Category: Holiday/Special Occasion

Vegas State of Mind

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Did you know that April is National Stress Awareness Month? In an effort to help promote this awareness, I was contacted by the content director at Vegas.com asking me if I’d like to participate in their “Let Loose” campaign, which encourages people to turn to events/activities/hobbies/etc. to let loose and unwind. As soon as I heard about this, I was all in! With my crazy schedule, I can always use a reminder of ways let loose, unwind and have fun.

Obviously I’d love to GO to Vegas to unwind, but since that’s not an option at the moment, I’m just going to share my favorite ways to unwind (That don’t include a vacation) with you here on this little blog. My hopes is that it will encourage YOU to think about what helps you unwind… and then maybe even motivate you to do it 🙂

Have a glass of wine… with or without friends…

It’s no surprise that I love wine, but more than just loving the taste, I love the way it helps me relax. There’s something just so wonderful about sipping a glass of wine after a long day or to celebrate the weekend (or celebrate anything, really)… and doing it with friends is an added bonus 😉

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Go to the beach

Although this is a limited form of relaxation when living in New England since we only have a few short months to do this, it’s one of the best for me! I’m not usually very good at sitting and doing nothing, but there’s something about being at the beach that makes doing that VERY easy. I don’t even need a book! As long as I have a towel, sunscreen and water, I’m a happy camper.

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Get a manicure and/or pedicure

This somewhat forces me to unwind because I’m confined to the small, fantastic massaging chair, but hey- it works! It’s also a time to catch up on all the trashy magazines that they always have laying around the nail salon. A lot of places offer mani/pedi deals when done together so make sure to ask about that if you’re trying to save a little money.

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Read a book

I don’t do this nearly enough, but every time I do I’m reminded of how relaxing it is. Note to self: start a new book.

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Go for a walk

While working out at my normal intensity (read: high intensity, high impact, fast-paced, etc.) is not “unwinding” in and of itself, going for a walk is. It’s time to slow down, look around and appreciate having the ability to do that. I especially like going for walks with friends or my mom and sister. It’s a great time to catch up on life AND gain benefits of physical activity.

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Cooking

Being in the kitchen, with a glass of wine in hand and a good Pandora station on in the background, is one of my favorite things to do (outside of the gym!). This often takes up a good part of my Sunday afternoon since I like to spend time prepping lunches and snacks for the week and I like to make a nice meal that’s a bit more labor and time intensive than my weeknight meals.

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… if I were to go to Vegas, then my choice ways of unwinding and enjoying myself would be laying poolside at a fancy pool, treating myself to a massage or some other spa service, going to a show at night and indulging in all of the amazing foods that the restaurants have to offer. I haven’t been to Vegas in 5 or 6 years, but all this recent talk of it makes me want to go back!

Now it’s your turn- What’s your favorite way to unwind? Do you like to do an activity or relax by reading or having a glass of wine? What’s your favorite destination to retreat to when you’re looking to unwind? Have you been to Vegas? If so, what’s your favorite Vegas activity? Feel free to share your favorite ways to “let loose” on Twitter and use the hashtag #letloose2014!

Take Me Out To The Ball Game!

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A few months ago, my friend Lauren had a great idea for all of us to get tickets to go to a Red Sox game during their home opener weekend. I think we all know I’m not a huge sports fan (or fan at all), but I never turn down a chance to do something fun with my friends, so I was all in! I can’t say I wasn’t a little nervous about going to an outdoor sporting even in early April, especially with the crappy weather we’ve been having in New England, but lucky for us, Sunday ended up being an absolutely gorgeous day! IMG_7099 Lauren ended up getting us amazing seats in the bleacher section, just a few rows from the field- well done, my friend. IMG_7101 Although my college friends and I are in communication via text or email fairly often, it’s not always easy to get us all together in person these days. While not all of us were able to make the game, a good amount of us and our significant others were! It was so nice to be able to catch up with everyone; I can’t say I watched any much of the game, but my socializing skills were top notch 😉 IMG_7105 Post game, we headed to Landsdowne Pub for another drink. Icing definitely happened, which was amazing. IMG_7108 IMG_7111 IMG_7112 Spending a sunny, relatively warm Sunday afternoon at the Red Sox game with some of my favorite people was the perfect way to end the weekend! Thanks for setting it up, Lauren! IMG_7113 Questions for you: What’s your favorite sport? Do you like going to games? Do you get together with your friends a lot?

