Beaches & Peaches

Ah, summer. How I love you so.

Sure the warmth and sunshine is lovely - not to mention our annual trip to upstate New York to visit Scot's parents on the lake - but just the freshness of it all, if you know what I mean. Everything is so green, so lush, and so seasonable. I largely feel that it is so much easier for me to eat more healthily in the spring and summertime simply due to the increase in availability of several yummy fruits and veggies. And not only is there a wide variety that are "in season", but so much more of it is so incredibly local, as well. (And I'm a big local-food junkie!)

This is one of the reasons why I love that the winery I work at is located on a local family farm. They always have an interesting assortment of things that they grow and tend to on-site (apples, some peaches, egg-producing chickens, two greenhouses, an apiary, etc), but they do also get some produce from other regional farms. They will also occasionally have bananas, watermelons, and avocados from Mexico and other warm climate places - you know, some of people's staple pantry items in the summer that are simply not easy to grow in Maryland conditions. It's all about variety!

There are a few things that, without fail, get all the farm customers excited. First and foremost would be the farm's signature unpasteurized apple cider, made fresh on site. Then would come the cinnamon sugar donuts made fresh daily.. and then the fresh strawberries in early June and farm-grown peaches in early July. But for those of us who are just way too impatient, they do get some Harrow Diamond peaches in from South Carolina in late June. Which I discovered were just perfect for making some quick & easy peach froyo!

The idea came to me, shockingly, from Pinterest. The fact that this recipe only has a measly 4 ingredients and can be made in my food processor had me itching to try it out. Trust me, you'll want to run to your local grocery store or farmer's market and snatch up as many peaches as you can.. I can't think of a better or more refreshing treat on a hot summer day!

Oh, and the best part? It's good for you!!

*recipe originally seen on Just A Taste

Isn't it amazing how such simple, natural ingredients can produce something so yummy?? Now excuse me while I go bury my face in this deliciousness.

The Struggle is Real.

Unngghh. Birthdays.

Well getting older, really. Because let's be honest, I kind of love my birthday. The amount of coupons and free things that you get alone are enough to get anyone excited. (Free yoga class! $5 off my next hair appointment! $10 off at Victoria's Secret! Free gifts at Sephora! ALL THE PRESENTS!)

I think what is getting to me most this year isn't so much the physical number, but more-so the life changes I'm noticing as I get older. Don't get me wrong, some of them are amazing - but some them can also be a bit depressing. Things change - it's a part of life - but when I occasionally take the time to look at my life last year, five years ago, ten years ago - it's of crazy. Not only with what is happening in my life, but who I am as a person. What I've done, where I've gone, how my life has turned out thus far.

Basically, I'm getting all introspective in my last year of my 20's. (Thanks, yoga.) And no, I'm not super freaked by turning 30 - everyone I know says their 30's are better than their 20's, so kudos to that!

But, as with anything, there's going to be the good, the bad, and the ugly.

DC Delights

While I don't technically live in DC, pretty much everyone in my particular suburb of Maryland considers themselves a part of the DC metro area. (#wannabe's) I also have many a friend who actually does live within the city limits, and find myself trekking in there quite often despite our recent move a bit further north. I've definitely gotten to know certain parts of the city fairly well, but my general knowledge is extremely lacking - which I kind of hate! I love how much I can rattle off about Philly and NYC, how I know fun spots to go and don't look like a little lost puppy when walking around on my own. Not so much with DC. I mean.. have you seen their street system? It's obnoxious. All circles and diagonals and conspiracy theories of Illuminati and Freemasons (see: Dan Brown).

via TravelPod

All this is to say that I have fairly limited experiences with local DC culture. I know there's a ton of stuff that goes on, but it's not always feasible to explore everything I want to. While we are maybe a total of 15 miles from downtown, it will take a good hour or so to go anywhere of interest, especially depending on the time of day.

