Week 52: The End!

The End: The last weekly SP, the end of 2009, and the end of the Colts' perfect season. Hard to believe I've finally reached week 52 and thus my last SP of the year, but here we are!

I ended the year with a short visit to John's hometown of Indianapolis, Indiana. We were lucky enough to be able to attend a Colts game at Lucas Oil Stadium, which is a very nice venue, as sports arenas go. We were thankful for its retractable roof since it was a brisk 20 degrees with strong winds and falling snow throughout the day.

Unfortunately, the Colts decided to sit most of their starters for a big chunk of the second half with only a 5 point lead, so I had the disappointing distinction of witnessing their only loss this season, their first regular season loss in 23 games, and the end of their pursuit of perfection, which has been pretty exciting to follow this year. Alas, the playoffs are still ahead so Colts fans needn't dwell for too long.

Either way, it was a great experience and thanks to my new Dallas Clark jersey (received as a Christmas present from the Canganys), I was able to blend right in and support the home team. Don't worry (I'm looking at you, Auddie), I'm no traitor. I was tuned in later to watch the Redskins take on Dallas in their Sunday night game and pretty much seal the deal on a fairly dismal season. I'm already looking forward to 2010 and a fresh start for my hometown team!

Here's to new beginnings and exciting adventures, both in football and in life!

Week 51: SnOMG! It's a Blizzard!

Last weekend, most of the region was snowed in as we all enjoyed what was DC's biggest-ever December snowstorm. The snow started Friday night and continued to fall in big, fat flakes until Sunday morning. We'd had plans to hang out with my parents in Springfield on Saturday, but after waking up to nothing but white, it was clear we had to postpone. The Whole Foods closed at noon, but not before we were able to squeeze in an emergency snow freak-out trip and stock up on plenty of food (and drink!). Metro was also closed, and I heard tales of car accidents, fishtailing buses, and other general stormy chaos, so I was glad to be safely indoors to enjoy the lazy snow day. Hope everyone else in the storm zone did the same. The big storm was really the perfect prelude to Christmas!

Week 50: It's the Most Wonderful Time of the Year!

It's amazing how quickly the holiday season creeped up this year. It feels like summer just ended yesterday, yet here we are only a week and a half away from Christmas! Alas, I guess this is the same feeling every year -- not enough time to prepare for the weather, the madness of holiday shopping, Christmas decorating, and all the other general chaos that comes with the season. I personally love this time of year -- Christmas music, holiday themes at my favorite retail outlets, lights and decorations everywhere, and generally what I see as more joy and a generally improved spirit among friends and even strangers. I spent this past weekend attending two holiday parties, but managed to squeeze in a little time to wrap some gifts to put under our tiny but adorable tree! Happy Holidays, everyone!

Week 49: Congrats Steph & Ron!

This past weekend my family celebrated the recent engagement of Steph and Ron at Chu Hoan & Co Ti's (Steph's parents) house in Potomac, MD. The party coincided with DC's first snow of the season, which made for an even more eventful and snowy evening! It was great to celebrate with my cousin and her new fiance, who are a couple of my favorite people to hang out with. They're a terrific couple and I can't wait for another fun family wedding!

Week 48: A Shower for Baby Glasser!

To round out the Thanksgiving weekend, we celebrated on Saturday with a baby shower for Kim, who's due to welcome a family addition in January. In addition to toasting the parents-to-be, it was a great chance to see many family & friends and enjoy more delicious food (like thit nguoi tea sandwiches! love 'em). I'm so excited to meet the new little one, change diapers (no, seriously!), have oooh-zhou-boo-boo cute attacks all the time, and generally be Auntie Pouy to another baby. I couldn't be happier for Kim & Natty, who I know will be terrific parents! Many cheers and congrats to the parents-to-be!

Week 47: Sloppy Joes and the Skins!

I know it seems like I've had a number of football-related SPs recently. Well, it's due in part to the fact that that's how I spend my Sundays in the fall. That, and I've been doing a horrible job of remembering to take SPs during other, more exciting activities that take place off the couch.

