Oregon Trip 2013 Conclusion

Welp, I think I've taken a long enough vacation from the blog. The hubby and I flew home from Oregon on Monday, and I'm just now having the time to sit down and write. It's been a crazy week. We got home around 1:30 am on Monday night/Tuesday morning. Needless to say, we slept for most of Tuesday. The hubby returned to work on Wednesday, while I was forced, forced I tell you, to run to the grocery store. *Groan* While grocery shopping the day before Thanksgiving may sound slightly less pleasurable then enjoying a colonoscopy, I was happily surprised to find a nearly empty store. Upon checkout, standing in front of the cashier, I inquired about the scarcity of crazed Thanksgiving shoppers. I was informed that Tuesday and Tuesday night at the store had been absolute nightmares, because people were afraid of getting snowed in. Worked out well for me!

Yesterday was Thanksgiving (obviously), which was spent with the hubby's family. All of this rambling brings me to my point- today is the first day I've had to sit down and play catch-up with social media. Along the lines of catch-up, here are a few pictures to sum up the monthlong vacation extravaganza-

My mom and I have started a tradition since I've moved away. We always go out for drinks at The Vault at least once while I'm in town. This year, I had a Raspberry Lemon Drop made with fresh raspberry puree. It was all kinds of delicious. 

We let Dad and the hubby come with us :)

Shrimp and Lobster Bruschetta. Yum!

I'm not sure how Haloti finds this comfortable, but apparently, he does.

Forever hoping someone will drop something.

Rhoadesgiving! Since the hubby and I flew out a few days before Thanksgiving, my family celebrated Thanksgiving last Saturday. Lots of wine, lots of food, and lots of football! It would have been a perfect day, if only the Duck's could have won!

Beautiful, beautiful turkey.

The dogs enjoying a little howling on their last night of the trip.

A shot of Vegas (our layover city) as we flew out.

Foodie items purchased in Oregon!

I'm really excited about this jarred adobo sauce. Sometimes recipes only call for a little bit of adobo sauce, which makes it a pain to open an entire can of chipotle peppers in adobo sauce for just a teaspoon of the adobo sauce. 

I would never be able to buy this -ground shrimp- in Kentucky. I smell a latin-inspired soup on the horizon.

Risotto is also looming on the menu!

So, we are home now. The blog should be returning to normal. I have to admit, I'm excited to get back to cooking and baking. It's nice to have a break once in a while, but when it comes down to it, I just love being in the kitchen.

I hope everyone had a fantastic Thanksgiving, and that you were not harmed by Black Friday violence :)