Come to Momma.....

The way to this girl's heart may or may not be a large Papa John's Spinach Alfredo pizza. I'm just saying. ;) Are you taking notes boys? Just kidding.

Love to all,
~the "why can't I have my pizza pie and eat it too?" gal, Jess

This Dish is so Rad!

Rad Nar that is!

Yet another delicious meal from Chopstix. I love this dish, which is a mix of veggies and tofu (or chicken or shrimp if you so desire) with wide rice noodles in a light sour and spicy sauce. Oh my foodgasm. I could eat this everyday. And of course I started the night off with veggie tempura and pineapple sake-but you didn't really need to see that again, did you? Right.

Love to all,
~the "totally rad-cause I eat so much Rad Nar" gal-Jess

Country Mouse Training

So, the last time I brought up workouts here in the boonies I was a bit whinny: I have no paved roads/street lights/the gym is far away-wah-wah-wah.  However, since I wrote that wahmbulance worthy post I've noticed quite a few silver linings in the gray clouds of being a city mouse turned country mouse.

Here are the amazing benefits of training in the country (in no particular order):

• I might play the fool-but I don't look like a fool, because no one is around to see me! So if I want to first pump to my music or run circles in my driveway, well, I damn sure will.
• I can make as much noise as I want/need. I can huff and puff and scream and gasp for air and use explicitness-Oh #$%* and Holy $&!% are my personal favorites these days.  It's probably a good thing no one can hear me, they might think I was having a different type of workout session, if you know what I mean.
• I can strip next to the pool and cool off directly after a run. Nuff said.

I'm fairly certain I can't do any of the above at my gym without being asked to leave, not to mention what would happen to my membership, considering I'm a repeat offender on all of the above.

Speaking of repeat offender, check out my workout schedule last week:

Sunday- 1.87 mile training run (run/walk intervals)
Monday-rest day
Tuesday- AM: 1.99 mile training run (run/walk intervals)
                PM: Vinyasa Yoga Class
Wednesday-1.96 mile training run (run/walk intervals)
Thursday- rest day danced with cheerleaders to finish up Dance Day Routine
Friday-  AM: 2.09 mile training run (run/walk intervals)
              PM: Body Pump
Saturday- 2.42 mile training run (run/walk intervals)
Sunday- Spin Class

Um, seriously-who am I? Do you see all that running? sheesh. And 2 a days? Get out!

Love to all,
~the sweaty little country mouse herself, Jess

A Drink to Make you say "ahhh"

So, it's summertime and watermelon abounds. I love the way watermelon smells and it's really pretty, but I just don't like it. It's more of a textural thing-the way no one likes mealy tomatoes, right? Well, that's what eating watermelon makes me think of unfortunately.

But the Cooking Light recipe for Watermelon Margaritas gave me hope, since I'm not opposed to the taste of watermelon and Lord knows I'm not opposed to the taste of tequila!

Not as pretty as the presentation in the magazine of course, but if you like pink it will work, right? Pretty tasty too, especially if you like tequila and obviously we have already established that regarding my tastes!

Do you like flavored margaritas? I think I'm more of a "classic on the rocks with salt" kinda gal, but this was a fun adventure.

Love to all,
~the summer time sipper gal, Jess

LMF.....

.... which is not to be confused with Love My Life but rather Love My Flooring!

It's Sunday, so how about an Abarnment Update?

The super huge accomplishment this week was installing the flooring! Did anyone figure that out from my hint last weekend?  So, I did get the flooring I wanted from IKEA-which is a "click together" laminate system. It went pretty well, although I'm a little bummed to report that I wasn't strong enough to actually "click" the pieces together-it required more of a "slam with control" tactic so once again I played carpenter's assistant while Dad wielded his strong hands and got the job done.

Pretty right? I love it! And the product is super scratch proof, which is great because I'm a bit of a klutz, and I have a 100lb dog with rather long toenails. Winner-winner chicken dinner on both accounts!

What kind of flooring do you prefer? Obviously I like wood, and while I would prefer hardwood, I'm beyond pleased with the laminate and would recommend it to anyone else who has a "champagne taste on a beer budget" (which is kind of a dumb saying because plenty of my beer choices cost significantly more than my also beloved Andre. What? I'm just saying!)

