the best mac n cheese EVER

When we went to Little Italy's epic 4 block farmers market, we didn't know we would happen to stop by the most epic bar/tavern in the Gaslamp serving gourmet french fries and mac n cheese. But let me tell you, it was the best "maybe we should just eat here" moment we've ever had in SD. The Farmers Market was cool too. ;) 

OH MY GOODNESS

That's...roasted brussel sprouts, whiskey-caramelized onions, crispy prosciutto, shaved parmesan and a balsamic-Jager drizzle. barleymash, thank you.

You can barley see the fries but they were full in good stuff including pulled pork and bacon. We ordered too much food and our waitress made sure to tell us that. But our left overs the next day were worth every stare from strangers walking by. ;)

Our drive home wasn't so bad either..

North Park

Our exploration of SD continues! We visited the infamous North Park on National Donut Day because on that day I like to go big, and definitely not stay home (see what I did there? lol!) North Park is a neighborhood that's known for its restaurants and eateries. From tacos to seafood and ice cream - there's something for everyone here! From all the food options around we decided on getting pizza at URBN. A super trendy place that's famous for their mashed potato pizza. That night we really weren't craving that, so we went for half gouda garlic alfredo and half bacon and cheese. And it was SO good!!

^^^ this is a small people! ^^^

For desert we walked to StreetCar Merchants, famous for their donuts, chicken, waffles and coffee! I mean! We are for sure coming back here because basically everything people ordered looked amazing. But this time we came just for the donuts, so I decided on salted nutella and cheesecake streusel. And yes they were to die for. This is place is my new #1 eatery for donuts, so come on over so we can show you what these things are made of! North Park is also full of cool bars, barbers and boutiques. We didn't get pictures of everything, but will be back soon!

two donuts and an earthquake

Last night was one of those "firsts" we'll never forget. I was having a TGIT moment and asked G if he was down to get some donuts at Peterson's a few minutes away. It was midnight, I was excited for the weekend, G obliged, so we went! At first it looked like we were driving through a ghost town because it seemed like we were the only car on the road. But 5 minutes after getting to Peterson's 3 cars pulled in and a line quickly formed for some donuts! Excited for the cronuts waiting for me at home, we were chilling watching HDTV by 12:35 a.m. (I know, poor G but he reeeeealy loves me..obviously. haha) We were laughing about something stupid when it happened.

At first we heard a bang and assumed the neighbors slammed their door hard enough to shake the apartment. But we realized something was wrong when the shaking did not stop. And I looked at G who was standing in the kitchen, calmly getting his late night ice cream, and said "We're in an earthquake!" I ran towards the door and G came behind me. And we literally watched our apartment shake and felt the rumble under our feet for what felt like forever. A few seconds later, it gently went away and we could not believe what just happened. Nothing broke or fell, and we are definitely ok. But that feeling of the earth shaking under your feet, and there's nothing you can do about it. Now that puts life right back into perspective.

And this is the tale of our very first (and hopefully the worse) quake. I can't wait to tell our kids one day...

two burgers & a concrete

Last night we finally got to visit the new Shake Shack that opened downtown a couple weeks ago. When we tried to visit opening weekend, the line went nearly around block! G and I both looked at each other and said, lets try again next time. I mean, it was only freezing that day. So, we walked a couple blocks away to some Mexican which I had been craving for days and days, and G got his burger from Epic Burger. We ate in Taco Burrito King which was not crowed like Shake Shack was, giving us space to have some good deep conversation. Let's just say I was in tears a couple times, in the middle of Mexican & burgers in the middle of a Saturday afternoon. Oh, life...you are so unpredictable sometimes.

This time however, there were no tears. Only yummy burgers and a s'mores concrete with pieces of pie from the famed Bang Bang pie! Gosh I love this foody city! Before we leave for Cali. (less than one month away :/) we hope to visit the German Market, which comes alive outside every holiday season, and The French Market in the West Loop. I feel so overwhelmed with all we want to do & see before we leave! There will definitely be many plans left undone, but I know that only means we have to return and check them off one by one.

On a fun note, as soon as we got home from dinner & Hunger Games I checked my Insta feed and saw that Taza from Love Taza, and her family were also at Shake Shack tonight! A little coincidence I loved. Happy Weekend Everyone! (It's almost Thanksgiving!) :)

hey, May!

