three

not too long ago, T and i had an amazingly friend-filled weekend getting to see some of our most favorite friends. the weekend kicked off with a wine dinner with cat who was briefly in town for a visit. it was the perfect opportunity to try out another recipe in my french cookbook, sample armagnac (which is similar to cognac or brandy), taste wines, and catch up...aka a friyay night done right. 

[m. jacques' armagnac chicken aka the most heavenly and comforting dish]

[a cozy meal and loads of wine]

saturday night we celebrated candace and alysha's birthdays at some of our favorite okc spots. and while we love getting to see our tulsa friend gang in my hometown, it was so much fun showing them our local watering holes. there were loads of laughs, great cocktails, and funky locations to visit. 

[late night happy hour]

[hanging with my favorite redheads aka the birthday gals]

sunday we closed the weekend out with a bang at a gospel blues brunch with m+j. the music and vocals were amazing, the food and cocktails were dynamite, and we of course love any chance to hang with our couple bffs. 

[loved their singing]

[one of the tastiest crab cake benedicts]

vintage wine bar

for T's birthday last month, he had one request: to enjoy a great bottle of wine while listening to blues music. sadly, i couldn't quite get the blues part to work out (sadly, we are in the wrong state for regular blues music), but i could make sure the wine could happen. to help substitute for the lack of his music request, i went for a venue that was something out of a classic, modern 70s cocktail lounge...enter, vintage wine bar.

T and i were huge fans of its original location, vintage 1740, and couldn't wait to see what their new location and concept would be like. the setting was perfectly made for what we were looking for - chic, cozy, and relaxed. their selection of cocktails was just as inventive and enticing as their original location. their varieties of wines by the glass or bottle were mouth-watering. and last, but not least, the service was attentive, warm, and friendly. while the location and look had changed, T and i were pleasantly surprised everything else that we loved about their original location had remained. 

[the wine vault]

[a very happy birthday gent]

this visit, we opted for a bottle of chenin blanc (which was a-mazing by the way) that was paired with a killer cheese tray. fun fact, i am not a bleu cheese fan by any means. however, after the manager enticed me with a bleu cheese he paired with our wine selected, i am a fan! well, maybe not of all bleu cheeses, but that one i'd have again and again. in fact, everything on our cheese tray was a perfect compliment to our wine. i couldn't get over how much it opened up new flavors for our varietal. 

[impromptu fireworks for the birthday gent]

thanks again vintage wine bar for treating us to quite the birthday celebration and we cannot wait to return!

year four

this year, our fourth year of marriage, is technically our golden anniversary as we are now married the number of years for the day we got married. weird and awesome, right? when i told T, he said, what what?! that's awesome! 

if i had to use one word to describe our year, it would be growth. this past year has been a huge year in our personal lives and has led to a lot of growth within each other as individuals as well as growth within our relationship as a couple (aka team). the saying goes that "marriage is work" which is true, but more importantly, marriage is good work. and this past year, we've put in good work into our marriage. 

i love you more than ever, and can't wait to celebrate us this weekend. 

[first moments alone and taking it all in]

[i just love this photo]

[showing off that bling!]

hello there!

happy october everyone! holy cow, i did not realize it had been an entire month since i last made a blog post. truthfully, it seemed like it had only been a week, tops. then, i looked at the date of my last post and realized my internal calendar for posting was way off. i have a feeling this may be mostly due to T and i adjusting to our new classes we are taking this semester...they are intense to say the least. so, if anything, september was a month of adjusting our schedules; finding new ways to balance with food, life, mental health, breaks, etc; and settling into the semester of dense content these courses have set out for us. the month of october is more than welcomed in our home as i feel like we are bit by bit getting into a better, healthier routine. 

to start back into writing in my little nook of the blogisphere, i was recently inspired by this twitter feed on simple pleasures in life. so, to keep this cozy feeling going, i wanted to share some of my simple pleasures. 

watching butterflies dance in our garden

a day's work over...especially a rewarding or satisfying day

the quiet that falls over town at the first snow

saying ricochet for a legitimate reason

the twitching of my dogs' noses

warm apple cider on a crisp fall day

seeing a puppy's excitement for everything on a walk

warm afternoon light in a cozy chair

scratching T's beard

okc zoo

[snacktime]

saturday afternoon, T and i decided to brave the oklahoma heat to spend the afternoon at the okc zoo. i hadn't been before and T hadn't been since he was little so, it seemed like the perfect mini day date. 