This was a rare NFL week in which we got full coverage of a Colts daytime game on Sunday. Since they were up against the Ravens, they were on CBS at 1, while the Redskins took on the Cowboys on FOX at 1. We seriously considered bringing the bedroom TV out into the living room to watch the games side by side, but realized we didn't have cables long enough or with the right attachments to make it work. In the end, it was Colts on the living room TV, Redskins on the bedroom TV (Tivo'd), and switching back and forth between drives to catch as much live overlap action as possible.

Ultimately, the injury-riddled Skins lost in a low-scoring heartbreaker, while the Colts barely edged out the Ravens in a rather close and dramatic game! We enjoyed the game while eating some homemade crockpot sloppy joes, which were hearty and delicious!

Week 46: Fun with Meg!

I went out with Meg and a few other folks on Saturday night where we attempted some bar self-portraits. Yes, this was the best of the bunch after at least 5 attempts that I won't post here (SPs late on a Saturday evening are decidedly not the best idea). On Sunday night, I watched the amazing Colts game with both Canganys who are true Indy natives. Due to a text message miscommunication over dinner plans, Meg and I ended up having a macaroni & cheese-off dinner in which we each prepared a huge pan of homemade mac 'n cheese. The final verdict is that Martha Stewart's got nothin' on either of our versions (except that she might have provided the recipe I used - big deal). Needless to say, I'll be eating mac 'n cheese for lunch and dinner for the rest of the week. Let's just call it practice for Thanksgiving!

Week 45: More Football!

On Sunday, I went out to Skelbs & Erik's new adorable and homey home in Reston, VA for an afternoon of football, chili, delicious snacks (like Heather's Chex Muddy Buddies!) and good company. You'll note in this photo I opted to wear my new Colts tee instead of my Cooley jersey just to change things up. We still did watch and root for the Redskins, and after another disappointing (but not surprising) loss, we decided to head to a nearby field to see if we could practice to be on next year's squad. It was a nice fall day, and despite the dismal state of our DC's football team, we all had a great time!

Pictured here with me is Riley, Skelbs & Erik's lovable black lab, who is enjoying a rubbery UVA football in her mouth.

Week 44: Happy Halloween!

As of about 3 days before Halloween, neither John nor I knew what we were going to do for Halloween. John came up with the last minute idea to go as the Squirrel Crasher couple, popular among nerds who follow Internet memes, but after some focus group testing/surveying, it occurred to us that not everyone would "get it" and it would also be difficult to pull off with a photo of a squirrel on a stick as our only real prop.

While watching this week's episode of "The Office," I found myself laughing hysterically at Andy Bernard, then immediately looked over at John and realized they had some similarities - not just in wardrobe but in goofy behavior and mannerisms. We decided to abandon Squirrel Crashing and go with John as Andy Bernard, and me as my recycled Alvin costume from Halloween '07 (which turned out well because it was an entirely new group of people).

After heading out in public, it basically appeared like John was coming straight from work and escorting me during trick-or-treating. But the Nard-dog came through with some choice quotes and a few bars of acapella to truly put himself into character. As for me, I got some love from some kids in the street, in addition to having to refresh some 20-something memories as to everyone's favorite childhood chipmunk. Happy Halloween!

Week 43: Happy Birthday Mom!

Today is my mom's birthday, so this past weekend -- with Huan & Molly in town for the night -- we had a small family dinner to celebrate. We enjoyed a delicious homecooked Vietnamese meal and I brought home a mint chocolate chip ice cream cake from Baskin Robbins (clearly a kids' choice!) for dessert. As evidenced by this photo, we all have a pretty great time when we're together. It's nice to know that some things never change (ahem, Huan). Here's wishing a happy birthday to my wonderfully stylish, hip, tech-savvy, top chef, super Mom! We love you!

Week 42: Slow Cookin' Sundays!

