This blog seems like the right place to report a few bits of happy news for the Reynolds family at large. As June comes to a close, I feel lucky to celebrate the month in which...
-Aubrey graduated from high school. She'll be attending VCU in Richmond this fall.
-Dillon started his first real job after college. He is now an Associate Account Manager at Royall & Company, a marketing firm in Richmond.
-Josh got a full-time job in Northern Virginia. As much as we'd like to move ALL our family down to the Raleigh area, it appears Josh has impressed folks up in the DC area with his media skills. He recently secured an A/V Specialist role at National Captioning Institute, starting later this month.
-Corey and Pat are planning a move to North Carolina. Corey rocked her interview down here a few weeks ago and was offered a marketing/social media position with FGI Research in Chapel Hill, starting in August.
-Katie & Zach got married. We were lucky to be able to help out and celebrate at the Haney's wedding on June 4th.
and last but not least, the closest to home...
-I was promoted to Assistant Director at the Duke Career Center! After 2 years as a Career Advisor, I was rewarded for my efforts and the new title goes into effect July 1 :).
"Mavel tov's!" all around and thanks to everyone who supported me during the long waiting process for my own news, ha. Love you!!
Friday, June 24, 2011
Saturday, June 11, 2011
New Couches!
Hope you are not getting whiplash from the quickness of our posts these past few days ;). Suddenly it seems we just have more to post and more random pockets of time to do so.
Over Memorial Day weekend, we picked out two new couches for the den and they were delivered last Friday. Here are some photos of the new den set-up:
Over Memorial Day weekend, we picked out two new couches for the den and they were delivered last Friday. Here are some photos of the new den set-up:
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| Now our den feels cohesive and put-together with the addition of 2 couches |
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| We made sure that whatever couches we picked had soft, plushy armrests so people could lie down on them to watch TV |
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| Each couch sits 3 people, so now we can have at least 8 people lounging at one time, |
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| We especially liked how our couches came with cute pillows that bring in some of the green from our loveseat |
Friday, June 10, 2011
Restaurants Worth Trying in Cary/Morrisville (Also Part 1)
To continue on with my restaurant review series (which you folks out there may or may not be actually reading, but it serves as a great list for me to remember when we're deciding where to eat each week, ha), I'll now focus on the area of town Nate and I have called home for the past 2 years: Cary/Morrisville. Even when we were living in Raleigh during my NC State days, we still drove to Cary to do much of our shopping and eating. So here are some of our faves around here:
Starting closest to our current home, the place Nathan has probably frequented the most is Buffalo Wings and Rings in Grace Park. We often pick up orders there, and they literally know Nathan by name, so it's safe to say this restaurant is a staple for the Reynolds Fam. Nathan is dedicated to their wings, whether coated in Sweet BBQ or Crazy Garlic-Q sauce. I can vouch for their chicken pita and fries. They have particularly tasty blue cheese dressing, as well. Also in that shopping center, we appreciate non-chain spots like Pepper's Market & Sandwich Shop. The owners there are super nice, and they have some great creative sandwiches there. My personal favorite thing on the menu is their black bean burger - yummo.
Across the street from the aforementioned Grace Park shopping center there are a few more restaurants we enjoy. The first is Georgina's, an authentic, casual Italian restaurant that serves great pizza (try the BBQ chicken pizza!), pasta, and more. They also have live music some evenings and a nice outdoor dining space. A few doors down is a definite local gem, Morrisville Deli. This is definitely NY style, with an incredible selection of sandwiches, side dishes, and desserts. Our personal favorite is their ginormous black and white cookie which is more like a small cake than a cookie, ha. Seating is limited here, so come on off-peak times or pick up an order to take home. One NEW local favorite is the frozen yogurt shop, YoPop, which opened in the Food Lion shopping center about a month ago. It's self-serve (both for the froyo and the many different toppings) and the prices are actually very reasonable since they determine it by weight and they give you a membership card after spending $5 that gives you 10% off every future visit. We try to make YoPop a weekly stop :).
