July 15, 2012 by Andrea

Food

We got very lucky in Edinburgh and found an awesome Turkish Cafe for breakfast. Cafe Truva had an assortment of breakfast options, which works really well for a picky eater like me, and excellent coffee. I fully admit to being a coffee snob so when I find a place that makes a really good mocha (with melted, good quality chocolate) I’m a fan. On our last day there, we had limited time and decided, rather than see the palace, we would find a cheese shop. The gentleman running the cafe told us about a good cheese shop near the grass market, but it was not walking distance in the time we had. (well, not to get there, find said cheese shop, get back to the hotel, check out and get to the airport). We decided to check out and catch a cab to the grass market area and try to find the shop. We did (thanks to a great cab driver who knew about where it was) and we ended up with five different cheeses that we carried back to the US. Needless to say the last couple of days have been filled with cheese dishes. We did the above picture with home made bread, a tomato and cheese crust less quiche (not pretty enough to post a picture of) and a summer salad with shaved cheese.

Part of this comes from Bob deciding that he wants to loose weight. I’m not sure why as I think he is just about perfect as is, but it is his body and comfort level so ok. However, when he started talking about eliminating all kinds of food that I love … well … I we needed to talk. Before we left for our trip we talked about it, and now that we are back, I’m making an effort to support his effort. He wants to go to something called “slow carb” eating, but when I look at what you can’t have on it, my brain and stomach yell “nooooooo”.

So we look for a compromise. I’ll eliminate a lot of the grains, and processed foods (which includes soda which will be hard for Bob). I’m ok with limiting the grains and starches, but I’m not ok with eliminating so many foods that I pretty much can’t eat. (and since I do the cooking, I’m going to cook things I can eat.). We’ll start slow and see how that goes. I’ll get my dessert fixes out or when he isn’t around, and cook with lean meats and more vegetables. I even had a whole day of no meat and he didn’t care – really, goat cheese quiche and summer salad is not a bad way to eat. And I now have some lovely Scottish and English cheeses to work with for the next few weeks so we should both be happy.

This weeks menus includes chicken with braised kale, pork chops with kohlrabi and apple slaw, baked goat cheese salad and quinoa strawberry “salad”. If any of them turn out picture worthy, (and tasty) I’ll post pictures and recipes.

Until then! Hope everyone has a great week.

July 12, 2012 by Andrea

And We Are Back

We made it back. After a week of travel and adventure, it was lovely to sleep in our own bed with a few furry creatures happy to see us and just a little bit clingy. Bob and I both commented that this is the first time we have ever gone away for a full week and were not dying to get home by the last day – we could have stayed another day or two and been perfectly fine.

The trip back was a little more eventful than the trip over. Plane delays and what ended up as a tight connection was a little trying. The biggest delay came at Passport Control at JFK. Let me state, for the record, the people working at Passport Control, Customs and Security were wonderful, kind, patient and incredibly professional people. Every person we interacted with was polite, articulate and calm, which is more than I can say for some of the passengers they had to deal with. The first problem came with several international flights (5 I think) all landed at roughly the same time. Flight delays can screw up people, and this was no different. Because we did not have a “tight” connection (3 hours) we were in the general line. Those that had to rebook due to the very late (5 hour delay from Denmark) or those that had a 2 hour or less connection were taken first. I applaud this even as others grumbled about it. It took us about an hour and a half (not bad considering the circumstances) to clear passport control and mere minutes to clear customs and security. But then came finding our gate. We had one gate listed; got there, it moved; got to that gate and it changed again. I think we had three gate changes in JFK and they were not exactly close to each other.

But … we are home and the pets are hanging around us today. Mom and Dad are coming up for lunch and my entire plan is to post pictures from the trip in a gallery page. Well, that and help the lizard Tigger just brought in escape. Welcome Home indeed!

Emmie and I have a plan (which we think makes the boys nervous, but hey – that’s our job). We are both going to attempt to learn French (she has a much better shot at this than I do, but I’m going to try it) and then we are going to plan next year’s trip to Belgium. Bob and Brad are allowed to attempt the French also, but if they choose not to, we will just talk about them in French and smile mischievously from time to time.

