What I've Been Up To

I'll skip the part where we went apartment searching, crunched numbers, had an awful (!) interview, did some blame gaming...and repeat. Long story short, it looks like we are staying in our apartment and I am starting a new job as a Patient Registrar (a good interview snuck in there too) at the hospital across the street.

Besides all that messy life getting in the way, we have been pretty busy having fun. We made a last minute weekend trip up to Michigan, to visit Jake's Mom and Sister. It was so chill, I didn't take one picture, except of Jake sleeping...which I won't post. Awkward!

After a relaxing couple of days (or 1 1/2 days) in MI, we went back home so I could make it to a baby shower.

You all know I can't resist a good wrapped present picture. The girl at the Starbucks drive-thru was quite taken with the package, and gasped in disbelief when I answered her question; yes, I did indeed do the bow myself.

Also, you must be warned. There is a baby monster on the loose. Don't be too frightened, it is easily distracted and confused by a camera flash.

Our little baby friend, Ben, learned to crawl! It started off with slow and very grand exaggerated movements, much like a mini Godzilla. He has since become more efficient in his movements, and is becoming less terrifying to his villagers of Lamaze stuffed animals.

On another note, how awesome is this weather?! I've been going on walks, walks, walks, and even squeezed in a trip to the beach. That's right. It's March, in the midwest, and was in a bathing suit yesterday. More on that later, though. Have any of you been up to anything fun (or not so fun) lately? Any fun plans to enjoy this amazing March weather?

Birthday Outfit & Hair

I am so glad I wore a wool sweater, cotton skirt, sweater tights, and boots for my birthday celebration night downtown. The weather was awful.

The sweater was great because it kept my core warm. The sweater tights, knee high socks, and boots were great to keep my legs warm.

The cotton skirt worked because it wasn't ruined when rained/ hail/ sleeted on, and dried quite quickly.

Vintage sweater (from jake's grandmother). Gap tank tops. H&M skirt. Target tights and socks. Frye boots (love them so much. I can walk in them ALL day). Vintage pearl neackless (from my grandmother).

For my hair, I just did a french braid. Kind of. Instead of three strands, I just worked with two. It came out like this...

I did this on both sides. The molded my pony into a bun.

 Voila and. Easy peasy.

28 and lucky

This last weekend, Jake and I celebrated my birthday.

I must back up. For Christmas some good friends gave us a voucher for a free night stay... at the Peninsula! So when I had my birthday off and it fell on a Saturday, we decided to make a night of it and use the voucher. Lucky, right? Or maybe we just have super awesome friends.

Anyway here is my birthday...

 After checking in the front desk worker walked us to our room. As in, she rode the elevator with us unlocked the door for us and offered to show us around the room. We declined her kind offer. Once in the room (just the two of us, thank you very much) there was a little birthday surprise waiting for me!

It was good and I was super hungry.

We had dinner and a show to get to so we couldn't dilly dally too long. We went to The Chicago Diner for dinner. Jake totally won the Choosing the Best Entree Award. He was very proud of himself. He accepted the award graciously with an excited "finally! this never happens" and cocky smile.

 Jake smugly drinking his water while enjoying his superior choice: Quinoa, blackened tofu, smashed sweet potatoes, black beans, cooked kale and spinach, avacado, and a special sauce.

The gracious looser enjoying her polenta and grilled vegetables (which were quite delicious, mind you).

I love to be on time. It is super important to me. So, when the tickets stated "open seating. show begins at 8. doors open one hour prior. no late seating" I figured we would show up to the theater at seven, beating all the other show-goers to the seats in the house. That is exactly what happened, except we could have arrived at 7:45 to achieve the same results. Lesson learned. But you never know, so I would do it all over exactly the same way. Although there was no bad seat, seeing how the theater sat about sixty people total. But we were in the front row and had the delightful opportunity of sitting next to a middle aged woman and her elderly mother, both of whom seemed to be somewhat of theater snobs. They said great things like, "I don't care for musicals much. Give me a good drama any day." "oh yes, I agree." And "what a terrible choice of career, to be an actor. They have to work other jobs just to be able to live." 

I joked with Jake that they should really stop going to shows as to not support the "terrible life choices" of these actors. Such enablers I tell you. 

  

We saw Assisted Living at The Second Stage. It was a very tiny theater. We really enjoyed the show and, like always, I was blown away by the actors commitment to the roles. The two main characters had real chemistry. Which had me worried during the kitchen floor full-on make out scene. When would it stop? He took his shirt off, and I'm pretty sure her pants got unbuttoned. Very saucy.

Back at the Peninsula we decided to check out the Chocolate Bar that the front desk woman mentioned on the awkward walk to our room, earlier in the day. It was pretty awesome.

