A Photo Tour Of The Daniel Stowe Botanical Gardens

Happy Easter everyone!  I just got back from a little trip to Houston with the hubby.  It's the first time I've used my pilot's wife benefit to "non-rev" (fly standby) in about 5 years or something, so it was definitely interesting, but it all went off without a hitch, including flying with Clyde :)  I was suprised at how open the flights were on Easter weekend, and even better- Greg was on call yesterday and didn't get used, so we got to spend the whole day in Houston together!

I'll have a little more on that recap later, but right now I want to bring you a photo tour of the Daniel Stowe Botanical Gardens, which I went to with my in-laws and Greg the other day when they were here.  It's probably the 4th or 5th visit I've had to DSBG in the years I've been in Charlotte, but this might have been one of the nicest visits so far since it's Spring time and everything was blooming.  Also, I think this might be the best I've been with a camera thus far, so hopefully you'll enjoy my pictorial! 

Dinner and Breakfast Out

It's been a busy week over here at Casa de Holding Pattern!  After arriving back in Charlotte on Sunday night, I dove right into a visit from my in-laws and a busy work week.  This might be the first moment alone I've had all week!

We did do some fun things with Greg's parents while they were here though.  Might as well go right into what we ate!

Tuesday night they all met me in uptown Charlotte when I got out of work, and we headed to RiRa, my favorite Irish bar for dinner.
RiRa has a great second floor outdoor area where you can eat and enjoy the city, so we sat there and my mother-in-law marveled at the warm temperatures of Charlotte. 

Apparently it was 36 degrees in Chicago the on Tuesday morning, and it was in the low 80's in Charlotte on Tuesday.  UPGRADE!

I ordered the special on tap, a Smithwicks, and promptly gulped a bunch down before taking a picture.

For my meal I ordered a salad with mixed greens, goat cheese, grapes, apples, and walnuts.  Not my usual choice for Irish bar fare, but I was really in the mood for something light.  It hit the spot.

I had a cup of potato leek soup too.

It really was a gorgeous night to dine outside with people you love.

I took the day off Wednesday to spend more time with everyone, since I'd missed out on a lot of the fun Tuesday, while slaving away at the office.  My in-laws requested a return visit to Terrace Cafe, where we'd gone with them on their last visit.  Twist my arm...

I decided to go for something savory this time, so I ordered an omelet with onions, peppers, and pepper jack cheeese, and hashbrowns.  It also came with toast and a small salad.  Totally delicious.  One of the standouts was the jam in the closer ramekin.  I believe it was homemade strawberry jam and it was so good!  Makes me want to attempt making homemade jam sometime.

I think Greg and his mom actually ordered the same things they had last time we came.

Blueberry waffle with a side of hashbrowns...  My man likes his carbs, what can I say...

My mother-in-law got the breakfast casserole.

My father-in-law had an egg and two pancakes, which went un photographed.  Pretty much everything on the table was devoured.  Terrace is definitely among my favorite breakfast places in Charlotte.  I still need to go there for lunch or dinner sometime though!

Next up, our tour of the Daniel Stowe Botanical Gardens.

A Waterfront Run

Um, how is it already April 19th??  I'm shocked at how fast this month is flying by!

So, I swear I'm wrapping up my weekend recap, but just wanted to mention a couple things.  For one, I actually RAN Sunday for the first time since...well I'm actually not sure when the last time I ran was, but it's been at least a couple weeks.  I ran with my brother and did about a 40 minute run around Hoboken, up near the waterfront.

I forgot to bring a camera, but it looks like this:

source

And I basically looked like this:

Well, except I'm not an old dude with an orange shirt on...  But you get the idea.

It's cool to run there though, because the NYC skyline is right across the river.  Quite spectacular and scenic!  I'm not going to lie though, it was a rough 3-4 miles after not having run much lately, and I'm actually a little sore, if that tells you anything.  Getting sore after a run of that length is not the usual for me!

Speaking of not running much lately, here's a little update on running, trying to conceive, and all of that.  When I first decided I would try to conceive, I basically had this idea in my head that I was going to do everything I could to cater to the possibility of a little fragile seedling being inside me.  To me, that meant cutting way back on running (or maybe not running at all), cutting back (basically eliminating it during the 2WW) on caffeine, and basically changing a lot of what I'd been doing normally to make it as conducive as possible for a baby to want to set up shop in my womb.  I wouldn't say it was a complete overhaul, but at the same time, I definitely decided I would err on the side of caution on anything that could possibly be detrimental.

