Walkin' in Memphis

Out of all my years living in Tennessee, I never managed to spend any time in Memphis. I'm no exactly sure how that happened. It's been FOREVER since we had a visit to see Jeremy's parents, so they invited us to Memphis to see a Cirque de Soleil performance.

Who could pass up a chance to spend time with our family and see Cirque?!?!

We stayed in downtown Memphis- right off of Beale Street- at a new Westin. It was great!



Ivy and Winnie love staying in hotels! Their favorite thing is people watching from the windows or maybe it's bird watching. Regardless, they spend most of their time staring out the windows.

Our hotel was close to everything so we were able to walk everywhere.

A view of Beale Street

We were not sure where we wanted to eat, but Jeremy steered us towards Texas de Brazil. It was pretty amazing! But don't even attempt this if you're not a meat lover.

Jeremy's dad was like a kid in a candy store! The waiters had meat on skewers and would bring it over to your table and cut a hunk off. They offered filet, tenderloin, ribs, chicken, ribeye, garlic sirloin, pork tenderloin, etc. And they just kept it coming! They also have a fabulous salad bar! I'm not sure I got my money's worth- I can only eat so much meat.

We had a little bit before our show started, so we ventured over to the Peabody Hotel. It's the oldest hotel in Memphis. You may have heard about their duck thing- these ducks live on the roof and every morning they ride the elevator down to the lobby and hop into the fountain. Each night, they get out of the fountain, onto the elevator, and back up to the roof to sleep.

We didn't get to see the ducks do their thing, but we visited their palace on the roof. They are living like kings!!!

Then, we were off to the Orpheum for the big show!

The theater was so beautiful and neat! It was really gorgeous!

The show was fabulous! Tons of tricks and acrobatics! Some of them had us holding out breath. We had such a fun time!

The next morning, we had a fabulous brunch in our hotel.

On Saturday afternoon, we visited one of Jeremy's high school friends, Brian, and his wife, Jenna. They have an adorable little baby- Daniel. It was our first time to meet little Daniel and he is pretty darn cute! His smile is absolutely precious!

We also celebrated Thanksgiving dinner with Jeremy's Nanny Walker. I'm not sure why I didn't get any pics of that?!?!

It was such a great weekend with family and friends.

Simple Dinner Idea

I love gnocchi! Fresh gnocchi from nice Italian restaurants is amazing, but the kind you can buy in the grocery store is pretty good, too! It only takes gnocchi about 3 minutes to cook, so dinner is ready in no time!

You can use any meat or pasta sauce that you like, but I think Italian sausage and tomato vodka sauce is a great pairing. I add a little parmesan cheese at the end and it's fabulous!

FOREVER 29

Well after all the anticipation, I finally turned 30! It was a great day.

Jeremy brought me Daylight Donuts for breakfast, which I love. I went to lunch with my friend, Katie. My office had a little surprise cake for me. And I came home to this . . .


30 roses, 3 pieces of cake, birthday decorations and my really, wonderful husband.


Apparently, before I walked in the door, Ivy and Winne also had their birthday hats on. We tried to recreate the moment for the camera, but . . .

They were a little less than cooperative. They didn't really get the concept that we wear hats, we don't eat them. So we tried a picture with no hats.

That went much better! Next, on to opening those 30 gifts! I opened a few in the morning before work and the rest, that night. I needed a break in between! Actually, Jeremy need a break from playing photog!

reenacting my "camera" face

What a GREAT birthday!

the loot

I don't know about you, but I am birthdayed out!!! Perhaps, you've noticed a common theme in all of my birthday celebrating- FOOD! I've had so much cake and goodies over the past few weeks that I did not eat a single bite of the cake Jeremy bought.

But it's been really wonderful. I feel so blessed to be 30 years old and surrounded by such wonderful friends and family! I have way more than I deserve and I can't even imagine how the next 30 years could top these, but I'm sure they will!

Thank you for making me feel special and loved!

The secret to staying young is to live honestly, eat slowly, and lie about your age. – Lucille Ball

Jeremy planned a really fun birthday celebration for us in the Big D. We stayed at the luxurious Joule Hotel in downtown. It was heavenly!!!

It was so nice to get away for an evening and relax & enjoy spending time with each other.

He also made dinner reservations for us at Hotel ZaZa’s Dragonfly. We hadn’t been to the Dragonfly since we were engaged in 2006. And I love it! It was such a great surprise! The food is amazing!

in front of our hotel

at the Dragonfly

We had so much fun talking about our memories of our engagement and how much things have changed since we've been married and moved away from Dallas.

Next, we went to the Iron Cactus (next door to our hotel) for some yummy dessert!

The rooftop had a beautiful view of downtown and a neat infinity pool. It was heated, but it seemed to cool to get in the pool.

But we enjoyed the lounge chairs!

The next day, we went to lunch at one of our favorite Dallas restaurants- Pappadeaux. And- surprise!!!

My mom, Ethan, and Sarah were there!!!!

reading one of the hilarious "30" b-day cards

those "you're old" jokes never get old

Yay! A new paper shredder!

Apparently, this card was HILARIOUS

Jeremy is thinking- my wife is out of control

Ethan, Sarah, MaeMae, me and J

We had a fabulous lunch! I'm so glad my family got to be part of this exciting birthday! All their gifts and cards were so special and it was so sweet that they took the time to join us for a quick lunch. And what an amazing husband I have- the birthday was so much more than I could have ever expected. THANK YOU!!!!

But of course, my mom couldn't just go to lunch with me. She sent me home with THIRTY gifts to be opened on my actual birthday.

WOW- I can hardly wait!!!!!!!!!!