Time keeps on slippin'....

So, here I go again being an awful blogger, what's new. I am not even really sure where to start, so I'll just recap the last couple weeks. Between both of our schedules, we have been incredibly busy. Not to mention the upcoming wedding, holidays, travel plans, etc., etc. Where do I begin? I guess I will start with our most exciting recent plans the last weekend of October. Chris and I, and our friends Brandon and Tricia, headed to Atlanta to meet my brother and his girlfriend to celebrate the closing weekend of Oktoberfest at Der Biergarten downtown. It was an absolute blast. We had lots of great beer, listened to the authentic band, and even ordered pretzels with an amazing mustard assortment. From there, we wandered around Atlanta, hitting a couple more bars before calling it a night. It was definitely a night to remember (and naps were needed all around the next day).

We also got to celebrate Halloween together for the first time in years! We stayed in for the night, handed out candy and enjoyed some craft beers. This past Friday night, we did try a new restaurant: B. Merrell's here in Columbus. It was great. We had great food, and the beer selection was awesome! It was definitely a local hangout, which made it all the more endearing.

Other than that, Chris has been trying to survive school, we've both been enjoying the change of weather, and we're both getting very excited for the upcoming holiday season! Stay tuned for more!

Playing catch up...

Okay, so the last two weeks haven't really been that exciting (sorry!!). We had grandiose plans for super fun date nights, which all seemed to get passed by due to hangovers, injuries, and lots of work (no excuses, we know). The weekend before last, we did something of a group date night on Friday by going to Balloo's here in Columbus. Balloo's is a cigar bar, and has a really awesome atmosphere. We loved going there when we were here last time. We met up with a group of friends, mostly guys from Chris' class, and checked out a couple other bars in Uptown that night. Needless to say, Saturday was something of a wash. We finally pried ourselves out of the house to go see a movie here on post late at night. Per my brother's recommendation, we checked out "Prisoners." It was awesome! It kind of turned out to be one of those movies you think about for awhile afterwards, and we were still talking about it the next day.

Chris has been extra busy with school, and work has been hectic. We also have an awesome new group of friends that keep us busy on the weekends :) Chris managed to severely sprain the soft tissue in his right foot last week, so he is just now able to limp around without the support of crutches. I had some plans for a weekend date night, but due to Chris' immobility we were limited. We ended up heading to the brew pub here on post as a last minute decision to grab some dinner on Saturday night. We had a couple drinks and watched the Tigers play. We invited our friends Brandon and Trisha to meet up with us. We had a great time (such a great time in fact, that I think Chris forgot about the pain in his foot). It seems like we have a really awesome time, then need a day to recover. Nothing in moderation :)

This upcoming weekend is Columbus Day. Chris has a cushy four-day weekend, while I don't have any additional time off. We may just have something great planned, who knows!

A little bit of everything....again...

So this was my weekend. Friday night we went to Buffalo Wild Wings for dinner and ended up having a little too much fun. My real date night was supposed to happen Saturday morning, but we didn't get out of bed until 11. I don't know if it was the beer the night before, something I ate, or the change in the weather (or all of the aforementioned), but I was worthless most of Saturday. I ended up taking a nap until 3 in the afternoon. Chris decided to go fishing since I was out of it. I pulled myself out of the house and met him at King's Pond here on post and he even surprised me with Taco John's for lunch :)

About 30 minutes into fishing it started to downpour. We scrambled back to the vehicles and headed home. Once we got home we watched the MSU Spartans and the Tigers. Chris decided he wanted to "party" so I made a run to the shopette to get some snacks and beer. We finished out the night watching movies. The Sapphires was awesome, and The Place Beyond the Pines was really good too.

