mother's day

so thankful for this incredible woman. love you, mama!

oh, how i love may. it is officially my birthday month --the big 23. woohoo! this month is also the month of medical school applications, round 1. i am trying very hard not to stress about the applications 24/7, but it's pretty difficult. we are also going to the beach with michael's family this month and it can't come fast enough. 

i've decided to start setting a few goals every in hopes it makes completing them easier (: 

• finish michael pollan's in defense of food and the omnivore's dilemma. i'm almost done with the later but it's not the best bedtime book. 
• sort through our warm and cold weather clothes
• start a list of things we are going to leave behind during our move
• train rosemary to not eat the table. this will probably be the most challenging...
• actually wash the clothes when they reach the top of the hamper, not when we run out of clean clothes to wear
• keep up pilates  
• don't get burned at the beach..
• take more bike rides
• make more lunches
• stop driving myself crazy looking at apartments that won't be around when we need one

do you have any goals for may? 

north carolina springtime

my, oh my! how the time is flying! i cannot believe that it is april already! we have been running in a million directions these past couple months. my brother, parents and our cousin, rachel, all came to visit, keeping our weekends full of sweet reunions. i have been spending my work days running around with to two little ones i am nannying. it is an absolute joy getting to explore all the amazing places that this area has to offer! the flowers have been breathtaking! the picture above is from one of our recent picnics at duke gardens. 

between starting two new jobs, a volunteer research position and preparing for med school applications, michael has been running around like crazy. i will be so excited for the applications to be submitted and for us to have a short break from the craziness before interviews start. we are figuring out how to navigate these crazy schedules, though, which give me peace because i know this is only the beginning!

we have had a major change of plans this month. although we had originally planned on staying in north carolina for at least two years, we found out that i was accepted to a graduate program at nyu. that means we will be headed back to nyc in the fall! i have already picked out my back to school gear. michael pointed out that i am going to grad school, not kindergarden, but i find that to be irrelevant  the best part of the program is that i will be able to finish next summer, right before we head off to med school. we are so excited to be back with all our friends and family in the north, although i am dreading the apartment search...

and rosemary, she is just as fluffy and cuddly as ever. 

cheers to a lovely week! 

from the recipe box: baked strawberry buttermilk donuts

once again, we spent our saturday lounging around the house and enjoying the rain. i had picked up the  march edition of saveur and could not wait to try out one of the doughnut recipes they are featuring this month. being a lover of all things strawberry, i chose to start with the strawberry buttermilk fonuts. (side note: fonuts is the name of the bakery where these lovelies are originally from. they call them fonuts because they are baked and not fried!)

let's begin! start by combining the flour, sugar, soda, and salt in a bowl. i went ahead and used my mixer bowl. 

in a separate bowl, whisk together the oil, buttermilk, egg, vinegar, and vanilla. 

add the wet ingredients to the well in the dry ones and mix until batter is smooth. stir in half the strawberries. 

in a lightly greased doughnut pan, spoon 2 tbsp. of batter into each mold. bake at 350° for 13-15 minutes until golden brown and cooked through. allow the donuts to cool on a wire rack. 

now for the glaze: whisk the remaining strawberries, confectioners' sugar, and 2 tbsp. milk until smooth. dip the tops of the donuts in the glaze and return to wire rack glaze is set. i would highly recommend putting something under the rack, unless you want to scrub the dried glaze off of your counter. 

and let me just say, they will melt in your mouth the next day.
enjoy! 

strawberry-buttermilk donuts
adapted from saveur magazine

ingredients: 

   1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour, sifted

   3/4 cup sugar

   1/2 tsp. baking soda

   1/2 tsp. kosher salt

   2/3 cup canola oil, plus more for greasing

   1/2 cup buttermilk

   1 egg

   1/2 tsp. white vinegar

   1 tsp. vanilla extract, divided

   1/2 cup finely chopped strawberries, divided

   3-4 cups confectioners' sugar

1 heat oven to 350°. combine flour, sugar, soda and salt in a bowl; making a well in the center and set aside. whisk oil, buttermilk, egg, vinegar and 1/2 tsp. vanilla in a bowl; add to well, and mix into a smooth batter. stir in half the strawberries; set aside. lightly grease a nonstick donut pan; spoon 2 tbsp. batter into each mold. bake until golden and a toothpick inserted into donut comes out clean, 13-15 minutes. invert donuts onto a parchment paper-lined baking sheet with a wire rack; let cool completely. 

2 whisk remaining strawberries, milk and remaining 1/2 tsp. vanilla with confectioners' sugar, adding the sugar slowly until the glaze reaches desired consistency. dip tops of donuts into glaze and return to wire rack until glaze is set. 

makes about one dozen.

wanderlust: thailand

i want to go here:

stay here:

and here:

i want to go underground here:

see this:

this:

and this:

i want to eat this:

shop here:

and roll around in the sand with this guy:

i want to watch the sunset here:

and here:

and send up one of these:

sources: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12