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!!