Monday, July 22, 2013

DC

This week, my in-laws came out to see us! It was probably the hottest week of the year, but we had so much fun exploring downtown (we just had to make sure there was air conditioning nearby ;)

The Old Post Office
This incredible hallway that was completely deserted at 6 in the afternoon.
Flowers outside of the Smithsonian Museum of Natural History

On Cheri's first day, we decided to go on an early morning walk from Georgetown to the National Mall.  It's only about a 3 mile walk, and under normal conditions would have been easy.  However, in the 90-100 degree heat (with a 75 degree dew point) we were drenched by the time we reached the Lincoln Monument.  At one point I think we just had to accept our fate and laugh at how crazy we looked!



This was a "halfway" point between the Korean War Memorial and the Washington Monument.  So pretty!

Crew practice on the Potomac. 

Once we reached the WWII Memorial (which is breathtaking btw).  We decided that our bodies couldn't take any more heat and grabbed a cab back to Georgetown.  Because this was still only 11am we were able to get dropped off at the famous DC Cupcakes and walk in without waiting in the normal 1hr. line.  The cupcakes were delicious (even though we had to wait about 2 hrs to eat them) and we will definitely be going back in the future! My personal favorite was the vanilla vanilla.  The frosting was just so smooth and delicous! 
This cute park is at the far left end of Georgetown and way close to DC Cupcakes

Loved this cute box!
On the left is Red Velvet, and on the right is Vanilla Vanilla. 

Thursday, July 11, 2013

Fresh Faced


I recently decided that this blog needed a serious makeover....and I spent the majority of last night playing around with its HTML, so I apologize if any of you stopped by in the middle of my little demolition.  Not too much has changed, but I did want to explain what I have added (just to make everyone's life easier).  

Social Media:
On the upper right hand side (below the blog title) there are now three social buttons by which you can follow me on: Instagram, Bloglovin', and Pinterest.  I have had these accounts for some time and figured it was high time that I linked you to them.  
Blogs I love:
Beneath the "Blog Archive", I have listed some of the blogs I frequent on a weekly basis.  I love to get inspiration from each of these sites and hope you guys will too! (I should note that I have not been asked to recommend these blogs...they are just some of my personal favorites)
RSS Feed:
I also have added a "Follow by Email" gadget which allows my readers to receive an email update (one at the MOST per day) whenever I post something.  Basically this means that you will get a little snippet of any post on this blog via your email. But not to worry, if I post more than once in a day you will still only receive the one email (I personally love this as my inbox can get pretty crowded during the day). 
Search:
I also have added a "Looking for Something?" gadget which allows you to search the content of this blog (this comes in handy if you are looking for a specific recipe, picture, etc..). 

Hope these new changes are helpful to you! And as a thank you for sticking with me, here are more photos from our SLC trip!

Park City: 
As a last hurrah before Stephen and I headed home, we went up to Park City with Mark, Cheri, Daniel and Brittany and her two girlies.  We shopped at the outlets and ate at one of the resorts! So fun!

My handsome husband :)

Stephen and Daniel


Typical EVC

Playing in the Mini-Golf Sand

Golf Trip:
I had to include some of the photos of the boys golfing on our last day in SLC.  Stephen took the camera down to Hidden Valley and documented their round.  He did so well!

-Stephen-

-Daniel-

-Mark-

Wednesday, July 10, 2013

Authentic Green Enchiladas


Hello! Today I figured I would do a recipe post to mix things up. Many of you know that Stephen served a two year mission in D.F (Mexico City) Mexico. Because of this (and because of my love for Hispanic Culture), we have loved cooking Mexican food together ever since we started dating. A couple weeks ago, while at a restaurant here in DC, we had this amazing rendition of chicken tacos with a creamy green sauce that reminded Stephen of the salsa used on green enchiladas in Mexico. After a little research, I decided to be brave and attempt to recreate his favorite dish...and after my second attempt I was victorious!! Let me tell you, these are not just the best green enchiladas I have ever had, but they are the best enchiladas period. The recipe is quite simple, which is another reason to love it. Hope you guys enjoy!
What You Need:
Two Chicken Breasts
1 White Onion
Garlic
2 Cups Chicken Broth
1 Lb. Tomatillos
4 Serrano Chiles
1 Package Corn Tortillas
Cilantro
Cacique Cheese
Crema
Directions:
In a pan, pour in the chicken broth with the chicken breasts.  Add in a tsp. of crushed garlic and 1/4 of the onion.  Bring to a boil then let cook for 20 minutes. In the meantime, add the tomatillos (quick tip, only pick the smaller ones, the big ones can be too bitter) and the serrano chiles (if you want more mild you can de-seed, if you like spicy throw them in whole) and add enough water to cover the tops.  Let the water come to a boil and sit until the tomatillos turn a dark shade of green. Once the chicken is finished, remove the garlic and onion but make sure to save the leftover chicken broth! Let the chicken cool, then shred.  Take the cooked tomatillos and chiles, strain the water, and add them into a blender.  Pour in the saved chicken broth, add another quarter onion and tsp. garlic, then blend.  Once the mixture is a smooth consistency, add back into a pan on medium heat.  In another pan, add a little bit of vegetable oil (just enough to cover the surface) and lightly fry the corn tortillas.  They only need to be in the hot oil for 10-20 seconds. For the finishing touch, add cilantro (and guacamole if you're like me), and a little bit of cacique cheese sprinkled on top.



Tuesday, July 9, 2013

A SLC Fourth of July!

This past week has been a whirlwind of ups and downs.  Stephen received some unfortunate news and we had to fly out to SLC last minute.  Even though the circumstances weren't the best, it was still so fun to see our family after being away.  I got some sweet pictures of my nieces and even got to tag along with my awesome sister-in-law to shoot some "pre-mission" photos of her cousin.  

Jing (Muy) my newest sister-in-law and my husband's cousin Annie! (Our stylists and unofficial jokesters for the shoot :)

How cute is Megan! Can't wait for her little guy to come in just a few short weeks!


So Pretty!
Prepping for some photo magic


Then we had our Fourth of July BBQ! We had so much fun playing with these two little girlies during our trip.  Definitely missing them already!


Twin Time!
Ellie!
My cute nieces
Love this little one
-Evie-
Ellie in her towel

Grandpa Mark and his two little princesses