Remember how I was whining last week about the unseasonably warm weather? Well, I can now say that it is officially fall here in the District! The temperature dropped dramatically on Saturday, and it has been all heavy sweater and warm soup weather ever since :)
After the tough week that last week turned out to be, all I wanted to do this week was relax, which is exactly what I did. On Friday night, keeping with the Mediterranean food kick that I was apparently on last week, Dan and I went to
Agora on 17th St. I really, REALLY love that place, and we liked it enough the first time that it made us want to go back! There is just something about Mediterranean cuisine, the flavors, the freshness, and how freaking satisfying it is!
After dinner, we went home and watched Goldfinger. Being that I am trying to broaden my movie taste (to Dan's shock and sheer delight, I love the Bourne movies, so we decided to tackle James Bond next), I was trying to keep an open mind going into it. Well, this one got a big thumbs-down from both of us haha, and my falling asleep during it was definitely proof enough that this was not a good movie. I wanted to like it, I really did, because who can say no to watching a Sean Connery movie?! I think we might have to try one of the newer, more action-packed options next (Pierce Brosnan or Daniel Craig).
On Saturday, we finally, wait for it......WENT APPLE PICKING!!! At dinner on Friday, Dan said, "I have a proposition for you: If we go to a farm tomorrow, can we go to the driving range for a bit?" Ermahgerd, NO-BRAINER! "I accept your proposition," I answered. So we went to a farm! We chose
Larriland Farm out in Howard County, MD, because it had the widest variety of apples. I was like a little New England kid in a candy store, if you can picture that! This was definitely not a small mom-and-pop farm, it had some serious bells and whistles, and there were a ton of people there. We picked two bags worth of Staymen, Sun Crisp and Mutsu apples (strange names, I know), some of which were used for a pie that I baked yesterday, and others for just eating. We also got a pint of apple cider (Dan was thoroughly confused when, later, at home, I insisted on microwaving my cider. Clearly, the guy didn't grow up in New England, where you take your cider warm and with a cinnamon stick). Seriously, people, think about all of my childish glee! I had to restrain myself from going in the hay maze (which was actually meant for toddlers; my height alone would have given me an entirely unfair advantage), but I picked apples to my heart's content.
The beautiful produce available at the farm!
Officially my new favorite picture of us :)
Afterward, as promised, we went to the driving range. I had never watched Dan hit before, so it was really fun for me to see him hit a bucket of balls. He was also less sore after this time hitting, so I think that means that we're moving in the right direction in terms of rhabdo-recovery!! I had been to the driving range once with my dad and Tim, but, so demoralized by my inability to make contact with the ball, I had resolved never to return to the driving range. But, in the spirit of wanting to try new things and be good at everything, I couldn't resist trying it out. I am happy to report that I did not whiff or completely shank the ball! Granted, the ball did not go very high or very far (and I injured my arm in the process, obviously), but I made contact! Maybe I will be paying the range a return visit sometime soon :)
Favorite golfer!
On Saturday night, we bought some movies at Best Buy, got takeout from Mellow Mushroom (Dan LOVED the BBQ chicken pizza, which I had told him he would) and watched O Brother, Where Art Thou?. We are making the most of this rhabdo-recovery period, and Saturday was one of the funnest days we've had in a while, in my opinion! On Sunday morning, I grabbed brunch at Policy with one of my closest friends, and, true to form, just talking throughout brunch wasn't enough. She is one of those amazing people who you can talk to for hours, and it seems as though we have a lot of the same things going on now, so there was much to discuss. We plopped ourselves down in a creperie for another few hours, armed with hot chocolate and tea, and gabbed away. From there, I walked to the National Portrait Gallery, where I hadn't been in a while, and perused the new exhibits. I should mention that, by this point, it was in the mid-40s and damply cold, so a museum outing was definitely appropriate. On my way to Dan's, I couldn't resist picking up some festive cupcakes from Crumbs (I should never be allowed into a bakery close to dinner time haha). We watched some football and baseball and had an overall relaxing night. Sadly for him, he had to work from home on Monday, but I had the next day off, so I was allowed to move a bit more slowly on Monday morning :)
Tell me those are not the cutest cupcakes you've ever seen!
I had planned to go to Pentagon City with a friend yesterday, but, since she was feeling under the weather, I took advantage of the extra day to organize my room, do laundry, catch up on projects I had been meaning to take care of, and COOK! As I already mentioned, I made a pie out of the apples we bought on Saturday, and made some vegetarian chili (part of which I had last night, and the rest of which Dan and I will be eating tonight. Sorry to give away our menu haha). Since it was so chilly, all I wanted was some nice, hearty vegetarian chili, and
this recipe is my absolute favorite! By the end of yesterday, I was feeling good, positive, and ready to tackle this week! I have lots of fun things going on, so this is going to be a good week! I'm calling it now!
I hope you all had a lovely weekend (hopefully you got to spend it enjoying this lovely fall weather!)!
