rewind.

Hiya kids. It's been a while,  and we've been busy! So while my online professor drones on about sashimi tuna in the background, I'll whip up a little (or not so little) update for ya! Here goes!

In my last post I mentioned the much anticipated arrival of some cooler weather here in south Texas. Inspired by these promised lower temperatures, I set out on a quest to find some fun things to do in this city...it's pretty big, I figured they had to exist out there somewhere.

After an entire morning of scouring downtown Houston websites and special event blogs, I had a nice little list of some upcoming outings. The first? The Greek Festival over in the Monstrose district. I could taste the baklava already...

 And baklava we tasted...as well as two other delicious pastries, the names of which I could not pronounce. This little box warranted a trip back to the book store inside the church to see if the recipes for these treats were included in the festival's cookbook. Unfortunately they weren't...I need to find me a nice little old Greek lady to come be my friend and teach me her ways.
 

This kid loves him some baklava. Don't blame him.

We ate real food before dessert of course...lamb gyros. Incredible lamb gyros. I normally get chicken because I've always been afraid of lamb...ever since my fam had Easter dinner at my aunt and uncle's and learned the lamb we were consuming used to live on the sheep farm next door. But I'm glad it was the only option, because it was delightful.

Lots and lots of souvlaki, it smelled so good!

When we first arrived the crowd was pretty thin, but as the night went on the square really filled up! That was our cue to head inside to watch some Greek dancing and tour the little marketplace they had set up. My favorite section was the freshly imported mini Greek grocery store, where we picked up some authentic Greek olive oil, balsamic vinegar, and dipping spices...all very tasty!

Fast forward a couple weeks and our much anticipated company had arrived! I was so excited when I finally got to drive to the airport and see the faces of mom, Lori, and Sarah. Yay for visitors! We had such a good long weekend together catching up on some shopping, exploring lots of Houston eateries, and of course discovering the loveliness of city traffic...or not. We woke up slowly and enjoyed the Today show every morning and rented/bought movies to watch together every night. The weather even cooperated enough to allow for several pretty walks in parks and on sidewalks near our apartment.

The night before their departure, we traveled downtown to Houston's own (and much less exciting I might add) Market Square. We enjoyed more Greek-inspired food from a Niko Niko's stand in the park (that place was Diners, Drive-ins, and Dives once and is just fabulous) and people-watched as the sun set. Once it was dark, the streets lit up with a Glow-in-the-Dark Art Car Parade. Houston is known for its crazy club of "art cars," old (or new) cars that especially creative people have gotten their hands on and decorated with whatever sort of art inspires them most. The Heights area even boasts a big aluminum Art Car Museum, where you can see some of the retired vehicles from years past. I took lots of pictures...hope the darkness doesn't hide the wackiness!

Somehow this truck became a giant chicken...

 This one was the coolest...totally hipped out, complete with burning incense in the driver's window.

I once again failed with the whole taking pictures of people thing...this would be the only one from the entire weekend...and it includes none of our visitors. Sorry mom. Yay for downtown Houston though!

The husband has also celebrated a birthday since the last time I checked in...gots to share his annual big boy b-day breakfast! This year it was a sausage hashbrown casserole and the classic biscuit donuts. He's such a good eater. :)

There's our (very pastey...) self-timer picture before going out for his birthday dinner! We went to a pretty cool little place up in the Heights called Block 7. It's a seasonal eclectic eatery plus wine bar and was delicious!

P.S.--It's totally gonna feel like fall in these parts this weekend. Highs in the lower 70s!! I told Ben we had to go out every night just so I can wear sweaters and boots. I'll still probably sweat but I don't care. I've been celebrating by updating our apartment with more fall foliage. :)

Ahh, I just want to be cold again...anyway, it's almost Friday! Happy weekends everyone! And go vols! I see they're doing a blackout in Neyland. Jealous...

i love the 80s.

No, not the witty 10-part pop culture history lesson once popularized by Vh1.

Though I was a fan...but enjoyed the 90s edition a little more since I was alive then.

But anyway, my great appreciation for all numbers starting with 8 stems from this...

 Disregard Friday...close enough I figure.

