Frenchiemoon: Canada, Part 2 - Quebec City/Montreal

Let's see where did I leave off?

The second day in Quebec City was interesting. We started off the day trying to find Starbucks coffee and/or Breakfast. Mr Frenchie wanted nothing more than to find a Starbucks and, interestingly, go to a Canadian Mall. (My husband is a little weird). At this point I still hadn't quite grasped how badly Mr Frenchie wanted to see a Canadia mall so I tried to avoid it. We ended up going to breakfast/lunch at St Hubert, or as we like to call it Shaky Finger Chicken.

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Reminds me of someone I know...

You know I love you CC! (Source)

St Hubert was probably the only unpleasant experience we encountered with the French Speaking Canadians... that and we disagreed on what is considered good iced tea. BLECK! is all I really have to say about the iced tea I encountered in Canada. I shake my finger back at that bird and say that was NOT iced tea. There was a little mix up on the sugar content of the iced tea they served, they said it had no sugar and I (and the bottle it came from) strongly disagreed. I will say, however, my sandwich wasn't too bad.

After brunch(?) we drove down Grande-Allée, described as the “Champs Élysées” of Québec City.

The street was super cute and we had grand plans of walking back up the street later for dinner, but I got a blister from my new Coach tennies and we decided to stay closer (and cheaper).

Back inside our fortified city, I changed into my tennies (that would later give me a blister) and we walked around the streets near our hotel.

I could totally live here!

And shop here!

How cute is this place?!?

We walked all the way over to Fairmont Le Château Frontenac for a fancy drink.

On our way in we past the CUTEST wool sharf and sheep shop. I'm kicking myself because I can't find the shop owner's card right now (I'll have to think of another Christmas present for Mama Frenchie), but the name of the shop was Lambert & Co.

I'm totally wearing that outfit as I'm typing this!

The sheep were really soft and made with really curly sheep's wool. She also made smaller sheep with yarn made from the same wool. (Dang it! Where is that card?) After our drink we ate our cheapest Canadian dinner at L'omelette and then went on a mission for Cheesecake.

The next morning we drove to Montreal...

Mr Frenchie printed the directions to our hotel, Auberge Du Vieux Port, from the computer in the hotel lobby. We didn't realize until we were all packing in our rental and on our way, that the directions he printed were in French. Luckily, it was very easy to figure out, so it was more funny, than anything.

On our way to Montreal we stopped to get food at a Tim Hortons. We'd seen there signs along the side of the road and thought, "Well it can't be any worst that PFK (KFC) or McDonalds, right?" (P.S. I haven't eaten at a McDonalds in 8 yrs)

Lemme tell you, I heart Tim Hortons! Where else can I get a sandwich (for me), a doughnut (for Mr F) and a coffee (for Mr F) in a combo? Nowhere I've been in California.

We got to our amazing hotel around mid afternoon, settled into our hotel room and updated my Twitter status... what?

The hotel staff was extremely nice at this hotel! We were given a free Jazz CD when we checked in and they left us Maple Chocolates as a "Congratulations" gift, in our room! This was BY FAR my favorite hotel we stayed at on the entire trip, but I am easily swayed by free breakfast (actual breakfast), free wine & cheese happy hour and nice soaps. I'm a sucker for good smelling soaps.

Once we were settled in (and the Twittersphere knew what I was up to) we went to our free wine and cheese Happy Hour and found dinner down the street. Mr Frenchie was very excited to find a place with a drink and lasagna deal (lasagna is his favorite).

Up Next: More Montreal!

Nesting: Part 2, How 'bout now?

Since Mr Frenchie and I got married, two commons question have been, "Do you feel different?" and (because getting married also met moving in together) "How is it, living together?"

Do I feel different? A little. Our officiant told us that after she pronounced us Husband and Wife and we walked back done the aisle we would feel different. She said, "It's the best feeling, I'm so excited for you."

I'm content and I feel peaceful... that sounds weird, but there you have it. I'd say I feel more relaxed in my relationship with Mr Frenchie. I can't really think of any other way to explain it but I know he's there and he knows I'm there and it will always be that way to matter what life throws at us. That really is the best feeling :)

How is it, living together? Guess what guys? I live with a boy. It's not too shabby. Mr Frenchie's told me he never had any concerns about living with me (I had to be better than his past roommates) and neither did I. We're both pretty clean, some of us (me) more than others (him), but it works. I have a cooking partner in crime. I'm not drinking wine alone after work, we can go out on our terrace (we like to call our balcony a terrace) and drink together. The best part, at the end of the day I don't have to hop in my car and go home, I'm already at home!

