You've Got Kayl

toasting in 2018

Today marks my last first day of school. It hasn't quite suck in that I am back in the US, back to living my life. The holiday vacation seems almost surreal, like a whole different me, which in a way it was; I was thrown out of the routine of my life. I didn't have to worry about cooking or cleaning or studying. I even took a break from logging my meals for my dietician. The whole trip was incredibly freeing. But now I'm here again in Texas. Hopefully ready to face the things I left behind and what the new semester has in store for me.

Since Meghan took a break from her Week in Review, this week I decided to recap my 3-week-long trip to the Philippines over winter break. Also, a warning that this is probably the most that you'll see my face this year (just kidding but really though this is quite the picture-heavy post).

Got my second tattoo that matched with a couple of my friends! Not the brightest idea to get it on my first day there especially as we went to the beach the following week, impeding me from submerging fully in the water. FYI, since you can hardly see it, it's an ampersand &
Actually relaxed at a 5 day vacay at the beach with my family

awkward pose and awkward toes

Whilst there, I played a lot of family volleyball, posed for plenty of family pictures, went island hopping, lied down on a hammock, lost Cards Against Humanity, kayaked,
Recovered from some type of food poisoning sickness that had me throwing up on Christmas Day of course right before our flight to the beach. Luckily by Day 2 there I was almost functioning at 100% again.

Visited an awe-inspiring georeserve park on Christmas Eve. A looooong day but completely worth it. 🌄
Had McDonald's for the first time in forever for a a pre-hike (^^^) morning meal at 3am. Yay for challenging the ED!!
Had breakfast with one of my besties. Wish I could do this more often rather than our virtual dates but I will take what I can get. Super grateful for our friendship throughout these years, making our goodbye almost easy because it felt like we would seee each other again soon albeit over a video call.

Visited the Pinto Art Museum, a private art collection turned outdoors museum.
Watched an award winning Filipino film called Ang Larawan during the Metro Manila Film Festival
Escaped an escape room with friends with 6 minutes to spare! I should have known though that with a title like Abduction I, one of the biggest scaredy cats I know, would be terrified. Do not let those post-escape room winner smiles fool you.

Starting the year off on the right foot on New Year's Eve, my sister and I went through a bunch of our old clutter. So much reminiscing but also questioning why past me kept a lot of this junk. Slowly learning to let go of things that no longer mean what they once meant to me.
Had my friend group's annual Chrisgiviween celebration, where we exchange Santa Baby gifts, play games, catch up, laugh until we cry and smile for self-timer group photos.

Managed to take decent casual family pictures without killing each other. Want to point out that we did not pack or plan in advance to be this matchy; we all just like a lot of blue and just happened to bring clothes that worked together.

Since my last Week in Review, posted 4 times times on the blog--a couple of must-reads, my 2018 plans and most recently a December eats recap post here
Said my goodbyes to my friends and family. 😢
Powered through jetlag yesterday and was able to stay up past 11:00pm without a nap by preparing dinner, putting away my stuff, watching the Golden Globes, sorting my notes for our review classes, working on this blog post, showering, making my bed and enjoying the finale of the Big Family Cooking Showdown.

Questions:

When was the last time you went to the beach?

Would you ever get a tattoo? If yes, of what?

Have you ever done an escape room?

What is going on in your life?

It's almost 3:00am and I am wide awake. Yay for jetlag! Hoping to recover in time for classes on Monday. To take advantage of this time and the creative juices possibly flowing at this ungodly hour, I'll be recapping December's eats. 2017 was a delicious year in food, experimenting in the kitchen as well as dining out on nourishing--for both my soul and body--meals out with family, friends and even just by myself. And December didn't fail to live up to that, a delicious ending to a delicious year.

Heads up once again that I'll be discussing my food here. This is just a sneak peek of meals I have enjoyed in the past month, not an end all be all list. Use this as inspiration (or don't). Remember to listen to your own body's needs and wants. Find what fits into your own life.

Earlier in December, I had what potentially could have been my last meal in the on-campus dining hall. For nostalgia's sake, I met up with my former roommate who's become a really good friend for brunch. As young freshman over four years ago who were forced onto a meal plan, the dining hall was our place. My friend graduated at the end of the semester so it was quite sentimental, definitely hitting me again that I'll be graduating for real in May. It's buffet-style so I got a hodgepodge of things including fried okra and a veggie calzone. Also got a bit more that went unpictured.

As much as I have not having to worry about cooking the majority of my meals while I was while I was home in the Philippines for the past few weeks, I missed being in the comfort of my own kitchen and pantry. Some things I especially missed: full-fat Greek yogurt, nutbutter, za'atar, kombucha, farmer's market hauls, grocery shopping in general, nuts, pulses, non-rice grains, baking.

