U.S. Open!!

2 Years of Marriage!!

An Early Morning in Manhattan

New York and New Jersey met us with a few busy weeks of work; however, we were still able to see Luke's parents, Anneliza and Adam, my dear friend Lauren AND go to the U.S. Open where I met up with two tennis teammates from college!  The few weeks went by quickly and now we have a couple of days to breathe before driving for four days to get back to San Antonio and Austin where we will end the tour.  I just had to write about the U.S. Open while it is a fresh and wonderful memory.

A few days ago, Lucas and I celebrated our 2nd wedding anniversary.  Although we have been in close quarters and working together 24/7 for the past three months, I can honestly say I love him more and more everyday and still can't get enough of his wonderfulness! Unfortunately, we were working on the day of  our anniversary, so we decided to do something special to celebrate during our off day.  Hence, why we decided to go to the U.S. Open.

Best Seats Ever!  Ferrer playing in the Grandstand

Neither of us had been to a Grand Slam, and while I had been to a few professional tennis tournaments, I was excited to be in NY at the same time as the Open.  Lucas has always enjoyed watching tennis, and with my background in tennis it seemed like a great splurge.  So we went on a Saturday and got tickets in the nosebleed section of Arthur Ashe Stadium for the day session.  This way the tickets weren't outrageously priced but we would still have access to all stadiums and courts on the grounds, and had a better chance of seeing the greats regardless of which court they played on that day.

From the top of Arthur Ashe Stadium

We rented a car for the day, we thought the truck could cause some issues, and woke up extra early to drive from Islip, NY in central Long Island, to Flushing Meadows.  Everywhere I looked I had heard there can be traffic and to use public transportation if at all possible due to congestion, so I insisted we leave at 7am even though gates don't open until 10 and matches start at 11.  I just didn't want to wait in any lines...

Well, we arrived before the parking lot even opened, and busied ourselves with a crossword while we waited in our car.  Twenty minutes later we paid for parking (we were about the tenth car in the lot)  and walked over to the Billie Jean King Tennis Center.  I was so excited, I must have looked like a wide-eyed toddler tasting candy for the first time.  Anywho, we walked up to the main gates at about 8:30 and still had some time to kill.  Not wanting to lose our amazing spot in line, the crosswords came out again and Lucas gave me a hard time about not wanting to wait in lines....yet we had to wait an hour atleast to even get in!  I still didn't care, we would be one of the first in the gates and would likely get great seats for one of the stadiums that are seated on a first come, first serve basis.  AND it was just our luck that number four ranked Ferrer from Spain was scheduled to play the first match of the day on one of those courts.  That was our chosen morning match.

At 9:30, the gates opened and I felt like all of a sudden we had been transported to Spain and were participating in the running of the bulls.  First come, first serve - like airplane travel - brings out the worst in people.  Elbows started being thrown left and right and people sprinted and shoved their way through the gates.  People truly looked absurd as they sprinted to get the best seats.   SERIOUSLY?!?!?!  Lucas and I calmly, and while judging everyone else, went to the Grandstand for the Ferrer match.  As people shoved past I may or may not have muttered, "people, it is a tennis match, control yourselves..."

Patiently Waiting at the Front Gates of the U.S. Open 2013

So we walk up the steps into the Grandstand, hoping to score some seats behind the baseline, and sure enough, three rows up from the court and just to the right of the centerline are seats with our names on it.  We also snagged two more for our friends that were also near the front of the gate and attending with their family that day.  SCORE.  My first grand slam experience and I am so close I can smell the sweat of the players, and may just be one of the awkward people in the background on national TV.

We waited another 1.5 hours before the matches started, but we watched some warm ups, did some more crossword puzzles and just took in our surroundings.  At 11am, Ferrer stepped on the court and it was a great match.  It is truly amazing to watch professional tennis in person.  The athletes are in such good shape, and make their incredibly strategic points look effortless.  I was inspired by the talent surrounding me all day long, and it was a truly wonderful experience.

