Holiday Weekend Highlights

We had a really nice holiday weekend here in Minneapolis. The weather was really nice for most of the weekend - it rained a bit on Saturday morning when we were at the zoo and then Monday morning was kind of a washout, but besides that it was great outside and we were out and about a lot. Sleep was the low point - Will was awake between 4:45-5:30 every day (although we left him in his crib until close to 6) and he took incredibly short 1-1.25 hour naps. He should be napping 2+ hours so an hour is way too short, especially combined with early wakings. But... I had to wake him up at 6:30 this morning to get him ready to go to school so maybe (please please please) we are turning the corner on sleep? Insert all the praying hands and fingers crossed emojis. 

Here are some of the highlights from the weekend!

Vaccines! The boys both got the first dose of Moderna on Friday afternoon. It was... unpleasant. Both screamed and Paul thrashed around so much that it was hard for the nurse to give him the shot. Next time I will be sure to bring Phil with. But they had no side effects and once the shot was over, the crying immediately subsided for both. 

Post-vaccine sucker

The zoo! We went to the zoo on Saturday morning when it opened for members and stayed for about 2 hours. This is as long as we can stay at this stage since Will gets really tired around 11 and we run the risk of him falling asleep in the car if we are out and about too long. We rented a double stroller which worked well. This time we saw some new-to-use exhibits, like the tropical exhibit which was a hit with both boys. 

The beach! After Will's swimming lesson on Sunday - which ended up being a private one-on-one lesson since we were the only family that showed up - we headed to the beach to hang out in the sand/water while Phil did the swim course. Paul enjoyed the water and Will played and experimented with eating sand. Yuck!

Parks! We went to 3 different parks - one each day on Friday, Saturday and Sunday. For one of the park visits, we went with friends as part of a play date. 

Friends! Besides the playdate on Saturday, we went over to Phil's high school friend's house for a get together. They live on a lake and are the most amazing hosts. Paul helped me make some GF brownies (which turned out great). Paul did really well on the lily pad - he really seems to be warming up to the water so hopefully I can get him back into lessons this fall or winter. 

Helping me make brownies. He got to sample the melted chocolate.

The couple that hosted us has a little boy who is 4 months younger than Will so Will had a blast playing with his toys. I love his "senior picture" pose in the playhouse below! Ha!

Each day of the weekend had one "bigger" outing so it was the right amount of things to do for us. I know some will read this and think - you did ALL OF THAT IN 3 DAYS? But being out and about keeps us sane! Especially at Will's stage. It is very hard to entertain him in the house! But you'd think with all of this activity and time outdoors he would have slept more than usual? But nope. 

We have a really busy week on deck. Tomorrow we'll host my aunt, uncle and cousin for dinner on their way to the airport, on Friday we are getting together with some of Phil's college friends and then on Saturday we are hosting some of Phil's family. It's kind of a lot for one week, but after barely seeing people for 1.5-2 years, we are relishing the ability to see family and friends. And there is comfort in knowing we don't have to worry about covid since most of us have had it and Phil seems super immune! 

How was your holiday weekend? 

Female Friendship - Part 1

I recently read "Text Me When You Get Home" which is all about the evolution of female friendships. It looks at the history of female friendships and examines why they weren't an area of focus for older generations. That examination rang true for me as I would say that my mom (hi, mom!) did not focus on female friendships - outside of her sisters. This comment is not a knock against my mom - I think it's common for women of her time. She was married in her early 20s, raised 5 kids, ran/still runs a business with my dad, and was very active in their church and the community. There wasn't a lot of time for her to develop friendships, nor did she really have a big pool of women to choose from since she lives in a rural area. That's not to say she didn't/doesn't have friends. I just wouldn't say they were an area of focus for her. My dad is her best friend. Her siblings and cousins were her best friends when she was growing up, and her siblings, especially her sisters, continue to be her best friends.

For me, female friendships are a very essential and life-giving part of my life. But that hasn't always been the case. Female friendships - or the lack thereof - have the potential bring pain or joy. I've experienced both ends of the spectrum.

