August wrap-up

August was a month full of sunshine and travels all over the United States. Lately it seems that time passes too fast – I blink and half a year is gone, I’ve flown over 100,000 miles, and I’m left not knowing where all that time went. I am just sitting here GROWING OLD (just kidding… kind of) and wondering where the summer went. But when I take a moment to think, August was filled with wonderful moments with friends and loved, full of good food, interesting places, and lessons learned.

1. Travels – New York City, Atlanta, Hilton Head Island, Denver, Seattle

   I’m pretty sure I spent more time on airplanes than in my own apartment this past month. I’m still unpacking a lot of my experiences, but you can check out the wonderful desserts I ate in New York in this post: 6 trendy desserts to eat in NYC

2. Baking – blueberry muffins and lemon bars

   I did some baking with seasonal fruits – lemons and blueberries. I’ve never really baked with fruit before, so I’m pleased to have tried something new! Both these recipes taste just right for summer.
   
   Coffee cake blueberry muffins
   
   Lemon Bars

3. Reading – 2 half books and 1 memoir

   I started 2 books (Milkman by Anna Burns and Cool Grey City of Love by Gary Kamiya) that other people (critics and my Uber driver) said were really good, but couldn’t find the heart to finish them. I found Battle Hymn of the Tiger Mother by Amy Chua on sale at a local bookstore and honestly picked it up because it was 50% off. I didn’t think I would like the infamous Chinese parenting memoir, but was surprised by how funny and relatable I found Amy Chua’s voice.

Looking forward to September, I have 3 blogging goals:

1. Write about my exciting September trips to Yosemite and London. They’ve been a while in the planning and I am incredibly excited!
2. Incorporate infused butter into my baking – I’m want to perfect tea-flavored shortbread cookies
3. Make flaky red bean mooncakes – September 13 is the mid-Autumn Moon Festival, an important holiday on the Lunar calendar. The niche ingredients make mooncakes a baking challenge. Even if I don’t get around to making my own mooncakes, I definitely hope to share some with friends!