Beach Getaway- Jamaica Edition

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I did not want to leave Jamaica. Wasn’t ready, at all. Such an easy going trip, with our big decision in the morning being: pool or beach? I hadn’t heard the best reviews before we left from several friends- people were pushy, the country was poverty stricken, it’s really not as pretty. Considering how much I love new places, solely based on the fact that they are new, it’s generally pretty hard for me to not like somewhere. Even so, I loved this country so much, regardless of the fact that it was new to me. And it just goes to show, that sometimes you need to experience a place for yourself. I think the biggest factor that contributed to our great time, and made it a more unique experience, was the area we stayed in.

We stayed at Jake’s, on the southwestern side of the island (St. Elizabeth parish), in a sleepy fishing community. The roads aren’t the greatest (think narrow with lots of pot holes), so it took us over 2 hours to get there form the airport in Montego Bay. Luckily, our driver was super cool (Hey Andre!). It amazed me just how few people were in Treasure Beach! The hotel consists of several cottages spread over the property, and while on the water, doesn’t have a true beach. There are several a short walk away, and while pretty, they aren’t the prettiest I’ve ever seen, so I’ll agree on that part. But that didn’t matter, because the vibe from the whole place was instantly relaxing- slow paced and easy and inclusive. Jake’s has a quirky, artsy feel and the service was excellent. The people make you feel like you belong- we were even invited to the local football match, which was a surprise treat. And the jerk pork & chicken!! Oh man. We stopped at a couple of road side places and feasted. We also spent some time at Dougie’s Bar, chatting with Christopher (who makes a mean piña colada), and had lunch at Eggy’s, which juts out right over the water- I could have stayed all day. And I tried conch for the first time 🙂 And just a side note: I can’t even tell you how many times Dan said “Red Stripe” in a Jamaican accent. Probably 100.
Our only real “activity” during the vacation was to take a boat trip with Captain Joseph & his wife, who were awesome and had the best smiles, and a fun couple from England. Captain Jo built a shaded area on a secluded stretch of beach and we feasted on freshly caught lobster, fish, and unlimited rum punch and Red Stripe. Dan joined the guys for a game of cricket, which was a blast to watch. True to Dan, he was a natural, and managed to play with a beer in hand 90% of the game. Then, we rode over to Pelican Bar, which has to be the coolest bar on the planet. It’s built way out off the coast, on a sand bar, out of a hodge podge of old wood.
Leaving was tough. It didn’t help that most of the people we met were staying for at least 2 weeks. 2 weeks!!! In one place! I can’t imagine. Home away from home, I’m sure. Oh Europeans and their massive number of vacation days. I can’t rave enough about how wonderful Jake’s is- truly an oasis.
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Houston Eats & Drinks

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With the weather just too perfect for words here in Houston, we spent quite a bit of time outdoors & with friends this weekend! Barley was utterly wiped by the end of it. Some places to check out if it’s as good this weekend (or I guess you could just sit inside):

Feels very old school mod, from the cocktails to the furniture. The Mexicali Sour was so fresh and tasty, but the drink specials change regularly! From the people at Treadsack, AKA all the great and trendy restaurants in Houston.
Via Houston Eater
Via Houston Eater
In a converted gas station, this patio is a dream. Apparently people agree because it was pretty packed. And the frozen margaritas are divine. I’ve been converted from an “on the rocks” girl- exception made only for this place. Check it out, and make sure to get some tortilla chips, because they are perfection. No wonder I like it, it’s the same people behind Coltivare!
With an amazing selection of Belgian beers (my personal favorites) and all the Belgian delicacies you can imagine, this place was delicious. The mussels come out in a big hot pot (YUM) and I had to follow it up with Belgian waffles because I’m into clichés. Of course, the Belgian Frites were great too. But beware- service is SLOW.
via Houston Press
And my favorite restaurant this weekend… our own home. REALLY loving our kitchen. And the people who fill it. And the food that’s made in it. And I promise I’ll post more on the remodel soon…. in the mean time, this Thai Chicken braised in Coconut Milk was just great, even if the pictures weren’t as pretty!

Roma

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ROME! Such a fantastic city. Love the history, love that it’s so walkable, love the food. Now the wine… not as good in Rome as it is in the rest of the country 😉 But you still can’t beat $10 table wine in Italy.

