No bias here AT ALL.

I loved our wedding, and our first year of marriage, and now our second. Two years doesn’t feel very long–but we’ve packed so much into those two years, it also feels like we’ve been married decades.

I think time passes a lot slower when you move apartments and cities and countries multiple times, travel as much as possible, and start making a baby!

Since I shared some favorite memories (in photos) from our first year of marriage, I’m going to do the same this year–which makes it officially an annual tradition!

This past year also included some great bakes for the bake off! Like this one or this one. As for this weeks…read on :).

Once again, I joined Amanda in the Bake Off Bake Along for pudding week. Pudding week makes me nervous because pudding is one of those things that means something very different in the United States than it does in England. In England, it encompasses a lot more than it does in the United States–though to be truthful, I’m not sure exactly what qualifies something as a “pudding.” In the U.S., it’s…custard, basically. It often comes in little snack packs that kids take to school (or do they? When I was a kid they were all the rage, at least).

This week, the bakers made a very-British “school pudding”, molten chocolate peanut butter cakes, and a trifle that had to include jelly. I chose to make the little molten cakes!

Part of the reason is that, for fun pregnancy reasons, I’m supposed to watch my carbs–and I thought this one might be the easiest to make as a low-carb version.

I followed this recipe, but used real sugar, just less of it–mostly because I’m not sure about sugar substitutes while pregnant? Also I didn’t want to buy it so…win/win.

Why these were clearly homemade, and I have never used almond flour before so I was skeptical, they were delicious.

Maybe too much peanut butter in the middle, as they collapsed a bit?

But really, is there a such thing as too much peanut butter?

The verdict? I will be making these again, which is the first time I’ve said that this year!

The post Two Years + Bake Off Bake Along Week 5 appeared first on Amy and the Great World.

It’s been quite a year.

I would say that this year has flown by, but to us, it hasn’t.

Not because getting married was a horrible idea (it wasn’t) but because this year has been so full of change.

I read somewhere that the reason time starts to go by so quickly is that there is not enough new stimulation in your day-to-day life. Time seems to pass much more slowly as a child because you are learning and experiencing new things almost every day.

Starting with an extended honeymoon in Central America, followed by the move to Budapest, then a summer on the road, and moving back to Budapest, I think we have certainly accomplished the whole “experiencing new things” goal.

The biggest new thing, of course, has been marriage. Even to a couple that was together for quite awhile before exchanging vows, being married has been a new adventure–and the best one! I was more aware of every new monthly anniversary–just like I was in our very first year of dating–and the novelty of it all has been a fun ride.

I could go on and on about my husband and our life, but I’ll just share a few of my favorite memories from they past year with you.

One NOT so great memory is my latest bake in the Bake Off Bake Along (linking with the lovely Amanda and Ala!).

This week was pastry week, the week I’ve been looking forward to the least. The options were danishes, a Bakewell tart, or a phyllo dough showstopper. I almost went for the Bakewell tart, but the obscene price of almonds here quickly turned me away from that notion. I love danishes, so they won.

It was my first time really ever making pastry besides pie crust–which is ironic, because that’s what my so-called puff pastry ended up turning into.

Pie crust.

Hours of folding and rolling and chilling to create supposedly flaky layers and…it had maybe two layers. And it was not flaky. It wasn’t terrible tasting–and the filling was decent–but most definitely not a danish.

I did learn, though, that I have more baking instincts than I thought. As I was making a shortcut version, almost right away I knew the dough wasn’t right. However, I chilled it extra and still rolled it out, and by the end it looked and felt the way it was supposed to. I couldn’t quite shake the nagging feeling that the butter had been too soft, and the dough had blended too easily–and I was right.

Or maybe I was so worried about it I actually made it come true.

Perhaps that’s my superpower. What a thought.

Another few lessons: don’t immediately grab at the “short cut” version when you’ve never made the traditional version. Sometimes things take longer for a reason.

Also, when it’s your first time making pastry, maybe don’t mash four recipes together and think it will be okay. I tried two types of fillings and chose somewhat random baking times and I think that was my problem.

Two failure weeks in a row! Luckily next week is one I’m thrilled about and am actually considering trying out all three challenges.

I need to redeem myself somehow.

The post One Year + Bake Along Week 5 appeared first on Amy and the Great World.

We got engaged in March, and since we had been together so long already and planned to keep living overseas, but wanted to celebrate with our families (and a variety of other factors that I won’t bore you with) we decided to have a short engagement. The best option for our short notice and the best location for us ended up being in his parents’ backyard in the town of Olympia, Washington, near Seattle, USA. Their “backyard” is gorgeous and borders on a forest!