Today was a mix of sleeping in, cleaning the house, watching football, doing homework, talking with family, working on wedding flowers a little, and walking the dogs. I may have to make up for this with a mini-date sometime this week :)

Beer Master Brewing Course

Last weekend (I know, I'm late), was Chris' turn. It wasn't a surprise date because we had to schedule it in advance. Chris' family bought him and I a beer brewing class for his birthday back in August. The course was so popular that we were only able to get in last week! We had to drive up to Marietta, Georgia (about two hours north) for the course. It was a beautiful day and we ended up getting there early to eat at Mazzy's Sports Bar and Grill before the course. The course went from 2-5pm. There were six other people in the course. One couple was retired military and Chris new of him from his time in Germany (small world). The course came with complimentary beers from classes past. The kegs actually ran out half way through the course and one of the employees at Beermaster Warehouse had to make a beer run :)

The Red Hare Brewing Company, located in Marietta, Georgia, actually got their start in home brewing with the help of the Beermaster Warehouse. If you ever get a chance, you definitely need to pick up some of their beer. We learned all about home brewing, and even brewed our own batch of an American IPA. It needs at least 2-3 weeks to ferment so one lucky class in a month will get to sample our work. Chris and I were both really interested in trying it out. It does require a small investment up front to get all the equipment, but we are definitely looking into it :) Great date night!!!

Ice Skating...and Brews.

 Last week was my turn. I had to creatively cram date night in between all of the opening season college and NFL football, which didn't leave me with a whole lot of time :) I decided to stay local, and stay flexible. I surprised Chris after work Friday by starting date night right away. We got ready and headed out....to the Ice Rink! I knew Chris had never been ice skating before, and I had only been a couple times. I figured Chris would take to it like a duck to water since he always talks about how much he loved roller blading and skiing, etc., when he was younger. That wasn't quite the case, but in our defense, there were a lot of kids there for a birthday party which made navigation tricky. We tried it for about 45 minutes and called it good. Chris said he definitely wants to try again sometime. Afterwards, we headed back to post for some hard-earned dinner and beer at El Zapata and the Benning Brew Pub. The food is just as awesome as it was when we were here last. The beer was also delicious. The brew pub was a little dead when we got there, but then karaoke started and the place livened up. We had a great time. It was a low key date night, but we had a lot of fun :)

Golf...and dinner...and hot air balloons...oh my!

So last week was Chris' turn for date night. We had a long weekend to fill, and fill it we did. Saturday morning started like it usually does: with coffee. Then Chris asked if I'd like to start date night early (keep in mind this is 10 am). I said sure, so he informed me we were golfing. While I wasn't joyous about the idea, I know how much Chris loves golf and I hadn't been in awhile, so what the heck. We played 18 at our local course: Oxbow Meadows here in Columbus. It is a beautiful course and not overly challenging for a rookie like me. Good Lord was it hot out though! I usually don't wear golf gloves, but I was sweating so much I had to after almost throwing my driver down the fairway. I didn't play horrible. I think I even legitimately made par on two holes. We had a pretty good time.


From there, we came back home and relaxed. Chris said we had to leave around 3:45 to head to dinner. Apparently the place opens at 5 and if you're not already standing in line you have to wait an hour. We both got ready and headed out the door for dinner. We drove about 45 minutes to Hamilton, Georgia and pulled up outside a tiny, one story cinder block building wayyyy out in the country. I was pretty confused. I remember driving past this place before during trips to Callaway Gardens, but I didn't realize it was a restaurant, let alone one that would warrant hour long queues. We pulled up and sure enough, the parking lot was already half full and people were already out of their vehicles sitting in chairs on the porch. Low and behold: Hunter's Pub and Steak House. By sitting on the porch with locals, we were able to eavesdrop on what was worth ordering at this place. Before even seeing the menu I had settled on the Snapper special and Chris was going for rib eye. Once we were in the place, it definitely had a unique ambiance. They have apparently since expanded off the

side of the building so it was too crowded. Our waitress was adorable, we had great beer and the food was phenomenal. We even got to partake in some local college football on the bar televisions. I liked the place so much that I ended up buying a t-shirt. Once we got to the Jeep, I opened the bag to look at the short again and realized our waitress had thrown in free coozies and a piece of peanut butter pie for free! We will definitely be back!

