Week(end) recap & First Day on the Job!

Happy Mondayyyyy!!!!!!!

Maybe your Monday has been like this….

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Or, perhaps, like this…

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Based on the amount of caffeine I’ve needed to support my 2.5 hours of sleep and first day of work (hence the 2.5 hours of sleep), my Monday has been like this…

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I will recap how today went a little bit later. But for now I will give a short little recap of our week/weekend.

Last week I had to finish up last minute things on the checklist to get ready for work. On Wednesday night we met our friends (Danielle, I went on the hike with ,and her husband Matt) for sushi.

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We just love hanging out with them. Except they are forever cooler than us because they have Australian accents!

This might be my new favorite sushi place in the area. I love everything about the ambiance, and the sushi was superb!

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DJ ordered their lobster tempura roll and I may have snuck a few extra bites when he wasn’t looking… because YUM!

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I ordered a bit of a unique dish-but  I cannot wait to order it again! It is called the “Feel Free and Fresh Roll”- this is a cucumber wrapped roll with salmon, yellowtail, white fish, crab and avocado topped with creamy ponzu, apply pear, and tobiko. It was the most refreshing roll I have ever had. It is hearty too- with all the good protein from the fish. The whole thing was just a winner, and a new fave. Don’t be surprised if you see this little guy poppin’ up more around these parts 😉

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Thursday I went on a nice long run outside. I snagged this picture without realizing I was stepping in a beehive. WHOOPS! No worries- no stings, but it was a close call. I probably looked hilarious to the cars passing by as I flailed in a million directions while doing a furious pat-down to make sure no little devils were on me!

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I also went to Santana Row while running around getting last minute things for the job. H & M is a winner for business casual! I also finally found a great hair salon that doesn’t cost an arm & a leg… it only costs a hair!!! LOLOLOL. Ok- come on, that was one of my better ones, eh?!

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Thursday night I made another Blue Apron meal for DJ!! I have had SO many people ask me about Blue Apron, so I reached out to them to see if I could get a discount for my readers! If you go to my About page, I have link for $30 off your order! This service is a life saver- especially on busy days, and you will learn tons about cooking and how to use a vast array of different ingredients in the process!

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This night we made Oaxaca Plantain Tortas with sautéed shallots and red peppers. I didn’t know what to expect, and I wasn’t sure how DJ was going to respond to them, but he gobbled them right up! The combination of ingredients in BA always surprise me, but they always work!

After dinner we went on a nice walk together. Something I miss about our Indiana days were the walks we took after dinner when the weather was nice. Life is getting crazy, DJ isn’t returning home until 7:30/8 every night now (but he loves his job!), and soon I’ll be leaving before he even gets home (Get used to working that microwave, baby!). But it makes us appreciate the time we do have together, and reminds us to stop to smell the flowers 😉

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FRIYAY= ST. PATTYS DAY!

Ya’ll know I get wayyyy too worked up about any holiday. Mom L and Gordie sent us these gorgeous flowers as a thank you for the weekend, but also as a Happy St. Pat’s day. Now if that’s not permission to get into the spirit, I don’t know what is!!!

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ALSO, I am convinced that I have a sprinkle of Irish in me because I have freckles. And Mackenzie is a somewhat Irish name, right? It has an “M” and a “C” soooooo…………… I’m basically a leprechaun.

DJ rolled his eyes about 290359 times at me during the night when I said, “Kiss me, I’m Irish!”

He denies that I have even a smidgeon of Irish in my heritage.

I’m coming for ya Ancestry.com

But for real, who doesn’t get a serious case of FOMO if they aren’t Irish on St. Paddy’s?

Anywho. Ain’t gonna let the DNA keep me away from the ST. PADDYS DAY!

I had to make sure that we had our “Irish pub fix”. DJ and I have never “celebrated” this together before, but I didn’t want to miss the chance to take advantage.

Where better to go than Historic Murphy Avenue in Sunnyvale?

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We never knew this area even existed, but it has a street lined with darling lights, fabulous restaurant options, and interesting, eye-grabbing shops. We will certainly be back here to explore more!

In doing my “Yelp” research, I found that The Oxford is great for your St. P’s fix.

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To really get in the spirit, I decided to get an Oxford Mule (their main drink). I liked the ginger a lot, but I’m not gonna lie- I missed my Friday-date-night glass of red wine!

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Still good though, especially if you like Moscow Mules. Then again, this is the only one I’ve ever tried so I have nothing to compare it to.

This place is a fusion of all types- but I would say it’s retro london with a taste of modern industrial architecture (but maybes that’s just English style?).

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For dinner we were placed at their outfacing island. I loved this because we felt like we had the best of both words, half in and half out of the restaurant.

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It was challenging getting good pictures under the dim lighting, but I gave it my best Irish-girl shot. We started with the Monterey Squid with char-grilled squid, arugula, tomatoes, radish, & parsley relish. Every time a menu has octopus or squid as an app I basically have to order it. Why you say? Because the spanish octopus I had at Marco Prime in Marco Island was the greatest thing on the planet, and I will do anything to have that taste linger on my tongue once more. To have Spanish Octopus grace me with it’s presence……. Yes, I am the Shakespeare of food, how kind of you to notice. Anywho, this did not even come close to that level of flavor. On to the next squid..

