Saturday, September 29, 2012

Project 365: 101 | Gym | 09.28.12


Project 365: 101 | Gym | 09.28.12

This was pretty much my view for most of my work week. I was busy escorting a guest speaker to a bunch of our schools. Most of the presentations were in school gyms and although the gyms differ, the floors are roughly the same.

Camera: iPhone

Project 365: 100 | Graffiti | 09.27.12


Project 365: 100 | Graffiti | 09.27.12

I feel like if you are going to take the time to paint graffiti on the side of a building, 1) don't do it on the wall of a church and 2) practice first. This isn't even pretty.

Camera: iPhone

Project 365: 99 | Wedding2 | 09.26.12


Project 365: 99 | Wedding2 | 09.26.12

I have to be honest, this photo was not taken on Tuesday. It was actually taken on day/photo 25 but my friend texted it to me on Tuesday so I'm counting it as my photo of the day.

Camera: iPhone, although the original was not taken my an iPhone.

Project 365: 98 | Brains | 09.25.12


Project 365: 98 | Brains | 09.25.12

Just another day in my life, driving brains (1 ape, 1/2 human) around in my car.

Camera: iPhone

Wednesday, September 26, 2012

Project 365: 97 | SkinnyTaste | 09.24.12


Project 365: 97 | SkinnyTaste | 09.24.12

On Monday, we cooked two new dishes from one of my favorite food blogs, SkinnyTaste, and they were a success. My honey cooked the grilled Asian chicken and I made the edamame fried rice. We threw in some steamed broccoli and we had delicious and healthy rice bowls. I had done a little prep work the day before, including marinating the chicken and cooking the brown rice. So far, all of the recipes we have cooked from SkinnyTaste have been keepers!

Camera: iPhone

Project 365: 96 | Ozzie | 09.23.12


Project 365: 96 | Ozzie | 09.23.12

My parents were cat sitting this past weekend. This is Ozzie -- a cute little cuddle bug. I think he is part ewok.

Camera: iPhone

Project 365: 95 | Nerds | 09.22.12


Project 365: 95 | Nerds | 09.22.12

This is some of the guest art posted on a board at MoMA. I especially like the middle statement. We went on Saturday to catch the Cindy Sherman exhibit (amazing!) before it closes October 8.

Camera: iPhone

Project 365: 94 | Five | 09.21.12


Project 365: 94 | Five | 09.21.12

oooOOOOhhhhhh.

Camera: iPhone (4)

Friday, September 21, 2012

Project 365: 93 | Awards | 09.20.12


Project 365: 93 | Awards | 09.20.12

Wednesday was my one-year anniversary at my "new" job and I still feel like such a lucky duck. I truly love the work that I do.

Last night I volunteered to help with the annual teacher of the year awards event that our office coordinates. I had no idea what a big deal it was until I arrived and walked into a hotel ballroom with tables and chairs set up for 450+ people. I quickly got to work putting programs on all of the tables and checking-in guests.

I took this photo when I sat down at our table to enjoy the dinner and ceremony. It was such a wonderful evening and I continue to be in awe of the dedication, talent and energy of our local educators.

Camera: iPhone

Project 365: 92 | Snuggly | 09.19.12


Project 365: 92 | Snuggly | 09.19.12

Stella is very good at welcome home snuggles.

Camera: iPhone

Project 365: 91 | Tomatillos | 09.18.12


Project 365: 91 | Tomatillos | 09.18.12

Almost a pound of tomatillos cost a whopping 55¢ at our local produce market. I bought them to go in a turkey and tomatillo chili. Recipe coming soon.

Camera: Canon Rebel T1i

Project 365: 90 | Pillow | 09.17.12


Project 365: 90 | Pillow | 09.17.12

Stella loves technology.

Camera: iPhone

Project 365: 89 | Dexter | 09.16.12


Project 365: 89 | Dexter | 09.16.12

My parents were recently dogsitting and had this guy, Dexter, at their house for the weekend. Dexter was happy to have Jac and I over for dinner on Sunday. We took him for a walk and he did a lot of "smiling," as pictured here.

Camera: iPhone

Sunday, September 16, 2012

Project 365: 88 | Tea | 09.15.12


Project 365: 88 | Tea | 09.15.12

For Christmas three years ago, I bought my mom a gift certificate for tea. I did that again the year before last and we just got around to enjoying a lovely mother-daughter tea with one of my mom's best friends and her daughter.