From Hunter's, instead of heading back to Columbus, Chris started heading toward Callaway Gardens. I was a little confused but it was still light out and a great day to drive in the Jeep. Once we got to the entrance of the gardens I realized why we were there: a hot air balloon festival! It was awesome. There is something really magical about hot air balloons. Because of Chris' military status we got free entry into the park (awesome!). We found a parking spot and headed right down to the beach area to get drinks from the beach bar. They had live music going on, food trucks, games, and not to mention all of the hot air balloons everywhere. Right at dusk the Veteran Sky Diving team dropped in right over the lake and landed on the beach. That was pretty awesome too. By the time we got home we were pretty exhausted. It was a long day, but a great one. My turn this week!

Catch Up!

Alright team, aannnddd we're back. I can't even remember when I posted last, but I have a million excuses. We are now back in beautiful Fort Benning, Georgia. We packed up at the end of July and made the 23 hour trip across the country, puppies in tow, to settle in our new home. Since our last post, we have done a LOT! During our trip, we made a stop in San Antonio for a night and experienced the awesomeness that is the Riverwalk. We poked our heads in the Alamo, did a little walking around, and headed out the next morning. Our next stop along the way was Biloxi, Mississippi. We were planning to do some sightseeing here too, but we just ended up eating at an Applebee's and doing too many jello shots. We hit Columbus, Georgia on the third day (home to Fort Benning), and settled in for one more night in a hotel. Our first meal in Columbus was at our absolute favorite place: Willy's Wings. The dogs started acting out here, and we knew it was about time to get them settled.
 

The next day we were placed in a house and the fun began. The movers showed up and the next week was chaos. We were all moved in in a week, but I still feel like we're settling. The dogs love the new backyard. We have grass and a tree, which is very exciting coming from El Paso. Grace is becoming an expert squirrel chaser (I would say hunter, but she has yet to catch one). Peter has also calmed down a lot since he's able to burn off energy in the yard most of the day. We sure have a lot more humidity here, but we both prefer it. Even at the hottest part of the day, it's really only around 90 degrees, which is much better than the 110+ we came from. Chris and I have taken up running again, and the lower elevation here is a great help. I am now working from home, which has been an adjustment, but I'm really enjoying it so far. We even crammed in a week's vacation to Michigan already. That was an awesome, and jam-packed trip! We went up to the Mackinac Bridge, went to Mackinac Island, stopped at some breweries, saw a Tiger's game, hung out at the beach, visited the Church we will be getting married at (and left a big, fat check) etc, etc.

Now back to the real world! Chris hasn't officially started school yet, but he still has to report in every morning. We started date nights back up again this weekend, in an attempt to get back into the swing of things. Date night was kind of a mixed bag. Chris and I both got our fishing licenses here and spent most of Saturday on the riverbank here on post. Chris didn't have much luck, but I caught a decent catfish. It was the first catfish I had ever caught, and it was a little traumatizing (they feel like jello and make an awful screaming sound). Saturday night, we treated ourselves to Willy's Wings (again!), and capped off the night with a movie and wine at the house. Sunday, we went to Mass at Holy Family, then headed up north for a throwback edition of Sunday Adventures that we so much enjoyed during our last tenure here in Georgia. We stopped at Little Country Kitchen near Pine Mountain and Callaway Gardens for lunch. Chris ordered chicken and waffles (...when in Rome), and I got a little payback by ordering fried catfish. We both enjoyed a side of fried green tomatoes, hushpuppies and southern potato salad. From there, we kept driving to LaGrange to check out some potential beach areas in the state park. We didn't have much luck, but we did find Highpoint Marina Resort which would be a cool place to grab a beer on the water next time we're in the area. Then we headed back so Chris could finish another draft of fantasy football. We ended the night with a hookah session and mindless TV. Chris' turn next week! Stay tuned...

A little bit of everything...

So, another couple weeks have gone by and I have fallen behind again in the blog. Rewind to last weekend: Chris and I made the drive back from Denver on Saturday, which made Sunday a whirlwind of laundry, cleaning and trying to get ready for another week. This past weekend was another crazy one, full of getting the house ready for the move, taking things to Goodwill, and, oh yeah, buying me a Jeep! It was a pretty unexpected buy, but one that has been in the works for awhile. We took the Camry in to get an oil change and left with a 2010 Jeep Wrangler Unlimited. Needless to say, when we weren't scrambling around the house, we were driving around town with the top off! We did finish our Marriage Prep, which was really exciting. One step closer to the big day. The Jeep did create some new issues as far as towing was concerned, and Chris put in a lot of hard work trying to figure everything out. We are good to go now though. The Rebellos are in town this week, and the rest of this week will be more house prep, clearing post, finalizing travel plans, and saying our last goodbyes to El Paso. Three more days in the office for me before I go remote! We are very excited for the future!

