up to two hours) I’ve honestly tried and failed a few times, but from what I’ve heard it is worth the time and effort.

For Tex- Mex:

1)      For the drivers out there Polvo’s is a personal favorite of Ricky and I, and it is roughly 5-7 min. cab drive from downtown. It is interior Mexican food and is delicious.

2)      Wahoo’s fish taco’s is really fresh, decently priced, and delicious

3)      Try Juan in Million if you want to stick to downtown. They have been featured on a few food channel shows, and they are priced really well for the amount of food you get.

( BTW you can pretty much grab breakfast tacos or tacos in general almost anywhere in Austin for a quick fix

Burgers:

1)      El Casino Casino el Camino is the best burger you will get downtown. Don’t be fooled by the weird interior, but make sure you are hungry because the burgers are HUGE.

2)      Sandy’s on Barton Springs Rd. is my personal favorite on a “hung over Saturday” It’s been there forever, and you can’t beat their $3.79 special of a burger fries and a drink.

 

If you are looking for a quick fix or can’t decide on somewhere to eat, then I highly recommend the Wholefood’s Flagship store on S. Lamar and 6^th Street. This is a go-to place for almost anything fresh and fast. They have a restaurant in every area of the store from barbeque, vegan, Italian, sushi, American grill, and a great pizza area.  Don’t let me get started on the whole Dessert section – I try to avoid it at all costs, ha ha.

For a swanky place to go for food and drinks look no further than La Condesa and Malverde. I may be bias because they hosted our rehearsal dinner, but they are one of the best restaurants/ bars in the city. 

 Brunch is also huge:

Moonshine is the best on my list for $15 all you can buffet.

Franks

Jo’s

For drinks and a cool atmosphere stick to either W. 6^th, the East side or Rainey St. Some of my favorites are:

Kung Fu Saloon

Key Bar

219 West

Shangr ila

Luster Pearl

Bar 96

The East Side Show Room

Cedar Door

 I may be showing my age here but east 6^th street is UT’s undergrad main area and it can just get a little annoying ( unless you are in the mood for body shots off coeds, then you are in the right area).

Food trucks are everywhere and are usually amazing. They mostly feature up and coming chefs that haven’t found a permanent home yet. East Side Trailer park is one of the best, and with a BYOB policy too.

Longest Post ever – to date, and I’m pretty sure if you made it to this point your thinking I should be work for commission on selling the city , ha ha. My theory is – if you are going to make a trip all the way out here then you better have an awesome time.

Luv- D

Happy Valentine's Day

I'm very sorry I've been kinda boring the past few days, but I will admit its been very nice.

Valentine's day is here, and it is our first as a married couple : ) That said, we are actually veterans since it is the 6th one we have shared together. I started the day off with making Ricky breakfast ( its been a tradition since we moved in together 4 years ago). I even squeezed in making my co workers flourless chocolate walnut cookies last night.
Every woman wants roses and a brand new F-150 on Valentine's Day right?!
Just kidding he is only trying it out; were not sure if it is right for us, but he totally through me threw a loop when he showed up in today. I hope everyone had a great day and felt loved! I'm truly blessed with a wonderful man- who sat through the movie "The Vow" without one complaint ; ) Happy Valentine's Day!
-Luv D

Weekend Wrap Up

Friday we to headed out to Ricky's parents house in Houston, TX. We didn't have anything planed in particular, but it was a nice to just hang out and be with family : ) I hope you all had a great weekend as well! P.s. it will be snowing in Austin t/m!

Austin loves to keep things local

Austin is a whole other world when it comes to eating local. Oh its not just that it's all local, but everyone is really into being "green" as well.  I'm sure its a growing trend everywhere, but it seems to have caught on really fast here. Every where I look food is described as , free range , locally grown, or gluten free. 

One example of this is the place Ricky and I went to for lunch today. It's called Foodheads, and it was beyond delicious. Of course all the bread is brought in daily from a local baker, the meats are free range and organic, and the veggies are all organic and local too, ha ha. 

This place is located on West 35th Street just north of UT campus near the Hyde Park 

area of Austin.

This is Ricky's plate which was a pulled pork sandwich with the avocado on the side and the regular side of homemade coleslaw.

This was my plate it was half a pressed sandwich with mozzarella, spinach, and salami with a cup of sausage and rice gumbo and a side of homemade potato salad.

needless to say we were beyond stuffed and most likely will have a very light dinner because of this ; )

Have a great day! Luv- Di

Grilled Chicken Parmesan

This is a really easy go- to recipe for my house. Ricky is a little particular about what I cook especially if I go the healthy route, but he never complains about this healthy dish : )
It's fairly simple you just need the following:
Grill (duh but just a freindly)
aluminum foil
2 chicken breasts
3 tomatoes
1/2 white onion
3-4 garlic cloves minced
Italian seasoning ( 2 tablespoons, I have mix already made)
salt & pepper ( for seasoning in taste 1-2 teaspoons)
olive oil  ( 2-3 tablespoons)
light mozzarella cheese for garnishing 2-4 oz.
whole wheat angle hair past ( optional side) 1/2 box


I'll be honest I'm not the first one to share recipes. I usually improvise certain recipes I find online,  and cook with whatever I find on hand at home. So please feel free to add whatever you want to make this recipe your own, and don't hesitate to ask any questions that come up.

