Warm Welcome to Summer 2011

Three things to celebrate today:

1. No more fixing my hair alllllllllllllll summer long.

Why?

That right there is why. 50% humidity + public transportation = my summer "Bohemian" look. I wish I was one of THOSE girls with the sexy wavy beach curls, but unfortunately I look like a wet dog if I don't bust out the Chi. So instead of waking up, showering, and straightening my hair only to have it stuck to my head and wavy 20 minutes later, I'm going to give myself an extra 30 minutes of sleep in the morning! Hello nighttime showers, headbands, and bobby pins. Who knows, I might go on another "grow my hair out so I can chop it off again in the Fall" kick.

2. I'm a bridesmaid in Shannon's wedding!

I came home today to a wonderful surprise in the mail....

My adorable poem asking me to be a bridesmaid!!! What a CUTE idea! And the letter even matched the lavendar shirt I wore today. That's fate ;) I'm honored to be a part of Shannon and Bryce's big day in December. It's going to be a beautiful wedding!!! I'm bummed I couldn't be with her tonight, she had all of the girls come over for dinner then they went to see Bridesmaids in the theater. I contemplated going to see it by myself and Face-Timing someone, but I thought that was a bit much. I'm definitely missing my girls tonight though... starting to get pretty homesick.

But to help ease my home sickness... 3. It's Civil War Week on the History Channel!

Up there with SharkWeek and My Fair Wedding marathons, Civil War Week is one of my favorites by far! I'm random, I know. You should see our DVR library- it has everything from America's Best Dance Crew to Iron Chef America to Intervention.

But thanks to my dad, I've always had an affinity for American history. A little KJS trivia- I actually won the US History award in the 10th grade! That's the one class I didn't skip on a weekly basis my Sophomore year. I love learning about US history specifically... it's fun to learn about the people and events that brought us to where we are today. I'm a snake in the grass during Trivial Pursuit- you should ALWAYS pick me to be to be on your team. No one ever sees it coming ;)

So, if you're like me and could care less about the Mavs vs. Magic games or the NBA in general- it's Civil War Week to the rescue! Happy watching :)

Week in review...

Where to start... ?

The last week has been interesting to say the least. As I mentioned previously, we had an amazing time in Florida for Sheena and John's wedding last Friday. I just posted a few pics from the weekend... what a BEAUTIFUL ceremony and venue!

The reception was perfect- I wish I could have snapped some pictures! They had a steel drum playing, served tasty Caribbean food, then the Trinidadian DJ took over and we got down to business! I'll tell you one thing- Trini's know how to party. Her 50+ year old aunts and uncles were getting lower than us on the dance floor.

Post-wedding, they rented a bus and hauled us to Panama City Beach where we danced the night away, drank fruity beach drinks, and taught the club how to Dougie (naturally). I had flashbacks of my 2003 Spring Break trip with Jess, Chelsea, and Mary to PCB- only this time time I didn't get my fake ID confiscated and Lil John wasn't in concert.

We flew home Saturday so we could have some time to re-coop and get ready for work the next week. Boring, I know. It's probably a good thing we came home early though... I had a typical "Kate" thing happen while in Florida.

Kate- meet Yellow Flies. Yellow Flies- meet Kate.

If you've never heard of a Yellow Fly, you're lucky.

It's the evil equivalent of a mosquito/horse fly hybrid, and they are abundant in Florida during May and June, on the coast, in shaded areas at dawn with no breeze. Or this exact environment from the pictures taken below:

For some reason, if there are bugs in the area, they flock to me. I've heard people joke about me "being too sweet".... that's definitely not the case. I believe I'm jut cursed. Either way, there was a period of 30 minutes or so that we were outside and I remember swatting these things off of me every few seconds.

Little did I know it would send me to the minor Emergency room later that week!

I knew something was wrong when we got home Saturday night and my ankles and shins were swollen and on fire. I woke up Sunday morning to what looked like blisters all over my legs. Panicked, Zeke ran across the street and picked me up some Benadryl meds and anti-itch cream. Didn't help.

As the week progressed, it only got worse. I counted Monday night, and I had over 40 bites on my right leg, and over 20 on the left. They were swollen almost to the size of dimes. I couldn't sleep, was alternating ice packs on my legs to try and keep them from itching- I have literally been in insect bite hell.

I sucked it up and spend Wednesday morning in the Minor Emergency Room. Luckily there's one within walking distance, so I got there right at 8:00 am when it opened.