House cleaning....and the Rockies!

I am going to double up this post since last weekend wasn't very eventful. Last weekend was actually a down weekend crammed in between lots of traveling, so Chris and I took advantage and hung around the house for the most part. We have a lot to do to get the house in shape for our upcoming move. Last Friday night we made an appearance at the German Club, we went to a BBQ on Saturday with the platoon, and cleaned most of Sunday (not real exciting :)). It was some much needed down-time though. We are more than making up for it this weekend, and coming week.

We arrived in Denver on Saturday to spend a week with Chris' dad and dad's wife. We drove from El Paso, which took about 10 hours. Once we arrived, we settled in, toured the house, ordered pizza for dinner and actually got to see my cousin Sean on Saturday night who was also in town visiting his girlfriend. Sunday was a long, exciting, crazy day! We got up early to run, then relaxed with some coffee on the back porch (the weather here is unbelievable!). We all got ready and headed for downtown to check out REI and Confluence Park. We sat along the banks of the Platte River and dangled our feet in as we watched body boarders surf down the little rapids. From there, we headed to Coors Field where we ate lunch at Breckenridge Brewery. After that we caught a Rockies game! The Rockies lost, but it was experience for our bucket list :)

After the game, we headed to Casa Bonita, a huge Mexican restaurant with an arcade, a gift shop, a magic show, and even a cliff diving show right in the middle of the restaurant! I believe it is the largest restaurant in the world per square footage. We were all stuffed afterwards, and headed back to the house to collapse and recharge.

Lubbock, Texas!

I swear I am getting worse and worse at staying on top of our adventures. This past weekend was something of a repeat of the weekend before. We didn't technically have a "surprise" date as we had travel/family plans. Late Friday afternoon we started the trek to Lubbock which was about a 5 1/2 hour drive. The drive through New Mexico is actually one of our favorites. We stopped once for gas and pistachios in Carlsbad (home of the legendary caverns). Once we got outside of Lubbock it down poured, which made the last leg of the trip a little slower.

Chris' stepmom's parents own a farm outside of Lubbock in a small town called Crosbyton. The farm is supposedly one of the largest in the state at over 1,500 acres combined. It was a very welcome change of pace compared to the rat race of El Paso. It almost felt like being home for me :) We got to tour a little bit of Lubbock, went to a brew pub in town, attended a birthday party/family gathering, and even went to a water park on Sunday. It was a packed weekend, but we both had a really great time. The weather was great, we met some really awesome people, and got to explore a new part of the country. We couldn't have asked for anything more!

SLC...and Moab

So this past weekend probably doesn't technically qualify as a surprise date, but it sure was an awesome one. Chris and I drove up to Salt Lake City (about 14 hours) for a family get-together to send off Uncle Brandon as he gets ready to deploy. We both were able to get both Friday and Monday off, which really helped. Friday we made the drive up through New Mexico, Colorado and Utah. The drive was absolutely beautiful. On the way, we drove through Moab, UT and decided we would have to stop on our return trip. The weather was beautiful. Chris did most of the driving, save about 3 hours. Chris hadn't been to Utah in almost 20 years, and I had never met his mom's side of the family. I can't begin to tell you how awesome they all were. I felt right at home immediately. I also decided that Utah was amazingly beautiful. The whole trip was a complete surprise for Uncle Brandon. The weekend culminated with a barbecue on Saturday night. Chris drove me to one of the house's he grew up in. It really was an awesome trip.

