Our first anniversary trip - orange beach alabama and cobalt restaurant

The husband and I are on our first Anniversary :-) trip and we're in Orange Beach Alabama. Now... don't get too judgmental on us. We're both Alabamians and if you haven't experienced the Gulf Shores/Orange beach/Pensacola coast then you can't judge. It's sugar white beaches and water that (today at least) had no jellyfish, seaweed... or oil. We've done the trip on a budget but decided to splurge on one night out at a restaurant. We chose Cobalt, in the Caribe resort area.

It was great! We sat outside on the water next to the bay and overlooked the ocean on the other side. I gave the waiter the info about my allergies and while he honestly stated it would be best to talk to the chef, I appreciated that wholeheartedly. He promptly came back with a cheat sheet of what side dishes I could and couldn't have with my entree of filet steak and I chose the risotto because the potatoes had gluten.
My whole meal was great and I couldn't have asked for a better experience. If you ever find yourself on the gulf coast near pensacola or orange beach - check it out! I recommend it as one of the very few places that will accommodate you here! It felt like a special night out without the harassing reminder of my many allergies!

Awesome, easy Hummus

I've found that one of the hardest things about being GF can be the lack of snacks out there! Well, sure, Whole Foods has a ton of snacks... but unless we win the lottery soon it would break the bank to buy the snacks I want there all the time. Nevertheless, I have found Hummus to be one of my favorites to pair with carrots and celery.
Tonight I cut up some organic celery hearts ($1.99) and organic carrots ($.89) from Trader Joe's and made some hummus from the 6 simple ingredients in the photo above + some Crystal hot sauce. The recipe was from Food Network's Ina Garden and you can find it here: http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/ina-garten/hummus-recipe/index.html
I followed the recipe except for the amount of garlic. I used 1.5 teaspoons of minced organic garlic instead of 2. It was probably still too much but that's up to you! If you love garlic go for it!
It was quick and really easy! I spoon it into individual mini ziplock containers and pack some carrots and celery in Ziploc snack bags.... voila! I have a quick snack I can take to work! (and it's good for me :-)
What are your favorite snack solutions?