Crab Cakes & the Capital

Hey, remember when I went to MD & DC last month? Sorry it's taken me so long to post pictures, but as you guys may know, last in October, Rye & I went to Maryland & Washington, DC to visit my sister, brother-in-law, niece & also to site-see. Neither of us have been to either areas so it was definitely exciting. My sister's lived out in MD for over 6-years, and JUST NOW do I have the funds to visit. Now that I've been, I can't wait to go back. I especially want to go back for the Cherry Blossom Festival, but I know that it's such a limited time (I think like 2 weeks) and can range anywhere from March to April...so we'll see if I make it in that window!

In summary, our trip:Overall, we had an amazing time. There was A LOT of walking & A LOT of picture-taking. Between Rye & me, we had over 700 pictures for 4 days. A lot of them were repeats or of the same thing in different angles, but 700?? Thank goodness we had huge memory cards (twss). To avoid the longest post ever, I'll try to keep it quick with some of my favorite pictures & memories.

In Maryland, we visited the Naval Academy, but more importantly, ate these AMAZING crab cakes at G&M Restaurant & Lounge, which were to die for. They were the size of a halved grapefruits & just full of crab meat (versus random filling). We also drank margaritas & played Rock Band the rest of the night.

my sister & i at the US Naval Academy (cat-call to the sailors!)

h&m trench coat, banana republic scarf

my niece TERRIFIED that she had to go in the car with rye & me. sads!

ripley, a little more comfortable, and like her aunt...very fond of the camera.

In DC, we of course went to all of the monuments, museums & touristy stuff. Walked a lot. Ate a lot.

rye & his "washington monument" (done on purpose)...very classy
f21 sweater & jeans, steve madden boots
imagine waking up to THIS face every morning.
love
ripley again, terrified to be in my arms...i'm going to be a GREAT mother!
my fave pic of ripley & me...and maybe of the entire trip

j&g steakhouse
hey guys, look, it's the white house!
lady-like, per my usual

mike & chris jacket, f21 jeans, steven madden boots, chanel sunglasses

fell asleep during the IMAX dinosaur movie. and i LOVE dinosaurs!
capitol hill
steph: what are you doing?
rye: i was pretending to throw it like a paper airplane. what are YOU doing?
steph: holding the plane on my hand. we didn't coordinate that very well, did we.

ripley garden

Thanks again to everyone who sent me great recommendations on where to go! Can't wait to share my next trip (still TBD).

questions? ask here! / twitter tracker

Royal Dream

So I guess my hopes of marrying Prince William is shot. Bew. [insert Rye Bread saying, "But you have your prince right here."] [cue my eyeroll following that]

I've had this dress for awhile now, since 2007, but I always felt it was just a tad short (maybe because my mom would walk behind me & say "YOUR BUTT IS HANGING OUT"), but maybe I shrunk (or I got sluttier) because it's not AS short as I remember it to be!

I wore this to eat at The Bazaar at the SLS Hotel in Beverly Hills with a colleague of mine. We had their $55 tasting menu where they bring their most popular items out tapas-style. It was great! Some of the highlights include their mushroom risotto, tomato-spread on toast, modern olives (I have no idea what those were - they were just juicy olives that exploded in your mouth), caprese salad, and cotton candy around foie gras (amazing!). Their desserts were also tasty, but it was their tasting menu that stole the show.

dress from francesca's, shoedazzle shoes, accessories from h&m & nordstrom

As I mentioned in my last post, I've been working on eating healthier, exercising & trying to live a better lifestyle. So I've been walking / running almost every morning; it's only been my 3rd week & I try to go at least 5x per week (with one weekday & one weekend break). The entire route is about 3.2miles, so while not anything extensive, it is a good amount of walking & running a day. I run about 1/3 of it, walking the rest. It could be my mind playing tricks on me, but I definitely do *feel* better & have started to look forward to it. I use streetlights as markers, making sure to add an extra "running" leg every week. It feels good when you start off heaving for air on the 4 lightposts that I ran don't seem so bad the next week. Hey, gotta start off somewhere! Rye also started to run, but he's a night-runner (I prefer mornings), so to really make sure I hate my life, I started to run both. We'll see how long this lasts...

by golly, is that muscle definition?! i was honestly happy! talk about motivation!

