doing DC: diner en blanc

Has there ever been an event that you've seen growing up through the years and always wanted to go to, but never thought it was a possibility? Well that was me with Diner En Blanc - only the hottest little pop-up, super exclusive, picnic that sweeps cities around the world every summer. 

Thanks to Monsieur François Pasquier who decided to have a picnic with friends 27 years ago, people worldwide sign up for the crazy ride to wear all white, bring all white everything (minus the food), and be kept totally in the dark until you're metroing to your final location. Does that sound crazy? Probably. But is it worth every minute and penny spent? Oui, oui, oui! 

I don't even want to bore you with words because I think the pictures speak for themselves. But if I must, let me give you a few pro tips in case you're reading this and new to the game! 

• Table - Coleman outdoor camping table is perfect. It's super lightweight, rolls up and comes with a carrying case. Don't hesitate. Buy it! For $29, it's a total steal. 
• Chairs - IKEA is a Godsend for this picnic! Like the table, these chairs are a steal for $7.99. Lightweight, compact - buy them! 
• Luggage Cart - YOU NEED ONE! This is what I got last minute, and it was perfect because it folded up and we could sit it under the table while we ate. It's sturdy and holds a lot! You may want extra bungee cords though. 
• Picnic Basket - Okay, so I kind of cheated on this one, because my boss let me use her picnic basket - which just happens to be this one. I took everything out of it and bought white plates and clear glasses from IKEA, so the price tag is a bit much - but it held all of our food and fit on the cart perfectly. Let's face it, I'm probably going to buy it for myself here soon just so I have it. 

As for the rest - it's up to you! For a short while, I thought I had overbought - but it was just the perfect amount of table decorations for the night. I got it all in one 12x12 tote you pick up at a craft store to decorate which made it easier! Like I said, all my dishes, cutlery and glasses, and battery operated candles came from IKEA. I got the napkins from Target, napkin ring holders from Bed, Bath and Beyond, and the flowers with little bud vases at Michaels. I then filled the jars with fairy lights to add extra light. 

Now, enough about the table. Let's get to the real fun! 

Looks like I found my people! 250 people casually congregating waiting for our final meeting place. 

Wave the napkins - it's dinner time! 

Speaking of dinner - Meg and I (mostly Meg) made a three course Italian meal. We started off with an assortment of olives, pasta salad and stuffed breads of breaded chicken and sausage. It was all equally amazing and mostly mess proof.

These mini cheesecakes were the perfect way to end the dinner before all the dancing. 

Sparklers - dinner is over! Time to dance the night away!

We love sparklers! Once we could actually get them lit, that is.

Apothic Wines was the sponsor, so not only did we drink good wine, but we got pretty masks that made us feel like A in PLL. 

My favorite picture of the night, by far. This girl was my very first friend in DC. She's seen cleaned up my puke more than once, picked me up at the airport on a snowy 12:30 flight cancellation with beer, and made me feel more like a sister than some person from work that you hang out with when you're off. To say I'm going to miss her when she moves back to Connecticut next week is an understatement! 
As far as our outfits are concerned, by some odd coincidence, we both ended up in white seersucker dresses from the Gap (feel free, Gap to use us in your next ad at any time!). I bought this dress at the beginning of summer on a lark sale - $19.99 instead of $69.99! My amazing flower crown is courtesy of MahaMahaCreations at Etsy. She's amazing and very reasonable. Our jewelry was a very nice loan from our boss - but I must say the necklace worked so well with the dress. I feel like I looked like Betty Rubble, and I absolutely loved it! 

Okay, last picture. But when the Snapchat photo turns out really good - you use it. Everywhere. 
So, did this convince you to try and be part of it next year? It should! If you have any questions about going, or want in on DC next year, let me know! I'm looking at going to Cincinnati next year, so if you know someone, let me know! 

*all photos taken by me, or Megan by our trusty iPhones

doing DC: going to the farmer's market

One thing that I love in DC is the abundance of farmer's markets. Growing up next to farms, I appreciate the fresh produce and independent shops that provide all natural products. The one downside to farmer's markets here is that they all typically fall on different days at different hours and not always open on weekends. 

