Football.

Today we enjoyed some football on TV and major jun-fooding; what a Saturday. Tomorrow is to be a busy day with family and getting ready for the week so here we go!
xoxo, natty ♥

A lesser version.

Perusing the market this morning I came across this:

I've been curious about tur-duck-ens for quite a while and I still am, I'm not letting this discourage my interest because I think that this is a mere shade of what it could be.

In other culinary news, White Chicken Chili and football were on today's agenda and both made for quite a lovely afternoon. We're taking care of some errandy stuff this week before heading north to Pennsylvania for some Thanksgiving love.
xoxo, natty ♥

Nary a nap!

We had a fun day at Michael's brother's place as a home-base today. We went for a nice long walk through the zoo, which is nearby, and then enjoyed some football on the tube...and that crazy baby slept for approximately half an hour the whole day.

Let's hope she makes it up tonight! Have a great week folks!
xoxo, natty ♥

Getting into the game.

We got festive for tonight's big game.

First we started with grass.

Then we added in end zones.

And finally the chips/fans.

It was a beautiful success. 

But there was so much food at the party we went to that there was hardly a dent in our field.

Oh well, we had a ton of fun in the process.

Onto the Olympics!

xoxo, natty ♥

Friends.

It's been a really nice weekend. We spent a good full day today with friends, having brunch at our place with one group and then watching football with another group at someone else's home. 

We're watching the last seconds of the 49ers/Seahawks game and the suspense is getting to me so I'll cut this short.

Edited to add: the game just ended...major cringe.

If you have tomorrow off, enjoy your time and to all out there, think about why we're celebrating.
xoxo, natty ♥

Football and portraits.

One of my oldest {not in age!} and best and dearest friends is in town. Last night we lazed and enjoyed the feeling of a Friday and today we got out a bit.

After a look through the National Portrait Gallery we headed over to my brother-in-law's to watch football for the rest of the day...it was a lot of pigskin! And quite the contrast from what we did earlier in the day.

And now it's way past bedtime...on to a good day tomorrow!!!
xoxo, natty ♥

Long week.

We left during the fourth quarter of a game that could've been better.

And now? Time for sleep without an alarm clock on the other side!

Happy weekend!
xoxo, natty ❤

Good Inauguration Day to you!

We lazed around and watched football all day long; good times!
Until tomorrow!
xoxo, natty ♥

Are you ready?

For some football?!?!?!?!
Today's agenda includes some major cleaning/organizing and then some football, though I missed the first game I really wanted to see yesterday during the movie situation, the Patriots' game is #2 on my list so I'm excited for later this afternoon!

Tom Brady?

Are you following the playoffs this year Reader?
xoxo, natty ♥

Dinner tonight, dinner tomorrow.

We made some easy-sloppy {from a can} enchiladas tonight. They were yummy and went very nicely with the football that had been on all day.
Since we had our extra hour, though, I tried to get ahead of things a bit. In our first CSA delivery I got a big bag of greens {chard, kale, etc.} as well as a large bunch of turnip greens. These poor verdant things had been languishing since then which is almost three weeks ago. Yikes.  Lucky for me these are some hardy leaves and they hold up quite well.

This last week I got a handful of sweet potatoes.

What to do?

Sweet potato and chard/greens gratin, that's what!

With some extra time and a dish that holds well overnight, I was able to get tomorrow night's dinner all ready to go, it just needs to be baked for a bit.

I LOVE when I can get things taken care of like this though it's certainly not as often as I'd like.

Did you have a nice weekend? I'm really saying a prayer and thinking some good thoughts for the folks up the east coast and being grateful for how we weathered the storm.
xoxo, natty ♥

Packers.

Monday is quietly drawing to a close and I'm thinking of a few other happy things...

This morning's run...that's the capitol in the yellow part.

1} Aaron Rodgers is on TV right now. Le swoon.
2} Dinner tonight! Tomato-zucchini casserole!
3} I scored myself a backpack and my little spine {& shoulders!} are already thanking me.
4} My mother has been downright SPOILING us. I could get used to this pampering!
5} My sweet hubby returned safely {albeit a bit bleary eyed} from a weekend away; thank goodness for safe travels!

What's going on in your corner of the world? Are you enjoying pumpkins yet? I have it on my hot list to get us to an apple orchard come heck or high water. Look forward to that, folks!
xoxo, natty ♥

Clear Eyes Full Heart Can't Lose.

This is a busy week for us here in Logan Circle so I take a moment to ponder some Good Things.

A cheerful attempt at banana grams.

