Be prepared for a lot of pictures. Because I actually took some pictures this trip. Not quite as many as say my mother ( 🙂 ), but I managed to get a good handful. 
Continue reading
recap
30,000 Steps at Starved Rock
According to my Fitbit, I walked over 30,000 steps on Saturday and let me tell you… I felt it on Sunday. While every inch of my body might have been tired, it was a good tired. Camping is always a good kind of tired. You’re drunk on fresh air and nature, the sun has fueled you the entire day, and technology is far enough away that you don’t feel the constant pull of its various forms.
I really do enjoy our camping trips. 
Continue reading
4th of July Festivities
It’s weird when the 4th of July lands on a Tuesday. Your whole week is all wonky. You lose track of time. You wonder what day it is when you wake up. Do I have to work today? Who knows?
Other than being completely out of it, Adam and I had a great time these past four days. I always enjoy when he gets time off work and we get to be together 24/7. Not sure if he feels the same way, but he’s stuck with me so he’ll get over it! 
Continue reading
Rolla Roomie Reunion 2016
Alliterations are fun and so are roomie reunions. Good thing both of them are in today’s blog post!
So last week I spent some time with my college roommates in Rolla, Missouri where Ashley lives. I have been to Rolla before, but this was Jes’ first visit so Ashley got to show her all the sites. Now, Rolla is quite small. Yes, there is a university there (Missouri Science and Technology where Ashley works) but it only has 8,000 students. Those 8,000 students make up most of Rolla. Needless to say, most of our site seeing was not in Rolla.
Missouri is kind of pretty… especially the Ozarks
We picked Jes up from the St. Louis airport (almost 2 hours away from Rolla) and had dinner at a Thai place called Pearl’s Cafe. It was pretty good and I had Tom Kha Gai soup for the first time. It was probably the best part of my dinner and I’ve tried to recreate it but haven’t gotten it quite right. Soon….
Again… Missouri isn’t too shabby to look at
The next day after a stop at the Giddy Goat (a coffee place that had good variety for small town USA) we headed out to the Meramec Springs. This place was really beautiful. There was a fish sanctuary where you could feed fish (which we obviously did) little bridges, waterfalls, the spring, of course, museums, and trails. We walked around a bit and drove on the historic drive and saw old homesteads and a really pretty overlook of the Ozark Mountains.
Ashley checking out the Slag Notch. Still don’t know what that means
The fish sanctuary and the fish we fed.
Jes and Ashley by the cavern over the spring.
The actual spring… I thought it would be bubbling or something but it kind of just sits there.
After Meramac, we headed to Sybill’s for lunch. This place was in a super fancy house and they had some pretty good food. I got a strawberry avocado spinach salad and even thought it was a little sad when I removed the bacon, bleu cheese, and super sweet dressing, I added some sauteed summer squash and it made a pretty good meal.
Next, we went to The Public House which is a joint winery and brewery in St. James. This place was really nice and had a lot of indoor and outdoor space. Their gardens had a variety of yard games like bocci ball, Jenga, and lawn chess. There was a good selection of beer, cider, and wine and while played some games and caught up on life. Overall a great time.
Jes and her giant knight. They are both very excited
All the beers and a cider
Finally, we headed to a fudge factory. But not just any fudge factory, oh no.
Seriously, can’t make this up
Uranus Fudge Factory. Because the best fudge is found in Uranus. I can’t make this stuff up guys. There was also a burlesque dancing bar, tattoo parlor, and a food truck plaza. Ah, the good ol’ US of A.
That night I made a spaghetti squash casserole that will probably be on the blog this week. Then we just relaxed, watched Family Guy, old YouTube videos we made back in the day (like this one, you’re welcome Ashley) and laughed. Laughing is always a good thing.
It was a great trip, but I am glad to be back to my routine after over a week away. I’ve got new recipes to share and fall weather has finally made it’s way to Chicago. October is here and that means my birthday and anniversary are soon, yay! Oh, and speaking of anniversaries, Happy One Year Anniversary Mr. and Mrs. Meyers! Have an awesome day and enjoy your new (puppy) addition! 
How was your week/weekend?
Easter Sunday Best
Hello and happy Monday! I hope that you all had a wonderful weekend and if you celebrate Easter I hope you had a hoppy…. I mean happy one!
Please ignore my horrendous growing-out-my-pixie hair! We clean up pretty good
My weekend was a little busier than usual because I’m actually coming to you from Sycamore right now. I’m house/dog-sitting and get to romp about in my old town and enjoy the slow pace of “country” life. In case you were wondering, the minute you move to any big city like Chicago every other town becomes “country”. Yes, it’s snobby and pretentious but what did you expect from city-folk?
My sister always looks like this as she sets the table
Mom & D actually setting the table
I actually love coming out here not just because I get to cuddle and hang out with an awesome golden retriever but I get to take food pictures in natural light! There are like a gajillion windows here and when you’re used to two interior facing windows that maybe get 2 hours of sunlight a day, you revel in the natural light goodness. Expect beautiful food pics in the near future.
Cooking up the sweet potato hash
D cutting up the Easter ham
Speaking of food, my family had some good stuff at Easter brunch. My sister made this awesome quinoa/broccoli/cranberry/candied walnut salad that I could have eaten until my stomach burst. I need to replicate it like immediately. I made my sweet potato hash because everyone really liked it at Christmas plus it’s a good dish to feed a crowd. I also tested out some muffins on everyone and the feedback was pretty good so you should see those soon. There was also fruit, Irish soda bread, ham, hard-boiled eggs, deviled eggs, pasta salad, and mimosas. I don’t think anyone went hungry….
Jodie excited about the ham…
Me excited/terrifying about Easter
And Andy just excited about food
Overall, it was a great weekend and I’m glad that I got to spend time with my family. Now I’m looking forward to some good blog work and more spring-like weather!
Happy Easter from the Buchanans/Bullards/Dawsons/Meyers!
How about you guys? What did you eat for Easter?
Life Healthfully Lived 