Yes. I have come to learn that in southern Texas, this means fall (or some stretched resemblance) has arrived. And despite the fact that this forecast would post for Knoxville in early July, I am embracing it and loving every minute of the cooler air, especially the mornings and evenings that are downright perfect.


In other news...

My bestie commented the other day on my lack of blogging lately. My response was the truth: there just hasn't been that much going on that's blog-worthy. I've had a good bit of time off from work, but I have to try to spend that extra time doing things that don't cost money. :) And such things aren't too exciting to report...finishing up my first online class, flipping through magazines and scouring blogs for new recipes, DVR-ing any and every new tv show that might  spark my interest (few have), and trying to make friends with the idea of running outside now that it's a little more bearable.

I did take a somewhat impromptu visit westward to San Antonio this past weekend, though! I got to see little Geouque and spend some much-needed girl time with my former roomies. We even got to Skype with Haley on the other side of the world! It was a quick but wonderful trip.

Unfortunately I took a total of 3 pictures...and 2 don't really count. Guess we were just having too much fun!

Those would be the two that don't count...but I was really excited to finally visit a Buc-ee's. There are billboards like every 2 miles all the way down I-10, touting their world famous bathrooms and "Beaver Nuggets." I'd liken Buc-ee's to a cross between a Cracker Barrel (for their true country Texas attire and housewares), an old-fashioned barbeque joint (since they have barbeque), a gas station (since they have gas...and fountain drinks), and Dollywood (because it was kind of tacky and offered like 50 different kinds of beef jerky).

Oh, and in case you were wondering--Beaver Nuggets (based on the ingredients, I did not purchase any) appear to be glorified Corn Pops. Yum...ish.  :)

Look it's my besties! This would be the only other picture from the weekend...taken after the evening's festivities. We ventured to downtown San Antone for a classy Mexican dinner at a place called Iron Cactus on the Riverwalk and then went to see the Mary Poppins traveling Broadway show!

It was so good! The show was at the Majestic Theater, which is a gorgeous old place even more ornate and regal-feeling than the Tennessee Theater.

Look how pretty! I totally felt like I was in Disney World...super It's a Small World-esque, right? Cats is coming in early February and I really want to go back, it's my favorite.

San Antonio was way different than I expected. It actually reminded me a lot of home. There's just a lot more suburbia a lot closer to the city, meaning you see lots of families with children out and about, a sight seldom found where we are in Houston. And you can actually go places at any time of day without sitting in traffic for 30 minutes, that would be a perk.

All in all, it was a great trip, and I was so thankful to see my super-teacher friends get to take a break. I'm already excited for our next reunion!  :)

one year ago today.

Bible study was "cancelled."

So I went for a run with my boyfriend.

And we ran.

It was hot. But I survived.

Thank goodness.

Because then this happened...

(He's on one knee.)

Then I said yes. (Duh.)

Then we celebrated with everyone we knew.

And somehow a year has passed since all that. We planned a wedding, finished college, got married, moved 900 miles away...and now here we are. Crazy. Time flies.

One year later, we celebrated again.

All him by the way...dessert, candle, delicious crabcake-stuffed salmon I didn't get a picture of...all him. I'm a lucky girl.  :)

texans.

First NFL game in Houston? Check. I guess you could say we're officially Texans fans now...we have shirts to wear at least!

These kids got to have their first professional football experience:

And I think they enjoyed it well enough, despite Peyton Manning's absence and the accompanying Colt struggle. Maddie had her less than cheerful moments as the game went on, but she still seemed excited to see the big stadium and take pics of the pros.

Our seats were pretty high up, but we still had good views! Because it was the 10th anniversary of 9/11, they did a really cool tribute before kickoff that brought tears to all our eyes. The NFL planned for field-sized flags to be rolled out in every stadium with a 1:00 EST start at the same time. They showed video on the big screen of players all over the country paying tribute to the great US of A while Taps played in the background. Chills. It was awesome. So proud to be an American. :)

Of course Texas had to be pay its own tribute to...itself. Which they did (as they do every game apparently) by rolling out the giant Texas state flag and singing the state song.

Does Tennessee even have a state song? Rocky Top? Anyone? Oh Texas...