Louis Armstrong Stadium

After Ferrer won in 4 sets, we ventured over to find our friend Ginny and watch Isner play in the Louis Armstrong Stadium (where Federer would lose a few days later).  Our seats were not as close to the court, but you could see just as well AND I was sitting with my wonderful friend Ginny which made it that much better.  With her on the East Coast, we often do not get to see one another, and so this was a treat and a highlight of the day.

The One and Only Ginny Wortham!

Watching Isner in Louis Armstrong

Catherine visits us in Manhattan

I also was able to see my old doubles partner and wonderful friend Catherine who was there with her Mama and husband.  We weren't able to spend as much time with them given our chosen matches to watch were in different stadiums, but it was fun to see them nevertheless.  Plus, Catherine had been a doll and had met up with the truck bright and early the previous week when we were doing a morning show shoot in Manhattan.  We had already had a fair amount of time to catch up and she had received some sweet banana treats!

Williams Sisters

As Isner began to lose (and he did lose in a close 4 set match), Lucas and I decided to get to Arthur Ashe before the day session ended.  We had tickets to get in, so we may as well use them!  The Williams Sisters were playing doubles and it was worth the walk over just to see the stadium and get a feel for the atmosphere of the main court at the U.S. Open.  It was a beautiful stadium, and even though we had to make our way to the very top to find our seats, it was still a treat.  We were able to see the NY skyline, and finally relax some in the shade.  Plus, Ashe Stadium plays some sweet tunes during changeovers, and cameras zoom in on fans in the stands which is always comical and entertaining at any sporting event.

Lucas with a small NY Skyline

Towards the end of the Williams' match, we headed back to potentially catch the end of the Isner match, and to decide how to spend the rest of the evening.  We couldn't go back into Ashe due to the transition from day tickets to night tickets, but all other matches going on were fair game.  After wandering around the grounds, and catching a glimpse of Federer on the practice courts, we headed back to the Grandstand.  We caught the third set of a Men's Doubles Match - one of my favorite matches to watch that day - and were able to sit four rows up from the baseline.

Austin and Dennis of the U.S.

 We then moved to the second row from the court to watch two Italian women battle it our before moving on to watch the fifth set in a mens third round match - Robredo vs. Evans.  You may recognize the name Robredo since this is the player that went on to defeat Federer in the next round.

I can only sum up the day in one word - perfect.  We had a wonderful experience and it was such an amazing way to celebrate two years of being married to my best friend and co-banana ninja.

I suppose I need to get back into tennis as soon as I get back to Boulder...

Good Company and Corn Fields

This post is long overdue, mostly because I have been too lazy to write something very lengthy.  When meeting up with friends and family, they typically ask, "What is the best place you have visited?"  My response is typically, "Seattle, Bend, and surprisingly Des Moines, Iowa."  No joke.  Luke and I really had a wonderful stay in Des Moines, although I must admit it was one of the cities I was not as "enthused" about visiting.  It could be because we were with family and our best friends throughout our two weeks there; however, I thought Des Moines had many exciting activities to offer and some quaint stores and delicious eateries.  A snapshot of our time in Iowa is below.

Banana Smoothie Minus the Blender

Our stay began with some parking mishaps, as posted about here, but after that it was smooth sailing and really a wonderful time.  We stayed with Luke's cousins, despite the fact that they were moving out of their home and the house was completely empty for the last week of our stay.  We literally helped them pack up some of their belongings, preoccupied their children while they tried to load up their moving boxes, and waved them goodbye as they left their home where we would be "squatters" for the next week.  Somewhat hysterical, but also quite memorable.  Had they not been moving, Lucas would not have finally seen Despicable Me, we would not have discovered Ticket To Ride (aka the train game), we would not have drawn Princess Town with sidewalk chalk, made banana smoothies without a blender, measured ears with household tools or watched as Max turned chairs covered in drapes into a spaceship.  Our stay with them was delightful, despite the chaos of packing, and it gave us a chance to see a different neighborhood in Des Moines where we may not have stayed otherwise.

How big is Ela's ear?

Space Ships!!