I spy gold on my plate. GOLD!

I want to go back.

There was hot chocolate so thick that you could not even sip it. You had to tip the cup toward your mouth and just wait, patiently, until the "liquid" wanders down the side of the mug and into your mouth.

Jake has some mad blind, over the shoulder, photo taking abilities.

If you ever go yourself, we will be the mature ones taking the "I'm so gluttonous and full" photos close to the buffet. Feel free to stop by our table to say a quick hello.

After checking out the next morning, we returned to our vegan ways with breakfast at The Protein Bar. Jake eats lunch there everyday. He loves it so much.

I almost got the "One El of an Oatmeal" (get it? "El") but settled on the Quinoa "Almond Berry Bowl".
We also got a couple of fresh juices.

We then dream shopped around Room&Board, Design Within Reach (amazing!), and Jonathan Adler, before meeting up with Danielle and Adam at a Brazilian Steakhouse for a combined Birthday Celebration. 

You might say, "A brazilian steakhouse?! But what did you eat?" Oh, they have the most amazing salad bar/buffets at those places. That is all there is so say. Amazing. And half the price of getting the buffet and the meat. Half.

I'm twenty-eight and lucky. Except for the weather. In our twenty-four hours downtown it rained, hailed, poured, sleeted, rained, the wind blew, and the temperature stayed nice and cold (freezing). That is why there are no photos of us walking outside, not that you would have been able to see our faces if we had. We were bundled up.

  

Smokin' Snack Pack Pie

Smokin', because when mixing up the "crust" in my mini prep, it started to smoke. Something about sticky dates didn't agree with it, even though it was the recommended tool. I'm not sure what my solution will be for the next time I make it...because I will be making this again.

Snack Pack, because when I first tasted this pie filling, I paused, thought, then excitedly shared for all to hear, "This tastes like a snack pack!" And then I felt dumb for sounding like Nanny from Billy Madison.

Pie, because that's just what it is. Plain and simple.

When I say simple, I mean it. This is pretty much the easiest most delicious tofu filled pie you will ever make. Did I loose you at tofu?

Crust:


bottom:
1 c. dates
1/3 c. walnuts
1/3 c. cashews
1/3 c. almonds
1 t. vanilla extract

edge:
2 bananas, slice lengthwise

Blend "bottom" ingredients in a food processor until at a sticky consistency, (but before said food processor starts to smoke). Press the blended ingredients into a pie pan.

Lay Bananas on top of the crust and press (don't smash) along the sides.

Filling:


1 package Silken Lite tofu (firm or extra firm)...(silken tofu comes in a tight box and it not refrigerated)
2 T. cocoa powder
1 t. vanilla extract
1/3 c. sweetener (agave, maple syrup, or honey) (I also added a couple sprinkles of regular sugar)

Blend all ingredients until smooth.

Pour over crust.

Let chill in refrigerator for at least 1 hour. But is best if left for several hours or overnight.

Serve up and enjoy with your favorite berries and/or extra bananas





Please bad excuse the camera phone photos, but you get the idea. Also, if you let it sit longer than I did (1 hour) it will set up better and not be so runny.

I got this recipe from The Engine 2 Diet book by Rip Esselstyn.

I have a problem

I guess the first step is admitting it.

I can't seem to be able to stop wearing this blazer or these pants. My closet is woefully short of blazers. But, that is just a lame excuse; I really do love it so.

In addition to my obvious obsession with the blazer and pants, this new shirt and these trendy shoes are working their way onto my favorites list as well.

Its like they say, I found love in this shirt when I least expected.

It was just a little mall outing with Melissa and her boys, a chance to leave the house in February. We popped into Gap (because it's our favorite, duh) to browse. Then at the back of the store I saw a comfy looking shirt. I touched it to see how it felt (I touch every piece of clothing on every rack). An old lady sales woman approach and said, "Isn't that a great shirt?"
"Yeah, it seems nice."(You have to play it cool around these people.)
"You can wear it loose or belt it. It can be worn with jeans or dress it up by tucking it into a nice skirt." (Really giving the hard sell
"Yeah, you're right, really versatile."
I grabbed the shirt to try on, not expecting to like. These kinds of shirts have a way of making me feel large and frumpy.
But by-golly, the old lady was right! I loved the length, the casual yet classic feel. It really was a year round, all purpose piece of clothing. I had to have it.
 

The only problem now is that it is a year round all purpose garment that is oh so comfortable, so you won't be seeing me in much else, until it wears out. A lot like these jeans and the blazer. I know what I like, what more is there to say.

Then there is this snazzy new headband. Cute and warm, an early birthday present from my sister. She also gave me the awesome pompom scarf for Christmas.