About a month ago, John and I bought a crockpot to see what fun things we could cook up. It's mostly become a Sunday/football meal activity, and so far we've had some decent success. Our first recipe was Paula Deen's "Taco Soup," aka chili, which was delicious. We've also made a mac & cheese, which was tasty but perhaps not exactly a recipe that shines or is enhanced by slow cooking. This week's recipe, however, was perhaps our best yet: Pulled Pork. I googled a few recipes until I found a really simple one that only involved meat, root beer and BBQ sauce. I was intrigued by the simplicity (plus, I'm easily intimidated by complicated recipes) and the reviews were glowing, so we went for it and were very pleased with the results. I'd highly recommend it to anyone! Stay tuned for future episodes of Crockpot Cooking with Pouy & John (sous chef).

Week 41: Annapolis getaway!

This past weekend, I made the short drive from DC to Annapolis, where John and I strolled around and enjoyed lunch before we headed to nearby Crownsville to relax at the Nguyen Family river house. The Nguyens are very close family friends who have a beautiful house on the water and are always terrific hosts to their guests! I always forget that Annapolis/Crownsville is one of my favorite getaways because you feel like you're on vacation, but really only 30 miles or so outside the city! It was a relaxing friends & family weekend, culminating in a big dinner to celebrate my dad's birthday in addition to my cousin Steph's recent engagement to her boyfriend Ron. Saturday's weather wasn't great, but all was redeemed by a beautiful Sunday sunrise, followed by perfect conditions for a boat ride to Annapolis! It was a great weekend of fantastic food and company. Can't wait to do it again!

Week 40: Congrats to Skelbs & Erik!

Last weekend my good friend Sarah (aka Skelbs) got married in a lovely ceremony at the Thomas Birkby House in Leesburg, VA. It was a perfect day for a wedding... sunny & pleasant for the outdoor ceremony, and cool and crisp for the evening reception. They had a bluegrass band which was great; it made for a dance floor with tons of energy and lots of fun, once we could figure out how to dance to a bluegrass band (lots of bouncing, kind of like running in place). It was a wonderful celebration and I couldn't be happier for Skelbs & Erik. All the best to this awesome couple!



P.S. Happy Birthday Skelbs!!

Week 39: I am Tiger Woods.

Okay not really, but when I play Tiger Woods PGA Tour '10 on Wii, I feel like I could be him. Just picked this game up over the weekend and have been having a blast so far. Despite the detailed physical feature character creation, my character doesn't look a thing like me, except that she's wearing cowboy boots on the course. That flaw aside, the game is great - as easy or challenging as you want it to be, which makes it great for entertaining groups or playing on your own. Yes, my form here is terrible, but at least my left arm is straight, right? Hoping to master this one soon. So far, I'm at least slightly better than I am in real life... which unfortunately doesn't say too much.

Week 38: Go Skins!

Though I was bummed about the end of summer, fall really is one of my favorite seasons if only for the return of NFL football. I've always been a loyal Redskins fan despite the disappointment, frustration, and heartbreak involved, at least in recent years. Last Christmas Auddie got me this Chris Cooley ("Cooooooooley!") jersey, so I'm looking forward to sporting it this season. The good news is, I'm a big fan of the sport in general so I love watching any good match up. Today I also found out that we get the NFL Red Zone channel as part of our cable package, so that keeps things pretty exciting! Sundays are much more bearable when you have football to watch. It's also a great excuse for game-time food, like pizza, wings, and beer. Typs, right? Go Skins!*

*This was first posted to Flickr on September 20, but as of the posting of this blog (Sept. 27), the Redskins have just lost to the abysmal Detroit Lions in an embarrasingly pathetic performance. I know this doesn't sound very loyal, but I may be close to finding a new team, at least for this season. I pick the Colts. I still love you, Redskins, but you really, really suck.

Week 37: Bachelorette Pub Golfing

I went out on Saturday night for my friend Sarah's bachelorette party. Sarah, aka Skelbs, is a good friend of mine from high school who is getting married in three weeks! The theme of the night was pub golfing. Basically it was a pub crawl but at each bar, you tally points based on what drink you get, whether you complete it, and a host of other rules revolved around the game of golf. It was a pretty fun experience, and with a big group decked out in silly golf gear, we definitely caught some attention at every bar we walked into. Pictured here is me with the bride-to-be, along with Caroline, another good friend from high school, and Dunkey McMule, the evening's mascot. Had a great time and wish Skelbs the best!