Love to all,
~the "does it make me vane if I'm in love with my floor?" gal, Jess

Proud Momma Bear....

....err, Tiger.

Check out the great routine my "girls" aka, the Varsity Cheerleading Squad* put together for National Dance Day, July 21st 2010, based on the Choreography by NappyTabs of SYTYCD.

Ok, so we might be a little a lot obsessed with toe-touches, but I am so proud of these girls for putting this together in about 1 and 1/2 rehearsals!

Love to all,
~the ex-cheerleader herself, Jess

*All media releases on file.

Confessions of a Moe's-a-holic

So, I love sharing my cooking messes and successes from all my home "chef-ing" with you guys. However, I also thought I should share one of the meals I eat more often than my own cooking.

So, without further ado, I give you my "fall back that I eat once a week and never get sick of" meal:

That's right- Good ol Moe's! This is a "Naked Moo" with tofu and veggies instead of meat with rice, pinto beans, lettuce, house salsa and corn salsa, guac, fresh jalapenos and cucumber. And no, I don't deviate. Miss Adventurous Eater doesn't deviate at Moe's (except for the occasional Instant Friend quesadilla if I'm super hungry).  Plus chips and the amazing green salsa (I don't know what the store calls it-I call it green!). I can drink that stuff-um, actually maybe I have, but that report hasn't been confirmed.

Also, you know it's a good day, when you open your bag of chips to find the perfect leaning tower of salsa. My bestie Christine and fellow Moe's-a-holic loves her house salsa!

Phew-glad I got that off my chest!

Love to all,
~the Naked Moo girl, Jess

Grilled Veggies-Round Two!

A bunch of asparagus was calling my name from the refrigerator, as chicken sizzled on the grill. I guess ol "gus" must have been lonely, so I prepped up those lovely green spears and gave them some time with the coals too!

Check it:

Washed and trimmed asparagus waiting to be dressed with

EVOO, grated garlic, the zest of a lemon, sea salt, black pepper and paprika.

My first capture of "food porn!" I'm so proud! 

All dressed up and nowhere to go waiting for the grill.

Grill, baby, grill! Disco Inferno! 

Fin! I squeezed the juice of the lemon I zested once these babies came off the heat. 

(PS. Sorry for what is apparently a blurry photo- I was getting hungry, ie impatient!)

With the chicken and a "packet potato"- a sliced baking potato with slices of onion in between wrapped in foil and baked on the grill.

A lovely grilled summer meal! 

(PS. That is Greek Yogurt in the back for dipping my potato in-yummy!)

Love to all,

~the, I could really get used to all these fresh grilled veggies gal, Jess

PS. Even more lovely than my dinner are the fresh flowers Mom picked up this week. I love how fresh flowers brighten up a home and think it's great that most grocery stores carry them now.

Blank Canvas

The painting is finished.....leaving me with a lovely blank canvas, just waiting to be decorated! Hooray!

If you look closely here you can see the "off white" color we chose. 

Exciting I know, but it's actually a "warm white" so I like it.

Not sure why the light is so funky in the kitchen here...probably because I didn't have the ceiling lights on.

If you are saying "um Jess, why are you showing us these boring pictures?" check out the before in this post where we had just finished the drywall. It's a big improvement and after texturizing the ceiling, then priming and painting everything a big accomplishment, too! 

So, what is next in on our project list? I'll give you this hint:

Do you know what that is? Major props to the first correct guess! :D

Love to all,

~the, "you know I don't really mind painting too much" gal, Jess

PS. TWO abarnment posts back to back? Can you see what my July has been dominated by? But I can't wait to be finished, so it's all good! 

Hello, Custom Closet!

So, Rachel was talking about BHN this week. I'm talking BFN (that's "basic female needs") today.

No doubt about it, a custom closet with 105 inches of hanging room (that's over 8 feet people!) is for sure a BFN. Thank you, Daddy Dearest!  I so cannot wait to move my shoes onto those lovely shelves!  Until the project is done, hammers, caulk, sanding blocks and spare light fixtures will occupy those shelves instead. 