As everyone was taking off on Sunday, we decided to begin our trip and drive 4 hours back to Moah, UT. Moab is something of an extreme-sports-off-roading-adventure enthusiast's mecca. It was definitely in the desert, and really hot, but we managed to snag the last cabin in a campground with AC! Once we were settled in, we walked downtown and did some shopping, then headed to Moab Brewing for dinner. It was a pretty cool place, and we had lots of great beer. Surprisingly, Utah beer has a relatively low alcohol level due to state laws. It still tasted great though! We capped off the night with a campfire at our camp site. We rounded off the trip home on Monday with a detour to the Four Corners Monument in Teec Nos Pos, AZ. We walked from Arizona to Utah to New Mexico to Colorado in less than 5 minutes! We managed to pick up a couple souvenirs here too. It was an exhausting, exciting, incredible adventure! We both can't wait to go back to Utah!

From the Top

This past weekend was Chris' turn. He went all out and surprised my with tickets to a show at the Plaza Theater downtown. Before the show we grabbed some drinks at the Dome Bar in the Camino Real, and after the show we grabbed dinner at La Huerta, also in the Camino. The show was called "From the Top" and featured young, classical musicians from around the country (and world). The music was incredible, and the artists were really inspiring. Aside from being amazing musicians, most of them also contributed to their communities in some way, and many of them had won scholarships to continue practicing their arts. Past alums of the show went on the teach at the New York Philharmonic, star in blockbuster movies, and appear on Broadway. The show was actually live recorded for radio, so we had to be relatively quiet to comply with the producer. It was really interesting to see the back end of a radio production. A 13 year old played a clarinet piece, a 19 year old played an organ piece, an 11 year old played the harp (our personal favorite), a local 16 year old El Pasoan played the violin, and two teenagers (one from Thailand), played a piano duo piece. It was really entertaining. If you ever get a chance, we highly recommend it!

Wine Fest!

Alright, back it up to last weekend. Last weekend was Chris' first back from the field, and it was a long one! We both had four days off, and they flew by. On Saturday, we had the pleasure of attending a wedding of some friends at La Vina Winery right across the border in New Mexico. This was followed by a barbecue at their house. Sunday was filled with errands and dinner and a movie. Monday was the wine fest! The fest was held at the Southern New Mexico fairgrounds (the same place as the beer fest!). The show ran from 12-6 with a military discount for Memorial Day. There were dozens of wineries and vineyards in attendance, as well as vendors, food and music. It was a hot one, and Chris and I are still reeling from the sun burn. We had some delicious wine, listened to some awesome music (and danced a little), and I
even found a Detroit Lions apron that I had to have. It was an awesome day, albeit a long one. We stopped at High Desert Brewing on the way home, and I think we crashed out for the night as soon as we got home :)

Couple's Massage

Alright, alright, I completely realize that this post is REALLY late. Chris is still gone to the field (and will be until next week), but we did manage to squeeze in a date night on his last weekend break a couple weeks ago. I don't remember whose turn it is anymore, but I took it on so he wouldn't have to worry about it. We ended up going to get a couple's massage at Touch Discount Day Spa on the East side of El Paso. We had a great deal, and a wonderful experience. It was very relaxing, and I think Chris almost fell asleep :) Afterward, we headed to Hiney's for a late lunch/early dinner, and some drinks. The massages plus the beer made us both pretty sleepy and we ended up calling it an early night. Stay posted for the next date night, likely over Memorial Day weekend.

RV Show (...The Garden....Train Show...to be continued...)

Alright, alright...I apologize for no update last weekend. To be honest there really isn't one. A late night Friday turned into all day relaxing on Saturday. We watched a couple movies. Accomplishing nothing productive on Saturday turned into cleaning all day Sunday (for me) and working on a final thesis paper all day (Chris). We grabbed a couple beers and some wings at Buffalo Wild Wings on post Satuday night, but we laid low. It actually felt really good to basically stay in bed most of Saturday!

Now for this weekend. I don't think I've ever posted immediately after a date, but there's a first time for everything. This weekend was my turn, and there just so happened to be an RV Show in town at the Convention Center. Chris and I both love the idea of camping, so we decided to go do some dreaming. Travel trailers sure have come a long way since my parents owned one. We narrowed it down to what we liked, WHEN we decide to get into the market. Being in the military makes it a little more difficult to capitalize on a pop-up or trailer. We would never be able to store it at our house, and Chris basically camps for a living right now anyways (5 week field problem, anyone?). We definitely got some really great ideas, and had a lot of fun daydreaming.

