Fondue It Again Soon

Yesterday I went to Central Market for their annual Hail to the Cheese event. While there I really wanted to pick up some great cheeses and what better to do with cheese than make fondue. I picked out a great Emmentaler Swiss and French Gruyere. I also picked up the ingredients for a chocolate desert fondue.

When it was time to create the fondue, I started chopping up the bread and Ryan grated all of the cheese. He then got out our fondue pot only to realize that we had lost the cord that you must have to plug the fondue pot in. We decided that we had already prepped dinner so we headed out to buy a new pot. Luckily after an hour of searching, we found the exact same fondue pot and just used the cord. Not the cheapest option, but definitely the only option so that we could have fondue that night.

We ended up eating some of the best fondue I have ever had, and we frequent Melting Pot, so that is saying a lot. The only thing that would have made the fondue night better would be if Central Market had had dark chocolate chips instead of milk chocolate. Overall it was an awesome fondue date night!

3 Posts In One Day...

because vodka deserves it's own post!

When picking up another bottle of Ryan's Sweet Tea Vodka so he could make what he has dubbed a John Daley, I decided to pick out a bottle of something I would like. I ran across this amazing looking Madagascar Vanilla Vodka. I figured that it would go great with Coke Zero and boy was I right. It tastes amazing. I am not going to lie, I also fell in love with the packaging. The bottle was so elegant looking and I loved the anchor top closure. So good!

On A Happier Note...Soup!

Recently, Ryan made some chicken enchiladas for his department at work. That left us with leftover, homemade chicken stock and shredded chicken. At the store this week we bought some flat noodles, carrots and celery. Now all of the aforementioned ingredients have been processed and are brewing away in our kitchen. The house smells great and I can't wait to try it!

LGBT Is Not a Dirty Word

The lack of respect for those who are different that the majority in our society sickens me. Today I attended a business event representing the Christian non-profit I work for. Our table at the event was set up right next to the company's LGBT table. I was shocked when one of the corporate employees came up and said "Wow. I can't believe they put your table next to that one" in a very derogatory tone. I was appalled when yet another employee did the same thing referencing that being LGBT is somehow wrong.

Now I fully get that I could have misunderstood these comments to be that as a Christian organization we must not like LBGT people instead of the employee thinking it was wrong. But either way I am incensed.

I am a Christian but I support LBGT persons 110%. I fully believe that God made them differently and that no one would choose to be something that got them harassed, mocked or even killed.

With the recent suicides of persons from the LBGT community, I was of course saddened, but didn't think much more of it. I figured that they were isolated incidents with tragic consequences. Having many gay friends though, I am now even more upset by the fact that it seems intolerance is prevalent in our society. I felt that we had come a long way since the times of slavery and maltreatment of people who are different, but it is beginning to feel like the change is simply a 360 degree one.

Lake Park Night Course

Ryan had a lot of homework to do this past weekend, so I didn't think we would have any time to do anything together. About 4pm, Ryan decided he wanted to go golfing. Great thing about living in Lewisville is that there is a night course right next to our house.

Lake Park is a small, 9 hole par 3 course, but it was a lot of fun. No, it wasn't because I beat Ryan. Let me say that again...I beat Ryan. I just really enjoyed it because as a beginning golfer, Par 3s are a great way to learn. I feel that in just the few times that I have played, about 7 times now, I have gotten a lot better. I am feeling more confident about holding my own on the course and not slowing others up. I think that I am starting to hit my clubs an appropriate length and sometimes the ball even goes where I want it to.

I really like golf. Shhhh...don't tell Ryan. Now don't get me wrong, I still like tennis and basketball much more, just because they are a different kind of physical. But a love for golf is kinda creeping up on me. Who knew that something I begrudgingly took up would be something I actually ended up truly enjoying.

Bloglet Blogging Day

Today I have decided to create a blog filled with bloglets. This means that I have a grouping of small things to share that are totally unrelated. Let's go.

Nut-Thins

When Ryan and I went over to the Coker's home they had something similar to these crackers, if not the same ones, at their house. Trying to be more healthy, I decided to search them out to see if they would be a good replacement for the Low Sodium Wheat Thins I usually eat. Needless to say they were next to impossible to find. They don't carry them at most grocery stores (Market Street, Kroger and Tom Thumb). I did finally find them at Albertsons and boy was it worth it. These crackers are gluten free and oh so good. I highly recommend them!

Sweet Tea Vodka

Ryan has been talking a lot about getting some Sweet Tea Vodka ever since he had an alcoholic Arnold Palmer at Pappadeaux. I didn't like it very much, but I think it was just because the ratio of lemonade to Sweet Tea Vodka was off. Anyway, I was surprised with the seemingly endless flavors of vodka they had at the liquor store. They even had Cotton Candy vodka. I wonder if a Cotton Candy martini would taste good?

Blood Fingers

On Thursday night Ryan's mom was in town so we went to dinner with her at Hackberry Creek Country Club. Since she works a lot with children's television stations, she always has little promos that she shares with us. This time it was these bloody finger gummies with strawberry blood sauce. I am wondering why this would ever be popular. I guess for younger boys maybe. If you were wondering, I tried one of the fingers and they tasted awful!

Black Ties and Lullabies

My mom's newest book, "Black Ties and Lullabies", titled by me and Ryan of course, has just come out in an advanced reading copy. I am excited to get the chance to read it before it hits shelves in the near future!

Go Mean Green!

The most exciting news for last. Ryan has been accepted to UNT to start classes in the Spring! I am so proud and I know he will do great!

Another Golf Sunday

Ryan and I finally had time to make it out to the course today. Ryan decided we would make a tee time at Hackberry Creek Country Club. It was a really pretty course and fun to play too. I had only ever been in the HCCC clubhouse, so getting out on the course was nice. Beautiful!

We ended up pairing with a nice guy named Jeff. Jeff was about our age, a member of the club and an actuary. He was a much better golfer than Ryan and I, but he was very sweet, so we had a fun day anyway.

After playing 9, Ryan and I went in to get some dinner. Hackberry has one of the best chefs around. I had these amazing shrimp tacos, Ryan had an ahi tuna salad and we both had some beers. It was all excellent! We also got to watch a bit of the Cowboys game, even though they ended up losing.

I really missed playing golf, so I was happy that Ryan finally was able to go! Poor guy is always so busy with school and work, I'm glad he was able to have a relaxing Sunday off.

Busy!

Life has been crazy busy lately. It is so hard to even write about because so much has been going on that it has all run together. Some of the highlights are as follows. Back when Ryan and I went out to dinner with the Cokers, Taylor showed me a new bracelet she had just gotten at Stonebriar Country Club. It is called a Power Balance bracelet. Now let me say that I believe the PB Bracelets are a complete hoax. I think all of the balance and flexibility tests are a joke. Having said that, I think that if you believe in anything it will work, even though the object itself has no "magical powers". Having said that, I am doing my best to believe in the bracelet.



Yesterday I spent a lot of my day at Doctor's Hospital spending time with my grandfather. Unfortunately he was rushed to the hospital early yesterday morning with chest pains. The good news is that all of the tests have come back normal, so he should be going home today. It was fun getting to see and hang out with him. We played Wheel of Fortune on my iPhone and I got to share some pictures with him too. I love him!

Finally, Ryan and I just booked the hotel for our one year anniversary. I am excited! We will be staying at the same hotel as we did one year ago after our wedding. We will be going to dinner at one of the clubs that night. Also, and most exciting, we will be seeing the newest Harry Potter movie, as it comes out that same weekend. Yes, we are nerds. Nerds in love!