Camera: iPhone

Project 365: 87 | Artists | 09.14.12


Project 365: 87 | Artists | 09.14.12

We had a friend over for dinner on Friday and then the three of us went to karaoke. There was a man sitting next to us at the bar who had enjoyed a few drinks before we arrived. Whenever someone started singing, he would shout out his artist guess. Needless to say, he was hilariously wrong every time, except when he got the Bob Dylan song incorrect, correct and then incorrect again. I took this screen shot when we got home, which was taken after midnight, but I'm counting it for Friday's photo.

Camera: iPhone

Project 365: 86 | Conference | 09.13.12


Project 365: 86 | Conference | 09.13.12

During a break out session at the conference I attended this week, we worked in small groups to build our perfect corner stores.

Camera: iPhone

Thursday, September 13, 2012

Project 365: 85 | Parking | 09.12.12


Project 365: 85 | Parking | 09.12.12

Sometimes I worry that I am going to forget where I parked my car so I take a photo to refresh my memory, as needed.

Camera: iPhone

Project 365: 84 | Cankle | 09.11.12


Project 365: 84 | Cankle | 09.11.12

My only major injury to date (*knock on wood*) has been a sprained ankle. For some unknown reason, my ankle decided to puff up on Tuesday -- for the first time since it initially healed five years ago. I took this photo while trying to ice it back to a normal looking ankle. (We were out of frozen peas so I went with frozen broccoli.) It has puffed up every day since, starting fairly normal in the morning but then getting worse as the day goes on. I am thinking I will have to go to the doctor if it doesn't stop doing that soon.

Camera: iPhone

Project 365: 83 | Possum | 09.10.12


Project 365: 83 | Possum | 09.10.12

We had one invited guest and one uninvited guest over for dinner on Monday night. Those glow-y eyes belong to a possum, who decided to venture across our tall back concrete fence until it saw us, paused for a photo, and then retreated back where it came from.

Camera: iPhone

Project 365: 82 | Turkey | 09.09.12


Project 365: 82 | Turkey | 09.09.12

We did not have wild turkey for dinner, but it was a close call.

Camera: iPhone

Sunday, September 9, 2012

Project 365: 81 | Event | 09.08.12


Project 365: 81 | Event | 09.08.12

Yesterday we attended a Yelp event called Beerwalk Empire where there was lots of delicious food, fun entertainment and, as you can imagine, beer tasting. All of it free with a $10 donation to two local nonprofit organizations. This was the largest Yelp event that we have ever attended but it never felt crowded and we had our fill of food and drink on a beautiful Saturday afternoon.

Camera: iPhone

Project 365: 80 | Cheers! | 09.07.12


Project 365: 80 | Cheers! | 09.07.12

Thanks to technology, I enjoyed a glass of wine with a friend who had just finished work across the country. It was a nice way to kick off the weekend.

Camera: iPhone

Project 365: 79 | Lesson | 09.06.12


Project 365: 79 | Lesson | 09.06.12

During a recent training, we developed sample lesson plans in small groups, aligning a topic and grade level of our choice with state english language arts and math standards. My group decided to go above and beyond and also aligned our "Election 2012" lesson with social studies and science standards. My favorite was science -- how do natural disasters and weather affect voter turnout? 

Camera: iPhone

Project 365: 78 | Michelle | 09.05.12


Project 365: 78 | Michelle | 09.05.12

"Barack knows the American Dream because he's lived it, and he wants everyone in this country to have that same opportunity, no matter who we are, or where we're from, or what we look like, or who we love. He believes that when you've worked hard, and done well, and walked through that doorway of opportunity, you do not slam it shut behind you. You reach back, and you give other folks the same chances that helped you succeed." - Michelle Obama

Camera: iPhone

Project 365: 77 | Workout | 09.04.12



Project 365: 77 | Workout | 09.04.12

Trying to get back into a workout routine.

Camera: iPhone

Thursday, September 6, 2012

Recipe: Broccoli & Cheddar Cheese Egg Muffins

Broccoli & Cheddar Egg Muffins
Freezable!

My work hours are generally 7:00 am - 4:30 pm and there is NO WAY I can wait until lunch-time to eat AND I don't have a good history of eating breakfast. I quickly learned that grab-and-go food options are key. What this means is that my breakfast usually consists of something such as a hard-boiled egg, string cheese, and/or fresh fruit. 

