Family and Friends

100 Dishes in Alabama: Amsterdam Cafe’s Crab Cake and Avocado Sandwich

Posted on August 19, 2011 Written by thehillhangout 1 Comment

Last weekend, in addition to my Women of Faith gig, my big girl had a soccer game in Auburn. It worked out really well, because we just stopped in Auburn on our way home from Atlanta to play a double-header. I’d never taken J and the girls to my alma mater, so it was fun. I really wish we could have spent more time, but that just gives us a good excuse to go back.

We snuck in a wee visit to campus before the games started. We timed it perfectly and got to hear the chimes at Samford Tower strike noon and play the fight song.

Obviously, we were dressed for three hours of soccer – not for cute pictures on campus. Don’t look too closely or you’ll see that I cut myself out of the picture. Sitting through three hours of soccer games means Nike shorts and a tank top are in order, not cute clothes that would be appropriate for campus pictures. Oh, well. Another good excuse to go back to Auburn soon!

After the soccer ~~massacre~~ games, we headed over to Amsterdam Cafe to wind down and strike another dish off of our list of 100 Things To Eat In Alabama Before You Die. Back in the day, Amsterdam was one of my favorite places in Auburn. My roommates and I were regulars there. We’d go for dinner and stay a while playing shulbok, a game sort of like skee-ball. We loved it! We thought their turkey wrap was the best sandwich ever created. Apparently, we were easily impressed. Jonathan and I ordered a turkey wrap, just for posterity’s sake, and while it was good, I’ve had equally good turkey wraps many times since our Amsterdam days. I think it’s safe to say that my memory of the turkey wrap was bigger and better than the actual wrap. And the shulbok game I was so excited to play with my family? They took them out. Sigh.

Amsterdam Cafe has definitely become more upscale since I was a college student. The dish that landed them a spot on the list is their crab cake with avocado sandwich. I can assure you that they didn’t serve crab cakes when I was there or Pop would have seen many more charges to Amsterdam on his credit card. Unlike the turkey wrap, the crab cake sandwich is quite remarkable. I actually could have done without the croissant and the avocado, but the crab cake was excellent. It was full of lump crabmeat, not too much breading, and delicately seasoned. I’d have to say that it was one of the finer crab cakes I have ever eaten. I wish I’d just gotten it as an appetizer or dinner, without the sandwich fixings, because I could have eaten six of them! They were delicious!

Because the girls love hummus, we ordered the hummus appetizer for them. It was one of the most creative, artsy displays I have ever ordered. Truly, the presentation on this dish was amazing.

It came with a generous serving of hummus, pepperoncini peppers, black olives, fresh red bell peppers, and lovely artichoke hearts. While the food combination was perfect, and I will definitely serve this at my next party, the quality of the actual ingredients fell flat. The hummus was obviously homemade and quite fresh, but a little bland. We typically enjoy a little more garlic flavor to our hummus. The artichokes were a really nice complement. The black olives were canned and lackluster. I would definitely have gone with a nice kalamata olive instead. The flatbread was marvelous and beautiful. I believe it was homemade as well, and I’d love to know how they did it. It was the best part of the dish.

So overall the trip to my favorite eatery that I was so excited about actually got mixed reviews. It’s okay, Amsterdam! You still hold lots of wonderful memories for me!

Filed Under: 100 Dishes, Family and Friends, Places We Go

The Hill’s 70th Wedding Anniversary Celebration

Posted on August 13, 2011 Written by thehillhangout 1 Comment

When these two married 70 years ago…

Do you think they imagined their family would one day look like this? (And there are about 10 of us missing!)

Let’s face it, most people don’t even live long enough to be married 70 years. So when Grandma and Papaw Hill’s anniversary rolled around this year, we figured it was an occasion to CELEBRATE!! We invited a few (hundred) of their friends over to Jonathan’s parents’ home. Y’all, those few hundred thought it was a reason to celebrate, too. They came in droves to help us have a good time!

There was much hugging of necks and congratulations exchanged.

Grandma’s best friends from high school came for the day. Can you imagine having friends with whom you’ve been friends for 80+ years!?! What a blessing! I can only imagine the stories these dear ladies could tell!

