Pink on Pink

After a successful challenge last night, I decided to be extra nice to myself while at work today. I popped out to Crumbs for a cupcake break. There were a plethora of flavorful choices, but I went with the option that screamed "Sex and the City" -- Cosmo.

It has been renamed by my cubicle mate to the Little Girl Cupcake. This thing is neon pink and stuffed with pink frosting. Basically, I love it. Happy Tuesday all!

Jeanette & Julia

You remember the part in "Julie and Julia" where Julie burns and then correctly makes beef bourguignon? Well that is not my challenge tonight. Not quite. A couple of months ago, when the husband and I were on our official honeymoon in Paris, I sampled seitan bourguignon. I was desperately hoping, as a vegetarian and former lover of beef bourguignon, that Paris would deliver a delicious, meat-free alternative. Sadly, the version I tried was as bland as meat eaters might expect (no scoffing, please).
See, truth be told, I miss certain meat dishes. But it's not the meat I miss. It's sauces and spices that I crave. Preparations like fried chicken breading and scampi sauce are hard to imagine veggie friendly, even on the beans and soy products that I've come to savor. And, bourguignon, I miss that lovely wine sauce poured over egg noodles.
Hopefully, tonight will end that longing because my favorite recipe blog, Smitten Kitchen, has already conquer Portobello mushroom bourguignon!
So this challenge comes in two parts:
1. Cook for my husband and a guest. May not seem like much, but the husband is the cook in this household and I'm only trying my measuring spoons at it lately because he's been working a lot of late nights.
2. Attempt to take a French classic, reinvented for our vegetarian pallets, and make Julia Child proud...or at least make everyone at the table say yum. Here are some pics from this culinary adventure.

This Weekend...According to my iPhone

There is simply nothing better than being around people with whom you can be completely yourself. The hubster and I spent the weekend in Silver Spring, MD with my best friend and her husband, whose impression of Bain was as funny as his cooking is fantastic. With the added joy of spending time with the sweetest pup, Olive, even a day and a half was well worth the trip. Laughter, great food & a bit of adventuring ensued. Here's what it looked like according to my iPhone.

On the Road

I was hoping to make fill this post with pictures while heading away from Brooklyn toward D.C. to visit my bestie. Unfortunately, the husband got stuck at work until 8:30pm, and we didn't roll out from our curbside parking spot until 9:45. So here is my lil' post. Not too exciting, but I am writing it on my iPhone -- a totally new experience. The good news is that I have my lil' pink camera packed and on the road with me, so there should be a post in the not so distant future with pics of a classy vineyard visit and some type of water fun (will we kayak? Will we tube? Stay tuned)

Until then, here's a picture of my feet. After all, what's an adventurer without her feet?

Sunset in the Garden of Good & Evil

I live in a gorgeous neighborhood in Brooklyn that is filled with gardens of trees, flowers and statuettes. Before I moved back to New York and into this neighborhood, I didn't know that a fairyland like it existed right outside of Manhattan. But it does, and I get to live here. So today's assignment was in two parts.

1. Stop and photograph the roses (as well as other fun finds)
2. Make my very first photo collages in photoshop

I'm currently (slowly) teaching myself photoshop, so please be kind. Here is my very first collage -- a celebration of Carroll Gardens.

I took some other interesting pictures, which I have started as a second collage, but it's proving to be more difficult to compile. So that will be a spot of tea for another night. See you tomorrow when I take on blogging by iPhone on my way to D.C.

A Fresh Cup

What the heck is a tea cup list? I think I made it up, and, in my mind, it's a variation on a bucket list. I have a bucket list, and I checked a couple of big items off of it this year alone -- visit Paris with someone I love, take a hot air balloon ride, learn photoshop (though that one is still a work in progress). My point is, I like bucket lists. They encourage me to dream big and do exciting things. But I don't and can't really do those things everyday. Not while maintaining a full-time job, a decently stocked bank account, and a bit of a social life. So I've made a proposal to myself -- the tea cup list.

My tea cup list oath:

I will do one thing (almost) everyday to flex my creative muscle, to challenge my boundaries, and/or to make myself smile. That's it -- and, I'll share those things here with a picture, a story, maybe some how-tos. We'll see what comes of it.

Today, this was my one thing. I started this blog. See you tomorrow.