Quiet Tuesdays

Happy Tuesday!
I'm feeling alot better today (YAY!) and now I'm itching to get back to busy bee life and get back to work!  I forsee these next few days to be full of errands, meal planning and house cleaning and packing (yes, packing! yipes.)

Today was a quiet Tuesday at home.

Kat is moving all her stuff out today, which means no more 3rd roommate. In the 7 months Eugene and I have been married, Katherine lived with us for 5 of those months so it will be pretty different without her presence in the Tseng house. I will miss all the of random dinners and spontaneous Target trips! We always joke about how she was our "practice child" because we would share meals with her and pack her lunches and take her to school, but she totally spoiled us! We will miss you, our dear Katness!

After a long hiatus of cooking real meals, I've finally come back with it in full swing. Today we enjoyed a spaghetti recipe I found on a food blog last week. This is my rendition of a Tomato Basil Garlic Spaghetti with shrimp. I need to find a cooler name for it, but for now this will do.

 We ate it with some Roasted Garlic Parmasean Green Beans on the side. Light & Healthy - my fave.

The rest of the day will be spent reading, doing laundry and dusting around the house before I go grab coffee with a few of my favorite girls. Quiet Tuesdays are pretty sweet :)

Give thanks: home cooked meals, Instagram, photography, pink notebooks, lemon juice, mysterious Asian ointments that help relieve every discomfort, long mornings, hymns, reminders in psalm 37

"The steps of a man are established by the Lord,
when he delights in his way;
though he fall, he shall not be cast headlong,
for the Lord upholds his hand"

Psalm 37:23-24

Everyday Life - Week 21

Happy Memorial Day, dear friends.. and cheers to a new beautiful week!

I'm so thankful for my blog friends that are also doing this "everyday-life" type posts because I would seriously lose track of what number week this is. This week was really busy with family things, and I've been feeling under the weather for the past few days so forgive the shortage of pictures for week 21. This week was full of sleeping in, visits to CVS, making big decisions and ALOT of boba drinking. There are gonna be alot of changes taking place in the next few months or so, and I can't wait to share it all with you! 

But, for now.. here's a small glimpse of what this week looked like for us.

Some of our dates this week were spent at this little gym. The cable TV is definitely a huge incentive to stay here for an hour or two! I don't know if this is counterproductive but I only watch the food channel when I come to the gym. I bet the people who work out next to me hate me for it, but I can't help it! It's my favorite channel!

We spent the night at my in-law's this past week which meant late-night talks and grandma's pooridge for breakfast in the morning. Twas sweet. There was alot of laughter, a whole lot of hot sauce consumption (on my part) and lots and lots of love. It was sweet!

 

 Canker sores are seriously the worst. I think I might have won the world record for the largest, most painful canker sore. :( Orajel has been helpful in the temporary pain relief department but sleeping more has helped a whole lot! Thank you Lord for the awesome gift of SLEEP!!

 

 We celebrated my dad's birthday this week over some ribs and hearty side dishes. We also took these two silly birds to watch Avengers. It was a sweet time of celebrating life and the many blessings God brings to make living it so abundant! So thankful. Isn't this a super cute picture? I LOVE THEM.

This is usually where you'll find me on nights when Eugene has small group and I get kicked out of the house! Nothing beats spending some quiet time alone sometimes. :) This was also the only picture I took with my camera this week. I'm slackin..

 

Cheers to a no-more-sicky, more-picture-taking, victorious week!
Have a joyful week everybody!

Give thanks : green tea, warm pho, work for giving me time off to heal, new journals, nice pens, full schedules, lunching with Sata's, my awesome husband.

Everyday Life- Week(s) 18, 19, 20

Sorry for the silence! May has been a busy month for us with lots of family time, graduations, bridal showers, lots of planning and preparing for Eugene to start school, alot of house cleaning, alot of dirty dishes and unwashed laundry, and alot of working for me (or so it seems). But despite the lack of posting, as always-- life was lived, pictures were taken, lessons were learned and God has been so good. 

There's still alot of uncertainty in what lies ahead for Eugene and me, but we're learning to be flexible and stand confident in the face of change. Eugene has been able to get more days off from work to prepare for school, so it's been super sweet being able to spend more days with him (even if most of those days off are spent driving to LA and running errands.) I have an evergrowing appreciation for every little blessing we have in our lives and we're both learning to really embrace each day for what it brings. Although there's alot of unanswered questions and alot of decisions that are yet to be made, we have perfect peace in that our God is a good God and that He is most glorified when we joyfully place our full trust in Him....so try we will. Please pray for us! 

Anyway, here's what the last three weeks looked like. I tried to cut some out because Eugene said 50 pictures on one post would be too much. Sorry for the delay!

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The uncertainty of whether we're moving or not has caused me to love and appreciate my job so much more.  I love the hospital I work for and absolutely adore the staff. I am SO blessed. Each night I have to go into work, I really go in so excited to do what I love with the people I love being around. Consecutive nights of work in a row mean a cluttered mess on the dining table. For some reason, these two always go hand in hand.

Collecting Jars for my friends with weddings coming up. This is Ally's Bag :)

More slow cooking goodness. This was oriental chicken wings.

