in between

[late night birdies]

over the past several weeks, we've been enjoying more casual rendezvous that have been a little less jam-packed, and relaxed in nature. we've enjoyed the slower pace so, so much as we are about to hit another (fun) busy 'bout of back to back plans again...isn't that funny it goes in ebbs in flows like that? so, i thought it was high time for an in between post as a fun recap. 

[lunch date]

[rose tastings]

[framily dinner]

[boba playing co-pilot/napping]

the highlights: sampling the new cocktail menu at the newly reopened savings and loans, finding a new favorite corn dog with chicken sausage, helping wrap up wedding to-do's for my best, late night bike gang romps, trying out new pie flavors, and the pups soaking up all the attention at the art walk (they were very popular). 

[snacking and planning]

[french 75 and the boba tea cocktail]

[breakdance break]

[getting ready to ride]

[bromance happy hour]

[savory dinners]

[framily dinner]

cositas

[T's latest art modeling piece]

yesterday, the world grew by one beautiful little baby girl as my darling friends just gave birth to their first. the past week, i'd been feverishly checking my phone for updates once she'd let me know it may be happening early. she's the first in our group of friends, so it was extra fun for us to follow along throughout her pregnancy. a huge congrats to my amazing friend jessica, and her husband john! i cannot wait for my next trip out to meet her. 

[dinner prep]

[garden guards]

[savory sweet potatoes]

[all the roses]

[happy day!]

edible trail and error

[heavenly layers]

it only seemed natural that my initial luck in pasta making would eventually be tested. quite often i get asked if i ever have a recipe that failed, or didn't go smoothly. and as much as i quickly confess, most assume i'm fibbing. so, i thought it'd be fun to post on a couple of our recent endeavors that didn't go according to plan. thankfully, both blunders did end up tasting phenomenally, but not without considerable effort. 

a couple of weekends back, T had been craving my braised beef stroganoff served over pappardelle noodles. so, i thought, why not make the noodles to go with it? how difficult could it be? overall, the recipe was very straightforward and easy to work through. however, i didn't have the faintest idea that a hot kitchen (the stroganoff has to slow cook in the oven for 3 hours) would cause problems in making pasta sheets. i'd heard about heat and humidity being a factor, but just assumed i wouldn't have to worry about it...silly, i know. 

several of our sheets started sticking to everything they touched before they could be cut, and we had to remake sheets a few times. this all occurring as i needed to pull the beef from the oven, and start on sauteing the veggies for the sauce. not to mention i was sweating something serious - pasta making it quite the workout. but, i did learn the importance of flouring my noodles as well as letting them rest prior to cooking. 

[beautiful noodles]

[savory and rich]

[just gorgeous, right?]

the finished product? velvety, thin noodles that paired beautifully with my stroganoff. several lessons learned, and a hopeful me that my next noodle 'venture would be that much improved.

then, last friday, we thought it would be fun to try out our skills on a few friends. a little homemade ravioli action with T's infamous meat sauce. sounded simple enough, right? remember my note earlier about how heat and humidity can effect pasta making? yeah...i completely forgot all about the humid part. that is, until it came to rolling our sheets out to make ravioli. it had been raining for the past couple of days with a huge storm coming through that day. sadly, our sheets stuck to everything including the depression trays to where we couldn't get the raviolis out! 

i'd be lying if i said i didn't panic several times as difficult as the pasta was being. it almost seemed comical that this was happening while our friends were over for dinner, after we'd talked about how we'd nailed it at pasta making. ...i guess the universe thought it was a good test in humility. we did finally get our ravioli semi-worked out and only lost 12 in the end. but, we did learn another boatload of lessons. one, pay attention to the weather; two, don't roll the sheets too thin on the bottom layer; three, stick with a dough recipe that you like and 'clicks'; and four, flour, flour, flour!

