Cutting Boards

Sean and I have gone through about 3 wooden cutting boards in our 4 1/2 years of marriage. Apparently an owner of a cutting is supposed to treat a wooden cutting board with utmost care (ie. rub with mineral oil, wash properly, store in upright position), and apparently we are completely clueless. Our boards tend to warp and split apart, so we toss it out and purchase another one. On a stroll through the mall today, while sipping Starbucks, we ventured into Williams-Sonoma. With the intent to simply browse, we came upon the cutting board section. Then Jen, the very knowledgeable sales woman, joined us. After a little lesson on cutting boards, we purchased a not-so-cheap cutting board from said sales woman. Turns out it's the very low maintenance sort of cutting board - knife friendly, composite material, dishwasher safe - my kind of equipment. As I type this Sean is raising a racket in the kitchen as he tries to properly store the new board. I did a quick search on the care of cutting boards and came upon this site. I liked it first for the name "Men In Aprons," and secondly for the information. For your own education, have a look. Maybe you too need to know how to properly care for your cutting board.

http://www.meninaprons.net/archives/2007/04/3_keys_to_wooden_cutting_board.html

New Tradition

I have always loved the weekend. It means you can sleep in and take a break from the work week. But lately I have come to love it even more. Sean and I started a new weekend tradition of having a brunch of coffee and bagels or pastries either on Saturday or Sunday morning. (I usually have tea because I'm not much for coffee. However, I have discovered that I like caramel lattes because they're so sweet it's difficult to taste the coffee. I'm all about the sugar.) Anyway, today we headed out to one of my favorite spots in Lancaster, Prince Street Cafe. Sean had never been there and enjoyed it. Although next time he gets a table while I order our food. He kind of got mine a bit mixed up. Still tasty though.

We're taking recommendations for future brunch locations. We have the usual Panera and Starbucks. Of course there are the local goodies, such as Coffee Co and Prince Street Cafe. Any others?

Sveedish fish

I have recently rediscovered my love for Swedish Fish. I'm not really the kind of person that eats a lot of candy, I cant tell you the last time that I actually ate a whole chocolate bar. Usually, if there is a bag of salty chips, or hershey's kisses in front of me, by default I'm "goin' for the chips."

But last week we were grocery shopping and Marci and I walked past the swedish fish in the candy aisle. I started drooling, and walked away with a 7.9lb bag.

I just love something about this food!! Best of all its fat free, and Marci hates them. More for me!

What is your favorite candy?

Sean.

Hooray beer.

Last night we went to the new "Iron Hill Restaurant and Brewery" in Lancaster with our good friends, Preston and Kelly, and our new friends Nathan and Jackie.

This place is very cool. They brew all their own beer on site. They are very proud of this, as the very enthusiastic waiter reminded us more than a few times during the course of the dinner. Highlights of the evening included watching Kelly sip her way through the "sampler." This is a collection of approximately 12 different samples of their own brew, ripe with exciting names like "Ironbound Ale and Vienna Red Lager" Even more fun was watching Nathan actually drink all 12 glasses of his sampler, each one being followed by a satisfied grin. Truly a devotee of all things brewed with hops and barley. My own personal favorite was the "Pig Iron Porter." A lovely, rich beer where "the distinct roasted and chocolate notes are well balanced by a slight bitterness."

So here's to good food, fellowship, and to the brewmeister. You Sir, are responsible for endowing upon us that sweet nectar of life, beer.

Cheers.

Belated

Sean's 33rd birthday was on Tuesday, June 3. I'm a few days late with these wishes. I had wonderful intentions of blogging that day, but, well it just didn't happen. So, here's how we celebrated and my wishes for Sean . . .

I have a philosophy that birthdays are meant to be special. Maybe because my parents always made the effort to make my sister's and my birthday a day set apart from every other day. That could mean something as simple as a special dinner. (By the way, thanks, Mom and Dad). So, since Sean had already purchased his new camera for his birthday, I set about trying to make his day a little different than the rest. I made him breakfast in bed, which simply consisted of an English muffin and tea (I don't cook.). I think he was awake enough to enjoy it. He's so not a morning person! Then I gave him 2 T-shirts so he'd have something to open on the actual birthday. Finally after a day of work for the both of us, we went to dinner at Annie Bailey's, one of Sean favorite restaurants, so he could drink a Guinness and have some good ole' Irish fish and chips. Ahh! When he said it was one of his most enjoyable days, I knew my simple little efforts had paid off.


So, happy birthday, Sean. I love you for so many reasons. Here are a few that I'll share with our devoted blog readers.

• I love Sean's ability to be completely his own person and not care what others think.
• I love his creativity . . . in visual art and musically.
• I love his sense of humor and ability to make others laugh.
  
• I love his ambition, work ethic and integrity.
• I love Sean's South African heritage.
• I love that he comes with a great family.
• I love his patience with me and his sensitivity.
• I love his "it is what it is" attitude and his positive outlook on life.
• I love Sean!

Guinness is good for you....

Last week, Glen and Amy flew out from sunny San Francisco to spend some treasured time with us, friends and family. So, in order to celebrate their visit we all went out for dinner to my new favorite place in Lancaster, Annie Baileys. 5 Reasons why its my favorite new place are as follows:
1: Our other favorite place "Kalhouns" closed down. :(
2: They serve chilled Guinness.
3: The fish and chips is amazing - Marci let me try a bite of her dinner.
4: They serve chilled Guinness.
5: The authentic Irish charm is really cool.

Interestingly, last time we flew back from vacation in Ireland, I sat next an Irishman who is a good friend of the guy who built Annie Baileys!

We had a great time. Here are a few pictures.

Amy and I

Mom and Dad

My hot wife

Inside.

Other events this weekend included us watching the new Harry Potter movie.
3 reasons I really liked it:
1: We sat so close to the screen, I felt I was in the movie.
2: Last night I dreamed that I actually was Harry Potter.
3: Stadium seating at the new movie theater, with seats that actually lean back easily - its about time.

Another observation I had at the cinema - Why don't they just get to it and build a footrest behind every seat? Surely this would solve a lot of the typical movie-going issues we all face. It would spare the seats from greasy, popcorn laden shoes, and solve the problem of the 7 year old kid behind you kicking your seat.

In other interesting news, our house is in the final stages of delivery. My daily inspections are going well. I fear that soon however, we will not be able to break in anymore, as the deadbolt will be installed shortly. It seems that after some lengthy negotiation with Marci, my hope of having a riding mower is slowly slipping through my hands. Oh well. I guess she is right. My other compromise was for us to buy a goat and name him Kubota, or John Deere, that way our lawn would trim itself. That also was shot down during final stages of approval. Who cares what the neighbors think, I say. Think of all the carbon emissions from lawnmowers we would save in America if every household had a "Lawn Goat" Hmmm......

Oh well,
Take care everyone.
Sean.

Good Food, Good Friends, Good Times

On Sunday evening Sean and I enjoyed dinner out with great friends. It was partially an anniversary celebration and partially a chance to spend time with our friends. We had dinner at Lily’s on Main, a lovely establishment in Ephrata, PA. Who knew that the little town of Ephrata held such a gem! I would describe Lily’s as casual fine dining. The atmosphere was retro, yet classy. The service was exceptional, and the food was delicious and beautifully presented.

John and Jenny

We went there on the recommendation of John and Jenny, who had their first date at Lily’s; and later John proposed to Jenny in “the romantic corner,” a little table for two where it all began for them. If you’re ever in the Lancaster area, I highly recommend my favorite new restaurant. And thanks, Daryl and Erin, for the generous and kind treat. We love you!

Daryl and Erin