A Productive, but Relaxing Sunday

June 11, 2013June 9, 20138 Comments

Hey everyone! How’s it going? I’m headed to Atlanta today for work, but I should have time to blog at the airport or hotel. I want to post my recent stations workout for you tomorrow, so hopefully I’ll find time to get that together!

I was in bed embarrassingly early on Saturday night, but the couple of cocktails I had in the afternoon wiped me out! I woke up Sunday feeling more rested than I have felt in a while- it was great! After breakfast, Danielle and I got right to the most dreaded task of the weekend: cleaning the apartment. Since we’ve all been gone for a number of weekends, the apartment cleaning sessions were severely neglected! I always at least wipe down the bathrooms once a week, but we needed a deep cleaning in a bad way. Luckily, when there are two of us doing it, we can do it in a little over an hour.

After cleaning, I drove Danielle to the airport since she is traveling for work all week. Before I came home, I swung by the Cambridgeside Galleria because I wanted to get new sneakers and a new dress from H&M. I got to the mall at 11:25 and was shocked (and really annoyed) to see that the mall didn’t open until 12:00!!! I understand a late opening on Sundays, but 12? That seems a little late! I had to practice some serious patience while I waited for the mall to open. I grabbed an iced coffee, wandered around and as soon as the clock struck 12, I was in H&M. I grabbed the dress and headed to Olympia Sports. I have and Edge card with them and had a $10 birthday gift card and a coupon for $10 off a purchase of $30 or more. I wasn’t supposed to combine them, but I put on my nicest smile and asked if there was any way they could combine them. Score for me! I got $20 off my sneaks! I tried on Reebok’s that I really loved, but they were more aimed for cross training, which is great for me, except for the fact I went there looking for new running sneakers. I ended up getting the same ones that I currently own, just in a different color.

I tested them out later that afternoon for a 5 mile run and I loved them!

Between shopping and running, I was able to catch some rays on my back patio! I also enjoyed lunch out there, finally. The weather this spring has not been conducive to patio dining, unfortunately. I also spent time cleaning up the side of the apartment. There is a path along the apartment from the patio to the driveway, but it gets overgrown with weeds SO quickly! I hate the looks of it, so I cleaned it up for the 3rd time on Sunday.

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Since I knew I was traveling this week and would be gone two nights, not to mention I won’t be around Friday night- Sunday night for dinners, I decided to keep dinner easy: spaghetti squash, sautéed veggies and the chicken tenders from Saturday night. I didn’t measure anything, just eye-balled the veggies as I cut them.

Paired with a glass of vino and I was a happy girl! The whole time I ran, I thought about enjoying a glass of wine when I finished… hey, anything that gets you through a run, right?

Other than that, my Sunday night was pretty quiet. It felt great to have a clean apartment, clean room, no laundry, etc. to start the week. Anyone else feel this way? Food prep and cleaning and organizing might be a pain to do in advance, but to me, it is SO worth it once it’s finished!

Questions for you: What kind of sneakers do you run in? Do you wear different ones for running than you do when you take a class? Do you have any “mantras” or anything that gets you through a run (or a walk!)?

Tia’s, Baby Zeke and Maine- Weekend Recap!

June 4, 2013June 3, 201312 Comments

Hey there! Has everyone cooled done a bit? I’ll tell ya, working from home on a Monday is ALMOST as nice as working from home on a Friday! There’s something about not having to do food prep and “week prep” on a Sunday night, especially after coming home from Maine, that is SO nice. Sunday evenings are drastically better when that’s the case.

Friday

My friend, Cristina, hosted a Lupus Fundraising event at Tia’s on Friday night after work. With the weather temps at over 90 degrees, I couldn’t think of a more perfect place to spent a Friday evening!

Not only did I get to hang out with my college girlfriends, but my friend, Stephanie, was also there! Steph and I went to the same high school and used to Rollerblade down Main street in Sanford in the summers. #classy

The whole time we were at Tia’s, we were checking our phones since we knew Sara was most likely going to have little Zeke at some point that night. Sure enough, around 8:30, we got THE text from Amy that we had been waiting for! Baby Zeke Aronson White was born!!!! And boy was he beautiful! I think Danielle and I made everyone at Tia’s cheers to baby Zeke! We are proud “Aunts” of this little boy 🙂

Saturday

I got up and packed an overnight bag since Danielle and I were going to head up to Maine right from the YMCA after my class. Class was sweaty and awesome, but to be honest, my mind was TOTALLY focused on going home to meet Zeke that I can barely even remember what I taught! I hope everyone liked it, though 🙂

We got to Sanford around 1:15 and drove straight to the hospital. I’ll let the pictures do most of the talking, but I will say that Zeke is the most beautiful little boy and has a wholeeeee lot of people who are already so in love with him! Sara looked like a beaming mom and it was so sweet to see her interacting with Zeke. She was in labor for about 20 hours with unreal contractions and the kicker was that she couldn’t get the epidural 😦 Sara was fully on board with getting one, too, but things moved so quickly once they broke her water that it was too late to give her the epidural. Poor thing! I can’t imagine how tired and physically beat she was. Anyway, here he is!