In elementary/junior high/high school, I definitely resided on the painful end of the female friendship spectrum. I grew up in a very small community and as a result, the selection of girls to be friends with was very, very small. I mean, my graduating class had 28 people! Reading the "Mean Girls" chapter of "Text Me When You Get Home" brought back a lot of (painful) memories of how out of place I felt during my pre-collegiate school years. I had friends but the quality of the friendships was not great. I have a very vivid memory of playing Upwords with my grandma in her kitchen when I was probably in my tweens, explaining some of the challenges of my friendship with a girl I considered to be my best friend. After explaining what was going on, my grandma told me that it sounded like this girl was a "fair weather" friend and that I was worthy of a much more. The friendships I had in elementary/middle school/high school were all pretty much "fair weather" friends.

During those rough middle/high school years, a friendship with a cousin who is 11 months younger than me was my saving grace, as were friendships I developed through my high school boyfriend. My high school boyfriend lived about an hour away but it was like he lived in a whole other world because things like academic achievement and musical abilities were valued. At my high school, the only things that were truly valued among the student body was your athletic abilities or breaking the rules by smoking/drinking/partying on the weekend. At my boyfriend's school,  it was refreshing to see that you could be valued for being athletic, but also for things like musical talent. In fact, some of their best athletes were also in band and/or show choir. And while I am sure some kids in his school smoke and drank, that was not the case with my boyfriend and his group of friends.

My parents witnessed some of the, well, cruelty, I experienced during my junior and high school years and my mom assured me that once I went to college, I'd meet life-long friends who would love me for who I am. Luckily, she was right (aren't moms always right? I can say that now that I'm a mom - ha!). I really blossomed during my college years and quickly met girls that I am still close to 15-20 years later. It was very reassuring to quickly discover that it was actually kind of "cool" to be smart and like academics. No one cared that I wasn't athletic - it was no longer a point of emphasis.

I think I've covered enough ground for one post - in my next post I'll talk about the importance of friendships and how the way I form friendships has changed with time.

Did you have a best friend(s) when you were young or did it take you awhile to find your tribe?

Girls Weekend in Austin

Before I get to the post topic at hand, I wanted to say thank you for all the kind wishes on my birthday last Thursday.  While I am very far from family and friends, I felt surrounded by love on my birthday thanks to all of the phone calls, texts, facebook posts, and emails.  The day was capped off with an awesome google hangout with some of my favorite people!  I had friends from Boston, Chicago, DC, Kamloops, BC, New York, Ohio, St. Louis, and Winnepeg on the chat over the course of 2 hours.  I love technology and the way it can bring people together.  There was lots of laughter, stripes, and I of course celebrated with some macarons.

On Friday I woke up feeling like a little kid on Christmas Eve as I was so excited to hop on a plane to meet up with some best friends from college.  I decided last fall that I did not want to spend my birthday weekend in Charlotte and my friend Heidi was gracious enough to offer to host me in Austin. Our other friend Brooke decided to meet up with us as well...  little did I know they had a little surprise up their sleeve as when Brooke landed in Austin, she had our other friend Amanda with her!  It was the best surprise!  We have not had a weekend together in many many years so were all long over due for some girl time.

I will let the photos do most of the talking for the rest of the post!

Our first stop was an outdoor shopping center where we had lunch and of course treated ourselves to drinks.  I saved my 2 drinks for the month for this weekend and enjoyed a fun cucumber martini drink.  I am a sucker for anything cucumber flavored!

4 friends reunited!

 After an afternoon of shopping (where I scored some great deals), we made a pit stop at Whole Foods and then headed back to Heidi's for the evening. We had an international-themed meal with different dishes representing the different countries in honor of the opening ceremonies.  Dessert was macarons, which is my kind of birthday cake.

On Saturday night, we headed out for a day of exploring and started off by doing this short hike to a look-out area with beautiful views of the Austin area.