Week 36: Happy Birthday John and bye bye summer!

On Saturday, we took a quick trip down 95 south to Mineral, VA, to spend the day at my friend Heather's family lake house on Lake Anna. It was a perfect day to be outside and on the water. We played some bocce, drank some beer, ate grilled food, went for a boat ride, went tubing and swimming, and basically enjoyed a wonderful day outdoors! Sunday was John's birthday so the celebrating and fun continued. All in all it was a very lovely labor day weekend and a nice way to officially end the summer. I'm bummed about the end of summer but fall is still a great season and gives us much to look forward to: leaves changing color, crisp weather, and of course football!

Week 35: Cookie Time USA!

Everyone knows I don't exactly have a sweet tooth, but I still enjoy baking every now and then. On Sunday I went over Meg's place to help her bake a bunch of cookies for the office. We made two big batches -- Oatmeal Raisin and Chocolate Chip. Who knew how much butter went into baking homemade cookies, not to mention the shortening, too (what IS shortening, really??)! Anyway, it was a nice way to spend a Sunday afternoon. The cookies we made were delicious, and the mimosas were a nice touch, too!

Week 34: Happy Birthday, MaiTai!

I went out on Friday night to celebrate my cousin Tuti/Mai/Kam's birthday. We started the night at Guajillo, a mexican restaurant where we had delicious margs and tasty food (perhaps too much for the boys, who attempted to eat the giant burrito which ended up being more than two times as large/long as a chipotle burrito!). Afterwards, we headed to Ri Ra to sing and dance along to a cover band playing the usual favorites. It was a great night, despite the fact that I was in my glasses and looked and felt like I had just woken up (I've had bad allergies/itchy eyes all week). Also, pardon the shine in this photo - obviously a little greasy and sweaty from all the bar fun! Happy Birthday and best wishes to Mai!

Week 33: Just a little gelato...

Nothing too eventful here, so I present a gelato pitch with a grainy iPhone photo, featuring Auddie:

Even though Pitango opened back in May, I didn't get a chance to try it until this past weekend. As we all know, I'm not a huge dessert/sweets person, but I was pleasantly surprised with their gelato. They pride themselves on fresh and local ingredients, and they don't use any artificial colors or flavors. Out of all of combinations, I think John took the prize for best selection with his cup of bourbon vanilla and caffe espresso. It was truly delicious! The store is right across from Whole Foods on P Street, so I'll definitely be heading back. I still have to try their sorbet, too!

Week 32: Poolside with Kenzie & Co.!

I spent all day Sunday at my friend Kelly's parent's house in Great Falls. They have a beautiful home with a big pool, and going there always feels like a nice and peaceful (albeit brief) vacation. Kelly was my first year college roommate at UVa. Also pictured here are Lo, one of my best college friends, and the little one is Kenzie, Kelly's adorable almost-2-year-old girl and the cutest baby I know! We had a great time splashing around on a ridiculously hot day. I could barely keep up with Kenzie and I think I needed a nap well before she did. It's always a great time catching up with the girls, and I finally got a little much-needed sun!

Week 31: Happy Birthday to me!

Last week I celebrated my 27th birthday. I took the day off to hang out with my sister Auddie, and when I arrived in Springfield, she and my cousins Mira & Max had surprised me with this wonderful homemade Super Mario Kart-themed birthday cake! It was truly amazing. Mario's face was made out of peanut butter, and his moustache was magic shell. The inside was funfetti. We all know I'm not crazy about sweets, but this cake was delicious and one of the best birthday gifts I could have asked for. Guess this proves that you're only as old as you feel (or act), so I'm obviously not a day over 12! Hahahaha.

