Christmas Time!

It's hard to believe we are only a week away from Christmas! So much hustle and bustle around here, it's sometimes hard to remember to stop and smell the roses...or the trees...

Every Christmas, the White House hosts a tree-lighting. and a huge celebration. We missed the lighting ceremony and concert, but were able to enjoy it after the fact:

They also put up a smaller tree for every state. We walked around until we found Kansas, and MUCH to our surprise and delight...the ornaments were in honor of the 150th anniversary of our alma mater, Washburn University!

A few months ago, Tim was informed he had won an award at work called the "Rookie of the Year." We attended a ceremony last week where he was honored. I'm so proud of him! Tim always wanted to be ROTY, but never thought it would be non-sports-related. :) Associate Attorney General Tony West was the keynote speaker, and there were several other awards given out to well-deserving DOJ employees, so it was fun to hear of everyone's accomplishments. 

Tony West speaking

Lined up and ready to go!

I was videotaping the actual presentation, so this was the only photo I got of Tim and his award!

Last weekend, Tim and I participated in a "Jingle All the Way 8K" in DC. We had a team called "Santa's Grab Bag," which consisted of several of my co-workers. We had an absolute BLAST! Everyone running was given jingle bells for their shoes, so it really fun. Lots of people dressed up, I saw a nativity scene, complete with baby Jesus in the stroller, a team of 'reindeer', and a gingerbread man in a head-to-toe onesie costume.

Our Team!

We had our Community Group Christmas party this past week, and everyone was to wear an ugly sweater. Believe it or not, Goodwill had NO Christmas sweaters, so I settled on an ugly sweater for me, and a hideous tie for Tim. I then went to Ross and found what I still consider to be a crazy-awesome find. It was ugly sweater and tie COFFEE! Very random...so we wore tinsel necklaces of our coffees. Needless to say, we won the award for "best attempt." :)

We all had a white elephant gift exchange, and Tim happened to end up with this. It was originally a wedding gift from "Aunt Ellen" (an aunt of some of our newly-married friends) and it is supposedly hand-carved in Germany. It didn't "fit" in their house, they said.... ;-) Anyone know what it is called?! I believe you put wine in the top and the lantern is for decoration?! We had some good laughs about this one, :)

Happy countdown to Christmas!

We love veggies!

We have had a very busy weekend...finishing up Christmas shopping, finalizing our travel plans, and attending lots of holiday parties. At those holiday parties, there is always food... and inevitably, the conversations lead to many questions and discussions about our vegan/vegetarian lifestyle.

 Probably the most frequently asked question vegans and vegetarians get from people is, "What do you EAT?!"...with the emphasis on the last word, and a nose crinkle/face squinch (real word??) to add some oomph to the question. :) Let me explain...but first let me define some terms: a "vegetarian" is one who does not eat meat, but does eat animal by-products such as milk, cheese, eggs, etc. Some people who refer to themselves as vegetarians do eat fish (we do not), and are called "pescatarians". A "vegan" is a more strict vegetarian, and in addition to not eating meat, they do not consume any food derived from animals, so no milk, eggs, cheese, butter, cream, yogurt, chicken/beef stock, etc. I like to say I'm 99% vegan because "strict" vegans do not eat honey, and I do use honey when I make my granola. :) Other than that, we avoid all animal by-products at home, with the exception of Tim occasionally ordering something with cheese and very rarely chicken if he does not like the veg options at a restaurant. But being in the DC metro area, we don't usually have any trouble finding good veg food. Being vegan and vegetarian has opened up an entire world of foods and flavors that I never even knew existed...and we don't miss or crave the animal foods at all! I have learned to be creative in the kitchen experimenting with squashes, root vegetables, legumes, beans, grains, etc. to cook healthy and balanced meals without the use of animal products or by-products. I love it! It has been a fun journey and I'm constantly learning new things (with the help of some great blogs, like this one!)

To end, I'd like to share some recipes I made this week. They are both very easy and turned out amazing!

Delicata Squash Rings with Cashews & Sweet Mustard

Italian Meatless Meatloaf Muffins

Until next time...happy cooking!

We're Back!

I'm back to blogging! One of my New Year's resolutions is to keep up with my blog, and I'm starting now. I failed to do this towards the end of the summer...I think it was getting overwhelming because I was getting too wrapped up in details and thinking every post had to be checked and edited multiple times before posting. This go-round, I am going to focus more on content rather than every comma and period being in the "write" place, so bear with me! :)

Instead of trying to catch up on every single thing from July until now, I'm just going to start from the beginning of December with photos and stories. However, here are some highlights and (just a few! photos) from the end of summer and fall:

July: Tim's family came out for a 2 week visit, and we were able to visit Philadelphia all together. It's the first time I had been there, and it was great to see all the cool sights. My brother, Broc and cousin, Andrew came out at the end of the month...neither of them had ever been to DC and we had fun showing them historic sites, tourist attractions, and great food. I think Andrew's favorite place was the Air and Space museum...he was like a kid in a candy store!

Liberty Bell, Philadelphia, PA

Love in Philly!

Jon, Sam, & Tim in front of the Rocky Statue.

Broc & Andrew at Gravelly Point, where the planes landing at DCA are literally RIGHT above you!

Gelato in Old Town Alexandria.

Ford's Theater, where President Lincoln was assassinated.

Pizza & Ping Pong at Comet.