July 10, 2012 by Andrea

Edinburgh

Note: I had to create this post in a few stages due to no Internet connection at the hotel. So … some if the pictures are not exactly with the text, but the general idea is still there.

Edinburgh is one of my favorite cities in the world. It ranks right up there with Washington D.C. for me; while Bob appears to like the city, he is slightly less inclined to move to a place where the summer month still require a coat and sweaters. That and the whole "find a job" thing keeps us on Florida (and furry creatures that would not take a move well).

The trip to Edinburgh was a bit more eventful than I would have hoped. There were several exits closed on the M4 (I think that was the road) and then came trying to figure out Heathrow. We traveled on one airline, but apparently the flight was taken over by British Airways, so we needed to check in with them – which I did not know until a very nice gentleman told us. Then the information board told us to "wait in Gate 8," which we did (and were able to watch the remainder of the Wimbledon finals) but then it changed to "boarding at Gate 84" without warning. It didn't help that the sign indicated it is a 10 minute walk to gate 84 and boarding closes in 7 minutes. We were fine, but for someone who is compulsive about time, this was not good.

The rain also followed us to Edinburgh. It was clear and sunny until Monday when we arrived and managed to rain most of the day. Not hard enough to deter us, but enough that I know it is raining and cold (yes, I am a wimp). However, despite the dreary conditions, we managed to walk to Edinburgh Castle and enjoy the sights for a few hours. There were lots of people there, more than I remember from the last trip, but not so bad that you could not see anything. And, as I told Bob before coming here, the views from the castle are simply amazing.

We also strolled through the Crown Jewels of Scotland exhibit. While there were some lovely pieces, I do contend my ruby wedding ring beats the ruby ring of the crown jewels. Hands down, no competition. And yes, I am biased on this.

We also trekked to the Royal Botanical Gardens. I love gardens (D.C. has one of my favorite) and could wander them for hours. In this case, we wandered for quite a long time to get there as the gardens are not exactly in the tourist section of town. But … the trek was well worth it. There was an amazing Chinese garden and pond, a lovely Alpine flower display, a berch wall and, most impressive, the Queen Mum's Garden.

This is a tribute garden dedicated to the Queen Mother and it contains some of the most beautiful flower displays. I don't have a picture of the overall garden due to the loud, obnoxious, running and screaming teenagers that were there the entire time. But I did managed some lovely picture of the flowers. Just not one of the garden in it's entirety.

After the trek to and from the gardens, (uphill both ways in cold and rain, so Toby, you are never again allowed to complain about the 50 blocks in New York) we were ready for a nice meal. We had reservations at the North Bridge Brassier. I had looked around for good food options that a) had a nice wine selection, b) were in the city itself, c) had good reviews and d) were open Monday evenings. I came up with this one and hoped the food would be good. It did not disappoint. I will say, however, that (as much as it pains me to say it) Bob may have won the best plate of the evening award. I'm not saying he did, just that he may have. My dish was good, but had the chicken not been there, and I just had a plate of the accompanying food, I would have been a happy girl. Bob's pork belly on the other hand, was the star of his plate. Well seasoned, cooked to perfection and so good he did not want the meal to end. I felt that way about my dessert. Really, how can you go wrong with dark chocolate, marshmallow cream and yummy goodness in one cup? Answer – you can't.

While we may not be moving to Edinburgh any time soon, it is on the list for visiting again. I'm just hoping it does not take another decade to get back here.

Gallery July 8, 2012 by Andrea

Isle of Wight

This gallery contains 19 photos.

Saturday was our adventure day. We managed to get everyone up and out of the house early for a drive to Southampton(?) where we caught the ferry to the isle. Brad, Emmie and Logan did fine on the ferry while Bob and I were a little on the seasick side. It may not have been […]

July 6, 2012 by Andrea

Oxford

Today was Oxford. We headed out in a typical English mist and our sense of direction proved … interesting … yet again. We did manage to wander around the town center a bit

And then headed to the Bodleian library (didn’t go in ’cause we are just not special enough).

Emmie and I were trying to figure out how to sneak in and pay homage to the books, but we opted for lunch insteadBob and I did pay our respects to Mr. Shakespeare.

