0 I ate Dallas

This is the story of how I ate all the things this week. Just kidding. I really wanted to eat even more things, but this TIU bikini series has given me a small measure of self control that was bent a lot, but not broken.

If you have been reading my blog for any amount of time, and haven't been deterred by my less than stellar posting habits, you may remember that I lived with my friend Kate for a month before moving to Austin. Well, it turns out that Kate and her husband, and her precious little baby bump, will be following my lead and moving to Texas next month! Unfortunately not to Austin, but close enough in Dallas.

I met up with Kate in Dallas on Monday for a few days of apartment hunting and girl time. We spent our first few hours following a Realtor around, checking out some townhouses and being less than impressed with his professionalism, but it was a good start. Kate introduced me to one of her favorite chicken places, Zaxby's, that is plentiful in Atlanta where she is from, but is scarce elsewhere. I really, really wanted to just get all sorts of yummy fried chicken, but I opted for a grilled chicken salad and knew I was missing out.

A short siesta at the hotel followed, and then excitement happened! Amber, of Brunch with Amber blog fame, showed up to get a hair cut from me. Yup, if I am in your city, you better believe I am willing to meet up and do a little hair. Amber is so sweet and wanted to donate hair to the Children with Hair Loss Foundation, and I am all about helping people donate to charities, especially when it benefits those who have lost hair for some reason. Amber's hair was long. Like looooong. Minimum donation is 8 inches, but we got 10 inches and still had plenty of length to achieve the style she wanted.

Seriously, how cute is Amber? And how awesome is she for donating her hair to such a great cause! I highly recommend looking into great charities like CWHL if you would like to donate your own hair.

Much chatting, good belly laughs, and fun was had by Amber, Kate and I, until Amber had to head home. Kate and I decided to check out Northpark Mall, where there is a Kate Spade store that my own Kate, who works for KS back in CA, wanted to visit. I should have been smart and stayed away. I went in blindly, having no previous knowledge of Kate Spade goodness.

Y'all. My eyes have been opened.

I need more Kate Spade in my life. It's an expensive new addiction, and it won't be completely scratched. Ever.

We found ourselves at the Kona Grill happy hour, where we enjoyed all sorts of goodies before calling it a night.

Day 2 had me up early, using the hotel gym to get 3 miles in on the treadmill and a Tone It Up workout before we started our day. Which was visiting a local ENT to check out Kate. It was sad folks. Poor Kate's ears never cleared after her flight to Dallas, having had to pressurize twice from a layover. Turns out that 5 months preggo Kate had a double ear infection, sinus infection, and bronchitis. Serious trooper, right there. She had to have a double myringotomy, which is a fancy way of saying the doctor poked holes in her ear drums to relieve pressure and help them drain. Ouch. Some antibiotics and a change to her return flight, and on she went. Total badass right there.

We met up with an apartment locator, Beverly of Dallas Apartment Locators, and toured a few properties and had the best time. I highly recommend using Beverly if you are looking for a place to live in Dallas. She was a breath of fresh air after our previous day's experience with a Realtor. I will end my review there, or else this will feel like a Yelp review, and you better believe I am going to give her a glowing review!

We grabbed Pinkberry, took a little nap, then ventured out to Trinity Groves to have dinner at LUCK (Local Urban Craft Kitchen) thanks to a Yelp scan.The food was amazing. We started with tempura battered fried green tomatoes with chili aioli and Texas caviar (get in my belly), and Kate had pot roast and brussel sprout hash, while I got pan seared mahi mahi with quinoa tabbouleh. The service was a little slow for an unknown reason, so while we got our appetizer before our drinks, it took another 45 minutes to get our entrees. Our server was very friendly and quite chatty, so he felt bad our food took forever and gave us free dessert--apple fritter funnel cake for Kate, and chocolate chip brownie for me. Free dessert? Of course I ate it, even though it was in no way Tone It Up approved! I was super sugar high after eating just half that dessert, my heart hammering well into the night haha

Wednesday I again hit the gym for 4 miles on the treadmill and a few TIU workouts. We had plans to head to the super cute Konx street so Kate could meet up with the Kate Spade store manager of that neighborhood store for a little meet and greet-- or so we thought. Knox reminded me a lot of Campbell, where my CA salon is located, so I loved hanging out. Turns out Kate pretty much got herself a job at that store, and a promotion, to boot. It's not quite clear to us, and maybe not even official if it's true, but we both got the impression that our meet up turned into an unofficial interview. Funny that Kate had thought she would not be working when she got to Dallas, and now it looks like she will be the visual merchandising supervisor for Kate Spade on Knox!

We got a lunch recommendation for Sissy's Southern Kitchen, which we were more than happy to try. Another round of fried green tomatoes was had. What can I say? I'm totally in love with them. Fried okra also made it to our table, and became a new obsession as well. I opted for the purple hull pea patties, while Kate ordered the renowned fried chicken. We were both pleased, and quite full, from our delicious lunch. Definitely a must have if you are in Dallas. Sissy's has the cutest decor, from a china plate installation around mounted deer heads, to the coolest light fixtures and a side room that is all Victorian and amazing.

 Kate had changed her early Wednesday flight from Dallas, to a Thursday flight from Austin because of her ears, so I had a road trip buddy to accompany me back home. Kate was a great DJ, playing a fun mix of music ranging from Alison Krauss and Robert Plant, to Kacey Musgraves. We even stopped in Waco to visit my friend Stephanie of the Vintage Modern Wife blog. I finally got to meet her cute puppy Pearl, and it was fantastic to catch up and introduce the two preggos while we were at it.

We made it back to Austin without incident, which is excellent in my opinion, and headed to dinner at Jack Allen's Kitchen in Round Rock, because obviously I needed more delicious food! We met up with some mutual friends of ours for a fantastic dinner and great conversation.

I was sad to see Kate leave early Thursday morning, but I am excited that she gets to be a permanent Texas resident in about a month's time! Now if only I can convince more friends and family to move out this way...