Go Greek.

First weekend of June = Greek festival in San Jose.
Yea!

Have a lovely weekend!!!
xoxo, natty ♥ 

Good to see you.

We're all three here in San Jose and its been nice to be back. The weather's lovely and we're seeing many people and doing lots of things.

And I saw these artichokes on my run today.
xoxo, natty ♥ 

The wonders of modern technology.

xoxo, natty ♥ 

Backlog.

Oofdah.
I had a bunch of posts but hadn't pushed publish on them so here we go!

In other news, with some very sweet Chilean friends who are visiting we had our first go at Ethiopian food tonight.

It's kind of ridiculous since DC is know for this cuisine and there are several within a short walk of our home {as there were in California for that matter...} but Mikey and I try to be frugal and eat at home and anytime we decide to eat out it seems too adventurous to attempt something so new to us.

Not so much anymore! We had the traditional combination plate and shied away from the raw meat. I won't go into details but it's a lovely variety of about seven or eight separate dishes all presented on a large pizza sized piece of traditional Ethiopian bread which is spongey, ever so slightly acidic, and used in place of utensils. It was a yummy meal shared with some intrepid travelers and new friends.
Then we came home to a leaking waging machine {leaky valves?} and to get ready for my 7 AM flight back to California {yippee}.

Wish us all luck tonight and tomorrow morning.

xoxo, natty ♥ 

Let's be thankful.

Because of a variety of visitors we've been at the memorials twice this weekend and I only think it apropos to be so poignantly reminded of the sacrifices of others.

So today, let's be grateful and remember.

xoxo, natty ♥

Beat the Phillies.

We watched the Nationals beat the Philadelphia Phillies today. We're in the midst of a little cold snap {60s} that includes wind. Our seats were in the shade to begin with and it was quite chilly. It was a joy to watch the sun creep up to us and finally bring us warmth.
Onwards to Memorial Day folks.
xoxo, natty ♥ 

Real good day.

We've got some friends in town this weekend so we had a great day with them eating {a lot} and walking around to work off what we ate.
Tomorrow's plan: baseball!
xoxo, natty ♥ 

Friday Friday Friday!

Yippee skippee! Have a lovely weekend!
xoxo, natty ♥ 

On the cusp.

We're on the edge of another weekend and a new season.
Here's what I've been doing today.

There's a bunch of laundry hiding back there.

On the agenda in the next few days: friends, baseball, eating, running...happiness!

xoxo, natty ♥  

Ooh ahh.

xoxo, natty ♥ 

Mint.

Today I was gifted some mint. So...

This libation is going nicely with the warm and muggy weather - I'm not complaining by any means but apart from a few dips into the 70s in the next few weeks, me thinks it be iced coffee time.

xoxo, natty ♥

Facetious?

Mikey's at soccer tonight so it's been a completely quiet evening.
Which is actually really nice. No music, no TV, just me.
And my soul needs that once a week.

In other nourishing news...

1} I saw this today:

IS this tongue-in-cheek? Or not? Never knowing is half the fun?

2} I used my cat mug this evening.

We have a beautiful and colorful dinnerware set that is a wedding gift and includes coffee mugs. But I've also inherited a dangerous penchant for mismatched and humorous mugs. My dear aunt gifted me this beauty and it gets good use in our home.

3}

4} California's on my agenda in two weeks' time. ♥

5} Though muggy, temperatures are high this week and a happy me that makes.

I hope you're well in your corner of the world this evening. Say a little prayer for those in Oklahoma and Texas tonight and count your own blessings while you're at it.

xoxo, natty ♥ 

Oohrah!

Oohrah!
This morning I ran the Marine Corps Historic Half Marathon in Fredericksburg, Virginia.

I had signed up a little while ago but failed to properly train so I was pretty crabby leading up to the race day this week, what with being unprepared.

But I was able to finish with an OK time {not a PR by any means but pretty good for where I'm at fitness-wise} and hopefully won't be injured or too sore this week.

A race recap:

- I felt pretty good and strong, despite a gently rolling course, up until mile 11 when we hit "Hearthbreak Hill". It was only maybe a mile or so up hill and included several little plateaus and since I wasn't pushing myself by any means, I was fine, just a bit pooped when the hill was over but by then it was mile 12 and almost all down hill until the end.

The weather was a bit muggy and it rained/drizzled almost the whole time but it was in the high 60s and that was perfect for me.

 

- I overheard these two running ladies in the first mile:

Friend A: I'm only doing this for the beer.