It was a beautiful day with lots of sunshine!  And yes, I realize that I am totally the odd one out in this photo since I am not wearing any workout wear but I honestly don't own any workout clothes that are cute enough to wear while out and about.

It was so beautiful up there, it seemed like the perfect spot to practice some yoga poses...

After that, we checked out a couple of other popular spots in Austin like Jo's Coffee and Torchy's Tacos, and then did a little shopping in some of the boutiques downtown.

I like stripes but am pretty sure I could not pull off striped sunglasses. 

On Saturday night we headed back downtown for dinner at a Mexican restaurant and then we headed to a really cute wine bar that was located in a quaint little house where we enjoyed table-side s'mores.

On Sunday, Brooke and Amanda flew back to Minneapolis in the morning but I stuck around for most of the day because I am never in a rush to get back to Charlotte.  ;)  I got to spend lots of time with my friend's daughter.   We were both rocking the curls that day and you can't tell in this picture but she is also wearing cream and white stripes!

After spending a couple of hours downtown and eating at a delicious hamburger place that had gluten free buns (yea!) we made one last stop for some macarons.

The light blue one was mine - it was vanilla flavored and was SO good.  Definitely the best macaron I have had this year.

Then it was time for me to head to the airport.  The weekend went so fast but was so much fun.  I am hoping that we can make these girls weekends happen on an annually or every other year. 

I was sad to return to Charlotte, but I left with a full heart.  The last year has been a tough one for me, but weekends like this are a good reminder that I have many blessings in my life, especially the blessing of friendship. 

From the Land of Ma'am: Girls Weekend!

Greetings and Happy Monday, everyone!  I hope you all had a great weekend.  I certainly did.  One of my best friends from college visited me over the weekend, and we had the best time!  Here are some pictures of things we did/saw while she was here!

On Friday we did a day trip to Asheville, which is only 2 hours away.  I hadn't been to the Biltmore yet, so we decided to hit that up!  It is this beautiful estate that was built by the Vanderbilts in the late 1800s.  If you are ever in the Charlotte area, I highly recommend driving up to Asheville to check it out.  The admission price is steep, but worth it IMO as there is so much to see!  We did as much as we could, but I was limited on how much I could walk (more on that tomorrow) so I need to go back again to see more of the gardens and the grounds. 

Heidi and I in front of the Biltmore

The grounds were gorgeous, but unfortunately we did not get to check them out on foot

And the views were STUNNING.  I can see why the Vanderbilts selected this area to build this estate

After touring the Biltmore, we headed into Asheville.  We stopped at the Grove Park Inn, which is a gorgeous hotel with a great patio area, for a cocktail before heading into downtown Asheville. It was early evening by this point, so we got to listen to the drummers that congregate in a park on Friday nights while we waited for our table at one of my favorite restaurants in Asheville, Tupelo Honey.  This place has awesome southern food and a GREAT gluten free menu.

Heidi enjoyed the biscuit and honey that is served with every meal (well, except mine because of course biscuits are not GF).

We got back around 11 pm on Friday night so we took it easy on Saturday morning.  I made brunch for us and we headed out for manicures and a day of shopping.  I had better luck than Heidi and ended up buying 3 dresses!  I usually shop alone, so it was really nice to have Heidi along to give me input on what I should or shouldn't buy.

It rained all day on Saturday so we decided to stay in that night.  I made dinner, gave her a short driving tour of uptown Charlotte, and then we watched the first SATC movie and had popcorn and other snacks.

On Sunday, we went to mass and then went to brunch at my favorite local crepe place, Crispy Crepe.  The rain had finally cleared out so we were able to eat outdoors!

The warm beverages at this place are to die for!  I had a maple syrup latte and Heidi had a hot cider drink

After brunch I dropped Heidi off at the airport.  I was sad to see her go, but I am planning to visit her in Austin in February around our birthdays, which are just days apart.  So at least I know I will see her in about 6 months!

