Sacrifices

So for the month of March my team at work has decided to give something up to be healthier. While this is no foreign concept for me (Hannah and I gave up drinking for Lent...hello 40 days and 40 nights of complete sobriety) its not really that fun. However, I want to loose that last 5 pounds so that I may fit into all of my clothes again and loosing the weight will have less impact on my body when I run that half marathon in a month that I'm totally not prepared for. What to give up? What can I sacrifice to make myself healthier? Hmmmmm. My team just debated and one member was like that's where religion and I diverge. My response: oh I don't do it for religion, I do it because I like to prove people wrong that I can actually do it. Yup, I'm that stubborn. HAHAHA. Hmmm..what should I give up? Alcohol? Nope, done that before. Caffeine? Nope, done that before too (wow, forgot about that one year I randomly gave up caffeine for Lent...this makes me sound like a practicing Catholic...which I'm not). What have I decided upon?

Sweets.

That right Ladies and Gentlemen (if there are any out there), I'm giving up sweets in general. Now this is life altering because I honestly believe I've eaten junk for all 28 years of my life. My dentist would agree with that statement. Wow, can I do it? Eeekkk. I just don't know. I crave sweets and feel like I need to eat them after every meal and very often in between. YIKES! 31 days of sacrificing? It all starts March 1st. Can I do it? Stay tuned to find out!

You know what that means, right? Means I get to go home and binge eat all the sweets in my house!!! Woooooopie!!!!!!

Founding Farmers

The other day the new sorority exec board had our first meeting at this restaurant called Founding Farmers. You all know how much I love food (like a fat kid loves cake...duh) and I love trying new places!

According to their website:

The Founding Farmers name represents a combination of ideas: it is a celebration of the land and the American family farmer; it is a nod to the founding fathers of our country, many of whom owned and farmed land that surrounds Washington, D.C.; and it is a place where true, sustainably farmed, grown, and harvested American foods are brought to our guests—reminiscent of traditions from across the land.

The rich history of American cooking tradition is celebrated throughout the menus at Founding Farmers, with a philosophy to promote sustainable agriculture and the ways of the American family farmer at every turn. Each season, new choices reflect the best of what’s available from our sources. At Founding Farmers, it isn’t always about “local”, or “organic”–sure, when it makes sense, those are great things; but local doesn’t always means the smallest carbon footprint, and “organic” can also refer to broccoli that comes from China. Our top mantra is quality and natural ingredients, if we find a product we love from a family farmer in California, we buy it…if we find a bio-dynamic vineyard in Chile, we love buying that wine…carbon footprint you ask? We buy carbon offsets to ensure that regardless of the distribution distance, Founding Farmers is walking its talk that the planet matters.

Beyond the building itself, Founding Farmers is a Certified Green Restaurant™ as recognized by the Green Restaurant Association for eco-friendly operations. These measures include front-of-house and back-of-house recycling, high-efficiency water and energy usage, and using recycled paper products whenever possible. For our guests, it means the menus are printed on recycled paper with soy-based inks and that water is served in reusable glass carafes with the option of fresh filtered, still, or sparkling Natura water, using no waste-producing glass or plastic bottles at all.

And Founding Farmers is proud to be an official Carbonfund.org partner, supporting global climate-friendly renewable energy projects and Carbonfund.org’s mission of education, offsets, and outreach. Founding Farmers is 100% carbon neutral by
offsetting our CO2 emissions!

I had the Three Cheese Ravioli: Parmesan-Ricotta-Gouda Ravioli, Dried Figs, Herb Butter Cream Sauce, Balsamic Reduction...and it was AMAZING! So so so good! Man, my mouth is watering now! I'd definitely go back! And I had an amazing Caphrinia drink as well:

Outta My Way

...this was just too funny to pass up!

Happy Friday!!!!!

The Newseum Rocks My World

My dad came up to DC for a day trip this past weekend. As I had a groupon to the Newseum which was about to expire and I couldn't fit a visit in any time else, I asked if he'd be interested. We set off to the city foolishly thinking it was way warmer than it actually was. Duh, hello Amber, its February...dress appropriately! We hopped on the metro into downtown and set out to find the place.

HAHAHA we clearly don't read directions well: I missed the sign for the groupon redemption outside (I thought it said GROUP sales, not GROUPON sales) and of course my dad had a pocket knife on him (seriously?!?!) But the nice people allowed him to "bag check" his knife hahahah. Oh well. And then this really nice guy in line totally gave us a free ticket because he had an extra pass because he was a part of Teach for America. Apparently there was a conference in town for them. Free $22 dollar + tax ticket? Don't mind if I do. Swweeeeeeeeeeet, 2 tickets for 10 dolla! HOLLLA!

Anyways, this place was a BLAST! I'd defintely recommend this museum to anyone in DC. It was very interactive and very visual with a variety of things to see and do. Its way better than the other DC musuems and suprisingly your ticket covers 2 days so you can really see everything.