(mom and baby! I had Sara send me a pic of her with Zeke when I was writing up this post since I realized I only had pictures of Zeke being held by other people… we were baby hogs!)

(and then she sent me this! I wonder what he is dreaming about that makes him smile?!)

We stayed at the hospital with Sara until about 5pm when we decided to give her and Tim some time to themselves. Once we got home we had a really nice cocktail hour on the back patio with mom and dad.

Not long after we poured drinks, Amy and Chris stopped by to do more baby gushing and celebrating!

We all decided it was too hot to BBQ or cook, so we ordered food from the Corner Store (literally right next door) and called it good. While it tasted delicious, I woke up in the middle of the night with the worst stomach ache 😦 Such a fun, impromptu little get together, though! Sara, congratulations on your new little baby boy. I cannot wait to spend so much time with both of you and to be able to watch him grow up!

Sunday

I woke up early (I mean, I was in bed at 10pm, so no wonder why I was up early!) and decided to go visit my very good high school friend, Caitlin. She was due to have her little baby boy on June 1st, but he decided he wasn’t ready to come out quite yet! As I was leaving the driveway, I caught a glimpse of the huge snapping turtle who crosses our lawn each year to get from the brook behind our house to the pond across the street in order to lay her eggs. She was HUGE!

Anyway! For Caitlin’s sake, I hope he decides to grace the world with his presence sooner rather than later! I hadn’t seen Cait in far, far too long, but like always, as soon as we get together, it’s like nothing has changed; the true sign of friendship! She is the most adorable little pregnant lady (she literally just has a basket ball belly!) and I am so bummed I didn’t get a picture of her. Can’t wait to meet her little one!

When I got home from my visit, Dad and Danielle had already done all the potato planting.. bummer! Since there was nothing else to do to help around the house, we took advantage of the sunny (but HOT) weather and sun bathed on the back patio.

We decided to hit the road relatively early so that we could go grocery shopping and unpack and grab dinner (since it was too hot to cook). We walked to the grocery store (about a 1/2 mile away) to get a little exercise since we did nothing all day but relax in the sun! For dinner, we kept it casual and grabbed apps at Not Your Average Joes. I got their special “Strawberry Rhubarb Sangria” which was SO SO SO delicious! And BIG! Look at this thing!

I got the Tai Chicken Lettuce Wraps for dinner and they were quite tasty.

Filling, but in a light way.. perfect for hot weather!

Well, there ya go! Fun-filled weekend surrounded by friends, family and a new baby!

Questions for you: What did you do to stay cool last weekend? Favorite summer cocktail? Any new babies in your lives? Do share!

Weekending! Harpoon Fest, Sushi, Sonsie, Friends

May 21, 2013May 20, 20134 Comments

Before I get to my post scheduled for today, I wanted to take a minute to say how much Oklahoma is on my mind. Seeing the images on the news that the tornadoes caused makes me speechless. My thoughts and prayers go out to all of those who have been impacted by these tornadoes. Absolutely heartbreaking.

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Hi there! How is everyone doing?! I had a super busy weekend, but it was really, really fun! My friend, JP, was in town for the weekend (he is my former coworker/BFF and is moving to Chicago at the end of the month), so it was fun to get to hang out with him, as well as some SMC ladies.

Friday

I was pretty busy with work on Friday, but I was able to make some Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Banana Bread during my lunch break. I don’t know where I got the recipe (definitely from a blog, but no idea which one), but mmm it came out so tasty!

I talked to my college girlfriends and realized that it was Harpoon Fest, so some of us decided to go. Although it was a little chilly on Friday evening, it was still a fun night!

(Do you follow me on Instagram, yet?)

Saturday definitely would have been the better day, weather wise, but I’m still glad we were able to go! Around 9pm, we all decided we were all pretty chilly and decided to head out. We joined JP and some of his friends for another drink at Dillon’s.

Knowing that I had to teach kickboxing at 10am the next day, I kept myself in good control and even drank a plain club soda while at Dillon’s… shocking, I know! But well worth it. There are some classes I could teach while being tired and a little hung over, but kickboxing is certainly not one of those!

Saturday

Kickboxing was a blast! There were not as many people as usual, but I blame that on the weather. Saturday was absolutely beautiful and had I not been teaching, I would have gone for a nice run outside!