After our terribly long day of traveling from the Amalfi Coast, I was wiped out. Luckily, I got a burst of energy once we arrived at our VRBO rental. It was the best room we had the entire trip- maybe it was the A/C? No, definitely more than that. Lofty ceilings made of the original wood, from the 1600’s, smack in the middle of everything. The owner also left us a great map marked with his favorite spots. Charm was just oozing.
We started the night off with a walk around the neighborhood- we hit the Pantheon, the Torre Argentina (ruins where they think Caesar was killed- also a cat sanctuary), and the Piazza Navona, following up with pizza at Da Baffetto. 2 packed stories of deliciousness. They make the pizza right in the center of the restaurant- I can’t imagine how many they make in one night! Afterwards, we stopped for a drink and stood outside surrounded by Italian conversation. Languages are so beautiful.
It was pouring rain the morning we went to the Colosseum- I had wanted us to get there early to avoid the crowds. We definitely avoided the crowds, but I think it was mostly due to the rain. We donned our ponchos and had the place almost to ourselves 🙂 Luckily, the weather cleared up pretty quickly and we were able to leisurely enjoy the Roman Forum. I know I’ve said it a dozen times, but the history of this place!! Unreal.
Our second night in Italy was spent on a “Food Tour of Rome“. We went to several different neighborhoods, learning the history of Rome and tasting food at 7 different places. Meat, cheese, wine, pizza & pasta, cannoli, espresso, gelato (Cortona was the best gelato of the trip- so fresh). The company was great too! It was quite the the last hurrah. Our guide baffled me, since he grew up in Rome, but had a 100% American accent. Apparently he spent some time in Oregon post high school and worked extensively on losing the Italian accent when speaking English. It worked, but was amusing to hear him make the switch to speaking flawless Italian.
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Our last day was spent on foot, walking around the city. We started the day with a trip to the Vatican. We skipped the museum because I had gone a couple of years before, but we hadn’t actually gone into the Basilica. So glad we made it this trip because it  was overwhelmingly extravagant. We climbed (approximately one million steps) up to the top for a view of Rome, but my favorite part was seeing the dome of the church and the status on top, up close. The stairs are extremely narrow and fairly claustrophobic, so getting to the top was a breath of fresh air. Then, after we left, we got to see the POPE! We aren’t Catholic and don’t speak Italian, but it was still a cool experience. People really love him and I feel privileged that we were able to be there.
The rest of the day, we just roamed (sorry, I had to). We walked through small campos, past markets, and along the water. A perfect last afternoon and a summation of our entire trip. Oh and we rented segways in Villa Borghese- maybe Dan’s favorite part! Such an odd juxtaposition.
On our last night, I think 1/2 of our conversation consisted of lamentations on having to return home. As much as we missed Barley and our bed, feasting your way through one of the best food countries in the world without a single thought of calorie consumption is truly magical. We walked around the corner from our rental and dined at Trattoria Moderna, and had our last aperitivo, primi piatti, secondi piatti, and dessert. And man, was it a great last feast. And then a long flight home. LUCKILY, we got moved into an exit row, which made the trip infinitely better.
And that (finally) concludes our Italy re-cap! Only 5 months later 🙂  A once in a lifetime trip. I know some people don’t visit Italy because it’s too touristy- and I say, it’s that way because it almost can’t be beat. The diversity, the people, the landscapes, the food & wine. Just beyond. And always a new corner to discover. The Trevi Fountain was under renovation and we weren’t able to toss a coin, so hopefully that doesn’t keep us from returning one day 😉

To see the rest of our trip, in order:

Being at Home

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Oh the joy of being at home. Something that Dan and I never seem to get enough. There is just something too good about waking up sans alarm on a Saturday, in your own bed. Then proceeding to have a cup of coffee on your patio, in the cool January weather, while perusing articles online. And to sum up the best morning ever, hearing your husband call to you that breakfast is ready and going inside to the smell of bacon and Dawes playing over the speakers, as he whisks you around the living room for a quick waltz. Seriously. Such little things make for the greatest morning. Trying to savor every minute of this phase of life.

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Ignore the weeds covering the yard.

Other than idyllic Saturday mornings, two weekends IN A ROW, at home, meant:
Going to the movies. I’m trying to play catch up on all the best picture noms and we are way behind. The Big Short was so stinking good. Thankful for my finance classes. The Revenant was… in terms of cinematography, just beautiful. In general, a film I could appreciate, but not need to see again. And I, along with everyone, hope Leo finally wins an Oscar 😉
Hanging out at some new Houston places, along with some old favorites (El Tiempo, always). Axelrad opened last month and is a very cool beer garden. I loved the simplicity of it, but the colors really amped it up. The tap handles were gorgeous and the beer selection was diverse. We also finally tried Reef, a seafood place in Midtown. Turns out the porkchop ended up being the best dish!
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Axelrad taps

