It's that time of the year again when we're finally able to pull out our summer shorts out of our closets, find new boozy outdoor brunch spots for the weekend, and soak some sun (just don't forget your sunscreen!).

This year feels like it's been flying by a lot quicker than other years, so I'm still in disbelief we're in June. I feel like I'm running out of time to accomplish the things I’ve been wanting to since the start of this year, so I've put together a schedule to help me stay on track. I also keep looking back at my 2017 resolutions to make sure I can end this year strong. Most view summer as a time to relax, but I'm going to use this time to work even harder to chase after my goals.  

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Here's to the start of the warm DC weather that I'm not looking forward to and my favorite month of the year. Hello, June! 

Here we go, it's that beautiful time of the year once again. Where everything starts to come back to life, like allergy season. 

Every year, I stop by to visit the Cherry Blossoms. I take the exact same photos, walk down the same path, and end up with itchy eyes feeling dehydrated towards the end of the day. But even so, I do this every year and can never seem to get sick of this. Although I'm not ready to say goodbye to winter just yet, I do love spring, and it's this time of the year that makes me fall in love with this city all over again. 

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I can't believe how quickly time is passing and we're already at the end of March. Clock keeps ticking, time keeps running, and here I am trying to make sure I don't waste a second of it. I think it's safe to say that it's been a busy and productive year so far as I work to figure things out.

I am trying to post more frequently, this is one item I'm trying prioritize. Make sure you continue to stop by for more, I'm working on some fun new content. 

Thanks for stopping by! 

Before you say anything, I know I've been extremely MIA lately. It's been pretty hectic since coming back to the states from the holidays, jumping straight into work, trying to get over my jet lag, and just trying to get back into the rhythm of things. It also took me twice as long to get over my jet lag this time, which threw me off completely. 

2017 has been off to one heck of a start. So much has been going on, I don't even know where to begin, but I guess I can share this one story with you:

My friends and I decided to do a gluten-free-Feb challenge. I didn't realize how much gluten I was eating, so cutting this out of my diet completely was incredibly difficult to do. In order to resist the temptation to order anything with gluten, instead of grabbing food with friends, I started doing workout classes or just grabbing breakfast with them.

I don't think I'll ever be 100% gluten-free but after doing so for a month, I think I just might cut 50% of gluten out of my diet. I can't tell you whether I've started to see a change in my body because we did have a cheat day (it was one of our friend's birthday) but I'll let you know if I feel a change after I introduce gluten back in my diet. 

That's all for now. I promise to start posting for frequently in March. 

Julia

P.S. It's February and we've had multiple high 60F days. As much as I love the early spring/summer tease, this weather is extremely concerning. 

It’s that time of the year again when we start the New Year with fresh new resolutions, goals, and all feeling hopeful to accomplish many things. I too fall in this bucket. 

I’m proud to say that over the past 4 years, I’ve kept majority of my resolutions and now have high expectations to continue this streak for as long as possible.

Here’s how I do it:   

1. Think of realistic and achievable goals: I do like to push myself, so I usually have a mix of easy (e.g. eat healthy) and challenging (e.g. go on multiple media cleanses for a full day) goals. 
2. Write them all down. I also try to be as specific as possible. 
3. I check back. This helps me make sure I’m staying on track. 
4. Set smaller goals. I do this if I realize I haven't made any progress during my check-ins. For example, for my media cleanse, I might start with turning off my phone for half a day or limiting myself to answering text/calls. Goodbye, social media (for a day)! 

For this website of mine, in addition to keeping up with my regular food and travel posts, one of my goals is to write a minimum of one blog post a month. This will be a reflection post, a lesson learned, or a goal I hope to achieve that month. And so, here’s the first of my many blog posts. 

Hope 2017 is off to a great start for you. 
I’ll talk to you again soon,
Julia 

I realized I've spent more time away than in my city over the past few weeks, so I decided to play tourist this past weekend.  A friend and I decided to stop by City Center for lunch (click here for post) and was hoping to catch the pink balloon lanterns too (click here), so I was a little bummed to see them gone. That didn't stop us from taking photos, so make sure you scroll all the way down! 

I can't believe July is already coming to an end and we're itching closer to 2017. 

Decided to take my camera out for a quick stroll while I was able to catch the - very short - sunny weather. I don't know about you, but the weather has been absolutely gloomy, rainy, and a little depressing here in D.C. lately. I still can't believe we're already entering summer and May is already coming to an end. Time flies so quickly!  

Hello, allergy season -- I mean, spring and cherry blossoms! 

No matter how long I've been living in this city, this is one view I can never get sick of. Yes, I will acknowledge that "tourist season" does get a little annoying - especially when they stand on the left side of the escalators - and that the tidal basin-area gets way too crowded. But despite all this, I always still find myself making my way over here. I guess you can say it's one of my favorite date spots with my camera. 

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Okay, moment of truth: 
I secretly love the color pink and openly love chocolate and peanut butter. Even when I'm single, I love seeing love around me, as long as it's not incredibly cheesy, so I never hated this occasion. I do, however, believe that Valentine's Day isn't the only day you should express your love and appreciation towards your loved one; this is something you should be doing on a daily basis. But anyways, I wanted an excuse to practice taking portrait shots and photoshop and also happen to wear pink on pink, so I decided to use these images to wish you a Happy Valentine's Day/Single's Appreciation Day! 

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Decided to make some sweets this weekend and play around with my 50mm lens since its been sitting on my shelf being neglected. Here are a few photos of my Chocolate Covered Strawberries & Oreo Truffles! It's very rare for you to catch me making sweets or somewhat difficult food - I'd rather eat than cook - but this was surprisingly very relaxing and it was nice being able to zone out for a few hours. Maybe I'll start playing around with more recipes (please note the "maybe"). 

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The calm after the storm.
There's something incredibly beautiful about snow. 
After staying in from Friday to Sunday afternoon - which got me feeling restless - it was refreshing stepping out of my apartment and being encompassed with this view.  

I decided to take my camera out and see if I could capture anything good. I also happened to venture out and take a route I usually never take, and I'm glad I did; without it, I wouldn't have been able to capture this amazing view. Due to this, during this mini adventure of mine, I kept thinking of one of my favorite poems by Robert Frost: 

I shall be telling this with a sigh
Somewhere ages and ages hence: 
Two roads diverged in a wood, and I— 
I took the one less traveled by, 
And that has all made the difference.  

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2015. What an amazing, incredible, and a year full of many blessings. From being employed, graduation, jumping out of my comfort zone, and making new friends and seeing old ones, 2015 has been a year full of countless blessings and I can't express how thankful I've been. Here's a quick recap of my year (click on the photos to see captions): 

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2016. I'm still in the process of writing down my New Years resolution. I'm a little apprehensive and nervous of what's to come, but I'm also excited for all the challenges and (hopefully even more) blessings. All I know is that 2016 is going to be an adventure and I plan on taking this year to grow professionally, learn to love myself more, become more humble and selfless, and... like I said, I'm still in the process of writing this all down. 

Wishing everyone a Happy New Year! Here's a silly photo of my teenage brother and me being my goofy self welcoming the New Year.

Goodbye 2015, Hello 2016! 

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I recently got a new lens and I've been dying to play around with it. I got the Canon EF 50mm f/1.8 stm, which is great for portraits. I'm currently in the process of finding friends who'll spare their time and let me take photos of them so I can play around with my new lens.