October 29, 2012

2 Years & Counting

Last week, Justin and I celebrated 2 years of wedded bliss. It seems like just yesterday that we were surrounded by friends and family at Watercolor... a truly unforgettable weekend! We are humbled by all that we've experienced together in the last 2 years: a memorable wedding, a Grecian honeymoon, a pregnancy, and now life with our precious Eleanor. 

A trip down memory lane:





Justin was traveling on our actual anniversary (10/23), so we decided to postpone our celebration until this past Saturday at Outstanding in the Field. Thanks to The Lunds' recommendation, we celebrated our 1st anniversary last year at OITF. We were so smitten with the experience that we decided to make it an anniversary tradition.

For those of you unfamiliar with the set up... It's basically a traveling restaurant on wheels that makes stops at various farms throughout the country (and now international locations too). These culinary geniuses pair up with a local celebrated chef and serve 100+ guests on a farm. In true farm-to-table fashion, most of the food is sourced from nearby farms. 

The meal this year was just as delectable as last year's. Rene Ortiz of La Condessa was the the guest chef again, and he did not disappoint. He even served us some of the new grub that will be featured in his new restaurant, Sway, opening in a few months.

While the chef was the same, the locale changed. We dined at Boggy Creek Farm, another urban farm (like Rain Lily from last year), which is just a 10 minute drive from our home. The farm house on the property was the 2nd oldest house in Texas - pretty impressive.

Bring-your-own-plate action makes for a colorful, eclectic table setting.

Parent's Day Out! A 4:00 dinner time was perfect for parents whose daughter insists on waking them before the sun rises.

Chicken coop

Historical Texas farmhouse

The kitchen

Founder Jim Denevan sharing the history of OITF.

Gorgeous table setting

Mouth watering menu

Beautiful farmland

First course: Butternut squash, baby arugula, radish, candied turnips, green beans, hatch chile, farm egg, feta, buttermilk dressing

Third course: lamb shoulder, pecans, green beans, parsley, polenta, Texas gold cheddar

The finale: Apple pie, rosemary honey caramel, Paragon cheese, Austin Beerworks ice cream

The man of the hour, Rene Ortiz. He made the rounds during the last course to answer questions and greet the guests.


Now, onto Ellie news! She is on. the. MOVE! She has full run of the house now and loves pulling up. Her two bottom teeth have come in even more, and Ellie constantly runs her tongue or lips over these new additions. 

Ellie has recently become very clingy when I'm around. Justin's taking it personally, but I'm sure she'll go through a Daddy-only phase in due time. 

We are getting excited for Halloween, aka Justin's favorite commercial holiday. We're putting together the final touches and hope that it all comes together as we're expecting. Stay tuned for photos!

A sneak peek into our Thomas Family Halloween costume

Fingers.

This is how Ellie greets me when I go in to get her after a nap.
Sitting Pretty!

Ellie's new waking hour is ~6:30 a.m. Not working for the parental units. When she went down for her first nap Sunday morning, so did we. This is how I found Justin when I woke up. A fort of pillows and Ellie's blankies pieced together...
Door stop teether:


Ellie's pull up skills:


Dust busting Ellie:






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