Galveston Girls Gone Wild- Curry Edition

Everyone has a little town they grew up going to that brings them so much nostalgia. Mine is Galveston. We went to this little island an hour outside of Houston every single summer and often times spring growing up, and memories just come flooding in every time I go back. The same restaurants and shops I went to as a kid are still there. The people of Galveston are the same as people were from back when I can remember, with neon tank tops, tanned leather skin, Texas flags standing proudly in their yards. If you aren;t from Texas, you would probably go to Galveston and declare it a crap town. But people from Houston especially have a special fondness for this coastal town. 

My mom's sister Mary has a STUNNING, HGTV worthy bay house in Galveston and invited all of us gals over for a girl's trip. My mom is one of 5 sisters, and they were all there, plus the head of the roost, Gigi, and most of my girl cousins (although we really wished Hailey and Tiffany could be there). I was so excited because A. I hadn't seen them since Christmas! And B. I start work today and this was the perfect little fun getaway I needed before getting started. 

 We met at a cute little restaurant called Farley Girls on Tuesday, and then walked the strand for a bit before heading to Mary's house. We immediately put on our swim suits and became sunbathing beauties, before us younger chicks tried out the paddle board.

 Cousin Kayla was the first to give it a go and she made it look so easy! She was our coach, since she'd done this before.

 At first, it was a bit harder than I thought it would be keeping balance, but once you get the hang of it, it's easy peasy. You also have to get over any fears of falling in the water- it'll probably happen or almost happen a few times until you get the balance.

   

   

 I was more into trying to headstand on the board after seeing cool shot of this online. I fell my first try, but got it my second. Holy abs, they are still sore from trying this.

 My younger sister Madeline gave it a go, but wasn't quite ready to stand up yet. I'm proud of her for trying!

After our swim, Mary took us on a golf cart ride around her neighborhood. Are there any golf courses in this neck of the woods? No. But does everyone drive around in a golf cart? Absolutely. And Mary's golf cart is like none other- it fit almost all of us! 

 Keepin' it classy with my glass of Rose on the back of the golf cart.

We got home, Mary made some delicious crab cakes, and we talked and looked at old pictures until close to midnight. 

The next morning (I SOOOOO wish I took pictures) Kayla, Madeline, and I rode bikes. Madeline's had a baby seat on the back, mine had flat tires, and Kayla got the cool bike. We rode on the beach, which is easier said than done, and we ALL fell over into the sand a few times before Kayla declared "Ima Walker! I'mmmm a walker!"

We had some scrumptious pasta salad and shrimp thai salad courtesy of my mom and sister before heading out to a friend's pool. 

 At the pool, I realized I only had one pad in my bathing suit top (and it happened to be all wonky and folded over), so I discretely took it out and left it on the table. We kept hearing the rest of the time there "Who's pad is this? Is someone missing a pad?" When I admitted it was my pad, my family kept trying to find the other pad. We thought we saw it on the way home, but it was a false alarm. Oh well!

For some reason when we gals get together, we end up being about 500x hungrier than normal and eat snacks all day. I'm not complaining! 

 We found this HILARIOUS picture of me looking at Megan's booty. I wish we could go back in time the 24 years ago this picture was taken and figure out what the heck we were doing!

My trip had to end Wednesday night after dinner at the marina, since I work today! I'm sad I had to leave early, but thankful for the time we got to spend together. Too many laughs, good eats, and drinks. I love my Curry girls!

 My mom, sister and me :-)

 Cheers to a fantastic girls trip! Love you ladies!

Herbalicious!

Last week, I had my mom, Mimi, Aunt Lydia, and Aunt Dianne over for an easy lunch. Everyone brought something as a small hosting gift...like wine (gone), panties (my mom- don't ask), and strawberry pie (halfway gone).

 My Aunt Dianne, along with some beautiful handpicked flowers from her garden, also brought a bagful of herbs.

 The herbs were intended for everyone to share, but I somehow ended up with all of them! I didn't want them to go to waste, so I quickly went to cooking...and I think I came up with some pretty yummy concoctions!

Rosemary and Basil Chicken
Handful of basil
Handful of Rosemary
Squirt of mayo
Squirt of Mustard
Juice of a lemon
Couple of gurgles of olive oil
Chicken breasts

 This was literally me just throwing random stuff together. In a food processor, I pureed the herbs, mayo, mustard, lemon juice, and olive oil. I salted the chicken, put the paste on top, and cooked it at 400 for 40 minutes. Easy peasy!

Mint Chocolate Ice Cream- from David Lebovitz 

How I loveeeeee mint chocolate chip ice cream. It is my favorite! And side note- I do like it to be that pretty pastely green color. But, when making homemade mint ice cream with actual mint leaves, it is just an ever so slight green-yellow color. Not so pretty. But really good! 

Holy COW was this stuff worth all of the fuss. First I had to heat up the cream, sugar, and mint. Then I had to let it sit. Then I had to squeeze the mint to get all of the juices out. Then I had to mix it with egg yolks and heat it up. Then I had to refrigerate it. Then I had to churn it. Then I had to melt dark chocolate and scribble it into the ice cream. Whew! 