The timing of her trip was really impeccable.  I really needed a weekend of girl time.  I had a tough morning on Friday due to a doctor appointment that I will tell you about tomorrow, so it was nice to get a big hug from Heidi.  And lastly, while I know I will not call Charlotte home long term, it was good to be forced to look for the fun and good things Charlotte has to offer to show Heidi, and it did make me view the city in a different light at times (with the exception of the road system!  Still hating on that).

I'm just so thankful Heidi came to visit.  Having her here was like having a bright ray of sunshine breaking through the clouds that have been hanging over me for several months, both literally and figuratively.

When is the last time you had a girls weekend?  If you could plan a girls weekend in any city, where would you go?  I think a girls weekend in Charleston, Savannah, or Nashville would be really fun.

It Was the Best of Times

Today marks the start of my final three weeks in Minneapolis.  It's hard to believe that just over 2 months ago, I found out about my relocation and now I am just weeks away from making the actual move...  I'm losing a couple of days this week due to a trip to Charlotte and then will be out of town for about a day for Easter, so it feels like I have even less time.  My calendar is filling up with lunches and I'm trying to see friends one last time before my move without making my schedule too intense.  All of this would be so much easier if I didn't have to find 18 hours a week to study for the CFA, but so it goes.

I did have a great opportunity to see a lot of friends and family this weekend, though, as my friends threw a going away party for me on Saturday night.  The wife of my previous boss was really good about taking pictures of everyone throughout the night so I can't wait to get those pictures from her!  In total, about 30 people came to the party and while I didn't get to spend as much time with each guest as I would have liked, it was still really awesome to have so many people in one place at the same time.

My friends surprised me with a "Minnesota Memories" scrapbook which I will be adding to when I get the photos from the party and they also gave each attendee a note card with an addressed envelope with my new mailing address so I will likely be getting quite a few notes in the mail after my move which will really brighten my day!  Additionally, I also received a 3-month "macaroon of the month" subscription! Clearly my friends know me well!

I am proud to say that I set aside the tears and sadness for a night and just soaked up the time with family and friends.  It really was the best of times and it was a good reminder of the many friendship my life has been blessed with over the last 10 years I've lived in Minneapolis.  The reprieve from those feelings of sadness was short-lived as the sadness returned yesterday as the finality of this move started to sink in a bit more, which I suppose is to be expected.

I hope to see some of these friends again before my move, but if that doesn't happen, at least I will have the memories of that evening to reflect back on over the months to come as I start this new chapter of my life in Charlotte.

Gingerbread House Decorating Party 2012

Greetings and Happy Monday!  I hope you had a wonderful weekend*!  I had a very fun weekend that included a double date with my best friend and her husband and the Christmas Party on Saturday night.  Both nights were SO much fun!

Last week was a fun-filled week for me in general.  I had date night on Tuesday night, the Gingerbread House Decorating Party on Wednesday night, and a knitting (err, I worked on Christmas cards) google-hangout with Kyla and Becky on Thursday night!  It's been quite awhile since I packed so many fun things into one week!

The Gingerbread House Decorating Party was so much fun!  Now that my friends' kids are all a little bit older, we decided to include them this year.  They are 2, 3, and 6, and all had a total blast!  I thought I'd share some pictures from our fun night!

The completed houses - mine is on the right, Owen's is on the left, and Stella & Elliot's is in the middle.  Doesn't it look like a Santa on the middle house?  Well, it's actually a zombie Santa according to Elliot!

The night wouldn't be complete without a little frosting squirted into everyone's mouth!  I love the look on Stella's face in this photo!

Owen kept up with the big kids!  He looks a little angelic in this photo as there is a light shining right on him.

Similar to last year, Elliot practiced more planking!

Lastly, I thought I'd share a picture of my decorated tree since I haven't shared a picture yet this year.  I am really happy with how it turned out and love that, each year, I have more Paris-themed ornaments!

How was your weekend? Will you decorate/have you decorated a gingerbread house this year?

