Biking in Blacksburg

Since meeting Nick, I have picked up several new hobbies.  One of our favorite things to do together is hop on our road bikes and ride.  Blacksburg is a great place for biking- although it is very hilly.  Saturday was finally warm enough (and we had the time) to get out for a long ride.  Our favorite place to ride around here is down in Ellet Valley.  There is always something beautiful to see!

Thank goodness for the warmer weather!

Salad Lyonnaise

Last summer while Nick and I were backpacking through Europe we stopped in Lyon, France.  Lyon is the second largest city in France.  Nick's cousin and his family live there, so it was the perfect opportunity to visit with them and see more of the country.  Computer access was hard to come by when we were in Europe and so I never blogged about this particular stop.   

This is the view from a high point in the city- in person you could see the Alps off in the distance.

Isn't this beautiful?  Hard to believe we were there...

It was the first really nice weather we had in days and we had the best time soaking in the sun.  We decided we were going to go out for a real french meal for lunch.  Lyon is famous for their Salad Lyonnaise.  There were little bistros everywhere, so we chose one downtown and ordered a local wine and the special salad.  The salad is basically a poached egg, bacon (or lardons as they are called in France) tomatoes and croutons with a simple dressing.  Easy but delicious.

We have recreated this several times since and each time we are instantly transported back to that day.  I made this for dinner one night last week and knew I needed to share it.  The picture I took was sadly lacking because it was dark, but we will just pretend mine looked this good!

Salad Lyonnaise

serves two

A couple handfuls of frisee lettuce or curly endive torn into pieces

4 strips of bacon sliced thin

french bread, cubed

tomatoes diced

2 poached eggs (fresh eggs work best for poaching- I learned this after many failed attempts)

juice of one lemon

extra virgin olive oil

1/2 a teaspoon of dijon mustard

salt and pepper to taste

Cook bacon over medium heat and drain on paper towels.  Drizzle cubed bread with olive oil and toast in the oven (about 400 degrees) until lightly browned. 

Mix the dressing using the lemon juice (or white wine vinegar), evoo, mustard and salt and pepper.

Poach the eggs.  Here are some helpful tips on poaching eggs.

Layer lettuce, bacon, croutons and tomatoes on a plate. Pour dressing over the salad and top with the egg.  

Pretend you are at a French bistro and enjoy!!

Faculty St. 3peat

Last weekend I headed to Wrightsville Beach to hang out with the girls I lived with in college.   We all lived together on Faculty St. in two houses across the street from each other.   The 3peat part of the title comes from the fact that App won the National Championship three years in a row of course!  This was also our third trip together since graduating.  

Emily's parents have a beautiful house right on the waterway that they generously let us use for the weekend.  Our agenda for the weekend was simple- relax and catch up which is exactly what we did.  The weather was perfect, and this was our view-

I am thankful for these girls and our friendships.  Although we don't see each other that often we can always pick up where we left off.  It is amazing to see where life has taken us these past few years.  I can always count on them to be encouraging and supportive.  Love you girls!

Mr. Scheuer

Somehow last year I signed myself up to be the Spelling Bee coordinator for my school.  I already knew (but have since been reaffirmed) that something like this is not my forte.  The Spelling Bee was coming up in Roanoke, and I needed a sub for my class desperately.  I had called everyone on the list with no luck.

Lots of stressing out over the Bee and not having a sub went on over g-chat at lunch one day with Nick.  He kindly mentioned he would be willing to sub for my class.   Hmm.... ok!  I went to the office to ask about the process to become a sub.  Basically, you have to fill out a form and then have it approved (I do work at a private school after all). Done!

I spent Thursday evening giving Nick the rundown of my class.  I was only going to be gone for a half day, and he was confident.

The whole afternoon he kept sending me text message updates.  I couldn't wait to hear how his day went!  The verdict?  He loved it!  And so did my class.  At the end of the day they declared he was the best sub ever!  When I asked him what he thought about my job his response was "it's a lot of bossing little kids around." Ha!

Baby Metcalf

Last weekend I made the trip to Raleigh to celebrate my cousin Blair and her sweet baby on the way!  Blair and her husband Rob live in Nashville and I don't get the opportunity to see them that often, so I was excited to be able to make it.  Some of her friends from Raleigh hosted a wonderful brunch shower in her honor.  

My Aunt Rhonda (Blair's mom) wrapped up a few things from when Blair was a baby and gave them to her at the shower- such a great idea and so sweet!  Blair and Rob are going to be surprised by the gender.  She was glowing the whole morning- I can't wait to see her as a mom. 

The food was awesome- frittatas, baked french toast, grits and more.  Yum!

Of course we had to get the four cousins shot.  I am so thankful for my sister-like cousins.  They are such a blessing!  My other cousin Anna is a new mommy (remember sweet Copeland?)  and their babies will be 5 months apart- so fun!

We are so excited to meet Baby Metcalf!  We are thrilled for you guys and love you so much!

The Game Lives On....

Remember this?

This is what I woke up to yesterday.....