Pardon My Pause

I promise I am not abandoning you again, but this week has been extra hectic due to the move I mentioned previously. I will be all relocated this weekend, so I will be back at the blogging next week. XO

p.s.
This puncture is how I roll when I pack: prosecco, Sex and the City, and a little packing on the side :)

Happy Friday!

Today I had a little extra time in the morning beacuse we have been pretty slow at work, so I decided to whip up a batch of waffles with some extra buttermilk I wanted to use before it went bad. In my family, waffles are normally reserved for Sunday mornings and must be paired with opera on the stereo, but this was a nice little Friday pick me up!

Since I have an issue with buying way too many peaches when they are in season, a lot of my dietary decisions as of late have been based on the ability to add the stone fruit to the mix. I think this was one of my best uses yet.

If you would like to make your own heavenly waffles, click here to see the recipe I followed.

Have a great weekend!

Wish List

I didn't forget about the recipe post I promised you, but I haven't had time to type out the three (3!) amazing dishes I made in less than an hour the other night. So until then, I wanted to share with you what I'm wishing for right now:

To drink a glass of wine and play some bocce in Healdsburg.

An album (can you say that if you buy it on iTunes?) from this group.

This maxi dress.

A facial from my favorite skincare salon. (Andrea is also the only person I know who is so sweet and funny that I get excited to get a bikini wax just because I get to see her and chat).

A haircut from this hipster-in-a-cute-way salon.

A new pair of white pants to replace the ones I can't find. (Seriously, how does one lose a whole pair of pants?)

Since I'm currently on the money saving train, these will all have to remain on the wish list for awhile :) What are you wishing for? XO

Recipe Preview

Last night I had a moment of clarity or insanity, depending on your point of view, and I made dinner for Jared and I, chili for 2+ other nights this week AND mini peach and raspberry cobblers for dessert/breakfast. Here is a preview of the cobbler, with all the other recipes coming soon!

Weekend Recap

This weekend was pretty busy, but also pretty relaxing as well. A perfect combo for the most part.

Friday Jared and I met up with my crazy ZTA sister, Amanda, who now lives in NYC, but was in town to visit her sweet bf Cody. We went to the yummy, but total "scene" of a restaurant, Wayfare Tavern, then out for a drink at Rickhouse.

Here's a pic I stole of the cuties from her Facebook.

Saturday, Jared and I had brunch at Eats, my new fave brunch place in the Richmond. Everything there is fresh, they have some healthy options (and some less than healthy options for curing a rough night), and their lattes come in bowls, so you know I'm happy.

After fortifying ourselves for a busy day, we hit up Box Brothers and then started packing up my apartment for moving day at the end of the month. I hate packing, so I'm trying to do it pieces at a time instead of torturing myself too much.

During the packing process, I found some gems of memories, including tons of ZTA stuff. Looking back at a book that my Little made me and the entire chapter signed when I graduated took me right back to living in the house and Monday night meetings.

Saturday night, we met up with Alex and Rosie and some other friends for dinner and bowling at Lucky Strike. Dinner was great, but bowling lacked some key customer service points. We would go back, but now we know they aren't the most organzied or customer oriented.

As with every weekend, there was tons of animal cuddling and dog walks.

Sunday, we toured four properties that we spotted on redfin.com, then headed to Sonoma for a BBQ with Jared's parents. Considering the City was covered in it's normal summer fog, the escape was fun and the food was delish. How was your weekend? Ready for a busy week?

Just Here's Fine

Just Here's Fine is a blog of sorts, although I think was created to promote an app, spotlighting London cabbies. I think it is neat.

If I could ask the SF cab drivers one question, it would be, "Who are you constantly talking on the phone with regardless of the hour of the day?". I swear every cab driver I've had lately is chatting away, and by that I mean they grunt or mumble a yes in one language or another every so often. Since they have to use hands-free devices, I ususally don't know they are on the phone until I mistakenly try to engage them in conversation, only to be notified they are on the phone. Duh. For the life of me I don't know who I would talk to all day, which is one reason I couldn't be a cab driver. Another reason is that I constantly get lost in a city that is only 7 x 7 :/

Variations: Asparagus

As many of you may know, I LOVE to cook. The dishes associated with said activity are another subject, but I am more than content to spend some time in the kitchen. Since that isn't always possible and because I have a somewhat limited budget, I try to make the food that I whip up last for more than one meal. This is great for a gal like me, since I'm usually cooking for one, but if you are cooking for more then you can just make extras at the same time and have them on hand for your variations. This will still save you time and money.

Now eating the same leftovers over and over again is actually the definition of unexciting, so I try to take one ingredient and play with different variations. If you haven't figured it out yet, I am going to do a series of posts about these variations and today's subject is asparagus!

Photo via vegkitchen.com

Last night I cooked up a batch of these tree-looking gems and per usual there were some left overs. Below is the original recipe and the ways that I plan to use these babies follow.

