The Age of Aquarius

Today is Mark's birthday.  I talk a lot about the food Mark and I make (and eat), the places we go, and the things we do.  But that probably doesn't give you a full picture of who this guy, the other half of The Daily Batch, is.

It is hard to capture him in words, but I will try: 

He is purposeful, he is an adventurer, he believes in this Universe, and more importantly he believes in himself.  He strives to challenge himself, and doesn't shy away from challenging other people.  He is proud but doesn't take himself too seriously.  He is in a constant state of forward motion and forward thinking, new learning, and understanding.  He is loving, and kind.  He is a traveler. He is 30,000 feet off the ground, and yet he is always grounded.  He is compassionate and graceful.  He has swagger, and electricity.  He is a Cowboy. He is an Aquarius.  He is the kind of person you'd choose to get stuck in an elevator, on top of a mountain, or in a foreign land with.  He is my best friend.

Happy Birthday, Mark, I can't wait to see how great you make this year.  I love you.

She's a Daddy's Girl

That's me.  To be fair, I am also a mama's girl - but that is sort of the beauty of having two really amazing parents.   Today's is my dad's birthday - and I generally like to think of myself as his best birthday present 26 years ago.

Along the way my dad has given me more than a few gifts.  

My dad is the reason I make faces, test out accents and enjoy the spotlight.  My dad is the middle child, and he adores his big brother and little brother - giving my sister and I a model for real sibling love.  He admires his parents, so, and I think gets many of his dance moves from them.  He loves my mom, her dog, and their kids and never hesitates to tell them so (maybe not the dog as much).  He is the best boss, and truly the benchmark to which I have held every employer to.  He lives his life with integrity, honesty and compassion - those are priceless values.  He is the reason I can make a jump shot, know how to properly make an "awesome bite" and quote movie lines.  He has a drink, and it's always with a twist of lemon.  My dad has good taste, when I was growing up he was often called upon to give a second opinion on an outfit as I walked out for the day.  My dad can tell a story, give a speech, and dance with the best of them.  He is sensitive, he cries (it's not just my mom that I get that from).  He loved our wedding.  He is "old fashioned" because he believes in hard work, getting the job done and doing the right thing.   He is a strummer, a singer, a golden-rule player.  He is also my friend.

He is the reason that my sister and I can stand on our own, believe in ourselves, live our lives with integrity.   

Dad, happy birthday, I love you.

Happy Birthday to Me, Almost

Twenty-three is old. It's almost 25, which is like almost mid-20s.

Jessica Simpson, American Singer (1980 - )

Thanks Jess...

In a week I will be 26.  I have always put pressure on 26, because it's my birthday that will match my birth date (26 on the 26th).  It is completely arbitrary and I am not quite sure where I came up with it, but never the less, I feel pretty good about turning 26.  This has been quite the busy year.

In polling the Internet I came across many lists of "What to Do Before You're 25/30", and while there were some items on that list that will probably never happen there are a lot that have.

At 25 I, celebrated love and marriage with all of the women in my life, spent a weekend of slumber parties with my best girlfriends, ate late night pancakes at the IHOP - which sounds like as much of a bad idea as it was, planned the best party of my life, paid for said party, danced with my dad, danced a choreographed dance with my husband, gotten a massage and facial, been pampered with my mom and sister, gone to Mexico, scuba dived, ate real tacos in Mexico, tried tequila straight, bought a TV - finding the right TV is surprisingly hard, gone to the movies, got snowed in, played in the blizzard,  planned a trip, had a Passover Seder, went to Yellowstone National Park, climbed serious mountains, ate buffalo meat, saw a bison - this close, bought a house, packed up our entire condo, moved, cried, made a home back in DC, celebrated the 4th of July from the top of the town, went to India, got sick in India, rode an elephant, tested my strength, mentally and emotionally, started a blog...

25 has been a great year, and I know that 26 will only be that much better, with even more to celebrate and that much more to be thankful for.

Counting down...

Happy Birthday, DC Ladies!

Once a month I share a recipe and a blogpost with the DC Ladies.  Shortly after I created this blog, I found the DC Ladies via Twitter (@DCLadies) and am so happy to be apart of this terrific community of women who share their expertise on every topic under the sun!

This year will bring:

1. The DC Ladies Book Club, this will be headed up by Lindsay one of the Young DC Ladies. Each month we will pick a book and then at the end of the month have a “review” amongst our DC Ladies.

2. The DC Ladies Tweet Ups! Four times a year we will be getting together to meet face to face and network.

3. The DC Ladies Teams; we have had many ladies who have shared their wonderful stories with us about walks and runs they have done so we are going to be forming a “team” to support wonderful causes near and dear to The DC Ladies hearts.

4. Our Virtual Magazine-this is our big one! We are so excited about becoming a full fledged online magazine.

Happy Birthday Ladies!  Cheers to your continued success and growth!