our 30-hour trip to norcal

hello!

sorry for the hiatus. life has been busy and we've been trying to keep up with it and not get left behind! eugene is reaching the tail end of his second year in pharmacy school and we are so excited for school to be over. spring break was full of lots of good eats and taking it easy. we rested well and have been back to school/work again. this year is going by so fast. can't believe we're already at the last day of march.

i'm still in the process of finishing up my march goals - so i'll update you soon! 

we just came back from a super short & sweet weekend in norcal for bryan & carson's wedding. we left at 2am saturday morning (#YOLO) and came back sunday evening.  it was really sweet to see our friends up north and see how much God has blessed our church plant BMC. hoping to make another trip up there next month! here are some highlights:

baby emily... love her to pieces!

finally got to try philz!

spent time with these silly friends! 

working the gift/sign in table at b&c's wedding. we both wore navy blue :)

so sweet to see my friend esther! we are both more woman-ly and wife-ly now

little lucca has some pretty big sandwiches!

pastrami on dutch crunch bread - so yum! so the bread was very intense. my mouth is still sore/cut up from the crust.. but their magic green sauce was amazing!

back to normal life. 'twas a sweet weekend! 

happy monday everyone!

have a great week

xoxo

give thanks // 6 hour rides to spend with eugene, naps in the car, time to spend with old friends, celebrating bryson, lunch with denise, yummy salmon salads, costco runs, a quiet afternoon to clean/organize my apartment, late night pho runs, pho 2000's amazing comfort-food-hit-the-spot pho, reminders to pray and be dependent

my march goals & a few of my favorite things

i've been meaning to post this for a while now - and now, i'm a little late - but better late than never!

here are the goals that I made for myself for march. 

goal 1 // a few weeks ago i made korean beef short rib soup (galbitang) and fell in love with cooking the life out of beef bones. oxtail is next on my list! stay tuned..

goal 2 // "a place for everything and everything in its place" has been my cleaning motto for 2014. i've been trying to implement it here and there but i feel like i'm constantly doing damage control and not really organizing. planning to set one day to do this. possibly next week!

goal 3 // i am seriously the worst when it comes to finishing a book. i still want to accomplish my 2014 resoultion to finish 12 books. currently, i'm halfway through two books so i need to catch up! 

here are a few of my favorite things from the last few weeks:
1. there are a few hundred versions of this song out there, but this guy did a pretty swell job!

2. this video is so sweet. it made me feel so warm and cozy inside! 

3. some people have the most amazing relationships with their pets. this grandma-kitty love made me so happy! 

4. i know the olympics are over, but i still love this fantastic little lady. 

5. eugene's favorite food is japanese ramen. so basically its my wifely duty to learn how to make this at home. 

6. this mama and her little girl are so sweet together! hope i can do fun things like this with my daughter in the future!
7. this is so interesting (and makes my heart kinda sad). these are the requests of death row inmates for their last meal.
8. such a great breakfast idea! especially if you love salads. ps. i really want to make my own pesto spread. 

9. i still remember first seeing these guys on the sing-off. one of the best versions of "say something" ever! p.s. i love avi's little solo.

10. i love the oscars... but, poor leo. give the man an oscar! (lol)

have a good week everyone.
tomorrow is oxtail soup-making day... hooray!

xoxo

everyday life - week 10

this week was sweet.

this week was kind of a blur and I actually couldn't remember what i did this week. I re-newed my gym membership last week, so i've been trying to get my moneys worth and squeeze gym time in between breaks. i've also been sleeping really bad this week - like, waking up every 1-2 hours...every night! i'm really thankful that I have these photos to help me document what goes on in my day-to-day life, or else I seriously would have no idea what I did this week! 

my life is pretty ordinary, but i'm learning to find the beauty and joy in the ordinary things. the more I practice, the more things I find to be thankful for. it's wonderful!

anyway - here's what this week looked like:

sweet haddon and I had a photography session. I took about 20 pictures.

mid-week trader joes visit with my sister (k)

i got really huge bananas for 19 cents each! not the best deal, so I had to get my moneys worth of course! #asiangirlproblems (i seriously misuse hashtags so much - at least I know it, right?)

eugene ran for a board position this week for one of his pharmacy clubs and got it. i'm pretty sure this breakfast had at least a little to do with it. (yay, eugene!)

I met up with my family for lunch in LA. of course we had to get kbbq! (of couuuurse!!)

for small group this week, we decided to meet at Portola Coffee Lab for an intimate, yet casual coffee session. it was so sweet. i love those girls. 

i have a strange love/affinity/obsession for milk and eggs together in a bowl. it makes me happy!

a few months ago, we started buying uncooked tortillas from costco and it has changed our lives. i will never, ever buy pre-cooked tortillas again! its so much crispier and you can taste how fresh it is! 

we had a clean-out-your-fridge breakfast (ya'll know much i love doing that!) and we made breakfast burritos. it was so good (and hearty!) we used scrambled eggs, hash browns from trader joes, salsa, and breakfast sausages. yum!

haven't been able to practice too much this week. i'm pretty newb, guys..

just discovered these awesome porto's sandwiches. so delicious, huge portions and both for less than $6 each. amazing! porto's is our fave.

finally got to make a trip to costco for some fruits and veggies. so much green! we're making lots of stir-fry, smoothies and salads! 

perfect evening snack after a run! negitoro rolls from chaya. yum!

I had my first day as relief charge this week. it was so scary (this was the reason why I was having trouble sleeping all week!!!), but fun! I learned a lot and had an awesome team with me. can't wait to learn more and more.

ps. my recurring theme this week was "thank God for caramel macchiatos"!

gonna try to see if I can make it to the gym before my 12-hour shift tomorrow. wish me luck!

xoxo

Everyday Life - Week 9

Happy March! 

We've been enjoying the rain today. I love the rain but it always makes me feel a little under the weather for some reason. Today was spent cozying up and taking it easy at home today. Saturdays off are so nice! 

Here's what this week looked like! 

Trying to learn how to "delight in the law of The Lord" and "meditate on it day and night" as challenged by Psalm 1. An ongoing challenge. Thank goodness for the new week ahead. :) 

My first time roasting veggies in a long time. 

Fell in LOVE all over again. Note to self...Need to make this a weekly thing. (Ps. I went a little crazy and roasted like 5 lbs of veggies...)

Nothing like a roasted chicken thigh and a veggie medley. :) 

February piano assignment.... will require a few additional weeks in March. :) 

My favorite place. These bowls are all under $5/each. Can't beat that price. ;)

Belated Starbucks date with this one.  So sweet! 

I LOOOOVE BRODARS. that crunch. That sauce. Yum!! 

My first meal cooking with coconut oil. Can't wait for all of our future adventures! :) 

On my way to have lunch with my in laws!

Can't believe I live 10 minutes from this place. This rib eye steak wrap was amaaaaazing. Please note the huge portion of feta cheese and avocado. :)

Sweet outdoor coffee date with Joyce. So wonderful. So blessed!!

Saturday date nights are our favorite. So were these flowers. :) 

Have a great weekend, everyone!

xoxo