Six Years.

Friday was our 6 year anniversary! We don't usually make a big deal about it, but we usually try and do something nice around this time. This year, it felt like we were celebrating for a week! It was kind of awesome! 

Part I - I had planned a date night last Sunday to go out to dinner and a movie because with residency starting and not knowing Zach's schedule, I wanted to make sure we at least did something before he got busy. Auntie Jenn and Brian came over to watch Em (there were only minor tears this time) and we went out to celebrate at Melrose Grill in downtown Renton for dinner. Melrose Grill is a delicious steak place and it did not disappoint! A little spendy, but we were celebrating! We both got the Ribeye and it was so good. Probably the best steak I've ever had. We split a bottle of wine and even got dessert. So fancy! It had been so long since we'd been out to a really nice dinner. Such a treat. Then we went to see 22 Jump Street and it was hilarious. I loved it. CT and Jonah Hill definitely have the Bromance thing down. :)

Part II - Zach had planned to go the Mariners game on Friday night (our actual anniversary) so my Mom came over to watch Em and got her Emerson fix. :) It had been forever since we'd been to a game and it also happened to be Fireworks Night! I'm not a baseball fan at all but I do like to go to a game every once and a while. It was fun sitting out in the bleacher seats, people watching, eating greasy ballpark food and after the game (they won!), watching the fireworks! It was nice that we got to see some fireworks too, since we will probably be at home on 4th of July with Em in bed. Haha. Or maybe we'll get adventurous and see how long she can last out and about... TBD... :) It was such a great night! 

So much fun celebrating how far we've come over the past 10 years of knowing each other. I love the life we have grown together and our little family. Here's to many many more years of love, fun, and most importantly, laughter! :) I love you mister.

Zoolights

Hi there! How was your weekend? I hope it was filled with lots of Christmas lights, hot chocolate, warm fires and maybe some shopping (I definitely prefer shopping of the online variety this year). We had such a fun weekend. I took Friday off to catch up on life and use up some of my vacation days. It was much needed, especially this time of year when we are crazy busy, but in a good way. 

Saturday we had our friends, Kim and Jake, over for dinner and then went down to Tacoma to Zoolights. None of us had been before and it was so much fun! They sell discounted tickets online and at Fred Meyer, which I would highly recommend since the line was really long when we got there. Also, there's not a lot of parking. We got in the park about 8 and stayed until 9:15 even though the park closed at 9 (there were still lots of people there). 

I was in love with this green and purple tree. When we walked by, we even saw a couple that had just gotten engaged by the tree! So sweet.

The best part was the baby tigers! There were two baby tigers and right as we walked up the zookeeper went in their cage to feed them! When we saw them, Zach and I both thought they were just like Brody. Haha. Huge, gangly, clumsy, rambunctious. They were so cute! 

We had such a great time! We would highly recommend going to check out Zoolights. Hot chocolate, Christmas music blasting throughout. It was pretty busy, but you could definitely just walk around at your own pace. The only bad part was the penguins... if you know me, you know why... and they smell horrible! 

Go check out Zoolights (here's a link to buy them online).

In Yelp We Trust - Date Night at Spice King

I'm back with another Date Night post today! We are finally getting back in to the swing of our Friday date nights after Zach was gone for a whole month in Pendleton. Last week, we were feeling the Indian food and decided to try a new place. Our usual Indian food place in Renton is Naan n' Curry and it is really good, but in the spirit of date night we hit up good old Yelp. 

Yelp is awesome, by the way. Whenever we need a new place to try out, the first place we check is Yelp. And we trust it whole hearted-ly. Especially with the Indian restaurant we found on Friday night - Spice King. It was rated higher than Naan n' Curry, so we wanted to give it a try. However, all the comments had fair warning of the location - and they were spot on. The restaurant is located in a big warehouse that also houses a huge wholesale eastern European grocery store. It was pretty weird and not your usual swanky restaurant, but we wanted to give it a chance since the reviews were so good.

I'm so glad we trusted Yelp! The food was delicious! Probably some of the best Indian food we've had. Besides the location, the only thing that was sub par was the Mango Lassis. They were a neon yellow color and stronger on the yogurt than the mango. Still not bad though.

We got the Butter Chicken and the Chicken Tikka Misala (our favorites). It was seriously good. The chicken was so tender and juicy and the sauce was so flavorful.

Mmmmmhmmmm. Delish. Oh, and you can't forget the Garlic Naan! 

After dinner we went right on over to DQ for some blizzards. It was buy one get one for $1! Woot! I got Oreo and Z got Snickers (Mr. and Mrs. Predictable over here). 

I love date nights. Mostly because my handsome husband is so much fun. 

What did you so this weekend? Any fun events/activities/trips? 

Date Night: The Berliner + A New Column!

During tax season especially, date nights became a huge part of our relationship (in fact - sad to say - it was one of the only fun interactions the husband and I had each week... yay for taxes...). To me, it's really important to get out of the house, have some good food, and connect with each other during the week. It's so easy to get in the same routine, watch the same shows, surf the web every night (or work late, study, etc.) and you eventually realize while you are together and sitting right next to each other, you're not really interacting.

I loved the time we spent together eating out each week because we were able to have an actual conversation and reconnect. Honestly, it's what helped me make it through each week and get through tax season. We also made it a point to eat at a bunch of different and new places to keep it interesting.

So... (drum roll please)... today is the start of a new column here on make bake & love! Are you excited?! I sure am! I'm calling it Date Night and with this weekly (or bi-weekly) column I want highlight some of the yummy/cool/fun places me and the hubs check out on our weekly date nights. Fun, right?

First up is The Berliner. This has quickly become one of our favorite spots in Renton. The Berliner Pub is a German pub in downtown Renton that feels like authentic Germany right when you walk in. Dark wood, a huge fireplace and long tables with benches set the mood for a laid back European pub. Soccer is always on the big screen (don't worry, WA sports are on there too). Overall, I love the vibe of the place. The waitresses even wear traditional drundels!

Our favorite thing on the menu is the Brätzel (or pretzel, and yes I just googled how to type an umlaut). The thing is the biggest pretzel I've seen and it comes out warm and soft and so delicious. It comes with two types of mustard and I would recommend asking for cheese too (cream cheese). During happy hour it's only $5, which is more than enough food! They also have delicious curry fries (fries with curry ketchup) and the currywurst is good too. I don't think you can go wrong and for "pub food" it is really good. Here's the yelp reviews. Oh and don't forget all the German beers! All imported and the couple we've tried are great.

All this talk about German food reminded me that I never posted about our trip last summer to Germany! I need to get on that! Stay tuned...

What about you guys? Do you do a weekly date night? Monthly? Do you have a usual spot, or do you try a bunch of different places?