Category: Scenes from the Day

Birthday Weekend Celebrations

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Another year of birthday celebrations have come and gone. It’s always a little depressing when something you’ve been looking forward to is over, right? I had total post-party blues on Sunday. Womp, womp.

I started out my birthday weekend with a pancake breakfast- something I never do. My date made up a delicious batch of paleo pumpkin pancakes which were delicious! He also made me a smoothie- I could get used to that!

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I worked a bit and then headed to Brighton to get a much-needed manicure and pedicure. It was SO relaxing. I go to Queen Bee nails and absolutely love it. I got a shellac manicure (which includes a paraffin wax) for $25! They also gave me a bottle of lotion for my birthday- so sweet of them.

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Saturday morning my sister and I went to a class at Recycle Studio. We were supposed to go to Lindsay’s class, but I was an idiot and we missed it. Luckily there was a class right after it that Lindsay was taking, so they let us just take that class instead.

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That afternoon, my parents came down for lunch at Santarpio’s. Although a pizza lunch was probably not the best lunch to have before getting into a tight dress, I enjoyed every bite of it 😉

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We came back to my apartment to have bunny cake and open presents. My mom makes me this cake every year- isn’t it the cutest?

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I was so happy that my parents made the trip down here. We hadn’t seen them in a long time and I always like when they visit!

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Saturday night was my birthday celebration at the Liberty Hotel. So many of my friends came- I couldn’t believe it! I had home friends, college friends, gym friends and other Boston friends I’ve made over the years. It was so good to see everyone!

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Thank you so much to everyone for coming out!!

I spent Sunday lunching with my Shapleigh girls, grocery shopping, and checking out all my presents from the weekend. My gym friends Steph, Alice and Jen brought me the nicest present- wine, wine glasses, napkins and a mani/pedi gift cert! I can’t wait to go back and use it. My upstairs neighbor, Lauren, gave me a nice bottle of wine and my other upstairs neighbor, Lisa, gave me the most gorgeous plant! You girls are all the best!

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I ended my day with a nice, long walk throughout the parks in Eastie and along the water. It was nice to have some quiet time just for me to reflect on the past year.

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Lastly, Monday night, my date took me out to celebrate with me on my actual birthday. We started with cocktails at Trade. I went with a Cosmo and I was very happy with that decision!

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We had dinner reservations at Row 34, which I’ve been dying to try. It was a good thing he tried making reservations a week and a half in advance because they were already booked solid (on a Monday!). I called and pulled some birthday strings, though, and got us in. Everything from the atmosphere to the service to the food was outstanding and we thoroughly enjoyed every piece of the experience. I even tried oysters- and liked them! I had the Bucatini and it was SO good. I think he had the bluefish, but I can’t remember… I blame it on the Cosmo’s 😉

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We both agreed that we can’t wait to go back!

Thank you, again, to all my friends and family for making my birthday weekend so amazing!! Here’s to 29!

 

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?

Weekending: Quiet night in, Spring Wine Fest, Girls day out

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I love when I have weekends that are a mix of relaxation and fun events- they’re the best right? This past weekend was one of those weekends and it was just what I needed after a busy week, as well as what I needed to prepare for a busy week this week.

Friday night, I headed into the city after I finished work to go to Lindsay’s class at Recycle. I had never been to the studio on Newbury Street, but I was a huge fan!

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Working out on a Friday afternoon was a nice treat!

The rest of my Friday night included wine, a healthy dinner and serious couch lounging, which was exactly what I needed/wanted.

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Spring Wine Fest

A few months ago, my friend Jessi sent out an email telling us about a Spring Wine Fest that she has gone to for a number of years. The tickets at the time were only $19, so clearly that was a no-brainer on my part; sign me up! Drinking wine on a Saturday afternoon with my girlfriends (after teaching an awesome kickboxing class) is probably one of my favorite things do to.

