We Survived the Four Ball

Every year for a long weekend in August, we head down to EH's hometown for their country club's Four Ball Golf Tournament.

It's something we definitely look forward to every year and this year was no exception. We drove down Thursday for Ladies Night/Stag Night where all the guys go to play casino games and the girls have dinner and drinks.

Friday the girls and I ate Mexican and got mani/pedi's - I went for You Don't Know Jacques by OPI on my toenails and a minky gray shellac on my nails. I guess you could say I am ready for Fall!

After the guys finished up on Friday, we moseyed back to the club to see the Memphis Soul Revue which holds a special place in our heart as a smaller group from this large group played at our wedding!

Saturday this happened.

EH and his golf partner decided to stand out a little this year and invest in golf knickers. If they go this route next year I'm getting him a newsboy hat but I thought he looked pretty dashing, all considering!

Saturday is my favorite day because it's the prime day to camp out on the 13th hole with the crowd that has assembled to heckle the players. As far as I know this is the only golf course that has a dedicated spot to actually heckle players (near the concession stand and it even has bleachers!) but most people are a good sport about it. Not all, but most.

The only thing to watch out for are the Orange Things - a specially concocted beverage that has been known to make people lose their balance or fall asleep under trees.

Here's a shot of the dynamic duo.

 
After the golf it's another night out which means fuzzy pictures (if we even remember to take them) and a mighty headache the next few days.

So while it's an absolute blast, it's definitely a good thing that Four Ball comes once a year!

Fried Chicken and Flying Saucers

EH and I have been trying to be good about eating at home, but we never turn down an invitation to meet a friend out for dinner.

So on Wednesday we ventured to Gus's World Famous Fried Chicken in downtown. The only other time I have been was with EH on a HOT July Friday afternoon where we sat at the bar overlooking the open kitchen and ate off styrofoam plates and watched the cooks do their thing.

This time we slid into a bench and waited for our friend to arrive. 

Gus's is really casual and offers bottled beer and individual bottles of wine - served in your own plastic wine glass! I love it though - something about the old school plastic plaid table coverings and drinking wine out of a plastic cup sort of sets the stage.

EH opted for an Acadia beer - really good! And I hope I got the name right, I'll have to do some digging.

We started out the night with a Southern staple - fried green tomatoes. Which is not only one of my favorite foods on the entire planet, but also one of my most treasured movies!

 

The tomatoes were perfection and the only thing lacking was the prepackaged ranch. If they came up with something on site it would have taken these over the top. But! Still good. We were happy.

EH and I both don't go out of our way to choose bone-in items so we opted for the chicken strips, though our friend got a plate of wings and thighs and said they were amazing.

I opted for the mac'n'cheese and baked beans - and each meal is served with plain white bread, which of course made me quote another cherished movie all during the meal - The Blues Brothers!

After dinner we strolled down to The Flying Saucer Draught Emporium which has tons of tons of great beers on tap and the UFO Club - which tracks what beers you try in order to ultimately get your name on a saucer hung on the wall. Of course we joined!

You can spot all the saucers up towards the top - the different colors indicate how many you've had. We are at a solid one but you have to start somewhere!

I opted for something light, though I can't remember the name. The choices can be overwhelming so I always ask the bartender for their recommendation. Whatever this was, it was delicious!

 

While EH went for something more dark and brooding.

I tried to snap a picture of our friend's but it was terrible as far as iphone pics go. 

If you need a new casual meal spot or fancy some great beer, I highly recommend stopping by either of these places! Might as well hit up both if you find a parking spot downtown.

Cheers!

Lake Happenings

Another busy week/weekend over here!

On Thursday I met a few of my girlfriends from Supper Club. Out of 11 of us it feels like half are expecting or have welcomed little ones so it's hectic trying to all get together. Still, five of us met up at Baja Grill  - a former 2013 Best Food Truck Around the State winner turned corner restaurant in the Heights district. This particular spot has seen a lot of turn over in the past but with food like we had, I see this place finally sticking and becoming a staple. Fresh salsa, guacamole and queso plus unique options for tacos, burritos and more - sounds like your typical Mexican flair but their combinations were different and SO good! I went for chicken and cuban tacos but others sampled the naked and regular burritos and were equally impressed.

The only possible downside at this point is they do not have their liquor license (I believe I heard they are getting it by July though) but you can bring your own wine and just pay a corkage fee. FYI - it's one corkage fee for the entire table. So even though you may each bring a different bottle (what? supper club is not just for food!) they will only charge you the one time. Not a big deal at all (kind of nice to be honest!) so that + great food + great service? Definitely a victory in my book.

But before we hit the road on Friday, EH and I stopped at Taziki's for a "beer lunch" (aka lunch with an alcoholic beverage) - one of my most favorite things!

If you're a Little Rock local I'm sure you've hit up Taziki's. Friday afternoon sitting on the patio with the beautiful weather was the perfect start to our weekend.

Once we made it to Hot Springs, it was a casual dinner out with all the family then Saturday we all assembled to get ready for the boat!

Which included a waterfall..

 

An ombre arrangement of water balloons...which were promptly stolen by the guys to throw at unsuspecting people.

