My Week in Photos

This post might get a bit confusing, but today's "week in photos" is a compilation of the last two weeks' worth of fun. It's been busy around here, but in a good way. Summers in DC are the best. There are so many things to do and see in this city and everyone around here seems to be up for an adventure. On any given weekend, I'm trying to juggle plans to see how much I can cram in before Monday. Two weekends ago turned out to be no different than the rest. But before I get to the weekend, let's not forget that leading up to it, I had a 3-day work retreat (read: two days of hell and one day to "retreat").

Days 1 and 2 looked a lot like this:

Are we having fun yet?

However, being out of the office meant that I didn't have to pack my own lunch!

Crab Cake Burger from Bull Feathers

The best part of the retreat was Friday morning when we went on a tour of the US Capitol. I feel much more legit now that I can say, I live in near DC and I've been in the Capitol. Next on my DC bucket list is the White House. That one might take a bit longer, and a bit more networking. 

Anyway, back to the Capitol Tour. Words can't describe what we got to see. An overwhelming amount of thought, planning and workmanship went into our beautiful Capitol's history. While these photos don't do it justice, here's hoping they at least give you a glimpse into the amazingness.

They say a picture is worth 1,000 words, right?

The next morning, Jesse competed in a Spartan Race. It's a 3-mile run with 18 obstacles/challenges interspersed throughout the course. The obstacles ranged from barbed wire covered mud crawls to scaling a 10 foot wall. I had no idea that it would be such an intense race, but all of the competitors seemed to enjoy it. I on the other hand, had a lot of fun being the cheerleader. Jesse did a phenomenal job, and I was so proud to watch him cross the finish line!

The completion of his first Spartan Race called for a Pinkberry celebration. Pinkberry is a newer frozen yogurt chain in DC. FroYo seems to be the newest trend to hit the east coast. I think we're only about 10 years behind the west coast on this one! But, better late than never, because this stuff rocks!

The last major event of the weekend was the soccer Gold Cup Quarterfinals on Sunday. USA took on Jamaica (and won!) and El Salvador took on Panama. Both of the games were at RFK Stadium (where the Washington Redskins used to play), so we went with another couple to watch the double header.

While I love watching Jesse play soccer, I quickly realized that watching people I don't know, play a sport I don't know much about isn't quite as entertaining. I might have slept through half of the game ... oops! At least I can say I was there, right? Oh, and the post-game tailgating was a blast! :)

After a jam packed weekend, last week was a bit sluggish. That being said, I did try out a few new recipes and work on a few projects, so it wasn't a complete waste.

I made a Fiesta Chicken Salad (get the recipe here):

I also made Spicy Thai Chicken with Mango Basil Salsa, which as it turns out, is delicious! (recipe coming this week ... hopefully!)

And from the Rooney files ... 

We've started to let Rooney spend more time out on the deck. He loves to watch the birds and bugs and I think it's good for him to be outside. The only thing that makes me nervous is that he's getting braver by the day. His new favorite spot is up on the railing. Could he get any closer to the edge?!

Something in the picture below doesn't belong ... which one could it be? He knows he isn't supposed to be up on the counters, but apparently, the folded towel seemed like an open invitation.

The picture below is my favorite this week! After a rainy walk, Jesse and I left the umbrella open to dry out. Shortly after we got home, we looked over the ledge to see Rooney hanging out underneath it. It immediately made me think of my favorite childhood books, Winnie-the-Pooh, "Tut tut, looks like rain."

I hope you all had a good weekend! And here's to another busy, but fun week ahead!!

I'm working on a few projects right now, so I'm hoping to have more updates as the week progresses. Here's a teaser of something I'm hoping to start soon. The buffet is about to get spoiled!