Last Minute Christmas Shopping

Hubby and I slept in…aaahhh…I needed that.

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Breakfast was biscuits – first up – an egg and bacon biscuit (I think they used a whole wheat version of biscuit this time)

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Then, a butter and honey biscuit.

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With coffee and juice

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Bailey was a little cuddle-monkey this morning.

We didn’t sit around long…we had a movie to catch. We saw Avatar!  The graphics and visuals were, of course, amazing. I loved the little world they created. Such neat animals, plants, and people. Have you seen the movie yet?  If yes, what did you think? What was your favorite plant?

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After the movie, hubby and I headed downtown to grab a (very) late lunch and some coffee at one of my favorite home town spots – Coffee Underground.

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Coffee Underground is a spot I used to frequent since I was a teenager. I love the atmosphere, the food, and of course the coffee!

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We sat in a new room they must have added within the last year – the “Red Room”. Very cozy and intimate in there. I liked it.

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I ordered a combo lunch – quiche and soup. I got the sundried tomato quiche with the 3-bean veggie chili.

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Everything was very good. I even found some zucchini in my chili. I didn’t know you could put “other” veggies in chili, but I thought it was a nice addition and may have to add some in mine next time.

The quiche was a really nice portion and the mixture of flavors went well together. I thought the chili had a nice slightly spicy quality and I liked that it was vegetarian because it helped keep the dish both hearty and light.

Though the food was tasty, I only made it about halfway into mine before having hubby help me finish.

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The thing I was most looking forward to was a delicious coffee. One of the last times I came here, I tried to order my fave pistachio latte, but they had discontinued the flavor!

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I guess I wasn’t the only one who inquired about it because I saw it on the menu again today and they actually had it! I had been thinking maybe the menu was just old, but I knew they updated it pretty frequently so I had hope.

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The pistachio latte was just as delicious as I remembered it and even had a bit of froth-art in the top!

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The weather was really clearing up by the time we left – a HUGE improvement over the yucky weather yesterday.

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The downtown area was bustling with people everywhere. There was a “winter wonderland” set up with fake snow and a carousel.

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I love the downtown area. I used to frequent this place before they made it over and it’s really come a long way.

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Hey soldier!

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I’m glad hubby and I got a good meal in because we ended up doing some pretty good shopping post-lunch. Most stores were packed with people buying last minute gifts.

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Hubby and I bought a cook book by a local chef who was in a retail store running a special – buy the book and get a gift certificate to one of his restaurants…plus you get his autograph, too!

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Chef Rodney Freidank , from the popular + local restaurant Soby’s, was very nice and fun to meet. I hope to try out a couple of his recipes soon.

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We shopped around more and found some good presents. We donated some money to have a couple gift-wrapped. The money is going to Safe Harbor Crisis Shelter. We thought it was win-win. They even did handmade bows!

A few trips later and we were back home and ready to eat! Christmas Dinner #1 up next…

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