A Week in Photos

So much has happened since I last wrote. The weeks get busy, and I often find myself scrambling for extra time; time to rejuvinate, reflect and lay low for a while. Plum Tree helps me do that. :) With the non ending speed of school going at a fast momentum among my tutoring job, the weeks just seem to wizz on by. Some days I crave to go on a nice fall walk or run, with or without the rain. This time of year, like all the rest, comes only once a year and how fast it truly goes. Hello November, and all that you bring! October is my go to, by November isn't too bad either, maybe perhaps the onset of Winter gets me nostalgic of all things Autumn.

Here is the past week or so in photos, including beautiful red leaves, tutoring, my Sister's and Brother-in-Law's Wedding reception, Halloween costume..

recreating Frida Kalho for Halloween

Bridesmaids

Giving my Toast! Everything turned out well, the tears came after...

With the family

My sister, the photographer

Love these red leaves, with the back drop of the sky!

Tutoring my student

The beautiful wedding cake, my Mom made it!

My toast to my dear sister

October has been a world wind. Busy, fast paced and a lot of emotion. I think Autumn usually brings about strong emotion, melancholy and nostalgic feelings can come easily, and change is never easy, but a necessity- a fact if life. October has brought change in various ways, and although it can be hard, it is beautiful as well. I feel that it's ironic that I consider myself really bad at change and transition, yet Fall is my favorite season, the Queen of change. But all good things come in due season. I can't get the wedding recepetion out of my mind. So many beautiful emotions, it was such a special day to celebrate with friends and family, many of whom I hadn't seen in a while. This day will always hold a very special place in my heart, and feel that most words could not descibe everything that I was feeling and expereincing. Joy was one of them, yet still it cannot thoroughly do justice. I have so much to be grateful for, and the elegant and radiant day showed me just that. Salvador and Elisabeth were glowing and showed me so much about things that my heart had not yet unraveled. Their love is so strong for eachother, it makes me only want to grow a bigger heart for others.

I am still trying my best with my Autumn list, not forgetting it or tossing it to the wayside, but doing my best to achieve small goals. Finishing books is slow, and picking up Hindi is a process, but I think it's not all about checking things off, but instead of enjoying it all, and see where it leads.

Today is the first day of November, a beautiful and meaningful month. And today is all Saints Day, remembering and praying to those whose lives were great examples. I have a few of my favorites, but I think that will be for another post. Happy November!

Pumpkin Cheesecake & New Things

Today I made my first cheesecake. I have been meaning to bake, since I have been feeling more and more comfortable with cooking. I have been accumalting recipes for about a year now, and only a few of them are desserts, but I decided to give it a go. White Chococlate Pumpkin Cheesecake. Perfect for the Autumn season, and a mix of flavors. I've heard that cheesecake is difficult to make, since most people buy theirs. I understand that more now since baking a dessert like a cheescake requires a good amount of time and money- there's a lot of ingredients! Overall, it was a good challenge and a learning expereince. Learning how much salt to put in (I unfortunately put in too much), as well as burnt the chcocolate chips the first time around in the microwave making the microwave smoke so heavily, it looked like a thick fog. But somethings you'll never fully learn or remember something until you make a mistake. As a quote I like says, "There is no failure. Either you win or you learn, either is okay."

I think this is my favorite time of Fall, in the middle of October before Halloween and before the onset of the holiday rush. The newness of Autumn is still in the air. The weather is overall nice, with the crisp air and crunchy red-orange leaves; the sun is still shining brightly. This is also the time of year when I soon think about the end of the year, and start looking back on the year as whole. So many exciting things, yet how fast time can truly go!

Went to a new restaurant with sisters, Yalla Meditterean. Liked the inside decour!

I thought it was an interesting place, Middle Eastern style restaurant, although I wouldn't say it's a restaurant. Just think Chipotle style mixed with Arabic food. I ordered Kefta with the Jerusalem style wrap. A lot of different flavors all wrapped in one, including french fires inside! I thought it was a cool place, and especially since I've gotten my feet wet with the Arabic language and tried some food- as well as made some food (Moroccan Kefta), so I felt connected in some way. It was also really nice to enjoy some quality time with my sisters, doesn't always happen too often. 