We visited my parents house alot this month because of Mother's Day and my sister's graduation from Art School. My mom works for a company that grows orchids (I think) which makes for a beautiful set up in front of her kitchen window.

Our pets at home. 

My sister had an art show the day before her graduation and it was superb. More on her soon, but in the meantime check her work out here: www.audreyjl.com

Art shows are so fancy. Even the lighting of their hallways are so fancy.

Speaking of fancy, their commencement ceremonies are also extremely fancy. So proud of my sister! 

Sometimes all it takes is just cups and cups of ice water and some good greek yogurt to get you through a night shift. :)

I've been wanting a kitty for a long time, and Eugene had been largely against it.. but when we went to LA to go apartment shopping a neighborhood cat won Eugene over. He's more open to it now. :) Must be more than coincidence!

We stopped by to visit Eugene's parents at their ice cream shop during one of our LA trips. We never leave emptyhanded. So sweet!

I got a card from a patient's family last week. She had been there for a while and I had worked with her for a majority of her stay and really grew to love her and her family so much! My job is so rewarding. A huge blessing. Great grace..

I love spending time with Eugene anywhere.. but it's definitely extra special when sushi is involved. :) Especially when we get special rolls on the house!

We joined the bandwagon and watched the very anticipated "Avengers" this month as one of our date nights. (Thanks Lee & Esther for the movie tickets!) Of course we had to get ice cream before.

For small group this year we read "Life in the Father's House" by Wayne Mack and Dave Swavely. It was an excellent read and a helpful resource! This particular small group session was filled with questionnaires about spiritual gifts and a very chocolatey bundt cake.

 

A few of my friends are getting married this year and I'm so excited for them to join the wives club with me! :) Bridal showers are my favorite! 

 For mother's day, some of the ladies set up a luncheon for the mom's at our church. It was SUPER cute. (Props to Sara for all the hard work in planning!) It was full of hor d'oeurves, strawberries, flowers and sunshine. It was just lovely and it was so awesome being able to show our moms how much we love and appreciate them!

There's truly something special about strawberries and lemonade together.

Beautiful bite size goodies for our beautiful mommies. Great job, girls!

As for my mom, she planned her own Mother's Day dinner. We were trying to convince her to let us take her out somewhere but she was already prepping dinner by then. She totally would..

Go big or go home..

Owning an ice cream shop means extra supplies to decorate the home. I totally dig this decor. :)

Here's a last hello before we leave. Thanks for browsing. I know it was hefty!

Have a good week everybody!

Love, S & E

 

Give thanks: days off, family worship time, trips to Office depot, time to read, a heart of thankfulness for every new day!

{Recipe} Simple Crockpot Hoisin Chicken

 I've been wanting to use my slow-cooker for months now but honestly never got enough courage to try using it. I was anxious about leaving it on while I was taking my nap before work because I wasn't sure if it was gonna burn out the food or worse--set our place on fire!  Silly me.

Because I'm working a night shift tonight, I thought I'd gather up my courage and give it a go. Deep breath. Hold yourself together. Just do it! and I did.. and I'm so glad that I did. I delayed my nap until this finished cooking because under all this superficial courage I was still a little bit nervous. I wasn't sure if I had to turn the heat down myself. or take the food out when it was done. or, or or!

 The awesome thing I found out is that once the timer is done, your heat mode will automatically switch from "High" to "Warm" which means, I can leave it at home cooking for hours with a peace of mind. Thank you Lord for slow-cookers!!!!!

Anyway, I wanted to try an Asian-style dinner and found a recipe on a magazine I had purchased a few weeks ago. Since this was my first time I wanted to try something super easy and the "Simple" part of the title won me over. (I also love Hoisin sauce so that was also a bonus!)

recipe adapted from: Better Homes & Gardens Magazine 

Simple Hoisin Chicken Recipe:
Prep: 15 mins    Cook: 4 hours (low) + 30 minutes (high)

Nonstick cooking spray

6-8 bone-in chicken thighs (I used legs because that's all I had!)
2 Cups Broccoli Stirfry Vegetables
1 Cup of Mixed Bell Peppers (roughly chopped)
1/2 Cup Cilantro to garnish (finely chopped)
Salt & Pepper

Sauce:
1 Cup Hoisin Sauce
1/2 Cup Chicken Broth
1 Tbsp Soy Sauce
1 Tbsp Oyster Sauce
1 Tsp Ground Ginger (optional)

3 Cups hot cooked rice (I used Jasmine)

1. Lightly coat the inside of the slow cookier with cooing spray.

2. Season chicken with a pinch of salt and pepper. Place chicken in Slow Cooker.

3. Gather ingredients for sauce together in a bowl. Mix well. Pour over chicken. Cover and cook on low heat setting for 4-5 hours or on high-heat for 3 hours.

3. Turn heat to high before adding the vegetables. Stir well and make sure the chicken and vegetables are well coated. Cook for an additional 30 to 45 minutes more or until vegetables are crisp-tender.

4. Serve over hot cooked rice. Garnish with chopped cilantro.

 Bon Appétit!