It was stressful to have such a short engagement–and to be abroad and unable to plan for a large portion of it–but our wedding ended up nearly perfect and it was one of the best days of my life!

Sometimes I wish we’d had a longer engagement–it’s a special time of your life that only happens once, after all–but now that we’ve been married for six months, I’m so happy to be married and could not have imagined a better wedding day if we had waited (except maybe I would have gotten more sleep in the weeks before…or maybe not because I tend to procrastinate anyway!).

Since it was a backyard wedding, that meant that everything had to be brought in, made, ordered, or borrowed. My extremely talented aunt did our flowers–some of them in pumpkins, that is the dream!–and that helped everything tie together. My childhood friend just happened to be starting her wedding photography business so we snapped her up right away. Two more friends sang us down the aisle (we have a lot of talented friends). A good friend of ours was the DJ. Eric’s cousin married us, his mother (Eric’s aunt) and my mother made the soup, a group of my family helped with the food…it really “took a village” as they say and I’m so grateful for everyone who made our day!

Here are some of the details:

^^In lieu of a guest book, we had everyone sign this globe. It turned out even better than I hoped and I will always treasure it!

^^We had everyone help us make a “bucket list,” too :).

^^The cake had to incorporate travel, too, of course!

^^The flowers in the pumpkins! Also, we made these lanterns out of mason jars, candles, and…you won’t believe it…all-natural cat litter made from walnut shells!

^^E and my sister’s fiancé put up the arbor, and my aunt decorated it.

^^The pumpkin aisle!

^^Taking pictures with our bridal party was one of the highlights–I, at least, had a great time! We also took a shot of Becherovka, a Czech liquor, with the whole party after we were married and had walked back down the aisle. We had to bring a little bit of Prague into our wedding!

^^We had two kegs that E’s dad brought out on a tractor. It was a hit and one of the kegs was Pilsner Urquell, of course!

^^E’s sister and I did chalkboard labels for everything, including the program (no paper for us).

^^I was so nervous before the wedding that I ended up doing other makeup as well as my own.

^^One of my favorite details–E’s dad helped me make these signs to show all of the important places to us, and how far they were from our wedding site. We also used to help guests navigate the venue.

^^E’s dad (a talented carpenter and craftsman, by the way) had these extra wine barrels that we borrowed.

^^A friend of the family happened to have a bunch of lights leftover from his wedding, so we paid him to borrow them and help us set them up. We also found hot-air balloon lights that we hung over the wedding party table.

^^Family photos! We collected photos of us and our lives, as well as photos from our parents’ and grandparents’ weddings. We hung them up with twine and clothespins–easy!

^^We gave out mason jars with the guests’ names for drinks and as favors.

^^We had a grilled cheese bar!!! E’s sister designed our menu and a group of his parents’ friends helped us set up a station and make them. They were delicious! Luckily we also were the taste-testers for the menu…best job ever.

^^Handmade road signs to help our guests find their way.

^^We had a photo booth, too. We set up a Polaroid camera, lent to us by our photographer, and a background, and yet another amazing friend made props. It was a fun addition!

Despite all of the DIY–which I am not a fan of–I loved our wedding and our day and most of all, I’m so happy that many of our favorite people were there to help us celebrate!

All photos by my talented friend, Hannah Traver Photography! 

The post October 3, 2015 appeared first on Amy and the Great World.

Remember me? It’s been awhile. I would apologize but…I was busy getting married and starting my honeymoon! And then, my computer broke, so it was pretty clear that the fates wanted me to take a little break from my blog. even though I did want to do a gushy wedding post, at least. Also, just as I was trying to load photos to this post, the power went out and hence, so did my Wifi. What is up, universe?!

Anyway, I wish I could say I was back for good now, but unfortunately between the lack of internet here, a still-broken computer, and the fact that I am supposed to be relaxing and honeymooning, I can’t make any promises.

My half self-imposed half-forced break from blogging, though, has shown me how much this little corner of the internet means to me. I missed all of you! I missed writing! I have so much to share with you! So let’s get started!

TWO MONTHS ON THE ROAD: BY THE NUMBERS 

ONE PERFECT (WEDDING) DAY that somehow came together after six weeks of crazy planning and stress. Even though we were engaged for seven months, most of the work happened after we came back to the States at the end of August. I admit that by the time our wedding rolled around, I was sick of it and ready for it to be over. And then, our wedding day ended up being totally magical. All the problems and issues (mostly) worked themselves out, the sun was shining and there were some changing leaves, almost everyone we love was there, and E and I got married! Can’t forget that detail. E and I were both exhausted and figured we would be the first ones to leave. The day was so incredible, though, that I never wanted it to end, we were some of the last to leave and now I miss it! All the clichés they tell you apparently are true.

