Day 1449

Last week I took a long weekend and headed back to Arkansas! Luckily I got to spend a few days in Little Rock along with heading up to Fayetteville for the Arkansas vs. Ole Miss game. The weather was horrible (two lightening delays made it a 5+ hour game), but it didn't kill our good times one bit! Before I left for Fayetteville on Friday, I got to have lunch with all my Little Rock girls and many of their babies. Lots of pregnant ladies among us. It was so much fun, but sadly I didn't get any pictures from it. Friday night I got together with my college besties to see Pat Green at our favorite, George's Bar. It was a blast, and I miss all of my girls so much! And of course, we had a DC reunion at the stadium house all weekend, but sadly no pictures from that either! It was a great weekend though, and here's the little I did document.

Day 1441

A lot has been going on lately, and I have been out on the move and hitting the town! This past week I was honored to receive an invite to TIME Magazine's 40 Under 40 party! Sorry, no pictures from the event, but it was a great time and I got to meet a lot of the rising stars that made the list, plus talk to a lot of Washington reporters and staffers that I don't typically see out socially.

On Saturday, my dear friend Shelley celebrated her 30th birthday, and her husband Mike put together a fabulous day at the Virginia wineries for a small group of our friends! We had too much fun...below is proof!

Day 1435

Still on my health kick (hooray for me!), I have been experimenting with new fish recipes, and last night I found a winner! It was so yummy and literally took less than ten minutes from start to finish. From foodnetwork.com...enjoy!


Chili-Rubbed Tilapia with Asparagus and Lemon



Ingredients

* 2 pounds asparagus, tough ends trimmed, cut into 1-inch pieces
* 2 tablespoons chili powder
* 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
* 1/2 teaspoon salt, divided
* 1 pound tilapia, Pacific sole or other firm white fish fillets
* 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
* 3 tablespoons lemon juice


Directions

Bring 1 inch of water to a boil in a large saucepan. Put asparagus in a steamer basket, place in the pan, cover and steam until tender-crisp, about 4 minutes. Transfer to a large plate, spreading out to cool.

Combine chili powder, garlic powder and 1/4 teaspoon salt on a plate. Dredge fillets in the spice mixture to coat. Heat oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add the fish and cook until just opaque in the center, gently turning halfway, 5 to 7 minutes total. Divide among 4 plates. Immediately add lemon juice, the remaining 1/4 teaspoon salt and asparagus to the pan and cook, stirring constantly, until the asparagus is coated and heated through, about 2 minutes. Serve the asparagus with the fish.

Day 1430

These crisp temperatures have me seriously jonesing for a some cozy and comfy new digs. Sadly, my wallet doesn't seem to want to cooperate. Unfortunately for me, I'm only going to be able to pick one or two of these new items. Good think I already know what is at the top of my list!

Tory Burch Leopard Reva Flats



Love, love, love these! I already have them in black and in gold, and literally wear them five days a week. Actually, I have worn my black ones so much that they now have a hole in the toe.

Come to Momma!

Day 1427

Hard to believe it, but it's October. The temperatures have finally dropped in Washington (I even got to pull out my beloved North Face jacket this morning!), and the Senate has recessed for the next six weeks to go home and campaign. Change is in the air, and you know how much I love/need a bit of change in the air to get my motivation going again!

This weekend, I began Project Projects at my house, beginning with a serious deep clean of my closets. My sister Marissa is coming to live with me in January for three months, so I figured I should take advantage of my new found energy and extra time now to start getting ready for her. Which for this weekend meant making space in my home.

It really is amazing how much stuff I have held onto over the years. College t-shirts, many old Christmas/Halloween/theme party costumes, my high school Homecoming Court dress. Seriously. Thing is, bit by bit I am slowly starting to get rid of the old, but I just can't rip the band-aid off and toss it all out. So baby steps it is, but at least there is less of the old still hanging around.

Also on my list for Project Projects is art, lots of art. Framing some of my work, creating new pieces, and reorganizing what I have. I also have a great idea for all my piles of jewelry around my bedroom that I hope to show you in the next few weeks.

I am also trying to get back into yoga...my work schedule has kept me away from the studio for a few months now...and I am also going to strive to start cooking most of my meals. I've been a lot better about making my breakfast and lunch and taking them to work, but my dinners are somewhat shameful. If I'm not out to eat with someone, I pretty much eat whatever I can grab or heat up quickly. Which means my dinners sometimes consist of a can of Lima beans, or string cheese and popcorn. Not good, but I figure with all this time on my hands the next two months, I can start cooking healthy meals much more.

Lastly, I really want to try to start writing more. With all this time on my hands, I have no excuse, right? Don't you just love when I get into these motivation spurts? Let's see how long I can hang on this time!