Category: Lunch

Weekending Through Pictures

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What a weekend we had in Boston, right?! The weather was long awaited and it was so great to feel warmth and sunshine and be able to be outside without a jacket on! On top of that, it was part 1 of my birthday weekends and between massages on Friday and a hair cut and mani/pedi on Sunday, I was fully pampered! Enjoy the highlights:)

  • Friday night we had massages at Exhale Spa and then dinner at Ward 8 with my friend Jessi and her boyfriend.
  • Saturday I wore my new top from Lulu and taught a super sweaty kickboxing class.

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San Francisco Recap: Part 2 {Wine Country!}

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In case you missed my part 1 recap of my recent girls trip to San Francisco, you can read it here.

I went to bed on Friday night dreaming of our Saturday in wine country. The last time (and only time) I went to wine country I was all hopped up on Vicodin due to a broken elbow just a day before my trip. Let me just put this on record: wine and Vicodin together are not a good idea… just trust me on that!

We woke up early on Saturday since our driver was due to pick us up at 9am. Since the girls had blow out appointments, I headed out on a short 2.5 mile run. The humidity seemed terrible (probably because I’m so used to the super dry weather here in Boston) and the hills were not my friend. But, I did feel so much better after I did it!

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Shortly after 9, we were all settled in with bagels and bubbly and en route to Sonoma. How cute/amazing are these little mini cans of bubbly?! I’m obsessed- thank you for introducing me to them, Kel!!

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The car ride there was so fun- we played trivia with the driver, sang to T.Swift and got to know each other better. Three of Kelly’s friends joined us (Heather, Kim and another Amanda) and they were a super fun addition to the group! Our first stop was Scribe Winery since Kelly is a member and could get free tastings for everyone. Although the morning fog was still present, by the time we left, it was beautiful, warm and sunny. And, let’s face it- the wine still would’ve tasted just as good had the fog not worn off 😉

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I don’t know about you, but starting my day with a wine tasting at 10:30am was pretty fun. The wines here were my favorite and I ended up buying the Rose. I also loved that they put out snacks for us 🙂

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Solid first stop!

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Once we finished, we went to the Sonoma Cheese Factory to pick up sandwich lunches for our next stop at Nicholson Ranch. They let us set up shop at an awesome table in the sun with some pretty gorgeous views.

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We did a 6 flight wine tasting and the wines were really good! Nothing that I wanted to buy and send back, but still very tasty.

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I mean, do you think we could’ve asked for nicer weather? I don’t. Nope, it was pretty perfect.

Kelly’s friend, Kim, is a member at Rutherford Hill Winery, so we headed to Napa for our final tasting (she gets 4 free tastings as part of her membership!). I didn’t take any pictures while we were there, but it was so fun! We ended up getting a couple of bottles of the Pinot Grigio and hanging out at the picnic tables with some mutual friends who live in San Francisco, too (they ended up being in Napa for golf, so we texted the crap out of them to come meet up with us!).

On the way back to San Francisco, we made an obligatory stop at The Fremont Diner to share some of their famous Salted Caramel Milkshakes.

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And yes, they tasted just as good as they sound… if not better!

The rest of the ride can be summed up by this picture… the end of wine country day… enough said:

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Once we got back to the city, we changed quickly and headed back to Fillmore Street to have some much needed dinner (we drank A LOT of wine throughout the day!) at Palmers. Apparently they are known for their burgers, but I opted for meatballs (surprise, surprise) and Brussels Sprouts.

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Our last stop for the night was at Mauna Loa, but none of us lasted long at this point.

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To be honest, I’m not sure how we lasted until 11pm after the day we had!

What an amazingly fun day- thank you so much for organizing, Kelly! And, for sharing your friends, who are now our friends (because they’re super awesome!) 🙂

Questions for you: Have you ever been to wine country? What’s your favorite type of wine? Do you like milkshakes?

San Francisco: Part 1 Recap

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Can I please go back to San Francisco? If you could plan out a perfect weekend getaway, it would be exactly the weekend I had with a few of my girlfriends while in San Francisco a few weekends ago. Everything from the travel itself to the weather to the company to the city was so awesome. Since I’ve got lots of pictures and things to recap, I’ll break them up so that the post isn’t ridiculously long- enjoy!

Thursday

I had an 8:30 flight and since I live a mile from the airport, I had time to get up and do a little workout before calling a cab. I did 20 minutes of random cardio moves and ended with a fun combo: 10 burpees, 1 hand release push-up… 9 burpees, 2 hand release push-ups… 8 burpees, 3 hand release push-ups… and so on until I did 1 burpee and 10 hand release push-ups. It was way more challenging than I thought and my arms were spent by the end!

