grey's anatomy

she came into work today with her husband. i didn't say that i loved her show. but i wanted to.

pretty things for free

nubby twiglet has a free calendar you can download each month for free right here. each month a new one pops up. the designs are so pretty and they have quotes on the opposite page like "everyday is an arrival."

tree photography

sorry for the lack in posting. we went w/nicole & travis to his parents lake house last wkend and i've been sick since we got back. on top of that i'm helping a new firm w/a big presentation and i need to do well on it so they hire me for the future! i was browsing around and stumbled upon lens culture editions. Myong Ho Lee is a korean photographer who does something different and really cool. Backdrops behind trees. If they weren't $500/print, I would pick one up. I would really like to try this sometime. isn't the one w/the hot air umbrellas in the background beautiful?

sock animals

I made some sock animals for the twins from the book Sock and Glove. A sheep for Azalea & a zebra for Clive. They were supposed to be done before they came home...then when they came home..and then I finally just finished them up when we went to meet them! My favorite part about the zebra is that because of the way I used the sock, he's always smiling. Well, that and the rad mohwak. I think they like them! thanks H for the photos.

jujubees

The other day Noz & I went to the big Korean market in Koreatown and saw Jujubes, fresh ones. We had no idea what to do w/them, until I remembered that they come dried in one of my favorite korean dishes. They are like dates. Apartment Therapy, the Kitchn, recently posted an article about fresh ones and now I think we'll have to go back and try them out. If you don't have fresh ones nearby, you can help me on the hunt to find the best recipe to make korean yaksik. You won't regret it. Brown sugary sticky rice with dried jujubes, pine nuts and chestnuts. (i usually pull out the chestnuts for mom)
2nd photo via flickr

picnic pics

the picnic was a success. perfect day, great food, our friends, and j's game of pin the cherry on julia's ice cream and naming 3 reasons why people like me and 1 reason why they came. they turned out pretty funny. i hung string and used clothespins to hang chinese take-out boxes to mark our spot and emphasise our world theme. thanks everyone for coming to celebrate and for all your great dishes! photos via the husband.

turkey lasagna

had this at holly's the other weekend and it was really, really good. i love the addition of goat cheese to the ricotta. it's from the barefoot contessa, whom i love. she has such great family style recipes.

2 tablespoons olive oil 1 cup chopped yellow onion (1 onion) 2 garlic cloves, minced 1 1/2 pounds sweet Italian turkey sausage, casings removed 1 (28-ounce) can crushed tomatoes in tomato puree 1 (6-ounce) can tomato paste 1/4 cup chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley, divided 1/2 cup chopped fresh basil leaves Kosher salt Freshly ground black pepper 1/2 pound lasagna noodles 15 ounces ricotta cheese 3 to 4 ounces creamy goat cheese, crumbled 1 cup grated Parmesan, plus 1/4 cup for sprinkling 1 extra-large egg, lightly beaten 1 pound fresh mozzarella, thinly sliced Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Heat the olive oil in a large (10 to 12-inch) skillet. Add the onion and cook for 5 minutes over medium-low heat, until translucent. Add the garlic and cook for 1 more minute. Add the sausage and cook over medium-low heat, breaking it up with a fork, for 8 to 10 minutes, or until no longer pink. Add the tomatoes, tomato paste, 2 tablespoons of the parsley, the basil, 1 1/2 teaspoons salt, and 1/2 teaspoon pepper. Simmer, uncovered, over medium-low heat, for 15 to 20 minutes, until thickened. Meanwhile, fill a large bowl with the hottest tap water. Add the noodles and allow them to sit in the water for 20 minutes. Drain. In a medium bowl, combine the ricotta, goat cheese, 1 cup of Parmesan, the egg, the remaining 2 tablespoons of parsley, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and 1/4 teaspoon pepper. Set aside. Ladle 1/3 of the sauce into a 9 by 12 by 2-inch rectangular baking dish, spreading the sauce over the bottom of the dish. Then add the layers as follows: half the pasta, half the mozzarella, half the ricotta, and one third of the sauce. Add the rest of the pasta, mozzarella, ricotta, and finally, sauce. Sprinkle with 1/4 cup of Parmesan. Bake for 30 minutes, until the sauce is bubbling.

can't stop the birthday

the korean dinner had to be rescheuled because too many friends were out of town. j & i revised it to a picnic, this sat. at noon with a world theme - everyone brings a dish from their heritage/nationality! i'll be mixing up some korean chicken, we have japanese, swedish, italian, philippino and german coming. we'll sit on blankets on the grass under trees at a local park under a string of chinese take-out boxes. play a game or two, throw a football and relax eating sweet birthday treats. sounds like a lovely saturday. anyone know of a fun adult game we can play? i'm thinking pin the something on the something. j suggested pin the wives on the mormon. or pin the yamaka on the jew. i'm aiming for something a little less disrespecful, haha. photo via

anti-theft lunch bags

whoever came up with this idea is hilarious.

