Veggie Sushi Bowl

I was craving sushi the other night but my husband really doesn't like sushi. Also, we've been trying to cut back a bit on spending since we bought our tickets to India/Sri Lanka and are trying to get our back deck repaired. Plus I want a puppy! Anyway, I found this recipe on 101 Cookooks and saw it again on My Daily Bread (a food blog from one of my favorite fashion bloggers What I Wore).

I didn't really follow any recipe but here's what I did.

1.) Cook brown rice. I bought Uncle Bens brown rice and make it on the stovetop in 10 minutes. This would be good with white rice too.

2.) Heat a sheet of nori (seaweed) in a dry pan and then cut up into slices.

2.) Sautee tofu. I bought pre-diced extra firm tofu cubes but you could do this with regular extra firm tofu and just dice it up yourself. I didn't use any oil according to the 101 cookbooks recipe and it turned out just fine. Just make sure you use a non stick pan.

3.) Add veggies. I bought frozen broccoli, frozen edamame and shitake mushrooms and tossed those all in over the tofu. Then added a bunch of soy sauce, some rice vinegar, a little salt and black pepper and some chilli powder for kick. I left this to cook for a while to let the flavors soaked in. Right before serving I threw the nori slices in there to mix with the veggies.

4.) Cut avocado into slices.

5.) Assemble your bowl. Start with brown rice on the bottom, put a heavy heaping of your veggies and tofu and then spread a nice pretty layer of avocado slices. Then top it all off with some toasted sesame seeds.

My husband saw the bowl and actually said "Am I allowed to eat this? It looks too pretty." followed by "Do you want to take pictures of this for your blog?". Haha. I would have but our camera is broken so I leave you with a picture from 101 Cookbooks and My Daily Bread.

My Daily Bread - Vegetarian Sushi Bowl

101 Cookbooks - Sushi Bowl Recipe

My friend Sangeetha's husband also doesn't like sushi and really needs meat in all his meals. I think you can do this same recipe and just substitute the tofu with diced chicken.

Veggie Sushi Bowl

Jeans for a booty

Last year I bought Joe's Jeans in Provacateur fit and immediately fell in love. They were the most comfortable jeans ever. Seriously. I have thighs and a butt but a small waist in comparison plus I'm only 5"3 so finding jeans that fit is very hard.

This is the style and wash I bought them in from Nordstroms. This wash is specifically the most comfortable (the lightest one - Jolie). I know this because I bought them in a darker wash also and they aren't nearly as stretchy and soft.
Sadly I wore them so much that I wore holes in the thighs. Haha. I'd totally wear them still but I think the hole is a little too close to the crotch area for comfort (in public anyways).

So last Thursday I went out to Bloomingdales (I had some giftcards there) in search of the exact same pair but they didn't have them. I tried on literally 20 pairs of jeans and came out with two favorites. Paige Premium Jeans in Laurel Canyon and Joe's Jeans in Honey. The Paige jeans fit great but they are super low rise. I think too much butt crack would be exposed when I sat down so I went with the Honeys. They fit really nicely but I had to get three inches removed because they didn't come in petite. They are specifically made for a "voluptuous silhoutte" and are fitted at the waist.

Joe's Honey Jeans in Ryder wash ($168 but I got them for 20% off):

Now that I'm looking at this picture I'm wondering if the change in color from the butt to the thighs will draw too much attention to an area I like to minimize.

What are your favorite jeans? Any suggestions for girls with curves?

Jeans for a booty

anti-theft lunch bags

i found this via Oh Joy! i don't bring lunch to work but if i did i would get these. they are sandwich bags with green splotches on both sides so it makes your lunch look moldy.

anti-theft lunch bags

inspiration to lose weight

I saw this video on TV before I left for work this morning. She has an insane body....

(skip the first 9 seconds of this video)

inspiration to lose weight

puppy love

If you know me, you know that I've been obsessed with getting a puppy for a long long time. Unfortunately I married a man who used to be terrified of dogs. Seriously, if there was a dog on the street, even a tiny little fluffy one, he'd switch positions to be farthest away from it. He changed to hating them and now he just dislikes them. To add to it I have asthma and I'm allergic to animal dander, pollen and all of that good stuff. Still it doesn't deter me from wanting a cute little puppy to call my own. We had a dog growing up and for the first 14 years of my life I was convinced I'd be a veterinarian and have a gaggle of dogs. I collected pictures and was mildly obsessed. It went away for a while but its coming back with a vengeance.

