Category: Holiday/Special Occasion

Burpees to Bubbly Turns 1! {which is worthy of a giveaway…)

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Before I get to my anniversary post, I want to wish each of you a very Happy Valentine’s Day!! I love this holiday, whether I have a boyfriend or not. I just think it’s fun to celebrate love! I opted to hang out with the girls tonight instead of the guy (no offense to him!), so I’m really excited for them to all get here after work. We’re going to putz around to a few different bars/restaurants in Eastie. I have a big day of fitness tomorrow, so I can’t get crazy, but I’m looking forward to laughs and cocktails.

If you’re looking for a Valentine’s Day themed workout to warm you up, try this workout (can’t believe I posted that a year ago… fitting, considering I had my 1 year anniversary earlier this week!).

Anyway! Let’s get to my post… you’ll want to read since there’s an awesome giveaway at the end!

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Wow. You guys. I cannot believe this little blog turned ONE earlier this week. I know I have a long way to go in terms of really “finding my voice” and getting to a point where I don’t look back on old posts and cringe (it hurts a little to read my first post!), BUT if the next year is even half as fun, I’m in for a real treat. Blogging, although it is a lot of work and can be an extra thing on my “to do” list, has helped me learn about myself and make connections more than I thought it could.

I was afraid of starting the blog because I was worried that it would turn into a chore and I would get obsessive about posting X amount of times a week and would stress out if I didn’t. While I can’t say this hasn’t happened a few times, I’ve really surprised myself with how I’ve approached blogging. I used to be obsessed with checking stats and trying to get more followers, but since I relaxed about that and focused on blogging about things that interested me, it’s been a much better experience! I’ve also learned to let go of the stress that used to come when I missed a post. I bet you guys don’t even notice, right?! 😉

Bottom line, is I blog because I love it. I love sharing my workouts with you. I love sharing my recipes with you. I love sharing things that go on in my life and making connections with you. I love being able to look back and see what I’ve been up to. I love hearing from you when you can relate to something or you try a workout or make a recipe… those things make me SO happy. So, thank you, for following along as I write about my life!

Rather than listing out the highlights of my blog over the past year (I just did something similar for New Years post), let’s just do the giveaway, ok? I think that’s probably what brought most of you here anyway 😉

The giveaway is…. TWO $20 gift cards to… my favorite… Life Alive Café! I’m actually jealous about this 🙂 This is my little thank you gift to you guys for your continue support, encouragement and advice. You really have no idea how much it means to me. Thank you, thank you, thank you!!

Here’s how to enter (lots of ways!):

1. Leave a comment on this post letting me know what you’d like to see more of and/or less of next year (workouts? recipes? wines? restaurant reviews? something else?).

2. “Liking” me on Facebook. Leave a comment saying you’ve done this.

3. Follow me on Instagram and Twitter– just leave a comment saying you’ve done so.

4. Tweet the giveaway or share on Facebook! Again, leave an extra comment saying you’ve done this.

You have until Thursday, February 20th at 9Pm EST to enter the giveaway. I will post the two winners on Friday, February 21st. Good luck!

There you have it! Again, thanks for reading! I can’t wait to see what you want to see more of or less of.

Oatmeal Cinnamon Chocolate Chip Cookies

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I made some delicious cookies for the Super Bowl Party I went to a few weeks ago. Cookies? For the Super Bowl? Yeah, I got a few questions on that, but when I found out someone else was making a Buffalo Dip, I figured it wouldn’t hurt to make a dessert instead of a dip. So, I whipped up some oatmeal cookies with cinnamon chips and chocolate chips- and was happy with my decision. Oats+ Cinnamon + Chocolate is a really great combination if you ask me. It’s probably even worthy to make for your Valentine 😉

I’ve had this recipe for ages and I’m not sure where I got it, but I added/changed some things so I’ll just leave you with the recipe that I came up with after my alterations.