"Stealing your co-worker's lunch is a downright contemptible act, that is, if it's perpetrated by someone other than you. But, if you've ever had your lunch stolen, you know the the frustration and anger it causes. You know the revenge and ill-will it inspires. And you know that no matter how well you try to hide your lunch bag at the back of the refrigerator, something's gonna be missing when you open it. Well, lament no more. The Anti-Theft Lunch Bag to the rescue . . ."

Green splotches are printed on both sides, so once inside, nobody will dare sneak a bit w/o envisioning a sick day ahead.. (seen here)

how to best experience indiana

celebrate a 50th birthday party. visit a fancy tree house.

help build a zip line for a little brother's birthday.
(make sure you test it out while he's at school)

notice the little things.

weather a large storm.

re-discover your heritage. (j's grandpa also served in the military)

love my vacation so far

we just did a mini shoot yesterday of the twins, clive & azalea. i have the cutest relatives!! more to come as well as a few of little syd & kate who we saw yesterday in indy.

small vacation

we're taking off on a red-eye tonight for indianapolis and southern indiana to visit j's family and meet our new niece & nephew from ethiopia. i will post a full report upon our return. his dad is turning 50 as well, so we'll be celebrating a lot! enjoy your weekend! {ps we'd love to see our muncie friends, but there's no time to drive up there - next time i promise!} photo via

style quiz

I love taking quizzes. From those days of reading seventeen magazine to the ones in self that figure out what type of work-out person you are, I would take them all, add up my score and then see what it told me! I ask J all the ones in the girl magazines, turning them into boy quizzes on road trips. Recently I've been obsessed with home decor, tearing out things from domino, reading home/style blogs, etc. We have nowhere to decorate for the time being, but that's ok, it'll happen soon! I found this quiz on My Deco, that is really fun to take and tells you your style through choosing images. I am funky modern - what are you?

be grateful, everyday

Last night j & i went to a premiere of their show for his upcoming episode on the American Widow Project. When the full 3 are available online, I will post a link so you can watch them. here are the trailers.

I met Taryn, who began the AWP. 22 years old. Looking at the 10 that came out to the premiere, most of them are younger than me. Their relationships were beginning, new marriages, a new life. Their stories are heartbreaking. Some of their husbands killed overseas, some murdered. One girl is 7 months pregnant. Her husband died just 4 short months ago, 2 months after he deployed. They gather together to heal, and by sharing their stories, remind us of what life is about.

The American Widow Project is a non-profit organization dedicated to the new generation of those who have lost the heroes of yesterday, today and tomorrow, with an emphasis on healing through sharing stories, tears and laughter………Widow to Widow. We are currently in production with a documentary covering the lives and hardships of widows from the Iraq/Afghanistan Wars. From the day we met our spouses, to the knock on the door, these stories are a key to healing.

I think this is something that every woman I know can relate to. We look at the men in our lives every day, knowing they will come home, that we'll see them again. Knowing that some people can't have that luxury should push us to help. It's a relatively new non-profit. They are filming stories of eachother to put into a documentary to send free to new widow's soon after they receive the news. They want them to know that other girls have been there, and understand what they are going through. They try to plan activities together so they can get through this.

Spread the word, and donate if you can. They are an inspiration to all who hear their story. And this week, call the men in your life and just tell them you love them. For the women that can't.

{ i've added their link to my sidebar }

the shoe project

i saw this at one point and loved the idea shot by Ellen Ugelstad. people, faces, and their shoes. i think i might spend a weekend and do my own version. maybe for a family? it's a great simple idea that creates a lot of visual interest when combined together like the image above.

top 10 reasons why today is pretty great

10. jan woke me up with a sweet handmade card that says i get surprises all day
9. we biked to a local diner where i had buckwheat pancakes, eggs & fresh squeezed oj.
8. several people have called and sung to me (keep them coming!)
7. no work today!
6. i have pedicure in a half hr
5. quite a few cards are lined up on my desk
4. my financial advisor just texted me hb - he is good!
3. trip to the beach at 3
2. out to sushi w/friends tonight - 2 bdays today!
1. i'm still in my 20's (for 364 more days)

photo via

tv via laptop

some of you know that since we moved to la, we don't have a tv. not even a tiny 12" with bunny ears. we looked into getting eyetv, to run through my imac, but we'd still have to pay for a big cable box and a monthly fee, so we passed until we know we're here for good and have somewhere to actually put the box! i've really been missing it, so i did some research and found that i can watch a lot of full episode shows with only 30 sec's of commercials here and there on abc and nbc. shows like ugly betty, grey's anatomy and lost. current season too - one new one shows up each week! does anyone watch shows on their computer?

lemonade in a cupcake?

i just baked up a batch of these from my friend caroline's cooking blog. they are delicious! i'm taking them (well, minus the one i 'sampled') to a ward bbq in about a half hour. the only things i tweaked were adding light versions of the sour cream and cream cheese to cut down a little on the calories & fat. and then i added lemon rind to the batter and frosting to kick it up a notch. {photo from ms. c}