When we first moved into the area about six years ago, we did the whole touristy thing and walked around the Capitol, down Constitution Avenue, around the Smithsonian, etcetera. My favorite find that day - which I have since learned is a "thing" down here in the summers - was the Sculpture Garden at the National Gallery of Art. We meandered upon this randomly in the middle of the day, but apparently it's a fairly big  hotspot that hosts events such as live Jazz throughout the season. It's been on my list to go back for one of these events.. but have I? Of course not.

personal

personal

A much more recent and local discovery I've made - that I have admittedly known about for the longest time, and even used to work a mere mile from - is the Sunday night drum circle at Meridian Hill (aka Malcom X) Park.

First off, the park itself is gorgeous. I totally want to have a photo shoot here.

via Time

Second, the drum circle? It's magical. It's crazy, fun, invigorating, and a quintessential DC experience. The premise is that every Sunday, a bunch of people come together and bang on drums, shake tambourines, and dance their booties off. There's no particular "group" - it's open to anyone and everyone. Some people take part in the action, some play frisbee or do yoga.

via Washingtonian

And others (me) sit back on the grass to just take in the scene with some noms and vino (it seems that the police often overlook the whole alcohol-in-public thing during the drum circle hours).

personal

I'm under the impression that this takes place mostly year round, and has actually been going on since the 1950's or so. It's definitely a local delight that I fully intend to enjoy more of this summer.. possibly tomorrow?!

Does your town have any local treasures that everyone else may or may not know about?

Self-expression a la Hair (aka, what I do when I'm bored)

A few things about me:

- I love me some big, flashy earrings. It is rare that you will find me without dangly earrings of some sort hanging from my lobes.
- I believe that a classic nude pump should be a staple in every woman's closet (along with the LBD, of course).
- Changing my hair is one of my favorite forms of self-expression (aka, I get bored quickly and change it.. a lot).

So about that last one..

You may have noticed that I am a natural red-head/ginger/vampire/whatever you may like to call it. My natural color veers towards the strawberry-blonde end of the spectrum, almost more orange than true red. It took me a really long time to grow to love the fact that I'm a natural ginger.. it's definitely been a love/hate relationship.

Growing up, I was always threatened to never dye or do anything unnatural to my hair because it was "so pretty just the way it is!". So I grew up terrified to do anything to it. I mean.. dye? What?! Do you want me to KILL my lustrous locks? Bae, please.

Until one day in 10th grade (ultimately coinciding with my pop-punk phase.. yay 2001 Good Charlotte!) when I decided that I absolutely MUST dye just the under part of my hair Manic Panic blue. You know the shade. Of course, I had to bleach my hair first in order for the color to show.

(Gahhhh I can't find a picture!!)

Needless to say.. Mama Bear wasn't too thrilled with me. I mean, I was a dancer. What dancer has blue hair? Pout.

Anyway, it eventually faded and then grew out. I left my hair untouched for quite some time after that, until about 2010 when I decided to revisit the under-color, but with black this time.

See it? See it? See it?

I actually quite enjoyed it. And then, in 2012, I made the big plunge and actually dyed my whole head of hairs.. a deeper shade of red. Like I mentioned, I did actually grow to love having red hair.. I'm just still not a huge fan of the shade. Luckily, that's easily fixable and lo and behold.. red on red actually produces a fairly natural looking hue!

Yep - it was dyed for the wedding!

But this isn't just about color. I also very much enjoy growing my hair out, then chopping it all off. It's like a vicious cycle.

Long, then short, then long, then short, then long, then a perm, then short, then super duper short, and now a cute little asymmetrical bob that may either grow to be long again, or be chopped back into a pixie cut, depending on my mood at my next appointment.

But I supposed the most recent update would be this one:

A purple panel on one side! I'm obsessed.

Anyone else have hair ADD? What's your favorite cut/style to rock?

Must Try for July: Rosemary Gin Fizz

Happy July 1st! Otherwise commonly known 'round these parts as my birthday month. Since I'm not quite 30 just yet, I'm still claiming the right to have a birthday month, and not just week (or, heaven forbid, a mere day). Too bad I have nothing planned just yet.. pout.

But anyway, seeing as it's the beginning of July, it is also the official start of the 30 Day Blog Challenge - which I think calls for a cocktail. Don't you agree?!