Roasted Asparagus with Lemon

1 bunch asparagus (I tend to like the skinner guys, but any fresh ones will work)

Drizzle of olive oil

Salt

Pepper

Juice from half a lemon

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Chop of the hard ends of the asparagus (not the tops that look like trees) and place them in a single layer in a pan. Drizzle them with olive oil and sprinkle on the S&P. Toss to coat. Stick them in the oven for about 7 minutes, more if they are thicker. They are ready when you can stick a fork in them (haha). Squirt the lemon juice on them and serve.

Variations:

- A piece of good bread toasted and topped with cheddar, asparagus and avocado.

- Mixed in to a scramble. I like mine with goat cheese and fresh herbs.

- Thrown into a pasta salad with tomatoes, basil, feta and olives. Throw on a little olive oil and balsamic and you are good to go.

Are you a fan of these green giants? What variations would you whip up?

Polka Dots & Stella + Dot

Today I finally got my butt back into the gym, which is actually outdoors at CrossFit. It's amazing how much better I feel about myself and in general after a good workout. You would think I wouldn't take so much time off, right?

Since I was feeling sassy this morning and I have a Junior League meeting after work, I got a little more gussied up than usual with a nicer blouse and some of my new fave jewelery.

I bought the peices above during a Stella + Dot Trunk Show that we had for work last week. A portion of all the proceeds will go to the amazing preschool where I work (that's my desk in the background above).

I purchased these earrings, this necklace, and one more pair of earrings that was supposed to be a gift but I loved too much to part with. Oops!!

I'm also in love with these and this.

If you have some time and want to shop for a good cause, please purchase through this link. 

Afternoon Treat

I picked up this cup of delicious (aka Vietnamese Iced coffee from Dinosaur) after enjoying a spur of the moment lunch with my boo. A great way to shake up a otherwise boring Tuesday.

New Love....Technology Style

My lovely bestie, Afton, introduced me to Postagram this weekend, and I'm a little obsessed. This app lets you take  pictures and turns them into postcards, mailed to your love ones around the world (I've only sent to people in the US, so this may only be partially true).

I love this app and concept because I often feel like technology has completely unconnected us from each other. I also LOVE real mail. My aunt is the best at sending great notes and postcards that always brighten my day. If you are a constant Instagramer like me, you should really check it out and make someone's day!

Summer Salad Recipe

Every summer, and season in general, I get a little obsessed with a couple different recipes. They tend to change season to season and year to year, based on what I find in the farmer's market or a recipe inspiration.

 This summer, I have made this salad at least once a week. I stumbled upon it because we have had quite a few zucchinis come from our garden in Healdsburg this year and I wanted to prepare them in a manner that didn't stray far from their natural freshness. It is also one of those salads that is super easy to bring to parties and impresses far beyond the effort it requires to throw it together. I'm sure you could change it up, but so far I've stayed pretty true to the original. Is this salad your cup of tea?

photo via 101cookbooks.com

A Revival

Oh, well, hello there! It has been a while since I posted last, months even, but I've decided to try to pick things up again.

First, an update on my life.


Living Situation
At the end of July, I will be moving back into the Casa de Cheevers (aka my Dad's house). I'm doing this for a couple reasons. 

1. To save some $$$$. San Francisco is expensive (duh) and since I took the job in nonprofit, I've been stretching myself way too thin money wise.
2. My Dad is truly a man of leisure and is either travelling or working on our beautiful (work in progress) house in Healdsburg. Since we have 2 cats and some tenants, it helps to have someone at the house. (the cats are needy, not the tenants)

I generally feel great about this decision, especially because my landlord (slumlord) has been extra shady lately. I love my little apartment and neighborhood, but not at the sake of my financial health. Also, my Dad's place is great, with such luxuries as a dishwasher, washer/dryer, and more than 2 rooms big. The 'hood is pretty cute and the beach and a great park are walking distance away (the dog approves).

Social & Love Life
Jared's still my main man, and everything is great there! On the friend front, Angelica got married (!) and Afton and her sweet hubby visited SF. I've also got to see other great friends and get to know some of Jared's amigos even better. Gotta love summer!

J + C at a Giant's game

Cake cutting official! 

Reunited

Work
I'm still working at Holy Family Day Home, and continue to really enjoy it. I was the point person on our recent Coming Home Gala and we made over $190,000, which is double (!!!) what we have made in past years. It was amazing, but consumed my life for a few months.

Travel
In February, Jared and I went to Brazil for over a week, and it was ahhhh-mazing. More recently, we have been camping and backpacking more, which will get me ready for our upcoming trip to Utah to hike King's Peak. I'm a little nervous, but Jared is sure I can do it. In September, we are going to Vermont for a wedding, then going to Jared's family's house in Maine. I'm pretty excited as I love their place and can't wait for a fun wedding weekend.

Beach bums in Brazil

Rosie and me, waiting (not so) patiently for the fire

So that is kind of a big-picture view of where I am now. I promise to post more, including more cooking posts. I've been whipping up some great things lately and would love to share.