Here's what the doctor saw:

Gross- I know! It's not even your leg. Or your wife's. (Poor Zeke, I haven't exactly been the most pleasant and attractive bride to come home to.) This picture isn't even the worst part... I'll spare the rest.

The doctor informed me that it's good that I came in that morning- my skin was infected, and I could have ended up in the real Emergency Room for IV treatments! I have "Cellulitis". First, I thought he said cellulite, and I was like.... No I don't- Ruuuuude! And he told me again, "No, Cellulitis is a skin infection when you've had a high amount of bites, cuts, or wounds in a concentrated area". He said I'm lucky I didn't get a Staff infection considering the count of bites and the severity of my reaction.

I've spent the last week choking down 8 horse pills a day, rubbing calamine lotion on my legs, and trying my hardest not to scratch. It's been horrible!!! Not how I wanted to spend my first Memorial Day. But- I'm lucky I caught it early enough and that it didn't get worse.

I've officially finished all of my meds, but it still itches, so I think I have to go to the doctor again to make sure... I don't know... that my legs don't need to be amputated or something.

Which leads me to my next chapter of this long and hodge-podge post- our first Memorial Day in DC! We really were hoping to head to one of the beaches in Virginia, but couldn't (for obvious reasons). I decided to not let my Cellulitis get the best of me, so I rebelled and had fun anyways.

Friday, I grabbed some drinks with co-wokers Krystina and Sloane at Coco Sala. What a cute place!! They have a great HH at the bar. Of course, I didn't get pics of us, but I did get the food!

Lychee, rose water, and Prosecco cocktail. Mmmmmm. 

Shrimp Mac, Tuna Tar Tar, Mushroom Risotto, and Lobster  something.

Gone in 60 seconds!

Saturday, Zeke and I laid around and watched the Food Channel all day, making ourselves hungry for some BBQ. On a mission to feed our craving, we hopped on the metro and spent the rest of the day in DC. I took him to Hill Country BBQ, it's the best I've had since moving here! and they serve Blue Bell Ice Cream- Sold.

Next, we headed to H&M, did some shopping, then went home around 9 and went to bed early. We had the best of intentions to get up, ride our bikes, and do something productive Sunday. 

Turns out, we slept until about 2:00 again, finally got up, and went to Arlington Rooftop Bar and Grill for some food & drinks before heading to the 2011 Memorial Day Concert on the West Lawn of the Capitol. 

Fried Green Tomatoes

Lobster Salad

Taps

Monogrammed hankie ;)

Pia Toscano singing the National Anthem

Gary Senise and Joe Mantegna

Colin Powell

Today, true to form, we laid around until about 2:00, then headed down to the pool for some sun. After, we went to Lost Dog for some pizza, stopped by P Brennan's for a Car Bomb with Eoghain, and came home around 6:00 for a mid-day nap. 

And with that, I'm spent! I finally feel caught up- hopefully I won't have any more Yellow Fly bite stories to share. Hopefully they will heal this week and I'll be able to wear shorts again. Wearing pants in DC in the summer is about as comfortable as in Houston- aka not at all.

Hope you had a great weekend, sweet dreams!

Tornadoes and "50 things"

Don't read this if you're emotional. I warned you! I try to keep the blog fun and lighthearted, but I just had to share this story for some reason.

Tonight after work, I was catching up on the nightly news while trying to decide what to post about since it's been a week. Let's see... Florida was awesome, Sheena's wedding was perfect and BEAUTIFUL, I was bit by 50+ yellow flies at the reception and now have a skin infection (more on that tomorrow), I tried a new food truck (not so good), I went to the Minor ER this morning.... lots going on these days.

I heard Shep Smith (my favorite FOX newscaster) say something about tornadoes, and normally I zone out, because it's really all you've been hearing about this month. I hate to admit that, but you kind of get de-sensitized to the stories & statistics since they're in the headline every day. I read the paper on the metro every morning, and sadly, I skim through the articles, see where the storm was, see how many died, and move on to the next page.

For some reason, one story caught my attention tonight. Not sure if anyone heard about this, but an 18 year old, Will Norton, was driving home from his high school graduation last night when he was pulled from his Hummer by a tornado in Joplin, MO. The twister approached the vehicle, ripped the 18 year old's seatbelt and sucked him right out of the sunroof. The dad tried to hold on to him, but the force was too strong. His dad had several broken bones but survived. His mom and sister left graduation 5 minutes before him, made it home safely, and were on the phone with him while everything was happening.