Savoring this sweet, sweet weather. Houston may feel like the pits of hell in the summertime, but winters are on point. Thankful for a park down the street, a fun loving dog, and the best patio bar to relax at. (Cottonwood wins every time.)
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Shake it off
Playing catch up! After weeks of not being home much, I cleaned up and cleaned out. So much went to Goodwill and the church. I feel like they are probably overwhelmed every January as people purge for the new year. I definitely felt the urge to purge, and I haven’t even read any Marie Kondo books 😉 Even our fridge got a refresh!
MTV Cribs anyone?
This wasn’t even 1/2 of it.
Finally, FRIENDS! Yay for friends (not the show, but yay for that too- we’ve been Netflix binging). Y’all rock. Houston has some fine people.

Bedroom Colors

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Since we didn’t end up putting in navy kitchen cabinets, I still have an itch to have it in a big way. Now I’m thinking about covering our entire bedroom. Even though it has 4 windows, it doesn’t get a ton of natural light and I’m not sure how it would look with our dark & heavy furniture. But I am loving the idea of it and feeling adventurous, especially after painting the rest of the house in white and gray (and trying to block out how much I hate painting). Maybe we could just do one wall navy, and the rest white? Are accent walls still in? Anyway, check out these rooms:

Positano

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I personally think that the Amalfi Coast is one of the most beautiful places in the world. So it was definitely on my list when planning this trip. Unfortunately, it’s kind of a pain in the butt to get to and we had already hit so many places. As excited as I was to return, Dan was starting to get pretty worn out from all our traveling around. This resulted in us taking it really easy while in Positano. As in, spend the whole day on a beach, never leave Positano, easy.

We actually stayed way up above Positano, in a B&B, in the teensy town of Nocelle- it’s where a lot of people hike the Path of the Gods and the views are stellar. No cars allowed, hence the donkeys as transport for goods! Even tough it’s very close to Positano, the bus ride down takes 30 minutes, is packed full without A/C, and only runs every hour or so. If you can, I would suggest staying in actual Positano, but we did meet an American couple who stays in Nocelle every year and love it. Personal preference I guess. We made it to dinner in Nocelle the first night just in time to eat dinner while watching the sun set.

The next day we took a boat over to Capri where we walked about, window shopping the ritzy stores, and took the funicular up to the highest point for some stellar views. I’m slightly terrified by heights, so I was apprehensive. Luckily it turned out to not be so bad and the view from the top was well worth it. While on the island, we took a taxi convertible with an awning over it- unique. On the way back to the Amalfi Coast, we stopped in a few places to swim which was unreal. The water is so blue! I didn’t want to go back on the boat. An amazing experience.

Our last day in Positano was the full day on the beach day 🙂 We hopped onto a small boat sitting at the dock and took it over to Arienzo Beach, a 5 minute ride down the coastline. As long as you eat at the restaurant, you don’t have to pay for a chair. The seafood was freshly caught out of the sea we swam in and the beers weren’t crazy expensive. It was a beyond perfect day.

We stayed down in Positano for dinner, with drinks at Franco’s Bar (which is amazing and felt so glam) and dinner at Bar Bruno. The patio is just a few tables along the sidewalk across the street from the restaurant, so servers have to run back and forth across the street!

Since we spoiled ourselves on the way to the coast with a private driver, we stuck with public transportation to make our way to Rome. Bus, walk a ways to wait for another bus (standing room only), train (no A/C), another train, then finally a bus to airbnb. It took all day and made me miss the rental car! But we had made it to one of my favorite cities, and our final stop of the trip, so all was good.

2015 Reflection

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2015, man. Every year just keeps getting better. With all the ups and downs in this life, I’m extremely grateful that our ups, far and away, outweigh our downs. I can pretty sum up 2015 as travel + work on the house. And those are fun things 🙂

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AXO’s!
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We skied in Steamboat Springs, explored more of one of our favorites cities, NYC, tried lots of beers in Portland, Oregon, relaxed by the pool in Cancun, listened to live music in Nashville, ate our weight in pizza and pasta in Italy, attended the Great American Beer Fest in Denver, and had lots of friends & family time in Austin, Fredericksburg, San Antonio, Dallas, and Jackson (and they visited us too!). I was maid of honor in a beautiful wedding, we tried lots of new Houston restaurants, took Barley out as much as possible, and got really settled into our small group. We built a fence, painted lots of walls, remodeled the kitchen & added a bathroom, and spent a lot of time at IKEA.

