I am a girl who loves herself a project. The latest on the list is revamping our balcony. We have a great, huge balcony off our back door and we have basically done nothing with it for the two years that I have lived in the house. But no longer! I have some big ideas (but trying to stay budget conscious) and I am excited to create a space for relaxing and entertaining this summer. Here are a few photos with some outdoor inspiration.
(images via pinterest)
Well, I finally made it up to Brooklyn! This felt like the longest short-weekend-trip ever, because we packed in so many sights and activities. I always hear that I would love Brooklyn, so it was high time for me to visit.
I left the office a little early and met Ashley at Union Station where we boarded our Bolt bus to NYC. (FYI, I so prefer the DC2NY bus, despite the name. Their buses seem newer, they give you water bottles, and the play movies. It’s the little things that get me.) When I arrived in New York, I said good-bye to Ash and took the train to the Upper East Side to meet up with Suj for a celebratory dinner at Maya. This was the real excuse for the trip; we were toasting our good friend who just graduated from Colombia business school (yeah!). The restaurant was great! I love Mexican food and DC is sadly lacking in that area. After dinner, we headed out to Brooklyn to stay with one of Suj’s friends. He has a great place on a really cute block in Cobble Hill.
We started our Saturday early with brunch in the city then spent the afternoon exploring Brooklyn. I will admit, I’ve never loved Manhattan. I get a little overwhelmed with the noise and the people, so Brooklyn was much more my speed. I liked browsing the shops and strolling through cute neighborhoods, and I got ice cream twice. We were all over the place; Brooklyn Heights, DUMBO, then Fort Greene. Oh, and we saw Ice T. It was quite the day.
Our walking tour was really nice, but I was exhausted by late afternoon, so we regrouped before heading to dinner. We met up with friends at DBGB for our 10:15 reservation. Considering this is usually my bedtime (old, I know), I felt very swanky and European by our dinner plans. The food was worth the wait (the burger and the Thai links, all I’m saying) and the company was even better. I can’t remember the last time I had so much fun at dinner.
On our last day in the city, we headed over to Williamsburg to do a little shopping at the flea market. We grabbed brunch at Nita Nita, where I had an excellent BLT that I will be attempting to recreate at home. After the market, we said good-bye to friends and started the journey back to DC. Whew, how did we manage to pack it all into one weekend?!
{salted caramel sundae from The General Greene}
{retro street lights in Williamsburg}
{rusted detail}
{banh-mi style hotdog at the flea market (plus hipster)}
{view from our Manhattan hotel room}
Bloom, the new album from Beach House is streaming at NPR’s First Listen. The album sounds like a broody dream, and I love it. Two of my favorite tracks are New Year and Lazuli. Awesome mid-week goodie for your ears!
Filed under Music
Handmade cards are so special and personal. So this mother’s day tell mom you love her with a beautiful paper rose card made by you! Use any paper you like for the roses. I picked up this scrapbooking paper from the Columbia Heights Target (who knew they had a scrapbooking section!). I attached the roses to a blank fold-over card, but you could also use them to jazz up any basic card or envelope. Here’s how:
Step one: Free-hand draw a swirl design on a 4″ by 4″ square of paper. Tip- the wider you make the lines, the “taller” the flower will be. You can also play around with different sizes of paper to create a variety of flower sizes.
Step two: Cut.
Step three: Roll the strip of paper beginning at the tail end of the swirl, i.e., not the middle part(with the design side of the paper facing in).
Keep rolling to form the rose.
Step four: Add a little glue at the base to keep the flower in place (I used a hot glue gun, but any glue will work).
{Ta-da!}
Step five: Glue the roses to a fold-over card or use them to personalize a premade card.
{Happy Mother’s Day!}
Every once in a while I have a weekend that reminds me how very fortunate and leisure my life is right now. For instance, I just wrapped up an exhausting few days of shopping, dining out, and spending time with friends. I really should never be allowed to complain about anything!
I celebrated Cinco de Mayo/Kentucky Derby with a little early morning office action followed by a trip to Friendship Heights with Ashley to shop and visit friends. That night Scott and Alex and I took a nice walk down to Dupont Circle to “crash” the bachelorette party Erin was throwing. On Sunday, I had brunch on the patio at El Tamarindo then had a wonderful time exploring the shops in Georgetown. I was hoping to find a new dress but instead picked up a few new stamps from Papersource. I was famished by the time I got home and tired from so many hours of walking. Luckily Ashley stopped by on her way back from yoga and we enjoyed a caramelized onion pizza (recipe to come!) while we caught up on episodes of Girls. I don’t imagine that my life will always be this carefree, so I try to really appreciate these fun, easy weekend while they last.