Week 30: Cape Cod

This past weekend I took a mini-vacay to Boston/Cape Cod with my family and some of our close family friends who have a house in Mashpee. On Saturday, we took a ferry to Nantucket and spent the day on the island. We biked somewhere around 25 miles over the entire weekend, the majority around the trails and roads of Nantucket. It was quite the workout but a great way to explore the island! Weekend highlights included: a delicious lobster roll lunch in Boston, a home-cooked surf & turf dinner on Friday, celebrating my birthday early with the fam, introducing Auddie to Settlers of Catan (she loves it! woo!), repeatedly losing to Auddie in foosball (who knew this girl was such a gamer??), and of course some quality time on the beach. All in all, it was a great bonding weekend with my fam and I'm bummed it went by so quickly! Pictured here are Auddie, Molly, and me on the ferry to Nantucket. As evidenced by my wacky hair, we were riding the high-speed ferry, which gets us from Hyannis to Nantucket in only an hour.

Week 29: Orchard Lake

I spent a few days this past week in Orchard Lake, Michigan, where John's family owns a lovely house on the water. It was a great trip that involved rowboats, regular boats, lots of scrabble & checkers, fireworks, plenty of dogs, delicious food and drink, and generally a very relaxing time with John and some of his family. Pictured with us here is Murphy, who is Uncle Dick's standard poodle and a very sweet pup. Not pictured here are Anna & Kasey, the Cangany German Shephards, as well as Jack the dog and Grace and Charlotte the cats. Also - please don't mind my bangs in this photo - blame the windy boat ride!

All in all, I had a great time exploring another new midwestern state. Can't wait for a return trip!

Week 28: The Wire

This week I'll take a break form the usual excitement and plug a TV show I've been watching while sitting on my butt. In case you haven't heard of it, The Wire is a police crime drama set in Baltimore, Maryland. It originally aired on HBO for five seasons and has been widely acclaimed as the best TV show ever (or substitute any other similar hyperbolic statement). As one who usually gives in to this type of media hype, I thought I should check it out. A friend of mine was kind enough to lend me the entire series on DVD, so for the past few weeks John and I have been tuning in. The past few days have been particularly productive (or unproductive, depending on how you look at it!). From Thursday night through Sunday, we got through all of season 2 (twelve episodes) and the first three episodes of season 3.

While parts of the show are pretty violent and graphic, and though sometimes I don't understand all of the plot intricacies, the show is pretty addicting, mostly for the well-developed characters. It's definitely interesting and eye-opening to see all the crazy stuff that happens on a day-to-day basis in city that's so close to here. Also, the complexities of the "war on drugs" have always intrigued me, so this is just further education. Anyway, shouldn't be long before we finish all five seasons! Stay tuned for the verdict.

Week 27: Happy Birthday, America!

To celebrate the fourth of July, I enjoyed a truly all-American weekend. I kicked off the festivities with my first-ever visit to Nationals Stadium. We got some great $10 seats and it was a comfortable and breezy summer night. With a cold beer, some Ben's Chili Bowl (my fave!) and good company, it was the perfect start of the celebration of America's birthday. We even saw a fireworks show after the game! The rest of the weekend continued in similar food/drink fashion. Needless to say, I needed most of the workweek to recover. Not a bad birthday celebration, if you ask me! Hope everyone else celebrated in similar patriotic fashion!

Week 26: Eastern Market Grand Reopening!

Yikes! I just realized Week 26 marks the halfway point of 2009. Unbelievable how it's flown by! This past Saturday was the grand reopening of Eastern Market after the fire just over two years ago. Hard to believe that my parents have been in the DC area for over 30 years but this was their first trip to Eastern Market! Needless to say, my mom enjoyed the jewelry vendors and found some nice items to take home. After a couple consecutive weekends out of town, it was a great day to stroll around and take in one of my favorite parts of DC. And after mostly straight up SPs, I hope you enjoy this little artsy number!

Week 25: Newest Obsession: Settlers of Catan

I spent this past weekend in Asbury Park, NJ, visiting my good friends John & Leroy. It rained practically the entire time, so instead of beach time, we were stuck indoors. Luckily, Pepper anticipated this and brought Settlers of Catan, an amazing board game that we ended up getting addicted to very quickly.

Without getting too complicated, it's a strategic game of establishing settlements and cities by acquiring, then trading resources. In two days, we played four very competitive games, and soon forgot that we were even in a beach town at all. With great company and this new form of entertainment, we ended up making the most out of a rainy weekend.

