Feeling Thankful

            The turkey has been eaten (along with the majority of the leftovers), some unnecessary dollas have been spent at the Black Friday sales, and the Cooperman and I have made the trip back to the district after a very happy Thanksgiving.  Though I certainly missed the hustle and bustle of the busy Fox Point kitchen, it was nice to just keep it simple this year and spend a cozy day at home.

Since I'm a little bit crafty and like things like stickers and scrapbooks, I was put in charge of placecards.  I think they're a whole lot cuter when the 7 year old cousin is given this responsibility.

Some serious turkey prep

The end result...

Was delicious, albeit ready 2 hours ahead of schedule...oops!

             I loved getting to spend time with my grandmother and cousins and hugging my brothers after being away from them for months.  Other highlights of the mini-vacation included a trip to the doctor that ended with a z-pack, inhaler, and some delicious combination of cough syrup and codeine for my little cough (aka bronchitis).  And a night out with my favorites from high school that ended in a broken heel, a killer hangover, and a best friend, puppy, and myself all passed out snuggled up in my little twin bed.  All in all I'd say it was a pretty great weekend and this girl certainly has lots to be thankful for!  Hope you had a happy one too.

It's That Kind of a Day

            It's been raining for what feels like days.  I have a cold that just won't quit and I think I'm starting to annoy my co-workers and freak out my patients with my relentless coughing.  I still have one more day of work before I can head home for a very brief Thanksgiving break.  Remember that post I wrote around this time last year about sticking out the gray?  Well, it's been that kind of a day, which meant that a little afternoon pick-me-up and a reminder that the color is on it's way were just what I needed this afternoon.

Here's hoping you're enjoying a cozy night and a very color-filled week!

When I Grow Up...

            ...I wanna run off and join the circus.  Or Cirque du Soleil...because those jump-ropers and teeny tiny acrobats that get tossed into the air like rag dolls have the most ridiculous job ever.  Okay, so maybe I'm scared of heights and double-dutch has never really been my thing but watching the performers at Cirque du Soleil's Quidam on Sunday made me kind of wish that I had chosen a cooler career.
            I am a huge fan of any of the Cirque du Soleil performances (checked Disney World, Philadelphia, and Atlantic City Cirque's off my list...next show, Vegas?) but I have to say that this was one of my favorites.  The music, the costumes, the rubberband-bodied performers.  I loved it all.  And I loved the fact that I got to take in the show with my grandparents who made the trip down from Philadelphia to celebrate my grandfather's 80th birthday with Katie and me.

            Oh, and on the way home we passed one of the many restaurants in D.C. that I have been dying to try.  Mike Isabella's (Top Chef, duh) Graffiato.  Guess I'll be making a trip back to Chinatown sometime soon!

2nd Annual Friendsgiving

            It's that time of year again.  The time when I get all crazy about things like sweet potato souffle, handwritten placecards, and haven't-seen-you-in-so-long hugs from my siblings.  The time when I believe that anything tastes better when it's pumpkin flavored and a drive up I-95 in Wednesday night traffic makes me giddy, not grumpy.  That's right, it's Thanksgiving week and to kick off the celebration some favorite friends and I spent Friday night in my cozy grown-up house eating turkey and toasting to the second annual Friendsgiving.  Last year at this time, I was still a Music City resident (hard to believe, right?) so my participation in the festivities was only as an out-of-town guest.  I was thrilled to make the upgrade to hostess (with Liza as my co-hostess, of course) this year.

My cozy little home...just waiting for guests to arrive!

            Along with volunteering to host this little party, I got ambitious and also signed up to make the turkey.  Quite the feat for this beginner chef.  But with a little help from Whole Foods and a few hours reading up on turkey prep advice from my favorite food blog friends, I think we ended up with a pretty delicious bird if I do say so myself.

Sorry for the lack of a group pic...it was way too hard to wrangle all 16 party guests into one room in my little mini house.

            And though the food was delicious and definitely a huge part of why I loved this night, I think what I loved even more was the combination of turkey coma, new friends, fire in the fireplace, James Taylor on Pandora, best friends, red wine buzz, and the underlying sentiment that this year, and every year, we all have so very much to be thankful for.  Wishing you a happy, thanks-filled week with those you love the most!

Occupy D.C.

            Last week, residents of the district decided to get in on the Occupy action and hold a rally in my neighborhood.  And by my neighborhood I mean at the base of the Key Bridge in Gtown.  And I was a little bit excited about all of the commotion because, let's be honest, who doesn't like some extra excitement on a Thursday?  But I have to say, I wasn't all that impressed with the statement made by protestors clad in black "Our D.C." t-shirts who were embarrassingly outnumbered by Washington Five-0 who managed the scene on foot, in cruisers, and on horseback (cause that's really necessary).  For the most part I am grateful that chaos did not erupt at the bottom of my sleepy cobblestone street but I would have had much better pictures had things gotten a little rowdier.  Instead, I snapped a picture with one of our city's finest who was casually smoking a cigar and clearly not at all concerned about the spectacle unfolding in front of him.

At least they had the support of the local liquor store, right?  

Special Day

Happy 1st Birthday, sweet Cooper!

            Today, my furry child turned one year old and to celebrate we spent a long afternoon at the dog park, ate lots of treats (well I didn't, but the Cooper man did), and spent some snuggle time at Katie's for the weekly sister/pup dinner.  It's hard to believe its been a year since this little love puppy was born and even harder to believe that he once weighed only 10 pounds!

Day One 

            And though my morning wake-up call comes a little earlier and my socks have a few more holes in them, I wouldn't take back my decision to adopt Cooper for one second.  I know, I know he is a dog and I spoil him and treat him like he is a human, but over the past year he has been my walking buddy, my roadtrip partner (much to his dismay), my bad day brightener, and my little unconditional love and I wouldn't trade that for anything.

It's Official

Proof that the past two years actually happened!  As if this little blog wasn't proof enough :-)