For the next 40 days…

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Well, at this point, it’s the next 31 days, but who’s counting?! Anyway, as a Catholic (not as much of a practicing Catholic as I should be…), we “give something up” during the Lenton season, which lasts 40 days. Over the years, I’ve given up gum, ice cream, chips, French fries and soda, to name a few.

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This past year, though, when I thought about what I wanted to “give up”, I was stumped. I thought about a lot of different things, but wasn’t really sold on anything; I just couldn’t find something that I thought I should give up (well, besides texting while driving, which should be an every day thing, not just a Lenton thing). Instead, I decided to add something. Something that I knew wouldn’t be easy, but that I knew would be beneficial to me.

What is that, you ask? Meditation.

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Say, what?! The girl who doesn’t ever stop, is always adding more on her plate and complains about those two things all the time probably too often is adding meditation to her schedule?

Yup. It’s true. I’ve decided to take 10 minutes of my day to just be still. No tv, no music, no iPad, no computer/blogging, no Facebook/Twitter/Instagram. Just me, being still and focusing on my breath. Inhaling and exhaling for 10. whole. minutes. You may not think that would be that hard, but for me, it’s been incredibly hard! As soon as I shut my eyes, my mind starts racing sounds a little something like this:

“Shoot. I forgot to do respond to that email.”

“What am I going to teach in kickboxing tomorrow? I like that burpee-kick move I’ve been doing.”

“Should I work from home tomorrow?”

“What should I wear to the gym tomorrow? New blue pants?”

“What time do I have to get up?”

“Monique. You’re just supposed to be breathing here, not thinking. Breathe in, breathe out. There you go. I should have a snack before bed….”

As you can see, it has been a real challenge for me to turn OFF my thoughts and to focus on my breath. But, at the end of the day, I think this is really good for me. It’s time every day when I can just sit, without any distractions. And, you know what? It’s getting easier! My thoughts have slowed down and I really look forward to those 10 minutes of my day. I’ve also been sleeping better since I started doing this, and I have to attribute it to the fact that I’m giving myself time to decompress before I go to bed. Normally, I am blogging or catching up on social media right until the time I go to bed, which means when I get in bed, I spend a good chunk of time trying to unwind from the day and slow my thoughts before I’m able to actually fall asleep.

Since I’ve seen some positive changes and I’m only a week in, I’m interested to see how the next 31 days will go with this challenge. If you’re like me and could agree with anything I said in this post, I urge you to try it- turn off all electronics, set your timer and close your eyes for 10 minutes. I’d love to know what you think and how it makes you feel!

Questions for you: What did you give up for Lent, if you’re Catholic? Have you ever meditated? Do you do anything before bed to help you relax?

I hope you all have a great St. Patty’s Day weekend! If you’re looking for tips on how to stay in control and to make good decisions, check out the post I wrote last year: Tips to Stay [Relatively] Healthy on St. Patrick’s Day… there are some good tips to keep in mind 🙂

PJ’s Unique Peek Boutique: Bag Giveaway

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Hi, friends! Boy do I have a treat for you today. A few weeks ago, I met the owner of PJ’s Unique Peek Boutique, which is located in Kennebunkport, Maine. I had heard wonderful things about Jane (the owner) from my mom and her friend, Jeanne, and everything they said about her was entirely true. My first thought when I saw Jane, was “wow. She is stunning! And really fashionable.” Well, duh, she owns a clothing boutique, so I guess that makes sense. Anyway! Jane and I started talking about her store and how she just got on Facebook and was trying to get more “likes”, so when I said I wrote a blog and could possibly help with that, she jumped right on board!

Before I get to the giveaway (which you don’t want to miss), I want to share a little bit about Jane and how she got her business started. I’m always impressed when people have a goal and go for it- no matter how big or small it is, working towards your goals or dreams is a huge accomplishment and something to be incredibly proud of.

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Owning a women’s boutique has always been a dream of mine, although over the years I’ve worn many hats, but,…the stars aligned perfectly last spring.  My friend and I decided it was do or die, so we formed an LLC and proceeded to secure a “brick and mortar” location and do our due diligence, researching and preparing our business plan.

