I'll Take a Large Louis Vuitton With a Side of Gucci

Bienvenue à Paris!  We arrived in Paris on December 26th and were (almost) immediately off and running.  Our apartment, in the Latin Quarter, was quite charming and the perfect spot to easily get to any part of the city.  We hadn't really mapped out our days in advance but did have a list of specific attractions that we wanted to see.  As I mentioned earlier, the Mr. had been to Paris before so most of these attractions were ones he had already seen.  I, however, was quick to point out all of the designer handbags, shoes, stores, and fashionable French folks that he may not have noticed otherwise.  Note to self: buy a Louis Vuitton bag for my next trip to Paris.  I'll fit in better that way.

I'm saving our trip to Versailles for a separate post.  I have way too many gorgeous pictures from that day to throw into this mixture.  Here's what we did in Paris:

We went to Laduree ... twice.  Amazing macarons!

We climbed the stairs to Sacre Coeur.

We gazed at Sacre Coeur.

We toured the Paris Opera House...

... and admired the Marc Chagall ceiling.

We sipped hot chocolate in cafes.

We bought cheese, baguettes and wine at the market.

We found some big doors.

We went to Notre Dame.

WE SAW THE EIFFEL TOWER!

When in Paris...

The lady says, "Denver."

We survived the Louvre.

We climbed 284-ish stairs to view the Paris skyline at sunset from the top of the Arc de Triomphe.

We took cheesy, touristy photos.

We admired the stained glass inside Sainte-Chapelle.

We marveled at the Seine.

We became pros at self-portraits.

We found some real estate.

And we celebrated New Year's Eve at the Eiffel Tower!

We had a few more adventures... visiting the d'Orsay, strolling through the Luxembourg Gardens, eating nutella + coco crepes, watching crazy drivers on the Paris streets... but I think this is a pretty good photo summary of our trip.  I'm so grateful that we had this opportunity but consider this just the beginning of our European explorations :)

*Recipe* Vegetarian Stew with Quinoa, Butternut Squash & Coconut Milk

Hollerrrrr!  While I continue the process of narrowing down my fave EuroTrip 2013 photos to condense into a few blog posts, I shall entertain you in other ways...

I'm not much for New Year's Resolutions.  I'm not sure if it's the commitment, the cliches or the general silliness of it all but I've never been one to set a goal on January 1st.  That being said, I did set a goal on or around January 24th that I'm hoping to stick with for the long term.  And it has to do with food (surprise!).  The goal is to 1) map out a menu every weekend for the week ahead, and 2) share the cooking duties.  Don't get me wrong, I really like to cook and bake.  But I had an epiphany during a conversation with a coworker and came home invigorated about our new plan.  We both work full time, we both work long hours, why can't we share time in the kitchen?  We know we have to eat 7 nights every week, why can't we plan that out in advance?  As you can imagine, the Mr. is so excited about this plan.  The third and final part of the goal is to try at least one new recipe every week.  I find it all too easy to fall into the same routine so, with the help of Pinterest, we're branching out a little bit.

Last night was New Recipe Monday and I love the result!  I'll continue to share the good ones and hope this inspires you to try a new recipe, try a veg recipe, or just make your husband cook dinner :)


Vegetarian Stew with Quinoa, Butternut Squash & Coconut Milk

Ingredients

• 2/3 cup quinoa
• 1 1/3 cup water
• Pinch of salt
• 2 cups diced (1/2-inch) butternut squash
• 2 tsp olive oil
• 1 medium onion, diced
• 1/2 tsp kosher salt
• 2 tbsp minced fresh ginger
• 1/2 large jalapeno pepper, seeds & membranes removed, minced
• 2 large cloves garlic, minced
• 1/2 cup lite coconut milk, stirred
• 1 can (14 oz.) petite diced tomatoes (with juices)
• 1 can (14 oz.) chickpeas, drained and rinsed
• 2 green onions, thinly sliced
  
  

1. In a medium saucepan, combine quinoa and water, and place over high heat. Bring the mixture to a boil. Reduce heat to low, cover, and cook for approximately 20 minutes, or until all of the water is absorbed. Remove the quinoa from the heat, fluff with a fork and re-cover to keep warm.
2. In a medium or large saucepan, bring water to a boil. Add a pinch of salt and the cubed butternut squash. Cook until the squash is just tender, about 15 minutes. Drain and rinse with cold water. Set aside.
3. In a large frying pan, heat olive oil oil over medium heat. Add onion and kosher salt and cook until the onions are turning brown, 7 to 8 minutes. Add ginger and minced jalapeno and cook for an additional 2 minutes, stirring constantly. Add garlic. Cook for 1 more minute, stirring.
4. Add the lite coconut milk, diced tomatoes with juices, chickpeas and cooked butternut squash. Turn the mixture to medium-high and bring it to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer until the butternut squash is tender, stirring frequently, about 15 minutes.
5. Divide the quinoa between bowls and ladle the stew over top. Garnish with sliced green onions. Serve.
   
   
   
   
   
   
   This recipe links back to Cookin' Canuck's blog. Enjoy!