When I got home from kickboxing, I worked in my garden a little bit. I had a few more things I wanted to plant and my dad was nice enough to give me 3 more bags of soil, so it felt good to knock that off of my “to-do” list, while still working on my tan 😉 And, the sun went in just as I was ready to eat lunch. Perfect timing! I sautéed some broccoli and summer squash and then added in an egg, scrambled it up, topped it with goat cheese and served it as a wrap. Easy, healthy, yummy.

Perfect fuel to clean the apartment, actually. Danielle was around to help, so we split up the different areas of the house to clean and got to work! By the time we were finished, I was exhausted, so you know what I ended up doing? NAPPING. If you know me, you know that I NEVER nap, so this was pretty crazy. I passed out for a solid 45 minutes and only woke up because ~~I was drooling everywhere~~ my sister told me it was time to shower. Luckily, I wasn’t groggy or anything, because that is the worst, and part of the reason why I don’t nap.

After we were ready, we headed to Joshua Tree in Somerville for a cocktail and snack before meeting up with my friend, Lauren, for sushi. Davis square was hoppin’! There was some sort of sidewalk/porch band festival thing, too, which seemed pretty cool. I love how the spring weather makes people venture out and about. I got a Sangria, but it was awful so I didn’t finish it. Boo 😦

For dinner, we went to Fuji in Kendall Square since I had a Groupon that was just days from expiring.

While we perused the menu, we enjoyed some edamame and Sauvignon Blanc. $26 for the bottle. Ummm amazing.

I ordered a Spicy Tuna Roll, which was only OK. It seemed like it had tempura mixed in and I wasn’t a fan of that. Everything else was delicious, though, especially the company and free valet parking 🙂

After dinner, Danielle and I went to Sonsie to grab a drink with JP since it might be the last time that we see him before he moves to Chicago 😦 The city was very much alive and I loved it! Sometimes it’s nice to have a reminder of how wonderful it is to be able to live in Boston. I think I take it for granted far too often, so last night was nice to soak it all in.

All in all, it was a great weekend. I went out and had fun with friends, had some great adult bevvies, and was able to enjoy Boston. Sunday was the icing on the cake as I was totally in my element at the Wellness By The Water retreat. I’ll do a full post dedicated to my experience there later this week, but I’ll say that it was awesome.

Questions for you: What was the best part of your weekend? Did you go to Harpoon Fest? Did you go out dancing (mom, I know you did!)? Drink any fun, summer-ish cocktails?

Maine & Family- The best way to re-charge the batteries!

May 14, 2013May 13, 201311 Comments

Hey there! How are you doing today? I wanted to pop in and recap my extended weekend in Maine!

Friday

After working from home all day, I had my dad drive me into town to meet up with my mom and her friends at the Back Street Grill. My mom and her friends have been going there on Friday’s after work for as long as I can remember, and I always love when I have a chance to join everyone! I mean, $3 wines… you cannot go wrong with that.

(and getting to snuggle sweet little Emma is one of my favorite things!! Look at those cheeks!)

After a couple of wines, lots of gabbing and lots of laughs, mom drove us home to have dinner with dad (and, more wine!).

Friday night=fish night for my dad (mom doesn’t eat fish, but I do so I was pumped about fish night!) and lucky for me, he let me share it with him:) I forget what kind we had (some type of trout?), but it was SO good. Paired up with a side of baked potato and broccoli and I was a happy camper!

Saturday

Since I was in bed embarrassingly early on Friday night, I was up and ready to head to the Y for a 9AM class. Although it wasn’t the instructor I was hoping it would be, it was still a great class and I really liked a lot of the moves that we did- especially this cool “skier” squat. Our heels were up on weights, toes pointed towards each other and we squeezed one of those small weighted balls between our knees. With our arms, we held very light weights and did a lat raise combo. Love!

Mom met me for the 10:15 Zumba class! I haven’t taken a Zumba class in MONTHS and MONTHS, but I was surprised with how I was still able to pick up very quickly on the steps and dances… must be that former dancer in me? Regardless, we had a blast!

After a well-deserved shower, mom and I went to get pedicures (as part of her mother’s day gift). Wow, was I was overdue for a pedi! Getting to sit there and relax for about an hour was really quite nice:)

Lunch at the Springvale Publick House with a beer tasting post pedi was even nicer 😉

I went to elementary school and high school with one of the co-owners of this restaurant and I have to say, he has got quite an impressive business going. The food is outstanding (and everything is made in house- salsa, dressings, fries, chili, etc.), the beer and wine selection is quite large and the prices are amazing! Every time I drive past and both times I have been there, it’s been really busy and that makes me so happy for them!

After lunch, mom and I did a little shopping and then I went to visit my old boss from my summer job of 7 years at Shaw’s Ridge Farm. The summers I worked there were some of my most favorite summers. By the end of my time there, I was running the place with the help of some very dear friends (Meredith recently moved to Australia and has her own blog- check it out!). To this day, the ice cream Mr. Shaw makes is still the best I have ever had!

