Back on the Boat

When I asked Jackson what he wanted to do this summer, the first thing he said was take a glass bottom boat tour. We did this a couple years ago and I guess the memory really stayed with him.

I love how he loves nature. Olivia does too, in spite of the serious side-eye she's giving in this pic.

Observing.

See the turtle?

Bubbling springs.

Vegetation. 

Scuba diving class.

The water was so blue.

It was a nice boat ride. For dinner I made some veggie sandwiches. I saw a daily special on Easy Tiger's Facebook page that looked good, but I knew we would not make it down there to sample it. So I decided to create my own version. Ciabatta bread with avocado, radishes, mixed greens, and chimichurri sauce. Anything is good with chimichurri. Hit the spot.

Pretzel Date

Recently my parents agreed to watch Jackson and Olivia for a few hours so Tony and I could have a meal together. We headed downtown to Easy Tiger, a bakery/beergarden.

Literally a wall of bread. Be still my heart.

We each had a giant pretzel. Oh carbs. How I love you.

It was nice to sit and chat with my handsome husband over a couple of beers, about exciting adult topics such as getting our air-conditioning repaired.

Afterwards, walked around and enjoyed the constantly-changing wall art around 6th St.

Aww, friendly wasabi.

We also saw this. Yard art, or hoarding? Sometimes you can't tell.

On our way home, we stopped by Capital City Bakery to pick up some blueberry cheesecake and a lemon bar.

The kids were good for Grandma and Grandad, yay! 

10 Years

Tony and I recently celebrated our 10-year wedding anniversary. Since the actual date fell on a weeknight, we just relaxed at home with Jackson and Olivia and did some reminiscing about the past decade-plus (we've been together 12 years total.)  We were practically babies when we met. And now look at us, so mature. Ha!

After being married for this long, Tony knows what makes me happy...

 And it seems I know him pretty well, too...

I got him a Himalayan salt lamp, seen here being cradled like a precious, tiny baby. He was just a little excited about his present. Supposedly, these lamps help with allergies. They also look really cool.

Because my husband is actually Hank Hill, I also got him a smoker for the grill. How romantic! We will try it out soon.

When the weekend arrived, we got a sitter and went out. First we dined at Fino, a fancy tapas restaurant. We started out with some cocktails. I don't recall what was in mine, but it was lemony and refreshing.

For an appetizer we had a plate of marcona almonds, manchego cheese, olives and pickles.

Next we had muhumarra and pita bread. I made my own muhumarra not too long ago, and Fino's tasted really similar. It's a dip made with walnuts, red bell pepper, and pomegranate syrup. Yum. The pita was incredible. It was served hot, and it was super light and puffy. I love it when restaurants take the time to make their own pita bread.

After finishing off the dip, Tony had a bowl of gazpacho. I loooooove gazpacho when it's hot out and tomatoes are in season. Fino's was excellent.

I had a fattoush salad, with lettuce, red onion, cherry tomatoes, big chunks of cucumber, and croutons made from toasted pita. The za'atar dressing made it unique and memorable. If you haven't tried za'atar spice blend, I recommend seeking it out. I'm not sure how to describe the flavor -- kind of tangy and savory I guess. It's made from dried sumac and sesame seeds.

So that was our dinner...we could have easily stayed longer and eaten more, but we wanted a change of scenery before heading home. On our way out, I noticed this awesome metal coffee table/black and white rug combination on Fino's patio. I don't know what I'm currently more obsessed with -- Moroccan decor or chevrons.

Our second destination was Easy Tiger, a bakery/beer garden in downtown Austin. There, we drank some beers and shared a ginormous pretzel. Oh, how I love a good crusty, chewy pretzel.

A lovely evening with my love. Hopefully many more of these to come.