THREE HOURS taking engagement photos in Seattle with our wedding photographer, a friend of mine since we were three! E and I both hate getting our picture taken, but it ended up be really fun and she got some good ones!

ONE EVENING with most of my favorite women. Bachelorette in the house! Did we even take any more photos? This is all I got..

TOO MUCH homesickness for Prague. Homesickness is funny, isn’t it? Our wedding was fantastic and now we are on a Costa Rican adventure, so a part of me feels like I have no right to miss Prague. I’m learning that you can miss something and still be grateful for what you have.

TONS of gorgeous flowers. A family friend of E’s gave us this gorgeous bouquet to celebrate our wedding week, from her garden!, and my aunt did an incredible job with the flowers for our wedding.

ONE FLOWER CROWN worn. I don’t have my wedding photos yet so I don’t have many photos to share…but flower crown!!! I was much more excited to wear this than my wedding dress.

EIGHT DAYS in Costa Rica so far!

TWELVE DAYS of having a husband. This is him:

THREE NIGHTS starting our honeymoon at the gorgeous Tortuga Lodge and Gardens in the remote Torteguero National Park. We saw monkeys from off our back porch, saw an endangered Green Turtle lay eggs, took boat trips in the canals, were intrepid jungle explorers, slept, relaxed, and ate!

TWO humpback whales seen, one of which was a baby! Life is grand.

TWO NIGHTS, so far, at this killer Airbnb in the small village of Dominical on the Pacific coast of Costa Rica. There’s a sloth that hangs on right off the deck, views of the ocean and jungle, a bathtub you can swim in, red bananas grown on the property, and more space than we could ever need. Feeling so lucky to be able to recharge here for the next week or so!

One Month on the Road: By the Numbers

By the Numbers: Prague

QUESTION:

Have you ever been to Costa Rica? Would you go there for your honeymoon? 

The post Two Months on the Road: By the Numbers appeared first on Amy and the Great World.

First things first.

We are getting married…this October!

Yes, SOON. I am so excited but sometimes I feel like crying that it’s so soon, mostly at the amount of things to do.

This wedding date may also give you a clue about our future. Since we are not getting married in Prague–but in E’s parents’ yard–that means we will NOT be staying for another year in Prague.

Cue heartbreak. I absolutely love this city and there was a huge part of me that didn’t want to leave. The main reason is, unfortunately, financial, directly related to our visas. It isn’t hard to survive here, but our unique circumstances that hardly ever happen to ANYONE had us not making enough money to apply for a long-term visa. It’s strange, because we are doing fine financially–but late paychecks that unfortunately have just reached us had us unable to apply at the right time. It’s complicated, but if you want a longer explanation, shoot me an email :). I’ve held off so long from talking about this, even though we’ve known for a while, because I kept hoping something might change.

But, we are moving on–for now. Prague is not going anywhere, and it will always be on my radar. Also, I’ve absolutely loved teaching, and I don’t plan on stopping that.

So, you might ask–where are we going next??

The answer is…NOWHERE.

And…EVERYWHERE.

We are going to be NOMADS, at least until the beginning of 2016. We’ll be traveling around Europe after our lease is up in July (and our visas end), then back to the States for our wedding and to hop around visiting family and friends. Then, we’ll take an extended honeymoon (TBD) and come back home for the holidays.

We’ll reassess at the new year, and see if we are ready to try someplace new, or ready to stay on the road. I have a feeling I will miss teaching in person–I’ll be teaching online through the fall–so we may decide to move back to Prague or move somewhere else to teach in 2016.

Right now, after our wedding, the future is really, really open.

I’m really terrified and really excited. This is has been a dream of ours and I’m still not sure if we can do this or not, but suddenly the opportunity just fell into our laps. With not being able to stay in Prague, and E finding success working online, and the many online teaching options, it’s almost…serendiptious.

I hope you will still follow along, wherever I go next! Amy and the Great World will definitely still be around. It is the Great World after all, and I still have so much to explore.

For now, I am soaking up our last few months in Prague and the Czech Republic, and have many many more European travels to catch you up on. I am working hard on being present in every moment here.

Thank you so much for your support and for reading as I navigated choosing to come to Prague, adjusting to Prague, enjoying Prague, and ultimately choosing not to stay in Prague. This had been one of the best years of my life, and this blog and the blogging community has been a huge part of that!

The post Finally! A Wedding Date + What Next appeared first on Amy and the Great World.