Driving down the road a bit towards Cary proper, we can definitely speak to the deliciousness of Tribeca Tavern. Boasting local beers, cheeses, and meats, this is a place we take MOST guests who come to visit. It's a nice big restaurant (with outdoor seating upstairs on the balcony and on the porches downstairs) with some huge and tasty burgers (Nate's favorite is the Wolfpack and mine is the You're My Boy Blue burger with the beef swapped out for their awesome black and white bean burger). They also have good pizzas, salads, sweet potato fries, and tons more. Definitely worth checking out! A few steps away from Tribeca is Cafe Caturra, one of my personal favorite places to meet girlfriends for dinner and drinks. This is a small chain place with locations in VA and NC, but it just recently made its way to Cary. They have a wine bar that you can sample from before ordering a glass and lots of unique sandwiches, soups, and small plates to enjoy. Indoor and outdoor seating here, including a fireplace that blazes in the winter. Driving a mile or two down High House, Stonewood Grill & Tavern has great bread, pot roast (per Nate), Asian chicken salad (per me), wine list, and desserts. The atmosphere is also ideal -- fancy but not too stuffy, with warm lighting and comfortable booths. A nice bar as well, with weekly martini specials. Our last spot to mention in the Davis Drive & High House area Goodberry's Frozen Custard. If the name doesn't sell you already, imagine a Triangle-area treasure that makes fresh frozen custard every hour on-site (you can see it churning out!) and has tons of mix-ins that you can use to create your own "concrete" blended treat. We appreciate that Goodberry's has a No-Sugar Added Vanilla flavor in addition to their usual chocolate, vanilla, and daily special flavors. Goodberry's has a few locations around the Raleigh area, but this one is closest to where we live, and thus our new fave.
Back in "Mo'ville," Randy's Pizza is our favorite NY pizza place in town, with huge, thin slices that you can get in a 2-slice combo for a great price. Saffron is a DELICIOUS but more upscale Indian restaurant that I've now been to twice and have liked every single thing I've tried. Another nicer place that we save for special occasions and often bring guests to is Nikos Taverna. This is an authentic Greek restaurant with a nice ambiance, great service, a reasonable couple's special Tues-Thurs, and delicious items like spanakopita, saganaki (flaming cheese!), and stuffed tomatoes. Nikos has a sister restaurant in Durham near where I work called Taverna Nikos -- creative, right? Two Guys Grille is a super casual, beachy sports bar that started in Wilmington, NC but has a location right behind our old townhouse in Morrisville (same shopping center as Randy's and Saffron). They have beer specials daily, and our favorite thing on the menu is the philly's -- I get a black bean philly and Nate gets the cheesesteak. Both of us can't resist their sweet potato fries with sweet cinnamon butter to dip in. Rounding out this particular shopping center is Tossed, another chain place with just a few other locations throughout the US. This is the place I think we've both picked up food the most from over the past two years. They have awesome, unique salad options, as well as wraps, mini pizzas, and more. Easy, quick, consistent, and relatively healthy :).
Since this post is getting quite long, I'll just mention a few more places. Lubranos is our go-to Italian pick-up place since Nathan loves their baked ravioli and I enjoy anything they make with pink sauce :). Neomonde (also has a location in Raleigh) serves some of the best hummus and pita I've ever tasted. Ginza has great Japanese food, and you can either sit at the tables where they make the hibachi dishes in front of you, or on the other side of the restaurant where you order like a normal restaurant. I just tried An the other week and it is a beautiful Asian-fusion place with great service and food. In regards to local BBQ places, though our FAVORITE is in Raleigh (to be mentioned later), in this area we'd recommend Dixie Bell's Smokehouse and Smokey's Shack, both of which are uber casual. Village Deli has great philly chicken subs and cheesesteaks, and I had my 25th birthday dinner at a lovely "new-southern" restaurant called Lucky 32 that prides itself on an extensive wine list and a menu items that change seasonally.