I packed up my healthy snacks and got to the airport with ease.

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Weekending: Lots of Birthday Celebrations

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Good morning and happy December! Last weekend was a fun, birthday-filled weekend. RM and I headed up to New Hampshire on Friday afternoon for my friend Nikia’s surprise 30th birthday. I ended up finding a great deal at The Exeter Inn so we headed there first. This hotel was SO cute and charming- a nice change from the normal chain hotels I stay at. They had a gorgeous REAL fireplace in the lobby area, old, intricate details, funky little rooms and an amazing restaurant/bar… not to mention Exeter is a super cute little town. After a quick gym trip on Saturday morning, RM and I headed to Portsmouth and had brunch at Michelle’s. I’d been there once before and was happy to see that this experience was just as good as the first. I got the Truffle scrambled eggs and they were SO good. Sunday was spent celebrating my sister’s birthday at Gem. Post brunching, we came back and I decorated the tree and food prepped for the week. Solid weekend- enjoy the pics!

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Questions for you: What was the best part of your weekend? Have you ever been surprised with or helped to throw a surprise party? Where’s your favorite restaurant in Portsmouth (if you’ve been)? Have you ever been to a boozy brunch? Have you decorated your tree yet?

Weekending {Extended Version}: Feeling Thankful

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There were a lot of really wonderful things in my life last week and throughout the weekend. I came back to MA on Saturday feeling incredibly thankful for my family, friends, boyfriend and some extra time off.

Wednesday morning I was thankful for being able to head to Maine to work from there for a half day of work and beat the traffic and the snow.

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I was thankful for being able to decline lunch/errand plans with my mom and sister in favor of napping, blogging and getting a start on cocktail hour.

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I was thankful for being able to be surrounded by my family, all 4 of us, for the first time in months! We laughed and ate and drank and it was wonderful.

Thursday morning I felt thankful that my weird headache was gone and had apparently just turned into a little head cold. I was thankful for a relaxing morning in the kitchen with my family & for my sister agreeing to video me for some blog things.

I was thankful for the fact I was able to get my sweat on and feel strong throughout the short, but tough workout.

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I was thankful for snow! And for the fact I was in Maine where 12 inches of snow is much more bearable than it is in Boston.

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I was thankful for bubbly, because it makes everything better 😉

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I was thankful for this beautiful spread of food, none of which I prepared (whoops!).

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I was thankful for being able to sit and watch a movie with my sister.

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I was thankful for being able to go to our friend’s house for games, wine, dessert and laughs. These girls have been in our lives forever and I love them so much! And little Zeke, who is on the MOVE! He even knows how to take a selfie 😉

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Friday morning, I woke up thankful to still be in Maine. I was thankful that my sister wanted to go to the gym with me and I’m thankful that I was able to have a great workout.

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I was thankful for going out to lunch in Kennebunkport with my parents and my sister.

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And on Friday night, I was thankful to be home for another night with my family.

Saturday morning, I was thankful for a quick drive back to Massachusetts and an awesome class at Exhale Spa with my sister and friend Amanda.

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I was thankful for a delicious (and I mean delicious) brunch post-class at Ward 8, consisting of a veggie grilled cheese and lots of bubbly.

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Saturday afternoon/evening, I was thankful for finally getting to see RM! We watched some soccer and decided to stay local for dinner. We saddled up at the bar, enjoyed some drinks, wings & pizza (going out with a bang this week) and were home and in bed nice and early.

Sunday morning, I woke up feeling thankful for not having to rush out of bed, for being able to have a relaxing morning and for having a largely open day ahead. I was thankful for being able to get a Christmas tree with RM- ’tis the season!
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Yes, he is entirely making fun of me.

Sunday night, I was thankful for being able to relax while RM cooked us dinner. On the menu was paleo style sweet and spicey wings, homemade sausage & a fresh salad. I also made some paleo pumpkin banana nut muffins that we’ve been obsessed with lately. It was such a nice, relaxing night- it felt like a Saturday!

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Sunday night was the perfect way to cap off a little extended break. I had been feeling very stressed and overwhelmed prior to the break, but I now feel rest and rejuvenated and ready for the holiday season!

Questions for you: Where did you spend thanksgiving? Did you have a big crowd at dinner? Have you ever been to Kennebunkport? Do you like barre classes? How do you gear up for the week ahead?