Friday Five: Easter Edition

1: What We're Doing

 After Church we have family coming over to our house for brunch. I have very little desire to go all out this year, so we're sticking with an easy buffet and focusing on spending time with family. And eating bagels. And drinking mimosa's.


2: What We're Eating
Brunch is such an easy meal to prepare, so we're going to have the basics: Bagels and lox, fruit salad, sausage and bacon....and then our two main dishes will be this overnight French Toast cassrole and crustless Egg Bake.

3. What I'm Wearing

I'm so ready to break out the white jeans!! I bought a perfect Easter blouse months back and haven't worn it yet, so I'm hoping I still like it come Sunday.


4. What  We're Getting

 In lieu of more chocolate around these parts, we decided to spend our Easter money and go to our first (of the season) Clippers game, which happens to be their last (at home) of the season. 

5.  What I always think about

Three years ago, the day before Easter, we brought home Roscoe. We didn't have a clue what we were doing and when we picked up, our next stop was at Petco because we didn't have anything at home ready for him. He is such a joy and member of our family and Joel and I are just obsessed with him. 

 

Have the most wonderful Easter! 

Spring Goals

February and March aren't my favorite months of the year. It's this sort of in-between time with not much going on, so I'm extra excited with the freshness of Spring and the lead in to summer. 

 We've been in the same routine for the last two months, and I think a solid list of fun to-do's is exactly what I need to bring in a little fun around these parts.

I'm giving myself until June 1st to knock all of these out, so hold me to it!

::: Book a summer getaway
 
Because of our schedules, it looks like the only time to get away this year is going to be August. We had originally thought about going to London for Wimbledon, but that is going to have to hold off until next year so we want to pick a place in the U.S. neither of us have been to. Right now I'm leaning towards Jackson Hole, because ideally I'd like to make it a not cross country trip. Austin was a contender, but I think August in Texas might be just too hot. Any other places you think we should stick on our list? Maybe Aspen? 


::: Purge and Reorganize

 

I'm embarrassed to even walk into my closets right now. They are pitiful. They are not organized correctly and I have a lot of junk hanging on hangers that I never wear. I need to take everything out and start from scratch but it's a big project an dI find ways to get out of it every time I start. I keep telling myself "one of these weekends" but I really need to break up the job into sections and make some headway on it soon. 


::: Add some summer classics
 
Well, I'll be making room soooooo.....I need new! I need light, summer-y clothes: white jeans, linen/cotton shirts, light cardigans, cotton dresses, pair of black sandals...

::: Update our bathrooms

Our bathrooms haven't been touched since we moved in 3.5 years ago and they're in need of some "elevation". A few minor updates will make a big impact, so I just need to get Joel on board and make some decisions of the route we want to go. 

::: Keep up with Church

We've been doing a really good job about getting to church every weekend. Lent has been a fun time to get back to our schedule but I want to make sure we stay at going to church every weekend we are in town. 

::: Try 1 new class at the gym

 No explanation needed. 

:::  Read at least 2 new books
I haven't been in the mood to read lately which is so unlike me, so I now I need to put it on the list to get back into the routine. I annoy myself going into my room to sit on instagram for an hour. Such a waste of time.

Can you believe it's April 1st!? I'm totally bringing out the white jeans on Easter!

Weekend Report

Friday afternoon Joel's parents and brother drove up from San Diego. The weather all weekend was so summery which was a nice treat for them since March in Chicago is still pretty bleh. We grilled out Friday night, hung outside with the new bench, and watched football (losing my mind) basketball.

Saturday, Joel's brother Andrew left pretty early to get back home, but the four of us decided to go out for a hike.

The hike was hot and steep but Joel's parents did a great job. We rewarded ourselves with brunch at Coral Tree Cafe and then laid low for most of the afternoon. For dinner, we continued our burger tour with burgers and beer at Plan Check.

The burger itself was top three I've had in LA (1. Father's Office, 2 & 3 tied Umami/Plan Check). I wasn't a big fan of the fries, but they had amazing appetizers (crab dip was on points) and the best freaking dessert (doughnuts with bananas, whipped cream and ice cream), and a great beer and wine list.