However, between the rain, which decided to be more Florida heavy rain than British mist, and needing to pick Logan up from school, we headed back to the homestead. We eagerly anticipate dinner this evening at The Crown as Brad has regaled us with vivid descriptions of the wonderful food.

Tomorrow … Isle of Wight where Emmie and I plan to play in armor and fire cannons.

July 6, 2012 by Andrea

England

After two brief delays that did not really delay us (airline flight time estimations baffle me) we arrived safe and sound in England. First delay was due to lightning in the area and the second was because lightning had hit the plane we were suppose to come across the Atlantic in. Not bad reasons for delays and we still managed to land within 30 minutes of our scheduled arrival time.

Brad and Emmie gave us the grand tour of the new home and it is incredibly easy to see why they love it here. Just a clue …

This is next door. Horses, rabbits and not much else. The countryside is beautiful and peaceful. Emmie took me to pick up Logan from school, and even though I just saw the outside of the building, I was slightly jealous that his school has fewer students than my caseload. Sigh.

As you can see from below, England seems to be agreeing with Logan.

I believe we are off to Oxford today. More posts to come.

July 4, 2012 by Andrea

Nine Years

Nine years can seem like a very long time, or it can fly by in an instant. While parts of the last nine years seem forever ago, mostly the memories are in a time crunch in my mind and seem so very recent.

This week is nine years that I have had Jessie. I found her at the Arlington Humane Society with Aunt Dolly and Amilcar (It was drizzling and we changed from sight-seeing in DC to checking out the dogs at the shelter that day) and I still remember seeing her laying in the pen, looking very sad and not barking. We played with her in the yard a little, checked how she did with cats, and knew then and there that she was my dog. The hardest part was leaving her at the shelter until they could check out my house the next day – but I was able to bring her home before the 4th of July and she has been my dog (no questions about it) ever since.

Jessie and I have been few a few changes in these nine years – from one old cat to three kittens, from a condo in Virginia to a townhouse in Jersey to a house in Florida. We’ve gone from walking 3-4+ miles in a day to 1-2 miles in a day; she has gone from a single “parent” household, to “mom” doing the long distance relationship, to a two “parent” household. She has gotten use to sharing her side of the bed. With all the changes, she is still my sweet, sweet puppy, even at ten(ish) years old.

On a totally different topic, I saw an allergist this week. A woman I work with had been told she had a wheat allergy a decade ago. So, no pasta, no bread, no ice cream cones, no pizza, no anything with wheat in it for ten years. She was still having some issues so her doctor recommended a different allergist; lots of talking and a few tests later – she isn’t allergic to wheat at all. This got me thinking. For years I have thought (never tested) that I cannot eat fish or shellfish. I consume BBQ sauce with anchovies in it, I get sick; I eat Pad Thai, I get very sick, Caesar salad – you guessed it. But I have been very good about avoiding seafood for twenty years (with those few exceptions) so what if the seafood isn’t really the problem? So … off to the allergist I went and …. they did 18 different seafood tests. 18. And the results … no true allergy. I had a slight reaction to some of the fish, but nothing that is even close to an allergic reaction. Now, anchovies … there is no test for. But, we are going to get some of those little fishies and the doctor’s office will create their own test. So for now … I can experiment a little with shellfish (apparently totally safe) and maybe a little with some fish here and there. I’m starting slow (in case mom’s theory of not having an enzyme to digest it is the correct answer to this puzzle). But I’m pretty excited – I can possibly eat seafood again – Epipen in hand just in case the test is wrong and I have another reaction to the stuff!

Happy 4th of July!

July 1, 2012 by Andrea

Vacation Preparations

We began the travel preparations today with packing the check in bag for Brad and Emmie. This contains the “can’t find in England” stuff and some liquids. Today it contained another surprise -Gracie. Apparently she wants to head across the pond also.

I’m not sure Delta would be too happy if we packed the cat; realistically she is the only one who could go with us, but I’m pretty sure trans-Atlantic travel with Gracie is not my idea of relaxing. And she would be in quarantine longer than we will be in England, so not such a good idea. Now to convince little miss Gracie of this. … I think she heard about the horses and decided Ren should not be the only one having fun.

Sixteen Paws

The random adventures of Andi, Bob, and four furry creatures

Monthly Archives: July 2012