Showing posts with label update. Show all posts
Showing posts with label update. Show all posts

2/17/15

Still Living

Even though I don't post everyday, I always take pictures of what I'm doing. This is my first photo dump of random things I've documented during January and some of February, which I'm dubbing Still Living. Get it? Like still life photography?

Enjoy, friends.

Our church changed it's service times, which means Brandon and I have to be in Fairfield at 8am every Sunday for him to practice with the band. I've made a nice routine out of it. I drop him off and then hang out at the Starbucks nearby for about an hour before I have to head in to help with the babies. It's given me a chance to slow down, reflect, read, or write. It's nice to have a forced alone time.

One random Friday we decided to branch out and try a new restaurant. We landed at Bistro 33, the classy restaurant attached to City Hall tavern in downtown Davis. The prices were less expensive than expected and the food was fabulous. I ordered the kobe beef sliders and loved them. I think Barbara ordered a spicy marinara pasta and Brandon ordered the French dip sandwich. We were all satisfied with our food and really dug the housemade potato chips.

Brandon and I went to our first San Jose Sharks game in years. We got to hang out with Nick and Seth and snack on pretzels and hot dogs. We were seated next to some Maple Leaf fans who kept trying to start chants. My favorite part (besides the fact the Sharks picked up) was how Nick would instantly start his own Sharks chant and we'd all join in and drown out the Maple Leaf guys -- whose face paint, by the way, looked more teal than blue. Sometimes it's all about those moments of blind loyalty.

What an artsy photo of...bananas? Yes. I'm including it because I love Rainforest Alliance and the cool work they do. And I saw their Follow the Frog sticker on some bananas last month so I picked those over another brand. Plus these bananas were less expensive than the other ones! Being a conscious consumer doesn't need to be difficult.

I had a good makeup and hair day and I showed it off to my friends with a cliche car selfie complete with  a gratuitous limp hand.

I worked late one night to help host the employee 5 and 10 year anniversary reception. It was a great example of the perks of working for a resort. I rode in the golf cart enjoying the views of the property, got to sip on champagne and eat haute cuisine tater tots I could never afford on my own. I had a great time and I think the honored employees did too.

I was really proud of my dinner resourcefulness. We made eggs with turkey and I threw in some zucchini for color and veggies. It was delicious and easy. Does this count as clean eating or paleo or something? I don't know. All I know is I'd like some more. 

I'd bet that the majority of girls not only have group texts with their girl friends, but use it as a way to share their outfits every day. I know I have two group texts where it's normal for us to selfie each other or send our OOTD's. I was particularly happy with this outfit, plus I pulled out my old black oxfords from college. They're totally plastic and not super comfortable, but they look good.

One of my coworkers suggested I put strawberries and blueberries in my water instead of lemon. It was a total game changer. I've been trying to up my water intake because I'm pretty sure I'm perpetually dehydrated. I even use an app to track how much water I've had each day. This was the first day I reached my goal.

Brandon had a Friday night gig with his band which left me on my own for the night. Luckily, I headed straight to Barbara's apartment where we whipped up some stir fry. We added extra broccoli since she and I really like it and paired it with some brown rice. Seriously, I don't know how it ended up so healthy. We usually struggle to make healthy food.

After spending an afternoon downtown, Brandon and I decided we wanted to have some Japanese food for dinner. The trouble was the place we originally picked was busy. So busy that there were three couples all waiting just to put their name down. We waited about five minutes before I suggested a less fancy option closer to our apartment. The food there is good, the prices are reasonable, and how pretty is the food?! I ate all of it.

These cupcakes were from my cousin Lily's bridal shower! I had an awesome time playing games and eating good food, even if one of the games entailed passing a wooden spoon using only knees. It was hilarious. The I Love Lucy theme was so perfect for Lily. My highlight was getting to chat with my cousins, especially since we don't get to see each other too often anymore. Oh, and these cupcakes. Strawberry and whipped cream goodness.

I have no explanation for this photo. I was done with my solo Starbucks date, saw a stump, got on top of it, and took a photo. Tadaaa!

Brandon got sick pretty much on his birthday, so I made some comforting chicken noodle soup for us one night. It fed us for almost a week! Soup seems like the only thing I can eat leftovers of over and over again. Maybe because once you warm it up, it still feels like you've just made it?