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DJ ordered their Lamb Sliders. He devoured these little suckers right quick, so I’ll take it he enjoyed them. Orrrr he was trying to avoid conversation with me. We will go with the former.

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Now- I’m super bummin’ that I didn’t get a great picture of this dish because it was AH-MAY-ZING. Allow me to present chermoula eggplant with roasted eggplant, saffron rice, spiced yogurt, and cherry tomato crush. I don’t know what they put in that yogurt sauce- but good heavens, there are no words. DJ even said he couldn’t believe how good it was. I downloaded a saffron yogurt recipe and plan on trying to re-invent this in the future.

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DJ and I walked around Historic Murphy path after swearing we would be coming back in the near future. It was hopping since it is stacked with pub after pub after pub.
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Saturday, I got a nice long training run in on the treadmill while reading HP (currently on the third book, and I use it as motivation to get everything done during the day so I can read #HPaddict), did the household chores, and waited for DJ to get home from work.

At this point in the weekend I was feeling ancy mcnancy (Not making another Irish joke- I’m done, I promise, maybe). I was ridden with anxiety knowing I was starting up work on Monday. I wasn’t running to God’s truth and scripture much during the week, and naturally the anxiety was consuming me.

But I’m telling ya, God truly will renew our soul and relieve our anxiety, we just have to come to Him (1 Peter 5:7). I flipped open to John 14, the next chapter I was going to read going through the book of John, and literally the first verse said, “Do not let your hearts be troubled.”

And then a few verses later in vs. 26, “But the Advocate, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you all things and will remind you of everything I have said to you. Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid.”

He doesn’t give us a peace like the world gives- a peace that’s fleeting, a peace that is contingent upon circumstances, a peace that is dependent upon our emotions. The peace Christ has for us is lasting and sure. It is a peace that we can use as weapon when life isn’t comfortable (and it’s not a lot of the time). We can find joy through this peace in His name, despite anything that comes our way. My anxiety lessened when He worked on my heart and my perspective. His still, beautifully familiar voice (I haven’t made time for in my chaos) spoke to me and stopped the world from spinning off it’s axis-“I’ve got you” He said. He reminded me of His love and His promises which gave my heart utter, perfect, heavenly peace.

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DJ and I went on a walk when he came home. We went to Main Street Cupertino and then idly strolled other side streets. I savored each step, because I don’t know how this next chapter will look for us moving forward.

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DJ and I had a late snacky-type dinner of cheese and crackers (We have ate SOOO many cheese and crackers this week, it’s comical)…..but we still had a bit of room for more food around 8 pm. We decided to go to Rootstock, a place we had been wanting to go together for a while.

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They have an awesome bruschetta menu. We split the bruschetta (smoked salmon FTW), and I finally had my glass of red wine that I was sad I veered away from the day before.

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Sunday we went to church and then I finished up last minute errands. I made sure all my documents were good to go, and I even got a big girl purse to store everything from Target!

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For dinner we had salmon, edamame, and saffron rice leftover from The Oxford (There was tons).

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And today was the first day on the job!!!! I am wearing my Ann Taylor thrifted shirt that I bought a couple months ago if it looks familiar 😉

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GUYS- I LOVE THIS JOB! I love love love love love love love it. I am fatigued beyond words, but I love my colleagues (instant friends right there), I love my hospital, I love their mission, I love that I am only a couple weeks away from meeting my first patients as a real RN, and I am absolutely elated. The first day could not have gone better. Even on ZERO sleep, it was perfect.

I woke up (or more correctly, rolled out of bed) at 5:00 am- chugged a cup of coffee, a protein bar, & left the house by 6. The whole day the environment radiated non-pompous professionalism, compassion, joy, and genuine care for us as residents and for the patients of the hospital. Although it was mostly just logistical stuff, I truly think I gathered a great feel for the atmosphere, the expectations, and the type of program I am in. Lemme tell ya, I can’t wait to go back tomorrow. My fears have certainly been mitigated, and all I feel in this exhausted moment is blessed. I can’t wait to get on my floor so soon!

The rest of this week is orientation- same old, getting up at 5 getting home at 7 ish and then next week I have a similar schedule until I start 12 hour day shifts the first week of April. After that I transition into nights. I am actually excited about nights because I can’t sleep when I know I have to wake up early- I get all nutty about missing my alarm and stay awake like a raccoon. So rather than not sleeping nights & days, I just won’t be sleeping nights! As though this time difference isn’t enough already for my East coast folks, now I’m gonna go all nocturnal on ya’ll.

How is everyone doing?! Anyone out there legitimately Irish? Ya’ lucky ducks

Blog Birthdays!

