Holiday Baking

Last weekend I was suddenly hit with the holiday baking bug. I think the dropping temperatures and the near-constant Christmas commercials have triggered some kind of compulsion in me.

I recently attended a Christmas market at the Czech Embassy where I had a delicious Linzer cookie (yeah, that's right - I was at the Czech Embassy; NBD). So I decided to try my hand at making said delicious cookies. I used this recipe from Land O' Lakes, mainly because it was one of the few I could find that didn't require a food processor. Rolling out the dough and assembling the cookies was quite a lengthy process, but overall it was fairly easy. And they came out perfectly, if I don't mind saying so myself. :)

Fall colors

Fall just seems to be flying by! I haven't really had a chance to get out and take pictures of the foliage. However, I was sitting at my desk just now, when I looked out to see the tree by my window bathed in the warm afternoon sunlight. So I snapped a picture:

Horse show

Most of you probably know about my love of horses; it started at a young age and never really abated. My awesome parents paid for me to have riding lessons for a few years when I was an adolescent. I like to think that if I had continued that pursuit, I might be competing on a large stage right now. (I was pretty advanced for my age. Just sayin'.)

Anywho, the Washington International Horse Show is an annual event at the Verizon Center in downtown DC that attracts some of the best riders in the world. I've always wanted to attend, but the somewhat steep admission price kept me away. This year I finally decided to bite the bullet and buy a ticket. It was great being around show jumping again (12-year old me used to daydream about competing in such events).

The bugler got things started (I forget what his official title is).

The first competition was a timed jump course.

The next competition was the Puissance - or high jump - competition. They kept building the wall higher until there was only one horse left standing. (Don't worry, it was totally safe.)

I believe the winning horse jumped over a 6'11" wall. Amazing.

Of Wine and Art

A few weeks ago, I drove down to Richmond to visit my dear friend Kara. The weather for the weekend was less than stellar, but we still managed to enjoy ourselves. On Saturday we drove out to Charlottesville (about an hour from Richmond) and visited a few wineries. Our first stop was Jefferson Vineyards, which is just a stone's throw from Monticello and stands on the same spot where Thomas Jefferson had his vineyard.

The wine was exceptional and the staff were quite knowledgeable. I wound up spending more than I had anticipated on a bottle of wine, but it was worth it. We had planned on going to Trump Winery next, just out of pure curiosity, but we were advised to go to Blenheim Winery instead. I think we made a wise choice. It turns out the all-green tasting room at Blenheim was designed by Charlottesville native Dave Matthews.

Sadly, Dave Matthews was nowhere to be found. It was a lovely property though.

Our last stop on the wine trail was Pippin Hill. Apparently it's rated as one of the top wedding venues in the country. And I could see why; it's just breathtaking. 

After a full day of drinking wine, we hung out in downtown Charlottesville and had dinner before driving back to Richmond. The next day turned out to be rather cold and rainy, but we didn't let that slow us down. We had quite the adventure planned! Richmond is currently embarking on a public arts project in which artists from all over the world create murals around the city. Most of these murals are hidden from plain sight - in alleys and on backs of buildings - so our plan was to go on a scavenger hunt and find as many as we could. It was a mural safari! Here are a few of my favorites:

This one is inspired by the John Smith statue in Jamestown.

It seems we found one in-progress!

It's always a treat going to Richmond and seeing my darling Kara, and this trip was no exception. I hope to be back again soon!

Monday Fun Day: Smithsonian Edition

The announcement was recently made that our furloughs would be ending, which is ultimately good news. However, I will miss my three-day weekends. For my final Monday Fun Day, I paid a visit to the hallowed halls of the Smithsonian. Being in such close proximity to these world-class (and free!) museums is one of my favorite things about living in DC. I love that I can leisurely wander through a museum for an hour or two, and not feel rushed to see everything in one day like a tourist.

I first stopped at the National Museum of Natural History. 

I usually don't spend a lot of time here, because I'm not much of a science person. However, the Natural History museum has two of my favorite things: prehistoric fossils and bling.

For some reason, I don't think I'd ever seen this exhibit before (I guess I'm always distracted by the dinosaurs nearby). I didn't realize they had woolly mammoths and other Ice Age fossils. I have to say, I'm still partial to the La Brea Tar Pits.

I'm never ceased to be amazed by the dinosaurs. So cool.

This is the T. Rex that was featured in Night at the Museum.

And then there's the bling. This is usually the most crowded exhibit in the museum, but so worth it.

Crowds jostle for a view of the Hope Diamond.

The Hope Diamond is cool and all, but I'd rather see some of the other stuff. Like this:

I have connections at the Smithsonian....I wonder if they would let me try these on.

I'm like a magpie. I love anything that sparkles.

Next, I crossed the Mall and headed to the Castle.

Look! Segway tourists!

Inside the Castle, they had a miniature Lego version of the building.

Lastly, I walked next door to the Freer Gallery of Art, which I had never visited before. The Freer specializes in Asian art, and frankly, that's not really my thing. But I had heard about a delightful exhibit called the Peacock Room. This is the actual 19th-century dining room of the museum's founder when he lived in London. It's just lovely.

Well, friends, these furlough field trips have been fun, but I'll be glad to have my regular paycheck back. This certainly isn't the end of my adventures though! Stay tuned for more....