I asked for flowers for Valentine's Day. Brandon delivered. They're beautiful and they smell lovely. He even went as far as buying me socks with hearts on them and chocolate covered espresso beans! Once I kick this cough I'll be all over those.

We spent the gorgeous Sunday afternoon at Davis' Central Park. There was a craft fair happening (not sure if it's a weekly thing) and a live jazz band playing. We took a seat in the wicker chairs of the Comfort Cafe where I read my book while Brandon soaked in the music. It was a relaxing way to enjoy the gorgeous weather together!

This is from this morning. I woke up with a gnarly cough yesterday and a worse sore throat this morning. I've been miraculously enjoying the taste of my echinacea tea with a lemon slice, a bit of honey, and maple syrup to hide the honey taste. I don't know if you're supposed to put maple syrup in your tea, but it's the only way I like it. 

See you guys soon! Hopefully not this sick.
♥ A

12/29/14

Miserable, Magical Monday || Christmas Edition!

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I've been dying to get back into my regular posting groove and what better way to do it than with the return of Miserable, Magical Monday?

1. The Voice!I know it's over and there's been a winner but I've magically been able to avoid the results up to this point. It all started a few weeks ago when Brandon decided he wanted to watch it. We spent a whole afternoon watching it the day I stayed home from work because of the big storm we had out here a few weeks ago.

Side bar: I woke up, got ready, and drove about 20 minutes before I decided my car had been jerked one too many times by the wind. I turned around because honestly, I was not about to risk getting stuck in a flooded Napa or driving at night, in traffic, in rain and wind when the morning had been so yucky.

So I stayed home with Brandon and binge-watched old episodes of The Voice. I've made it to the top 12, and I was pretty surprised at a few of the coach's choices (how, HOW did Adam get rid of Taylor?) but overall I'm excited to see the rest of the show. I really dig the indie guys, which should not surprise anyone.



2. I had a huge debacle with my Christmas cards last year when I received 50 copies of some generic-looking family's card instead of my own. I was so unhappy about it that I was determined to send out a classy card this year. But as luck would have it, the cards I ordered online (in a same-day print capacity to avoid shipping headaches) were printed on flimsy photo paper. I seriously have zero luck with Christmas cards...and I hate it because I think they're lovely (and an excuse to get gussied up and snap pretty photos). I thought about using some random cardstock I had to make them a tad sturdier, but honestly, who in the world has time for that crap? Not commutes-at-least-two-hours-a-day-me. So instead, I caved on Brandon's genius idea to do a South Park inspired card this year. I found this website my literally typing "how to turn yourself into a South Park character" on Google and clicking through a link in some Yahoo forum. And then I spent about 20 minutes creating our avatars and manipulating everything else in Photoshop. It turned out so much better than any kind photo card I could have thrown together.

Awesome, right?!

3. Still on Christmas: I got a ukulele from Brandon Santa for Christmas! It was wrapped in its case, so I was completely thrown off when I saw it under the tree. But I legit shed tears of joy when I saw what it was. I'd had an urge to splurge (gross) on a uke when Brandon and I were out in Hawaii for our honeymoon over a year ago, but he intelligently told me to cool it since I didn't actually know how to play. So I cooled it. But then, I just kept wanting this thing. I wanted something to practice, something to learn, and I kept having all these ideas of how to cover songs I loved. Anyway, Brandon took notice of my sincere desire to learn to play the ukulele and hooked it up. Seriously, this thing is so pretty.


4. I literally just finished watching Saving Mr. Banks and it was just as beautiful and magical, though a lot sadder, as I imagined it'd be. Mary Poppins is one of my favorite Disney movies ever (no, seriously, last time I was in Disneyland I cried when Mary and Bert came out in the parade) and I completely enjoyed catching the overlapping of dialogue. I had to hold back my sobs in multiple parts of the movie because this was not the kind of movie that rips you apart...unless you're me? But seeing how special Mary Poppins was to P.L. Travers -- and Walt Disney, for that matter -- made it exponentially more special to me.

Such a great shot.
//
And can we talk about how spectacularly perfectly Julie Andrews captured Mary Poppins? Later? Cool.

5. Semi-related: I think I've been picking all the wrong books to read. Watching Saving Mr. Banks made me want to read the story of how Disneyland was built and about Walt's life. Maybe then I could pick up a book and finish it!

6. Did you know you can cook fish from frozen without it getting super mushy? I found that out today and it was delicious.


Until next time!
♥ A