All I wanted for dinner on Saturday night was BBQ on the grill. Thankfully, my dad is a grill master and loaded up the grill with all sorts of goodies!

Not long after dinner, I retreated up to my room for some quality time with my iPad to catch up on shows I missed last week (Nashville and Grey’s Anatomy). Mom came up to check on me and thought I looked “too cute” and that it would be a “great pic for the blog”. Someone offering to take my picture?! You don’t have to ask me twice!

(I was really comfy!)

I realize now that this post is getting quite lengthy, so I will save my Mother’s Day recap for later this week!

This past weekend was exactly what the Doctor ordered. I was in bed early every night, fed delicious food and drinks, able to get some workouts in and, most importantly, I was able to spend time with my parents! Any one else feel like you just need to “get out of dodge” sometimes? Meaning, escape the crazy, fast paced city life? Let me tell you, hearing the “peepers” and birds and seeing the stars was so refreshing! But now, it’s back to the grind. I was ready for it, though!

Questions for you: What was the best part of your weekend? Favorite thing you drank or ate? How often do you treat yourself to pedicures?

Ok, I really need a grill…

May 2, 2013April 30, 20136 Comments

Yeah, I mean, this meal came out SO good, but I think it would have totally topped the charts had I been able to cook it on a grill. Next gym paychecks go to: buying a grill! I don’t know how we survived all of last spring/summer/fall sans a grill, but I know that I won’t be able to do that this year. Maybe I can get my dad to go shopping with me for one (hint, hint).

Anyway, before I get into the details of the meal I made on Tuesday night, let’s chat about how much I have learned to LOVE Tuesday’s. Don’t get me wrong, I love teaching so much and love my current schedule of Monday’s, Wednesday’s, Thursday’s (double) and every other Saturday, but there is really nothing like the feeling I have all day on Tuesday knowing that I can go home right after work. I also like that I have the option of working out or taking a rest day, pending on what I have going on after work, what my week of workouts looks like, and how I am feeling physically. The nice weather makes me want to work out more (ie: go running, walking, anything outside), so on Tuesday I got home relatively early (6:15- that never happens) and decided that I could squeeze in a quick 30 minute workout, focusing mostly on strength and core. 32 minutes later, I was done, ready for a shower, glass of wine and a meal I had planned out in my head since Sunday, so let’s get to it, right?!

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We New Englanders are finally experiencing the spring weather we have been waiting for since, oh, the past couple of months. Along with the warmer, sunnier weather comes my craving for all things associated with grilling and BBQ’ing, so I decided to take one of my favorite grilling meals and make it in my oven. And, you know what? It came out WAY better than I had hoped it would. I marinated the chicken overnight and I cannot describe in words how flavorful it was. The shrimp was just OK, but the veggies, especially the mushrooms, more than made up for it. And, what’s not to love about corn on the cob and baked sweet potatoes?!

Chicken, Shrimp & Veggie Kabobs

For the chicken marinade:

4 chicken breast tenders
Juice of 1/2 a lemon
~1/4-1/3 cup white wine
~1 tsp. ground pepper
~1/2 tsp. sea salt
Few heavy shakes of Mrs. Dash

Veggies:

I cut up peppers, onion, zucchini, summer squash and mushrooms. I didn’t measure, but I eye-balled about how many I thought I would need to make the skewers figuring there was really no right or wrong with how many I used.

Directions

1. Create the lemon-pepper marinade the night before and let the chicken sit in it for about 24 hours to get that really delicious lemon-pepper taste.

2. The next day, when you’re ready to make the meal, pour yourself a glass of vino, get your apron on, and get to work!

3. Pre-heat your oven to 375*, wrap your sweet potato in aluminum foil and place it in the oven right on the metal racks.

4. Cut up your veggies and chicken and arrange everything so you can easily skewer however you desire.

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I created my kabobs by alternating veggies and chicken on some, veggies and shrimp on some and then for the leftover chicken, I just put all of the pieces on one skewer. I sprinkled on a little more pepper, sea salt, garlic powder and Mrs. Dash once the skewers were created.

5. Place in the oven and bake for about 20 minutes (watch closely because you could need more or less time depending on how you cut your veggies and chicken). While the kabobs are cooking, steam your corn. I also had to finish off my baked potato in the microwave since I didn’t start it early enough.

When everything is done, place on a plate, add some butter to your corn and sweet potato (yes, this is a must) and enjoy!

Look at those colors!! My mouth was so happy as it tasted all of the different flavors in this dish, especially the chicken. Wow, was that good! I am so excited for leftovers and think I will probably put the kabobs on a salad for a work lunch this week.