Photos of the Week

Last week was pretty chill. Things are just status quo over here. Nothing too crazy going on, not a lot of big plans...Here's some shots from the week. 

Evie chillin' on the couch

Evie sleeps on the foot of the bed at night but in the AM, before we get up, I let her get under the covers. Lately, I get up and she stays in bed. I have seriously beg her to get up. It's like trying to wake up a kid that doesn't want to go to school! Sure, I could pick her up and carry her off the bed but she gets pissed. So, I have been going in the kitchen to make some noise and that usually gets her up. So lazy!

This is the mirror we haven't put up yet and one day, I saw Evie standing in front of it. We were dying laughing because we thought she was looking at herself. She may have been but what she was really doing was notifying me that there was a piece of dog food behind the mirror that she wanted. As soon as I realized that and gave her the food, she left the mirror right away. 

Check out these super cute straws. I got them on etsy for like $3. We are having a little bbq dinner party in a few weeks and I just thought those would look so cute with some mason jars as glasses. 

Erik's Mom sent us this lantern and suggested we put some of our gazillion wine corks in it. We tried it out & it's cute!

On Saturday, we went to the Berkeley Farmer's Market and had lunch at one of the food trucks. I forget the name of this one but the lunch was awesome. We got this whole plate for $8! It was lentils, tandoori chicken, rice, and veggies with a cucumber cilantro yogurt sauce. Delish!

It's the NHL Stanley Cup Finals and we are rooting for....Chicago. Yeah we are East Coasters but Chicago has been SO good this year. They started the season undefeated for a record number of games and it would be so nice to see them finish the season out with a big win. On Saturday, we went down to Triple Rock Brewery to watch the game where Chicago won and is up 3-2 of the series!

Martha's 30 Minute Gumbo

Last week, we made this awesome dinner - Gumbo! Apparently, it's not true southern gumbo per some of the comments but it was so good. It's called Martha Stewart's 30 Minute Gumbo. We both thought it was so good.

The recipe is below but here's what I changed...
- No oregano. Replaced with red pepper flakes for some spice.
- Used turkey sausage

(Martha's Photo)


PREP

• 30 MINS
• TOTAL TIME30 MINS

INGREDIENTS

• 3 tablespoons vegetable oil, such as safflower
• 1/3 cup all-purpose flour
• 2 red bell peppers (ribs and seeds removed), chopped
• 1 medium onion, chopped
• 4 garlic cloves, chopped
• 1 teaspoon dried oregano
• Coarse salt and ground pepper
• 1 package (10 ounces) frozen, cut okra
• 8 ounces smoked (precooked) andouille sausage, halved lengthwise and sliced 1 inch thick
• 1 rotisserie chicken (about 2 1/2 pounds), skin and bones removed, meat shredded (about 4 cups)
• Store-bought or homemade cornbread, for serving (optional)

VARIATIONS

Two of the 4 cups water can be replaced with 2 cups low-sodium store-bought chicken broth.

COOK'S NOTE

Rotisserie chicken shaves many minutes from the total cooking time, and its slow-roasted goodness brings just as much to the mix as if you'd cooked your own.

DIRECTIONS

1. STEP 1

   In a 5-quart Dutch oven or heavy-bottomed pot, heat oil over medium. Add flour, and cook, whisking constantly, until pale golden, 5 to 7 minutes. Stir in bell peppers, onion, garlic, and oregano; season with salt and pepper. Cook, stirring occasionally, until vegetables are crisp-tender, 10 to 12 minutes.

2. STEP 2

   Add 4 cups water; stir in okra and sausage. Bring to a boil. Stir in shredded chicken, and warm through, 1 to 2 minutes. Season with salt and pepper; if desired, serve with cornbread.

Food Bank Volunteering

Last week started off great because our team at work volunteered at the Alameda County Food Bank. Together, we bagged peppers that would later be given to food shelters and churches that offer free food. 

There were a number of volunteers there that today and among all of us on the afternoon shift, we bagged over 740lb of peppers!! Another group bagged hundreds of pounds of peaches. 

We even got a tour of the facility after our shift. We were all heartbroken to learn that the Alameda County Food bank serves over 49,000 people PER WEEK. Unfortunately almost half of that number are children. So extremely sad. 

We saw the HUGE warehouse where food was stored. The food bank was the first one in the country to ban soda donations. That is awesome! They try to focus on fresh food because that is one type of food that typically is too expensive for folks to purchase. 