I used to eat whatever for breakfast - old fried rice, cup-o-noodles, or pop-tarts. But when my boss called my pop-tarts "breakfast diabetes" and my sister said I would DIE if I kept eating those things, I decided that to start off my day on a good note, that included a healthier breakfast. So I've also started to make breakfast smoothies every morning & am getting pretty creative on what to throw in my Magic Bullet (not a sexy toy). I change it up every week, adding different fruits & juices, but the base is always:
+ 1 banana (for creaminess texture)
+ 2 - 3 spoonfuls of non-fat vanilla yogurt (currently trying wallaby's australian style...thinner texture than what I'm used to)
+ 1/3 - 1/2 cup of carrot juice (not as tasty as OJ, but hasVitamin A & D)
+ handful of frozen fruit (this could be frozen berries, peaches, or mangos)

For snacks, I've been eating 1/2 of 2 pieces of fruit (pears, apples & bananas are my favorite) & a boiled egg (SORRY OFFICE). Lunch is usually lighter with a salad & homemade dressing - my sister has this thing about preservatives. Afternoon snack is the rest of the fruit.

For those of you who are interested in my GMAT journey (snore to everyone else), this is my second week of class & we've reviewed the first writing portion of the Argument Essay. The funny part about it is I said, "I can write a pretty damn good email, even proposals & presentations...but man, HOW LONG has it been since I had to write an argumentative essay?" Completely different style of writing. I have to take my 1st practice exam this weekend as well as catch up on my "homework" - which are more questions & quizzes. I realize that having my class 2x a week wasn't a great idea - there is simply not enough time from one class to the next to catch up on all the reading & practicing, so I spend a lot of my weekends playing catch-up. My goal is to take my exam in the beginning of February. Who's with me? Anyone in LA who wants a study group? No creepers please, lol.

questions? ask here! / twitter tracker

Excuses, Excuses...

Hey errbody! Sorry it's been awhile, I'll give you guys a rundown on what's been on the haps. And no, one of the updates isn't that I started talking like that, lol.

Over the past 2 weeks, I've:
+ been trying to eat healthier (making my own smoothies in the morning, eating sensibly, much more veggies & fruits)
+ started to run & walk in the morning
+ started my GMAT course
+ got a CT scan
+ cut a chunk of my thumb off (not related to CT scan)
+ stopped curling my hair in the morning (see #2)
+ finally unpacked my suitcase!

Last Saturday, it was my BFF's birthday. She turned 28...and then proceeded to tell me that we have been friends for 20 years. TWENTY. 2.0. It hits you hard when you realize in one year, your friendship can buy liquor. That's a lot of years! She had her bday dinner at Cafe Sevilla in Long Beach; attached to the restaurant is a club where all the young kids go...and we realized that we know we're in our late 20's when we're having dinner when they're in line to go drinking. Sigh.

h&m sweater dress, js dany platforms, h&m accessories, snoopy band-aid

Because I've started to walk & run in the morning, I've stopped curling my hair, which has led to less than ideal postings; but I promise to get back on it.

OH! A couple quick stories (two involve blood, so just a head's up if you're squirmy...or are eating lunch):

While making amazing (if I do say so myself) baked potato chips, I cut part of my thumb off with a mandoline...hence, the Snoopy bandaid on the 4th pic. It bled everywhere, including on my phone - I don't know why I thought it was a good idea to try to TEXT with a bleeding finger.

While getting my CT scan (precautionary, don't worry, I'm not dying), they had to inject me with a dye for contrast - the technician missed my vein on the first try so asked for the resident doctor to come in & help. The doctor then proceeded to insert the hyperdermic needle in my other arm...but FAILED to attach the dye...and blood started squirting everywhere. On the floor, on my arm, and most likely on them! Luckily I was NOT looking, but Rye Bread saw the whole thing. Awesome.

Earlier this week, we went to Benihana (my all-time favorite restaurant) & you know how they sit you next to random patrons? One of the gentlemen I was sitting next to, leaned over, and asked if I enjoyed reading. When I replied yes, he then proceeded to give me a postcard for a book signing for his book The Power of the V. V does not stand for "voice." Seriously, this is the image of the book:
It's basically about how women need to EMPOWER themselves with their V(ajay) and take control of our love lives! Written by a man...I almost wanted to go to this book signing to see what it was all about.

In other news, I am going to get on posting about my trip to DC & MD. I'm also finally getting back on the ball with cooking...will post some food pr0n soon! I also started my GMAT course, it's only been the 2nd class, but so far we've gone through A LOT of material. I haven't studied the homework yet, but I did take the diagnostic. Let's just say I did as expected, but it was a big reality check. I'll post more about the GMATs in another post as this one's already dragging on...even I'm bored of myself.

questions? ask here! / twitter tracker

Halloween...Party on Wayne!

While most of the world can't wait to dress up, most Halloweens I find myself dreading it...every year, girls seem to use this as an excuse to dress up like slutty ERRTHANG. Slutty cat, slutty character from a movie that just came out, slutty angel (srsly?) & now even slutty Chewbacca (not joking, it's sold here). Last year I went as RYE BREAD (not joking again); this year, Rye wanted to go as Lou & Andy from BBC's Little Britain...and while I love their skit, seriously?

