Wednesday, April 25, 2012

Herb Garden Update

They've sprouted!!! Hooray! I've been watering them with my cute, little, hot pink spray bottle every day. I kept them on the coffee table so they could get lots of sun and it has actually paid off!

On Friday, I woke up to some tiny basil sprouts.

On Monday, the cilantro got huge!

And now, the parsley and chives have joined them!

I'm so excited that the seeds have sprouted, even though we still have quite a while before we can actually enjoy them. Let's pray they live that long! If they do, I might actually have that green thumb I've always wanted...

Monday, April 16, 2012

We're Growing Things!

Well, we're trying to, at least. As I count down the years until we can start working on our own garden and landscaping, I try to train my "green thumb" as much as I can.

Lately I've been making a lot of recipes that use fresh herbs, which means we buy a new bunch with each trip to the grocery store. Amit and I love buying our local produce from Volante Farms down the street, but we would really love to grow it for ourselves. Since we're moving in less than two months, there is no point in filling big containers with plants. We needed to come up with a better plan...

The tea that Amit drinks comes in these beautiful, antique-looking tins. I've been saving them, knowing that there is a better use for them than to go in the landfill. Turns out, they are the perfect containers to (hopefully) grow some herbs in!

 A beautiful weekend for planting!
We planted basil, chives, parsley, and cilantro.

Now it is time to wait and pray that the seeds sprout! The tins look great in their new home on the coffee table. I can't wait to see them grow and eventually have some homegrown fresh herbs in my food!

Sunday, April 15, 2012

Couples Night Out

It has been way too long since we went out as a group, usually we just hang out at each other's houses for dinner. Since we're now super close to graduation, we decided to celebrate the boys by treating ourselves to  dinner at a "fancy" restaurant. On Friday night, we got all dressed up, drove downtown, and headed to the Top of the Hub for some delicious food and conversation! Seth's mom was in town for a crown, so she tagged along!

Our best photo after dinner.
Thanks Mrs. Caldon for taking it!

 This is what happens when you try to take a "nice" picture
of four boys late at night.
(Fuzzy because I'm laughing too much!)
Finally a reasonable picture!
(Though it's probably the one least like them!)

We had such a great time at dinner. The food was fantastic and the fellowship was just as great!! It's definitely sad that we'll all be heading in our separate directions, but thankfully these guys have made some great memories over the past four years. We will definitely need to plan some reunion get-togethers!

Thursday, April 12, 2012

Grand Canyon (of the East)

On Saturday, Ron and Mom took us to Letchworth State Park to do a little hiking and see some more waterfalls. (I am a bit obsessed with waterfalls when hiking, just ask Amit. He gets annoyed.) Letchworth is south of both Rochester and Buffalo, but isn't too bad of a drive from either place! I can't wait to bring Emma! She'll love it, except for the sound of crashing water (she's a bit of a scaredy cat, when it comes to water).

We started out by exploring the Upper Falls. There was a nice path that went along and then past the falls. The path allowed for some really great pictures!

The Upper Falls

We actually skipped the Middle Falls to get to the Lower Falls. (Who's willing to come out and explore the middle with us???) Then we had a big decision to make...

Why would we do any route other than one involving stairs? So after walking down those 127 stairs, we were able to see the Lower Falls.

 After crossing the footbridge, we got even more great views of the park. There are so many places to explore here!!
 I spy Nathan!

We loved Letchworth! We had such a great time and it looks like we'll be able to find more difficult hikes throughout the park. It was a great ending to a fun weekend with the family. The best thing about Rochester will definitely be the chance to do more quick weekend trips to meet up with everyone and explore NY!

Tuesday, April 10, 2012

Hiking along the Niagara River

After we stopped by the falls, we headed to do a little bit of hiking. (What else would we do?) Ron and Mom had explored this area when Ron built the store in Niagara, so they were very excited to show us the hike... and the stairs.

We had to climb down a LOT of stairs.
(This doesn't do them justice.)
Finally we were at the bottom!
We started up there, in case you were wondering...

We hiked to the Niagara Whirlpool and explored alongside the water. The rapids had worn away the rock, making for some very cook pictures.

Family shot!

 Nate even managed to fit in a little exercise on the hike back...

We came across this sign...
 Yep, I'd call that a giant rock.

It was a little chilly, but it was a very scenic route. All of those stairs got us ready to eat a delicious lunch, too! I would have pictures, but we were too busy eating and then crying/laughing over the insanely hot wings that we ordered. Hilarious!

Monday, April 9, 2012

Niagara Falls


As soon as we arrived in Buffalo on Friday morning, we headed straight to the falls. Though most of the fun stuff isn't open during the off-season, we still had a great time walking around. Needless to say, I took a ton of pictures.

The Canadian Falls


The American Falls

What a wet place to work!


Both of the falls!


The falls were an incredible sight... I can't wait to go back and take a ride on the Maid of the Mist! 

Easter in Buffalo

We used our three-day weekend to meet up with Ron, Mom, and Nate in Buffalo. Other than seeing Niagara Falls, we knew it would be a great opportunity to explore our new home state. It was a great weekend for hiking and eating!

On Friday night we ate at Anchor Bar - the Home of the Original Buffalo Chicken Wings. They were DELICIOUS! I didn't take any other pictures of food... We were a little too busy eating and drinking. Buffalo Brew Pub had great food, as well. 

You can tell we were more interested in eating, than picture-taking.
That would be Amit with a half-eaten tray of 50 wings.

After hiking on Saturday, we stopped for lunch in a small town near Letchworth State Park. After our delicious lunch, we stopped to do some antiquing. I hit the JACKPOT!!! I've always wanted a vintage school desk, like Mom's, but haven't found one that I liked or that was affordable enough for us. At the first shop we stopped at, we found this cute little Sears & Roebuck desk for $27. After debating whether or not to get it, Amit went up to the owner and said we wanted it. (Isn't he the best???) It turns out, the owner's father had gone to the Catholic school in town and they had found 30 of these desks in the basement. This was the last one!

Safe and sound in the van!

Isn't it beautiful?

Today was actually National Cherish an Antique Day. I definitely will cherish mine... I'm thinking of repainting the legs and possibly restaining the wood, but I'm not quite sure. All I know is that it's awesome! We had a great time in Buffalo. More pictures to come, so stay tuned!