1} We've currently gotten ourselves enmeshed in the final season of the TV show Friday Night Lights. I've waxed poetic on this series before and we had actually put off watching these last episodes because then it means that it's over. The time has come. Since Friday I think we've watched nine out of the total 12. 
2} My mom's flying in TONIGHT! Like, really late tonight...that's why I'm not currently scrambling to get into bed. Woo hoo!
3} Because of my mom's visit we probably won't watch those last few episodes for a couple of weeks which is great because it draws it all out.
4} I wore corduroys today! Yea! It's not really cold or anything but it's not Dang Hot and Humid anymore. I guess that's a good thing ;).
5} We have SO many windows in our apartment and we're a corner unit; we get some glorious cross breezes when the windows are all open. With the changing weather {read : no more 100 degree days} this is a possibility and it's lovely.

What's going on in your neck of the woods? Is the weather turning? Are you enjoying the plethora of football and baseball on TV? Happy Monday-is-almost-over!  
xoxo, natty ♥

Roll AWAY Tide.

Mikey's playing soccer right now and I'm enjoying some empty time and watching the Arkansas game. We're playing Alabama and our quarterback is out for the game so things aren't looking great for us but that's ok...WOOOOOOOOO Pig Soooooooie anyway =)

Are you enjoying the weekend? It's warm but very pleasant here...I love September!
xoxo, natty ♥

Retraction.

So after I published my post that said the Hogs were on their way to winning again and went to bed last night, the Arkansas Razorbacks LOST. There were something like four minutes left in the game and those must have been a good four minutes! That's what I get for trying to predict the future.
Something else I get for trying to say what will happen is that my computer's power cord stops working. I have a relatively new {it was a Christmas 2011 purchase} Macbook Air and it hasn't been used too hardly/abused/exposed to elements/manhandled and all of a sudden today the power cord stopped doing its job. I tried several other outlets in our apartment, reset the SMC {whatever that means...I just followed directions}, let it sit unplugged for a while, updated the software, and said a prayer and nothing worked. I'll end up schlepping it over to the Georgetown Apple store this week hopefully.
On that note and in honor of my in-law family's current travails in Italy, buona sera! May your week get off to a fabulous {& football filled - we're on our third [fourth?] game of the day!} start!
xoxo, natty ♥

Hogs and rainstorms.

Last weekend the Hogs won their game and they're currently in the process of getting their second "W" of 2012 - 2013. WPS!
In other news, on an errand run into Virginia today we got stuck in the middle of a nasty {but fairly quickly moving} storm. There were even tornado warnings involved and I don't think I can accurately express in words the fear that tornadoes strike into my heart. It's bad. But my sweetie managed the roads and our car quite well and we're at home finishing up a nice and relaxed evening; exactly what I wanted/needed after a busy week and before another full set of days.
I hope there were no tornadoes in your neck of the woods today!
xoxo, natty ♥

A month in pictures; August 2012.

* Scroll down for the updated post! *
I'll actually have the pictures up later today but I have a few minutes right now to get some thoughts down. 
We're watching some college football on TV right now. But it's not until later tonight that our Hogs play! Woo Pig Sooie! I'll be sporting red and white and watching the game on my computer since it's not aired in our area haha. There are so many games on today and it's fun seeing the excited fans and announcers; I love their energy!
We're also going to go on an adventure to Alexandria, Virginia, today in search of some ingredients for a possible chile relleno feast. 
I have a package that needs to be picked up and I'd also love to go snag a movie ticket for Sleepwalk With Me. After tomorrow's afternoon and evening showings Ira Glass himself {of This American Life fame} will be there to answer questions and I'd be tickled pink to see him.
Are you excited for the start of the college football season? Do you follow a team or conference? For Becs, go Vols! But only for Becs.
Happy weekend!

* Begin update! *
Alrighty, here's the month of August in pictures.

1. Pretty sky. 2. Shaw Dog Park. 3. Brudders at Jazz in the Garden. 4. Presidential podium. 5. Beautiful fruit vegetables of the earth. 6. Tired boys. 7. Dinn-ah. 8. Monumental. 9. Peanut butter. 10. Smartrip! 11. From my kitchen window. 12. "You want a toe?" 13. Edna St. Vincent Millay. 14. Ikea directions man. 15. Cheese and quackers. 16. Hawses. 17. Nats. 18. Slippies. 19. Lettuce heart. 20. Under the sea bed. 21. Pad Thai @ home. 22. Pizza! 23. Couch time. 24. Despondent. 25. Gelato 1.0. 26. Gelato 2.0. 27. Sous chef. 28. Plate full of fun. 29. Snake. 30. Window treatment. 31. Dinner helper.

A pathetic statistic from the last month, 7/31 of August's pictures involved the dog.
And to sign off for the evening, Woo Pig Sooie!

Sporting my red and white.

Good long weekend to you!       
xoxo, natty ♥

Those Hogs.

