Wordless {ha!} Wednesday: The Rooney Files

I constantly have my camera phone in-hand to capture pictures of my day (thanks for starting that one Instagram!), so when I get behind in blogging I get a back-log of pictures that I want to share on here. I usually use my Photo Friday series to share all of my random musings, but with this week being Turkey Day, I don't trust myself to think about anything on Friday, except maybe what we'll do with turkey leftovers! :) So with that in mind, I decided to do Wordless Wednesday (which isn't turning out to be very wordless) to share what I've been looking at recently. As I started sorting through my pictures, I realized that I have quite a few of Rooney, so I think he deserves a day in the spotlight!

I hope you enjoy the Rooney Files and that you have a wonderful Thanksgiving, filled with lots of turkey, stuffing, cranberries and family! :)



"you said no counters, but i heard nothing about the window" {11-22-11}

handsome man {11-11-11}



wide-eyed {11-10-11}



can I help? {11-7-11}



bookshelf accessory {11-7-11}

 

no laundry, please {11-1-11}

 

paparazzi attack {10-16-11}




mother theresa rooney {9-29-11}



flat tire after the vet {9-23-11}

 


birthday boy {9-21-11}

 


lounging {9-14-11}



sweetheart {9-4-11}


If you made it to the end of my "proud mama" post, then you're in for a treat. I caught this hilarious Rooney moment on video and I've been dying to share it! Consider it the pumpkin pie of this post ... but if pumpkin pie isn't your thing, then consider it something that is, like apple pie? Or maybe chocolate pecan? Alright, I'm officialy on a tangent now ... Happy Thanksgiving!

so much for wordless Wednesday ... next time I'll stick to Photo Friday! :)

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!

Photo "Friday": June Photos

I got a bit behind on Photo Friday this month, but I've still been taking plenty of pictures! I guess preparing for our friends to come stay with us took more time than I expected. Either way, I want to fill you in on what I've been up to, so I figured this is the best way.

Let's start with last weekend. Jesse and I spent Saturday afternoon on a 7 mile walk along the Potomac River. We started out without a plan, but ended up trekking halfway across the Woodrow Wilson Bridge, which is the bridge that goes over the Potomac River, giving drivers access to Maryland from Virginia. After I begrudgingly made it to the center of the bridge, we stopped to take a few pictures and enjoy the scenery. I didn't realize that we'd be able to catch such a scenic view on our walk, so I didn't bring my regular camera. That being said, we managed to get a good picture of both of us.

And after 5 miles of walking, we treated ourselves to these wonderfully greasy burgers from BGR in Old Town. I'd usually feel pretty guilty about such a splurge, but realizing that we still had to walk another 2 miles to get back to our car, I wasted no time digging in! :)

That night, Jesse and I decided to enjoy the perks of being a homeowner, by sitting out on our deck, drinking beer and listening to music. We even brought Rooney out with us to enjoy the summer breeze.

Sunday was spent enjoying a wonderful Sunday dinner with the boys - Chicken Parmesan.

Oh, and in case you're wondering ... Buster 2 is still kickin'. I've had to move him around at least twice a day (to prevent Rooney from eating him), but he spends most of the time out on our back deck. I'm planning to try a new recipe this weekend that calls for basil, so I'll let you know how it turns out soon.

A majority of this past week was spent preparing for house guests. Our biggest accomplishment was finishing a batch of homemade sauce (Jesse's family's recipe). Jesse has made the sauce several times before, but this time around we wanted to make meatballs, so we both pitched in. I think we both really enjoyed making it, but enjoyed eating it even more!

Our other "accomplishment" of the week was stocking up our liquor cabinet. Apparently, when three guys are staying at your place, it requires mass amounts of alcohol. A good time was had by all. :)

I also took a few pictures this month with the intention of working on my photography skills. I've really enjoyed looking at everything from a different angle and then playing with Instagram to get the mood I want to represent in each picture. Here's a sample of what I mean ...

Racing home to beat the storm at the end of my workout

yellow squash at the Farmer's Market

Waiting in line for the roller coaster at Hershey Park

Beautiful barn in York, PA

deer sighting in my neighborhood

But at the end of the day, I think my favorite subject to shoot is the Roon-dog. He is always getting into something new and I've really enjoyed the challenge of capturing him in action.

rolling around

his best "begging" face - trying to get a bite of turkey from me

rolling around in the media center ... again!

"helping" me sand the buffet

I have a few more pictures to show you, but I'll save them for tomorrow so I can get back on track for Photo Fridays.  Oh, and speaking of Friday, I get to go on a private tour of the US Capitol Building tomorrow. I'm really excited to cross that off my Things-to-do-in-DC list and I'm hoping that I'll be able to take some neat pictures! Do you have big plans this weekend?

Photos edited Instagram, an iPhone app. Follow my photo feed at lilsuzy.

Photo Friday

This past weekend we met our new nephew, Sunny. He was such a sweetheart!

Photo Credit: Neil Khettry

Photo Credit: Neil Khettry

He had a FULL head of dark, soft hair

 And here's a shot of Sunny making a very similar face to his favorite toy (Sophie the Giraffe) from his favorite Aunt and Uncle.

Shortly after returning from Pennsylvania, my sinus infection set in. I spent most of this week curled up on the couch, but had to go into the city for a work meeting on Wednesday. Even though I was feeling pretty awful, I took the opportunity to snap a few pictures of the District:

So other than laying on the couch and forcing myself to go to a meeting downtown this week, my only other accomplishment was sewing a purse. My sister gave me a pattern and fabric for Christmas, and I FINALLY finished it this week. I'm hoping to give you more details about the project next week, but here's sneak peek of how it turned out.

And while I've been sitting here in misery, Rooney has been entertaining me with his usual antics. We've had a fun week of playing fetch and taking late afternoon naps!

This weekend we're headed back up to Hershey, PA for Jesse's company gathering. We're also spending the night in York with a few friends. 

I'm hoping that I'll be well enough to enjoy all the festivities of the holiday weekend, and I hope that all of you get to enjoy a nice relaxing weekend, as well!