What? We are already in May??!! This is so hard to believe! I was utterly surprised when I had to write down today's date and continually kept looking out the window to the weather outside, being that the trees are still mostly bare of any green,  and it's windy, rainy, & cloudy! We're waiting for you May flowers...Well,  the good thing is I have this lovely picture on my phone that has nothing to do with spring or May (but makes me so happy!) to welcome in the month!

This donut is from Firecakes! It is my favorite "simple" donut thus far, officially beating the original Krispy Kreme donut (I know!) which has been my number 1 since I tried it last year on our thanksgiving road trip!

What makes Firecakes Old Fashioned Buttermilk Donut better? It melts in your mouth and is crunchy on the outside at the same time! The crunch factor does it for me. So next time your're in downtown Chicago, stop by Firecakes for a delicious treat in an already sweet city!

A wonderful May 1st to all!

eating: spinach salad

Do you struggle with making healthy food choices? I have always tended to, unless there are healthier options I can make that are absolutely delicious! This is so true for me when it comes to salads. I've gone through stages of loving salads, then avoiding them for months. But after creating this one I had to share it because it is so tasty, I actually crave it and I haven't craved one in a long time! After eating it for lunch or dinner many days this week, I hope this is only the beginning of my love for salads (again) and another step towards a healthier lifestyle. I hope you can try it & enjoy!

 Ingredients:

Spinach

an Avocado (+ salt)

Feta Cheese

Nuts (I use pecans)

Trader Joe's Champagne Pear Vinaigrette

Eat it with your favorite fruit smoothie & you're good to go! You can also add fish or chicken to make it more filling for dinner.

Cheers to eating well & thanks for reading!

moments to remember so far in december

Like so many others, I love the month of December. It's a month of so much love, joy, celebration, snow, & of course - Christmas! Not to mention, a birthday 5 days before (yay!) Things over here in Chi-town have been busy with finishing up the semester & making lots of decisions that will impact 2014. Just this week so many changes & experiences have happened! I was a little apprehensive about what 2014 would hold with so many changes, but now I am so excited for what's to come & all that God has in store.

This past weekend I decided to apply to be in leadership for a Pre-Counseling student group at Moody called The Movement. I had been thinking about applying for a couple of semesters because I wanted to connect with other people in my major more but I did not feel ready to join. Being committed to our marriage, school, work, & ministry at Rogers Park Baptist church, I knew I simply did not have time. But in going into Senior year, I wanted my Moody experience to be better. I wanted to immerse myself more in the community & be more part of it! So, I applied. & guess what? I ran into the leader of the Movement 2 days later & she told me that I was in! Oh my goodness, I tried to not look too excited when she said that but I am so exited!

The downside to being a part of the Movement was having to leave the youth group we've been serving for the past 2 years. It was a hard and long decision G & I had to make, but we both felt it was time for us to go & connect to a church that was closer to us. I love those kids, & I hope they truly know that!

Naomi, Danae, Dafney, Tyrone, Brandon, BaeBae, & Nick - it was such an honor to hang out with you these past 2 years! We love you!

Change.

There are so many ways to look at changes in life, but we all face them. For us change will mean G working full-time next year & looking into schools to apply for, for his Masters Program. For me it'll mean starting Senior year working less hours & being more involved in school. Also, looking for an internship & eventually starting one to work on throughout the Summer. For us, it'll mean searching for a church to call home in Chicago & discovering new ways to love each other & spend time together with new schedules.

So many changes are to come, & I'm glad I can be hopeful about them because I know that God is with us - leading us & sustaining us & caring for us along the way. He is Emmanuel, God with us!

I wanted to have more posts to savor this beautiful transitional month, but since that did not happen (opps!) here are some photos of what we've been up to lately, according to our iPhone's , of course! lol

there have been lots of outings in the cold

another trip to the Lyric Opera

gift buying & wrapping for our kids at youth group

Firecakes, another well-known Doughnut shop in Chi-Town was crossed off my visit list!

& who knew they'd have the BEST hot chocolate with homemade marshmallows! (a personal favorite)

mistletoe 

lots of cuddling

& snow galore

I love this month

Love, t Olive

Trader Joe's Yum!

