An Epic Reunion..

Over the weekend I gathered with 11 of my closest friends from high school to definitively answer the age-old question so poetically posed by Boyz II Men in the nineties: How do we say goodbye to yesterday? Our answer was a unified and resounding "We don't!" Take that passage of time! We refuse!

One of the beauties of growing up in a small town is that you can have the same friends forever. We didn't have multiple junior high schools that fed into different high schools. We had one elementary school, one INTERMEDIATE school, one junior high and one high school. We've known each other forever.

We've of course kept in touch over the years post high school....dinners here and there when people are in town...emails and phone calls...but until now a get-together of this magnitude had only been a dream. And let me tell you, the reality did NOT disappoint.

We caught up. We reminisced. We stayed up until 4 a.m. and only went to sleep because we knew our 29 year-old selves knew it was the right thing to do. We remembered similarities, realized differences and gave and received the magical acceptance and "knowing" that only comes from those who are a part of your past. We laughed so hard we cried...and sometimes we just plain cried. We seemed to pick up right where we had left off and quickly remembered why we have always been and will always be friends. It...was...Wonderful. Epic. Amazing. So good. So blessed. So grateful.




Much love to you all and a huge thanks to everyone for making the sleepover of the decade a total success!

PS As an added bonus I got to see these beautiful kiddos and see my cute mom who came to Boise to help out with the wee ones and make it possible for us all to bunk at Marie's house. A big thanks to you Mamacita and Marie!

Austin adventure....

I'm happy to report that our weekly adventures are alive and well. Last week we dropped a friend off at the airport in Austin and took advantage by sticking around for the day. If I haven't mentioned it already...I really love the city of Austin.

First stop: Breakfast
Biscuits and gravy and lemon poppy-seed pancakes....very fun.



Then we went to the top of Mount Bonnell to enjoy the view.



We hit up Half-Price Books and an Asian Market and Italian market (where I somehow resisted purchasing an 11 pound tub of Nutella.)



After a movie we returned to San Marcos where C made us an absolutely epic sandwich with the goods from the Italian Market. Such a good way to end such a great day.

Weekly Adventure....

School is OUT for summer! (Okay...we're both still really busy...work, research, etc....but our freedom has definitely increased.) The goal? Weekly adventures.
Our first stop was the little town of Gonzales - famous for being the location of the first battle of the Texas Revolution.



When the Mexican army told the folks in Gonzales that they wanted their cannon back the Texans told them to "Come and get it!"

A must-see! The Lynn!

We checked out an old jail.....kind of cool...and kind of creepy....



Then we headed for Palmetto state park.....which was so gorgeous and so fun....and SO HOT.
I love weekly adventures. You're far too hot and humid summer, but I love you just the same.

Operation: NEW MEALS

I won't lie....I never really expected to like cooking. I've always REALLY liked eating (and thus WANTED to like cooking), but cooking always seemed to cause me stress....serious-at-times-tears-inducing stress - which was unfortunate seeing as the two go so well together....cooking and eating that is. However, it was only a matter of time that my Percevault genes could lie dormant no more! Whether it be the food network's influence, fun cooking blogs or (most likely) a lifetime of good food and memories to live up to and an awesome husband who also LOVES good food and enjoys to cook, I can officially say I'm into it (have been for a while) and have recently been on the hunt to increase our meal repertoire. Don't get me wrong....it's still stressful sometimes and I CAN NOT cook without a recipe...which I look at about 100 times if I'm cooking something for the first time....but we do it. And we love it. Recently I can't get enough of the website Smitten Kitchen. Fun recipes, strong flavors, good directions, great pictures. Love it. Here are a few recipes we've tried lately and our culinary verdicts:


Sausage Stuffed Potatoes: Fun. For an Idaho girl I don't really cook with potatoes all that often so I'm always happy to find recipes that call for a starch other than pasta, cous-cous or rice. I'm not over-the-moon dying to make them again...but we liked them.

Asparagus, Goat Cheese and Lemon Pasta: Just by reading the title you know you can do no wrong with this recipe. A totally fun, different and light summery pasta. We'll definitely make this again....and maybe even add more asparagus.

Balsamic braised brussels with pancetta: We love brussel sprouts. This recipe takes a little time and watching of the pot, but it really is delicious and a fun, different way to consume the brussels. We didn't have pancetta (and couldn't find any in San Marcos...sigh) so we went with bacon. Delicious. We also really like THIS recipe for grilled brussel sprouts.

Cubed, Hacked Caprese: A super fun and EASY salad- awesome topping for bread, green salad, or on it's own.

Ginger Fried Rice: Loved this. (I especially loved the sesame flavor.) A super fun rendition of a dish you think you know. We'll definitely make this again.

Mushroom Marsala Pasta with artichokes: This was okay. I had hoped we would love it because C is such a fan of mushrooms and I have a lukewarm relationship with them. That being said this dish was good....but we didn't love it.