What a great afternoon. I think Erik and I are going to try to go one weekend shift and do some work. It was a fun challenge to see how many bags we could get done in our shift. Plus, we know we would be helping people in our own community that truly need it. 

Weekend Recap

Here's a recap of our weekend...

On Friday I took a half day to run errands including picking up some things I found on Craigslist, Home Depot, Joann Fabrics, and Costco. At night, we stayed in with takeout burritos.

For my Craigslist finds, first this mirror which I got for $25 vs. $50 at Ikea. It is in great shape. I also bought an electric sander for $15 on Craigslist because I found this great table on the street. The table has been painted a few times so I am going to sand it down, re-paint it, and put a cushion on top so it's a little bench. Flea Market Flip has me getting creative!

Saturday AM started with Evie hopping up and sitting on the couch with me. Love when she is still tired and just wants to cuddle. 

On Saturday AM, we went to visit our friends Jenn & Andie and their new baby, Sawyer. Sawyer is only 5 weeks old and ate & slept while we were there. 

Also on Saturday, we drove down to San Mateo for a little picnic at Greg & Betsy's house. We drove through some fog on the way down south of SF...

We went through more fog on the way home.....

Sunday was Father's Day so since my Dad is 3000 miles away, I got a haircut and had lunch with my friend Nicole in SF! Check out this photo from the 80's...

Evie tore apart one of her longest lasting tough toys...This lizard has been around for quite awhile in Evie standards but now he is de-stuffed. 

These rice chips are SO good. Get them at Trader Joe's

Evie loving a car ride on Sunday...We made a stop at the hockey store in Oakland and Evie was able to go with us for a ride. Busy weekend but we had a great time being home, seeing friends, and getting house stuff done. 

Randoms of the Week

Random shots of the week....

Purty flowers we have on our table. That chevron table runner also is on the table thanks to Etsy. I cannot get enough of that site!!

Smoothies have been our go to breakfast lately. It's so easy to dump everything in the food processor and take it with you vs. eating a bowl of oatmeal. Usually, there is spinach, oatmeal, flaxseed, banana, almond butter, and almond milk in them. So good!

One day, the kids upstairs were in their yard out front arguing and crying over pizza. It was a scene right out of Home Alone where Kevin McAllister only eats cheese pizza and his family ate all of it. The same thing was happening to the little girl that lives upstairs. Her brother appropriately screamed, "I'm going to take this pizza and throw it on the ground!" Evie just nicely sat near the window looking up and wondering what in the heck was going on....

A new part of Berkeley Marina

One day last week, Evie and I went down to the Berkeley Marina and went in a different part of the park than we usually do. We saw a whole area where windsurfers were trying to surf. I say trying because I guess the wind wasn't right that day. We saw two different windsurfers lose their sail and have to get towed in by lifeguard(?) to shore. 

 Here's a wind surfer getting some help...

 It was a nice day out. I had long sleeves on and was hot. Never know if it will be nice at our house and cold at the water or warm. 

Evie went in the water as far as she could go....

 Great day for a walk!

Theta Luncheon

On Saturday, I joined the Marin Thetas for the annual luncheon and meeting. I joined the group a few months ago and went to Career Day at UC Berkeley on behalf of the Marin Thetas. 

The luncheon was held at the home of one of our members in Tiburon, CA and let me tell you, it was GORGEOUS. Right on the water - big, open floor plan, beautiful views. I googled the address and the home was last sold for $3.5milllion. That explains it!Stunning home. 

It was such a fun luncheon and great to meet so many other Thetas - young and older. 

Check out these lovely ladies - still loving everything Theta. 

I definitely didn't understand the value of Theta in college. Heck, I didn't even want to join a sorority at first. But, I am glad that I joined Theta because it is truly an instant network of people who care about you as soon as they meet you. There is an instant bond with any other Theta you meet and that is great. 

There will be monthly events so I can't wait to hear what the next event is with the ladies!

Last Weekend

Last weekend, Erik's parents came to visit Thursday to Monday. On Thursday night, we went to one of our favorite spots in Berkeley called Paisan. We shared pizza and this amazing pasta that had corn, peppers, and a creamy sauce. So delish!

On Friday, Erik was off from work so he was able to hang out with his parents all day. He took them to the nursery to pick up more plants, went to lunch, and picked up food to grill for dinner. We grilled kabobs for dinner which were great! We also made a stop at Jupiter for happy hour before dinner which was fun!