I didn't mention how my Razorbacks did last week; they bamboozled Auburn!! Woooooo Pig Soooooie!!!!!!!!!! They had a bye this week {didn't play} and are gearing up to face Ole Miss next weekend; let's hope they beat those Rebels!!!!! Speaking of, Parade magazine had a feature on Ole Miss tailgating traditions. Various NCAA fan behavior was discussed, including certain highlights such as "Most Luxurious Digs" {the Cockabooses of University of Southern Carolina for all you Gamecock fans} or "Most Finger-Licking Food" {for Louisiana State University's Cajun/Creole inspired eats}. Arkansas was NOT mentioned though many other institutions were...do I sense a bias? I thought we were friends, Parade Magazine, I thought we were friends...
I hope you all have been enjoying a good weekend; Guinness and I certainly have been with our coffee, newspapers and the couch all morning.
xoxo, natty ♥

Rock and Roll.

This morning the San Jose Rock 'n' Roll half marathon wove it's way through our fair city and neighborhood. It was a fun run, as it always is, with bands at almost every mile, very lovely temperatures and TONS of cheerleaders {literal and figurative ones} along the route. A celebratory lunch was had at at a sports bar where we were able to check out some NFL action; I'm loving the Breast Cancer Awareness Pink that the teams are all sporting...way to go guys!
Speaking of football...how 'bout them Hogs?!!?!?!? What a comeback in the second half yesterday which is precisely when I posted my shout-out to them. It was that little cheer of mine that did it for them I'm sure; HA! Let's hope they do even better this next weekend against Auburn. In case this doesn't make any sense {I am a California girl, after all...}, by the way, check out this post HERE.
Anyway, I hope y'all are enjoying the end of the weekend, a beautiful Sunday afternoon and positive thoughts for the work/school/family week ahead.
Be good to yourselves and relax a bit today ☺.
xoxo, natty ♥

Woooooooooooooo Pig Soooooooooie!

Come on Hogs; let's rally and beat those Aggies!!!!
xoxo, natty ♥

Woo Pig Sooie

A while ago my good friend Becs talked about a goal. She and I went to a small liberal arts college and it was a wonderful experience. It was, however, not a very traditional experience athletics and "big-school" wise. Rebecca had read a book about sororities {which we did not have} and became inspired to be more knowledgeable regarding the typical university experience since it was something we did not have. Her inspiration, since she's a sports fan, manifested in an interesting challenge. The idea is to research and follow/become a fan of a large college football team. Becs chose the South Eastern Conference {SEC} for reasons that you can read about HERE. 
When I read her blog post about this I kind of freaked out because I had been very secretly fascinated by the south and a certain SEC team for a few years and I was excited to share in this experience. It all started with random blog hopping; I had stumbled across some southern womens' blogs and was charmed by their big hair bows and dedication to SEC football. I was drawn to a team that has a live mascot, which I love. This creature is one of my favorites because I think they resemble English Bull Terriers, the dog I grew up with.

Via.

I decided that I would copy Becs in following a team this season. There was no question, obviously, since I was already enamored of this team's mascot. So, an Arkansas Razorback Hog fan I am. Here is Tusk. He's actually a legacy, so forgive me; here is Tusk IV.

Via.

Via.

The Hogs had been doing well up until today but lost badly to Alabama {the Crimson Tide}. I think that's "OK" since the Tide is ranked #3 and the Hogs are #14, but I'm still a bit bummed. My heart is warmed when I read about the tradition and enthusiasm involved in the team. I feel, too, as though I can safely assume that it's not just Arkansas that is so supportive of their team. I think the whole SEC is like this as well as many other big schools in the US {Pac 10 [11 12], etc.}. It really is SUPER different from our college athletics experience and my high school one as well. It's not that we did not have sports but neither of my alma maters are large and though the athletics were well supported, our size alone dictated that there was a fair amount of balance on campus regarding extra-curriculars; sports and drama and art and everything else was prevalent and not in a money-making/business-y/"it's life" sort of way that it is at larger institutions. Don't get me wrong, please; I'm not touting one over the other at all...I'm just intrigued by what I myself did not experience.
Anyway, I'm really excited to be a fan. I love that lots of Hog fans didn't even go to the university. I love that there are about a bajillion apparel options in Razorback themes {red...with a hog}, including dresses and bikinis! All is available at Hog Heaven online or the actual Hog Heaven in Fayetteville, Arkansas. 
Part of the plan is to actually attend a game next season and Becs' team {Tennessee} and my Hogs will actually meet...hopefully we make this a reunion of sorts though I'm already worried about where we will sit since I can guarantee that I will want to deck myself out in red and also sit with Becs who will be draped in orange and I don't think that the two colors will mix...if you catch my drift. We can figure that out in 2012. Until then...I, today and most Saturdays through the end of college football season, exclaim our official hog call..."WOO PIG SOOIE"!
xoxo, natty ♥