Out of the Norm

I have been addicted to yelp.com. It is a website where consumers report back on different type of services and places. The reviews are hilarious, and you can easily spend an hour poking around. I found my fabulous new hair dresser (more on him later) but I also found a new place for lunch.

I am a novice when it somes to Vietnamese food. I may have had it once or twice before but because of the raving reviews of Lulu B's I thought I would check it out. I convinced a few co-workers to eat with me. Lulu B's is a trailer under a wonderful shade tree, which allowed for a lunch outside.

I ordered the barbecue chicken sandwich and the spring rolls. The chicken sandwich had toppings that I was not used to, and I might not even be right when I tell you what is on there. I believe it had cilantro, some type of marinated carrot, cucumbers, and daikon (I think this is a type of radish). The sandwich was tasty, but I did had to add a little hot sauce to give it a kick. The spring rolls were good, but I have to say that I am a bigger fan of the crunchy shell with the crisp veggies on the inside. A friend ordered the lemongrass vermicelli bowl, and she really enjoyed it. I tried a bite or two, and I agree. I think I'll go with the vermicelli bowl next time. They also have a sweetened Vietnamese coffee that I want to try!

I will be back to enjoy more food at Lulu B's!!!

Spring Bowls

Party Night

Last night we went downtown to celebrate Jim's cousin's birthday (Julie). We had the rare chance to hang out with his family (sans kids). We did a little dancing, a little drinking and a lot of talking! The party was in the boom boom room (hence why we have semi naked women in pictures behind us) but we ended up on the roof because it got really loud and crowded in the boom boom room. Our friends Courtney and Matt were at a bar down the street, so they ended up coming over to Union Park to have a drink or two with us. Good times!!! After going through the photo's I realize that I don't have any pictures with Julie! I think we used either her camera or Lori's camera when we took pictures together!

Us in the Boom Boom Room... yes that is velvet wall paper on the wall :)

Jamie (Jim's sister), Lori (Jim's cousin) and Jim
Courtney and I
View of downtown Austin from the roof top bar
Me, Jim, Courtney and Matt


Lori, Jim and Jamie

Jamie and Travis


Jamie, Travis, Jim and I

This would have been a cute picture, but I messed it up by trying to fix Jim's shirt. It was riding up and showing his belly. Of course my camera battery died right after this picture. DAMN!!

Family Visit

We had a fantastic time with my mom and grandfather! We always have a fun filled time when they come to visit us. We typically do they same type of stuff.... drink lots of Starbucks.... visit thrift shops.... garage sales....clean up around house..... plant flowers that I'll eventually kill..... and lots and lots of laughing!

Check out my new shades.... the men in the retirement home are going to be all over me!

Jim looking for a mint plant at the farmers market

Mom and Jim

B*I*N*G*O Nobody won, but mom and I had fun (the boys didn't have that much fun)

Me, Pop Pop, Jim and Mum

Me, Pop Pop and Jim

Jim showing Po-po-jee-bo some luvin

New flowers for the front yard

Relaxing with the kids and mom

Jim thought the "girls" needed some support

Camp Mabry had a "Hero Celebration". They opened the base for everybody to come to their festival. We watched a demonstration of what happens when a helicopter drops off soldiers in a "hot zone" and also watched a World War 2 reenactment. We had a really great time!

World War 2 reenactment

yes, that is a real tank... if I was at war and I had one of those things pointed at me, I would soil myself while running as fast as I could

Playing with the camera and the self timer

Our new motto in life

Look ma! Flowers!!!

My mom and I planted some flowers around the house during their visit. She is convinced that I am going to kill them... and she is probably right :o) But I am going to try my hardest to keep all flowers alive for at least a few months! And since I was outside taking pictures... the kids wanted their pictures taken.

Summer Cooler

We went out to eat a couple of weeks ago to an Indian restaurant for a friends birthday. While I was there I tried a Bombay Breeze! It was a little sweet, a little tart and very satisfying. I tried making it at home, and I think I came close. I dont' have exact measurements but here is what I used:

about 1.5 oz of vodka (I used citrus flavor)

a couple splashes of cranberry juice

a couple splashes of Sprite

one splash of sweet and sour (I just used lime juice)

add ice, stir and enjoy!!