We recorded the Kentucky game and stayed fiercely away from all TVs and social media throughout dinner. It was a freaking nail biter but I'm so glad Kentucky is still in. I'm really, really rooting for them to take it all the way. 

Sunday we went to church for Palm Sunday and before we knew it, it was time for them to head back home. Joel and I needed some time without the TV, so we hung on the patio for most of Sunday evening, played scattgories and listened to music to cap off the weekend.

Here's to a great new week! 

Five on Friday

::: ONE :::
 
So I started Unbreakable: Kimmy Schmidt and I can't stand it. I also can't stop watching it. It's pretty dumb....it's really dumb...but Ellie Kemper is adorable and for whatever reason I keep finding myself binge watching the damn thing.

::: TWO :::
 
And speaking of little touches....I found the perfect pillows for my trash to treasure bench that I found last week. Of course, the free bench ends up costing me a pretty penny, but I think it's just darling and adds another area for us to enjoy outside.  

::: THREE :::

 

It's been so hot here in LA this week which means I keep ruining my dinner appetite with happy hour at Yogurtland, but hot damn I gotta cut this dessert binge I've been on.

::: FOUR :::

 Are you an Easter decorator? I want to be but I haven't found anything that I love, love. I just decided to host a little Easter brunch for my family that will be in town next weekend, so I want to add a few touches to make the house a little festive without going overboard.


::: FIVE :::

 This weekend my in-laws are in town which will keep us plenty busy. Tonight we're grilling kabobs and brats and then tomorrow after a hike and lunch, we're hitting up Plan Check for burgers (we're on a roll lately). I'm sure there will be lots of basketball watching, a few errands, and mainly just soaking up time with Joel's parents while they're in town.

Random Life Updates

:::On our way home from San Diego on Sunday one of our neighbors had this outdoor bench sitting outside for someone else to come and grab. It's the perfect size for our narrow balcony, and even though we don't technically need it....I think it will be a really nice little area once I get a few new pillows to spruce it up. 

:::I've had a bunch of administrative stuff come up at home lately - and dang is that annoying. Along with filing our taxes, I have to get my car registered in California which requires a few tests and a DMV appointment, I was called to Jury Duty in April, and we have to book a bunch of travel arrangements for summer trips. Thank goodness Joel has a built in house manager ;) 

:::The list of house updates I want to make keeps getting longer and longer. Since I know we are going to be in our apartment for at least another year, there are few updates I want to make. I'm loving these shelves that Sarah Tucker found from CB2. They're $55/shelf and I think they would like great in both of our bathrooms. 

:::I've been a little lazy in making dinners during the week and I really need to get back on a better schedule. I made a valiant effort last night, but after I realized I forgot the main ingredient for the dish I was making, bagels and eggs had to work for dinner. 

::: Excuse my post-gym look but I'm wondering if I should bite the bullet on this target hat. I've been looking for a wide brim white hat for the summer and I just couldn't tell if I liked this or not (it could have been in part due to my sweaty hair)....but the more I look at the picture, the more I like it. I've tried the J.crew one on like 10 times but it just doesn't seem wide enough.

That about catches you up. I can't believe it's already Wednesday - have a great rest of the week.

Weakend Report

Typo intended. I've fallen out of the habit of taking lots of pictures on the weekends and my Monday weekend reports are taking the hit! I'm going to seriously try and change that this week and get back to better posting habits.

So, this weekend while in real life was so, so fun....in blog life looks pretty dang lame.

Friday night we met up with a friend and had dinner at Pono Burger in Santa Monica which is never a bad way to end the work week.

Then, early Saturday morning we drove to San Diego to visit with Joel's family. His parents are spending the first part of their spring break down there and then on Friday will make their way up to us in LA.

We spent most of Saturday at Balboa Park which was beautiful, met up with more family (Hi Uncle Mark!) and just enjoyed the day outside. When we got home we watched basketball, made fish tacos, and had a pretty adorable bath time.