Friend B: Oh my gosh I love beer.

The best part is that they were probably in their fifties and just keeping it real.

- There was a mini-horse wearing a Marine-Corps "jacket thing". I saw it four times along the course and it made me happy each time.

- There were various music groups/performers along the course. What I love about races like this one, though, is that they're kind of smaller acts: three older women singing a capella, three guys playing the rolling stones, a bagpipe playing group (including a wee lad banging on a drum for the beat), a group of men doing bluegrass, and a sole punk guitarist who was set up at the top of Heartbreak Hill.

- The run wound its way through Fredericksburg including a newer suburban area as well as the historical/downtown districts. I'd say that a good part of the run was past homes and through neighborhoods so many people were out in front of their homes cheering on the runners and the best part of this was the meek little kids furtively holding out a hand for high-fives.

- Marines were stationed all along the course and I thanked as many as I could. The best reply was "It's a privilege".

- Fredericksburg seems to be overgrown with honeysuckle and almost the whole run was beautifully perfumed. 

- There was a group of colonial dancers at one point on the course.

- There were some beautiful older homes along the route and we got to go past the gorgeous campus of the University of Mary Washington.

- I got to take a picture with a Union soldier at the finish line.

- The people watching was spectacular, as it usually is  at any running event.

- I got to run with some great friends.

It was a lovely way to spend a Sunday morning and hopefully I can use it as a jump-start for some quality miles.

xoxo, natty ♥ 

Cool.

I went out for a quick three mile run this morning and picked up coffee on my way home.
Then I ate left-overs from earlier this week.

Now I'm on the couch listening to The Animal House which is a hilarious and informative podcast about, duh, animals and includes a call-in portion.

The windows in our little turret apartment are open and I'm enjoying some mild breezes and the smell of rain. I love having our windows open but living in the middle of a city and having sycamore trees around us means that EVERYTHING is almost instantly covered in a layer of yellow pollen-dust. Gross.

I hope that you're enjoying your Saturday!

xoxo, natty ♥

Busy week.

You know it's been a busy five days when the calendar still says "Monday".

So let's make it a good weekend!

xoxo, natty ♥

Gearing up.

It's fixin' to be a busy summer for us and we're currently in a busy little time too so I feel like life's moving pretty quickly {Beuller?}.
Which is fine.
They're all seasons.

But a good magazine before bed makes things a bit easier.

xoxo, natty ♥

Browning bananas, dusty table.

xoxo, natty ♥

Menu!

It's been a while {a busy/lazy meals sort of while} but let's DO it!

Sunday: Asparagus and provolone omelets.
Monday: Smoked turkey kielbasa with white cheddar on buns and steamed broccoli.
Tuesday: Warm butternut squash and chickpea salad with goat cheese. 
Wednesday: BBQ out.
Thursday: Noodles! With butter and capers!!
Friday: Black beans and rice with salsa.
Saturday: Butter chicken with rice, steamed broccoli, and naan.

Happy eating folks!
xoxo, natty ♥

Another sky!

Oooooh! Another Monday!
What else?
1} A beautiful sky on my way home today.

Will I ever tire of these?
No.
2} The neighborhood window display for May.

April showers brought May flowers.

3} Yummy dinner tonight.

4} May is a beautiful month, even though today and tomorrow are a bit cooler {& windier} than they should be.

5} I get to go to California in a couple of weeks. ♥

Was it a good Monday for you?

xoxo, natty ♥

Isn't she lovely?

And hilarious, unfailingly loyal, and my loving mother.

Happy Mother's Day Mama! 
And to all of the other mamas in our lives and beyond; we are all better people for you and your sacrifices.
xoxo, natty ♥

The storms come rolling in.

We went to our third Nats game today,

Everything was fine until the Cubs were up 8 to 6,
Blech.

The skies were beautiful, though, and it was warm and breezy,
It was also Dog Day at the park.

We left our hound at home; the heat and crowds would've been a bit too much for him.
It was a great way to spend a Saturday afternoon though I know that there's a gaggle of friends in Minnesota this weekend and I wish I could be with them too.
xoxo, natty ♥ 

Owney.

Our Smithsonian daily rip-off calendar showed me this little guy yesterday.

Though I'm morbidly fascinated by how he's been stuffed like this for over a century.

I also love this reminder that human love of dogs is by no means a new phenomena.

xoxo, natty ♥  

Another one bites the dust.

