24 Hours in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

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IMG_410624 hours is not a lot of time to spend in a city. It’s not a lot of time to spend with your friend who lives there, either. So what is the traveling friend to do? Some research. I studied up on what I wanted to do and leaned on my friend to fill in the gaps, make recommendations and tell us the best approach to maximize our time.

Guess what? It worked. We had a fabulous day in Pittsburgh with some tried-and-true activities and a few things that were new to my friend as well. It didn’t hurt that it was 75 degrees and sunny, either. 😉 Continue reading →

Celebrating One Year of Marriage in Savannah, Georgia

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We celebrated our anniversary a little early (September 5th, as opposed to the 12th) and took advantage of the long Labor Day weekend to head back to Savannah. We arrived Friday night in time for a drink at The Distillery. The view from our hotel suite the next morning was fabulous and the sunny skies were all the motivation we needed to get to the beach! Continue reading →

Can Awful Traffic Deliver Top Talent to Atlanta?

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IMG_4225Traffic in Atlanta is horrible. Debilitating. Life-altering. I remember giving myself an hour to go ten miles. Surely, that would be enough time. It usually took 45 minutes in rush hour. On that day, it rained. So it took me 90 minutes to go what would have taken me 15 without traffic. It’s stressful and it’s a mess. 

The suburbs aren’t any better as surface streets become clogged by quickly-expanding and pooly planned communities, the new residents fighting to get onto one of the few highways. They inch along tens of miles of concrete towards a desk and a laptop in a tall glass building. 

Are there solutions? Continue reading →

Orange-Glazed Pork Chops

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IMG_3495I still remember the first time Sean made this dish for me. We were up in Helen, GA and we’d rented a cabin for my birthday weekend getaway. It was our first “trip” together and he made these orange-glazed pork chops for dinner one night. 

This dish is is special enough for a birthday weekend, but simple enough for a regular weekday meal. Sean made it again recently and we enjoyed it so much I knew I had to share the recipe here. Continue reading →

Gluten-Free Triple Berry Crisp

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Summer berries are on sale at every grocer I go to these days and I’ve been stocking up – blueberries, blackberries, raspberries and I’ve even found some nice-looking strawberries. I’m freezing them for later use but couldn’t resist doing something yummy with the fresh ones. I’ve made a gluten-free apple crisp in the past and did a variation on that a while back with apples, pears and cardamom. I decided that using berries instead would be a perfect dessert for these seasonal fruits. Continue reading →

Alaska, Part 1: Fairbanks and Denali National Park

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IMG_3160It was about midnight when we arrived in Fairbanks from our amazing day in Seattle. Stacey and Derek picked us up from the airport and after lots of hugs and smiles, they noticed our (lack of) luggage. Sean had the backpack he took to Southeast Asia, and I had a rolling, carry-on size suitcase and a purse. They praised our ability to pack light. We LOVE getting compliments like that – it’s not always easy to pack light but it IS rewarding.

This is their home about 20 minutes outside of Fairbanks. It’s an 800 square foot dry cabin. Yes, you read that right. No running water. Electricity, yes. Outhouse, yes. Showers, no. We knew this ahead time and knew it was all going to be part of the adventure! Continue reading →