Romeo and Juliet

Good afternoon!  I hope everyone's weekend was fabulous.  I know it's been a few days since I posted, so I thought I would catch you up on the little things that kept us busy this weekend. 

On Thursday, while waiting for Donovan to get back, I went to Verona with a friend.  Our purpose for going was more to get our hair done than to see the sights, but I managed to snap a couple photos.  It is a gorgeous city though, so I'm sure there will be many return trips to see all the cool stuff that's there. 

Inscription on Romeo's house

Bad picture, but this is the balcony on Juliet's house

Thursday night Donovan came back after three weeks of training.  Definitely good to have him home again!  On Saturday he surprised me with tickets to see Romeo and Juliet at the Verona Arena.  Isn't he sweet?  So we got all dressed up and headed out for a date night.  And while we couldn't understand anything (it was an opera), it was still pretty cool to sit inside a Roman amphitheater that was built in 30 A.D.  Also, this would have been the perfect opportunity to make up for not taking any pics on Thursday, but naturally we got halfway there before realizing we didn't even bring a camera.  Oops.  So we weren't able to document us looking all fancy (and my new brunette hair), but a google search of the Arena will at least give you an idea of the setting. 


And that was our weekend!  Now it's back to work for a few days, but we're looking forward to a long weekend over Labor Day that I'm sure will be filled with more than a few adventures!

Orange Scones

Good afternoon, everyone!  As promised, I have a recipe to share with you all.  I love scones...they're simple to make, delicious to eat, and just a little classier than your average muffin.  I especially enjoy them with an afternoon cup of tea, although it's currently 95 degrees here in Italy and hot tea is about the last thing on my mind, but they're equally delicious for breakfast or really anytime.


Another thing I really love about scones is that they can be frozen before baking, allowing you to have a freshly-baked treat in only the time it takes them to bake.  Also, these particular scones come with a glaze, but if you'd prefer you can simply sprinkle them with a little sugar prior to baking and skip the glaze.  Totally fabulous either way.  Enjoy!

Orange Scones
Adapted from The Pastry Affair

1 3/4 cup flour
4 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 cup white sugar
Zest of 1 orange
Pinch of salt
5 tablespoons cold unsalted butter, cut into small chunks
1/2 cup freshly squeezed orange juice
1/4 cup plain Greek yogurt

Glaze:
1/2 cup powdered sugar
1 tablespoon orange juice or milk 

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.

In a large mixing bowl, combine flour, baking powder, sugar, orange zest, and salt.  Add the butter and mix with a pastry tool (or your hands) until the mixture is crumbly with pea-sized chunks.  Stir in the orange juice and yogurt until just blended.  Do not overmix.

Divide dough into 8 portions, roll each into a ball and flatten slightly on a cookie sheet.  Let scones rest for 10 minutes before baking.

Bake for 12 minutes or until the tops are lightly browned.  For glaze, combine powdered sugar and orange juice until smooth.  If necessary, add more orange juice until it is smooth.  Let scones cool to room temperature before glazing. 

To freeze, shape scones as directed and freeze.  Once frozen, wrap individually in plastic wrap.  To bake, unwrap and place on a cookie sheet.  Bake at 400 degrees F for 15 minutes, or until lightly browned.

Birthday, Basil, and Scone Deliciousness

Hey everyone!  Sorry for the sad lack of blogging...it's been pretty quiet around here lately.  Donovan's away for a few weeks and I really haven't done anything overly exciting. Regardless, here's a few highlights of the last week and a half. 

My birthday, even though the hubster was gone and I had to celebrate by myself.  It actually wasn't that bad.  I made a super yummy dinner of gnocchi with goat cheese and that sort of made up for the fact that Donovan was missing out.  Sort of. 

I even made some delish panna cotta for dessert. 

Yummy!  Seriously, this might be my favorite Italian dessert so far.  I'm in love.

Last week I also adopted a couple basil plants.  This is actually take two on the basil, my first attempt unfortunately didn't go very well.  I blame it on not watering it while we were in Croatia, but the truth is it was beyond the point of return before we left.  I just don't have much of a green thumb...every single plant we've ever had has died.  No joke.

I call them Lucy and Lola.  And if they die, I'm giving up on plants forever.  But, I'm happy to say, it's been a whole week and they're still looking healthy.  Maybe there's some hope after all!

Today I occupied myself by playing around with a recipe for Orange Scones that I tried a few days ago but wanted to make some changes to.  They were delicious the first time, but they were amazing the second time and even a teensy bit healthier.  Well, as healthy as a scone packed with butter and sugar can be. 

I will be back tomorrow to share the recipe with you all!  And once Donovan get's back next week hopefully we'll have some more exciting adventures to share!

the past two years

A lot has happened in the last two years.  We've lived in three different places, started Army life, and in general have had a ton of new experiences. 

It all began, of course, with a wedding.

We had a fabulous honeymoon, during which we visited Lake Tahoe, Yosemite, Monterey, and various other places on the California and Oregon coast.

We made the most of our last year living in Colorado and got in as much skiing/snowboarding as possible.

In the spring, Donovan graduated and commissioned.

And shortly thereafter, we packed up and moved to Georgia!  It's hard to see, but the car is packed pretty full.  Goodbye Colorado!

Once in GA, Donovan started his training and we both tried to get accustomed to the southern heat.  That's a tough thing to do and I don't think we ever quite managed it.  At the end of the summer, I headed for cooler temperatures and went on a month-long motorcycle trip with my family.  Believe it or not, we made it to the Arctic Circle and back...and we all came back alive and in one piece.

After I got back to GA, it was time for Donovan's BOLC graduation. 

We flew back to CO for Christmas with the fam, and even got some more skiing and snowboarding in.

The new year started off with a bang as Donovan began Ranger School.  To keep myself occupied, I went to Seattle for a little rain, a lot of tea, and some big city classiness.  Oh, and to see my brothers and sister-in-law, of course.

In April, Donovan graduated Ranger School and I got my hubby back.  So proud of him!

And then things got crazy...we packed up and said goodbye to friends, family, and the US.

And here we are in Italy!  It's been a wild ride, but we're loving every minute of it and are making some spectacular memories!

Croatia Day 8 - Rain and Waterfalls

Our destination for today was Plitvice Lakes National Park.  The Lakes is actually the largest national park in Croatia and is basically a bunch of lakes interconnected with waterfalls.  It's one of the more popular destinations in Croatia, and for good reason. 

To see the waterfalls, you have to be up for a little walking.  The park is more or less divided into two loops: a short loop and a long loop.  But to see everything, you have to do both.  We started out with the short loop, and while it was still gorgeous, it probably would have been a little disappointing if we had done it second. 

This is when it began raining.  And I'm not talking a light sprinkle, it was pouring.  Thankfully we had brought our raincoats with us, but we still got pretty soaked.  Obviously, the camera was in hiding under Donovan's jacket while it was raining, so we don't have any pictures of us hiding under a tree (which didn't help at all, by the way) or making a mad dash to catch the ferry boat because it had a roof.  We took the ferry over to the start of the second, larger loop and by the time we got there the rain had pretty much stopped.

After a quick cappuccino warm-up, we headed out again.

After we were done at the Lakes, we ended up driving all the way home.  The plan had been to camp close to the park and spend several days exploring, but we managed to see it all in one day.  Plus, it wasn't exactly the most hospitable weather for camping.  So we buckled down and did the drive, getting home a little after midnight.

And sadly, that brought an end to our trip.  Croatia is a beautiful country and we're so glad we had the opportunity to experience it!