Upon returning home, I've already played the Xbox Live version of Catan, and today I downloaded a new iPhone app called Kolonists, which appears to be a Catan ripoff (but at $2 a total steal!). Clearly I have a problem... That said, I can't wait for the next round of Catan!

Week 24: Happy (Early) Father's Day!

I spent this past weekend in Ocean City, Maryland with a big group of family and family friends. I know I'm a week early on Father's day, but I'll be out of town next weekend and unable to celebrate with my dad, so this is his early shout out! The beach with the family is always a good time... we enjoyed tons of food (what else is new?), including steamed crab (yum!), and dropped in on the shopping outlets to do some tax-free damage. Despite the cloudy weather, we still squeezed in some great beach time and overall, it was a quality bonding weekend.

Happy Father's Day, pops! You're the best dad ever.

Week 23: Playing hooky

I took a personal day off Monday of this week to take care of some business. That basically meant getting some things done around the apartment, taking a trip to Target, picking up Auddie from school, treating her (and myself!) to McDonald's, then heading home to plant a flower box of impatiens with my mom. As everyone knows from my Charleston photos, I love flower boxes, and now I have one to spruce up my balcony! Luckily it was a warm and sunny day so we were able to spend time outside before some scary apocalyptic t'storms and more June rain struck!

Week 22: Happy Sweet 16, Auddie!

On June 1, Auddie reached a big milestone and turned 16! This past weekend, my family celebrated her birthday with a big party at home, complete with a delicious Baskin Robbins mini-cone ice cream cake. I still can't believe my little sister is so grown up! It still feels like yesterday when I used to change her diaper and when she learned to walk and talk. Yet in reality, this week I was a passenger in the car while she took me out for a spin! She's still got some practicing to do before she gets her license, but so far, she's not bad! My, how time flies. The only thing that hasn't changed is that she's still one of my best buddies and we always have a great time together! I'm so happy and thankful to have such a beautiful, funny and mature younger sister. Happy Birthday, Auddie!

Week 21: Happy Memorial Day!

Memorial Day is absolutely one of my favorite weekends of the year. For the past few years I've headed down to Easton, MD, to the house where my sister-in-law Molly & her brother Tim grew up. It's a beautiful place where it's impossible not to relax by the water and feel like you're miles away from home (yet actually only an hour and a half away from DC).

The weekend is always filled with food, drink, sun, boat rides, swimming (though not much this year, due to the windy chill!), sports, outdoor games (cornhole!), and great company. It's basically one long party to kick off the summer.

This week's SP captures one of many fun moments from the weekend. It's a shot of me, Kim, Mai, and part of Billie, hanging out on the dock. Happy Summer, all!

Week 20: Happy Housewarming for a friend!

This past Saturday, I went over to my friend Heather's new condo in Alexandria to celebrate her new home and also spend some quality time with my high school buddies Skelbs and Caroline. HC's place has a huge patio on the same level as the pool (which unfortunately was not yet open for business), so we enjoyed some nice outdoor time before yet another crazy May thunderstorm struck. We enjoyed tons of delicious food before getting into an intense and hilarious game of Apples to Apples. Great times! Here's our 4-person SP... I'm improving, right?

Week 19: Happy Mother's Day!

I spent this past Sunday celebrating Mother's Day with my mom and Auddie. We shared a nice lunch at home before partaking in an outdoor photo shoot on what was a truly perfect spring day. Afterwards, we paid our respects to my grandmothers with a visit to their cemetaries, before continuing on to some shopping and general girlie bonding. We ended the day with dinner where my dad joined us. All in all, it was a great day to honor and celebrate my wonderful mother! Happy Mother's Day, Mom. You're the best!

Week 18: Happy 30th, Steph!

This past weekend my family and I celebrated a big milestone for my near and dear cousin, Steph: her 30th birthday! It turns out this is a big year for birthdays in the family, as my uncle is belatedly celebrating his 50th this coming weekend, and we got together to celebrate my grandpa's 90th on Tuesday of this week. For a family like ours, this means lots of celebrating with tons of food... I'm definitely not going to complain about that! Happy Birthday, all!

Here's a shot of me and Steph before the party got too wild!