Lathi at CookwithSmile on Thursday March 23rd

Myra at The Cooking Spoon on Monday March 26th

Happy Birthday to both of you! I am thankful for you both as blog friends and hope your birthday is absolutely perfect. You deserve to be spoiled and know that you are SO loved!

xo <3

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Concerts, crazy food, and clichés

While recapping past trips is a time of joyous reflection, recaps from the present are way easier! I recapped the beginning of this past weekend in my Santa Cruz post. The rest of this weekend carried on with the same energy and zeal as the first half. Sunday night we geared up for the Sean Mendes concert. This is one of the girls’ favorite artists, and it worked out great that we were with them this weekend to take them to the show. With the show being at 7:30 in San Jose, we decided to try to find somewhere to eat dinner in that area. DJ put me on find-a-restaurant duty. I had way too much fun scouring Zomato and TV food maps for a one-of-a-kind place. Most people know of Zomato which provides ratings, easy filters to choose what types of food you are in the mood for, and menu options, while TV food maps tends to be less well known. This handy little app has all the restaurants that have been on TV shows like Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives, Unique Eats, Cupcake wars, etc. It also has a road trip option that we constantly checked when we did our road trip cross country. No surprise, but the number of featured eateries in the Bay area are endless. In San Jose, I narrowed in on one pretty quickly. This little mexican restaurant named Mezcal is known for it’s Oaxacan regional cuisine.

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They were featured on Bizarre Foods America- for what you ask? Well this post would be no fun without a little suspense! I made sure there were normal things on the menu that the girls would like too and booked us a table for 5:30. I told the girls that we were going to hide what the “Surprise dish” entailed until it was placed on the table. They were dying to know. They swore they were going to try it no-matter-what. When the waitress came up to greet us she asked if we had been there before. I stupidly said, “No, but we found you on TV Food Maps!”. She responded, “Oh for our _____” and said the item. DJ and I both said the booming, slow motion, “Noooooo!”. And the girls shrieked in realization of what this surprise item consisted of. We ordered and waited patiently for this dish to arrive. In the meantime, one girl knocked over her water and the other lost a tooth. I am beginning to get a glimpse into motherhood (a VERY EASY taste) by seeing the true inability to predict the next moment in time. All our food came at once including a salmon with roasted veggies for the girls to split, scallop ceviche and tacos pastor for DJ, and a prawn salad with avocado and mango for myself.

 

Now the moment of truth…

These delicacies are called chapulines. They are actually grasshoppers and not too bad! I don’t know if I would order them again but we had to at least try them! Also I am not sure where insects fall in the pesca diet?! The girls were not too keen on participating in the taste test 😜.

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This was the spiciest, and best, salsa I have ever had

After making sure the tooth was safe and sound in a paper towel resting in the depths of my purse, and laughing about the hilarity of eating grasshoppers for dinner, we headed to the concert! It was in San Jose’s event center just a quick walk from where we were. Talk about estrogen overload. Not only did the massive number of preteen and teenage girls flash me back to the awkwardness of middle school, but my ear drums took a beating. The concert opener was James TW from London. I was astounded by his talent. Then SM took the stage and the crowd went wild. While DJ sat and tried his best to remain obscured, I had a ball getting into the music with the girls. They seemed to have an absolute blast and that was all that mattered.

We got home super late and hit the hay. The next day was pretty chill. We slept in, I had a beautiful run in the balmy sun, and then we all had fruits and veggies with hummus for lunch.

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For dinner we took the girls to The Counter. I mentioned this scruptious little chain in my New York post if you want to skim the full review. I love it because it has something for absolutely everyone; from the vegan to the carnivore. I ordered their vegan burger with smoked gouda and all the fixins. The girls had basic burgers with ketchup and mustard and DJ ordered the 1/3 lb. burger with a fried egg. Everyone loved their meals and we even had some milkshakes to boot. The girls loved that they could create their own milkshakes and burgers. The milkshakes were runnier than normal which was a bit disappointing as we all love dipping our fries in them, but I think the restaurant was having an off-day. It seemed that things kept going wrong for the staff (like trays dropping, ornery customers, and the general vibe). I know from working in the industry that it’s best to just give them the benefit of the doubt. We also ordered some regular and sweet potato fries. I am convinced that these are the best potato fries I have ever had. IMG_7507

After dinner we had a slumber party at our new place. The girls made themselves right at home in “their room”, which made me very happy. We decided to watch a movie and finally settled on a Walk to Remember. I popped some popcorn and excitedly awaited the start of one of my favorite childhood classics. As it played, I slowly began to watch the film from a whole new perspective. I did not realize how dated that movie had become! I did not realize the complete cheesy, sappy, cliché plot this entire movie was built upon! They were sweet about it though and I think generally enjoyed it.

Now, if you know me you know what Monday means….. BACHELORETTE. Oh I hate to admit it, but yes, I am one of those. So to all my friends out there- no spoilers! My in-laws fly back to San-Fran later today, so we will be watching it Wednesday!

Wishing you many opportunities to try Chapulines,

xo <3

Mack