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We had a blast walking around and trying lots of different wines from various wineries. Some of my favorites were Kim Crawford, Wild Horse, Estancia and Simi, although there were so many others that were great, too. I liked going during the day because even though it was still pretty busy (we basically would get a sample then drink it while waiting in another line), there was still room to move and mingle and hang out. They had lots of free food samples, which is key at a wine tasting event 😉

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The lighting in the Cyclorama was amazing- these photos came out so great! Doesn’t hurt that I have pretty friends, either 😉

After a few tastings we were feeling silly enough to jump over to the photo booth. I die a little every time I look at these pictures…

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Look at my head in that second one- it makes no sense!

Our tasting ended at 2:30, so we walked over to Gaslight for a much needed late lunch. I had a Bellini to start and then switched to wine after.

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My sister met us for lunch and she and I shared the Croque Madame and scrambled eggs with a Truffle Oil sauce. Holy yum!

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After lunch, our large group broke up and some went home and others went to The Playwright for a Boston Marathon fundraiser. I was so happy that my friend Meaghan was able to join us!

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Needless to say, after a day of drinking, I was happily home, fed and in bed by 9:30 😉

Sunday was a standard Sunday that consisted of laundry, grocery shopping, visiting my sister, packing and lots of blogging/workout planning. It’s always a little stressful right before I leave for a trip (even if it’s short) because I have to get my blog posts prepped for the time I’m going to be away and I have to make sure that I’m packed correctly (in other words, it takes time to pack smartly vs. just throwing stuff into a suitcase.). I have to say, though, one thing that was really nice was the fact that I didn’t need to cook a big meal or prep for the week. It’s sad how much easier my day felt without that task!

Here’s to a good week!

Questions for you: Do you like to workout on Fridays? What’s your ideal Saturday consist of? Have you ever been to the Wine Fest in the South End?

A jam-packed weekend full of working out & dining out

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Do you ever have those weekends where you’re so busy you feel like you need another day just to breathe and catch up on everything you didn’t catch up on over the weekend? That was me last weekend… and, well, all of last week, actually. I have spent the majority of the beginning of this week catching up on everything I wasn’t able to do last week or this week- my floors need to be washed desperately, but that keeps getting pushed further and further down my list, which is totally ok 🙂

Anyway! After work on Friday, I met up with someone for drinks at Vintage Lounge, which I hadn’t been to in years! From there, we headed to Sakurabana for sushi (as a Catholic, I’m not supposed to eat meat on Friday’s during lent, so sushi was a perfect option!).

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Saturday started with kickboxing (loved seeing Jen, Mary, Valerie, Dani and all the other familiar faces!) as my first workout and then I met my sister at Exhale Spa for a Core Fusion Cardio class with my sister. We met up with our friend, Jessi, for lunch at Anthem. It was such a beautiful day in the city- perfect for walking around and having lunch out (actually, who am I kidding- any day is a great day for lunch out in my mind!). We shared a bottle of Sauvignon Blanc, the Fondue (cannot go there without getting it- SO SO SO good) and a pizza.

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I did some serious bar/restaurant hopping on Saturday night, which was great at the time, but not so great when I had to wake up at 7:45am on Sunday to teach a 9am class, after having gone to bed at 1:30am and losing an hour of sleep due to the time change. Womp. Oh well, I made sure to not drink too much so at least I wasn’t hungover! My Saturday night locations included: Prima E Dopo, Back Bay Social Club, M Bar at the Mandarin Hotel and finally Towne… phew! I wasn’t kidding when I said I hopped around 😉

Sunday I taught my 7th class of the week, puttered at Target and then did my CPR recertification. Not really my favorite way to spend a Sunday, but I didn’t really have a choice!

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Lunch at Pizza Etc. after the recertification did make me happy… I’ve missed their Greek salad with grilled chicken. When I lived in Brighton, Rachel and I would get that salad once a week!

By the time I grocery shopped and got home, the last thing I wanted to do was cook dinner. I ended up going to Santarpio’s to grab pizza… not the healthiest choice, but I had been craving it for a while so I decided to just do it. It did give me a crazy bad stomach ache later on- I wonder if it was the pizza or just the fact that I had eaten out literally all weekend.