This month of October has flown by. I figured out what I'm going to be for Halloween...coming soon! And in one week is my sister and brother-in-law's wedding reception. The Maid of Honor has an important role to play, and I think I've lived up to it pretty well. Weddings these days are so commercialized and watered down, and the wedding party along with it. But I see myself as a different Maid of Honor, one without the drama and only room for support and love for my dearest sister and friend. It's not all about catching the boquet (which I have done at my other sister's wedding 3 years back :)), or outdoing the other brides maids, those things don't matter to me. The only thing that I'm worried about is my Toast. It seems so simple and straightforward, but when you're talking about your best friend, sometimes you don't want to leave anything out, or maybe I just put a lot of pressure on myself? Either way, it will be an exciting day- to see new and familar faces all celebrating the marriage of two very important and special people in my life. 

Summer Books and October Color

Summer is becoming farther and farther in the background. While looking back, some days feel all clustered into one, over one hundred days smudged, in a good, bright and fun kind of way. Some things stick out more than others, and some days I miss more than others. I wanted to write about the books that I read and finished this past Summer. My goal was 12 and I reached 12, up until the last day, so that was exciting and rewarding.

I'll start from mid June to late September, when my Summer started and when it ended. A few of the books I had picked up prior but then finished them with a good and hard determined mind, and made the finish line. Others, I had picked up at the library and fell in love from the first page, became hooked and knew I wanted to finish it and see how it ends, but even better, to enjoy the journey.

This book was the first book I finished this summer. I hadn't read anything like it, and was even searching for more books that she had written, but so far no luck. This is a cooking memoir, Persian cooking and the author's expereince getting into cooking school- the same one as Julia Child. I liked this one, especially since I love cooking memoirs but also because I learned a few things about Persian/Iranian food and culture! 4 stars

I started this book Spring 2015, but I never finished it. I came back to it this Summer, and wanted to expereince the ending. This book is about a young woman experiencing the peace corps in Africa. It was so interesting to me, to expereince another world, expereince and culture, through her eyes. While reading, I couldn't help thinking about my friend who is doing the Peace Corps now in Ecuador, and all that she is expereincing. 3 stars

I was always aware of Frida Kalho. I only briefly knew about her and wanted to know more about her. This book gave a thorough view of her life, her struggles and journey through art. She is such a unique person, a creative and original soul. This book was very informative, and feel that I know more about her life and her art. 4 stars

I finally read and finished a Willa Cather book. This one I also picked up about 2 years ago, but never finished. This Summer, I was determined to give it a whack. What an interesting read. It goes back to another time, in another state, the hardships of life come into hand, and the dynamics of characters come into play. Cather makes the 1800's come to life, with her rich descriptions of scenery and emotions. I plan to read her other classic works! 4 stars

My sister picked up this book before me, read it and enjoyed it. I was convinced that I would like it too. It was such a quick read, engaging, interesting, yet suffereing was the main theme. I also got to learn more about Diana, the likeable Princess from all around the world. This book was not only about her life but it delved into her personal encounter with a life long friend, with the woman whom she nannied her son. I learned that Diana was a private person, she kept a lot of her pain to herself, so it was interesting to know that her friend didn't know much of her deep turmoils. 5 stars for me!

I had wanted to read and finish this book for so long! Although it took a few months, I finally finished it! Wow, what a treasure. Some of it was dense, but overall very interesting. This was my spiritual reading for a while, and there were a lot parts that I gained some deeper understanding about St. Josemaria's life, as well as the history of that time. 5 stars!

This book I had found through a blog, a language blog- even better! I can't take the priveldge of finding this interesting read, my sister did again actually. But I read the book, it was a pretty thick book, maybe close to 400 pages. I read this one in the middle of August, when I had long days to read a good, enticing read. I liked this book, yet didn't love it. I thought it was interesting but felt that she gave up on studying Chinese and Arabic, and kind of delved more into Spanish. Her goal was to study in the country of that language, and luckily her husband is pretty chill, because he kind of just went along for the ride and she went with it, her ideas leading her through it all. 3 stars

I recieved this book as a Christmas gift this past year. Again, I started it but didn't dig deep enough to pave my way through this one. I always knew I wanted to read it, just not now I thought. But I eventually got around to it, and enjoyed it. It was a simple cooking book, talking about various forms of cookig and food. This author has another book, a sequel to this one. I plan to read that one, when I feel ready to pick it up again. 3.5 stars