Quick, Easy, and uses your leftovers!!

I love making pot roast, but I also love using the leftover pot roast to make shredded beef burritos!!! It is very simple! Shred the leftover pot roast... put on a tortilla, add whatever you want (we added cheese, green chilies, Jim added jalapenos, diced onions). Then I folded it up and fried it up (to give the outside a nice crisp)! You don't have to fry it, you can also bake it like an enchilada. These are sooooo good, very quick to make as well as easily adaptable for any picky eater!! :)

Austin City Limits Announcement

We decided to get 3 day passes for the Austin City Limit concert in September. We have lots of friends going this year and we haven't gone in the past 2 years. We bought our tickets before we knew who was going to play at the concert because I was worried that the 3 day passes would sell out (like they do every year). I'm pretty happy with the lineup. I would have preferred a couple of other bands that I like would play but you never know who is going to drop out and be replaced :) Now comes the fun part of trying to figure out who we want to see! I'll be using Myspace to research the bands we don't know about. When the concert gets closer, ACL will release the times and stages the bands are going to play on. After that comes out, people try to plan to their day to catch all of the concerts that appeal to them! The last time we went to ACL we pussed out on Sunday because we were over the sun, the people and the dust. Hopefully it won't be so hot this time around!!

Pictures from the last time we went to ACL... in 2005

2008 Artists Scheduled to Appear

Foo Fighters

Robert Plant and Alison Krauss

Beck

Manu Chao

John Fogerty

David Byrne

The Raconteurs

The Mars Volta

Gnarls Barkley

Conor Oberst and the Mystic Valley Band

N.E.R.D.

Erykah Badu

Robert Earl Keen

Patty Griffin

Tegan and Sara

Iron & Wine

G. Love & Special Sauce

Neko Case

Band of Horses

The Swell Season

Siversun Pickups

Gogol Bordello

Gillian Welch

Eli Young BandThe BlackKeys

Against Me!

Jakob Dylan and the Gold Mountain Rebels

Okkervil River

Galactic

Kevin Fowler

Sharon Jones & the Dap Kings

Hot Chip

Vampire Weekend

Slightly Stoopid

DuffyFlyleafRoky

EricksonYonder

Mountain String Band

Spiritualized

Drive-By Truckers

Ingrid Michaelson

Stars

Alejandro Escovedo

Jose Gonzales

CSSDel the Funky HomosapienMan

Jamie Lidell

MGMT

What Made Milwaukee Famous

Jenny Lewis

M. Ward

Asleep at the Wheel

Mason Jennings

Heartless Bastards

Antibalas

The Nachito Herrera All StarsShooter

Jennings

Xavier Rudd

Yeasayer

Octopus Project

Joe Bonamassa

The Kills

White Denim

Louis XIV

Delta

SpiritMates of State

Nicole Atkins & the Sea

Electric Touch

Black Joe Lewis & the Honey Bears

Back Door Slam

Tristan Prettyman

The Strange Boys

Ryan Bingham

Scott Biram

The Freddy Jones Band

Colour Revolt

Five Times August

Langhorne Slim

SybrisEli “Paper Boy” Reed & the True Loves

Bavu Blakes & the Extra Plairs

AA Bondy

Christopher Denny

Mike Farris

The Lee Boys

South Austin Jug Band

American Bang

Bobby Bare, Jr.

Massacoustics

Belleville

Outfit

We Go to 11

Band of Heathens

City and Colour

Sunny Sweeney

Elizabeth Wills

Automata

Bonnie Bishop

Ben Sollee

Ben Cylus

The Concert Supremes

River City Christionettes

Shields of Faith

The Jones Family Singers

Nakia & His Southern Cousins

Brotherly Luv

The Hensley Ensemble

School of Rock

Jambo Q Brothers

Buck Howdy with BB

Uncle Rock

Big Donmr.

RAYThe Jimmies