What we've been up to

Hello! Well, stranger, it sure has been a while...

Lets see - last I left off here we were looking at a bright and brand new October. Well, now that has come and gone and we find ourselves in the midst of blustery November; the day before Thanksgiving, none the less! (Side note: the letter U is located right next to the letter I on the keyboard and I originally typed 'blistery', which isn't a word but it would give a whole new perspective to what I was originally trying to say... so, to clarify, November was not painful and swollen, but has been rather windy and, well, blustery. Man, this was a long side note.)

So, if you don't mind, let me take you back a few weeks.





In October we celebrated two birthdays, my mother's and my own! The tart is what I made for my mom's birthday (It's pear frangipane, if you were wondering). She and my dad came to visit for a week between our birthdays, so we had a joint celebration. I turned 25 this year! A quarter of a century- that's a pretty big milestone, don't you think? When I consider that it has been 7 years since I graduated high school and I've been working with/along-side coffee for over 9 years... it makes me feel a little old. Old, but seasoned. I can't wait to turn 30; people will take me more seriously then! At least, I like to think so.

Oh, the sushi dinner is what I had for my birthday. I share October 22nd with my friend Elyse and I think this was the first year we've been able to celebrate together! She invited a few of her friends to an all-you-can-eat sushi place and we ate-all-that-we-could. Apparently, I can't eat as much as I think I can.








The weekend after my birthday, Shawn and I drove up Villa Roma Resort in the Catskills region of New York. My parents were kind enough to let us use their timeshare points this year so we opted to take a mini-vacation not too far from home. The drive up was creepy - we left at around 6pm Sunday night and with Hurricane Sandy on the way it was super windy that night. Add on the fact that the majority of the dark roads contained spaced-out farm houses with seemingly no one at home, and you've got Walking Dead creepy status right there, minus the zombies of course.

We were easily the youngest people at the resort, except for a few of the staff. But the apartment was great and there was a small bowling alley on site! I expected to do some hiking but the weather ended up being bitterly cold and lightly drizzling the entire time we were there. Instead we stayed indoors watched Food Network and ventured out to the bar in the main area for some drinks on a few occasions. The bartender we met on the second day liked us. If I recall correctly, after a half hour of chatting with us she concluded, "You guys are weird. But in a good way.". She made me a damn good Tom Collins cocktail.

Thankfully, Hurricane Sandy spared us any serious damage at the house. When we drove back that Thursday afternoon we found close to a dozen uprooted trees in our front yard, and one fallen one in the back yard that narrowly missed both the house and the pool. We were left without power for 10 days, but luckily Shawn's mom got power back before us and we were able to stay with her for a few days. It was like an extended vacation, except it was dark and cold for part of it.




With Thanksgiving on the way, we've been exceedingly busy at work. I am now in charge of all things tart related, so I've spent the last 5 days in Tart Land. I think I made close to 400 tart shells of different sizes and all the fillings for them too. Please, if you see me over the next few weeks, don't ask me if I'd like to try any tarts... I'll be doing it all again for Christmas! After the holidays, maybe we can talk.

So that's been it! If you made it all the way down here then high-five! I've been particularly wordy lately, don't mind me.

It's August Already?!

As I'm sure you've noticed, this blog has taken a bit of a back seat ever since we moved back to New Jersey. That was never my intention, but it's just the way things seem to have progressed. Our lives are far busier now than they ever were in Philly.

Busy is good though, don't get me wrong. Busy with work, busy with life, busy with friends. One of the real perks of being back near both of our hometowns is that we've been able to spend so much more of our free time with friends! I'm sure I don't have to tell you how much more difficult it is to make friends once you're out of school... it's tough to find people who have similar interests and schedules. Heck, it's hard enough finding time to hang out with old friends, let alone trying to make new ones!

So, instead of spending all my extra time after work browsing the internet or catching up on shows on Netflix, I've been appreciating being able to grab lunch or dinner with a friend, or even catching up for an hour or two over a cup of tea, or going for hikes in our beautiful state parks. Especially now that my whole family is living abroad, I really value time spent with Shawn and others around me. I feel as though I'm spending my time more fruitfully, albeit spending less time actually doing things and rather spending time enjoying things. Hence, the blog has gotten left behind in the midst of everything.

We originally started I've Seen Some Things as a way to document our every-day life for our family and friends after we moved to Philadelphia. It served that purpose for two years, but now that we're back home there's not as much of a need to keep everyone updated. All of this is to say, I'd actually like to spend more time focusing on my other blog: Between Three Kitchens. It's focused on food and recipes, and it's collaboration amongst some dear friends and I. Lately I feel as though all I've been contributing here are photos with short captions; little peeks at what we're up to, if you will. Of course, I intend to keep doing that, but most likely on a less frequent basis, and mainly just for my immediate family who I believe are the few who still read this blog anyway. There's just not as much content here as there used to be, and I seem to have a whole lot less to say, so I'm just going to keep things simple from here on out.