As you can see, Nathan and I have done lots of eating over the past few years since we've been living in and near Cary, NC. We definitely encourage you to check out some of our favorite spots...and since we live nearby, feel free to invite us along :).
Starting closest to our current home, the place Nathan has probably frequented the most is Buffalo Wings and Rings in Grace Park. We often pick up orders there, and they literally know Nathan by name, so it's safe to say this restaurant is a staple for the Reynolds Fam. Nathan is dedicated to their wings, whether coated in Sweet BBQ or Crazy Garlic-Q sauce. I can vouch for their chicken pita and fries. They have particularly tasty blue cheese dressing, as well. Also in that shopping center, we appreciate non-chain spots like Pepper's Market & Sandwich Shop. The owners there are super nice, and they have some great creative sandwiches there. My personal favorite thing on the menu is their black bean burger - yummo.
Across the street from the aforementioned Grace Park shopping center there are a few more restaurants we enjoy. The first is Georgina's, an authentic, casual Italian restaurant that serves great pizza (try the BBQ chicken pizza!), pasta, and more. They also have live music some evenings and a nice outdoor dining space. A few doors down is a definite local gem, Morrisville Deli. This is definitely NY style, with an incredible selection of sandwiches, side dishes, and desserts. Our personal favorite is their ginormous black and white cookie which is more like a small cake than a cookie, ha. Seating is limited here, so come on off-peak times or pick up an order to take home. One NEW local favorite is the frozen yogurt shop, YoPop, which opened in the Food Lion shopping center about a month ago. It's self-serve (both for the froyo and the many different toppings) and the prices are actually very reasonable since they determine it by weight and they give you a membership card after spending $5 that gives you 10% off every future visit. We try to make YoPop a weekly stop :).
Driving down the road a bit towards Cary proper, we can definitely speak to the deliciousness of Tribeca Tavern. Boasting local beers, cheeses, and meats, this is a place we take MOST guests who come to visit. It's a nice big restaurant (with outdoor seating upstairs on the balcony and on the porches downstairs) with some huge and tasty burgers (Nate's favorite is the Wolfpack and mine is the You're My Boy Blue burger with the beef swapped out for their awesome black and white bean burger). They also have good pizzas, salads, sweet potato fries, and tons more. Definitely worth checking out! A few steps away from Tribeca is Cafe Caturra, one of my personal favorite places to meet girlfriends for dinner and drinks. This is a small chain place with locations in VA and NC, but it just recently made its way to Cary. They have a wine bar that you can sample from before ordering a glass and lots of unique sandwiches, soups, and small plates to enjoy. Indoor and outdoor seating here, including a fireplace that blazes in the winter. Driving a mile or two down High House, Stonewood Grill & Tavern has great bread, pot roast (per Nate), Asian chicken salad (per me), wine list, and desserts. The atmosphere is also ideal -- fancy but not too stuffy, with warm lighting and comfortable booths. A nice bar as well, with weekly martini specials. Our last spot to mention in the Davis Drive & High House area Goodberry's Frozen Custard. If the name doesn't sell you already, imagine a Triangle-area treasure that makes fresh frozen custard every hour on-site (you can see it churning out!) and has tons of mix-ins that you can use to create your own "concrete" blended treat. We appreciate that Goodberry's has a No-Sugar Added Vanilla flavor in addition to their usual chocolate, vanilla, and daily special flavors. Goodberry's has a few locations around the Raleigh area, but this one is closest to where we live, and thus our new fave.
