Monday, August 27, 2012

Finally!

Something I've always known to be true has been has been consigned to an info-graphic!


Discuss!

Sunday, August 26, 2012

Best Explanation I've Ever Seen

I've talked a lot about the low carb lifestyle on this blog, but I've always been at a loss for words to describe how it works. That is, until I found this info graphic.

Thank you Massive Health!

Not to mention the fact that it finally explains to me what a triglyceride is. Not even my doctor could do that!

Saturday, August 25, 2012

All Good Things...


...come to an end. Eventually it was time to pack up and leave Rehoboth.

This image make me cry.
Gary offered each of us the job of Pool Boy to get us to stay, but I doubt the salary of a pool boy would pay my mortgage...as tempting as it may be. Oh, Cabana Boy!

Friday, August 24, 2012

No Trip Complete


I would be remiss if I didn't talk about 2 food items in Rehoboth that are simply unmatched in comparison with items I have found in my other travels.

The Chicken Salad from Lori's Oye Vey Cafe
Chicken salad is one of my staples in life. I've always been a fan of the stuff my mother whips up, but sorry Mom...Lori's is so much better! It's chunkier, which isn't always my choice, but then she adds sliced apples, slivered almonds and just a hint of bleu cheese. On our first day there I always order a side of it with my sandwich. Then I go back and order an entire pound of it to keep in my cooler and snack on. This trip, I went through 2 pounds of it. Nummy!

Death Fries from Arena Deli
This year Tod and I made a new discovery. We were at the pool the day before we left and decided we would order in from Arena Deli. Knowing that we had our dinner at Mixx that evening we decided we should order a light lunch. We would split a sandwich...very light. Well, then Tod decided he wanted an order of their fabulous Mozzarella Sticks and from there we just went downhill and ordered the Death Fries. What are Death Fries you ask? French fries that are fried and placed in the oven covered in cheese and bacon. After baking they are then drizzled in BBQ sauce and ranch dressing. I know, horrible for you, but soooooo good! I convinced myself they were low carb, because once you fry a potato in oil, it's not a starch anymore...it's a fat. That's my story and I'm stick'in to it!

Thursday, August 23, 2012

MIxx It Up!

When in Rehoboth Beach, our last traditional activity is to go to Half Price Martini Night at Mixx


Also on that night they offer $8 burgers...who could ask for anything more? Well, I think next year we will arrive on Wednesday so we can do this our first night in town instead of our last. It sucks having to drive home with a hangover the next day.

Mixx always features the art of a local...well, I don't know how local, artist. This time there were these great comic book inspired paintings. If I had an extra $250 with me that night, I would have purchased this one.

Pretty much me, in a nut shell.
Ok, now on to the martinis and food. I started off with a refreshing cucumber martini.

Veggies! See, cocktails can be healthy.
I'm not a huge fan of cucumbers, but as you can see from this next picture, once they soak in vodka...they're quite good.

Yummy!
My next choice from their extensive martini menu was a little closer to home. And by home, I mean it was my cocktail of choice, just in a martini form.

The Mojito Martini!
Basically, it was a Mojito without all that nasty ice to get in the way and water it down. I will need to start making these at home. For dinner, (I know, the liquid dinner was going so nicely) I chose the Chicken Caprese Burger.

AND Sweat Potato Fries!!!!
It's a combination of a ground chicken patty that is topped with basil pesto, fresh mozzarella, and grilled tomatoes on the bottom. It is heaven, between two slices of Focaccia Bread. On to dessert!

Yes, dessert is more martinis
I mean, come on...they are half price! How can you blame me? I had the Expresso Martini and Tod had their Chocolate Martini. They were the perfect end to the perfect meal. Any meal is perfect when it contains an abundance of martinis!

Wednesday, August 22, 2012

The Place To Stay

I've talked about Cabana Gardens Guest House in previous posts. I can't extol it's virtues enough as THE place to stay when in Rehoboth Beach. It's clean, has a great selection of rooms, and is smack dab in the middle of everything you'd want to do in Rehoboth. Not to mention the fact that the owner, Gary lets us decorate our space. We always stay in the rooms that border the pool on the upper deck and we always bring our own accouterments.

Those lanterns and drapes...they're ours.
Inez, who is a member of the cleaning staff came by the pool the first day we were there to say, "When I saw the decorations, I knew you were back!" 

Our vacation space
I provide the lanterns. This year I decided to go with slightly more expensive nylon lanterns that would survive any weather we might get without running and fading of the color. I also figured that we could use them from year to year. We did lose one in a storm that hit our second day there. A small price to pay to have such a colorful and inviting space. Tod fashions the drapes. In the late afternoon the sun just burns into the second story deck. Having the curtains to close during that time is a welcome relief. No burned feet or sweaty bodies that way.