The part of the story that really hit me was when they found his car, the only thing left inside was his cap from Highschool graduation hours before. His mom had it in her hands, asking for people to help them find Will. That absolutely broke my heart.

They also mentioned that he was a YouTube mini Celebrity for the virtual diary videos he posts, so I decided to google his name to see what I could find. First, I stumbled upon the Joplin, MO missing persons database.

http://wyhighonline.info/JoplinDB/list.php

These names on this list all went missing after the tornado yesterday. Not only are there over 100 confirmed dead, but 331 people still missing from last night alone. So sad.

Next, I googled "You Tube Will Norton", and a video popped up. The link is below. It's one of his video diaries, and the title is "50 things I've Done".

http://www.liveleak.com/view?i=f78_1306367313

With tears rolling down my face, I listened to all of the things this 18 year old high school graduate experienced in his lifetime. After it was over, I hit play again. And again. I watched it three times listening to all of the amazing things he experienced. I was speechless. Here are a few:
- Visited 7 European countries in 7 days
- Been to the top of The Eiffel tower
- Hugged a llama
- Seen the original mona lisa
- Kissed a dolphin
- Seen the entire royal family on the queen's birthday
- Had a groundhog bite my sock while trying to save my wiener dog (totally something that would happen to ME!)
- Swam with sharks
- Learned french and latin
- Threw my sisters out of a moving golf cart when I was three

Most Ironic:
- My school was hit by a tornado- giving me a 4 month vacation
- Helped rebuild my town after the tornado

What an amazing life he's lived so far, and what a cool family. My hope is that #51 will be "Have been pulled through the sunroof of my car by a tornado and found alive".

This inspired me, and I wanted to share it incase you missed the story, because I hope it will inspire you too. It was a good reminder to dream big, don't sweat the small stuff, and tell your family/friends that you love them every day.

Tonight, please say a prayer for the hundreds of families that are going to bed not knowing where their wife, husband, mother, brother, or friends are. I prayed for Will and the missing victims, their families, thanked God for my countless blessings, and asked for his guidance to help me write my "50 things" dream list.

Love you all, and sweet dreams.

Lighthearted & fun KJ will be back tomorrow giving you way too many details about our Florida trip, my food truck voyage, and a rare skin infection I have that was caused by an attack swarm of Yellow Flies. True story.

Food Trucks & Florida

Today I crossed another food truck off of my list! My co-worker Jules and I walked a few blocks to check out TaKorean- Korean BBQ Tacos. Genius!

 I ordered 2 Bulgogi Steak tacos with spicy Kimchi Slaw and treated myself to a Jarritos Mandarin soda.

If you've never had Korean BBQ, you're definitely missing out. Not sure if this is PC, but I used to be too afraid to try Korean or Mongolian BBQ, for some reason I thought I was going to eat dog and cat meat! It gave me the heebie jeebies. But once I realized I was being ridiculous (and that meat from McDonald's is probably worse than dog), I free'd my mind and indulged!

Think of a fajita with sweet/spicy teryaki sauce, slaw that's vinegary but not overbearing, and just enough cilantro and Sriracha sauce (big red plastic rooster bottle with a green top that's at every pho restaurant) to make your nose run- all wrapped in two fresh corn tortillas.

Overall, Lobster Truck is still my favorite by leaps and bounds, Pi on Wheels is second, and I haven't decided who is third. I'm waiting to be blown away.

On a separate note, we are about to start packing for our trip to sunny Florida tomorrow!!! We leave at 5:00 to fly to Panama City Beach, then we drive to Destin for one of my bestie's weddings!!!

Sheena and John are saying "I Do" on the beautiful beaches of Destin, then are having their reception at a place called Cabana Blu- I'd describe it as Ocean Chic ;) Look how pretty!

Outdoor dining area

I couldn't be happier for the two of them, they are such a sweet couple and have such a cute story about how they met. If you've ever heard the song "Buy Myself A Chance" by Randy Rogers... that's pretty much it :) They've had some major hurdles to cross, from Sheena getting laid off to John finishing school, and the entire time they've been so supportive of each other and  it has only brought them closer together.

My favorite pic of them :)

I'm honored to be a part of this wonderful occasion, and can't wait to celebrate with Mr. and Mrs. John Aschenbeck!