Some things we learned about the Texans experience at Reliant Stadium:

-They're big on fan involvement. As in letting the fans finish all the announcer's sentences. You're expected to yell out the last names of the starting line-up players after being prompted with the first name, AND every time (I mean EVERY time) the Texans make a first down, the announcer will yell, "And there's another Texans--" Now it's your turn to yell, "FIRST DOWN!" Every. Time. It gets old, but yay for excited fans I guess.

-It doesn't matter how hot it is outside, bring your boots and winter coat, because it was FREEZING in there! I was very thankful for the roof over our heads and very efficient AC, but I had chill bumps the whole game. And it was September.

-They serve foot-long hotdogs. And they're really good.

-People will call you confused if you double up on team gear. I don't blame them, he does look rather silly and confused with his Texans hat and Colts shirt. At least they're both blue? Eh...

-Oh, and make sure you have a full tank of gas when you arrive, as you will need it to sit in traffic afterwards. Unless you're a seasoned pro, unlike us, and have an idea of where you're going when you leave and what direction is home.

Overall it was a fun day, though! After the game (and hour's worth of traffic) we had to take dad and sister to the airport and say goodbye. :( I'm so glad they got to come see where we're living these days, though! And I will see them in a few short months--we bought our plane tickets home for Christmas this week! Yay!

the fam.

My sweet dad and sister finally made it to our fine city this past weekend! Unfortunately the cooler weather that graced us last week did not stick around for their arrival, but we made do and cranked the AC.  :)

Our list of activities included a lot of driving around and pointing to things, as we were kind of pressed for time and wanted them to at least see where we spend all our time these days. Plus it was rather warm and you don't want to suffocate special guests who aren't accustomed to the heat.

I'll let the pictures do most of the talking...I took a lot.

Friday evening we ate at our favorite Mexican restaurant, Pappasito's. It was a good way to start off the trip...lots of happy tummies.

Mmm...my monstrous plate of food.

His plate of food was even bigger...

This is the part where Maddie got bored and decided to play with her food like a true 18-year old...

Clever. Or gross...

After dinner we walked around Rice Village, stopping in Half Price Books long enough for Maddie to buy a 98-cent record of R. Kelly's "Ignition Remix." Remember that? Old school. Dad and Ben weren't crazy about the boutiques and clothing stores sister and I were drawn to, so we ended up at the Chocolate Bar, where we took about 30 minutes to decide what to order. Newbies are always overwhelmed by that place.

Saturday morning, after Benjamin prepared us all a delicious breakfast, we headed out to meet the one goal Maddie had for her trip: buy cowboy boots. I think dear sister was expecting Houston to be a much more cowboy/ranch-inspired town than it is and was disappointed by the endless concrete, tall buildings, and widely international scene, so we headed to Cavender's Boot City (which I think they might even have in Knoxville) to get a taste of true Texas.

They had plenty of inventory...

The favorites...

I liked them too, but mom didn't give me a wad of cash to pay for half of them...and they're expensive.

I think hubby could pull off the cowboy look if he had to.

Success.

So after shopping we drove around a good bit and decided we were hungry. Dad wanted a hamburger, so were stopped at Beck's Prime, a fast-food restaurant that boasts better-than-average burgers. I got a chicken sandwich, but dad and Ben agreed their burgers were definitely better than average. It was on the expensive side, though, so we opted to go for the 50-cent ice cream cones from McDonald's instead of Beck's Prime milkshakes for dessert. We took them back to the shade of our neighboring park at the apartment and went for a short walk.

Sisterly love :)

We watched the first half of the UT-Cincinnati game at the apartment (while I took a quick cat nap), but for the second half, the fam wanted to experience the festive atmosphere at Bubba's, our Houston UT Alumni Association hub for the football season. The crowd was thinner than last week but there was still plenty of orange to be seen. Including this lovely spectacle parked outside the door:

Classy, huh?

Saturday evening we checked out the Galleria, where we found dad a Texans hat for the game, and ended up at a random pizza joint for dinner. Maddie wanted pizza, and guess what, we ended up on the wrong road for the restaurant we were aiming for and decided to just go with our strengths and stop at the first pizza place we found. It was just fine though and we got to sit down immediately.

Sunday meant it was football time in Texas! I'll show all the details from our first Texans experience in another post soon to come!