The late afternoon view.
What a marvelous spot to sit and read a book, or in my case, sip a cocktail. Next year, with the addition of one more set of curtains it will be complete. It's nice while on vacation to be given the latitude to make a space which isn't your own, your own. Maybe Gary let's us do it because we have been staying there for so long, but for whatever reason...I'm really happy that he allows us to customize our vacation experience.

Tuesday, August 21, 2012

Confucius say...EAT!

One of the places we like to eat at the beach is Confucius. It's a delightful asian restaurant slightly off the beaten path. What I love about the place is that it's not your typical "Chinese" restaurant. They have a great selection of appetizers and soups, not to mention a large selection of entrees. When I'm dining out, I like a place that has a good selection of smaller plates. It allows me to try a few things instead of having to select one entree. Here at Confucius, I tried 3 items.

Pork and Cilantro Dumplings...Yum!
Garlic & Scallion Sautéed Green Beans
Ginger Chicken Soup...I added the brown rice myself
Everything was delicious and full of flavor. The best part is by ordering in this fashion, you don't leave the restaurant stuffed to the gills and feeling miserable. I had enough room left to get my Sissy Cup of Vanilla Soft Serve at the ice cream shop afterwards.

Monday, August 20, 2012

OK! Let's Talk About The Beach

Miss me? I know, I've been back for 2 weeks without hardly so much as word. Sorry about that. I'd promise to do better, and I'll try...but you all know how that goes. We have a lot of food and drink to talk about, so let's get started!

Tod and I spent 7 glorious days in Rehoboth Beach at The Cabana Gardens Guest House. It is our oasis in the middle of our summer. We eat, we nap, we drink, we tan by the pool, we always say we're going to make it down to the ocean and we never do.

We both pack our own bars for this trip. Mine usually includes the fixings for Mojitos and various other Rum drinks. Tod is more of a Vodka fan and his bar reflects that choice. For some reason this year, we were laying by the pool the second day and I got a hankering for a Bloody Mary. Well, I don't usually have this hankering, so I hadn't packed anything that would allow me to concoct a Bloody Mary.

Luckily, right down the street, within easy walking distance, is Bin 66...a delightfully appointed liquor store. So, on go the flip flops and the t-shirt (I know! Me shirtless, try to get that image out of your head!) and off I go. What I wasn't prepared for was the entire shelf of Bloody Mary mixes they had to offer. I eeny-meeny-miney-moed one that turned out to be pretty good. Sorry, I don't remember the brand or I would share it here.

Once I got back to the guest house I set to work mixing. Now, I am not a fan of Vodka, so I made my Bloody Mary's with Rum. Gasp all you want, but Rum is so much smoother. Here is my first attempt.

Pretty, but not what I was going for.
The mix was really thick! It took a lot of stirring to get things incorporated. Also, as you can see, I didn't leave a lot of room for stirring. If I were making this cocktail at home, there also would have been more garnish, but at the beach...you do what you can and I did have fresh limes. The second round went much better.

Bigger is always better!
First, I went with a larger glass. Then when mixing the drink I added the rum and filled the glass only three quarters full with the mix. I then stirred it all up to mix it and then topped it off with more mix. This accomplished 2 things. It mixed up the rum and then allowed for the melting of the ice. As the ice melted it thinned out the mix on top so the drink didn't become watery towards the end.

What's to come? I want to have a party with a Bloody Mary Bar where you fashion your own drink. Course a Bloody Mary is typically a brunch drink, so the first hurdle is that I'd have to wake up early enough to have that party. My mother has given me some of her home made canned tomato juice and I would love to create my own Bloody Mary mix for future use. I'm sure Pinterest can help me find some recipes.

Friday, August 10, 2012

Despite Popular Opinion...

I am not face down in a ditch. I'll have all kinds of posts coming your way as soon as I write them this weekend. Vacation was wonderful, but getting back to work wasn't so much. I have been slammed! I came back to having to hire 3 new people. Let me tell you...that's been fun! NOT!

Said ditch
This all coupled with the fact that The Hubby accepted a job that means he has moved 2 hours away and now I am single parent of Molly means I haven't had much time to write. That and the fact that I have been trying to cram my Beach Level of cocktail consumption into the few hours I'm home in the evening means that even if I did write, you wouldn't have been able to understand a word of it.

Fear not! I will be back soon with amazing tales of vacation and who knows what else. Be afraid, very afraid.