Pumpkin Spice Iced Coffee

Fall basically arrived in Lexington overnight. I woke up one morning to our lawn covered in yellow leaves and temperatures in the low 70s. 

Now that one lovely day was followed by three days of rain and the feeling that maybe I wasn't so ready for fall after all. 

But  fall is still my favorite season. It's a beautiful time filled with sweaters and boots and flannel and scarves. It has pumpkin spice and everything nice. & it isn't too cold for iced coffee. 

A few few weeks ago, I posted one of my menu plans for the week. I started the week with a glass of "Magical Coffee." I quickly became addicted and started playing with the recipe. Now that it's fall (y'all), I decided the perfect tweak was to add pumpkin pie spice!

Cold brew coffe is delicious and incredibly easy. Just combine everything before you go to bed, and just like magic, it's ready when you wake up.  

Ingredients: 

• 6 cups water

• 1 1/2 cup coarsely ground coffee (I prefer a light roast, like Konga from Lexington Coffee Roasters)

• 1/3 to 1/2 cup dark brown sugar

• 1 tablespoon ground cinnamon

• 2/3 teaspoon ground ginger

• 2/3 teaspoon ground nutmeg

• 1/2 teaspoon ground allspice

• 1/2 teaspoon ground cloves

Combine all ingredients in a sealable container (I use an old milk jug). Give it a little shake. Place jug in fridge and let sit overnight. Strain contents the next morning using a fine sieve or cheesecloth. Return liquid to container. Enjoy pumpkin spice goodness over ice with a splash of half and half.

Happy Fall Y'all!

#Love Lex VA

I've only been in Lexigton for about a month,  but I've been so surprised with how much there is to do. I came in with very low expectations. I think it had something to do with people responding "what? Why are you  going to Lexington too?" whenever I said I was moving to Lexington with the boyfriend. 

I really thought there was going to be nothing. Just two colleges surround by a few houses, surrounded by a highway, surrounded by hotels, surrounded by mountains. I never even saw a grocery or a hospital in town until the day we moved. Okay, so both were literally 100 feet from our hotel and I just wasn't paying attention, but that doesn't mean my expectation of Lexington was 100% off-base. But there is a lot more surrounding the colleges besides a few houses. 

With the boyfriend so busy, we haven't been able to do everything that I've wanted too, but we've done enough that I've gotten a decent feel for the city. If you ever get a chance to visit, here is my travel guide for a perfect weekend in Lexington.

Friday 

Check into your hotel. The Georges (above) is an beautiful boutique inn that occupies two historic buildings in the heart of downtown Lexington. You can easily walk the entire city from the inn, if you ever leave your room that is. I want to find whoever decorated The Georges and pay them to decorate my home. I have serious envy of every accent piece. Standard Queen rooms start at $175 per night. You can also stay at the Best Western Plus at Hunt Ridge. It's located off the highway just before the city limits. While it's not as centrally located, it's only minutes from Downtown, and rooms start at $110 per night.

Once you've settled in, stop by TAPS for drinks. Located in the lobby of The Georges, TAPS offers craft beers and Lexington-inspired cocktails as well as small snacks. Try The Marshall (gin, simple syrup, fresh squeezed lemon, st. Germain, champagne float, and a sugar rim) or The General (vodka, basil, muddled grapes, fresh squeezed lemon, simple syrup, ginger ale). 

Walk to The Red Hen, Lexington's first farm-to-table restaurant, for dinner.  If you love anything you eat (or eat off of), ask for the suppliers business card. Chances are it's from a local business that you can visit. It's a great way to be introduced to what Lexington has to offer. The menu changes daily, but the Cheese plate curated by Cheese to You on Main Street is a menu staple and is always fantastic. 

If you aren't too full after dinner, head over to Pronto Gelateria. They offer pastries and other Italian desserts, wine and beer, and, of course, gelato. They also serve coffee, espresso, smoothies, sandwiches, salads, and soups. For a late night treat, I recommend a Moscato Affogato (1 sorbetto flavor "drowned" in moscato wine).

Saturday

Roll out of bed and wander into Bistro on Main for a southern-inspired brunch with items like Cajun Omelets and Steak Benedict.