So, now that you've read all of that mumbo-jumbo, here's a look at what we've been up to:



I roasted some vegetables for dinner; it's so easy- why hadn't I thought to do this before?!




Hiking with our friend Fran at Hacklebarney Park.




Watching a turkey at the Morris County 4H fair. Saw some gigantic bunnies too.




Lovely sky that day.




Shawn has perfected his fried chicken- and chili sauce! I made the side corn salad.




Our friends in Philadelphia got a new kitten! I wanted to whisk him home with us in my purse, which he seemed quite fond of.




Just look at that kitten face! We want kittens now!! He had so much energy up until this point.




While in Philly we also stopped by the coffee shop I used to work at and caught an intimate concert played by Tom Freund.




Neither of us knew who he was prior to last night, but we are so glad we went because he was amazing! Very mellow music.




He played the guitar, banjo, harmonica, and upright bass! The gentleman on the right in this photo is a regular customer and he organized the whole show.

That's all! Until next time.

The Months Just Fly By

This has been life lately...



* The power of power-washing. (We still have half of the deck left to do)
* Grilling; how else are you supposed to make dinner during the summer?
* We got a new gnome for our collection!
* Mushu loves laying in the dirt...




* S'mores bars, simply delicious.
* Getting creative with cupcake frosting.
* Homemade brown sugar = so much better than store-bought.
* "Feed me, please!"




* Squirrel shot, from our apartment-living days. (Clearly I need to upload photos more often)
* I got my hairs cut! Although, this isn't news to anyone anymore, really.
* Reese's Puffs marshmallow squares... why are sticky treats so much better during the summer?




* Mushu just loves the camera! Look at that face.
* A semi-healthy meal, for good measure. Fresh vegetables!
* Bamboo has a pretty face too, he wants you to know.



And last but not least, this amuses me; I've been reading the web comic Questionable Content for years (seriously, at least 8 years now...) and my recent haircut + my glasses make me look like Faye, one of the main characters. Can't say I'm not a fan! Also, the shirt I'm wearing is one of his designs.



Happy summer-time!

A Quiet and Rainy Month of May

It has certainly been quiet around these parts! I thought that moving and being back in NJ would mean that we would post more often, but as it turns out that is clearly not the case. I've been busy working two jobs and Shawn just started his new job (his friend got him a job at the local family-owned liquor store) it's also been difficult to work around schedules that change each week. But enough with the excuses... the truth is, there hasn't been much to talk about either. The most exciting thing I've seen this week was this little box turtle in the middle of the road on my way to work:


Of course I had to pull the car over and stop to take a picture. I wanted to pick him up and move him to a safer location but I wasn't sure how he would react... the closer I got to him the more he retracted his head inside his shell. As I drove off I passed a car that was headed in his direction and all I could do was hope that they would see him and have enough sense to drive around him. He was a pretty large turtle so I'd be really surprised if they hit him.


Here are a few other May happenings:



Chocolate chip cookies; of course.



Homemade chocolate raspberry tart.



Bedtime cat cuddles.



Daytime cat cuddles.

Now if only these May showers would cease... my dad opened the pool over a week ago but we haven't had weather nice enough to attempt any pool-time yet. Hopefully the sun comes out soon! In the meantime, I hope everyone has a wonderful Memorial Day weekend!

Weekend Instagram

Yes, I know it's Thursday. And yes, most of these photos are actually from last Saturday. But I don't care! Better late then never, right? We spent Saturday in New Jersey where we started a fire, made some pancake biscuits/scrambled pancakes, and stopped at Cluck U on the way back. Here's hoping the weather is a little warmer for this coming Saturday's trip... we'd like to get a little yard work done.



homemade chicken fried rice // it's not a trip to NJ without some Cluck U
Shawn started a fire on a chilly Saturday // then he made sure it didn't die
pancakes gone awry yet delicious // steak and some simple sides


And now for something completely different...



Fuzzy muffins! Yes, that's right, they're feeling fuzzy.
Don't mock my muffins. Shawn's the artist in this family.

A Few Days of Instagram

(my home try-on frames from Warby Parker arrived on Thursday / perfecting the sausage, egg, & cheese / Shawn enjoys a good Boston Creme / dog treats under way / more donuts from the local Amish market / I can make a killer grilled cheese)

I have three days off in a row for the first time in... well, a very long time. I managed to gain an extra day this week because a coworker owed me a favor (ie. a shift in exchange for another). Lucky for me, Shawn has two of those three days off as well!

We spent Thursday running errands, like picking up groceries (donuts included), going to the post office, and doing the laundry, because our life is just glamorous like that. Friday I'll be taking a solo trip out to New Jersey to visit my family and some friends while Shawn is hard at work. And we've made no definite plans for Saturday, but I'm trying to convince Shawn to take a trip to the local Salvation Army with me... they have lots of old man shirts there that he'll like.