By the time Monday rolled around, I was so ready for my usual clean eats! Don’t get me wrong, I enjoy eating out and would never deprive myself of it, but my body just likes it better when I don’t eat out consecutively for days in a row. I used to let it bother me when I would eat out a lot, but at this point in my life, I’ve gotten to a place where I just let it go and enjoy it because I know as soon as Monday rolls around, I’ll be back on track with my eats. No better way to do that then kale & onion stuffed turkey meatballs served over spaghetti squash and sautéed veggies, right?

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I’ve been enjoying this all week!

Questions for you: What was the best part of your weekend? Did you try any new workouts/classes/studios? Did you go to any new restaurants? Have you been to any of the ones that I went to over the weekend? Do you beat yourself up after indulgent weekends of eating out and drinking? What’s the first thing you do to get back on track?

Weekending: Recharging the Batteries

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Ahh, it really is amazing how much better I feel after a weekend in Maine. I think it’s a mix of the slower-paced lifestyle and lots of family/friend time that is exactly what I need to recharge my batteries. Here’s a recap!

Friday

After working from home on Friday, my sister and I headed into town to meet up with some friends for cocktail hour at The BackStreet, which is a Friday tradition for my mom and her friends. You really can’t beat the $3 wines during happy hour (unreal)! And I can never get enough Emma snuggles.

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I also got to meet up with Meredith (and later, Tiffany!), which was long over-due and such a nice treat!

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We got home and made pizza with dad- my favorite Friday night activity! Mom poured me wine in a “surprise” glass… really couldn’t have been more fitting for me on Friday!

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Saturday

After a morning workout, my sister and I got our hair cut, ran errands and then met up with the rest of the Shapleigh girls (and Zeke) for lunch at the Springvale Publick House. Their food is amazing, but the company was even better. Zeke is getting so big and his personality is hilarious. It’s so fun to watch little babies grow.

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Saturday night, I volunteered at a fundraising event with my mom. I’ll post more on it later, because I think it’s a great cause, but here’s a sneak peak of what I did… felt so weird to be scooping Shaw’s Ridge Farm ice cream again. That was the best summer job!

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Sunday

We all got up and went to church then grocery shopping, then mom and I headed outside for some winter exercise fun. It felt so nice to be in the sun!

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I left relatively early because I knew I wanted to stop at the Lulu outlet in Kittery. I had no idea there was one until my friend, Meaghan, told me. It.was.amazing!!! The deals were seriously crazy good and it was well worth the trip if you’re looking to replenish your lulu wardrobe. Here’s my loot:

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Super soft fleece hoodie ($54!), new, fun, bright pants ($29), black top ($19) and slim-fitting pullover (this wasn’t crazy cheap, but I loved it and had a gift card!). What do you think?

Unfortunately, my Sunday went downhill once I got home and realized that my apartment was in shambles (had a leak and the plumber was coming back on Monday to finish fixing it) and I was without heat (Nstar had to replace the meters and therefore cut power to my apartment, which somehow killed the thermostat… ). Then I broke my favorite wine glass from a winery in Napa. Womp, womp. Luckly, my new Jack Rogers came in and I had chilled white wine (not because it was in the fridge… because it was refrigerator temp in my apartment)… that made my night better!

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Lastly, this meal really made me feel better.

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I took my dad’s homemade sauce, added a bunch of chopped veggies and ground chicken and topped that over baked kale and veggie pasta. So healthy, so tasty, so comforting. I could eat the sauce as a soup, I think. There’s really nothing better than homemade sauce!

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And, that about sums it up! All in all, it was a great weekend and I am starting this week off much better than I ended it. My mom and I talked about how we are trying to focus on how blessed we are compared to others and how we are both trying to focus on that this year. The fact that we were able to go out the back door and snow shoe/cross country ski was amazing… many people can’t do that because of physical limitations, location limitations, or health issues. It’s so easy to focus and dwell on the negative, but it’s so important to try and turn that around and focus on the positives.

Questions for you: When’s the last time you needed to “recharge” your batteries? What was the best part of your weekend? Have you been to the Lulu outlet? What do you do to cheer yourself up?