Walk off the food coma with some shopping. Alvin Dennis will fill all your preppy needs with brands like Smathers & Branson and Barbour. If you're looking for gifts, you'll find great treats for a real baby or furbaby at Sunday's Child, and Ladles & Linens has everything you could ever need for your kitchen, including sassy dish towels (pictured above). Head over to Pappagallo for women's clothing and accessories from brands like Frye and BB Dakota. Make sure you stop by Pumpkinseeds, which  calls itself the "cutest darn store ever", and it's housewares and women's clothing backs that claim up. Walkabout Outfitters has everything you need for your hike later in the day.

Before heading out for a hike, stop by Kind Roots Cafe and pick up lunch to-go. Try the Cubano with pineapple habanera salsa, or the PBBJ (peanut butter, banana, and jelly). 

One of the best photo-op hikes close to Lexington is Devil's Marbleyard (right). Devil's Marbleyard (pictured right) can be reached by following the Belfast trail. It's a 3 mile out-and-back hike, but can be extended. The Lexington Visitor Center provides maps and information about the hike. If you don't mind driving a bit to start your hike, check out Tinker Cliffs/Andy Layne Trail (center), Peaks of Otter, Dragon's Tooth (left), or McAfee's Knob

Finish your day by picking up a pizza from Salerno, and catch a movie at Hull's Drive In. Hull's is the nation's first non-profit, community-owned drive in. Tickets are $7 for adults, $3 for children 5-11, and free for children 4 and under, and gets you the main feature and a bonus feature. They even allow dogs (pictures of Dixie enjoying the drive in above) and give them a treat when you buy your ticket! Since all proceeds from the snack bar go to keeping the drive in open, make sure to enough stop in to buy some candy or a souvenir soda!

If movies aren't your thing, take your pizza to the Devil's Backbone Outpost and enjoy your pizza over a a tasting flight or a few pints. If you find a beer you like, why not take a growler home!

Sunday 

Lexington Coffee Roasters (right) has just what you need to get going this morning. They roast their own coffee and carefully brew it to make sure they get the most out of every bean. My favorite is the Konga from Ethiopia, but if you really need your caffeine, order a bottle of Caffebierra, a dark and creamy cold brew. 

Grab some donuts or a breakfast sandwich to go with your coffee at Pure Eats (left). Their donuts flavors change daily, but I haven't found one I don't like. 

Once you're on the road, the fun doesn't have to end. Hop on the Blue Ridge Parkway (center) or Skyline Drive and enjoy the incredible views. 

I hope everyone gets the chance to visit. As worried as I was, I'm really loving living here.  

DIY Dog Leash

One of the reasons we decided to move to Lexington was how supportive the law school was of families and significant others. I mean, they kind of have to be. It's a small, small, SMALL town that doesn't offer the resources or job opportunities that cities do. 

One way they support significant others is through a "Law School Families" group. Some of the girls I met through the group mentioned that they call themselves the "law school widows" because they never see their law student.  

Luckily, the boyfriend usually comes home around 4 and works from his home office if he still has work to do. But from 7-4 everyday, it's just me and Dixie. 

Dixie loves Lexington, but the love has gotten a little demanding. She LOVES that we have a yard instead of a sliver of AstroTurf pretending to be a dog park, but she now demands to be playing in the (unfenced) yard almost all day. She loves the trail that leads from our house to the law school, but she DEMANDS to jump in the creek every ten seconds on all walks. 

Since so much of my day is now spent walking her, and correcting people who think she's a boy, I decided to craft her a brand new hot pink leash. 

What you need:

You will also need:

• hammer or rubber mallet

• mixing bowl

• bucket

• dowel or mixing tool

• cup measure

• scissors

Ombre leashes have popped up everywhere lately, and there are a ton of tutorials on the internet. Brit + Co has a good one here, and they even sell a kit with the essentials you need to make your own! 

My little helper after getting caught drinking the water the rope was soaking in.

I bought my supplies online and at Lowe's, which resulted in me having enough supplies to make many many more leashes. If you don't want to make your own leash, head over to the Hello-Darllings store and buy one!

its a little muddy after the previously mentioned creek jumping

Dixie certainly likes her new leash; although, people still think she's a boy.

I think the first time we took the leash out, the rope got a bit stretched out by Dixie's pulling. It could have been my imagination and really it was my arm getting stretched. We're working on the no pulling thing, but it's not going well. 

Overall, her new leash has held up excellently. The color hasnt faded at all, even after she dragged it into the water. 

That's all the pictures I was able to take. Apparently, I was taking too many pictures of her this day. So Dixie decide that if I wasn't going to walk her, she was going to walk herself.