I found a compromise for me and my hubs. Husband is concerned about the size of our apartment and keeping an animal inside. I understand we live in a small Boston apartment but if we wait to get a dog until we move, it'll be a minimum of 4 years before we get one. So we would compromise by getting a smaller dog (but not too small) and making sure that its comfortable with spending time outside on our deck. Our neighbors dog (a big gorgeous black lab) spends a lot of time on the deck and we are getting it redone now so I think it should be fine. To address my allergy issues, I wanted to get a dog that is hypoallergenic. Turns out, there is really no such thing. As Wikipedia says

The significant allergen for most people is a protein found in the dog's saliva and dander, produced by the sebaceous glands.^[2] "Even if you get a hairless dog, it's still going to produce the allergen," Dr. Wanda Phipatanakul, chair of the Indoor Allergen Committee for the American Academy of Allergy, Asthma, and Immunology is quoted in the newsmagazine U.S. News & World Report as saying.^[3]How hypoallergenic a particular dog is for a particular person may vary with the individual dog and the individual person.^[1]

I know from personal experience though that there are dogs and cats that don't drive my allergies wild. Our neighbors have a little Maltese that doesn't give me allergies. So I'm convinced we can find a pup that works for us. The I like the best is a goldendoodle (golden retriever and poodle mix). You can get a miniature one that only gets to about 20-30lbs which would probably be the best option for us.

I also found a Massachusetts breeder that is not too far away - Massachusetts Goldendoodle Breeders. It kind of kills me to buy a dog because I'd much rather adopt a puppy from the MSPCA which is down the street but my allergies don't really make that an option. I'm still considering heading down there and explaining myself to see if they'll call when they get a puppy/dog that could work for us. Plus puppies from a breeder are expensive (~$1300)!

Wherever we end up getting a puppy, I need to start saving money for one. My shopping addiction needs give way for my puppy obsession.

Given all our dog related issues, do you think its a good or bad idea to get a dog?

puppy love

some ivory details

I logged onto Hautelook today and saw this beauty:
Look at this neckline
Adn the cute little buttons on the back...
So I bought it on sale for $129 in this ivory color. I know summer is almost over but I figure I can wear it for our one year anniversary (which is in 25 days eek!). Yes, I have a shopping problem and I'm trying to justify the purchase but it was so pretty.

Make me feel better and tell me what was your last guilty purchase was....

some ivory details

Mini Book Review: In the Woods

I'm a book worm and I wish that my friends and family would recommend their favorite books to me. I do read a lot but I warn you a lot of my books I pick up at the airport since I travel so much for work. I can't help it, sometimes I have to indulge in some mindless nonsense to make the 6 hr flight to California seem shorter.

In the Woods by Irish author Tana French had me so hooked I couldn't put it down and finished it in two days on my last trip out to California. The book is based in Ireland and is a fiction crime/psychological thriller. Here's a little synopsis on the book courtesy of Amazon:

"When Katy Devlin, a 12-year-old girl from Knocknaree, a Dublin suburb, is found murdered at a local archeological dig, Det. Rob Ryan and his partner, Cassie Maddox, must probe deep into the victim's troubled family history. There are chilling similarities between the Devlin murder and the disappearance 20 years before of two children from the same neighborhood who were Ryan's best friends. Only Maddox knows Ryan was involved in the 1984 case. The plot climaxes with a taut interrogation by Maddox of a potential suspect, and the reader is floored by the eventual identity and motives of the killer."

Aside from the crime/mystery part of the novel is the story of the relationship between the two detectives. It's written from the male detective's perspective and provides a detailed picture of the character's thoughts and inner workings. I was actually shocked when I realized that this novel was written by a female author because she created such a believable male voice. I truly believe this is hard to accomplish and the only other author I can remember capturing the opposite sex accurately is Wally Lamb in his novel She's Come Undone. The characters are very well developed, their relationships are complex and messy.

I give it a thumbs up and would definitely recommend picking it up.

Has anyone out there already read it? Agree or disagree with my review?

Mini Book Review: In the Woods

best cup of coffee ever. seriously.