I salvaged this toy for Guinness from the "free"/mail table in our building's lobby.
And now I'm throwing it away because he ripped off the eyes and started to extract stuffing through the holes. And it's making our apartment messy/messier.

What's on your weekend agenda? Ours includes some Nationals baseball and maybe a few miles spent running.

xoxo, natty ♥  

Just a quick {& warm!} squall.

xoxo, natty ♥  

Another Tuesday.

Days are going by fast these weeks; weird how that happens.

I know that magazines exist a month ahead of the world, but, stiiiillllllllll!

xoxo, natty ♥  

Music Genome Project.

For some odd reason, after six years of cool springs while living in California, San Jose is experiencing an extremely warm season {many 80+ degree days in a row} and we're languishing over here.

Here's a side-by-side comparison in case you were wondering.

We're supposed to be beating San Jose at this point.

A couple of things I think are funny about the above image:

- DC is SO much hotter than San Jose, hands down, but because of the averages San Jose comes out on top.

- This is the coolest feature on weather.com but it's way under-rated as its hidden in the wedding planning feature.

In some positive, more interesting news.

1} I made an Iowa Girl Eats recipe tonight that doubled as a fridge-emptier.

Behold: Quinoa Cups.

I threw in some left over sausage and kale for half of the batch and then basil with mozzarella {we ran out of tomatoes} for the rest. And my cupcake pan is pitiful and not very prolific so I augmented my baking ware with some individual lasagne dishes.

I'm pleased with how they turned out. I'd read about these in various different places as a good way to use-up what have you and they were as easy as I'd heard; huzzah!

2} I have a Brooks & Dunn station on Pandora right now.

Apart from this Kenny Chesney song that makes me cry each time I hear it, my man Toby has been on the playlist and ohmygoodnessgracious his voice is an elixir and has been since I was 15. Oooooooooh I love the sound of that man.

3} I'm re-embracing my country side. It's been a part of me for over half my life but it gets tamped down quite successfully what with no one else around me liking it.

4} I finally updated my phone and computer software and unloaded all of the phone pictures I had taken since March. There were a lot of pink blossoms in there.

5} Not to dwell on the weather {I'm really not in this one} but I just loved the way the forecast was worded on the radio today: temperatures have been stranded in the mid-sixties today.

What's up in your corner of the world? Is it still breezy? Are you enjoying one of my favorite months too?

xoxo, natty ♥ 

Puebla.

The National Cinco de Mayo festival was held at the National Mall today, in honor of the anniversary of the Battle of Puebla.

While nice, it didn't hold a vela to what my hometown can do to celebrate this day. But the dancers were pretty and it was delightful to stroll with my husband.

Have a lovely start to your week!

xoxo, natty ♥

More than just trees.

Today we went to the National Arboretum.

Their azalea collection is gorgeous and in full bloom.

This place had been on my list of things to do and see here for months and I finally got my husband to agree to come with me.

The day was beautiful, though a bit windy for my taste {we've been in this gross holding pattern of mid-sixties and windy weather, truly pleasant to many people but not my cup of tea [too windy, too chilly]} and we brought Guinness along.

There are over 400 acres in this beautiful oasis on the edges of DC and we only romped around a bit.

Though the arboretum is mostly plant life, there is this cool exhibit in the middle of  field.

 

Capitol Columns.

They make the place look like a scene from a science fiction movie; they seem to come up out of nowhere and imply an earlier and forgotten civilization.

But my favorite part was the Bonsai exhibit.

This is an outdoor museum and you wind your way through several "rooms" of these beautiful bonsai trees.

Each tree has a placard that explains what specimen it is {pine, Japanese Maple, etc.} and for how many years it has been "in training".

The oldest tree there has been cultivated since 1625.

I thoroughly enjoyed our little visit and look forward to going back for more of those 400+ acres!

xoxo, natty ♥ 

Ferrets.

I saw this sign today.

Those things are illegal where I come from.
In other words, on this weekend's agenda:

• running

• friends

• The National Arboretum 

• lazing about and sleeping in

I hope that your weekend bodes happily on the horizon.

And, heartfelt congratulations to a certain couple I know and love on making it through law school together {in a graduate school marriage both parties deserve kudos}!!!
xoxo, natty ♥

Good feelings.

As many am, I'm addicted to caffeine. It's not severe, I just need my two cups a morning, but it's still there.

So for me, that little green light that means I'll wake up to what I need makes me happy each time I see it.

xoxo, natty ♥

Z-Pack attack.

xoxo, natty ♥