As much as I'd love to stroll down the aisles on a Wednesday afternoon next to the White House, that isn't always an option for me! So, when I do happen to find myself in the middle of one, I typically buy a lot, and don't have any cash. Thank God, being DC, almost all of them take debit cards! 

Because I'm a sucker for small boutiques, I've compiled quiet the list of places I know I'll be to when it comes to buying birthday and Christmas presents, and presents for "just because!" 

Here's a small list of the new shops I've found through the markets - I hope you find some goodies for you and others!

Old Town Suds - I definitely have an addiction to all natural soaps. But, when you think about it, wouldn't you rather be putting good stuff on your skin and not tons of harsh chemicals? I just bought their laundry soap, two bars (Bellini and Lilac - both of which smell SO GOOD) and the Best Face Wash Ever to try for my sometimes acne-prone skin. 

Ladyburg - Speaking of all natural soaps, I also have some goodies from Ladyburg in my bathroom. Let's talk about their bath bombs; amazing. They all smell amazing. Even better, they don't stain your bathtub, unlike some other companies do! I also highly recommend the whipped sugar scrub. I use it once a week to exfoliate before I shave. I need more superlatives to use, but again, amazing. 

Curated - Curated is a cute little boutique in Old Town Alexandria that I came across during the Sidewalk Sale day in Old Town a few weeks ago. It's great to find unique gifts for any occasion at great prices. My favorite though is the etched map mason jar that I picked up for $10 that showcases downtown DC. 

Analog - I could do a whole post in and of itself on Brookland. One, it's set right next to the beautiful Catholic University of America campus, and two, it has the cutest market space on Monroe Street aptly named Monroe Street Market. You'll find some great independently owned studio spaces ranging from artwork to leather goods, to paper goods like Analog. Not only does Analog have cute cards, like my favorite Leslie Knope quote about this hellacious swamp land we live on; "It's a hundred and twenty degrees out with two hundred percent humidity because this is a stupid swamp town." You can say that again, Leslie, but it also has cute curated vintage threads. Shop the cards at the Etsy shop and stop in to find items your grandma probably wore - and I mean that in the best possible sense of the word! If you don't believe me, you can see me wearing a shirt I most definitely believe my grandma used to wear when we went to the River every summer here.

What are your favorite little shops around the city that I don't know about yet?? I can't wait for fall to take full effect and jump into every hay patch at farms I can find!

*all photos taken by me with my trusty iPhone and no shops endorsed me in any way to say how much I love them. 

workcation files: lake life

I coined the phrase, "workcation" to accurately depict what it's like going on vacation with my nanny family. They're on vacation, and I'm there to work, thus - workcation. This time we're headed back to the lake for two weeks and I actually can't wait. 

Here's what I hope happens over the next two weeks - 

1. We run into Nick Saban while I happen to be wearing my Ohio State "Won it first" hat. 

2. I do stand up paddle boarding every day.

3. I win the tank top competition (more on that later).

4. I learn how to water ski - but to be honest, I may give that a total go this year. Just not my thing. 

It'll be silent here for the next two weeks as we seclude ourselves into the wild wilderness of Georgia. And I have to admit, I'm pretty excited about it! 

doing DC: cheering on the nationals

Coming from Ohio, I sort of know a thing or two about baseball. I mean, it is only where it all started...under technicalities, but who's going there? 

Anyway, thanks to those ten salaried players of the Cincinnati Red Stockings back in 1869, this girl grew up in a baseball loving family, in a state of baseball loving fans. Sure, we don't get along with the Indians fans up North in Cleveland, but that's a different story.

As a child I vividly remember attending games on the River - I was usually freezing, it always rained, and the Reds always lost. I even missed the big hitter of the time, Ken Griffey Jr.actually hit a ball for once, while getting Dippin' Dots. Let's just say I didn't have great luck at ball fields in Ohio. Even when we would go to the local minor league team, the Dayton Dragons it would literally POUR down rain. Pour. Every single time without fail.

You can see why I would be excited to go to a Nationals game here, but hesitant at the same time. However, my hesitation hasn't kept me from trying to earn redemption on the diamond. Maybe it's the team, maybe it's the players, or maybe my luck has turned around; I don't know what's changed, but going to a Nats game has become a top priority on fun things to do. I mean, just look at those cute presidents doing their run!