Baby Geese! 

There were seriously SO many geese wading by the dock but it was difficult to get a picture. I blame my in-law's labrador who decided right then was the perfect time to jump in the water!

After a long day on the water it was all about more patio sitting and wine drinking which led late into a night full of conversation, great food and several pool games.

So despite our (well deserved) sun burns, it was a wonderful weekend escape and I can't wait for many more this summer!

And even though it's a day late, hope everyone had a wonderful Father's Day! Just for fun, here is one my favorite pictures of my Dad and I from our wedding. Love this guy!

To close, we've made it through Monday so have a happy rest of the week!

What's Been Happening Lately

The past few weeks have been an absolute whirlwind. It feels like every weekend has been occupied with plans, work has me yearning for early evening naps, and there really is no end in sight. I hope that doesn't come off too negative because really the whirlwind has had it's fun moments for sure.

So here's a quick recap of what I've been up to.

I channeled my inner Zelda Fitzgerald (minus the drama and hospital stays) for a Centennial Gatsby-themed party, which I hope you'll find is RIGHT up my ally.

 

Engineer Husband dressed up as well, while I posed awkwardly beside him in front of a vintage car.

 

Holy unfortunate arm there. There was an actual photographer who hopefully captured a more flattering angle - this is what someone snapped with my iphone. 

Side note: if you haven't had the pleasure of attending a 1920's themed party, please throw yourself one. Or find me and I'll throw you one. It was SO much fun! Everyone really went all out to dress up and it felt like stepping back in time...except we didn't have to worry about keeping our speakeasy secret. 

Speaking of awkward selfies, here's one I snapped that I might as well share. It's officially PRETTY hot here so I've had fun digging out spring/summer favorites from my closet - like sheer button ups and some meant to look old but just kidding I bought them like this jeans.

 

One particular weekend where the Moose Face and I had the house to ourselves, I decided to dig out a few canvases that EH had gifted me years ago, coupled with some Pinspiration to do a little DIY art.

(but...still in progess!)

The top painting is in it's final stages but the bottom one has some work to do. I'm hoping to make sort of a gallery wall in our guest bedroom - and if I can perfect the blue tones to match the walls I will be much happier with it.

Anyways.

Then came Cinco de Mayo! We usually have a get together at our place, with margaritas and sangria and tons of food, but with so much going on (and with it falling on a Monday), we hit up one of our favorite local spots instead. Where, bless his heart, our waiter didn't hear my food order but DID hear my request for extra sour cream. 

Luckily he got some real sustenance out to me before I knew it. It was super loud so I definitely understood why we had the mixup! Bonus points - he kept the margaritas coming!

The next day we got to see my little sister-in-law and little brother-in-law, though they're not little by any means. Seeing them usually means my in-laws are cooking which result in pictures like this!

 

Though in full disclosure, this is EH's plate. My burger had blue cheese crumbles and bacon but it was devoured before I thought to snap a picture. But his burger was just as picture worthy. 

And now we're here, finally hours away from a weekend where we have very little planned for once except for Mother's Day on Sunday which we are looking forward to. Then it's go-go-go again! Hope you have a wonderful weekend!

 

 

Stone's Throw Brewery

I've been hearing about a new local brewery here in Little Rock for a few weeks now, and finally this weekend Engineer Husband and I decided to stop in and check it out.

Located in history MacArthur Park near downtown, Stone's Throw Brewery is the brain child of four Little Rock residents who met in a local home brew club. Through the support of family and friends, and even strangers through the Kickstarter program, Little Rock now has this unique brewery to call it's own.

Photo Courtesy of Arkansas Times

Though not much on the outside, once you enter in it's pretty quaint. And on a Saturday night it was pretty hopping. Thankfully it was easy enough to find two seats at the small wrap around bar.

As we entered, they were beginning a tour of the facilities. Unfortunately we were in a time crunch to get to dinner, but it's something we definitely want to check out next time.

Stone's Throw offers 8 beers on tap, two from their own brewery  and six guest spots (Diamond Bear, another great local brewery was featured), all that you can keep up to date on with their website. We tried the Stout and the Pale Ale, both of which were really good! Both darker than I expected, but not so dark that the faint of heart would turn up their nose.

And while Stone's Throw doesn't haven an in-house kitchen, they make sure you're taken care of if your stomach starts rumbling. No, not the bowl of pretzels, but food trucks!

Food trucks have recently started becoming the new it thing, and Little Rock is not lacking. On Saturday they featured a waffle truck - complete with a Southern favorite - chicken and waffles!

You can also buy the growler's and fill up on your favorite beer to take home and enjoy.

Photo Courtesy of KickStarter Website

So for all you locals, make sure and stop by Stone's Throw for a fantastic brew. Their hours are a little strange, but as their popularity grows I imagine they'll start opening up more. Make the time to pop in! I think it will become your favorite regular spot soon.


Stone's Throw Brewery
401 E. 9th St.
Little Rock, AR 72202
www.stonesthrowbeer.com

Let me know if you get a chance to stop by and what you think! I know you won't be disappointed.