When I came across this egg muffins recipe at Kalyn's Kitchen, I knew it would be perfect for my work-day breakfast needs. One egg muffin and some fresh fruit is the perfect breakfast for me and one that I can eat at my desk...or in the car...or while walking through the door of the meeting I am attending. 

The two best things about this recipe are that it is completely customizable AND freezer-friendly. The veggie, meat (or no meat), cheese, and seasoning combinations are as endless as your imagination. Since my honey doesn't like eggs, I got to keep all of these to myself and so I froze half for the following week. I think these taste just fine cold or room temperature but you can also pop them into the microwave for 30-seconds or so, if warmed up is your preference.

Lesson learned: Be sure to use either a silicone pan or a regular muffin tin with liners. I thought I could get away with a regular muffin tin and nonstick spray. I was wrong. My honey (you know, the one who doesn't like eggs?) was nice to enough to spend for-ev-er cleaning the pan. I was ready to just throw it out and buy a new one. 

Eggs + chives + seasoning.
Choppin' brocco-lee...choppin' brocco-lie...
Topped with cheese.
I highly recommend using a silicone pan or using liners. Lesson learned.

Broccoli & Cheddar Egg Muffins
Makes: 12
Calories: 137/muffin (this will obviously change based on your ingredients)

Ingredients
12 eggs
1 tsp garlic powder
Salt and pepper, to taste
1/4 cup finely chopped chives (or green onions)
1 cup steamed broccoli (or meat/veggie combo of your choice)
1 cup shredded sharp cheddar cheese (or cheese of your choice)

Directions
  1. Preheat oven to 375º F. 
  2. If using a regular muffin tin, line with muffin liners. If using a silicone pan, spray with nonstick spray. 
  3. Beat all of the eggs in a large bowl. Add garlic powder, salt, pepper, and chives and whisk to combine.
  4. Evenly distribute the broccoli (or other meat/veggies) into each cup of the muffin tin. Top with cheese. Pour the egg mixture into each cup, filling approximately 3/4 of the way full. 
  5. Put muffin tin in preheated oven and bake for 25-30 minutes until the muffins are set and slightly browned. 
  6. Let cool for 5 minutes and then remove egg muffins. Store in the refrigerator or let cool completely and freeze. 

Tuesday, September 4, 2012

Project 365: 76 | LaborDay | 09.03.12



Project 365: 76 | LaborDay | 09.03.12

Yesterday was a beautiful (although a bit too hot) day for a backyard BBQ with our framily (friends who are our family). 

Camera: iPhone

Project 365: 75 | Beer | 09.02.12


Project 365: 75 | Beer | 09.02.12

We got a lot done around the house during day one of our three-day weekend so on day two we decided to take an impromptu road trip to Bear Republic Brewery where we split this awesome beer sampler. The food was good too!

Camera: iPhone

Project 365: 74 | Crab | 09.01.12


Project 365: 74 | Crab | 09.01.12

Homemade crab cakes with a spicy remoulade and greens with lemon juice and olive oil.

Camera: iPhone

Saturday, September 1, 2012

Project 365: 73 | Nama | 08.31.12


Project 365: 73 | Nama | 08.31.12

Our favorite Japanese restaurant recently opened up another location and since we missed our usually sushi dinner on Thursday, we decided to go to the new spot for a date night on Friday. Although this one most certainly won't replace the other for us, it is almost just as good.

Camera: iPhone

Project 365: 72 | Songs | 08.30.12


Project 365: 72 | Songs | 08.30.12

Our favorite bar has added a fourth karaoke night (Thursday) so we went to check it out.

Camera: iPhone

Project 365: 71 | Foiled | 08.29.12


Project 365: 71 | Foiled | 08.29.12

Stella Kitty enjoys stretching in corners, yelling, and then running around like a crazy cat. Normally this is just mildly annoying except when she chooses to do it inside of our fireplace and then leaves little black kitty footprints all over the place. She is very particular about textures and things that make noise so I put some foil down to try to prevent her from going in the fireplace. So far it has worked. Foiled!

Camera: iPhone

Project 365: 70 | Morning | 08.28.12


Project 365: 70 | Morning | 08.28.12

I took this photo shortly after arriving at my office on Tuesday morning. If you could read the clock on that post, you would know that this photo was taken right around 7:00 am. I'm an early bird.

Camera: iPhone