John and Georgie

Here's my sweetheart, smiling near a pretty red berry bush. We were out window shopping together on a chilly afternoon. If you look closely, you can see my reflection in his shades (notice the spot of blue which is my scarf).

A few days later John and I took Georgie to the dog park to play. John and Georgie are in the center of the picture, running together.

Halloween Hound and Democratic Doggie

This is Wrigley, Missy and Stephen's dog. He's dressed up as a king for Halloween because he's the king of the house!

And here is Georgie, our Regal Beagle, who is sporting her Democrat neck tie made by my step mom, Leslie. Georgie has proudly worn this all over the city as a reminder to all Democrats (and Republicans) to "Barack" the vote on election day. Okay, to be fair, "McCain" the vote, if that's your choice, but that just doesn't sound as catchy.


The more pictures I took, the sleepier Georgie seemed to become.

Haircut

I got a very long over due haircut last week at a little shop down the street. I'm not a fan of fancy, overpriced salons, especially just for a simple haircut, so I was very happy to discover "Anonymous Total Hair Care". They did a great job, were very friendly, and had totally reasonable prices.
Before the haircut...

After!

Apple, Brie, and Honey Quesadilla

I've used these same ingredients to make a panini, but made this was the first time I made it as a quesadilla. It was really delicious, but a little sticky from the warm honey.
Spread 1 teaspoon dijon or honey mustard over a flour tortilla. Place the tortilla on a hot skillet over medium-high heat and top with:
1 slice of ham or turkey
3 thin slices of brie cheese
10-15 thin slices of peeled pear or apple
1 tablespoon honey
8 fresh spinach or arugula leaves
pinch of salt and black pepper






Top with another flour tortilla, flip, and cook until the cheese starts to melt.



Cut into four pieces and enjoy!

Grilled Chicken Tacos with Blackbeans and Corn

We eat some form of grilled taco quite often. I also make a "sandwich" version filled with turkey or ham, swiss cheese, fresh spinach, and sliced tomatoes, but this Southwestern version was really delicious too. I filled these with roasted corn, black beans, shredded chicken and salsa, and monterrey jack cheese.
Roasted corn filling:
2 ears fresh corn
1 tablespoon butter, melted
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon chili powder
Clean the corn by removing the husks and all the little hairs. Brush a mixture of melted butter, cumin, and chili powder all over the corn and cook on a hot skillet, covered with a lid, turning the corn occasionally so that all sides get smokey and toasty. Remove from heat, let cool, and then slice kernals away from the cob with a knife.

Black bean filling:
1 can black beanns
1 tablespoon ground cumin
salt and pepper
Combine black beans and cumin in a sauce pan and season with salt and pepper. Cook over medium-high heat until heated through.

Salsa chicken filling:
1 tablespoon olive oil
1/2 yellow onion, chopped
1 1/2 cups cooked chicken, shredded
1/2 cup chunky salsa
Heat olive oil in sauce pan and add the onion, stirring occasionally. Cook for about 10 minutes, until translucent. Add the shredded chicken and salsa and cook over medium heat until heated through.

Shredded cheese filling:
I used about 3/4 cup of Monterrey Jack, but cheddar would have been delicious, too...or both!

Assemble the tacos:
Heat both sides of a flour tortilla on a clean, hot skillet for a few seconds - just long enough to soften the tortilla. Remove from heat and add the fillings to one half of the tortilla. Add just enough filling that the taco can be neatly folded over.

Grill the tacos:

Place the folded and stuffed taco back on the hot skillet and cook both sides until golden brown and toasty.

Sweet Little Pumpkins

John brought these home the other day for our apartment. He knew how excited I was to make Jack-O-Lanterns together this autumn. However, now that they have been sitting in the window a few days, I can't bear to cut into them. They are too cute sitting together in the window.

Crocheting with plastic bags

I started running low on yarn after I finished the granny chic scarf, so I started a new project using plastic grocery bags. I learned how to turn the plastic bags into "yarn" from Gooseflesh, one of my favorite blogs, and then borrowed the pattern from another online source.

