Pumpkin Painting

Newkirk hired 2 new coaches this year and both have kids our kids age. So we have a moms walking club in the morning which has been great! I love it! For instance today I needed to run our dog to the vet and since Kellyn is terrified of our dog I could leave her with another mom while I did that. It's so nice to be able to get out of the house everyday with some other adults! A couple of weeks ago we did a little pumpkin painting!

The Spence

So ever since Top Chef 4 I've been a huge fan of Richard Blais. I think he is so innovative, but makes food I'd actually eat. So I was fortunate enough to eat at one of his Flip Burger Boutique a couple of years ago, but Drew and I visited the one in Buckhead for my birthday, where we shared a Nutella Shake! (No pics of that cause they were nice to charge my dead phone so I could get to my hotel) I was so excited to visit April so we could experience The Spence, which is his first "finer dining" place. I love that it's considered an eatery cause they want you to be able to experience new things, we were there for 2 glorious hours! The only thing that would've made it better is if the man was there himself, but he is currently very busy. Catch him on his new Food Network show Hungry Games Oct 20th and he's also a judge on the upcoming season of Top Chef Boston! We decided we would try some different things, I'm so proud of ourselves cause we did, and it was all amazing!






The Spence is pretty much part of Georgia Tech's campus, so it's pretty modern. They've got an open kitchen and you can sit at a chefs table and experience a 5 course meal.... Which had Drew not been with us I would've been tempted to do!





Sea Salted Parker house rolls with this amazing coconut butter!





Goat Empanadas and Beef Tartar (yes raw beef, it was so amazing!)





Strip Steak ( okay not that different but it had a smoked potato purée) and pan roasted duck ( I savored every bite) and corn cream brûlée





We tried 3 out of the 4 desserts....a lemon curd with graham cracker and toasted marshmallow, blondies with coffee ice cream, and this chocolate peanut brittle with ice cream, all of which were amazing!






It was a great experience, their menu changes daily so I can't wait to go back and try some more stuff!











Drew says looks at all this good food and I'm stuck with this purée in a bottle.....





Next up maybe I'll make a trip to his newest venture Juniper and Ivy in San Diego!

Happy Birthday to me....

About a week before we headed to the beach I got a text from my dear friend April saying we should come to Atlanta. I had a brilliant idea of saving that extra 12 hour car ride and taking Drew along for a visit on a plane. So I set out about making my birthday present to myself happen. My parents gladly purchased my ticket with points and I started looking for a deal on a hotel room and car. I found a reasonable deal, got the other kids settled and Drew and I flew to Atlanta for a long weekend girls vaca! April has just moved to the Atlanta area while Zane is getting his Masters at Emory University. So we did a little sightseeing, eating, hot tubbing, and vampire stalking while we were there! It was such a great time! She said it made her want to get out and explore, which is great. Atlanta is a great place to visit; can't wait to go back myself!


















We also ate at The Spence....which deserves it's own blog post!

Never have I ever....

taken a child to the er.....until last week! I was trying to wash Kellyn's hair and she slipped in the bath and busted her chin on the side. It was borderline for me about needing to get it closed up. But I felt like it was spread pretty far apart. So after my mom consulted with the docs at clinic she, Drew, and I headed to Edmond.
When the only open Mercy after hours said they wouldn't see her since they weren't equipped to stabilize a 2 year old we had a consult with her doc and he sent us on to children's! He felt like they'd probably sedate her to stitch her up. Well they ended up gluing her skin together after us waiting 2 hours. That held til Friday afternoon when we were too late for stitches. So some glue and steri-strips held it til Monday. Now we are just praying it heals nicely cause right now it's Kellyn 3- Doctors-0! It's closing and hopefully it'll close better then I expect! But chances of me ever taking another kid to the er....slim to none unless obviously
I have no other choice!










(That's a blurry pic of her chin from yesterday.)