{adorable shoe display at Madewell}
{fountain in Dupont Circle}
{wall art on my walk home}
Filed under Life
This month marks the three-year anniversary of my move to DC. I relocated immediately after my law school graduation (I am talking days) and it was probably one of the scariest decisions of my life. I packed most of my belongings into three giant duffle bags, shipped other items in a few epic trips to UPS, and gave away the rest of my stuff to lucky shoppers on craigslist. Up to that point, I’d sort of thought of myself as a nomad, moving around every few years. But this move felt different, more permanent. I was no longer a student. I was an adult, moving across the country to a city where I had no job, no friends, and no real plan. My parents drove to Salt Lake City, in my dad’s big blue truck with a trailer attached to the back, to help me pack and to pick up my furniture (which now bedecks my brothers’ “man cave”). My dad choked up a little as he hugged me goodbye then waved from the truck. My mom stayed in town a while longer to see that I made it to the airport. There was no turning back.
Thinking back now on the decision, I am impressed at my nerve, and I can’t help but wonder how different I am from that girl who got on that plane. Moving to DC turned out to be one of the best decisions of my life. I’ve grown professionally and personally, I’m surrounded by inspiring, spirited people who care about me, and I fell in love with one of my best friends. I will never regret my decision to make a big, bold change and move to DC.
But I have been thinking a lot about change lately. After three years, I am contemplating new choices and paths for my life. It seems to me that change becomes harder the older I get. I worry more than I ever used to. It takes a greater amount of analyzing before I become comfortable with newness. I can only assume that this is natural and not at all unique to me. Anyway, change is good, necessary, right? It certainly scares me, but not enough to keep me still. So, I suppose now (and for the next few months) the best thing I can do is take a deep breath, hang on to my sense of humor, and get on that plane.
Consistency is the last refuge of the unimaginative.
- Oscar Wilde
Filed under Life
I come from a big family and learned at a young age the value of an easy, kid-friendly recipe. Even though I am not living with any kiddies at the moment (though we may act like it sometimes), I got a rave response when I made these fun savory, muffins. This recipe is easy and I love the concept so much that I think I will play around with other filling ideas. The pot pie muffins are perfect for entertaining (think heavy hors d’oeuvres) or they make a great snack for kids (or a row house full of busy 20-somethings!).
Ingredients:
1 1/2 c. chicken, diced
1 (14.5 oz) can cream of chicken soup
1 bag frozen mixed veggies, thawed
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
salt and pepper
2 (10 oz) cans biscuits
Directions:
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. In a large bowl, combine chicken, cream of chicken soup, frozen veggies, cheese, and salt and pepper. (Note: when I made these muffins I used frozen veggies, which makes this recipe super easy, but next time I will probably substitute for fresh, chopped veggies, sautéed for a few minutes until soft. Fresh is always better!) Lightly grease a 12-cup muffin tin and press one biscuits into each cup to form the crust. Spoon the pot pie mixture into the biscuit cups. Bake for 12-15 minutes. Remove from oven and serve!
(original recipe via)
Happy Monday. This weekend I spent way too much time in the office, but still managed to check off a lot on my to-do list and enjoy the beautiful DC weather on Sunday. Our former (and soon to return) roommate, Alex, was in town and joined us for brunch at the house and a bike ride with Erin. I kept busy running errands while rocking my new favorite spring look (belted maxidress with a denim jacket and aviators). I love the city in the spring when everything feels bustling and exciting!
Filed under Life
I {heart} DC. I was reminded of this fact last weekend when I was able to play tour guide for my family. My mom likes to judge vacations based on the food, and I think this was a good “food trip” as she would say. They loved lunch at Sweetgreen and we had a relaxing Saturday night dinner at Rosemary’s Thyme. My brother, Mitch, was thrilled to find Potbelly’s, and we picked up the most amazing German chocolate birthday cake from Cakelove for my (now 11-year old) sister, River. I am sad they are gone so soon, but at least I can share photos from the trip (and finally turn my attention to overdue laundry!).
Youth Lagoon is the brilliant musical project of 22 year old Trevor Powers. His debut album, The Year of Hibernation, was released last fall and the band is currently touring the US. The song above is one of my favorites, so I had to share the beautifully shot video. Enjoy.
Filed under Music