Princess Town

Fried Brussels Sprouts

YUM

While staying in the Drake University neighborhood and while in Des Moines in general, we also discovered many culinary masterpieces.  Within walking distance from the house was a fantastic wine bar and an amazing bakery and cafe called "La Mie."  It was pastries, sandwiches, and bread at its best and we visited this establishment on more than one occasion.  This was also proof that Iowa can be more than fried food, meat and potatoes - although we experienced that side of this city as well!  

Tables of Pastries at La Mie

While in Des Moines, we also explored fried brussels sprouts at an amazing burger joint called Zombie Burger,

Lucas enjoying fried Oreos

Lucas had his first taste of the culinary wonders of fried Oreos, and our best friend's family made us the one and only Cheesy Hash-brown Casserole during our stay at their home.  It was our last weekend in Iowa, our best friends made a trip to Des Moines to see family while we were in town, and we happened to have a couple of days off to just spend some time with our wonderful friends. Life couldn't have been better.  

Another highlight of Des Moines, and one of the highlights of the entire summer was being able to spend some time with the Ryckmans.  Brian and Amy are pretty much some of the greatest people I know and they are one of the reasons why we have missed Colorado this summer.  With our banana trip, we went from seeing them just about every weekend to only seeing them one time in four months which was pretty much terrible.  Seeing them at the half way point of the tour was great though and we had all sorts of fun with them during our two short days with them in Iowa.   

Amy, Brian and Lucas with the flowers purchased at the farmers market

With the Ryckmans in town, we spent time wandering around the extremely large Des Moines Farmers Market (maybe the largest I have ever been to in my life), sampling beer at Confluence (a local craft brewery), learning a new card game called 500, eating a fair amount of cookies, playing Cranium and just being together.  It was perfect.

Typical

Naturally Playing with Legos

Praise to the Frozen Cookie Dough

Outside of spending quality time with our friends and family, I just loved all the events, festivals and general happenings Des Moines had to offer.  From the balloon festival where we sampled with the food truck, to the Ragbrai bike race that came through town, to dancing by the lake and minor league baseball games,  and from outdoor movie screenings to Broadway shows, it just seemed as though Des Moines had a lot going on and had many opportunities for free entertainment.  We took advantage of some of them, and if I ever make it back to Des Moines someday, I will have to do some of the things we didn't get to do.

Enjoying the Balloon Festival

Specialty Hot Air Balloons

Cubs Game!!

Yay for Minor League Baseball Games

On a side note, while there is a lot of corn, Des Moines has much more to offer than that!!  We loved it!

Banana Smoothies Galore!

Freeze Bananas for Future Use - But Peel First!!

Naturally, you would expect me to be biased about usage of bananas in smoothies, but I truly think they are a necessity to make smoothies delicious and filling.  While we follow two banana smoothie recipes on our food truck, we have also created many other banana filled smoothies that I find quite delicious.  Some banana smoothie ideas below, and while only two of them were required for the summer tour, the rest are Carmalt originals!

Please note - when making smoothies, we throw some ingredients in a blender, hit the on switch and assume our concoction will be tasty.  I can list ingredients for these smoothies, but for the most part I can't tell you how much of what went in where.  Did you get that?

1. Banana Pineapple Coconut Smoothies are required on the banana boat that has taken us across the nation.  You can read about it in a previous post here.

2. Chocolate Peanut Butter Banana Smoothie - 

Think about some of the best food combinations of all time (see list below):

• banana + peanut butter  (sandwich)
• peanut butter + chocolate (reeses)
• chocolate + banana (frozen banana bites - read here)
• peanut butter + honey (sandwiches)
• banana + honey (baking / oatmeal)

So of course this smoothie combining all of these flavors is delicious!  This one is borderline milkshake and is also required for our sampling tour.  To be honest though, I think I will make this again well into the future.  If you want to pretend like you are having a frosty, simply use frozen bananas.  It gets so thick it is pretty much impossible to pour without making a mess.

In a blender combine the following, blend, pour and enjoy.