Prior to leaving, here are a few recipes I crossed off my to-make list.

Broma Bakery's carrot cake cookies - need I say more? Made a few trays worth and have them stashed away in the freezer for future me to enjoy. Before that though, I had a couple for breakfast with yogurt and sunbutter.
A za'atar-spiked lentil and walnut hash - served with the classic fried egg + toast combo to give it some heft
Vegan miso pasta with brussels - totally cliche but the umami-ness and the creaminess in this pasta (from cashews!!!!) was unbelievable. So good that I had it for dinner and lunch the next day with roasted zucchini.

As mentioned above, it was less cooking my own meals and more eating out throughout the month, which can definitely get me in my head. One thing that got me by was focusing on the people aspect of my meals as opposed to the food, enjoying the the company and conversations. Even though I talk to most of these people virtually, in no way does it compare to the stories, laughs and dishes shared in person.

Post sleepover lunch with friends was at a Taiwanese dumpling place. One of many dishes ordered and devoured were a zucchini and shrimp soup dumpling. If you're not familiar with xiao long bao, it is made by filling a dumpling with gelatinous broth that melts when steamed. You then dip it in a soy sauce and vinegar sauce with a sliver of fresh ginger, place it in your spoon and poke a hole to release the soup.

One of my all-time favorite Filipino dishes is peanut stew called kare-kare (said ka-reh x 2). Typically served with ox tail which = 😰😫😖 to me so glad I found one served with tofu instead when out at a breakfast date with my friend. I finished most of it except for a few pieces of tofu that I took home. Also had about half of my free iced coffee that came with the dish.

Finally, breakfasts at the beach, in which I tried to mix things up in true Kaylee fashion. A few days it was Filipino staples of rice (garlic for me of course) + ulam (oo-lamb), aka the meat component, + a pickled veggie. Other days it was a fusion take on Filipino food. For example, toast two ways: one with kesong puti (basically queso blanco) and another with mango jam and raisins. Also, couldn't get enough of fresh mango.

Wow that was more of a mouthful than I was intending. So thank you for reading all the way through! Time to get back into the routine of things and avoid Filipino food for the next year since I've had my fill for a while.

Questions:

What was your favorite thing you ate over the holidays?

How do you cope with jetlag?

Have you ever tried soup dumplings?

Last year I shared some of the things I learned across the 12 months, my notes to self. I'm keeping up the tradition this year by doing the same. It's interesting to look back and see what has progressed but also the similarities that haven't, what I still need to work on (must learn to use my voice!!!) from last year.

In retrospect, this year was about growing up. I interned full-time for the first three months, then a few months later I graduated with my bachelor's degree. I also road-tripped alone. Even though with these things promote independence, it was also the year that I had to let go of that sense of control of my life and allow myself to get that extra layer of help, maybe even the harder part of adulting. I went into an ED treatment center for the majority of the summer. I reached out to my support system and am still learning to open up, to be vulnerable, to be authentically me. Again, tears were shed--tears of happiness from laughing too hard, tears of pain from the uncomfortable, but always tears of growth, tears of life. Relationships were strengthened while others withered more than I would have liked. But this is just another facet of growing older that I have to accept.

Growing up and getting older means becoming more of who you are. It is finding what you enjoy and determining what your goals are. I've come to appreciate myself more this year. I discovered how much I love spending time with me: slow breakfasts, shopping at the farmer's market, belting out the wrong lyrics to songs while driving, watching funny YouTube videos before sleeping, meditative yoga. It was reaffirmed how much I really don't like to drink though that shouldn't stop me from going out and that I don't see myself in Dallas but I should keep an open mind still.

Another year passing also means being more aware of those typical signifiers of where we should be in life. With people getting engaged, launching careers, moving across the country or even the world--looking like they have their lives sorted out already--, it's hard not to feel behind when things don't go the way you planned it out in your head. Here's a reminder for both you and my own self to carry with us in the upcoming months c/o one of the best books I read this year, Mitch Albom's The Timekeeper:

“It is never too late or too soon. It is when it is supposed to be."

Looking ahead into 2018, I have started to plan out my intentions for the new year. One of which is to be more present whether this be through appreciating nature, by listening more or simply actually saying yes and attending social events. Ultimately, being present is the process of leaning in towards the "when it is supposed to be" as opposed to searching for the past or chasing the future.

I may be a bit late in saying this (I mean, it is already the 2nd day of the year on this side of the world)--but as said up it's never too late--so happy new year! I wish you a 2018 full of more love, good food, meaningful conversations, self-care activities, lessons, laughter and tears, goodbyes and hellos. With that, here's to onwards and upwards with the speed bumps in between.

Questions:

What was the high and low of 2017 for you?

What are some of your intentions for 2018?

What are you looking forward to either in the immediate or not so near future?

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