After the RV Show, walked to The Garden for lunch and a couple beers. After stuffing ourselves with some awesome food, we stumbled upon a Train Show at the Train Museum downtown on San Antonio Street. We stopped in and got a quick history lesson about Engine No. 1. They had the actual train engine in the museum, which was original to the mid- to late-1800s. It had been fully restored, and is only one of 6 left in the country (the only one west of the Mississippi). Today was awesome so far...and it's only 2:40 pm :) This will be the last date night for awhile, since Chris heads to the field for 5 weeks. He may be home for one weekend, so we may try to squeeze one in. Stay tuned!

Camping!....kind of...

So this weekend was my turn. More military "obligations" kept us out Friday night, and Saturday we had some errands to run, and hit the gym. After dinner, we were both looking forward to staying in, and we both made a little agreement to add an extra challenge to date night by trying to make them either free or low-cost (if possible). I decided that the perfect date would be to set up our tent in the backyard and "camp." We have never set up the tent together, and we were both really excited. The weather cooperated, even though I was worried about the wind. It turned out to be a beautiful night. We
got a campfire going, set up our camp chairs, the "whole nine." It was good practice for the pups too, since they've never seen the tent either. Our hope is to one day be able to camp with them, and their first attempt went pretty well. We made some drinks, and after the fire died down, we retired to the tent to watch Netflix on the laptop. Like I said, it was "kind of" camping :) We had an awesome time!

Mt. Cristo Rey

Chris took over date night this past weekend, and it turned into one of my favorite date nights yet! We hiked Mt. Cristo Rey which is just a 15 minute drive from here. Mt. Cristo Rey is technically in New Mexico, but its south side is also in Mexico. The climb is always open, but it can be very dangerous if not done in a group due to the proximity to Mexico. At the peak of the mountain is a huge 29 foot statue of Jesus on a cross. Because of the Easter weekend, Border Patrol were around the mountain monitoring the activity. The weather was beautiful, not too hot nor too cold. There was a nice breeze and the sun was out. The climb was 4.4 miles round trip and took up about an hour and 45 minutes. Along the climb, there were the stations of the cross that some people were stopping to pray at. The whole experience was meant to be spiritual, and there were off-shoots that lead to outlying grottos with statues for Our Lady of Fatima and Our Lady of Guadalupe, etc. The views were incredible the entire way up. The climb wasn't too strenuous due to the switchbacks carved in the mountain. There were all kinds of people making the climb, from children to elderly and a lot of dogs. There were spots to have picnics, remnants of old buildings, and even places that looked like Mass had taken place. It was a great workout, and a really unique perspective of El Paso and Mexico to the south. Both Chris and I were surprised that there was no border fence on the south side of the mountain, but apparently that's why the hike is so dangerous if not done during designated times, or in large groups. Overall, this was an incredible experience!

Just another normal weekend....

So this post is techincally for last weekend. We had a lot of "mandatory" Army gatherings, and Chris is working on his final thesis paper, so we didn't really have a date night (and I kind of slacked off). Thursday night we had a Hail and Farewell, Friday night we had a platoon BBQ, and Saturday afternoon we had a birthday party for Chris' company commander. Chris spent most of the balance of the weekend working on his paper, but we did manage to break away on Sunday night and drive to Chili's on the northeast side of town to watch some March Madness. The weather is finally starting to warm up (but it will be TOO warm before long), so the drive to Chili's was really nice. Chris made up for date night this weekend, and I will definitely step up my game next weekend :)

St. Patty's Day!

 So this was my week, and I kinda copped out by combining "Date Night" in with St. Patrick's Day. Shamrocks Irish Pub and Buffalo Wild Wings, on post, hosted a big street party with Irish bands, beer stands, food, etc. Chris' sister, Erin, was in town so she go to partake in the festivities. We met up with friends there and lots of green beer was had. We walked away with souvenir glasses, green beads, paper sunglasses shaped like shamrocks, and plastic pipes we took shots out of. Chris and I had some brats toward the end of the night and they were delicious! After the party started winding down, we headed back to our house and hosted our friends for an after-party. We had a bon-fire, got the hookah out, and may (or may not) have played some beer pong. It was a long, but very fun, afternoon and evening. Chris paid for it a little more on Sunday than I did, but we both had a great time.