- 2 bananas, frozen or ripe (one frozen and one ripe is the best combination)
- 1 C chocolate almond milk
- One big dollop of peanut butter (1/4 C)
- One squeeze of honey (1 T)
- 1 C ice

Peanut butter cup banana yum yum!

Chocolate Peanut Butter Banana Smoothies 

3. The straight up Banana Smoothie - 

This has been a lunch favorite throughout the summer.  It is easy because we have all the ingredients on the truck, and it saves us a trip to go get lunch if we aren't terribly hungry.  Plus, it is delicious and filling!

•  3 to 4 frozen bananas (If you don't use frozen, then throw in some ice cubes)
•  about 1 to 2 cups almond coconut milk
• -sometimes a little yogurt, but more often than not we just blended togethers banana and almond milk!
• The Kicker - Some fresh nutmeg sprinkled on top adds a nice touch.  We learned this little trick on our honey moon on the small island of Nevis in the Caribbean.  The banana smoothie I had on the beach in Nevis was possibly one of the best banana smoothies of all time.  I realize that is a bold claim, but it is true.  Fresher bananas maybe?

4. Banana and Fig Smoothie - 


This smoothie
is something I discovered on Pinterest and that I tried while we were in Arizona.  I don't totally remember what I put in the smoothie, but I remember it being satisfying (and healthy)!

• 1 to 2 Bananas
• 3 Figs, fresh or dried (if using dried, soak overnight so they rehydrate)
• Ice
• about 1 C Almond Coconut Milk
• Touch of Honey

5. The Patriotic Smoothie - 

We were working on the night of the 4th of July this summer, so we celebrated America with a festive smoothie for breakfast and a cookout for lunch.  The Red, White and Blue smoothie we made ended up being more of a Purple, Pink and White Smoothie - but it was the thought that counted.

Each layer included some ice, some yogurt, and almond milk.  The only difference in each layer was the fruit we used to make the different colors (strawberries, bananas, and blueberries from top to bottom).  The trick with the layering is to pour in the first layer, spoon in the second and third layer instead of pouring.   A big thanks to Mama Weston for being in charge of that tedious process.  It was a fun thought but I don't think I would ever do this again.  Worth one try though!

Happy Smoothie Eating!

....And Be Adventurous!  

Throw a few things into a blender and see how it goes!

Fill'er Up! The Gas Station Experience

The first of many fill ups at the gas pump

The above picture was taken in Seattle at our first gas fill up.  We were not sure how much gas our new ride would hold, and we didn't anticipate the memorable encounters that are possible at a gas station when driving a hot pink food truck across the country.  Looking back, however, I realize that not only have we spent a considerable amount of time at gas stations, but we have had some peaks and valleys of emotions at gas stations as described below.

We realized quickly that it would not be wise to run the gas down to any less than 1/4 tank before filling up because a 50 gallon tank can be, well, time consuming.  Very quickly we learned that trucks are not as easy to fill with gas as your typical car.  There is no such thing as clicking the nozzle into place and standing by as gas rushes into your vehicle.  Oh no....filling up a food truck with gas is a skill, or as some may say, "magic."

Look! No Hands!  (sorta)

Due to the way the truck is designed, gas pumps always "click off" even though we are nowhere near full.  We have learned to adjust the position of the nozzle until we can get a steady stream of gas (usually pushing in and up or pulling the nozzle out ever so slightly).  Then we simply freeze.  We don't move.  We don't breathe.  We hold that spot and pray for the best.  Sometimes we are lucky and that location is deemed a "good pump." At less fortunate times, and more often than not, nozzles click off every .2 gallons or so...aka "a bad pump" and we spend a whole lot of time at the gas station.  In these cases we usually abandon ship early and only fill up to 1/2 or 3/4 of a tank.  Better luck next time.

Although fill ups can cause frustrations, stopping in crowded gas stations can also be quite enjoyable.  It is at gas stations that we get many thumbs up, have people snap photos of our truck, and stop by to ask questions.  I can't tell you how many people have asked for a sample as we pull in to pump gas or to find out if we have anything on board to sell.  Some people also have shouted Peel the Love at us.  Touche.

