philadelphia: a summary

I dont really talk about my job on this here blog. And that is pretty intentional. One, because although its a great job and I am super thankful, its not really fun blog material. And two, when I get home after working all day, I usually like to ignore the fact that I even have a job.

I travel for work a few times a year. And sometimes, my job takes me to fun places. And sometimes, it does not.

This is the story of the latter.

I spent the last week in Philadelphia. And I (multiple times) had to resist the urge to break out in the Fresh Prince theme song. Everyone now! In west Philadelphia born and raised.....

Overall, although the actual work part of the trip was successful, I did not enjoy Philadelphia. It was humid, crowded, dirty, and sorta trashy. And that is my expert opinion. I am fully aware I stuck to a small radius around downtown and I am sure there are lovely areas of the city. But this is my blog and I can write whatever I want.

All I am sayin' is no wonder the Fresh Prince whistled for a cab to Bel Air.

Here are some cell phone pics. Feel free to use this as your official travel guide to the city. I include lots of detail and honest reviews.

I think this is City Hall. I think.

I had a crappy salad here. I dont remember the name.

This building is probably historic. Dont quote me on that, though.

This was the view out of my hotel room. I think this is William Penn. The most famous Philadelphian. After Ben Franklin. And Will Smith, of course.

This was a nice park. We had dinner at a nice restaurant across the street. I had roasted red pepper gazpacho. It was lovely. And then a huge cockroach proceeded to crawl across the back of my seat. I screamed and had nightmares all week.

Oh! There was one thing I did like. Reading Terminal Market.
Its a large, indoor food market with fresh farmer's produce stands, bakeries, and many different food vendors. There were a number of Amish vendors as well. And I dont know if you know, but I love Amish people. And because I love them, I know they do not like their picture being taken. So I didnt. Just visualize adorable teenage girls in bonnets selling homebaked goods.

By the end of the week, my feet hurt, I was tired of smelling garbage everywhere, and I wanted to come home. So what does one do when they are feeling pathetic and sorry for themselves?

They eat a giant frozen yogurt in bed for dinner and watch trashy tv. My Big Fat Gypsy Wedding, anyone?

mason jars

Inspired by this lovely girl, I decided to do something about the mess of bulk items in my pantry.

I like to buy most grains (rice, cous cous, quinoa, oatmeal, etc) in bulk. Saves money and saves space. Well sorta. It also adds a mess of disorganized bags, not to mention the fear of tearing a small hole and cous cous spilling all over my floor.

Enter mason jars. Large ones. I already use smaller ones for drinking glasses (and love them) so I knew larger jars would be the perfect solution.

I can now clearly see my dry goods and have a semi-more organized pantry. (I said semi. Notice how I didnt include any pictures of my actual pantry...) I also had enough jars to store some baking supplies and Frantz Farm almonds. I like them so much, I might need to order some more!

summertime

I have been neglecting this blog lately. And that is good. It is so easy to get caught up in the lives of others (what they are doing, what they are wearing, where they are going, etc) and lose sight of all the blessings in your own life. So sometimes, a break is just what I need.

Every June, it takes a couple weeks to face the reality that I do not have a summer vacation. But once I accept that fact, I get over it and move on. Just because I cant spend my weekdays relaxing, doesn't mean I shouldn't make the most of my summer weekends.

Saturday bike ride.

River front bike path (aka ag road by irrigation canal)

homemade whole wheat burger buns

bbq burger with grilled onions and sweet potato fries. enjoyed on the patio.

scully. looking cute. waiting for any crumbs to drop.

lately

Lately....I have been loving strawberries. Like, I cant get enough. Luckily I live about 5 minutes away from the best BEST strawberry field and stand.

They have seen me every Sunday for the past few weeks. I am already sad thinking about the day they run out.


Lately....we celebrated Aaron's (Peter's brother) graduation. The last Frantz to graduate college.

Lately...I have been taking my morning cream with coffee. Seriously, how pale can my cup be? I am currently loving the combination of french vanilla and irish cream. I have the 7/11 in Arroyo Grande to thank for this magical combination.
Call me crazy, but that place makes some of the best coffee I have ever had.

Lately...I have been ditching the oven for easy, fresh dinners. Reality...my house is small and turning on the oven can feel like a furnace sometimes.

Bruschetta is our favorite.


Lately...I have been loving our new mason jars. Peter ordered a bunch for me as a surprise (which was nice, considering he broke my last one). I use them to make and store salad dressings and, mainly, as a drinking glass. In my opinion, everything is better in a mason jar.

Lately...In the midst of stress at work and thinking about future decisions, I have been finding joy in the simple things. I love coming home everyday to Peter and Scully and my little house. It truly is my very favorite place to be.

mama

Happy Mothers Day!

To my mom. Who has been holding me in her arms for over 25 years.

I love you, Mom.

It's been me and you, always, from the very beginning.

spring break

Ok, so we dont technically have a Spring Break.

But we do have an annual After Tax Season Break. And after almost four long months of long hours, weekend working, and hardly seeing each other, we needed a break.

The week started with our first Dodger game of the season. The game was lame, but we had a great time.

Then it was on the the beach house for a few days of bliss.

Big Sky Cafe in SLO. Our favorite.

We came home just in time for Easter Sunday. After an amazing church service, we enjoyed the rest of the afternoon with family.

I am well aware that I am not the one working like crazy during this time.
Peter is.
So, thanks Pete. You're the best ever.

project: laundry room

So I am not sure if this classifies as a laundry room. Its more of a laundry space.
But it does the job and its all I have.
And I am thankful that its not outside in the garage.

Regardless, the laundry room was a not-cute, highly disorganized space that has remained untouched for the past three years. Before we moved in, the owner of the house had this room (and a few others) painted a horrible shade of "neutral". Think yellowish-beige. All over. Walls, ceiling, door, trim.
....shudder....

Aesthetically, it was not good.
Also, (and this I can't blame on anyone but us)it quickly became a disorganized dumping ground for all sorts of stuff. I have learned by living in a small house, that you have to take advantage of storage space and use it efficiently. And I was definitely NOT taking advantage of this space.

It is with storage and organization in mind, that I decided to tackle the laundry room this past weekend. Nothing major, so dont expect new cherry red, front loading machines....

Just fresh paint for the walls, cabinets, trim, and door. Cleaned, organized cabinets, and some pops of color, to help make doing laundry a bit more bearable.

This project was done using some existing materials. The gray paint was leftover from our bedroom. The yellow shelving rack used to be the microwave cart in our old apartment. It has been in a closet for 3 years and by turning it sideways and spray painting it, serves a whole new purpose.

I utilized the space by installing a closet rod for drying clothes. This allowed me to get rid of the janky drying rack I've had since college, which took up space and was barely staying upright. The built-in hamper will now be used (as well as a hamper in our bathroom)and in the empty space, we plan on putting a small chest freezer.

Overall, this was a quick, simple project that most people wont even notice, but makes a huge difference to me.