Graceland

With less than 24 hours to go in Nashville, we made the last minute decision to rent a car and drive to Graceland. It was a whirlwind of a trip, but totally worth it. I doubt we will be coming back to Tennessee anytime soon.

Elvis bought this house for him and his parents in the 1950s for $100,000. The property was named Graceland by the original owner.

Each room in the house was very different. We liked the living room the most.

Maggie posing with a portrait of Elvis, in the foyer.

This is the famous "Jungle Room", complete with waterfall (though not pictured). I'm sure this place was really hip back in the day!

Downstairs in the media room. Not too sure how I feel about that monkey on the coffee table, but the three TVs in the background are a nice touch.

Jumpsuits, jumpsuits everywhere! It was cool to see his stage outfits, including these.

Paying our respects to the King himself. The flowers in the photo were sent from various fan clubs across the states.

Popped into another building to Elvis' car collection. Maggie photobombed the Ferrari!

A Little Bit Country

Howdy! Maggie and I had a great time exploring Nashville with two of my friends. We covered a lot of ground in just a few days. Here are some highlights.

Checking out cowboy boots. They were buy one, get two free!

Admiring the awesome letterpress at Hatch Show Print.

Visiting the Parthenon at Centennial Park.

Maggie, we're not in Nashville anymore!

Outside of RCA Studio B, the recording home of many country music stars.

Inside the Country Music Hall of Fame.

In front of a small sample of country music's best sellers.

Taking a rest at Belle Meade Plantation.

Making a pit stop for some goodies at the Loveless Cafe.

Baking Momofuku Corn Cookies

We were on a baking hiatus and are back in full force! We look forward to sharing a whole bunch of recipes we have lined up for the rest of the year.

Today, the Quatchis were itching to try the corn cookies from Momofuku Milk Bar. The recipe is not as complex as the cornflake-chocolate-chip-marshmallow cookie or the chocolate-chocolate cookie, but it involves a very unique ingredient - freeze-dried corn powder. We tried hunting down said corn powder at a grocery store with no such luck. We ultimately opted to buy a bottle of it from the Milk Bar itself.

We made a double batch, and kept half the dough to bake later on in the week. The dough really spreads out in the oven, so be sure to leave lots of space in between the cookies.

Special shout out to Sarah who bought us these charming measuring cups! We used them for this recipe. Thanks again for the thoughtful gift!

Name those Cities

Maggie joined my gal pals and I on another girls getaway!

Can you guess where we went?

City #1

City #2

Sarah + Blue Jays

My good friend, Sarah, is from Vancouver. She originally purchased Q and mailed him across Canada in a nice squishy envelop so he would have a comfy journey. Sarah knew I wanted a Quatchi when I visited her on the west coast. I resisted at the time, thinking I had too many stuff animals.

Recently, Sarah came to visit Toronto. We haven't seen each other in over five years, so it was a real treat to host her for a few days. Hanging out was like old times. We've only known each other for...oh, you know...OVER 20 YEARS!

Leading up to Sarah's visit, Q was super excited and could hardly sleep. He was so happy to give her hugs when she stayed with us. It was a nice reunion.

On Tuesday night, we went to the Rogers Centre to cheer on our fellow Blue Jays. We had a swell time pigging out on ballpark food, doing the wave, and watching the game. Unfortunately our guys lost to the Red Sox but they made it up the day after.

Thanks for coming to visit us, Sarah!

Love, Sammers and Q

Catching Rays

Bernie at the beach.

Allan Gardens

Maggie joined me on an impromptu visit to Allan Gardens. It was the first time for both of us.

There were several benches inside the gardens to sit back and relax. This bench was in the Palm House.

The gardens are very peaceful. Here's Maggie looking at a small indoor waterfall.

The status in this photo is of Leda and the Swan.

Maggie really liked the colour of this flower, since it matched her headband.

Maggie is pointing to a pile of turtles (there were literally five on top of each other). A few more were swimming in the pond with some fish.

This was probably the most unique flower Maggie spotted at the gardens.

Maggie spent most of her time in the Cacti House. We have some mini cacti at home, so when she saw how big they could get, she got excited.

If you ever visit Allan Gardens, let us know what you think!

Goooooaaaaalllll!

The Quatchis and I watched the World Cup finals at my parents' place this afternoon. It was an intense match!

We hope you enjoyed it wherever you are!

Classic Corn Muffins

My family and I had southern BBQ last week. Ever since, I've been craving homemade corn bread. If you're counting calories, this recipe isn't for you. If you're looking for classic corn bread, in muffin form, that's sweet and crumbly, read on!

Corn Muffins

3 cups all-purpose flour

1 cup sugar

1 cup medium cornmeal

2 tablespoons baking powder

1 1/2 teaspoons salt

1 1/2 cups whole milk

1/2 pound unsalted butter, melted and cooled

2 extra-large eggs

Preheat the oven to 350 F. Line 12 muffin cups with paper liners.

In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, mix the flour, sugar, cornmeal, baking powder, and salt. In a separate bowl, combine the milk, melted butter, and eggs. With the mixer on the lowest speed, pour the wet ingredients into the dry ones and stir until they are just blended. Spoon the batter into the paper liners, filling each one to the top.

Bake for 30 minutes, until the tops are crisp and a toothpick comes out clean. Cool slightly and remove from the pan.

Source: Ina Garten on the Food Network

Q opted to use less sugar than the recipe called for, and ended up making 15 large muffins instead of the usual dozen. The muffins tasted great right out of the oven. Serve them warm if you can!

Mini and the Fishies

Today, the Mins and I took some friends from Hong Kong to the aquarium. We were thankful we bought timed tickets in advance. The place was very, very, very busy!

The first tank we encountered was full of fish! It was fun to watch them swim in schools.

The Mins enjoyed meeting this eel-like characters. They look like grumpy old men, eh?

These fish were really active because it was feeding time.

One of the highlights of the aquarium was going through a tunnel. The fish, sharks, and stingrays were swimming all around us.

Look up, Mins! There's a sawfish!

The jelly exhibit was much more colourful than I expected. They were in all shapes and sizes. Some were even upside down! The Mins liked these ones the best.

It wasn't until we left the aquarium did we realize we missed a bunch of sharks, seahorses, and turtles. So take your time and enjoy! Even if you're from Toronto, it's well worth the visit.