Jonathan’s kindergarten teacher, Mrs. Lenelle Simmons, paid us a visit. This lady is so full of the joy of the Lord. I’ve never seen her that she wasn’t smiling that beautiful smile. I love to be around her because she only has good things to say. I’ve never once heard this sweet lady complaining about anything. It’s not that she doesn’t have anything to complain about. She just chooses to dwell on joy! I want to be like her.

I can’t even tell you how happy we were to see our dear former neighbor, Mary Ellen Germany. Mary Anneliese and “Germany”, as we affectionately call her, have been soul sisters since we brought MA home from the hospital, despite their almost 80 year age difference. When Mary Ellen fell critically ill last year, we were all devastated. She was so sick for so long that we really began to give up hope that she’d ever fully recover. In all honesty, we weren’t sure for a while that she’d ever leave the hospital. But my sweet girl never gave up asking God to heal her friend. And y’all, HE DID!!! She isn’t quite as strong as she once was, but this little bitty lady has returned to us. She is absolutely a walking, breathing beautiful miracle!

And, of course, there were tons of Hills there! I love this shot of Papaw holding court with his grandsons. He had some advice to share, I assure you!

The Hill Girls were there. Don’t we look like a hair color ad?

Poor Jerry Hill had to work all afternoon on winning over Patterson. But his persistence paid off in the end.

And, of course, my mother-in-law had a beautiful display of fabulous food.

And a beautiful cake that would rival any wedding cake.

Patterson liked it a little bit.

It was really a fun day! Being married to the same person for 70 years is something to be celebrated, and we were so glad to be a part of it.

Filed Under: Family and Friends

Where We’ve Been

Posted on April 11, 2011 Written by thehillhangout Leave a Comment

We’ve been uncharacteristically silent the last week. We’re still here – just haven’t had a lot going on to blog about. The spring activities are all coming to a close, and so we’re busy preparing for spring music programs, ballet recitals, and attending soccer games. We are busy finishing up our school work and doing some much needed spring chores around the house. Mom and Dad came for a visit this weekend. They spent the night and went to MA’s soccer game on Saturday morning before heading to see my brother’s family. It was good to have them here.

The girls and I are trying to put together some fun outings for this week. We’ll be back later to tell you all about it! Have a great week, everybody!

Filed Under: Family and Friends, Homeschooling

Camp Worldsong

Posted on April 5, 2011 Written by thehillhangout Leave a Comment

Our annual MIT retreat was this weekend at Camp Worldsong. The MIT retreat is the culmination of our Wednesday night church activities for the year. Every Wednesday night, our Missionaries-in-Training meet to discuss missions and bringing the gospel of Jesus Christ to the nations. At this year’s retreat we heard how God is at work in Zambia. Several families from our church have spent time doing mission work in Zambia this year. They had some absolutely amazing stories to tell us! They shared with the girls how they traveled from village to village in Zambia, meeting with the people and sharing the Word of God with them. The fact that the missionaries were teenagers enthralled our little girls. I think they are beginning to understand that God can use any age person (even nine-year-olds) to spread the gospel.

And then there were s’mores in the campfire. I know it’s not really that spiritual, but it’s a camp tradition and the girls look forward to it every year.

We learned that the children of Zambia play games much like our kids in the US. MA and her friend had a hula hoop contest.

Hula hoop relay races…

Octopus tag…

Fill-the-bucket relay races…

We made toys from trash, just like the kids in Zambia would do if they had no money for toys. We went on a nice hike up a mountain to a beautiful clearing overlooking the camp. That was probably the highlight of the trip for my girl and me, although I was a nervous wreck and my knees were so weak I could hardly walk watching those girls so close to the edge!

This weekend serves not only to teach our girls about missions, but it also creates bonds between these girls which I hope will last a lifetime. These sweet girls come from Godly families who teach them to live in God’s righteousness and love. Those are the kind of girls I want influencing my girl, and her them. They provide support, community, accountability, and friendship for each other, and I pray they will remain close!

Therefore, my brothers and sisters, you whom I love and long for, my joy and crown, stand firm in the Lord in this way, dear friends! Philippians 4:1

Filed Under: Family and Friends, My Christian Faith, Places We Go