Truth or Consequences

(Pics to come....)
This past weekend was Chris' turn, but this wasn't a surprise as it needed some planning. This past weekend, we headed up to Truth or Consequences, NM for Saturday night. It was a really nice two hour drive. Aside from the crazy name, Truth or Consequences is also known for their geothermal hot springs. The hot springs are world-renowned for the supposed healing powers. They have dozens of natural minerals, and come out of the ground at around 106 degrees. We chose a hotel that pumped the springs directly into our room, into a huge tile tub. The decor was very southwestern, very quaint and comfortable. We ended up sitting in the springs three times, but they were so hot that we only managed about 15-20 minutes each time. Once we got to our room, we soaked in the springs, then just relaxed for a couple hours. Chris worked on school and I read. The we headed out to K-Bob's Steakhouse for dinner. Apparently, this is a chain (we had never heard of it), but it was obviously a draw for the locals. Chris had a steak sandwich, I ordered a steak and we each had a couple beers. From there, we headed to Elephant Butte. We drove around a little, but never got very close to the water. We tried to find a pub at the marina, but OnStar failed us twice and by then we were ready to call it quits and head back to the room. Chris cheered me up with Sonic ice cream :) We soaked again once back in the room, then watched The Lorax on my laptop. We were asleep a little after 10.

After a full 12 hours of sleep, we woke up, soaked again, then remembered the time change which gave us another hour. We packed up our room, checked out, then headed next door to the Happy Belly Deli for breakfast. An egg and cheese bagel was complimentary with the room, but Chris sprang for a chorizo omelet that was delicious. The coffee was really good too. The deli was small, but cozy. We both loved it. Our Spartan attire was a big hit with the staff as most of them seemed to have connections in the Midwest. After breakfast, we walked down the street and found January's. January's is a multi-building antique shop on main street, and it happened to be one of the only stores open on a Sunday. We hit the jackpot though. I finally found a trunk worthy of taking home, and it was only $60! Chris also found me a sunflower tray, and I found an old rusty rake head that I hung in our kitchen for a utensil display. On the way out of town, we stopped at a Veteran's Park. It was beautiful. There was a really impressive museum with artifacts from every war all the way back to the Revolutionary War. There were also binders with the names of all of those killed in Iraq and Afghanistan. This was really moving and sobering as Chris pointed out names of guys he knew. Outside, there was a walk with markers and histories of all the major wars, and a replica of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Washington D.C. We were both really impressed with the quality of the museum and park, especially for such a small town in the middle of nowhere.

We had an awesome weekend. Neither one of us wanted to leave. It was so nice to get out of El Paso. The traffic was easier, the pace was slower, and it was much quieter. The weather cooperated, although it was a little chilly. We are already making plans to head back up there in the summer and really explore the lake, the marina, and the State Park.

Pershing Pub

Okay, so I am really behind the 8-ball here. It has been a really busy and crazy couple of weeks. Last weekend was my turn. I had heard about a new pub opening on post near our house. An old quarters for traveling officers and dignitaries was renovated into a pub and event center. The building, called Pace Hall, sits near the Pershing Gate on post, overlooking Northeast El Paso. The building was beautiful with a huge double-sided, fireplace taking up the center of the room. All the wood work was restored to its original glory. I had to do some research on the pub because it is only open from 5-10 on Friday nights right now. This gave us a narrow window, but after the gym we scrubbed up and headed over for a beer. The pub had two beers on draft, plus a nice variety of bottled beer and mixed drink options, along with wine. We opted for a raspberry wheat beer which was really good. They also had complimentary popcorn which was delicious. A small menu was also available (we will have to try this next time). One of the employees offered to take us down into the basement of the building where Italian prisoners of war used to be held during World War II. The cells were still standing, and the whole basement had a very eerie aura. After the tour, we talked with Colonel Dayley, Garrison Commander, for awhile. There were only a few other groups of people there. It was a very nice, relaxing evening. We will definitely be going back.