I took one picture of all that fun, but thankfully it was a good one. 

We hit the road early on Sunday to try and spend as much time with my girl Mallory as possible. She was in town visiting her sister, and cut out half of her day to spend with Laura and I.

The three of us, and Joel, had such a fun afternoon drinking wine and catching up on life events. I can't believe that I met both of these girls from this blog.....random blind friend dates that have turned into lifelong friendships.

I had to bail on dinner because my voice was about a 0 by the time they left, but I'm hoping that another day of pounding tea and honey I'll be back to normal.  And I'm going to work on the picture thing!

Chicago Recap

Right when I landed in Chicago, my mom picked me up and we met my Dad and sister Hannah for dinner. I'm really bummed that we didn't get a picture, but we had a fun, fun night and I was so glad that I was able to get into town with a little extra time before I had to work. 

Every week my mom and Uncle Jimmy take my Grandma (Kuka) out for breakfast. Whoever is in town or free joins in, and this week my cousin Liz and her kids Jack and Ella were able to join too.  

Ella had turned one the day before so I was able to get to celebrate with her since I won't make it back for her big birthday bash. 

 

The weather in Chicago was perfect the whole time I was there. Everyone was so happy to see the first signs of Spring, and I loved the crisp 50/60 degree temps so my mom and I tried to sneak in walks whenever we could.  

 

Believe it or not, that's the only snow I've seen all year (sorry). 

We ordered deep dish pizza (obviously) and hung out with my Uncle Charlie and cousins and then I had to leave early Thursday morning to work on a conference in the city through Saturday.

Thankfully the conference ended by 4 each day so I was able to sneak in time to see my friends. Thursday night I finally made it to Eataly and it is just as cool as you would expect.

Literally it's a playground for adults that like to eat and drink, so we were in heaven. Amanda, Sara, and I continued our carb fest at Quartino's which is one of my all time favorites in the city and it's had been a long time since I had been back so the girls happily obliged to take me there.

Friday was another full day of conferences but it was downtown so I was able to sneak breaks and enjoy a few walks in the city which was really nice.

Friday night, after happy hour at Amanda's, Jenna and Hannah joined us for dinner at The Boarding House.

I had not been before, and it was amazing. Everything we had was spot on, service was amazing, and when we couldn't decide what our final 3rd dessert choice would be, the waiter brought out both of what we were deciding between.

 

 We stayed at the table for almost four hours, and while we were there Hannah's boyfriend stopped over to say hi. He was hosting a big St. Patty's day party the next day and was on his way home from the bank when he stopped over.

When we left, we got into the cab and got a call from the restaurant that an envelope with A LOT of cash had been found under our table. All of the girls in the cab had no claim to it, and then it dawned on us that it must have been Michael's.

He had collected everyone's bus money for the next day and the envelope had fallen out of his sweater pocket. Michael came right back to pick it up, but I was overwhelmed with the honesty and kindness of the restaurant, I just had to share the story. They wouldn't even accept a tip for doing the right thing. 

I will always be a fan, and if you find yourself in Chicago, I highly recommend you give this restaurant a shot. Top notch food, ambiance and clearly...people. 

On Saturday after the conference I took the longest train ever back to the suburbs with about 3 million drunk St. Patty-celebrating fools. I'm pretty sure 3 people were arrested just on our train ride, so by the time we got home (which took an extra friggen hour), I had a pounding headache. My dad made steaks and we watched a movie which was just what the doctor ordered. 

Sunday the three of us walked up to breakfast which was a perfect way to start the day.

 

My mom and I did some shopping, but I came out empty handed and when we got home, I took a long nap before my dad made a perfect St. Patrick's day dinner. 

 

Monday morning came too quick, like it always does, and I was back in LA before I knew it. 

A work trip that brings me home is the absolute best kind....so now it's back to reality (and the gym) before Joel's family arrives in California for their spring break on Saturday!

Peace Out

 

Off to Chicago!!!
I'm going to try and be better about gramming, so if we're not friends, find me on insta @teatimewithtess

See you next week 

xx