Uncategorized – Page 33 – The Adventures of a Calamari Queen

Happy Independence Day!

Happy Independence day, America! I’m so grateful to enjoy the freedom of living the American Dream. The Hubs and I (and Riley) stayed at home,though we had some invites from family and friends (thanks for being so thoughtful guys!) we did watch a movie and did some errands earlier today. We hope you are having a fun and safe 4th of July weekend! God Bless the U.S.A!

Some of the things we did today: cuddle with the fattypuss, Riley, enjoyed some Jamba juice, ordered pizza, did a little couponing:)

Father’s Day 2015!

Hello Everyone! Hope you had a good Fathers day weekend. Ours was great! We had some nice, sunny weather in the Pacific North West. Saturday, Hubs and I, with our travel buddy Riley, went to the Tolt River (Carnation,WA) and spent Saturday afternoon there. The river water was pretty clear and low and they have an area were public fishing was opened and several people just did that.

I can't even with this picture! — I can’t even with this picture!

Sunday, Father’s Day, we had hamburgers to celebrate my Father In law. We ate on our patio and enjoyed the nice Sunday evening. My Dad is not with us anymore so Father’s day is kinda sad for me but I hope you guys had a great time with your Dads and celebrate them while they are still here! Have a great rest of your day, I’m off to garden right now:)

with Baby lexy (goodness eyebags for days!)

Memorial Day!

Happy Memorial Day! I’m not an American citizen by birth, but I’m so grateful for the sacrifices of the American soldiers. Freedom is not Free! So many gave their lives so we can enjoy the lives we have right now. I love living in this country and what it stands for! Land of the free because of the Brave. (picture courtesy from www.memorialdayusa.com)

We had BBQ tonight because aside from Memorial day, we are having late birthday celebrations for my In laws. They were on vacation during their actual birthdays. We had burgers….sooo good, chicken wings, chips, homemade guacamole, and cake. It was a simple but special time with my In laws.

sweet corn with parsley (lots of butter!)

Oh my goodness, Riley so spoiled! I think he’s enjoying a belly rub from his Auntie

love Rileys face here! — love Riley’s face here!

Daniel’s Broiler

Hello Everyone! A couple of weeks ago, the Hubs and I and Sis In Law Julia had dinner at Daniel’s Broiler at Lake Union. We’ve been here twice already and we like the place, food was decent but when it comes to steaks we still prefer John Howie in Bellevue (the best steakhouse for us ) near Seattle. The restaurant was kinda pricey for the quality of the food we had, and they messed up Zach’s steak order but they we’re quick to offer a solution (great customer service there!). The waiter felt bad for him and ended giving us free dessert. So that was nice. Although we had a good experience, we think it’s going to be a while that we will visit Daniel’s again!

Crispy Artichoke heart ( we really liked this one)

Filet Mignon (my order) I really enjoyed this one — Filet Mignon (my order) I really enjoyed my steak! Delicious but not as good as John Howie

SIL's order:Lobster salad — SIL’s order:Lobster Cub salad

Julia what you doing?! — Julia you feeling full?hehe

His "they messed up my steak" look! — His “they messed up my steak” look!

Wedding Guests!

This weekend, the Hubs and I (together with my In laws) attended a family friend’s wedding and it was such a nice event. It’s one of the best weddings we’ve attended in a long time. The Ceremony was beautiful, the place was cozy, and the food was delicious! The Bride is a childhood friend of Zach’s and both their parents knew each other for a long time. Congratulations to Dan and Noelle! The Best is yet to come…

Pretty Bride! And how cute is this little peony

Zachs Parents and Noelle (Bride) moms — Zach’s Parents and Noelle’s (Bride) mom

so much fun! smores table — so much fun! s’mores table

Fatty was waiting for us when we got home!

Mother’s Day 2015!