[cheese filling]

[the lucky 42 that made it-ish]

[T working away on his sauce]

the finished product? deliciously delicate parcels of cheese and pasta working in perfect harmony with T's sauce. our sweetly patient friends loved it, and honestly helped keep me pushing through when i was convinced it was never going to come together. and then, like some kind of magic, it did! 

life, according to my iphone

[fishy choices; neighborhood mid-run finds]

not to sound cliche, but thank goodness it is friday. this really has felt like the longest week. although, that may be more to do with the fact that i've had my days mixed up for the better part of the work week. monday, i thought was thursday, wednesday i thought was tuesday, and thursday i thought was friday. today, i feel relieved to be on track with what actual day it is. so tonight, we plan to celebrate by having a some of our framily over for ravioli and wine. 

enjoy the weekend!

[cookout goods; bday surprised face]

[a sunny car ride; T's first try at a pork tenderloin - yum]

[friyay family dinner; sun break]

[friends in plaid; snail mail from a sweet friend]

[impromptu lunch date with T]

[comfort food; furry cuddles]

[T tasting a couple of new brews]

[pouty pups; sweet treats]

[falling in love with katsudon; record choices]

[weeknight girls dinner]

[the teensiest chopsticks; one of T's favorite shops]

[margarita-themed happy hour; all the men up against one tree]

[i mustache you a question; little brother big spooning]

[ravioli stuffing; plant eye candy]

a reading

last weekend, i received my first tarot card reading with T. it happened on a random whim, but was kind of cool, and weird, and interesting, and oddly on the nose. even when i think about it now, it was completely strange. i had never been interested in getting one, and honestly, didn't even think it was anything more than a gimick. i'm still not completely sure how i feel about it even now. but, she gave me a lot to think about. for any who are curious, i said nothing about myself when i sat down besides saying my name...so, she had no information about me. her reading was vague (of course), but touched on areas i'd been ruminating on. 

technically, she didn't tell me anything i didn't already know, but somehow hearing an outsider confirm what my gut was saying was so affirming. truth be told, i sarcastically thought she'd tell me something ominous about my future. have any of you guys had a tarot card reading? what'd you think?

greening thumb

[last year's bounty]

for some, i know this isn't the most exciting topic, but T and i have gotten into gardening for the past couple of years. we are still very wet behind the ears in experience and knowledge, but have quenched a growing thirst for cultivating our own goods. it started from the tiniest of complaints - the quick deterioration of grocery store herbs and their expense. i can't tell you how often i have bought basil only to have to return and get more after two days when it goes bad. 

so, we started small, working our way up with each success, and learning from our failed attempts. currently, we've started working towards this year's harvest, and i can't wait to see what comes of it. once our garden has reemerged, i'll post an update. but, fingers crossed it goes well. 

[a colorful path]

awesome and awkward

[testing our skills at salmon cakes]

awesome:

• since the start of the year, T and i have been on the go, with every weekend planned and packed to the brim. we've just now come to a point where our weekends are slowly becoming our own again, and believe me, it has been well missed. 
• three amazing changes coming to those i love: i am gaining another niece or nephew later this year (!!), one of my closest friends is about to bring in a darling little girl in under a month (cue excitement, and nervously checking my phone), and my best is about to be married to her beloved at the start of next month. so much yay!
• T and i recently watched passengers, and while it didn't get rave reviews, i fell in love with it. i thought it brought up some interesting ideas about human nature, and our drive to connect with others. what choices we make, the reasoning behind it, and how desperation takes it's toll in our decision making. the psychological aspect was very intriguing to me, to say the least. 

awkward:

• while taking the pups on a walk, we walked past a house that had a couch ready for pickup. before i could stop him, boba quickly marked it as his own...in front of the homeowner. oops.
• for whatever reason, when i bring in a new plant for our backyard, within hours of planting it, solo pees on it. and because he has inadvertently killed several plants, i have to come up with new tactics to keep him from doing what he does. i wish i could accurately describe the look he gives me...it's a mix of why, screw you, no, and i can't stop it, i'm in the middle of peeing, duh. 

[the look T gives me when i say i want to take a look at more plants]

[trying new dishes with friends]

[nurse pups tending to my mom post-knee surgery]