However, living with Mr Frenchie was ever my concern. My concern was moving. Confession - I do not to well with change. True story - I moved to Huntington Beach about a year before I met Mr Frenchie. The difference in my commute and not knowing where everything was, turned out to be such a shock to my system that I had a major anxiety attack and moved back. I was really worried I would freak out about living in a new place. However, I'm in a much better place in my life and, as I've explained before, our place is in a great location. I have pretty much the same commute, I know where everything is AND I'm actually closer to my favorite grocery store and other things. The best part is, I have Mr Frenchie. He can tell when something is wrong, he asks me how I'm doing, gives me a hug and tells me everything is going to be alright and he's here. He's here, I don't know why I was ever concerned.

So, there you have it, almost one month into being married and not much to report. Does it feel different? Yes, a little. How is it living with a boy? Great!

Did you feel much different once you were married?

My Favies

Mr Frenchie and I are settling into our new apartments and finding a home for all our stuff - old cwrap and shiney new presents. In an effort to spend less money (and because we think its pretty darn fun) we've been cooking at home most nights.

Our first night cooking was pretty interesting, we tried to make tomato soup (to have with paninis) and realized we didn't have a can opener. The next morning, we attempted to make pancakes, and realized we didn't have a spatula. Thankfully, last Friday we were able to open up the remainer of our Wedding presents at Mama and Papa Frenchie's house. Here are a couple of my favorite wedding presents, in case your in need of more things to add to your registry.

1 - Utensil Set - This 10 Piece Utensil Set by OXO has been a lifesaver! Can opener? CHECK! Spatula? Would you like solid or perforated? Because, we have both!

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This set comes with a crock (to hold everything), 2 spoons (perforated & solid), fancy nylon headed tongs, 2 spatulas (perforated & solid), can opener, whisk, swivel peeler and a flexible spatula.

2 - Pyrex Set - Mama Frenchie has more Tupperware than you can shake a stick at (well you could actually shake a stick at it, but you would have to back up A LOT to get the whole kitchen in your shaking area) because she attended many a Tupperware party in her day. I don't think they have Tupperware parties anymore, or if they do I haven't been invited to one, and there has been some debate on microwaving food in plastic containers. Our solution was this Pyrex Clear Glass 17-pc. Bake and Store Set from Target.

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We've already started storing leftovers in these containers. Plus, it came with a measuring cup! Something we realized we needed when trying to measure ingredients making tomato sauce Sunday night.

3 - Towel Hook - I don't know what man designed the bathroom in our apartment but they put the light switch right below our only towel bar. Thus, making it impossible to find the light switch if you, I don't know, want to hang-up your towels. Before we opened this Cero Spa Over-the-Door Hook Rack from Target, I had to give our guests lesson in where to find the switch before they used the bathroom.

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Now, the light switch is super easy to find (it glows) and my towel is closer to the shower, SCORE!

What is your favorite wedding present?

That's My Jam!

I interupt the Frenchiemoon recaps to bring you a post I was working on before our wedding, our song list.

Although, we had an awesome band for our wedding, we also had a DJ for the main "dancing" portion of the evening. To assure that Celine Dion or Mariah Carey didn't make an appearance at the French Bulldog wedding, Mr Frenchie and I put together a little play list. We spent an afternoon listening to our iTunes and writing down songs wanted to hear and thought our guests would enjoy... and enjoy they did!

Anniversary Dance - "When I'm 64" - The Beatles
Bouquet Toss - "Clumsy" - Fergie
Garter Toss - "Pink Panther Theme" - Henry Mancini
Cake Cutting - "How Sweet It Is" - James Taylor (We wanted to do "Ma Na Ma Na" by The Muppets by we didn't think our older guests would get it)

Dance Tunes

"At Last" - Etta James

"Brick House" - The Commodores

"Brighter Than Sunshine" - Aqualung

"Brown Eyed Girl" - Van Morrison

"Build me up, Buttercup" - The Fountains (BM F & my song)

"Celebration" - Kool and the Gang

"Come On Eileen" - Save Ferris (version)

"Crazy Little Thing Called Love" - Queen

"Dancing Queen" - Abba

"Don't Stop the Music" - Rihanna (Club Mix)