Hello everyone! It’s been a while since my last post but I’m still here doing the usual “wifey” stuff. I hope you guys had a great weekend (Mother’s Day weekend). We invited my In Law’s last Sunday to have dinner with us and celebrate Mothers Day for my MIL. It was a nice and quite one, we ordered sushi from our favorite local sushi place and got some shrimp and crab cakes from our local fish market (we are so lucky to live in this area because we have a lot of good, quality markets around, we don’t have to go to Seattle for that). I’m so grateful for my Mom (she’s in the Philippines now) for raising me and my siblings well. She’s so selfless. I’m also thankful for my MIL who has treated me like her own since I met her. I’m so blessed in that department.

crab cakes and roast shrimp with umami sauce

Strawberry,feta,candied walnuts,apple salad

Nassau, Bahamas

The last Island that we visited was Nassau, Bahamas! It was our least favorite just because it was too crowded and the weather was too hot for us (like the sun eating your skin). We checked out Paradise Point, some parts of the Atlantis Resort (that’s opened to the public) and spent the rest of our time at Cabbage Beach (which was gorgeous but too wavey for me!).

little selfie while waiting to get out of the cruise ship

was excited to see starbucks bahamas so I can buy their "you are here collection" but they don't have it — was excited to see starbucks bahamas so I can buy their “you are here collection” but they didn’t have it

we had drinks and croch fritters before going back to the ship — we had drinks and conch fritters before going back to the ship

St. Thomas, US Virgin Islands!

Our 2nd Island to visit was St. Thomas, US Virgin Island! This was another beautiful Island, I only wanted to do 2 things here and that was to see Magens Beach Bay (I heard that it’s voted one of the best beaches in the world; National Geographic Magazine!), second thing to do was visit Paradise Point to get a good of view the Island. After getting off from the cruise ship, we got a taxi right away going to Magens Beach because it can be so crowded and I wanted to take pictures when it’s less busy. When we got there, it didn’t disappoint! My goodness the water was so calm surrounded by a lagoon, crystal clear blue water! If you get to visit St. Thomas and have limited time, you gotta see Magens Beach, it’s one of the best beaches in the Caribbean in my opinion! *I’ve read somewhere that Bella and Edward (Twilight series) shot some scenes here in their honeymoon part of the movie. I can’t confirm that though because I don’t think I’ve seen all the movie/series.*

I took this pic inside the taxi, I can't get over how pretty the color is! — I took this pic inside the taxi, I can’t get over how pretty the color is!

Our next stop was Paradise Point (it was just walking distance from our cruise). They have an entrance fee of $21,kinda pricey but the gondola ride was nice and quick (the view was worth it).

Zach took this pic, inside the gondola (going up)

St. Maarten, Philipsburg

Our first port on our Caribbean cruise is the Island of St. Maarten, Philipsburg (Dutch side). We’re really excited to be out of the ship after 2 and half days being on the sea. I really liked St. Maarten because it was clean and really tourist friendly. We visited Maho beach. We spent a good amount of time there (it’s also called the “airport” beach) because it’s so close to the airport (Princess Juliana International Airport). It is a must if you visit St. Maarten, I mean how often do you experience having a huge plane just above your head?! We got to see the big commercial plane KML ( looks like everybody was waiting for it too). It was so much fun for me, but the Hubs wasn’t as excited to see this whole thing. He’d rather drink at the bar and lounge! The beach was so nice too, clear and powdery white sand (my kind of beach!).

On our way to Maho Beach (we took the taxi, paid $9 each)

Photo from online (but this is the same plane we saw) that made me super excited!

enjoying some fruity drink at Sunset Bar and Grill

the famous Guavaberry (it was OK for us)

Ocean Blue By Geoffrey Zakarian

We had our Anniversary dinner at the Ocean Blue (Norwegian Getaway cruise) and it was one of the best times on our cruise vacation. The food was superb and the service was amazing ( always anticipating your needs yet not in your face kind of attitude). Although it was a bit pricey because this place is not part of any “free dining” that the cruise offers. The Hubs went all out with the appetizers! He really likes his apps:) They offer seafoods and have selections of raw items like oysters and hamachi. If you find yourself on a cruise and they have an Ocean Blue restaurant, you must try it at least because you will not regret it! The Hubs and I had a great experience in this restaurant.

2015-04-19_DSC_2704 — mascarpone bread and cheeses

yellow tail hamachi — yellow tail (hamachi)

beet salad with caviar (the food presentation is just lovely)

steak tartare (this was Ok for me, had better steak tartare here in Seattle)

Lobster Mushroom Risotto (rich and decadent!) love the flavors!

I had the snapper with some fancy side dish that I'm not familiar with!hehehe — I had the snapper with some fancy ingredients that I’m not familiar with! hehehe

complimentary cake! that we end up not eating because we’re too full. we had some in our cabin the next day though