Sometimes I make pretty bad assumptions, and for the past few years I've made one about Trader Joe's. 

My assumption of Trader Joe's was that is was an expensive super market that had healthy things I would probably love but couldn't afford. This idea cost me one year of living walking distance from Trader Joe's and never stepping inside. I mean, I would pass by the store almost on a daily basis at one point a couple summers ago, but did not even look to see what they had. OH EM GEE! What a mistake that was because after my first visit in over 5 years, I was head over heals for this place that is filled with awesome food at great prices. Not to mention their organic, all wooded-out style! I love it & now I stop by on a weekly basis!

I love Trader Joe's for their unique & delicious selection of food items. And the awesome thing is I have loved everything I've tried from there so far! So with the excitement I had about loving so many different things (is this sounding a little too good to be true?) I decided that every time I visit TJ’s I would purchase something new I hadn't tried before. This was not a hard decision because I love exploring with new foods & flavors. G's not as big of a fan of this, but he liked my idea all the same. And you know what? We have not been let down with the new foods we've tried so far! (except he hasn't tried everything I have, but that's ok too! lol) Because of this really cool experience, I had the idea to write a post about the newest foods I've tried, loved, & repurchased from TJ’s. I'm planning on writing a post once a month for the next year. Let's see how far I actually go!

I am no food blogger, so I may not be too detailed about ingredients or nutrition. But I wanted to do this to encourage you to try out new foods and new places to purchase food for you and your family! It’s been a great eye opener for me to realize I just should not make assumptions about even the simple things I don’t know, and not to fear trying new things - because the worse that can happen is you don’t like what you try, but thanks to TJ’s awesome policy you can return what you don't like & get your money back with no problem!

So here are my top 5 "yums" for this month!

1. Organic Dark Chocolate Truffle
If you're a dark chocolate fan you'll love this! If your a milk chocolate fan you'll love the milk chocolate version of this. I love having chocolate at home because if I know it's available to me I don't crave it all the time. Except when I'm craving a dark chocolate cupcake from Sprinkles, but that's a whole 'nother subject!
Wanna try out this chocolate delight? It's $1.99.

2. Spicy Black Bean Dip (fat free!)
I tried this dip thanks to the free samples of new items TJ's has in the store. Even though I am not a huge fan of spicy food, this dip is so tasty I can gladly put up with the slight tingling that occurs in my mouth when I eat it. Also, its only 30 calories for 2 table spoons! I'm not a calorie counter, but when something that tastes this good is so little in calories, I get excited! If you want to give this black bean dip a try (that tastes great with a quesadilla, or sweet potato chips - my favorites!) it'll cost you about $1.69.

3. Spectaculous Crunchy Cookie Butter
This stuff is a life changer! It's as simple as that. I remember Julie and Michelle both telling me to go to TJ's to try the regular cookie butter spread, and after I finally went there was only ONE jar left. That definitely told me there was something special about this product and I was so exited to try! But when I got home and opened the jar, gasp!! It had already been opened! I could not believe it! I called Julie to tell her about the tragedy that just occurred, and I had to go back the next day to exchange for another jar. Since then, I've tried the crunchy version (pictured above) of this delicious gingerbread cookie spread & love it even more! If you don't want your taste buds to miss out on life anymore, try this! It'll cost you about $3.69.

4. Chile & Onion Flour Tortillas
I am a quesadilla lover! The Panini presser we got as a wedding gift is one of my favorite & most used cooking items because I love toasting quesadillas on it! This tortilla has a unique and yummy flavor that does have a bit of spice to it. So if you want to give it a try it'll cost you about $2.29 (comes with 10 tortillas).

5. Kettle Corn (popcorn)
Chicago is home to the famous Garrets Popcorn, and the Chicago mix is it's classic flavor: cheese popcorn mixed with caramel popcorn. SO GOOD! I love it because anything that combines sweet & salty flavors excites me, and the kettle corn from TJ's does not disappoint! Wanna try? It's $1.99.

Thank you Lord for the blessing of having access & the ability to buy nutritious food. & please have mercy on those who starve everyday.

love, T Olive