The City of Lights, Love, and Lines

Bonjour!  As I sit here in the beautiful sitting area of my hotel - a 500 year-old building - in small town UK, I feel that there is no time like the present to start blogging about the past few weeks.  And, oh, what a few weeks it has been!

Quick update:
- December was crazy busy.  We had multiple holiday parties nearly every weekend and enjoyed ourselves thoroughly.  We're so lucky to have wonderful, hospitable friends!
- Hanukkah was fairly uneventful this year but we managed to light candles at least 3 of the 8 nights.  My goal for next Hanukkah is to actually make latkes one night.  I set the bar high.
- A few days before Christmas, FIL asked us to make his birthday cake using a family recipe.  I, of course, delegated to the Mr. since I was preoccupied with other things at this time.  This was the result:

"Impressively bad."  Yes, that's flour sitting on top of the baked cake.

We worked together to bake another cake the next morning :)

- We celebrated Christmas with the Mr.'s family on 12/23 in conjunction with FIL's birthday.  We bought everyone a little something but the highlight was seeing our niece walk around with our gift to her: her first purse!  The purse happens to be plush with a little chihuahua that sits inside but that's what you get when you start 'em off young.  I couldn't be more proud :)
- We awoke on Christmas morning to snow, then headed to the in-laws' home to drop off their granddog, and away we went to the airport!  The week before Thanksgiving, my director offered me the opportunity of a lifetime.  They needed someone from our team to travel to our UK and Amsterdam offices to help with enablement and training for new employees.  I'd only been on the team for about 3 weeks but my background, and the fact that I have no kids at home, helped seal the deal.  But you don't offer me a free plane ticket to Europe without the Mr. and I turning this into a vacation!

My agenda includes small-town UK, London and Amsterdam so the Mr. and I had to determine where we wanted to spend the one week that we'd have together before he returned to the States and I proceeded with business.  It really wasn't much of a discussion.  Off to Paris we went!  The Mr. has spent quite a bit of time there but I'd never been so he was excited to show me around and relive his younger days.  We rented an adorable, maybe 120 sq. ft. studio apartment from VRBO (with a bed that pulled down from the ceiling), booked our flights with the help of my corporate travel agent and started planning our must-see list.

The. Flight. Was. A. Nightmare.

I cannot begin to explain how traumatic it was.  In fact, I'm not going to explain.  I'll save that for another post but I may not even blog about it at all.  I'm still recovering.  Seriously.

But we survived!  We made it to Paris!  We had an amazing week and I'm so grateful that my wonderful husband and I were able to make this trip.  The city surpassed my wildest dreams.  We had so much fun strolling the streets, arm-in-arm, stepping over the cobblestone and admiring the old-world charm that is Europe.  It was beautiful, it was cold, it was romantic, and it was what dreams are made of.   Except for the lines.  I've never had to stand in so many lines for so long in my entire life.  Turns out Paris is the 2nd most visited city and I'm pretty sure all of the tourists were there the same week we were!

I didn't do a very good job taking notes of what we did on a daily basis - mostly because I was so exhausted by the time we made it back to the apartment each night.  I will, however, do several photo-filled posts in the coming days (weeks?) to share the beauty with you all!

And if you happen to be near my home, please check-in on the Mr. and the puggle.  I'm worried that they might be in the midst of a pizza coma during a Cops marathon.

The view from our apt.  The metro was right across the street - very convenient!  We even knew the hours because we could feel the train under our building!

 The Seine on a winter day.

Probably while we were waiting in line somewhere...

 Just a teaser...

Happy 2013!

Outta Here

I apologize for the lack of posts recently.  I have no excuse other than the fact that my mind has been elsewhere lately...

Updates coming soon :)

Happy Hanukkah

Update on the holiday party scene coming soon :)

The Master Reveal

We had a goal to complete the renovation of our main bathroom before the family came out for Thanksgiving.  You know what the best part about setting goals is?  Meeting them.  We finished this one right down to the shower curtain!  (Just don't ask about the bath mat.)

This will mostly be a picture-filled post but here's the nitty gritty...

I left the humble abode for one full week to stay with my BFF in Denver and keep myself out of the work zone.  The Mr. and Pugsley supervised and assisted with the renovation along the way -- and they were under strict instructions to take photos at the end of each day to document the progress.  By the time I came back home on Friday, we just needed to paint and hang the light fixture.  All in a day's work...

Before:

Aside from the toilet, this is a 1985 original piece of ... art. 

Gorgeous grout. 

Beautiful gold fixtures.

Light fixture that was so awesome that we didn't even replace the bulbs.

Ick.

Looks like a dog chewed it up...

During:

I think this is my favorite picture of the whole thing.

The Mr. found a Dave & Buster's card under the vanity... he is so excited.

Before the grout on the shower tile.

I had to post this picture because we lived with the ladder and the bathroom door in the hallway for at least one week.   

After:

Two, big organized drawers! 

I love the light fixture!  Purchased off Joss & Main the week before we started the reno.

 My favorite artwork in the house.

A sink with lots of counter space!

Love our fixtures, especially the shower head. 

I wish it was easier to take a better photo of such a small space but this is the best I can do.  The paint came out a little more purple than grey but I compensated with the grey shower curtain from West Elm.  The vanity is perfect and holds at least twice as much as the old one.  We love our new bathroom!