On Saturday, I went to a luncheon and then met up with everyone afterwards. Erik's parents took us to a great dinner at Bocanova to celebrate our anniversary. We shared chips & guac before dinner. We each really enjoyed our dinners. I had petrale sole for dinner and we shared an awesome side dish of spicy asparagus. So good. For dessert, we shared this fun mango tart with ice cream. Check out that funky squiggle of sugar on top of it!

On Sunday, we went to a local craft fair in Berkeley and stopped for lunch at Triple Rock Brewery. It was their last night in CA so we ordered pizza for dinner and watched The Tony awards. I can't believe Kinky Boots was THAT hot last year. The movie was just OK so I guess that is why I am so surprised by the show awards. I want to see  Pippin and we are getting it in SF next year. Can't wait!

Anyway, nice weekend with the family!

Social Sunday

Today, we were full on social butterflies. This is also not typical for us but we had a lot of fun. First, we had our friends Lisa, Justin, and their 1 yr old son Oliver over for lunch. I was very excited for this because 1) FINALLY we can have people over to entertain. We used to joke that if we wanted to have a party in our old apartment, some people would have to sit on the bed to have a place to sit. 2)We can finally use our serving platters we received as wedding gifts and of course, 3)get to hang out with our friends.

We sat outside and had veggies and hummus. For lunch, I made a Farfalle pasta, grilled chicken, red pepper, edamame, fresh corn salad with an avocado/lime sauce. So good. For dessert, we had raspberry bars. I cannot stop making them!

After they left, we chilled out on the couch for a bit and I took Evie to the park. Then, our friends Jenn and Andie came by with their new baby, Sawyer. She is just one month old and soooo cute and tiny!

Their friends started a "dinner train" for them where you can sign up to make them dinner so they don't have to cook. We signed up for today and made them some turkey chilli. They were in the area visiting friends so they stopped by to pick it up and so we could meet Sawyer.

Busy day but it was great to see everyone!

Oakland Bar Hopping

On Saturday, Erik went surfing and I got a lot done around the house. It was HOT out on Saturday - in the 80's. Evie is so not used to this heat. She just walked around panting like crazy for the whole day. She would go outside to lay in the sun, come inside, and repeat.

Our friend Kelsey came over on Saturday and we did some bar hopping. First, we went to Prizefighter in Oakland and met our friend, Kira. It's a bar with a huge deck which was nice to sit on. You can bring your dogs and this dog kept wandering over to us to be pet.

After Prizefighter, we went to Honor Bar for some food and a drink. 

They had a bucket of beers where you can serve yourself!

After Honor Bar, we went to Bar 389 in Oakland. Finally, we ended up at Missouri Lounge in Berkeley. 

Missouri Lounge looks sketchy but inside, it is just a divey bar with an outdoor seating area. It reminded us of Zeitgeist in SF. They even have food to order including GRILLED CHEESE SANDWICHES. Now that is a good bar. haha. 

Now, four bars in one night is definitely NOT how we roll. We rallied since Kelsey was visiting us from a few towns away. The trick is to not drink a lot or drink fast, and then you make it until 11pm. hah. 

Sushi and Beer

We had quite a busy and fun weekend. Our weekend started off on Friday. We had a recommendation for a sushi place in Oakland but apparently, it is THE place to get sushi so of course there was a line. So, we went to a nearby street full of restaurants and shops and found a cool place called Itaba Kitchen & Sushi.

The sushi was awesome and so was the service. They forgot to bring us edamame before the rolls came so they gave me a huge free glass of wine. They gave Erik a free beer, too! 

After sushi, we went to a beer bar called Beer Revolution. We sat at the bar that was covered in beer caps which was pretty cool. They had a LOT of beers to choose from!

Good Friday & way to kick off the weekend. 

Tres Amigas: Fable

On Thursday, we had our monthly Tres Amigas dinner at Fable in San Francisco.

We had a seat up in the front window so we had a good spot. Dinner was awesome - everyone loved their dishes!

We shared two appetizers - a tuna tartare and a watermelon, arugula salad and both were very good. 

For dinner, I had the California White Sea Bass with pesto, pearl couscous, spinach, tomatoes, walnuts, and arugula. 

For dessert, we shared a strawberry, rhubarb crisp. 

Everything was delicious. It was fun to go back to SF for dinner. We were in the Castro, which is up the road from our old apartment. We drove by our old place to see if anyone had moved in and someone definitely lives there now! Awwww memories.