I hope everyone has a fabulous week/weekend- catch you on the flip side!

RIP M-Bone

http://www.cnn.com/2011/SHOWBIZ/celebrity.news.gossip/05/16/rapper.m.bone.killed/index.html

I was saddened to hear that Montae Talbert aka "M-Bone" of Cali Swag died yesterday in a drive by shooting. In case you don't know the significance of M-Bone and Cali Swag in my life, I have 5 words for you.

Teach. Me. How. To. Dougie.

If you don't know the significance of those 5 words to me, then a) we are clearly not best friends and b) you have not hung out with me post 10:00 p.m. since July 2010. We were in New Orleans for one of my dearest friend Susanna's bachelorette party. Saturday night Sunday morning, circa 4:00 am, we stumbled into a club on Bourbon Street. I won't even pretend to remember the name.

We were dancing white-girl style: lots of sprinkler action and pelvic thrusts. Suddenly, the speakers started booming,  everyone in the club got their "game face" on, and they all start doing this dance. Now, for some reason, anyone not white looks cool when they dance. Me- not so much. The girls and I decided to ask one of the locals what this dance was that everyone was doing!

Me: Hi sir, what's that dance you're doing???
Him: (Ignores me)
Me: Um... Hi! Yes, you. What is he saying and how do I do that dance?!
Him: It's the Dougie.
Me: What? The Duckie?
Him: Nah, the Dougie. Just watch me.

D'Shaun becaume our Dougie sensei. He warmed up to us a little... maybe he felt bad for us because we were hammered and looked like fools. But by the end of the song, we were pros! I even added my own moves to my routine- at 4 am I thought I was the hottest one in the club. I was able to dig out a pic from the NOLA archives...

So tonight, I'm pouring some Riesling out for my homie M-Bone. Not only did he give everyone's ears a break from the Cupid Shuffle, but he and Cali Swag have provided my friends and I with so many fun memories that all start with the phrase "They be like smooth..."

Happy Friday!

I had my first celebrity sighting in Chinatown today- The Kung Fu Panda! I walked out of the post office, and there he was, awkwardly in the "Hail Hitler" pose.

Just another day in downtown DC...

That's all I have for today. Heading downstairs to Lost Dog for some pizza & beers with the hubby. TGIF!

What's wrong with this photo?

Since this blog is dedicated to my experiences as a new DC resident, I had to share this story. Do you remember those puzzles from your childhood where they would ask you to point out 10 things that are wrong with the picture?

Around 4:30 today, I hear my boss say "Ok- WHAT is going on in the street right now???" I turned to the right and looked out the window, only to become extremely confused by the scenery down below.

Staring in amazement, we sat and observed for a few minutes and each tried to point out different things we noticed. Of course- I had to take a picture.

1. Obviously there's an ambulance parked in the middle of the street.
2. There's a homeless woman with the paramedics in between the two columns... wait... they just helped her up. Ok... and now she's wearing one of their jackets?
3. Hold on... is that a giant ice cream cone on the right above the Tahoe? Yes, it is.
4. Oh- it's a Dryer's iceream cart equipped with a man in a full 50's style milk delivery uniform giving out free icecream cones on a Tuesday.
5. Wow... that's an interesting fleet of bulletproof SUV's parked in the middle of the street as well (only one pictured) with New Jersey license plates.
6. Now... there are 4 suited up guidos (by the Tahoe and above the ambulance) with security guards escorting them into a restaurant.

Just another day in Chinatown, ladies and gents.

Moving on, tonight was good! I had a surprise phone call from my former ALA co-worker Corie who is coming to DC June 18th to visit- Yay! I love visitors :) It was great catching up with her... she and I became really close when we worked together at ALA and stayed great friends ever since. She actually moved to Houston from Florida for the same reasons I moved to DC... a boy and a job. Her stories helped me become acclimated here... I'm not sure if she knows that. I always think of how she opened up to meet new people even though she still has an amazing group of friends in Florida. It gives me hope that I'll make friendships like ours in DC.

After our talk, I went for my first outdoor run since moving here. I thought it would be fine since I can breeze through a treadmill run in no time. Ohhhh man- I forgot how different it is exercising outside! Not to mention the fact that Virginia has HILLS. I somehow managed to complete 3 miles- woo hoo!