* While I had a wonderful weekend, my heart goes out to those in CT who are dealing with this horrible tragedy.  I know many will be posting about this topic, but I couldn't come up with the right words to address this tragedy... 

Productive Weekend

Greetings and Happy Monday!  I hope you all had a wonderful weekend!  Mine was great and it was super, duper productive.

I started the weekend off on the right foot and met Raquelita, her husband, and some of her friends for dinner.  I was supposed to run a half marathon with her on Saturday, but decided to bow out a couple of week ago as I just didn't build my mileage up fast enough after my surgery. 

Raquelita's husband snapped this picture of us at dinner!  What do you know, I'm wearing stripes!  Shocking!  ;)

Besides having dinner on Friday night, I also fit the following into the weekend...

• Shopped for some new spring items (I had a 50% off coupon for Banana Republic, I couldn't resist)
• Bought shoes for Amber's wedding 
• Ran 8 miles with my running club - which went really, really good.  I maintained a 9:30 pace, which I was really happy with.
• Studied a total of 11 hours between Saturday and Sunday
• Baked GF chocolate chip cookies (from a mix, gf baking from scratch is just not for me) to bring to a girls night dinner in on Saturday night.  They were delicious, no one could tell they were gluten free!
• Finished a great book
• Video chatted with this lovely lady
• Walked to the grocery store for the first time in months
• Tried a new recipe
• And ended the weekend doing this...

Yep, I grilled in March.  While wearing a dress.  And sweating.  Minnesota is the new Arizona, people.

I've been in a terrible funk lately (more on that later this week), but this weekend, I took a giant leap towards feeling like myself again.

How was your weekend?

Last Weekend...

Happy Monday, everyone!  I hope you all had a great weekend.  Mine was busy, but wonderful.  The highlight of the weekend was attending the baby showers of 2 good college friends who are due a week apart in May!  One was a morning brunch shower, the other was an evening dinner shower.  Both were so well planned and it was so much fun to get together with girls that I don't see often enough.  We are far-flung now as one lives in Manhattan, one lives in Chicago, and another lives in Fargo, ND.  I miss the days of us all living closer, but being far apart makes me appreciate the time together even more.

Besides attending those showers, I packed in a lot of studying, took advantage of the beautiful weather and ran outside on Saturday and Sunday, and made a new recipe, which I will likely share with you at some point.  So all in all, a fun, productive weekend!

How was your weekend?  Do you live close to your college friends or are you far-flung like my group?

Bittersweet, Whirlwind Trip

Happy Friday everyone!  Yesterday was actually my Friday at work.  I have a wedding tonight in Fargo, ND so I decided to drive home last night and am using today as a study day, so it's not really a "day off" per se, but I'll take what I can get. 

I am taking a study break to have lunch with my grandma today, though, and am really looking forward to that.  It will be a bit of a bittersweet experience as she is moving into an apartment in about 2 weeks.  My grandparents lived in this home for their entire marriage (I think?  Or close - so 60+ years).  He passed away 3 years ago and the time has come for her to move.  I know this is a very positive change for her as this house is so big and a lot for her to care for, but it's weird to think it's my last meal that I will likely eat in their home...  a home which holds so many memories.  But I feel blessed to have made so many countless memories with my grandparents.  And those memories will always exist, regardless of who occupies that home in the future.

The day will end on a positive note as I will watch a college friend get married.  We were the last 2 single ones in our group, and lived parallel lives in our late 20s as we both went through tough break ups within days of each other back in 2008.  We exchanged 100s of emails and both continuously told the other person that there IS someone out there for each of us - well, he has found that person, and I am so very happy for him. 

I will head back early on Saturday morning as the CFA studying beckons...  So it will be a bittersweet, whirlwind trip, but one I am looking forward to.  I am going to try to soak up the limited time I will have with my parents as it is likely the last time I will see them until after my CFA exam in June.  But at least that point I will be able to join them at their beautiful lake home! 