Movie Weekend

Okay, so there seems to be a trend developing. About every five weeks or so, date night consists of a movie marathon (mainly because we don't want to leave the house). This weekend happened to be one of those weekends. We still managed to be a little productive, but we both needed a total veg weekend to regenerate the batteries. I got a haircut Saturday morning while Chris cleaned the garage. We went to the gym, did some laundry, then the nothingness commenced. We watched four movies Saturday: Sinister (7 out of 10 stars), Argo (7 out of 10), Open Range (7 out of 10), and Celeste and Jesse (6 out of 10). Sunday, we watched The Man With the Iron Fists (6 out of 10, but the epitome of a Quentin Tarantino film), followed by A Haunting in Connecticut 2: Georgia Ghosts (5 out of 10). They were all at least decent films. Argo wasn't overly entertaining, but still a good historical film. Celeste and Jesse was something of a surprise: we didn't like the ending, but it was entertaining, funny and charming. I consider myself a horror film snob (i.e. completely desensitized), and Sinister managed to be disturbing, scary and compelling. Open Range was a standard Western with a modern twist, and the acting was very good. Lots of wine during the marathon Saturday made Sunday morning a little fuzzy, but again, it was all much needed!

El Paso Botanical Gardens

So this week was another group date night. The Rebellos were in town, so Chris and I teamed up to surprise everyone with the date night. A last minute change of plans moved the adventure from Sunday to Saturday afternoon. We loaded everyone in the truck and headed west toward Sunland Park. The date was the El Paso Botanical Gardens. I had driven by it several times as it is near my work, but none of us were quite sure what to expect (gardens in El Paso?). Well, it turned out to be very nice. Small, but nice. Winding gravel pathways toured us through different areas of desert plants, complete with a small pond, view of wetlands (surprising), artwork, and even a greenhouse. It was very peaceful and we basically had the place to ourselves. Most everything was still in hibernation from winter, but it was very nice nonetheless. It was a quick date, only lasting about 30 minutes, but it was another new adventure to add to the books!

Valentine's Day Ball

Okay, okay. My apologies for the delay. Chris was gone to the field for several weeks, hence no updates last week. This past weekend was technically Chris' turn, but with him coming out of the field we were a little limited. Last Friday was the annual Valentine's Ball though, which was a lot of fun (as usual). It's always nice to get really dressed up and have a night out with friends. The ball was held at the Centennial Club here on post. We had a cocktail hour, followed by dinner and a really awful speech by the special guest (name is being withheld to save embarrassment). After dinner, awards, presentations, etc, the formal portion of the night concluded and the dancing began! We were the last group of people left and closed down the place :) Needless to say, Saturday included napping and Gatorade.

Saturday night we did venture out for a movie. We saw Identity Thief, which we both thought was pretty good. Sunday we watched Flight on DirecTV which we both thought was an awesome movie (hard to go wrong with Denzel).

This coming weekend is a long one for Chris, and his family is coming into town for the four day weekend. I, of course, don't get any time off from work, but it should be a good weekend nonetheless. This weekend's date night is partially mine, and partially a surprise for Chris' family. Updates to follow next week :)

El Paso Autorama (cue explosions and heavy metal music)

 So this past weekend was Chris' turn. Somehow we managed to fill up another weekend that was intended for relaxation. Chris is in the field this week and next, so we were really strapped for time as he had a lot of packing and laundry to do. Thus, Autorama! This car show was held in downtown El Paso at the Convention Center and ran Friday through Monday (we went on Sunday). There was a huge variety of vehicles, from classic muscle cars to tricked out Hummers, and crazy motorcycles to old school dragsters (and, of course, the traditional Mexican style vehicle - think lowered, tiny tires, elaborate paint jobs, etc.). We saw a lot of really cool cars. I prefer old American muscle cars myself, and I prefer all original as opposed to modified and customized. There were a TON of new Mustangs that were apparently really fast (they all look the same to me). There were also concessions, beer, t-shirts, etc. for purchase. There were also a lot og great vendors, some car-related and some not. It was a really cool date, and Chris found his dream truck (blacked out, lifted, 2500 HD). We were both pretty tired and hungry so we didn't stick around too long, and the convention center was really hot! Another first for us, and another successful date "night."