See, my fantastic husband decided that he really loves gardening - a hobby that I 100% support. He started with a small indoor garden at our old place two years ago (which, honestly, with the grow lights,  made it look like we had a certain operation going on inside the house) (which we didn't, just to be clear). Once we moved to our current duplex - one with a beautiful yard that we know we will be at for at least a few years - he decided to build a more permanent garden outside.

Needless to say, it has grown immensely in the past couple of months. I'm actually kind of impressed at his green thumb.. Lord knows I certainly don't posses this trait.

There's zucchini, cucumbers (for pickling!), tomatoes, corn, lettuce, broccoli, bell peppers, jalapeño peppers, and.. a whole lotta of rosemary.

We've been using it here and there, but tend to veer more towards our fresh basil as herb of choice for most dishes. After contemplating our rosemary-related options with a few friends, we came up with the (genius) idea to use it as an accent to a delicious summery cocktail, a la an infused simple syrup. Hence, the Rosemary Gin Fizz was born.

If you like gin.. and you like rosemary.. this is a must try for July!

What other herbs do you think would make good cocktail mixers??

Start Before You're Ready

Well, hey there. I'm back!! After another long hiatus. But I have a good reason (or twenty of them).. I swear!! But for starters, my lovely friend Sara of Fit For A Bride blog mentioned a 30 Day Blog Challenge that her and few other ladies are taking part in over the month of July, which sounds like just the kick I need to get my butt back in action.

To be honest, a lot of pretty great things have happened over the past few months, the biggest of which being that I left my old job and started my own massage & health coaching business.

*Gulp*

So.. was I ready for it? Not entirely. Did I need to do this, for my sanity and my career goals? Definitely. Was I terrified? Abso-freaking-lutely. Has it been worth it? Heck, yea!

All I knew was that I wasn't happy in my old job - where while I was an independent contractor, I was treated much more along the lines of an employee. I had a lot of responsibilities that I loved in one way, but hated in another - I learned that environment and managers can have a lot to do with workplace happiness (or lack there of). I had put three years of time and wonky hours into this place, and I finally felt that I had enough of a base to branch out and start my own thing. The way I saw it, if I have a career where I can make my own hours and be okay doing my own thing - which not everyone has the luxury of - why wouldn't I do that?

So I did. I didn't know exactly how, or even where to start. But let me tell you, Pinterest is amazing when it comes to inspirational words and mantras. (No, really!) I kid you not, this little saying below really struck a chord with me when I saw it.

If I just waited around until I was ready.. it never would have happened. So here I am, operating my own massage therapy & health coaching business, while simultaneously pretty much running and expanding the winery I mentioned a while back. I have the steady paycheck + the ability to work on my own thing on the side.. and it's pretty great.

But yea.. I'd say that's kept me (obnoxiously) busy over the past few months. Forgive my absence? =D

On the flip side, I have so many great ideas and different things that I can't wait to talk/blog about over the next month.. and beyond! And only some of them involve wine.  (Okay, maybe like, half.) (But you can't blame me, it's delicious.)

weekend recap + BB brownies

I don't do a lot of weekend recaps.. mostly because my weekends have been a bit boring and work-filled lately.. but this past one was definitely deserves a few words! Well, Friday at least.

I started off the day with a hot power yoga class - which is always my favorite way to start a Friday morning. My fave local studio features $5 Friday's, so when I can squeeze in a cheap class and grab a few more Goûter tonics? It's a good day.

The next stop of the day was to see our tattoo guy, Chris, at Low Tide Tattoos for my newest ink - a cat paw. Something I haven't talked much about here just yet is about the passing of my sweet kitty, Tully, back in December. The reader's digest version is that he developed lymphoma last year, and it was just a matter of time before it took over his body. We had to put him to sleep just after Thanksgiving, and god help me, it was one of the hardest things I've had to do. I still think about him everyday.

When he started getting sicker, I decided that I wanted to eventually "commemorate" him with a tattoo of his paw print. The interesting part was actually getting the print, but after several tries (and lots of wet food as incentive), I was able to get a few decent ones. It took me a few months to actually schedule an appointment, but I was feeling especially inspired last week and set something up for midday Friday.

I sent Chris two of the best paw prints - and seeing as he's also done five out of my seven tattoos - I trusted him completely with it. And guys? It's beautiful.