I usually kind of hate Starbucks coffee. Its so strong and burnt and always leaves my mouth coated with a bad taste. I drink it anyway sometimes just out of convenience. I went there this weekend because its right next door to my eyebrow threader. The barista suggested I try a new coffee brewing method where they make each cup fresh using this Clover machine. They grind the beans fresh, the coffee brews, it pushes out the grounds to the top of the machine and it gives you the perfect cup of fresh coffee. It has changed my life.

The clover machine

Its not in many Starbucks but for those of you living in Boston, Seattle, Miami or the SF bay area you MUST go and try it.

Get the Kona blend. It'll change your life too.

PS - Its a little more expensive than their regular crap coffee. I know paying more than $2 for a cup of coffee is ridiculous but its worth it this time.

best cup of coffee ever. seriously.

Life Update

I apologize in advance to the few readers that are out there. This post is going to be totally disjointed.

• My blog has a new design thanks to the fantabulous Kelly from Blush !nk. I'll write more about it once the updates are fully finished but isn't she the most talented lady ever? She also did my friends blogs - You Wanna Talk Jive and I Groomzilla You Bride. Head over to her site to see more.

• I haven't posted in forever. I was thinking about it today and I haven't really been home for a weekend since May! We went to Miami, Virginia, Connecticut, Canada, NYC, So Cal, and then San Francisco. Technically I came back in between my two week California work trip, but it was a red eye that got in on Saturday and I left on Monday at 6am so I was exhausted and grouchy (bword) pants. That was a long sentence. Now we are debating heading to NYC this weekend for a friend's bday party and a grad school reunion BBQ. I really would love to see my friends but I'm not sure I can handle the travel. Especially since my friend is visiting the following weekend and one other weekend I'm going to another bachelorette party.

• The only good thing about all this travel is that it keeps my mind off the fact that all my friends have left Boston and I have no girlfriends left. My best friend got all fancy and married and left for the west coast so now I'm all alone with my husband and our one friend/current roommate. Current roommate/friend's fiance also happens to be one of my best friends though and she is moving here in November after they get married. So big YAY happy dance to that.

• I have yet to finish our thank you cards for our wedding that was 11 months ago. My mom will murder me if I let this go any longer. Must. Sit. And. Write. Cards. Not. Blog.

• I'm addicted to the show Weeds. Its AWESOME and I was so happy we have netflix so I could watch the past two seasons online instead of doing work for two days. Now I wish we had Showtime bad. Between Dexter, Weeds and True Blood I'm hooked.
• Its 89 degrees in our apartment and I'm debating painting the kitchen Friday if I don't have too much real work to do. I think I'm crazy

• We found a dead mouse this weekend :( I know I squealed and wanted to vomit all at the same time. Unfortunately it goes hand in hand with living in stupid Boston. I hate rodents and bugs. I wish they would all just leave me alone. I have wayyy to many mouse stories from my husband's old apartment and wayyy too many roach stories from my old apartment in NYC.
  Dead Mouse...get it?
  
  
• Applying for a new passport (card and book) tomorrow with my new name. The process was surprisingly easy. We booked our two week trip to India and Sri Lanka in December. I'm SO excited to finally be able to share Sri Lanka with someone :)

Goin to the Taj Mahal finally!

Colombo, Sri Lanka

Okay enough random babbling. I think I might do this once a week just to get out all the random things that are floating in my head. Sorry to anyone reading but maybe it'll help me get more organized. Maybe its totally pointless and I should just get a journal instead. Thoughts?

Life Update

City walls....

I've been on a little bit of a design kick lately for our apartment. We've lived here for 2 years and our walls are sadly pretty bare. I just put up some collage pictures frames in our living room or else we would literally only have 1 other thing on our walls (besides 2 mirrors). Our entire apartment was painted this sort of beige, pinkish color and we repainted the living room and bedroom. The second bedroom and the kitchen have yet to be painted though.

I want to paint the kitchen a rich buttery yellow. like this
We have two walls in our kitchen/dining area that desperately need some artwork. I was thinking about doing a wall of art from the different cities that we've lived in or want to live in. So Boston, LA, NYC, Toronto are on my list. This is what I've found so far...

I LOVE this Manhattan print. Its quirky and cute and I think awesome. From Three Potato Four:

I kind of like this print from Art.com

and i LOVE these from ork posters! I'd love the LA one but its 6ft long. I think that might be too big. But the orange is awesome and I love the way the poster is laid out.

The Boston one is cool too with obviously less going on in it...

What do you think? Any suggestions? Is this played out or lame?

City walls....