In fact, we weren't really planning on going out at all, but at the last minute threw together costumes. Rye went as Wayne from Wayne's World & I went as Cassandra. I should have gone as Garth, but Rye knew that I didn't want to go as a guy...AGAIN. If we went out again, I would have...I'm a trooper.

So I threw on the lace dress seen here, bought a pair of gloves, and strapped on my Rock Band guitar! Ryan bought a black shirt, a pair of $13 jeans from Target (so he could rip the knees out), and we actually embroidered the hat - talk about commitment! I will say the one sucky thing about being Cassandra was...if Rye left my side, NO ONE KNEW who I was!! I looked like a random girl in a lace dress with a fake guitar...sigh.

Anyway, it turned out to be a pretty good time with the same group of friends...for your enjoyment, pictures!

cassandra wong, kanye west, a lumberjack, wayne, andy warhol, a hippy

cassandra & wayne

andy warhol (equipped with a campbell's soup can that he drank out of the whole night) & kanye west

lumberjack (equipped with a felt beard, lol)

I hope you had a spoOoooky Halloween! I stayed in on Sunday to give away candy...but only TWO trick-or-treaters came out! WTF? What are kids doing these days? Who's going to eat all the candy? me.

questions? ask here! / twitter tracker

Moroccan-Style (Schweddy) Meatballs

Hope you guys had a great Halloween - pictures of mine to come soon! Instead, here's a little food treat for us all.

You can't make meatballs and NOT think of this SNL skit. I mean the entire time I was cooking this, I was cracking jokes to myself. Man, I love Alec Baldwin, is there anything he can't do...I'd hit that...I digress.

I recently saw this recipe in Everyday with Rachael Ray & bookmarked it as something I wanted to try. Side note - I am now obsessed with cooking / lifestyle magazines (like Real Simple, Martha Stewart, etc...it's all I read on planes now!)

Since I was pretty tired (read: hungover) this Sunday, I thought it'd be a great opportunity to try these Moroccan balls of meat...To be fair, it was just okay in my book - I think it was because I wasn't used to the Moroccan flavors (in my mind why did I still think it would taste like spaghetti?) and it was a bit dry.

Note that the recipe calls for ground lamb, but I used ground turkey...you might want to try ground pork or beef as the balls (heh) turned out a little drier than I had hoped (double heh).

What You'll Need:
+ 2 lbs of ground lamb (turkey, pork, or beef)
+ salt & pepper
+ 1/2 cup of finely chopped flat-leaf parsley
+ 6 cloves garlic, very finely chopped
+ 1 tbsp grated lemon peel
+ 1 tbsp chili powder
+ 1 tbsp sweet paprika
+ 1 tbsp evoo (plus more for drizzling)
+ 1 onion, very finely chopped
+ 1 cup of chicken stock
+ 1 28-oz can fire-roasted diced or crushed tomatoes
+ pinch of ground cloves
+ pinch of ground cinnamon
+ 4 eggs (optional)

Preheat over to 400-degrees. Line a baking sheet with parchment. Combine the ground meat with liberal amounts of salt & pepper, the parsley, 2/3 of the garlic, the lemon peel, chili powder, paprika & cumin to form 1 1/4-inch meatballs.
The recipe said they made 65, I made 50...maybe mine were too big? (big balls) Drizzle with EVOO & roast until browned. The recipe said 10 mins, but I had to do about 18mins for it to look a little crispy.
Meanwhile, in a skillet with high sides or a dutch oven (which I thought was when you farted under the covers & trapped someone in it), heat 1 tbsp of EVOO over medium-high heat. Add the onion & remaining garlic & cook until softened (5-6 mins). Season with salt & pepper. Add the chicken stock & tomatoes & bring to a boil; season with the clove & cinnamon. Cook until thickened, about 10 minutes.Slide in the meatballs & simmer for 5 minutes.
Immediately pour the sauce & meatballs into bowls & crack in the eggs (this is optional). Cover tightly with a plate & let stand for 3 minutes to cook eggs. Serve with flatbread. Let me tell you that I tried this "egg cooking" method & it did NOT work. I had to pop the entire bowl in the microwave for 90 seconds to cook the eggs...so I recommend pre-cooking the egg (sunnyside up or over easy) versus letting the heat from the bowl cook it for you. Better safe than sorry! I can't wait to post pictures from my Maryland & DC trip...and also Halloween! Unfortunately my external hard drive won't read on my PC so I'll have to post them tomorrow!

questions? ask here! / twitter tracker