Week 17: Spring (or is it Summer?) has finally sprung!

After some bizarre recent DC weather (hailstorms in April?), it seems we've now skipped entirely over spring and launched right into an early DC summer. It was in the mid-80s all weekend, so I enthusiastically welcomed flip flops and shorts back into my wardrobe, and spent Saturday night grilling outdoors with some cold beers.

Hopefully we'll get some real spring back before the gross and humid summer is here for good. For now, these temps are a welcome change, so I definitely can't complain.

I also forgot to take an SP til today, so this is what you get... me cruisin' in my car with the windows down.

Week 16: Down to the lowcountry!

From April 19-22, John and I took a mini-vacay down to Charleston, S.C, our first visit down to this beautiful, historic and quaint old city. During our quick getaway, we had a great time thanks to wonderful weather and delicious southern cuisine. Charleston is full of little secrets -- you'll turn a corner and find a mysterious alleyway that opens up into an amazing garden; or stumble upon a street and find a row of gorgeous houses each with its own unique charm. We even took short trips to Folly Beach (on the West side) and Isle of Palms/Sullivan's Island (to the East) to enjoy some beach time, which everyone knows is my favorite thing.

All in all, it was a great trip! Here's an SP taken at the end of the Folly Beach pier.

Week 15: Bonding at the bar

This week's SP comes courtesy of John's long arms. There was just no way I'd be able to attempt or successfully complete a 6-person portrait. I'm counting it as this week's shot because I was the one who (mis)directed John into cutting half his face out of the photo. He should know better than to take my advice.

Kim & Natty were in town from New York so we all met up at Fado in Chinatown on Friday night for some late-night fun and cousin bonding. Had a great time!

Week 14: Eating my way through NYC

Auddie's Spring Break started last Friday and she was itching to get out of Springfield. She convinced me to take her up to New York for a few days, and we enjoyed a nice mini-vacay, despite the rainy and cold weather.

The three days consisted of eating, shopping, more eating, visiting Kyle & Avery (cutest kids ever!), more eating, and basically just hanging out with Kim.

Meal highlights included: Bulgogi hot dogs (don't forget the kim chi!), cheap dumplings from Chinatown, mini cupcakes, and a sampling of delicious mac 'n cheese!

It had been over a year since I'd been up to NYC and I was reminded how much I enjoy myself up there! Great food and great company. Can't go wrong!

Week 13: Fashion for Paws / Fancy Night Out!

On Saturday, March 28, I attended the third annual Fashion for Paws fundraiser for the Washington Humane Society at the Italian Embassy. The event was centered around a fashion show featuring some really cute pups (escorted by human models). Unfortunately Val Kilmer, an honorary chair, did not make an appearance, so the people watching was focused on the rest of the DC "socials" in attendance. This is not the usual way I would spend a Saturday night, but it was a nice way to change up my normal routine, have an excuse to get dressed up for a good cause, and experience a different DC scene for an evening. I had a great time!

Here's this week's portrait, a shiny and glossy shot of me with John & Mai taken toward the end of the evening. My SPs are improving, don't you think?



Here's another non-SP of me & Mai in front of the celeb backdrop looking colorful. We're totes famous, inbd.

Week 12: March Madness!

This week marked the official start of spring, followed by the official start of one of my favorite sporting events of the year: March Madness!

After Thursday's tip-off, I spent a lot of the time in front of the TV watching the games and tracking my bracket. I look a little silly here, but this week's portrait best captured what I wanted from this week. This is me and John on Saturday night. We had some pizza and beers while enjoying some of the games. Not a bad weekend evening!

Week 11: Happy St. Patty's Day!

On Saturday, March 14, I went to Kelly's Irish Times near Union Station to celebrate Green Beer Day with a bunch of Miami of Ohio alum. Upon further research, I discovered this is an actual big deal at Miami (Oxford, Ohio) some huge party that's been going on for over 50 years. I'm never one to turn down green beer (yes, John, I like novelty items) so I enjoyed myself even after discovering that Green Beer is just regular beer with green food coloring. I'd hoped there were little leprechauns who came out for St. Patty's to mix up a special recipe or something. Alas, it's not the case. Happy St. Patrick's Day! Hope you, too, can enjoy some Green Beer this week.