[black bear, black bear, what do you see?]

[making friends]

it was fun to watch T reminisce about his favorite spots at the zoo while we saw the exhibits and picked out our favorite animals. plus, i got to snack on my favorite out and about snack - dippin' dots. i mean, how can you say no? 

[hi little one]

[just a couple of gorillas, hanging out]

we had such a fun time and i can't wait to come back when the camels and rhinos arrive. 

taco tour

last saturday, T and i set out with empty bellies on a hot summer day to try as many tacos on our list as we could stomach. it's a hard task tasting delicious tacos, but it was one we were ready to undertake ;) 

our first stop, mainly by accidentally finding it first, was el primo loco. even though we didn't plan to start with this truck, we were so happy we did. one, the scents of smoked chicken immediately made my mouth water. two, once we had our bird, tortillas, salsas, and goodies, i could hardly wait to snap a photo before digging in. 

of all the tacos we tried, i made the biggest mess with this one, and for good reason, it was unbelievably good! smoky, spicy chicken filling our fresh tortillas and then dipping them into both salsas...oh my gosh. both T and i were very happy this was our first stop and couldn't stop talking about it on the way to the next truck. 

stop number two, taqueria el jiro. we had the good fortune of placing our order five minutes before the lunch rush came. quite literally, five cars immediately pulled up after we paid. if we had any concerns about this truck, they dissipated after seeing how many people came for lunch. 

the most recommended taco from this truck were the cabeza (head) and lengua (tongue). we also ordered the tripas (intestines) after the girl taking our order recommended it. the cabeza taco was so full of flavor, tender, and just incredibly tasty. the lengua taco was my second favorite from this truck as it was tender, juicy, and just an all around great taco. i loved it. the tripas was...okay. honestly, it was a little too crunchy so it was distracting from the rest of the taco. not bad, but not my favorite. 

also, if you are game to eat whole peppers, the chile toreados at this truck are supposed to be dynamite. while i do love heat in my food, i don't know that i am brave enough to dive into a whole pepper. i did that once before and it did not go well so, i had to pass this go around. 

our third (and last stop because we were getting full) stop, taqueria mr. dollar. another coincidence of timing with ordering our tacos before the lunch rush. plus, this truck was across the street from a mexican bakery i'd been to before...i really had to fight the urge to stop in for some sweet bread. 

the most recommended tacos from this truck were the chorizo and tripas. we also ordered the lengua because i kept thinking about it from the last truck and needed another fix. our favorite with this one was that spicy, smoky chorizo taco. oh man, was it good. and the tripas from this truck were just what i'd been looking for - a little crispy action but still tender and juicy to compliment the rest of the taco goodies. perfect! the lengua taco sadly left me missing the last truck again, but can't win them all.

now, with our bellies full of delicious taco goodies and we were ready to decide our favorites:

1. primo loco smoked chicken taco

2. taqueria el jiro cabeza taco

3. taqueria el jiro lengua taco

4. taqueria mr. dollar chorizo taco

5. taqueria mr. dollar tripas taco

6. taqueria mr. dollar lengua taco

7. taqueria el jiro tripas taco

such a great lunch and i can't wait to go back!

ice cream tasting

[strawberry]

over a lot of trail and error, i have gotten to build up some pretty swell cooking and baking skills. many of the things i've become good at making were items i had an infatuation with...i'm looking at you, freshly made pasta, fried chicken, mac 'n cheese, cake, etc. but most of all, i love ice cream. so it only made sense for me to start learning how to make it myself. 

coincidentally, most of the ice cream recipes i've whipped up have thankfully worked out amazingly well. but, not all can be winners. and as much as social media, even this blog at times, may make it seem like everything comes out swimmingly, i feel it's only fair to share when it does not. case in point: mascarpone ice cream and ricotta ice cream. both seemed just crazy enough to be an amazing flavor you might see in a gelato shop. but, in real life? horrible! i mean, could not throw it out fast enough, horrible. thankfully, of the dozens of flavors i've made, only two have been a bust, but they were very memorable to say the least. 

here's to hoping my future ice cream trails are more on the delicious than memorable side!

[passion fruit with cacao nibs]

[blackberry cheesecake]

[blueberry basil]