The building has 45 words of the First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution etched into the building:

Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press, or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the goverment for a redress of grievances.

Front of building, great architechture!

They had front pages of probably 30 newspapers lining the street.

Exhibit on the White House dogs over the years, vote for the one you like best!

Global map of countries that have the ability of free press: Green=Free, Yellow=partially free, Red= not free.

Politcal cartoons drawn by Douglas Nigel Marlette, a Pulitzer Prize-winning American editorial cartoonist

The technology center of the Newseum. I could never work in a room like that with people like me gawking at them.

Interactive screens

A wall full of TVs. Sometimes they all played the same thing while other times they played different things.

The inside of the museum

An original printing press

They had hundres of actual newspaper front pages from about the 1700s on to today. And then every few feet or so they had touch screens that you could browse through front pages. It was cool to see how they've evolved over time.

A HUGE wall full of TVs showing live news around the world

Their current exhibit is of Elvis.

Lisa Marie's dress

More info on him.

This is the flag that was hung on the Pentagon as it was going through construction to repair its damage from 9/11

Front pages of the 9/11 coverage

The radio tower from one of the twin towers

Valentine's Day

An oldie but a goodie:

...AHAHAHAHAHAHAHHA. Sorry, that shouldn't be as funny as it is, but it is!



I'm looking forward to spending my annual V-day date with the lovely Hannah this evening. This will be our second date on this day. The first one we spent together at The Eagle in London complete with the BEST sticky toffee pudding EVER! I mean, who wouldn't want to drink a pint or two at a bar that looks like this:






I rest my case! Tonight Hannah and I are going to be dining at a British Gastropub in Columbia Heights called Commonwealth and reliving the joys of London. I bet their sticky toffee pudding is NO WHERE near as good as the one we had before but we've just got to give it a chance ;) And I think there's a footie match going on as well today!

Food and Friends

The other day a few of my alumnae sisters volunteered at Food and Friends, a local food bank that provides meals to people with life-challening illnesses. I had a really great time and I'm glad I volunteered! The location was super easy to get to since its near Fort Totten which is on the green line and a direct line from work. AND there's even a free shuttle provided by F&F to pick you up from the metro and take you there...now that's what I call service! Not realizing how short of a commute it was I actually got to the metro station at 5....we weren't supposed to start volunteering until 6. For once I wasn't running on Phi Mu time...

According to their website and their super cute/friendly full time volunteer here is a little about the organization:

Food & Friends provides meals, groceries and nutrition counseling to people living with life-challenging illnesses such as HIV/AIDS and cancer. Determination of eligibility is entirely health-based. Food & Friends has no requirements for income or insurance coverage. To be eligible for service, a person must have a qualifying primary illness; compromised nutritional status and a limited ability to prepare his/her own meals due to factors such as disability, illness, or medical treatment. Food & Friends provides meals and groceries to more than 1,450 clients. Since 1988, we have served more than 206,000 individuals. Food & Friends delivers throughout the metropolitan area, as far north as Hagerstown, Maryland, and as far south as Fredericksburg, Virginia, a total delivery area of nearly 5,500 square miles. Nearly 50% of our clients live in the District of Columbia.

And I really liked this comparison that I found on their website:

Minus the hideous hairnets we all had a blast! Half of us packed lunches in brown bags (chicken with cheese, pasta salad, blueberry cobbler, yogurt, bannanas, chips, a croissant, and trail mix...yummy!) and half of us stuffed dinner (chilli, vegetables, soup, and I think some burgers -wrapped in tin foil so I only assumed the circular items were burgers...who knows!).

Sorority Squat

Ok, our knees hurt we had to stand up

VP of Membership

You're lookin at the new DC Phi Mu Alumnae VP of Membership! I'm super excited to be on the exec board of an alumnae chapater again! I'm looking forward to another fantastic year and can't wait to see what it brings. Now its time to make everyone as excited about Phi Mu as I am...its going to be tough but I'm up for the challenge :)

Happy Birthday Smee!!!!!

Who knew that when I first met you 8 years ago on Bid Day with cornrows in your hair and bright magenta colored reebok shoes on your feet that we'd be best of friends? My first thought was "what the hell is she wearing and WHAT did she do to her hair?!?!?!" Flash forward to today and we've been able to do and share so many exciting things over the years such as DC, Paris, England, Italy, Florida, Weddings, our love for Harry Potter, and above all 2 am heart to heart sessions. I wonder where the next 50 years is going to take us?

So here it is to my most favorite Phi Mu and sister...

HAPPY BIRTHDAY SAMI!!

How many weddings do you figure we've gone to together?

En Francais S'il vous plait!


Laughing it off in Rome

First tagged picture of us together on FB. Oh HP. Oh the memories!

Her wedding!

We share our love for all things French, chocolate (be it white or milk), and pink!

Warmer weather plans in Florida.



Colder weather plans in DC

...and 2 am heart to hearts sitting on the edge of bathtubs