Oatmeal Cinnamon Chocolate Chip Cookies

Ingredients

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  • 1 3/4 cups oats
  • 3/4 cup whole wheat flour
  • 1/2 tsp. baking soda
  • 1.5 tsp cinnamon
  • 1/2 tsp sea salt
  • 1/2 cup brown sugar
  • 1 egg
  • 1 stick of butter, softened
  • 2 tsp vanilla
  • 3/4 cup cinnamon chips
  • 3/4 cup chocolate chips

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 375*.Combine the dry ingredients (oats through the sea salt) in one bowl.

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2. Cream together the butter and brown sugar. Add in the egg and vanilla and mix well.

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3. Combine wet and dry ingredients and add in the cinnamon and chocolate chips.

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4. Make tablespoon size balls and place them on a cookie sheet. Bake for 6-8 minutes (or until cooked to your desire). Remove cookies and let cool… or eat one while they’re still warm 😉

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These cookies were a big hit… luckily, I saved a few for myself so I could have some to enjoy throughout the week 😉

Questions for you: What’s your favorite kind of cookie? What’s your “go-to” dish that you bring to a party?

Healthy Super Bowl Tips & A Commercial Workout

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I doubt I’m shocking anyone when I say I really couldn’t care less about the Super Bowl. Even if the Patriots were playing, I really wouldn’t care. What can I say? I’m just not a sports girl!

With that said, I’m sure a lot of you may be sports people, so I thought I would post some tips to make healthy choices during a not-so-healthy day of the year.

Don’t show up to the party hungry

I always hear people talk about how they will starve themselves all day if they have a big dinner or party planned for the evening. This is the worst thing to do because as soon as you show up to the party, you’re going to stuff your face, right? I’ve been there and done that and not only does it make me feel to rude to hover by the food, shoveling in as much as I can as fast as I can, I feel gross once my body registers that it was full probably 20 minutes ago. Yuck. You’re also more likely to binge on the less healthy options because, let’s face it, when we’re hungry, hunger rules over any smart eating plans, right? So, have a healthy snack or small meal before you go to the party.

Stay away from the food table

This stems right off of the tip above this. Even if I have a healthy snack before I go to a party, if I find myself standing by the food table, I’m going to munch. And much. And much. You know what I’m talking about, don’t you? You’re not hungry and you know you’re not hungry but the buffalo dip/spinach and artichoke dip/chips and salsa/cheese and crackers/etc. are screaming your name because they smell and look so good. So, you let yourself have a small bite, right? And then what happens? You end up hovering near the food table and, again, eating when you’re not hungry. So, STEP AWAY from the food table and focus on conversations, people watching and game watching.

Make and bring a healthy snack option

If you know yourself and know you’re going to want to eat at the party you’re going to, pick a few healthy apps/snacks to make and bring so that you can eat those rather than some of the other unhealthier options. All of the blogs I’ve been reading have been showing “healthified” game day snack options and they look delicious!! Think: healthy buffalo dip, healthy spinach and artichoke dip, fruit or veggie platter, etc. There are so many delicious, yet healthy, options!

Make a plate of things to snack on

I never do this, although I probably should. Instead, I tend to “hover” near the food table and continuously grab things to eat. If you take a small plate and fill it with things you want to eat, you’ll probably end up eating less than if you just keep snacking. Seeing what you have to eat will help with portion control and sticking to that portion control.

Choose a lighter drink option

Beers are super easy (and fitting) to drink during a daytime game or party, but the calories add up reallll quickly with beers. Instead, try drinking something lighter like vodka soda’s or a lighter beer like some of those 60 calorie beers. Also, try drinking a water or seltzer water in between each drink… this will definitely cut down on how much you drink!

Work out before you go… or during commercials (if your friends won’t think that’s weird!)

I always get in a good workout before I know I’ll be indulging at a party. I also think it’s fun to do something during the commercials or half time, so that’s why I’ve made this workout for you. How convenient, right?! 😉

game day workout

So! I hope that helped. Are you going to a party today or are you hosting one? What are you making/bringing? What’s your favorite “healthified” recipe?

Brownie, Pudding and Cool Whip Trifle Dessert- Holy Yum!

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Happy Friday, everyone! I hope you’ve had a great week. I feel like I’m battling the onset of a potential cold, but I’m trying to load up on Emergen-C and other things to nip it in the bud. We’ll see how it goes!