Chicago Recap - Belatedly

Oh wow, it's already been 2 weeks since our girls trip to Chicago.  Between parlaying that fun trip into a work trip, having sinus surgery, and recovering from sinus surgery, I can honestly say the last 2 weeks of my life have been a foggy blur.

But here are some of the memories I am holding onto...

• The delicious meal + wine we had when I arrived on Friday night.  I got in late because of a flight delay, but I let the frustration of that experience go and focused on enjoying the company of Becky, Amber, and Lesli.
• On Saturday we went out to Oak Park and toured Frank Lloyd Wright's home and studio.  I do not like FLW as a person, but I do respect him as an architect.  His home and studio are amazing - and are definitely worth checking out if you find yourself in the Chicago area.  The girls all loved this as much as I did, which was a relief for me as it was something I had recommended.
• On Sunday, I feasted upon delicious paella at an awesome Spanish restaurant and then we spent a low key afternoon in a Barnes & Noble. That's my kind of day. Oh and I stayed strong and did NOT buy any books!
• Ordering Thai on Sunday night, watching the red carpet + Golden Globes and having my nails painted by Amber and Becky.  I got star treatment!
• The conversations.  Chicago is wonderful, but it came second to the talks us girls had about everything from blogging to friendship dynamics to dating/marriage to FLW to books we thought the others HAD to read.  We also FaceTimed with Amber, which was so much fun!!
• My business meetings went really well - so well that one of the clients sent me a very kind and complimentary email.  I am still new to client meetings, so I needed that positive reinforcement.

I'll close with a couple of shots that the lovely Becky took!

Brunch at Yolk! 

Waiting for the El.  Or the L.  We got mixed answers on the 'right' nickname for Chicago's public transportation system!

Becky & I

Do you have any vacations coming up?  I am done with fun vacations until after the CFA.  My next trip will be my trip to western British Columbia for Amber's wedding in July!  Eeks - so excited!!

Feliz Navidad & Gingerbread Party Recap

Last week, I had the opportunity to host 2 different gatherings - my Feliz Navidad holiday gathering and my annual gingerbread house decorating party  Both parties went really well!  I bravely tried 2 new recipes for Saturday's gathering (enchiladas and tres leches cake), and both turned out pretty well!

I'll let the pictures do the talking!

Or course I wore an apron, but I opted to wear a more practical, festive-colored one!  I did remove it once guests arrived.  I only wear an apron for the whole evening on Julia Child night!

I love my new dining room table - and my fiesta dishes.  A big shout out to Mandy for being my fiesta ware buyer!  One of the couples cancelled due to a sick baby, so there were just 5 of us!

The drinks and appetizer area.  We drank wine, beer, and margaritas, and ate chips, salsas, guacamole, and chili con queso (not all pictured here)

Besides serving shredded chicken tacos, I also made Mama Pea's Green and Red Enchiladas (except I couldn't find red lentils, so they are technically just green enchiladas!)

Dessert was tres leches cake with made-from-scratch whipped cream.  It tasted good, but the cake sort of 'dropped' a bit when cooling.  I must not have incorporated enough air into the egg mixture.  Oops.  Lesson learned. 

*******************

Now for the Gingerbread Party!  This is the 5th time we've gathered for some Holiday fun!  The first 2 years, we decorated sugar cookies & gingerbread men/women.  Then I found out about my gluten intolerance and we changed it up and started decorating gingerbread houses as I didn't want to make/decorate cookies I couldn't eat or make/decorate cookies that these girls wouldn't want to eat (GF baking is... interesting...)

To start things off, here is a picture of my tree - I love the Eiffel Tower tree topper my friend gave me!

Decorating requires intense concentration...

But we also have lots of fun.  Elliot was a BIG FAN of the frosting!

Eventually, he tired of the crafting and showed off his ability to do a plank on my couch.  Gosh I love this kid.

And voila!  Here are the houses!  Mine is the 2nd from the right.  It turned out pretty good this year!!