Now, at 3-4 months into this whole journey, I'm realizing how dumb I've been.  Even though it's good to change some things and prepare for the possibility of a baby, I think I have gone a little overboard in putting my life on hold am no longer living the same way I used to, which I think has been kind of unnecessary.  It would have been one thing if I'd been a heavy drinker, a person who eats paint chips, or a street whore- AKA: someone with tons of issues that need to be dealt with and resolved before a baby can safely be introduced to their life.  But really, I was already doing everything I was supposed to by working out in moderation, eating a healthy diet, and keeping my mental sanity.  I think if anything, the altering I've done has probably done nothing more than to make me nervous, antsy, and in a less good place to receive a baby.  So in reevaluating things, I think it's time for me to take this back more towards the middle and start running some again and worrying less about everything I'm doing.  People living normally and not paying attention to any of this stuff get knocked up easily every day.  It seems to pay to be oblivious... So here's to obliviousness and we'll kind of try that for a while and see if it helps.  Being the obsessive nut that I am, I'm sure I'm still going to err on the side of caution, but I'm going to try to be less paranoid about it than I've been if I can.  I think trying to relax while trying to conceive is kind of a ridiculous notion.  I will try though!

From Albany To NYC

Hey everyone!  I'm actually back in Charlotte, with my sweet pup camped out on my lap!  I missed him soooooo much!  I had a great trip up north though, and was glad I went.  Here's some more of what I did this weekend.

After my fun at the wedding Friday night, I awoke for more exciting plans on Saturday morning.  A few weeks ago I had Tweeted that I would be in Albany for the wedding and wondered if any Albany bloggers would like to meet for breakfast.  Courtney and Katie said they would love to, so we set up a plan! 

We headed to Cafe Madison, which has a completely drool worthy menu :)  The frittata looked good, the omelets looked good, everything looked delicious, which is a bad thing for an indecisive person like me!

I went with the oatmeal raspberry pancakes and a side of fruit after Courtney told me they were one of their signature items :)  Sold!

The pancakes were delicious and filling and the fruit was fresh and tasty.

Obligatory blogger group shot :)

I love these girls, they were so friendly and easy to talk to :)  It felt like we'd been friends for years!  I'm hoping they'll come visit me in Charlotte some time!

After our fun meetup, I headed to NJ to my brother's place, which is in Hoboken.  I got in around lunchtime, and we headed out to grab a bite to eat and also had an important mission, to get some Crumbs cupcakes!

Jen (who also has a brother that lives in Hoboken) had told me it was a MUST in Hoboken.  I've been to see my brother a bunch of other times, but hadn't been to the cupcake mecca before.  It did not disappoint!

There was once a coconut vanilla cupcake in that empty spot.  It was devoured before I had a chance to snap a picture.  Very tasty!  I think the raspberry chocolate was my favorite, although the carrot cake was also delicious.  We had fun sampling them.  I left the chocolate one for my brother and Ashley to tackle!

After our lunch and cupcake adventure, we got ready to head into NYC for dinner and a broadway show!  It was a really crappy, drizzly night, but we all made the best of it.

My brother had made us a reservation at Maria Pia, an Italian restaurant near the theatre district. 

I started with a Super Tuscan red.  MMMMM :)

We decided to order three salads and split them.

For dinner, I ordered goat cheese ravioli in vodka sauce with asparagus.

OMG, it was soooooooooo good :)  I tasted everyone else's dinner and it was all good, but mine was exceptionally good!

We got a dessert to split.  It was some kind of warm chocolatey delicious thing with hazelnut ice cream.  Pretty awesome.

We also had some espresso.  Tiny cup?  Yes please!

This is my brother's friend, Rich (on the left), who came with us to dinner and the show.  He was kind of my stand-in date for the night, since Greg couldn't make it.  Haha!  He's single and lives in NYC ladies!

Mark and Ashley- soon to be parents!

Maria Pia was excellent.  I highly recommend it if you are headed to NYC for a show and looking for somewhere to eat nearby!

After dinner we walked a couple blocks to see Memphis, my first Broadway show!

It was excellent!  The singing and dancing was fantastic.  It's about race relations, music, and love in Memphis in the 1950's.  Great show!

It was an exciting, busy Saturday and I had a great time!  Thanks to all who joined me in the fun!