Anyway, I had to share this splurge-worthy dessert with you. Back in November, I hosted a Pampered Chef party as a way to get my friends together, while also growing my kitchen “inventory”. Having it before Christmas was an added bonus since most of my friends bought their family Christmas gifts! Not only did I get $140 of FREE stuff from the Pampered Chef catalog, I also got a free Trifle Bowl. When it came in, I have to admit that I thought it was a little silly; why would I waste space in my already limited cupboard space for something impractical like a Trifle Bowl? Well, my friends, I take those thoughts back! I can actually find a lot of uses for the Trifle Bowl, such as desserts, fruit & yogurt parfaits, layered dips and even a table centerpiece/vase.

For Christmas, though, I decided I would use the Trifle Bowl to make a layered dessert (they always look so pretty!).

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What I love about Trifle Bowl desserts is that you don’t really need a recipe; just pick some ingredients that you want to layer with and get layering! I was running short on time, so I totally copped out and bought mini containers of pudding which works when you’re in a pinch, but I would’ve preferred to have made a big batch of pudding. Next time 🙂

Ingredients

  • 1 Box of brownie mix- any kind you want. I chose one with peanut butter chips, which I wouldn’t do next time since it was too much crunch.
  • Pudding- either pre-made pudding containers or you could make 1 or 2 boxes of pudding per the directions on the back of the box. I chose fat-free/sugar-free to save on calories and you couldn’t even tell because there were so many other tastes going on!
  • 1 big container of Cool Whip
  • Chocolate Chips and White Chocolate Chips

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Directions

1. Bake the brownies according to the back of the box. If you are using box pudding mix, too, make that according to the directions on the back of the box.

2. Once everything is cooked, begin your layering! I did brownies, pudding (both vanilla and chocolate) and Cool Whip and then repeated that until I used everything up.

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At the end, throw on some chocolate chips and white chocolate chips and voila! you have a quick, easy, delicious and pretty dessert to bring to a party 🙂

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I got so many compliments on this dish and can’t wait to experiment more. I think for a brunch, I would do a fruit, yogurt and granola parfait in this- doesn’t that sound delicious? If you don’t have a Trifle Bowl, no worries- you can make this in any sort of big bowl/dish.

Questions for you: Do you have a Trifle Bowl? What is a dessert/appetizer/breakfast dish you would make in this? I need suggestions!

Ringing in the New Year (by pictures)

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Remember how I said I was feeling really blah about NYE this year?  I think part of the reason I wasn’t hyped up and excited about NYE this year was because my friends weren’t all doing something together. With that said, what I really wanted was to be dating someone and be able to just go somewhere fun for dinner and to ring in the New Year that way. Obviously that wasn’t the case for me (this year), but I am happy to say I pulled myself out of my little “womp, womp” mood and decided that I would go to my friends’ (Christy and Jamie) house party in Exeter, NH.

I wasn’t in the mood to drink (I had a glass of bubbly, though), but I still had a great time catching up with my friends that were there and getting to meet some new people, too. Waking up without a hangover and in my own apartment on New Years Day was ahhhhmazing! Here’s my recap by pictures- enjoy!

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Big thanks to Christy and Jamie for throwing a fantastic party!

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For the past handful of years, my sister and I (and whoever else is around) have had a tradition of going out to lunch on New Years Day. We’ve had our fair share of hangovers for these lunches, but this year we were both hangover free- yay! We decided to try someplace new and went to Stephi’s in Southie. We were both totally impressed with the restaurant! It had a great vibe, neat décor and a super tasty menu (and affordable wine and cute guys. True story.). We enjoyed white wine, the black forest ham and brie sandwich and the special of the day: open faced omelet with hollandaise sauce, mushrooms, tomatoes, cheese and asparagus. Yuuu-uuum. We foresee going back for a girls night dinner sometime in the near future!

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So, although I wasn’t super amped to go into the new year, I’m feeling really good about it now. In all honesty, your life is what you make of it, so I’m trying to go into this year with a positive outlook and make it a terrific year.

Questions for you: What did you do for NYE this year? How do you manage a hangover? Have you been to Stephi’s?