Marlow's Booty

I Heart Southwest Airlines

Besides offering cheaper airfare than most other airlines, here's another reason why I like Southwest.

NYC/Princeton 2009

Last week Chris and I got the chance to fly out to Brooklyn for 5 days for the purpose of visiting my cousins, Sam and Karen. Sam works for JP Morgan and has the lifestyle of a busy corporate employee working downtown Manhattan and Karen is getting her doctorate at Princeton. They have an apartment in Brooklyn and a place in Princeton, too, so I tell people that they have a 'city' and 'country' home. :) It was fun to see inside their lives; where they live, their local restaurants, what they do on weekends, etc. All four of us try to get together once a year and we hope to continue this tradition.

We've learned that the way we travel is by designating the food we want and visiting the attractions near those restaurants. We see this pattern in our travels to Europe and Asia, too, and it was no different in the Big Apple. Both Chris and I had been to New York before, so we were less interested in doing the more touristy things and instead wanted to just 'see what we see' and see where each day would take us. This resulted in lots of good eating and some fun experiences. Some highlights of our trip include: going to our first Yankees game at the new stadium, visiting Papabubble, checking out Brooklyn's flea market, hanging out and playing cards with the cousins, visiting Chris's childhood homes in New Jersey, getting our fill of NY style pizza, bagels, black-n-white cookies, and a few really nice meals, and walking to most of the major Broadway theaters in hopes of finding some affordable show tickets (but to no avail).

All in all, it was a fun getaway and a much needed reprieve from daily life in Austin. Some refer to this trip as our "babymoon" where we were able to have our last big trip before the baby comes, which is probably true.

Easter

The weekend was fun and our little house was packed with 6 people total. Chris's family came down and spent the weekend with us and we loved taking them around Austin to do things, playing cards, and of course, eating. Here are a few snapshots. More to come.

Happy Birthday to Amanda

She's 27 today and deserves at least that many hugs.

Don't You Know I've Always Loved You?

Last week I made the most delicious key lime pie that I have ever tasted. And I am picky with what I would categorize as one of my all time favorite desserts. Hand squeezing two pounds of key limes definitely proved to be worth the effort, as well as adding zest into the filling and some almonds to the normal graham cracker crust. I love the tart creaminess of key lime pies, so I made it doubly-thick than most recipes. It was superb. I would definitely recommend making it. At least once a year I get a hankering for key lime pie and now I've found the recipe to whom I will forever be faithful.

Funny

Sometimes he's photogenic. Sometimes he's not.

But he's still my sweet Marlow.

Dear Spring,

You’re a great season. In fact, you’re my favorite season of all. Something about the dogwood, red bud, and crape myrtle blossoms dotting my neighborhood, and the barely warm evening sun just makes me want to squeeze you with gratitude.

Great job with all the tulips. Excellent work with all the sweet peas. Don’t even get me started on the asparagus…. wow!

There’s just a few things I thought you might consider… just in the interest of being the best season ever, and kicking every other season right in the backside.

First, your color palette. Have you ever considered switching it up? All the pastels remind me of bad baby shower party games. Plus, you’re edgier than that, Spring. Show those other seasons what’s what. Have you considered a fresh neon palate? It might work wonders for your image.

Second, can you please work on making purple the new grey this season?

Lastly, every year when you come to town, I end up in the candy aisle at the grocery store buying giant bags of chocolate egg-shaped candies. After I’ve mistakenly made these chocolate goodies a meal, I’m forced the throw the remainder in the trash and pour dish soap on them, keeping myself from sleep-eating them in the middle of the night. While this may seem like more of a personal issue, your attention to this matter would still be much appreciated.

* What a cute letter. Written by Joy the Baker.

Janelle's Baby Shower

This weekend I helped host my friend's baby shower. She is due May 17th with a boy and we are so excited for her. It was fun hosting with others and we feel like we should do it as a business together. :)

We decided to do a dessert shower and serve only sweets. It was fun baking for a friend instead of a client. Italian Cream Cake, Truffles, Mini Cheesecakes, Lemon Bars and Coffee Punch.

With the lovely hostesses (with the mostesses!)