"Float On" - Modest Mouse

"Get Off My Cloud" - Rolling Stones

"Gimme More" - Britney Spears

"Got My Own Thing Now" - Squirrel Nut Zippers

"Groove is in the Heart" - Deee-lite

"Hip to be Square" - Huey Lewis

"I Can't Help Myself" - The Four Tops

"I Want You to Want Me" - Cheap Trick
"It Had to be You" - Harry Conick, Jr
"It's My Life" - Bon Jovi
"Jump, Jive n Wail" - Brian Setzer Orchestra
"Just Dance" - Lady Ga Ga
"Life is a Highway" - John Cochrane
"Love Shack" - B-52s
"Moondance" - Michael Buble (version)
"My Girl" - The Temptations
"Old Time Rock n Roll" - Bob Seger
"Pennies from Heaven" - Louis Prima
"PYT" - Michael Jackson
"Rebel Yell" - Billy Idol
"Respect" - Aretha Franklin
"Shake It" - Metro Station
"Son of a Preacher Man" - Dusty Springfield
"Stayin' Alive" - Bee Gees
"Straight Up" - Paula Abdul
"Sussudio" - Phil Collins
"Sweet Caroline" - Neal Diamond
"Thriller" - Michael Jackson
"Walking on Sunshine" - Katrina & The Waves
"We Are Family" - Sister Sledge
"You Spin Me 'Round" - Dead or Alive

What are your favorite dance tunes?

Frenchiemoon: Canada, Part 1 - Quebec City

After lunch at The Essex, Mr Frenchie and I piled our suitcases in our trusty Rogue and headed for the Canadian border.

Once across the border (which was totally easy by the way) we drove about 3 hours to Quebec City. Quebec City is one of the oldest cities in North America and also the only remaining fortified city.

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See that adorable entrance to the city? We drove through that 4 times looking for our hotel. Inside the walls, if I remember correctly there was only 1 two-way street. We had printed directions to our hotel from the address that was on Google. Oh, trusty Google, you had never steared me wrong until then. We drove down Rue Saint Anne 3 times without seeing Hotel Acadia.

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We noticed some restaurants and hotels on the part of Rue Saint Anne that you can't drive on, so we decided to park the car and walk down that street. We found a parking structure, parked the car, unloaded all 3 of our suitcases and started walking. We walked down the other side of the street and noticed the numbers were going in the wrong direction, FRICK! and then is started to rain (and my hair does NOT do well in the rain), double FRICK!

We ducked into the first hotel on St Anne to asked if they had any idea where our hotel was...

Me: "Parlay voo englay?" (pheonetic spelling)
Concierge: Yes
Me: YES!

I had been practicing my French phrases from the back of our Quebec/Montreal travel book. Since we hadn't spoken to anyone but ourselves since we entered Canada, we had no idea how much French, or English, we would encounter. The concierge had never heard of our hotel and kept asking, "Hotel or Motel? That is very important." Ummm HOTEL, HO-TEL! Mr Frenchie did not book us a Motel for our honeymoon, thankyouverymuch. After asking around and Googling our hotel he discovered that Google has the wrong address list and our hotel was a couple streets up.

A short, but slightly wet, walk later we found Hotel Acadia and checked in. Hotel Acadia was a cute little 41 room, boutiquey hotel.

Photo by Me

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Although, they couldn't care less that their address is incorrect on Google, we found the rest of our stay to be charming. Even though we had the smallest room, on the 5th floor, with no stairs, I wouldn't complain and would totally recommend this hotel. The valet always offered to carry whatever we needed to our room and the staff was very nice. I'm sure it didn't hurt that we LOVED Quebec City!

Our first night (since it stopped raining) we decided to go back down the undrivable portion of St Anne and eat dinner outside at one of the restaurants we'd seen earlier.

This time I remembered to take pictures of the food...

Mr Frencie and I LOVED the parmesan fondue! We had no idea it was going to be more like parmesan croquettes, with a little salad. We didn't find on the menu in any other city, but we did find a recipe online that we want to try out soon.

Did you eat any foods on your honeymoon you want to recreate at home? Do you have a recipe to share?

Up next: More Quebec City and Montreal!

Frenchiemoon: Vermont Part 1

Mr Frenchie and I left the very early the Monday morning after our wedding. It was nice to have a complete day to relax by the pool at the Rancho Bernardo Inn. (Fun little fact about RB Inn: they have 3 pools - 1 is @ the Spa, 1 is the "adult pool", and the last is the "kids pool". The bar, is at the "kids pool"! But don't worry, we stopped off at the kids pool and got drinks to take to the Adult pool.) I would advise any couple to take a day after your wedding to relax before hopping on a plane (or in a car) to your honeymoon destination. I don't care where you're going, traveling can be stressful (especially if you're flying). It was so nice to wake-up at a reasonable time, go to our morning after breakfast, relax by the pool, and go to dinner with some friends.