I had heard about her, and people had read this book. I knew that I had to go back and finish this, again one of those books that I put down for a while, but then felt called to continue on. Her story is very interesting, and you really feel that you get to know and understand her. She's such a unique person, she really shares her story, and am glad I decided to finish this one. I also learned more about Ballet. 4 stars

When I think of reading this Summer, my mind goes back to this one. I really liked this one. I checked it out once, and didn't touch it, but felt compelled to give it a shot. I was hooked once I started. From the prologe, I knew it would be a good one. I'm also the type of person who really likes maps in books. I'm a visual person, so I guess that's why I enjoy viewing maps and seeing the distance and relationships between various geographical structures. I really enjoyed the process of reading this book, and learned more about the places she went. I am thouroughly interested in Middle Eastern, Central Asian, and Asian countries, and her journeys went to some of these countries. I was peeled to the page. 5 stars

I read this one directly after Noodle Road, which is actually the prequel to this one. I can say that I didn't like this one as much. It was good, but not as interesting to me as Noodle Road was. Serve the People has to do with her studies of Chinese cooking while she studies in China. I think she is a great writer, so I knew I had to keep reading! 3 stars

And lastly, this one. A quickk yet very informative read! I learned a lot about myself ( an introvert), as well as fellow non-introverts, or extroverts. This one was way easier to read and more enjoyable than the book, Quiet in my opinion. I liked this author's realizations, writing style and information given. I hope she has more books! 5 stars

Now onto other books! I hope to finish 15 by the end of this year, and hopefully 8 of them during this Fall season. Sometimes I just want to snuggle up woith a book and read all day, at the library, a cafe or on a nice bench in some park where there are nice,beautiful trees.

My Mom got this for me when I got my wisdom teeth out this past Summer. I finally started coloring in it during my long break at school. Something nice to do other than reading a textbook!

I like these directions! It's soothing just reading them:)

Chicken Manchurian

It's always nice to cook something new, a new challenge up my sleeve once again! I feel that that is the story of my life, a challenge here, a challenge to the right, and a challenge up the corner and back.  It keeps thinghs interesting:) I want to create challenges or new ideas for myself, to learn something new or to improve myself in some way. After getting 9 books at the library today, I think that's a good start!

So recently, I made a new dish, an Indian dish called Chicken Manchurian. I woud give this recipe 4 out of 5 stars. Overall, it was fairly easy and straightforward to make, no hiccups or anything excitedly scary. But it was good none the less. The only thing I wish this recipe had more of was spices. It had some chili sauce and such, but not as much zest as some other recipes I've made in the past, but I will put this one in my cookbook archive.

This weekend has been the coldest and rainest all season. I've actually quite enjoyed it since I like the rain, it gives off a nice, clean smell and gives my mind new inspiration during a down pour. Things look different in the rain, it gives a place a make over and allows one to dream. I don't find myself afraid of it, and like to walk in the rain- with an umbrella usually, as well as run in it, without one- making way for a wet adventure!

Curry Tomato Chicken

The other night I decided to cook a Chinese- American dish. This cookbook has recipes geared towards the American Chinese homes. I think the mix of flavors and cultures is always a good idea!

I really liked this dish and enjoyed making it, especially since the flavors and smells gave me something that was new, enticing, and exotic all at the same time! This recipe is a keeper, and will be listed among others in my homemade inspired cookbook, where I collect various recipes that I have either tried or not yet, but deliciously waiting so for me to cook up a newbie!

As for this latest recipe, it was easy as whistling to a Lord Huron tune, which I did not have playing in the background this time, but I know it will come again soon! Not only was this chicken dish easy, it was also fairly fast and could go with various side dishes. Mine was stationed next to rice, which is a good idea for most chicken or meat dishes.

Also, something else that made me enthused and excited about this smart recipe was the ingredients which accounted for the overwhelmingly perfume of something so good that makes your mouth water and your stomach grumble, even more so if I went on a run! It was the combination of the curry, the soysauce and the dry sherry making it really nice for my olfacturary bulbs.

I hope you enjoyed this recipe and any suggestions for future dinners??:)

Some more random inspirational pictures, created and found:)

exotic! and still trying to figure out how to create this cool and sheek style!

I agree!

Love that scarf, and all the colors together!

This inspires me!