Road Trippin'

So, here we are in Arkansas. Nearly in Missouri or Oklahoma if you want to know the truth. But, for now, this is Home. Really, we rather enjoy life here, but we do wish we had some family members living closer. Nearly all of our parents and siblings live in Alabama, Florida, and Georgia. Those are not quick or easy trips to make, for us or them, so we do not see our families often.
In the last few years we have seen Katie (the next-to-youngest out of Ryan's 6 sisters) a few times, though. And that's because Katie lives close-ish. She and her sweet family (husband Tom and son Caleb) live outside of Dallas, and they have come to visit us along with Ryan's mom before, but we have never gone to see them. We have often talked about it, but we do a lot of talking and not a lot of doing around here sometimes. So, since they are moving further away in about a week, we decided the time was right for heading to Texas. We planned our trip, got sick, re-planned, and then we were finally on our way.
Two nights before we left, I asked Ryan if he had any ideas about what we might do in Dallas. "I haven't even thought about it," he told me. Then his eyes lit up.
Two years in a row Ryan has gone to Dallas with some other professional geeks, and there they found a little slice of Korea. I have no idea why there are so many Koreans in Dallas, but there are enough of them to constitute several little Korea Towns across the area. "I want Korean food every night we're there," he finally told me. "Okay. I'll see if Katie and Tom like Korean food. You know she's preggers, so she may not have the stomach for it." "Then you guys can eat something else. I'm having Korean," he insists. "Okay. Do you remember where to find the place you guys went to?" "Well, I remember it was next to some nudie bars." "Great."
The next day I happened upon the fact that there is a Sprinkles bakery in Dallas. (If you don't know what that is, look it up. And then drive to the nearest one. No, don't. You'll be hooked, and then you'll be mad at me.) And an Ikea. I had never been to either of these places, and I had wanted to visit both of them, so I emailed Katie to let her know a few things:
1. I would like to go to Sprinkles.
2. I would like to visit Ikea.
3. Ryan would like to eat Korean food.
4. When I say would like to eat Korean food, I mean is going to be eating Korean food, so do you guys mind coming along since we're coming to see you?
Katie and Tom both let me know that they know exactly where to score Korean food, and they will even take us to a Korean grocery store if we're interested. Also, Sprinkles and Ikea are do-able, and suddenly we have an agenda. Good sports, these guys!
Ryan works Friday; then we load up and go. We travel 7 hours for a trip Google said would take us 5 and a half, but little bladders and restless legs must be heeded.
Saturday morning comes, and we head out to the Korean area after breakfast and showers. Here is where Ryan found heaven in a kimchi bar:
I, on the other hand, found an uncomfortable feeling in my mouth after naively sampling a clove of pickled garlic. Kylie was not as lucky as I was. Poor, sweet girl! (I'll tell that story on another day. I've got an all-about-the-kids post brewing.) We left the store for lunch at one of the several nearby Korean restaurants. Ryan was determined to come back, armed with an ice chest, to stock up on so many of the things he loves and can't find where we live.
Lunch was really good. If you've never had Korean food, you should. It's great, and you're bound to learn something from the experience. I love going with Ryan because he has such an appreciation for the culture and food and can answer most of my questions. (Ryan's mission was largely spent working with Koreans.) We were the only customers for a little while, and the ladies were really sweet to us. One took Peter and played with him while we ate, and another told Katie not to order what she asked for because it's for Korean people (meaning Americans don't usually like it). Ryan was especially happy because for the next day his burps would be tasting like this, even though it wasn't really on the menu:

Full bellies returned to Katie's for rest and play and swimming. Katie and I took a quick trip to Sprinkles for a dozen sinful cupcakes to share later. My favorite had to be the ginger lemon. Or the dark chocolate. Oh, wait. There was the key lime. Maybe the red velvet. Or the coconut, the chocolate marshmallow, the strawberry, the cinnamon sugar. Oh my word! I have never had cupcakes like that. Totally worth the sugar headache . . . really. I want more. Ryan does too. We've talked about it an embarrassing number of times since then.fat girl heaven. . . if only the glass weren't in the way

After cupcakes and dinner, we rushed to Ikea and sprinted through because they were closing 45 minutes after we got there. Not really long enough to shop, but long enough for me to begin what is bound to be a very long mental want list. I can't believe I have never been to that place before. I heart Ikea for sure. We were so pooped when we got back to Katie and Tom's that I couldn't even see straight. I was happy to take Alex to bed when he declared himself done for the night. Sunday was breakfast and an hour of church and goodbye and travel. But we could not leave Texas without 2 coolers full of Korean delicacies. Do not be fooled. It was Sunday, but we drove straight to Wal-Mart. Ryan emerged with 2 styrofoam coolers, 2 bags of ice, 2 plastic bins a little bigger than the coolers, and a roll of tape. I was confused, but not for long. Not long afterward he emerged from the SuperHMart with some of this:

cucumber kimchi

And this:

cabbage kimchi

And this:

radish kimchi

And, trust me, there was more. And none of it smells like anything you want leaking into your car. So, into the ice chests all his goodies were packed. Then they were taped shut and placed inside the plastic tubs as a precautionary measure.
We had a nice 7 hour drive home, and we are so very glad that we got to visit with Katie and Tom and Caleb. Thanks, guys, for putting up with us. Too bad you're moving, because you have us just about convinced that we need to relocate.
But for now, here we are in Arkansas. With a fridge just about devoid of real groceries and nearly full of lovely Korean laxatives. Er...I mean, goodies. But don't blame me if our house smells like farts until all this stuff is gone.