Oh, and yes, the blog has had a new look as of Thursday afternoon as well. It's probably the quickest layout I've put together so far, and I'm very pleased with the outcome. You know me though... I'll probably change it again in a few months.

Enjoy the weekend!

The Week In Photos

Here we go again, another photo recap post... oh, but they're so much fun!




From two different days. Apparently we eat a lot of pizza.




Shawn makes a mighty fine meatloaf. Mighty fine.




My sister snapped this during a family trip to the Woodbury Outlets... dreamy Marine.




Our friend Little Buddy; he likes to sun-bathe outside our kitchen window.




Brownies made in a cast-iron pan, with chopped up oreo cookie bark inside.




We found some of Shawn's ancestors during a recent afternoon cemetery walk... along with the best multi-family tombstone ever! Almost too good to be true.




Shawn with a Dali-stache. Mustaches are always the best way to end a post!

That's So 2011...

A lot of bloggers I follow are doing 2011 recaps that feature their best/favorite posts/photos... but I'm not going to do that. Well, not exactly... Truth be told, I didn't blog as much last year as I would have hoped. When there's not much to say, well, there's not much to say (especially when you're being redundant). Overall 2011 was a good year; lots of things happened, just nothing incredibly significant.

As far as the blog goes:

- We added the walk log in June to keep track of our monthly mileage. Still going strong with our goal to walk an average of 1 mile per day!

- I kind of fell off the recipe bandwagon; I was doing well at the beginning of the year but now I can't honestly remember when I last posted a recipe. Which is strange, because we've been cooking/baking more than ever these last few months. A lot of times I don't post about it because I can't capture any attractive photos of the food!

- We changed the layout a few times, each time striving for a cleaner, simpler look.


And what about us?

- We renewed our lease in June, choosing to stay in our humble apartment for another year to put off having to search for something new.

- After endless months of unemployment, Shawn got a job at the deli/restaurant a few doors down from the coffeeshop I work at. If you know our history at all, this is ironic considering we first met while we were working in a similar strip-mall: me at a coffeeshop, him at the video store a few doors down...

- I really blossomed at work, adding more and more recipes to my repertoire. I took on two actual days of baking per week, instead of just fitting it in when I could during my barista shifts. And! I haven't actually shared this with anyone other than Shawn and my co-workers yet but my scones were photographed alongside a delicious cappuccino to appear in the February 2012 issue of Main Line Today for an article about the best places to get breakfast in the Main Line! (PS. I've been in a local magazine before.)

- I got crafty and made a few things out of fabric, paper, and various odds and ends. I started putting together a book of my own recipes, my sewing machine got more use than ever before, I spent countless hours sitting on the floor, and I learned that making things yourself is not only satisfying, but also not nearly as hard as it appears!


Which brings me to my next point. My last sewing project of 2011:



I forgot to take a 'before' picture prior to sewing, but these are a pair of salmon pink corduroy pants that I got for $3 at the local Salvation Army Thrift store after months of looking for well fitting colorful pants. The only problem? They had a flared leg that hit right above my foot - too wide and too short, whilst the rest of the pants fit nicely. Since the pants didn't cost me much I wasn't too worried about taking a pair of scissors to them, so I took it upon myself to take in the pant legs a bit. Thusly taking them from flared to straight-leg - much more wearable!


Just for kicks, here's a photo of me actually wearing them:



Quiet! I don't know how to pose. At all. Oh and, silly picture #1 & silly picture #2.


For future reference, this is what I looked like on the first day of 2012.
(Happy-faced and ready for another year!)



...not much different than on the last day of 2011.

That is all.

Favorite Interweb findings of 2011!

I wanted to share my favorite photos that I found on the internet this year!This is a small collection of things that I save to a folder called "internet findings." 

Gay Mexican Unicorn??
This photo was paid for.
This guy actually went to a studio and said I wanna be photographed as a unicorn.  

My most favorite photo of the year!
Mr. Fox looks so happy!

Classic Comedy. 

I love me some santa and machine guns on holiday photos.

My favorite from the Deadspin series "Unintentional Dongs"

This dude got the friggin sweetest shot ever! That is a once in 5 life times shot!
unbelievable moment caught!

Ice T Bitches! 

I have a huge love of the anime series NARUTO.
This is a painting of a tailed fox beast!

Really! Who made this and placed it on the internet! come on!

Paula Dean Riding Things was hot for a minute.

That's right men. Keep your grip while doing your shit.
This add screams masturbation all over it.
Which makes it hilarious.

Thank you Old Spice for providing such overtly obvious Penis References.
To the point where Colbert had to comment on it.

So that concludes my favorite findings of the year.I hope next year is even sillier!