I came home and got the urge to cook a nice dinner for my hubby since yesterday was our first monthaversary as Mr. & Mrs. Smith. I didn't blog yesterday, but I came home to two awesome presents that I really wasn't expecting! He bought me the bright red KitchenAid stand mixer that I reeeeally wanted and a cute Stella and Dot necklace :) Since I was ill prepared (I didn't think we were doing gifts!!), and I know that he loves my cooking, I put my best foot forward and whipped up a tasty meal.

Taa daa...

Crab & Avocado Salad with Arugula
Potato Gnocchi with Parmesan Cheese, Spinach, and Sweet Peas
Prosciutto wrapped Salmon with Spinach

My finest work yet! Am I not the best wife ever??

Ok, ok. I lied. We haven't been to the grocery store in 2 weeks and I didn't make any of the food. But- we do have a wonderful wine bar called "Twisted Vines" across the street that sure knows how to whip up some amazing food in no time! When we put "to-go" food on our "nice" dishes, it makes me feel like I did SOMETHING to help prepare the meal. And like I always tell Zeke, "Life is too short to not use the good china!"

Allrighty, headed to bed. Tomorrow evening, my co-worker is running a CrossFit class at our office, so I need to stretch and get plenty of rest so I'm ready! She teaches at a gym in Alexandria and promised that tomorrow night won't be pleasant or easy. Can't wait : /

Sweet dreams!

LivingSocially- From Atlanta to the VGC

The last few days were quite a whirl wind. It's hard to believe it's Sunday already- I feel like I've been in a time warp of awesomeness.

Tuesday, we left the office at 1:00 for some celebratory team bonding at Lucky Strike. We had an awesome April and are well on our way of achieving total world domination, so we earned an afternoon off.

Team LifeSavers!

Around 4:00, we headed to the airport for our flights to ATL.

We had our Q1 regional sales meeting at the W downtown. Talk about an awesome conference! It was great to finally meet the outside reps from the NE & SE cities. Since our team is Inside Sales, the only interaction we have with other reps from the country is over the phone, so it's nice to put faces with names.

As expected, the days were packed with learning sessions and role playing to improve our sales skills. At night, they had fun events planned for everyone, from a live band and BBQ to a roof-top Margarita Tasting for Cinco De Mayo. A few pics from the week-

En route!

Me and Sergio- post-bowling, pre-scotch.

Taught my favorite co-workers the AirTran $49 upgrade trick. Happy!

My room at the W

Being silly, trying to fit Hannah in my suitcase. ALMOST!!!

Wednesday Night Pre-Dinner Drinks at the hotel

My favorites :)

Thursday night rooftop Cinco De Mayo party

Ole!

Open Bar + Rooftop Pool = Inevitable Impromptu Swim

Flattering celebratory shots- my massage deal in Honolulu WHALED! (Sold a whole bunch)
Krystina one upped me with a Killer Whale. These girls are gettin' paaaaid! ;)

Trying to keep my work husband in line Thursday night.
No luck. He ended up fighting an ice machine. Literally.

For you, Jessica. Public transportation in ATL!
Smelled like Funyuns.  

So long, Atlanta!

We made it home around 10:00 pm, and I had no trouble going right to sleep.

Saturday morning, we woke up bright and early for the Virginia Gold Cup! It's like the Kentucky Derby, only the horses don't race on a track but on a grass field, and they jump obstacles. LivingSocial was the presenting sponsor for the fist time ever, so we had a huge tent and chartered buses for the employees. Outside of the Sam Houston track, I've never been to a horse race before, so I was excited!

Half of the experience is what you wear... you can't just throw on any old outfit. I searched and searched, weeks in advance, and came up empty for my "derby hat". Finally, on ESTY of course, I found an adorable monogram hat! You know me, I would monogram my toothbrush if I could. We had such a great time, the weather was beautiful, and the Mint Juleps were just as tasty as I expected.

Dressed for the occasion!
Boat shoes, plaid shorts, monogrammed sun hat, and Longchamp bag.

LivingSocial tent

Robert Duvall!

Of course, we managed to find the tent with the ice luge.

Visiting with Mattie and Maryellen

Upclose and personal with the horsies!

Great weekend overall. Today, we are both missing our Mama's. This is the first mother's day in over 5 years that we haven't been home! We have skype dates later today, but it's not the same. If you're a mom (or mom to be) and reading this- may your day be filled with love and gratitude from those around you :) Mom's really do make the world go 'round.