Okay, where was I? Oh, right! We left, at the crack of dawn on Monday morning. Papa Frenchie dropped us to San Diego International Airport, long before it was this light outside, and we were on our way.

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Mr Frenchie and I had grand dreams of telling the lady behind the ticket counter we were on our honeymoon and getting bumped up to first class, or moved around so we would have an entire row to ourselves. No such luck! Our flight was completely packed, the lady at the counter pretty much laughed in our faces.

After a layover at Dulles International Airport, we arrived in Burlington, VT around 6:30 pm. At the rental car counter the "It's our Honeymoon" line FINAL worked and they guy upgraded us to a bigger and newer car. We had booked a compact and ended up with a band new Nissan Rogue.

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The Rogue was perfect! It was small enough to easily drive around the tiny streets of Old Quebec City and Montreal, but sat up high enough for a good view of an area we weren't used to driving. Oh, and it fit all 3 of our suitcases... that's right I brought 2 suitcases. What? We were gone for 9 days and that is a LOT of shoes! So, it doesn't hurt to occasionally bat your eyelashes and say, "It's our honeymoon, do you think we could get something newer."

We stayed in Burlington one night before driving up to Quebec City. I found us an awesome hotel in Burlington, on Priceline, for about $5o.

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The hotel was called, The Essex, and it also the home of the New England Culinary Institute. We missed out on dinner in one of their restaurants, so we hung around long enough to have lunch at The Tavern.

Mr Frenchie graduated from Cal Poly Pomona and got a taste of the culinary school experience in a 3 quarter long class working at The Restaurant at Kellogg Ranch. It was extra fun to see another school kitchen in action!

I had to get Mr Frenchie's picture with the student chefs. (Please ignore, the fun face, I believe I caught him with taste bread in his mouth).

Being the bad honeymoon blogger I am, I forgot to take pictures of all our tasty food, but I did get a shot of my SUPER YUMMERS shrimp tacos.

All in all I would give The Essex and The Tavern an A. The hotel is gorgeous and our room was really quaint.

We loved Burlington! Hack, why do you think we came back early?

Did you want your husband try out the ,"It's our honeymoon" to get any upgrades or free stuff? Did it work?

Frenchiemoon: Sheldon's Adventures

Hi Hive, I'm back! Mr Frenchie and I got back from our fabulous honeymoon Wednesday night and we're already back at work (but only for 2 days, thank God). I'm trying to catch up on work in the office, but I can't stay away from Weddingbee. Like many married Bees before me, I'm waiting for my Pro photos to recap our wedding. In the meantime I have a few last minute projects to fill you in on and a honeymoon to talk about :)

I forget where I saw this, but I read about a couple that brought a tiny stuffed animal with them when they traveled and took it's picture along the way. I told Mr Frenchie about it and we thought it would be fun to bring the desk gnome, I bought him a few years ago, along on our travels.

I bring you Sheldon's Adventures...

Sheldon, stretching his legs on our layover at Dulles International Airport. Traveling can be cramped in my tote bag.

Here, Sheldon is claiming first dibs on the Keurig coffee machine in our room at The Essex in Vermont.
San Diego based, Stone Brewery, was coming to The Essex for a brew and food pairing! Sheldon could not get over the coincidence.

Enjoying the bustle of the streets in Vieux Quebec at dinner our first night in French Canada.

Sheldon posing with a souvenir from our cheapest meal in Cananda at L'omelette.

Don't worry, he wasn't going to jump! Sheldon, is just admiring the view of Old Montreal from our hotel room.

Sheldon was totally stuffed after burgers at Harvey's. He may have gone a little overboard on his toppings.

Celebrating Mr Frenchie's 29th birthday overlooking Ottawa at Merlot Rooftop Grill. Sheldon, felt a tad undressed that evening.

Sheldon, finally, got to see a Keurig in action in Ottawa. We need to get on of these for Mr Frenchie's desk!

Celebrating our early return back to Vermont (from Ottawa... why did we leave early? You'll have to wait to find out)! Sheldon was most excited to try the Stout at Vermont Pub and Brewery.

Perhaps, a bit too excited... but don't worry, he wasn't driving.

Our last day in Vermot, Sheldon enjoyed a lunch cruise on Lake Champlain aboard The Spirit of Ethan Allen 3. Sadly there were no Champ sightings, but there was a buffet.

Sheldon is too white for the flash, after being picked up from the airport by GM B. Not honeymooning on a beach really hinders your tanning.

So, now you have a sneak peek at our honeymoon (or the Frenchiemoon) and you know all about our crazy new traveling tradition.

Have you and your Mr started any fun traditions?