I opened the lid to take a picture, and my senses were immediately bombarded with minty chocolaty deliciousness. So I had to have a bite. Or seven.

Side note- ice cream made with actual mint leaves does taste different than store bought mint ice cream that is usually flavored with mint extract. It really does have an herbal, almost wood-like after taste. Think of eating an actual mint leaf, vs a peppermint. I loved it, Daniel was weirded out by it though. More for me! 

Basil Watermelon Popsicle 
Few sprigs of Basil
Watermelon (I used probably 1.5 cups)
Optional- Deep Eddy Cranberry Vodka

I impulse bought some popsicle molds the other day at World Market- I blame it on all of these enticing popsicle recipes I keep pinning on Pinterest! I simply pureed the watermelon, basil, and about a cup of vodka. Poured it in the molds and froze for a few hours. This recipe is so versatile....you could omit the basil or substitute mint instead. You could use any fruit you have on hand. Watermelon is so watery, that it doesn't actually need a liquid to be mixed with, but if you were using berries, I think hibiscus tea would be a good base. 

I love my husband. He usually raves about my kitchen creations, but when he doesn't like something, he really let's it be known, often in a hilarious way. After his first try, he told me it tasted like a salad popsicle. He wanted to give it another go, then proceeded to wash out his mouth and declare that it tasted like watermelon pasta. So, yes, this is interesting. I liked it, but it's not for everyone. I think next time I'll use less basil :-P 

All of this herb cooking has really made me want to start growing the herbs that I use nearly daily for my cooking- dill, chives, oregano, parsley. I've heard countless times that it is so easy. I'm starting with cilantro, and if that goes well, I'll buy some more seeds. If you have any pointers, feel free to give me some advice! 

Prague with the Bro

Hello! Last vacay post....then I don't quite know what I will write about any more! 

My brother arrived in London while I was still in Santorini. Thankfully, Daniel was there to meet him at the train station and show him the ropes of London. I got home from Greece on a Tuesday night around midnight, and the next day at 11 am we were off to the airport for Prague! I could pretty much navigate the airport with my eyes closed at this point! 

 We got some yoga bunny detox drink (basically ginger ale...but the name had us sold) and were off without a hitch!

 Our flat in Old Town Square was odd but great! We each had our own bedroom and shared a bathroom...and only paid $40 a night! Prague was dirt cheap which made it all the better. But I say our flat was odd, because it kind of smelled like cats and we didn't have normal pillows- I had throw pillows, and Gregory had what I call bean bag pillows.

 We were a cartwheel away from the astronomical clock, so we knocked that out first thing. Every hour when it goes off, the little doors open and figures of the 12 apostles come out and circle around the clock. It was neat!

All of the churches in Prague were over the top. Most of them had nightly classical concerts and we went to one featuring a organist, violinist, and vocalist. It was an incredible experience listening to Beethoven and Mozart in a church older than the USA.

Probably our favorite thing about Prague was their Viennese coffee. It was delicious- half coffee, half whipped cream. We were only in Prague for two mornings, but you better believe that was the first thing we did once we woke up! 

 For our full day in Prague, we walked over the Charles Bridge to tour the castle. When you hear "Castle", you probably think palace. But actually, a castle includes much more than just that- we got to see the cathedral, the homes where workers used to live, old shops, and the actual palace.

BONES!

 I believe the cathedral was around 1000 years old. I've seen more cathedrals than I can remember during our stint in Europe, but they are always impressive.

The castle is on a hill, so we had the best views of all of the red roofs. So pretty! I think I have to give Prague the title of being the most beautiful city I saw while in Europe. It was definitely the cleanest- not any graffiti or litter in sight! The buildings are all so colorful, too- you have a pink building next to a green next to a yellow next to a blue. It didn't even feel like a real city, it was so beautiful and clean. We kind of felt like we were walking around Disneyworld!

 For some reason, I didn't take any pics of the rest of the castle...but I do have a ton of pictures of the statue with a golden package. It was in front of the palace, and since being around your sibling makes you suddenly have the maturity of a 12 year old, we couldn't stop laughing at it!

 Gregory likes sneak attacking people with the camera when they aren't looking. I was caught being a tourist, trying to figure out where the infamous peeing fountain is located.

Found it! It is so much better in person. They are standing in a pool shaped like the Czech Republic. And their hips AND weewee moves while water comes out of it. Gosh, I feel dirty just typing that. And I have mentioned a man's nether regions way too many times in this post!

 When we weren't drinking Viennese coffee, we were drinking beer. It was cheap and good! You could get a beer for around $2 at most places.

 Marionettes are a big thing in Prague. Puppet shops are everywhere! They are all beautifully hand painted, but a bit creepy for my taste.

 We later took a river cruise. It was meh and I wouldn't recommend taking one, although it was nice sitting down for a bit.

There was also tons of music, which I can always appreciate. Not only would people play on the streets, there were also lots of jazz cafes. And if you go towards the end of the band's set, you don't have to pay a cover charge.

We absolutely loved Prague and I will  treasure the memories of my first vacation with just my brother. There wasn't tons to do there, but it was a great city to walk around in, enjoy a lazy lunch, and shop around.