I hope everyone is enjoying the end of summer/start of fall with your furry friends!

Menu Planning Sunday

Back in Baltimore, I was a big fan of Plated. The boyfriend's favorite food is chicken, and growing up I literally ate chicken every single school night. Now the boyfriend would be perfectly happy for that to continue, which is why Plated was so great. It got us to try new proteins and new ways of preparing old ones. 

Lexington only has Plated delivery on Saturday and Wednesday, which isn't terribly convenient. Instead, I'm trying menu planning. I've learned that if I don't plan my meals a week ahead, I'll eat cheese or microwaveable meals all week. 

I've scoured Food 52 and pinterest for delicious recipes and I'm sharing my menu for next week. If you want to join in, you can download a shopping list below!

Monday

• Breakfast: Magical Coffee with Avocado, Feta, and Mint on Sourdough

• Lunch: Protein Salad with Soy Hardboiled Egg

• Dinner: Pulled Pork Sandwiches and Pumpkin Beer

Tuesday

• Breakfast: Soft Scrambled Eggs

• Lunch: Pulled Pork Stuffed Sweet Potato (you can use left over pork from last night)

• Dinner: Avocado Chicken Enchiladas

Wednesday

• Breakfast: Jumpin’ Monkey and Breakfast Quesadilla

• Lunch: Rainbow Chicken Salad with Almond Honey Mustard Dressing

• Dinner: Pesto Pasta with Sun dried Tomatoes and Roasted Asparagus

Thursday

• Breakfast: Monster Avocado Toast Sandwich

• Lunch: DIY Instant Noodle Cups

• Dinner: Hummus Crusted Chicken

Friday

• Breakfast: Crepes with Lemon Curd and Blueberry Compote

• Lunch: Chicken Chop Salad with Mango Dressing

• Dinner: Butternut Squash Carbonara with Fried Sage and Caramelized Onions

Download the shopping list here!

Happy cooking darlings!

What are your favorite weeknight recipes?

Pure Michigan: Grand Hotel

Before we went to Michigan, my mom kept talking about "The Bridge" and how we just HAD TO drive across "The Bridge."  Well once we got to Cheboygan, we finally figured out that she was talking about the Mackinac Bridge.  

The Mackinac Bridge connects the upper and lower peninsula of Michigan and acts as the border of Lake Michigan and Lake Huron, and charges some lovely tolls. Driving was out. 

Instead, on our second day on Macinac Island, we woke up early and took a ferry that would give us a "seagull's eye view" of the bridge.

Really, all this meant was that the ferry ride to the island would be about 15 minutes longer and we would ride under the bridge. Now we can say that we've been on Lake Michigan and Lake Huron. Plus, we got some cool pictures.

Lake Michigan

Lake Michigan & Lake Huron

Lake Huron

The rest of the ferry ride was just as beautiful as the day before.

Once we arrived on the island, we started the walk to the Grand Hotel. 

The hotel was opened in 1887, and boasts the longest front porch in the world. 

While the hotel claims its modern updates will make guests feel at ease, it's the old charm that shines through. It's first important to note that almost no cars are allowed on the island. If you arrive by ferry, your luggage will be picked up by a horse-drawn buggy. 

Coca Cola and Chandon are delivered to porch-sitters by bicycle. Waitresses bring other drinks, like champagne and cocktails, as well as yummy snacks.

In addition to the strict dress code to which waiters abide, the hotel also requestS visitors abide by a dress code: no halter tops, tank tops, or cut off shorts by day and dresses/skirts and blouses (ladies) or suit or sport coat, necktie and dress slacks (gentlemen) by night. 

Now, they do charge visitors a $10 fee to roam about the hotel grounds, but we never saw anybody collecting fees nor did anybody ask us to pay one.  Instead we sat in rocking chairs, sipped cocktails, and  looked out over the balcony at the lake. 

Once we finished our cocktails and hummus plate, it was time to return to Cheboygan for the wedding. 

After the wedding, we were woken up at 8 a.m. by a massive thunderstorm that flooded our tent. Then we drove 4 1/2 hours to Flint, MI. We woke up at 4 a.m. the next day to catch a flight, and arrived in Baltimore around 10 a.m. A short 24 hours later, we were driving to Lexington, VA, and moving into our new home. 

It was definitely hectic, but I am so glad we were able to visit Michigan. Now I am going to unpack the last of our boxes before Dixie eats all the cardboard.