Back in "Mo'ville," Randy's Pizza is our favorite NY pizza place in town, with huge, thin slices that you can get in a 2-slice combo for a great price. Saffron is a DELICIOUS but more upscale Indian restaurant that I've now been to twice and have liked every single thing I've tried. Another nicer place that we save for special occasions and often bring guests to is Nikos Taverna. This is an authentic Greek restaurant with a nice ambiance, great service, a reasonable couple's special Tues-Thurs, and delicious items like spanakopita, saganaki (flaming cheese!), and stuffed tomatoes. Nikos has a sister restaurant in Durham near where I work called Taverna Nikos -- creative, right? Two Guys Grille is a super casual, beachy sports bar that started in Wilmington, NC but has a location right behind our old townhouse in Morrisville (same shopping center as Randy's and Saffron). They have beer specials daily, and our favorite thing on the menu is the philly's -- I get a black bean philly and Nate gets the cheesesteak. Both of us can't resist their sweet potato fries with sweet cinnamon butter to dip in. Rounding out this particular shopping center is Tossed, another chain place with just a few other locations throughout the US. This is the place I think we've both picked up food the most from over the past two years. They have awesome, unique salad options, as well as wraps, mini pizzas, and more. Easy, quick, consistent, and relatively healthy :).
Since this post is getting quite long, I'll just mention a few more places. Lubranos is our go-to Italian pick-up place since Nathan loves their baked ravioli and I enjoy anything they make with pink sauce :). Neomonde (also has a location in Raleigh) serves some of the best hummus and pita I've ever tasted. Ginza has great Japanese food, and you can either sit at the tables where they make the hibachi dishes in front of you, or on the other side of the restaurant where you order like a normal restaurant. I just tried An the other week and it is a beautiful Asian-fusion place with great service and food. In regards to local BBQ places, though our FAVORITE is in Raleigh (to be mentioned later), in this area we'd recommend Dixie Bell's Smokehouse and Smokey's Shack, both of which are uber casual. Village Deli has great philly chicken subs and cheesesteaks, and I had my 25th birthday dinner at a lovely "new-southern" restaurant called Lucky 32 that prides itself on an extensive wine list and a menu items that change seasonally.
As you can see, Nathan and I have done lots of eating over the past few years since we've been living in and near Cary, NC. We definitely encourage you to check out some of our favorite spots...and since we live nearby, feel free to invite us along :).
Thursday, June 9, 2011
Mr. & Mrs. Haney
Sorry it's been a few weeks since our last post. We've been spending most of our time buying new couches (photos coming soon!), having guests stay with us, making time to go to the gym, and participating in Katie & Zach's wedding.
Last weekend, Nathan's cousin Katie Hancock and her then-fiance Zach Haney became husband and wife at the Belmont Estate in Reidsville, NC. I served as the wedding coordinator, Nathan was an usher, and Danny and Sherry were around to help out as always, so needless to say we were BUSY those few days!
We had a productive rehearsal of the ceremony Friday evening, followed by a lovely and relaxing rehearsal dinner in the gazebo area of the estate. The next day, we were back at Belmont by 2:30 to begin setting up for the big day. Though it was a very warm summer evening, there was NO RAIN (woo!), the bride looked beautiful, and there were some nice emotional moments throughout the event that filled the day with love. I'm glad we could be a part of making the wedding happen, and we wish Katie and Zach lots of fun on their honeymoon cruise!
Last weekend, Nathan's cousin Katie Hancock and her then-fiance Zach Haney became husband and wife at the Belmont Estate in Reidsville, NC. I served as the wedding coordinator, Nathan was an usher, and Danny and Sherry were around to help out as always, so needless to say we were BUSY those few days!
We had a productive rehearsal of the ceremony Friday evening, followed by a lovely and relaxing rehearsal dinner in the gazebo area of the estate. The next day, we were back at Belmont by 2:30 to begin setting up for the big day. Though it was a very warm summer evening, there was NO RAIN (woo!), the bride looked beautiful, and there were some nice emotional moments throughout the event that filled the day with love. I'm glad we could be a part of making the wedding happen, and we wish Katie and Zach lots of fun on their honeymoon cruise!
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| The happy couple! |
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