Yeah, I have a pretty rad sister. Don't be jealous.
 

Gap jeans&shirt (incase you didn't catch that). H&M blazer. Forever 21 belt. Target booties. Gifted scarf and headband.

P.S.: So sorry for the creepy eyes. I really need to remember to edit out the red eyes before uploading. Maybe next time. No promises though.

Jake's Two Cents: February Edition

The other day as we were driving to go out to eat, we noticed a new restaurant opened up in LaGrange, and decided to try it out. It was a TOTAL bust, so Jake Yelped about it. Here is his scathing, yet hilarious, yelp review:

Driving through La Grange yesterday, we noticed that Mezza replaced the old Chipotle location. We decided to give it a shot. After walking through the door we should have known it was going to be a somewhat miserable experience when the employees didn't even acknowledge our presence. Not even a hello! Ok, I understand if you don't want to work, but come on.... We ordered the same meal: Vegetarian Kabob with a side of Villagers Salad and red pepper hummus. After ordering the kabob we were informed that they were out of grilled vegetables, and it would be about 10 minutes to prepare the dishes. Alright, we weren't in that big of a hurry, not a problem. So we started with the hummus. It was decent. Kind of runny, but not bad. FYI... They charge extra for more than 1 piece of pita bread. We received our entrées shortly after. The Villagers salad was fresh, and pretty tasty. A tad on the salty side, but palatable. The vegetable kabob on the other hand was horrible! The vegetables where way over cooked, and extremely salty. One would have thought the cook had emptied an entire container of salt on the vegetables. I was able to eat it out of desperation, being that we had been travelling all day, and it was my first meal of the day. My wife on the other hand had one bite and threw in the towel after that. While we were eating several individuals came into the restaurant. We could only assume that they owned the joint, being that they ordered whatever they wanted, and didn't pay for anything. They were very loud, and proceeded to go up to the counter every 5 minutes to order an additional dish. Now, if you own the place fine I understand you can do things like that, but they literally hung their arms over the "protective" glass shield every time they went up to the counter. The thought of someone waving their unwashed hands/arms over the food was gross.

Needless to say we will not be going back! If the employees attitudes don't get any better, and the food continues to be subpar I give the place 6 months.


Click Here for the direct link.

He left out how the owners also got pop with the free water cups. I had to pay for my pop, grrrr.

If you aren't laughing right now, there is something wrong with your funny bone. It is all in the details really, like how he included the bit about our having been traveling that day and set the stage by describing us "driving through LaGrange..."  How, despite that I had to "throw in the towel" due to the incredible amount of salt in the dish. The part where he described the Villagers Salad as "fresh and pretty tasty", had me laughing forever. I hope his fellow Yelpers find this review helpful, or at the very least good for a little chuckle.

When I'm upset about something I am nowhere near being composed or eloquent. If I complain about something, I just end up sounding bitter and petty.  Jake on the other hand turns his frustrations into light-hearted, informative banter. Quite a gift. I hope you enjoyed the review as much as I did.

Washington Trip Wrap-up

Some pairs skating action in the ICU. 

I really want to make this salad again. So, so tasty, and I learned what kamut is and how to cook it. 

I'm the John Mayer of Dance Central. Look at that face: Yikes! 

Have you every been to a Jewelry store and your husband says, "That's cool. Try it on. I like it. Let's buy it for you." And you're like, "What? This is all happening so fast. You're really buying this for me? Awesome!" It's a geode carved into a ring with the sparkly inside as the fancy top. (Don't mind the old lady hands).

 John bought Sally one too. We didn't want Morgan to feel left out (since Buddy didn't get her one), so we let her wear ours for a bit. She was super excited about it.

Richland is uncomfortably proud of it's history. I mean I am all for local pride; but really?!

Yep. Their High School mascot are "bombers", as in Atom bombers. Lets just say, you don't see a lot of Japanese in Richland.

We saw it on the travel channel, so we had to check it out. Donuts made with a bit of potato flour. Get it? Spudnut. So clever and delicious.

Morgan likes to keep buddy under control and close by.

Jake's love for buddy continued. He took a series of photos of Buddy, these are just a few of them.

He is pretty stinkin' cute. Just look at that punim.

A tasty waffle breakfast by Mom. 

Waffles make everyone happy. Especially Mr. Hungry Jack, of the hungry jack syrup empire.

All three of us with our Granny.

Breaking News:

The rest of us together, minus John (he was at work, sad face). 

The End.

P.S. 

This picture makes me want to color my hair. Which is something I've never done before and probably won't do. So breath, Jake and Mom. Just relax. But come on, it would look really good darker!