Week 10: Spring Forward!

This week's post will feature three (3), count 'em three self-portraits.

To kick off March, the weirdest weather month ever, DC had its biggest snowfall of the year. This was me on my walk to work last Monday, March 2:


Only a few days later, the snow melted as the temps rose, and here I am on Saturday, March 7:


You can't tell, but I'm wearing flip flops and loving it. That's me with Cleo. She belongs to John's sister, Meg, and is a very cute and lovable german shepherd mix. John was dogsitting Cleo this weekend, and since the weather was so nice, we spent some time on his back patio enjoying some beers and food. It was my personal highlight during what was a very lovely "Spring Forward" weekend. Despite losing an hour on Sunday and waking up to pitch black (again) this morning, it was pretty amazing to see daylight at 7 pm today.

Finally, last night I was home in Springfield for a belated family dinner celebrating Huan & Molly's birthday. Had to throw in this SP for kicks -- add it to the "Classic Pouy face" collection.

Week 9: Happy National Chili Day!

National Chili Day was on February 26. In years past I have been to Hard Times Cafe since they offer free chili on this important holiday, but since I didn't make out to the burbs this year, I was unable to celebrate on the actual day. I made up for it this weekend with a belated and delicious chili meal, courtesy of Good Stuff Eatery on the Hill. I've been here several times but this past weekend was my first taste of their chili-cheese burger, known as "Uncle D's Chili 'N Cheddar burger." It seems odd that it took me so long to try it since everyone who knows me knows how much I love chili! The burger, while sloppy, did not disappoint. The chili had zest and the scallions added a nice flavor as well. I definitely didn't regret my order.


As an aside, John ordered the "Blazin' Barn," which is Spike's take on a Vietnamese Banh Mi sandwich, made with carrots, daikon, cilantro, basil, and the delicious Sriracha mayo that is part of what keeps me coming back to this place.

Week 8: Early Bird Dinner & M. Ward

This past weekend I caught my very first music show at the Sixth & I Synagogue. It was definitely a cool experience to watch a rock concert in a historic and religious building, sitting in pews instead of standing in a sweaty basement.

The show opened with the Vivian Girls, who, despite critical acclaim for their debut album, failed to inspire or move me. Their particular brand of garagey girl punk 1) was already not my speed, sound & genre-wise 2) did not sound good within the walls of the venue, and 3) reminded me of a high school talent show performance.

Luckily, I was there to see M. Ward and he did not disappoint. The show was predominately a mix of songs off his latest release, Hold Time, as well as some of my favorite tunes off of his previous album, Post-War.

While the show felt a bit short, I thought it was a great performance. It was a nice mix of his rollicking, full-band tunes alongside nice, acoustic numbers. M. Ward impressed the crowd with his guitar skills on a John Fahey number, and warmed us with his earnest and gravelly voice on some slower ballads. All in all, a great time with great company. Looking forward to my next chance to come to this venue as it is truly a unique place to enjoy music.

On an unrelated note, this week's SP is from my pre-show dinner at Westend Bistro. Now everyone knows I'm not really a dessert girl at all, but John and I really enjoyed the Apple Cobbler, and more notably the homemade vanilla ice cream that was served alongside it. The delicious meal was a great start to a fun weekend night!

Week 7: Happy Valentine's Day!

This Valentine's Day I spent a lot of quality time with friends and family. I ate and drank too much (mostly ate) and my stomach/body are still recovering, but I had a great time and think that spending Valentine's Day with loved ones like this is just as fulfilling as doing something cheesy and romantic with your s.o. (though we all know that based on my love of chick flicks and hopeless romanticism in general, I am not opposed to such things).

This week's SP includes my cousins Steph, Kim & Natty (Sorry for the face and head cut off, Steph & Natty! I'm still working on my technique, though I'm not sure short arms can be overcome!). We all went out to Fly Lounge on Friday night for an evening of dancing. It was a nice change of pace from my usual venues and nights out, and it was great to bond with the family over it, too!