First you will need to pre heat the grill . Next, dice the tomatoes and onions and mix together in a bowl. Then add the Italian seasoning , minced garlic, and roughly around 2 tablespoons of olive oil and mix them all together..

The next part is tricky because you need to packaged the mix in aluminum foil so that  it will all steam cook on the grill while the Chicken is grilling.  Basically you pull a 11 X 14 sheet of aluminum out; then fold up the sides slightly (about an inch) and pile the mixture into the center of the sheet. Then you will fold over the sides and basically wrap the mixture in there so that it can sit on the grill shelf as pictured below.

Once this is on the grill try not to move it as much as possible because the foil can be fragile and can easily get punctured ( juice goes every where and it's super messy- just trust me on this one) This should stay on the grill for at least 15 - 20 mins.

Next up is the easiest part, the chicken. I go really simple with preparing the chicken because all the flavor will be in the steamed tomatoes and onion mix. I simply sprinkle a little salt and pepper on each side of the breasts and add a little (for all you Rachel Ray fans) EVOO to each side since I was out Pam's grilling spay to keep them from sticking.

Sometimes the chicken takes a little longer than the veggies and other times I keep the veggies on the grill a little longer after I've taken the chicken off. It just depends, and so you need to watch them both.


Once the chicken is done, then I layer a few thin slices of mozzarella cheese on top of them and let it melt.  AND YOUR DONE! I also make a small pot of whole wheat pasta to mix in with the steamed veggies and chicken. Enjoy!

Tabbedout App

Hey-o!

As  Monday rolls around I'm usually already thinking about this Friday's happy hour ; )

For the past few weekends I've been trying out this awesome I-Phone app called "Tabbedout". 

I will be honest I was very skeptical at first, but it turned out to be pretty cool. So I figured why not share it with you because I end up saving 5 or 6 bucks every time I use it.

Basically you are opening and closing a Tab at a restaurant/ bar with your cell phone. You never give your card to the bar tender, and you can close your tab at any time- even if you left the place hours ago. The really cool thing about it is you can you also redeem offers  like this one listed below:

"Spend $4 and get $3 off"

We lucked out and last Friday had an offer of spend $6 get $5 off plus if you spend up to to $12 you get off you get another $7 off of your original bill. So with 2 rounds of drinks for Ricky and I plus one extra I owed a friend and adding in tip I actually  spent $12.00 - IT WAS AWESOME! ( I was so excited for this easy way to save that I was actually looking for places to use it at -just so I could use it ha ha) It's an Austin based company, so I can't promise it can be used in your town yet. But keep a look out because it's a really easy way to save money you were already going to spend.

G Love and Special Sauce Concert

    Originally I purchased the tickets for last night's concert as a surprise gift for Ricky, but he was invited to go skiing in Colorado with some family the same weekend. Who could pass up an offer to go to Bever Creek, right? I wasn't able to take off work so I had to stay at home : (

 Well it turns out that this concert happened to fall on the same weekend as my friends Katie, Melanie, and Leah's birthday! So long story short- the "concert night" became the "Birthday Bash /Concert Celebration" and it was a lot of fun ; )

We stated the night easy with a few drinks and appetizers at 219 west

Then we made a short pit stop at one of my favorite bars in downtown Austin- Kung Fu Saloon for a quick round of celebratory drinks ( the venue is pricey so we wanted to drink up before we walked over) And of course play a round of life size Jenga

The concert was sooo much fun; G Love and Special sauce were awesome! 

P. S. I was missing the Hubby a little, but I'm picking him up today, yay! 

Happy Super Sunday to everyone : )

Love-Di

Downtown food trailers

Ok, so a few of you already now that I've been talking about doing this blog for a few weeks now. I've thrown every excuse out there on why I've postponed it, but really there isn't a great reason.  The real reason behind this blog is because I want a better way to share my life with our friends and family across the US. But  I just find it kinda strange to type out parts of my life for all the world to read .... BUT IN A GOOD WAY, I SWEAR! I know this will become easier over time; so please hang in there with me while I get the hang of this whole blogging thing ; )


     So recently I've been craving Cuban Cuisine (way more than usual), and seriously that same day I received an offer in my email inbox for a new food trailer downtown that was called " Miguels's  TheCubano". It was fate I tell you! Not only will i get rid of this crazy craving, but I'll get it half off too (Score!)Well this place's hours are hard to follow,and I've tried over 3 times to use this groupon- only to find them closed. I was starting to get a little irritated when last night - IT WAS FINALLY OPEN! I could have seriously ordered the whole menu, it all looked so delicious, but I stuck to my little groupon budget. We weren't sure what to expect- we have been fooled many time here in central texas ( yea I'm talking to you Texan Cuban on South Lamar). But it was all delicious, and we will definately be back again- especially since they are right next to bars and open to til 3am on Fridays and Saturday ,lol.
I hope you all have a good weekend! I"ll post the G-Love concert on Sunday!
Luv- D

West 7th & Trinity