August: My very dear friend/sister, Lauren, married Scott on August 11. I went back to Kansas for a week to help out with the Bachelorette party and wedding. It was a wonderful wedding and I feel so blessed to have been a part of it, and thankful I was able to see many Topeka friends. At the end of August, Tim and I had planned a trip to New York to see our good friend, Erik. However, literally hours before we were to leave, Tim found out he had to stay and work the weekend. I was at lunch with my friend Grace and asked her if she wanted to go in his place (I really didn't expect it to work out)...but she pulled some strings and made it happen! So we had a last-minute girls' trip to NYC, and it was a blast! I was also able to meet up with my friend Marta, who is my closest friend from my time in Ireland. She lives in Dun Laoghaire, Ireland, but was visiting her father in NYC...we have somehow been able to see each other every year for the last 4 years!

My very best friend, Kristin. Miss her so much!

Happy bride and groom!

Hanging out in Erik's front yard...Long Island Beach!

  

Dining room view...amazing.

Gracie & I at Times Square

I've known Erik for almost a decade. We have been to Haiti, Mexico, & Israel on mission trips together, so needless to say, he's like another brother to me!

September: We took a road trip to Dayton, Ohio for the Air Force half marathon and 5k. Our friends Steven and Starr went also, and the 4 of us ran the 5k on Friday night (Tim and I somehow both took 3rd in our age group division?! We think it was a mistake because that is way too ironic!) Tim and Steven ran the half marathon on Saturday morning, and Starr and I were the cheerleaders. Funny thing...the race directors on the course misdirected several runners, and Tim ended up running 16 miles instead of 13.1!

After the half marathon + 3 miles.

5k :)

October: This month is always my favorite, between all the celebrations and gorgeous autumn weather! We took a little road trip across Virginia for a "wine-tasting weekend" for my birthday. Virginia has 221 wineries, and we visited 4, as well as the Shenandoah Valley (gorgeous view, even with the fog/clouds). We celebrated our 1 year anniversary (crazy!?!) on October 22. My parents came out to visit us at the end of the month, and they could not have picked a better time...the leaves were simply gorgeous! We enjoyed a long weekend filled with a Potomac river cruise, visiting George Washington's estate at Mt. Vernon, a trip to Amish country in Lancaster county, museums, monuments, old mansions, and Georgetown Cupcakes! On October 28, Tim ran the Marine Corp Marathon and I did the 10k. It was drizzly and a bit chilly, but overall a memorable and exhilarating experience. We were pleased with our times and look forward to next year!

1 year!

Mom, me, & Dad at George Washington's estate, Mt. Vernon. Gorgeous!

Library of Congress...aww my parents are so sweet :)

Skyline Drive, Shenandoah Valley, VA

One of our favorite wineries, Naked Mountain.

Sonni, Marine Mascot, me, & Leah after our 10k!

My fantastic running partner...we made it, 52:12!

November: I decided to make some changes to my work/life balance. I decreased my hours at my current job, and took another PRN job at an outpatient clinic. I have loved being back in outpatient and am enjoying working less hours, while being able to do more volunteering, investing in church, relationships, and NOVA/DC experiences. We stayed in Virginia for Thanksgiving, and this year just may have been my favorite Thanksgiving ever. We ran a charity 5k to benefit SOME - So Others Might Eat, took some turkey dinners to people's homes who were stricken with life-threatening illnesses, then enjoyed a vegan Thanksgiving meal at a fabulous vegan soul food restaurant in DC called Everlasting Life Cafe. Phenomenal...it's Tim's new favorite restaurant, and I loved every bit of it! We will take you there when you come visit...yes, all of you :) We also celebrated Tim's 29th birthday with dinner, a massage at a local spa, and a trip to his favorite place on earth...the Nike store!

Great race for a great cause.

December: Our good friends, Caley and Garrett Love came to DC for a conference, and stayed with us for several days.We had an absolute blast! Garrett is a Kansas State Senator for the 38th district, so he stayed pretty busy attending meetings and dinners. Garrett and I first met when he was just a junior in high school...as a Student Ambassador at Washburn I gave him his tour of the university, so I always tease him that I'm part of the reason he has been so successful ;) Caley is an absolute joy to be around and we had fun with our "girl-talk" whenever our husbands were immersed in deep conversations about politics and law. On Thursday evening, the Loves invited Tim and I to go on a night-time tour of the Capitol with them and the rest of the Senators...it began at 9:30pm and ended around 1am. It was hands-down one of the most incredible experiences we have had in DC! It was given by Kevin Yoder and was far more in-depth and behind-the-scences than any other tour we would ever have. While in the Rotunda, Senator Jerry Moran walked out of his office, and we chatted with him and got a few photos. It was quite the memorable evening! For the rest of the weekend, the 4 of us enjoyed the Christmas festivities in downtown DC, Old Town Alexandria, and Georgetown.

The new ice skating rink in Georgetown.

Ice skating + husband + glögg (Swedish mulled wine) = happy girl.

Hot cocoa at a French bakery on a cold night....mmm!

We met Senator Jerry Moran in the Rotunda at the Capitol. Thanks, Garrett, for snapping the photo!

The Speaker's Office.

The Speaker of the House's balcony...with an incredible view of the National Mall and Pennsylvania Ave!

Looking at another camera, but this angle works too :)

Garrett, Caley, Congressman Kevin Yoder, me, & Tim on the Speaker's balcony.

Beautiful Potomac River.

Love this shot of the Love's.

View of Arlington from Georgetown. If you look closely, you can see a stand-up paddler!

You all have permission to hold me accountable for posting on a regular basis :)

Have a wonderful Christmas season!