gosh i’m so late, but twenty fifteen has been very good to me thus far! but it’s also been verrrrrrrry busy which is why i’m only just getting to this post and march is almost here. january was a month filled with lots of friends and lots of good food. and how can you go wrong with that combo, right? at the beginning of january, i got to hang out with mike and his girlfriend priscilla [who is awesome and definitely a keeper… i consider her a friend and not just “my brother’s girlfriend,” which is pretty darn cool if you ask me. and they’ve been dating for over a year now!]. then my friends kyle, angela, and travis [the houston folks!] came to visit for a weekend. they’re always such fun, and even though the weather was pretty crappy, we had some fun adventures. and the next two weekends, i got to spend time with my friend noelle [the one who moved to denver a few months ago], as she was here in dallas for a work trip. she stayed with me both weekends so it was all sleepovers and girl talk and she was trying to pack as much time with her texas friends [and as many of her favorite restaurants] as she could, which i definitely benefited from! ;) i loved having her here and was so glad she got to see everyone. here are some photos from the january adventures:
{for christmas, i gave mike some money to go towards a backpack for our europe trip this summer [along with my own one-page version of a guide to finding the perfect backpack… since I’m SO experienced at this. ha! after this trip, we’ll see how useful my guide was!!]. so right after the holidays, we trekked up to REI to find our perfect backpacks. we spent like an hour and a half trying on about 50 different backpacks [with sandbags and pillows stuffed in them to emulate what the weight and fill that we’ll experience on the trip] and talking to a very knowledgeable REI employee to learn about all the hidden pockets, cool features, and tricks with all the different packs. man, we learned a lot. in the end, we were both successful and feeling pretty darn proud of our choices, and naturally we had to get some photos. priscilla snapped a few, so here we are, looking just like excited kindergarteners on the first day of school!}
{…and by kindergarteners, i meant serious, hardcore backpackers who mean straight business. obviously.} ;)
we’re so excited for our trip! it should also be noted that priscilla, mike, and i had the most fun evening together, and we spent all this time trying to get the perfect photo with the self-timer, and then the photo didn’t save and i was so bummed. but i sure do like three-muskateering it with them!
{from lunch at true food kitchen with my co-worker. on the left: the natural [ginger, agave, & citrus]. on the right: teriyaki brown rice bowl with chicken. i love this place!}
{i’ve been into the half-french-braid lately}
{some of my co-worker’s best socks.}
{i love being able to meet my mom and mimi for lunch. especially when it involves scallops and mini desserts from seasons 52!} 
{from when kyle, angela, and travis were in town: seasonal beer flights at ginger man!}
{i love these three dearly. andddddd with the weather being cold and rainy, this is how we spent much of the weekend: with wine, a fire going, talking, and playing heads up!}
{i’m obsessed with bolsa, especially their brunch. it was a hit with the houston crowd too!}
{peach bellinis and irish coffees at social house…}
{…and an avocado margarita from meso maya.}
{one of the best things we did while my houston friends were here was go up and have a drink at the top of reunion tower. it was kyle’s brilliant idea! we didn’t have reservations, but we were able to put our name on the list, get a drink at the hotel bar, and wait for them to call us to go up. it only took about 35-40 minutes or so for them to call us, and it was well worth the wait. we had a great time people-watching and checking out the views as the restaurant rotated – it takes an hour for it to go all the way around. it’s such a fun thing to do with visitors [and locals too]!}
{the glare was bad but i thought these pictures turned out kind of cool.}
{i always joke that i live in the french quarter of dallas because of the style of the exterior of my condo and because bread winners and the quarter bar are so close – they have a very new-orleansy feel to them. and little did i know that cafe express [across the street] has a french quarter french toast that is AMAZING. i kinda like this whole french-quarter vibe going on around here…}
{in my humble opinion, the secret to making a yummy quinoa bowl is to have 1.) lots of goodies, and 2.) a tasty sauce/dressing. i used pesto in this one!}
{and then this lovely one came to visit!}
{on the left: the hot ride and the lower G fizz at the blind butcher. on the right: the gathered [mushroom & toasted cashew quinoa pilaf, caramelized parsnips and lemon & garlic roasted brussels sprouts] + a moscow mule from HG sply co. i’m so happy i finally got to go! and i woke up the next morning dreaming about those brussels sprouts, no lie.}
{the whole crowd}
{just a lazy morning and an OOTD}
{salata in west village with my friend katlyn}
{noelle and me getting our mexican sugar on}
{first off, i love the vibe of this place. second, a pitcher of sangria roja that was half off for ladies night pretty much made our evening. and then TACOS HAPPENED. could it get any better??}
{……….in fact, it could. enter the luscious chocolate avocado cake… ancho spiced chocolate cake, cinnamon meringue, chocolate avocado mousse & ganache. hot damn.}
{that picture on the left makes me laugh… the look on lucky’s face when he has to share *his* nap space [the couch] with us girls! hashtag thirdworlddogproblems}
{another fantastic brunch place – whiskey cake. i love that they have a bloody mary bar!}
{check out my masterpiece, served alongside a from-scratch cheddar & jalapeño drop biscuit and the house sausage gravy}
{and to finish off noelle’s visit, we went to katy trail ice house, common table for dinner and some skittle sangria, andddddddd of course concrete cowboy, since that’s kind of noelle’s place. such fun!}
{not only is he a couch hog, but he’s also a pillow hog!}
{back to the grind of culinary school…}
{early mornings and rainy evenings}
{found the photo on the left on my phone from a trip to deep ellum. it should be categorized under “things i love” because of that store window. and on the right, a flashback to my first facebook profile picture ever! seventeen years old. boy, does the time fly.}
{two photos that feel like total opposites, although both were so tasty! :) on the left, some of the best whole foods sushi i’ve had yet – black rice, avocado, sweet potato, and green onion wrapped in CILANTRO and topped with cilantro sauce. on the right, chili’s fried pickles [that are made fresh back of house]. i admit it – when i get an order of these, i’m first and foremost on a treasure hunt for the slices of fried fresh-sliced garlic. they’re just too good…}
{and some super bowl swag… i received two footballs in the mail by suppliers in one week and it made me laugh. and we had a little pre-super-bowl potluck party at work, and i thought these little football strawberries were SO cute! not pictured: some fantastic scallop & shrimp brochettes [which won first place], some bacon-wrapped cream cheese stuffed jalapeños [which won second place], my lemon bars [which didn’t win anything except big points with our new senior VP of supply chain, because apparently he loves lemon!], and TONS of other amazing dishes. our group sure knows how to cook and how to party! i will miss them!}
and now love day, my birthday, and lots of other big days in february have already passed me by [i promise you’ll get to hear about them at some point!!], and march is quickly approaching! can hardly believe it, and can’t wait to see what the rest of the year has in store! xo