I hope everyone had a wonderful holiday season and the new year has gotten off to a lovely start. I can't believe we're almost to the half-way point for January already. The time to discuss resolutions and whatnot has passed. Instead, I wanted to share my three goals for 2014.

1. Have friends and/or family over for dinner at least once a month. This may mean a simple weeknight meal consisting of a robust antipasti plate or it may involve a Saturday night dinner party where I try out a new recipe or two from the cookbook library. Regardless, I want to cook more and share those meals with the ones I love.
2. Take more photos. Keith and I have spent many conversations about finding a hobby. I think one of my hobbies is going to involve my camera and capturing more memories. To help hold me to this, I'm planning to start a series here picking up on what so many other bloggers do called Silent Sundays. I want to share a photo that captures what the week held or maybe that day, but you'll see at least one photo sharing a quiet piece of our life. 
3. Find a new job that bring me fulfillment. Near the middle of December, I learned the department at my current firm is going through a reorganization and as a result will leave me without a position come the start of the second quarter. (Yes, this explains for some of the silence.) After thinking about it for a bit, I want to stay in my current field. And I want to do a measured search that lands me at a new place where the culture and work-life balance is just as good of a fit as the work matching my skills. 
4. Bonus! Live a healthier lifestyle. I'm in marketing folks, so you had to expect a bonus goal. We've talked before about wanting to be healthier. Well, this year Keith is on board as well. We refuse to use the dreaded "D" of diet, but instead plan to eat more whole foods during the week and only on weekends cheat. It also means more exercise. Back in my 20s, hitting the gym and lifting weights every morning worked for me. Now that I'm maturing, I don't find that as rewarding. Expect to hear about my trial runs of various classes, etc. To start, I've signed up for Power Yoga classes at the studio close to home. Hopefully, that will help me find something I love and enjoy while also taking me a little closer to the goal. If not, on to the next option.

I've found that you make Washington, DC home for the promise of the gorgeous spring and the mild fall. Well, that's why I live here. It's definitely not for the oppressive summers with their 100 degree heat and 90 percent humidity.

When you combine the beautiful spring weather and football free Sundays, you really don't have an excuse for staying inside. And throwing in the fact that you can find something free to do every day, it's like you're losing money. Okay, well, maybe I'm stretching it a bit. But you get the idea.

Yesterday, at a friend's recommendation, we made our way down to the National Gallery of Art. The National Gallery of Art includes a good balance of classical works with the modern. Keith's not much of an art guy. Oh the things, one does for love.  I could have spent a few hours just admiring the impressionist work. I also got to see a few paintings from Degas's dancers series. That series is one of my absolute favorites. 

And you may not realize this, but the National Gallery consists of two buildings - an East and West Building. The West Building with its classical architecture houses the classics - Monet, Van Gogh, Picasso, etc. and the East Building with its contemporary designs includes the modern art.  There is an underground walkway that connects the two, which even includes an intriguing light installation. 

They have a photography exhibit that I want to go back for. Now to convince Keith. Do you have a favorite artist or style of art? I always wondered how people would explain they could admire a work for hours. But now after seeing several impressionist's works in person, I get it. Who knew?

Eager to try out my new toy, I convinced Keith we should head over to Union Market. The weather was a gorgeous 63 and perfect for wandering around. What ultimately sealed the deal was the promise of fresh oysters and take it from us Rappahannock Oyster Co. is worth the trip alone.

Don't worry. If you're not a fan of oysters, there are plenty of options to suit your fancy. Keith is already talking about making this a regular Sunday afternoon outing this spring. This might be one of the better ideas he's recently had.

During my first semester of undergrad, I took a photography class. I I mean my mom invested a fair amount in a camera, film, photo paper, etc. I enjoyed the class and took some rather decent photos as the semester progressed. However, I never quite learned how to continue pursuing a hobby while trying to wrap up and become an adult. If I only knew...

Just when I thought we couldn't top last Saturday, I think we did this past weekend.

Since learning Catoctin Creek Distilling Company offered a bottling workshop, Keith and I were convinced this would be something we needed to check out.  Yes, Keith ventured out there two Saturdays in a row. And trust me when I say I don't think he minded at all.

The workshop started with signing labels with any personal message. So if you see any of their Watershed Gin referencing the Mavs or asking if you "Got tonic," then you're quite lucky to have acquired a bottle we labeled.

There were several stations that allowed you to actually bottle, insert the cork, or seal up the bottles before they were handed off for labeling and then packing. I'd estimate that at least half the group simply stayed put with the labeling like Keith and me. The work was followed up by a tasting and pizza as a thank you for helping them bottle about 2,000 bottles of their gin.

Rather than stick around for the pizza, we slipped out and ventured over to Leesburg for lunch. We both love French food and with Saturday being Bastille Day it was a given we were going to properly celebrate. I've learned to let Keith's sense of adventure be our guide because lunch was simple but phenomenal at the little Eiffel Tower Cafe.

Keith enjoyed plump moules and I had an unexpectedly light shrimp salad free of any mayonnaise Deviating a bit from the usual drink selections we shared a bottle of rose' wine and,  of course, had to finish off with desert. Desert was also delicious. I'm still craving that light lemon sponge cake with fresh berries.

It's not often that venture outside of the Beltway, or even the District for that matter, that we had to make the most of the trip. I have wanted to explore the Virginia wineries and Keith was open to the idea. We visited two that were near our closet location. One was a solid winery and one was a bit off to say the least. I'd highly recommend checking out the North Gate Vineyard. I found several of their wines to be quite enjoyable and was disappointed to learn they haven't made their way into the Whole Foods in DC yet. There was something romantic about their vineyard...the haze from the earlier rain, the vines, and just being out with my handsome husband.

The second winery was the Notavia Vineyard. This place just started on a sour note for us. You don't tell us that you knew nothing about wine when you started and that you purchased the land on a whim. That definitely didn't impress us. Secondly, this vineyard's unique selling point is their pairing the wine with music over food. Didn't really work for me. It must have worked on Keith because he purchased the bottle that paired with the Dropkick Murphys. For those not familiar with the band, let me introduce you. 

Don't worry, if you hadn't heard of them before then. We had to find them online while driving away from the vineyard. It was almost decided to head on over to Charleston, WV for the casino, but reason stepped in and we headed back to the District.

Are there any vineyards in Virginia that you recommend? Or maybe there's a distillery near by you would suggest instead? Hopefully, you're weekend was awesome too!

A few months ago I contributed to my first (and likely only) kickstarter project.  The project is a film titled, "Chasing Pappy." I'm really excited about the project for a couple of reasons.