I honestly can’t believe how fast it’s gone by. Looking back and reflecting, my heart is overwhelmed with the goodness in Dan & I’s lives. I hope I never take any of it for granted- that travel to new places (& old) would always feel like a special luxury, that our home would always fill me with delight when I pull into the driveway, that food would always make me feel adventurous, and that my family and friends always make me feel loved. Here’s to 2016!

And an article by Mark Manson I really enjoyed as I think about the new year (via SwissMiss)-

“This is the most simple and basic component of life: our struggles determine our successes. So choose your struggles wisely, my friend.”

Hits in the Kitchen

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It has been so amazing to have our kitchen back. And not just back, but insanely functional and fresh and open. So I’ve been cooking quite a bit and trying lots of new recipes. I even made one recipe twice, which is a record for me! Here are some we’ve really loved (that were also really easy):

My first Paula Dean recipe- and with no butter!! Shocking. This Apple Stuffed Pork Loin had so much flavor! I was intimidated at first, but it turned out to be very do-able. Make sure you have plenty of apple cider vinegar on hand.

The meal I made twice comes from Martha Stewart- Sweet Potato Sausage Soup. The sweet Italian sausage really ups the ante (and is just about the cheapest meat I’ve ever bought). Perfect for colder months. I hear it’s going to be an especially chilly winter, so I’m expecting to make this even more.

This BBQ Chicken Quinoa Casserole was super easy and really great for lunch leftovers!

I was looking for easy dishes to feed a big group for our small group’s Christmas party and decided to on a couple baked pasta dishes. While the chicken ziti was just meh, this Baked Pasta with Spinach and Ricotta was super yummy. I’ve been having a bit of thing with ricotta lately. I seriously can’t get enough and want it on everything. I made this in advance, which meant no dirty dishes in the sink when everyone came over!

And to finish it off, dessert! I “baked” this Dark Chocolate Salted Caramel Oreo Pie for the Christmas party dessert and OH MAN. Incredibly rich and just divine. As much as I love chocolate, I’m not a big baker, so this recipe was perfect as it didn’t even require the oven!

In January, Dan & I will be back to mainly paleo eating, so I’ll be back to constant chopping of everything and putting approximately one million different spices in every dish.

And if you have any great recipes you’ve loved lately, please share 🙂

Happy NYE!

Pompeii

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After packing up in Tuscany, we drove down to Naples to return our rental car and met up with a driver who would take us to our B&B in Positano. On our way, we stopped at Pompeii (cue Bastille playing in your head), which is an incredible experience. I wish we had known more before we left, but it’s still surreal to stand in a place so old, but so well preserved. We also just happened to be part of a video? I have no idea what it was for, but the crew had us pose in touristy ways as they panned around us and several other couples. Wish I could find it, but no such luck!

My favorite part were some frescos in what they considered a luxurious vacation home! I think Dan liked the preserved bodies the best…

November Festivities

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Seeing as we are half way through December, this post is way delayed. But oh well. November was so good!!! With the remodel finally wrapping up, we were able to get some serious friends and relaxation time in. It was like we were on a remodel hangover and the first weekend we could take a break, we did. And did nothing house related! Woo! But some other so good bits from the month…

I turned 26! We celebrated in Austin at Jacoby’s (East Austin has gotten way too cool) with Chels & Katie and our boys (men?). LOVE quality time as grownups with our husbands, who I think are all pretty darn awesome…. note how much we match our significant others. It’s kind of creepy and maybe narcissistic? But fun 🙂

We hosted our first tailgate!! In true Callie form, I stressed out about the details while Dan was beyond chill (and very last minute) about all of it. It was a pretty cruddy day, but the rained cleared up by the time the tailgate started and we found a great spot on campus! Everyone brought treats & drinks and we grilled up some burgers & dogs. Such a fun time. And we crushed KU!

We had a Novemberfest party. Dan & I are trying to make an Oktoberfest party an annual thing for us, but due to the state of our house in October, we pushed it back a month. Dan brewed an Oktoberfest beer that was great and I cooked up some goodies. Tara came into town and was a god send in helping get everything ready. Phew. Too bad I took almost zero pictures… I did get a few of some of the food. So there’s that. This mulled wine was a huge hit! As well as this pumpkin spice trifle. And both were very easy 🙂 We also did brats and pretzels with beer cheese dip.


We checked out the new movie theater in town, where we had delicious food, a pillow, blanket, and recliners. Best way to see a movie!

We went to the park & had a picnic- the weather is good! Finally!!!! (Although it was 82 and humid beyond all December reason this weekend, so that was maybe premature. Unfortunately.)

I cannot believe Christmas is NEXT WEEK!! Meanwhile, I’ll be in a t-shirt. Thanks Houston.