When is the last time you decorated a gingerbread house?  Mine has improved over the years.  The first year, we had to assemble them and I put my roof on upside down, so the shingles, well, didn't look right.  I've gotten a bit better, but mine never look as good as Amanda & Brooke's do!

It's Party Time!

Wow, oh, wow, my calendar is filling up with parties!  I know it's that time of year, but it still always surprises me to see my calendar fill up.  My condo building had their Christmas party last Thursday, I had 2 birthday parties last weekend (one of which I had to miss because of the flu), I had a holiday service project gathering with my women's networking planning committee on Tuesday, last night I had my office Christmas party, and tomorrow night I am hosting my own little Christmas gathering with friends!  Phew.  That's just the last week or so!  I have one more party - my annual gingerbread house decorating party - and then life is quiet until Christmas! :)

On Saturday night, the theme of my holiday gathering will be "Feliz Navidad".  It's cheesy (no pun intended), I know, but Mexican food is so easy to make gluten free, and it's a cuisine that everyone tends to like.  It's a small, casual party with 3 other couples, and each couple will bring a dish to share.  I'll be making enchiladas (from the new Peas and Thank You cookbook that Amber got me!), tacos with all the fixings, and Tres Leches cake for dessert, which is naturally gluten free (yes, I will be treating myself to dairy tomorrow night!).  I am really excited to make the cake because a) it will introduce me to a new ingredient, masa harina and b) it gives me an excuse to use the double boiler I got for Christmas a couple of years ago!

I'm really excited to gather with friends, enjoy yummy food, play some games, and raise our margaritas glasses and cervezas in celebration of the many good things in life!

Do you  have many holiday parties to attend this year?

Dairy Free Friday: Entertaining GF and DF

Greetings, Happy Friday, and hello from Charlotte, NC!! 

It's been awhile since I've done a Dairy Free post, so I figured it was time for one.  When I hosted the Ambers back in August, I made it my mission to treat them to a dairy free, gluten free vegetarian meal. 

For appetizers, we started off easy with some veggies and roasted red pepper hummus.  Yes, I bought hummus...  I know it's easy to make, but we were out and about all day and I needed something easy!!

I knew I wanted to grill dinner, so I found a veggie burger recipe that turns out great.  I knew it was a hit when my meat-eating family tried and really liked the Black Bean Veggie Burgers I made for them!  It's a really simple recipe - I would suggest doubling the bread crumbs, though, so they will stick together better.  I used GF bread crumbs, so the burgers were safe for me to eat.  (BTW, there is an egg in the recipe, so it is not a vegan recipe...  just an fyi...)

The burgers have a mexican taste to them due to the seasoning, so I decided to serve them with an avocado spread instead of the standard ketchup/mustard condiments.  I used this recipe - which is simple and delicious!  I may or may not have eaten the leftover spread with a spoon...  Hey, it's healthy carbs, right?

Along with the burgers, I grilled rosemary potatoes (sliced baby red/golden yukons, minced garlic, fresh rosemary, olive oil, and salt and pepper - easy!) and also grilled up a bunch of vegetables which were brushed with a balsamic glaze. 

It ws a FULL grill!  It definitely did not look like I was cooking for 3 :)

I was really happy with how the meal turned out, and the girls were very complimentary.  Canadian Amber ended up recreating the meal for her family so I guess that means they weren't just being nice when they said it was good!

Canadian Amber's plate

For dessert, we made banana softserve, which has become my go-to treat!  We mixed in some cocoa to make it a chocolatey softserve.  We rimmed the glasses with gluten free graham crackers, and added in some chocolate chips, marshmallows, and sprinkles!  It was delish!

All in all, it was a successful meal!  I even let the girls pitch in and help (this is a big deal, delegating is NOT my forte).  We had a blast making this meal and really enjoyed our evening.  Of course, the views from the grilling/patio area sure contributed to the wonderful night.

I think I proved that you CAN cook vegetarian, gluten free, dairy free food that is delicious!!

When is the last time you hosted friends for dinner?  What did you make?  I am excited to have a larger place as now I will be able to host dinner parties!