Last week I randomly had Wednesday off and decided to head into the city. The humidity had finally abated so the 90 degree weather didn't feel like 105 degrees so it was a perfect day to walk around. Hopping on the Metro, I was met with several people in the full Nats regalia and one Mets fan (loser). Fully expecting a night game, I was surprised to find out that it was starting in 20 minutes. With nothing better to do, I bought a ticket seven rows back from 3rd base and went to the game.

It took us nearly the whole game to get into it, but at the bottom of the 8th, down 3-1, we tied it up and then got the go-ahead score 4-3. It was exciting to say the least!

Getting to the ball park is seriously easy and pretty much hassle free if you're near a metro. Just take the Green line to Navy Yard-Ballpark. It cost me $3.60 to get to the ballpark from my stop all the way on the Silver Line - way less than any parking garage anywhere in the area. It definitely takes the sting off the cost of everything else INSIDE the stadium!



*All photos taken by me with my trusty iPhone

DC day trips: bold rock cidery

When my mom came to visit me for my 27th birthday she had one main request - find anything to do that wasn't in the city. (Just between you and me, she's a little weird about the city ;) So that was my task. We spent my birthday in Georgetown, but I was at a bit of a loss for what to do the following day. Then it hit me - the Bold Rock Hard Cider Cidery in Rockfish. 

When I lived in Rome, I hated pretty much every version of alcohol I tried. In fact, it was so comical, my roommates would remark about how much of a face I would make. They called it my "wine face" no matter if it was wine, rum, vodka or anything else. 

Upon turning 21, there were approximately three drinks I liked - vodka cranberry, bellinis, and mimosas. I realized I disliked beer in any form, and my one foray into cider in a dark London pub ended in possibly the worst "wine face" of them all. But then my college roommate introduced me to a new kind of cider - the gluten free kind. The ones that taste like apple juice. As far as most drinks go, there is no "acquired taste" to these ciders. 

In Ohio, the most popular kind of cider is Angry Orchard. Here in D.C. it's Bold Rock. I may not be able to openly support the local breweries, I love supporting this local cidery! The main drawback is the fact that it's gorgeous views of the mountains outside of Charlottesville is two and a half hours away from the city. However, it was a perfect day trip for a woman who wanted to stay out of the city. 

Not only are the drinks amazing, but the food is exactly what you'd want when testing the ciders. Light and easy sandwiches with apple aioli sauce and apple slaw. It was heaven. I actually don't have pictures of the sandwiches because we devoured them. 

When you're done with your flight and just want to spend some time walking around the grounds, get a pint and enjoy the gorgeous views of the mountains, or play a game of corn hole. 

It was a fantastic little day trip out of the city and I highly recommend it for anyone who is like me, and prefers the gluten free version of cider! 

*All photos taken by me with my trusty iPhone

four ingredient fresh summer salsa

One of my absolute favorite things about living in Ohio is the summer. The sea of green that you drive through, the fairs, longer nights - I love it all. But maybe what I love most about it, is making my mom's fresh salsa. 

Growing up, and still to this day, I don't particularly like raw tomatoes. This has always been a perplexing notion to my family, because not only do they all love to eat tomatoes on everything, or by themselves, but they all grow them. However, my usual dislike for raw tomatoes stops when it comes to this fresh salsa. 

Moving to Virginia last year, I never had a chance to make it, so it was my goal to ramp up my acid reflux this summer and make a batch. Luckily for all of you, since I'm making it a priority to spend more time on my blog and other ventures that I set out to do early on when I moved here - you all get the recipe! And even better than that news, it's only four ingredients! You really can't get much easier than that. 

You need the following ingredients:

• Tomatoes - as many as you want depending on how much salsa you want. I used five.
• Cilantro - one small bunch, pick off the leaves and throw away the stems, you can see how much I used. 
• Onion - one medium onion. I like to use the red onions. I left just about a fourth of it uncut based on the amount of tomatoes I used. 
• Chilies - the only ingredient not pictured, I use a 4 oz can of mild green chilies. 
• Salt to taste. 

Okay, I guess I lied. There's that tiny fifth ingredient of salt. Still, you can't get much simpler than this. Just dice up your tomatoes and onion, finely chop the cilantro and add it all together with the chilies. Top off with salt if you wish. 