Lower Village Kennebunk, a stone’s throw from Kennebunkport and Dock Square, seemed to be the ideal spot and as a bonus there was parking in the rear of the building.  It never hurts to have former President and Mrs. Bush as neighbors!  We opened the boutique on July 5th.  In December, I had the opportunity to buy out my partner, so now the name PJ’s stands for Positively Jane’s.

I’m anticipating to have my online store up and running very soon.  Presently I’m offering some specials on the business Facebook page.  Soldsie and Paypal will be added to Facebook to enhance the selling and buying experience.

The boutique carries fun and fashionable women’s clothing, accessories and jewelry (Kazuri from Africa to locally made wire and stone jewelry).  The clothing lines include Pretty Women, Tribal, Parkhurst, Raffinalla and Southern Lady to name a few. My skin potions (soaps, creams, body butters and cleansers) are made in Maine.  Also, I have some unique gifts made by local artisans from beautiful burl bowls to framed prints to colorful luggage tags.

The days and hours are limited in the winter months, but the boutique is open seven days a week after Memorial day.

So, now that you have an idea about Jane and her store (which I’m dying to go to!), let’s get to the giveaway, shall we? Jane has been gracious enough to give me one of the gorgeous Latico bags that she sells in her store to giveaway on the blog. Made in the US, this leather bag is a “must-have” for any of us who are on the go and always in need of a big bag to carry everything. The straps are thin, so they stay in place on your shoulder- is there anything more annoying than having your bag constantly slip down off your shoulder??

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On top of that, the leather is incredibly soft and I’m in love with the gorgeous blue color- perfect for the upcoming spring and summer season, right?? I’m really digging the liner fabric- it’s a nice surprise when you open the bag!

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I also love that it has a zipper. Since I’m often on public transportation, I always look for bags with zippers to keep everything safe (not to mention when I’m in the car and my bag falls off the seat… having a zipper helps to eliminate everything falling all over the floor!). The bag is rather big and deep (perfect for carrying a laptop!), so I like that it comes with a handy little small, zippered pouch. There are also pockets for your phone, pens, cards, etc., but I’d use the zippered pouch to hold my chapsticks/lip-glosses, hand sanitzer, keys, etc. You could also use it to hold your cash if you decide to leave your bag in the car while you run errands or go out with friends.

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This bag retails at $169.99, but one lucky reader will receive it- for free!! All you have to do is leave a comment on this post telling me what you’re most looking forward to this spring season- clothes, bags, warm weather… can be anything!

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You may receive extra entries by:

1. “Liking” PJ’s Unique Peek on Facebook

2. “Liking” Burpees To Bubbly on Facebook

3. “Sharing” this giveaway on Twitter

Leave a comment for every extra way you’re entering the giveaway- That’s a total of 4 ways to enter this giveaway!

I will be picking the winner, by random, on Monday, March 10th, so make sure to get your entries in before that 🙂

Good luck!

Life Alive Giveaway Winners

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Before I get to the winners of the giveaway, I have to say THANK YOU, again, for all of your sweet and thoughtful comments on my anniversary post. Seriously, you guys are the best! I appreciate all of the suggestions you had for things you’d like to see, as well as compliments on your favorite parts of B2B. I definitely plan on getting more workout videos on the blog this year, some yoga flows and a lot more at-home, quick, no equipment necessary workouts since that was one of the biggest suggestions.

With that said I used a random number generator and the following people have won themselves each a $20 gift card to Life Alive Café:

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Congrats Breezy and Athena!! Please email me with your mailing address so I can get these out to you!! burpeestobubbly {at} gmail {dot} com (unless you plan on coming to kickboxing on March 1st, then I can hand deliver them 😉 )

I have another really fun giveaway going up on the blog in a few weeks, so keep your eyes peeled 😉

I hope you all have a wonderful day and weekend, friends. And a big thanks to everyone who has reached out to me via texts, emails, FB messages, etc. to see how I’m holding up after my recent skin condition. I’ll share more about what I was going through next week, but I wanted to say that things are seemingly on the mend at this point and the bad tests have come back negative, so I’m trying to focus on that. Hugs to you all (it’s not contagious… I promise!).