Cellophane Noodle Salad with Roast Pork: SO FUN. So different. All the veggies...the noodles...and the mango is a MUST. A very fun combination. And I'm not going to lie...the roast pork loin might be the BEST pork loin I've ever had. We LOVED it. It takes some work, what with the basting and turning etc....but it's totally worth it. We saved the left-overs and ate them later in the week with the aforementioned ginger fried rice.

We also made Vietnamese Spring Rolls per example of Bonnie and Jon. So fun and tasty. We threw some hoisin on our shrimp as well for a bit of a stronger taste.

All in all it's been super fun. We have lots of good standards and lots of new dishes keeping us full and content. Life is good.

A concert....at some dude's house?

I am so far behind! This fantastic adventure was weeks ago...alas...ALAK! Here we go....

So I do my best to keep my eye on the live music scene in Austin and when I saw the term "house concert" I was immediately intrigued. When I saw that former USU fave Sarah Sample was performing at said "house concert" I knew we had to go.

The premise of a house concert is exactly what it sounds like....someone hosts a concert at THEIR OWN HOUSE. They underwrite the cost of the concert and ask people to reserve a spot simply through an email. You are encouraged to bring food to share, show up on time, be respectful and quiet during the tunes (my type of show) and contribute to the artist. I was sold.

Off we went....

.........to the outskirts of Austin


......and walked up to some dude's house.


I convinced Michelle and Chris and C to come with me...


As promised the host wore a floral shirt and we took our seats among the middle-aged hippies (pretty much the crowd we seem to run with....love it.)


The crowd was friendly and the house was.....eclectic.....



We opted out of the box wine and brought our own Dr. Pepper and enjoyed a decent pot luck with strangers. I loved the intimate and relaxed setting, but could have lived without the host's friendly dogs.


When we weren't distracted by Geronimo we couldn't help but notice that Sarah Sample still rocks! Seriously....a really great singer/songwriter/storyteller. My favorite songs of the night? "A good life", "Never Close Enough," "Count the Colors" and some song about how everyone leaves Texas in the summer because it's too hot. Well said.


I'm not going to lie...I was a total fan of the whole experience.

They clean up nice, don't they?

So good. Love it.

Reliving the Glory Days.....

After cheering on our girls from the sidelines during the YW basketball season Jamie and I were admittedly pretty pumped when we heard there was going to be Relief Society/Young Women stake tournament. Our first game was at 8 a.m. and C came to cheer us on - later admitting he thought he'd be home by 9:30 a.m. to do homework. HA! You see we won...and then won the next game...and then the next....and then the next. Four games later we were stake champions! (And I could hardly walk for days....but it was totally worth it. )

I have to admit...it reminded me a little of this....

Spring in DC....

Oh my goodness. I love when C has conferences in fantastic places. This year the big annual geography conference took us to Washington D.C. and we had SUCH a good time that I've been overwhelmed at just the thought of blogging about it and doing it any justice! (Admittedly I enjoy the quick blog: a great pic and a clever quip.) Alas....I shall attempt it.....
First, a shout-out to our hosts Chris and Bonnie. Thank you for the extreme hospitality and more good food, conversation and hilarious laughter than we could have imagined. Estamos com suadades ja! Amamos voces!

Day one:
Mount Vernon - I remember absolutely LOVING Mount Vernon when I went years ago....the good news? It's still just as beautiful.
Arlington Cemetery - So neat. Very powerful. Much more to see than most people expect.
Great Falls State Park- Are you kidding me? Such natural beauty within a stones throw of an awesome city? Virginia is gorgeous. Period.



Day two:
Good Indian food: I won't lie...one of my favorite things about traveling is just seeing a new place and finding a cute place to eat.
Monuments: A must-see. Beautiful and full of history.

Day three: (An they walked and walked and walked and walked....and walked....)
The Whitehouse
Ford's Theater
THE Capitol
The National Archives
The Library of Congress -(Neither of us had been before....a remarkable and beautiful building.)
Smithsonian Air and Space Museum
Smithsonian of Natural History




Day four:
The Holocaust Museum - This was my first visit to the Holocaust museum and I have to say it is hands-down one of the best museums I've ever visited. So powerful while remaining respectful. Amazing.
Lunch with Joe and Emmy - So fun to get together!
Sights with Joe, Brit and the kiddos:
Iwo Jima Memorial
Pentagon Memorial
Georgetown
Thanks so much for taking me around Joe and Brit! It was so great to see you all and see more of the city.


Day 6 (Calm your "you skipped day 5!" commenting urge my pretties....day 5= Sunday and much needed rest and a fabulous dinner with Katie, Kara and fams. Thanks for the great visit guys! And Kara...thanks for the late night of talking and games. So fun!)
Manassas - We had a great time soaking in the beauty of Virginia and the history of the Civil War. Very cool.



So yes....our trip was a success. What can I say? It's good to be married to a geographer.