I really like my bag, but it's a bit wider than the one in the pattern. I think I messed up somewhere along the way and worked in an extra stitch. But I decided to just go with it and let it take whatever form it may. This is still a work in progress and I'll post the pictures when it's finished.

New Black Boots

My new black boots...I LOVE them!!

The Village Pet Store and Charcoal Grill

John and I visited a bizarre art installation today, "The Village Pet Store and Charcoal Grill". At first glance it is just like a regular pet shop with cute animals in the window, except the animals are actually mechanical and personified in strange ways. Some of the "pets" were not even animals at all, but consumer products like fish sticks swimming in fish bowls or chicken McNuggets made to look like baby chicks mechanically dipping themselves in BBQ sauce. Here are some more pictures from the New York Times.

This little bunny wearing pearls and filing it's nails was probably my favorite.
This monkey was watching a video of monkeys in the wild and having sodas and pizza.
From the street, this looked like a real cheetah lounging on a tree branch. It's tail was even swinging! From inside the pet shop, you could see that it was actually a fur coat.
This part of the installation was the most comical - hot dog weiners and sausage links were housed in glass cases similar to how reptiles or spiders would be on display for sale in a pet shop. They too were mechanical and wiggled and gyrated...it was very bizarre!

John and Cassie's Day of Fun

Cassie and John sitting in Washington Square Park. In one year and 10 days, we'll be posing like this for our wedding pictures!


Pumpkins and candy...two of my favorite things about Halloween.
This picture almost looks like it was taken somewhere in the Mediterranean. We were actually in the West Village.
You would never know it was autumn by looking at this lush, green garden...

but you would certainly know fall is here by looking at these trees in Washington Square Park.

Ferrara Pasticceria - Our late night trip to Little Italy

John and I treated ourselves to a late night trip to Ferrara Pasticceria in Little Italy last night. This place was amazing! The rows and rows of pastries and cakes in the display cases looked like something in a Wayne Thiebaud painting. It was like dessert heaven!

John had coffee and I sipped lemoncello.

I ordered a delicious Key Lime tart...
and John had a slice of decadent New York cheesecake.
Our bellies are so happy! While in Little Italy, we walked past La Mela, a fantastic restaurant that is very special to us.

On our walk home, we saw this building on Broadway with dramatic lighting...it was a lot cooler in person.

Hearts and Squares

I finished my scarf tonight! I don't know if I will actually wear it outside (it looks like something my grandmother may have worn in the 70s), but it is still my creation and I had a lot of fun making it.

I didn't notice this until after I took the picture, but I love how the squares on the scarf play off the squares in the Donald Baechlor print on the wall.

I noticed after taking this picture that the scarf is made up of 13 squares...and I finished it on October 13...how weird is that?!

John came across this heart on the sidewalk the other day and sent me a picture. I love you sweetie!

Precious babies, crochet, and cupcakes

Tracy sent me this picture of her son, John, who is picking his nose in the pumpkin patch. I love this picture!

Joley sent this picture of Amira to us today from the rooftop of the Oklahoma City Museum of Art. She is so adorable!
I finished the Frank Stella crocheted blanket Thursday night. I'm on to the next project - a scarf of joined multicolored granny squares...it's going to be very granny chic!

Kristina made these totally cute pink heart cupcakes the other day and sent me a picture. I'm glad I could inspire her inner domestic goddess.

Friday in New York with Jena

My lifelong friend Jena came to New York this weekend and we spent the day together at the Met Museum. We had so much fun!


I love that the Met will let you take pictures! Today I took lots of pictures - work that I liked, paintings that reminded me of John, and also some pieces that Jena liked.

I see something new everytime I visit the Met. Today I went to the Japanese art wing for the first time.

Jena's favorite pieces were the vast landscapes.

This is one of my favorite van Gogh paintings! I love the green and pink.

After the Met, Jena and I went for coffee in SoHo and took Georgie out for a walk. I can't wait to see her again!