Love to all,

~the Carrie Bradshaw in the making girl, Jess

Dog Days of Summer

Happy Friday.

That is all.

Love to all,
~the too hot to write anything more gal, Jess

Mmmmmmmantra.....I needed a mantra!

A running mantra that is!

So, first I stole borrowed two favorites from Caitlin: 

1- "You can do anything for a minute."
         Why? Um, because it's damn true. Thanks.

2- "It's ok to feel uncomfortable."
         Why? Long story short, I was born with heart problems so I had to "take it easy" as a kid all the time and any time I "felt something" I had to stop....which meant I never passed that damn Presidential Fitness Test as a kid in school- couldn't run the mile in less than 16 minutes-go figure! So, now that I'm "fixed" and all (if you are interested in the whole story, email me: mahoney.j8 at gmail dot com) I still had that "oh no, I feel something, I'd better stop" mentality. Now I remind myself, it's ok. Because, it is ok to feel something, and I'm so glad of that!

Then I came up with one of my own!

3- "Stay ahead of the golf cart!"
        Why? Oh, because I'm leg one of the Inaugural Disney Wine & Dine Half Marathon Relay on October 2nd, 2010! and as long as I can maintain a speed of faster than a 16 minute mile for my 4.8 mile portion, then I won't get picked up by the golf cart-hooray! (if you get picked up you are disqualified-boo.)


Oh and good news: Even in my training walk/runs I am managing a 15 minute mile- yay!

Love to all,
~the "did I really sign up for a half marathon relay as my first ever race?" gal, Jess

Uptown Girls....

I know, I know, I'm such a tease.....I told you all about the wonderful time I had in Charlotte NC, and shared some great meals with you and then just like that hussy in high school I left you hanging, with just a glimpse of cleavage suggestion about sharing my Uptown Adventures with you all. Well, let's put the blue blog balls away and get on with it, shall we?

So, on the last full day of my trip to visit Abigail and George, "us girls" rode in to work with George, since he works in the heart of Uptown. While he plugged away, doing amazing computer things I won't even pretend to comprehend Ab and I created our very own walking tour of Uptown....well, we were going to go on a guided tour, but the tour guide was on vacation. Not to be discouraged we grabbed maps and set off on foot. 7 hours later and a couple "wrong turns" we had trekked the whole area, South to North and back again.....oh and we got some good photos too. I'll get on with those and keep the jibba-jabba to a minimum for this post.

Most of these are Abigail's....I noticed we were taking very similar photos, but hers are always better than mine, so you can assume if it's "good" it's hers! (Thanks for letting me share, love!)

The next two are actually mine....I'm really pleased with how they came out, so I have to brag a little.

The Future-one of the Four Titans 

So, I obviously liked "The Garden" a lot! PS. Do you spy Abigail in this collection? :)

"Cascade" is actually moving art...think a giant grown-up's mobile. Loved it, could have sat for hours and watched!

The "Crayola Room" in Wachovia II. While a great spot for jumping photos (and getting strange looks in the process! LML) it actually documents the building of the Wachovia Buildings. I have a thing for industrial photos (and color-duh!), so I LOVED this room! Makes me, ahem, jump for joy!

The rest of these are all from what became my favorite place in Uptown: The Green. The entire area (probably 2 blocks by one 1 block) is between the beautiful St. Peter's Catholic Church and the end of the Wachovia Buildings/Shops. A great literary theme is continued throughout in the details of brick work, brass art and landscaping, all of which are just so beautiful and relaxing. Ab and I spend about 3 hours here total during our day of adventures...some how we just kept wandering back. See why for yourself:

By the end of the day, post art admiring, post street foodie fair crashing (just got freebies: iced coffee, a tiny taste of omgamazing gelatto, and Fage (my fave yogurt!) with peaches) what are girls to do but go back to the best Green Space in the Queen City and photowhore build up Abigail's photography portfolio? Here are my three favorites from a series at the Fish Fountain in St. Peter's courtyard. (for more of the photoshoot that day check out my About Me page)

Love to all,

~the tease city explorer, Jess