I never thought about blogging about this until my experience with the gas pumps in New Jersey yesterday.  As many of you know, in NJ you are not allowed to pump your own gas.  Lucas and I may or may not have high-fived when we made the realization that we would have a break from "dealing with" our notoriously irritable gas tank.  Well, the attendants at the gas station clearly have the "bad pumps" because they quickly experienced what we have done since May.  If only you could imagine their face when I lean out the driver side window, smile, bat my eyelashes and say, "It clicks off frequently."  One guy actually turned around and cursed.  This made me smile, only because I knew how he felt.

Upside Down Gas Pumping?

So, how did these attendants deal with this yesterday?  Well one of them tried all the tricks in the book, including flipping the gas nozzle upside down (see photo).  He also yelled across to the other attendant that we were going to have to be there for an hour at the rate it was taking to help us.

So at both gas stations where we stopped yesterday (both bad pumps) the attendants solved the problem of the annoying gas tank by...

Wait for it...

HAVING ME PUMP THE GAS.  So much for being off the hook in NJ.

On the plus side, I was proud to be able to hone in on my gas pumping abilities.  At the second stop, I began pumping gas after the attendant walked away, and the pump actually seemed to be working quite well.  He saw that I was still at it, so he came back over and said, "What?  Are you magic or something?"  This lead into a conversation about the tour and I ended up having a great conversation with two of the employees at the gas station while I topped off the tank.

It has it's ups and downs - but pumping gas has definitely been an experience worth sharing.

Fire Drill!

We had an amazing stay in Middletown, NJ with my wonderful cousins, The Coles.  A highlight was a trip to the beach on the Jersey Shore (a first for us) and creamy italian ice at The Lighthouse.  After the fact, we realized that the Italian Ice we ordered were the same flavors as the smoothies we give away on the food truck - I had pineapple, and Lucas had chocolate & peanut butter.  We must be obsessed, or our brains have been warped.

We also fit in two games of shanghai, Karen's birthday celebration, some delicious homemade meals, and some quality time with Karen and the girls - Amanda, Carly and Janie.  Carly even took us on an early
morning run where we were required to dodge trees and roots in the dark - quite the wake up call!

Either way, our entire stay was delightful and we loved seeing the many quaint and beautiful towns in the area, not to mention simply being with family.  After three months on the road, it is always comforting to be in the home of someone you love and to be able to relax in a way that isn't possible in a hotel room.  Plus, the Coles are simply fabulous!

So, after saying goodbye to the Coles this morning, we headed to a street fair in Westfield, NJ where we met up with Luke's parents whom will be staying with us for the next few days - delightful!  I am sure I will post on our visit with them in the future (but considering I still need to write about Oklahoma, Des Moines and Baltimore it will likely be the distant future).

ANYWAY -

I just couldn't wait to post about our afternoon.  Read On.  After the festival we drove to Parsippany, NJ and checked in to our new hotel.  The plan was to take showers and then head to dinner.  Then again, nothing ever goes according to plan, does it?  We had been in the room all of five minutes when the alarm in the hotel went off and everyone was required to exit the building.

"An emergency has been reported in the hotel - please exit the building immediately.  An emergency has been reported in the hotel - please exit the building immediately.  An emergency has been reported in the hotel - please exit the building immediately...."

Luke jumped out of the shower, we grabbed a few things, made sure we had the hotel room keys and scurry, scurry, scurried down to the parking lot.  Once we walked around the parking lot to the other side of the hotel, this was the scene...

Another truck arrives...

To Stay or To Eat - That is the Question

Rather than waiting to see if our hotel was going to burn down, we chose going to get dinner would be a better life decision.  Turns out, the cause was....wait for it.... A False Alarm.  Figures.  (Or they just lied about what really happened).

On a side note - the other day Lucas and I made a list of all the funny and ridiculous things that have occurred this summer.  It is lengthy, and this will likely make the list.

More Soon!!