Isn't it just gorgeous?? I don't know about you, but I could eat this all day long seven days a week! 

an essay on my grandpa

Two Thursdays ago, I lost my grandpa. 

I guess he's not exactly lost. I know he's in heaven, playing endless rounds of golf and eating desserts to his heart's desire, but still, I feel the loss. I feel it in the way that he's no longer going to answer the phone with his deep, raspy "hello," and when asking if I could talk to grandma, responding with, "Can you?" Note to the wise - the question is always "May I?" 

I felt it in the way that there was a void when sitting at the dinner table the day after the funeral. Never again will he sit at the head of the table, not so nonchalantly looking at the score of the football game in the middle of dinner. No more, "Does anyone want bread?" No more complaining the vegetables aren't done enough. All of those little details that I stashed away as inconsequential are now those little details that actually make me tear up. 

"Are you writing a book?" he'd ask when I asked a lot of questions. "Yeah!" I'd say, knowing the next line so well. "Know what you can do with the last chapter? Flush it down the toilet and make it a mystery." 

"Grandpa - how do I know if this cottage cheese is okay or not?" I asked once over the phone, while gazing uncertainly at the container like it was about to grow fangs and bite me, "Well take a bite. What's the worst that's going to happen? You won't die," he said in an incredulous tone. His advice, as usual, was correct. The cottage cheese was okay and I didn't in fact, die from trying it. 

Never will I ever get to pull out my wallet and pay for his meal. "You bring your money this time?" he always asked as the bill would get to the table. "No!" I would say in my child chortle. "Just like I suspected. Always making me pay for everything." 

"Hey there's your house!" Cue the house, almost literally imploding in on itself, exactly like that split-down-the-middle tornado house card in the Game of Life board game. You know which one I'm talking about. "That's NOT my house!!" I would say, Every. Tuesday. as we would drive by it on the way to bowling. That house is no longer there, but every time I drive by the place where it stood, I still think about that dilapidated structure.

"Gosh you're heavy!" he'd dramatically exclaim as I would squeeze myself into the side of his chair to lean on my favorite pillow person. 

"Grandpa, you fell asleep again." "No I didn't. I was studying the inside of my eyelids." 

"Hit the ball!" is what I'll hear in my head every time I see a golf ball. "I'm trying!" my five year-old self indignantly proclaimed, staring out over the bill of one of his baseball hats. "Well are you afraid you'll hurt the worms?" Hands on my hips - "No! I'm trying to hit the ball!" 

None of these moments are the moments I talked about to everyone at the funeral. I stated I could stand up there for hours, telling people about my memories - I have just a month shy of 27 years of them stored up in my brain. A passage in Jennifer Gardner Trulson's book, Where You Left Me summed my speech up perfectly. She felt the urgency to express to others how happy she and her husband had been before she was tragically widowed on September 11th. That, she wanted everyone to know she was going to be okay. I guess I never understood her desperation at that point she wanted to convey to others until two Thursdays ago.

The last time I saw him, he gave me two hugs before I left. It was Easter, and I had only come home again because I knew he wasn't doing well and my uncle was having surgery the following day. "You behave yourself, do you understand me?" I told him after the second hard squeeze, stooped over his chair. I made my hand to eye gesture - the telltale sign that I've got my eye on you, kid. "Why?!" he asked. "Because, you know the rule! No doctor's visits unless I'm here! Be good! I love you." I was spared from his heartbreaking demise in the final week, and for that I'm actually truly grateful. 

As I say to everyone who apologizes for my loss, "It's sad that he's no longer here, but he's truly in a better place." That's my happy thought when I think about these past two weeks. 

So, Grandpa, if you're reading this - because we all know you were such a wiz at the computer and internet - I hope you made your chip shots today on the links. I hope your vegetables were mush and the rhubarb pie was exactly like the kind your mother made you. I hope you put salt on all of your food and had a great time starting a move on TV halfway through. We'll be okay down here because we now no longer have to worry about you going rogue and climbing up the incredibly rickety, leaning ladder to cut a tree down! 

I love you to the moon and back. I always have, and I always will. Enjoy the peace and quiet for now, because at some point - waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaay down the road, I'll be up there, filling you in on my opinions on life.