Weekending: Recharging the Batteries

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?

This Week: Workouts, Schedule & What I’m Looking Forward To

Hi there! Can you believe it’s Christmas week?! Shockingly enough, I feel like I have been able to enjoy the season this year. I decorated my apartment, I’ve attended Christmas parties and I’ve spent Sunday afternoons totally enjoying ABC Family Christmas movies (please tell me I’m not the only one who has a guilty pleasure watching those cheesy movies!). But, with that said, I still can’t believe that Christmas is in 3 days. I can’t wait!

Since it’s a holiday week and I’ll be home in Maine for most of it, my workouts will be a little different than usual, but that’s good sometimes!

Last Week’s Workouts

  • Monday- I subbed a kickboxing class at the Watertown BSC. As I’ve been subbing more lately, I’ve realized how “trained” my members are who come to my permanent classes. Those members come week after week and are always ready for the crazy things I throw at them, however, when I sub, I am reminded that those members are not used to me and I need to tone it down a little so that people don’t feel overwhelmed. It’s weird!
  • Tuesday- I had all intentions of going to the gym after work to run on the treadmill, but when I got to the gym, they told me they were closing in 20 minutes. I had plans that night and was getting picked up at a certain time so by the time I trucked my way home through the snow, I had 10 minutes to do something. I could’ve skipped it all together, but I really needed to get some energy out so I did 10 minutes of random cardio moves. Wasn’t a lot, but it was better than nothing!

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  • Wednesday- I got up and worked out before work. I did a full body tabata workout and it was awesome!

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25 Days of Christmas

  • Friday- Rest day!
  • Saturday- I did 20 minutes on the elliptical, 10 minutes of abs and then BodyPump. It was awesome.
  • Sunday- I ran the Jingle Bell 5K with my sister! This was my 6th year running the race and I still have to say it is one of my most favorite races. What made it even more special was the fact that my sister ran it with me… as her first race! so proud!

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This Week’s Workouts

  • Monday- I have dinner plans after work so by the time this is published, I will have finished an at-home workout. Maybe this workout or maybe all 3 of my holiday series workouts (this, this, and this).
  • Tuesday- I am heading home to Maine on the 9am train so my plan is to try and get my workout done before that, but we will see.
  • Wednesday- It’s Christmas, so I am not sure if I’ll get a workout in or not. If there’s snow, I would love to go snow shoeing or cross country skiing with my mom!
  • Thursday- If the YMCA near my parent’s house is open, I may try to get to a class or do my own workout there. Otherwise, an at home workout.
  • Friday- Definitely trying to get to a class!
  • Saturday- There’s a great 1.5 hour cardio cross training class at the YMCA that I would love to get to before heading back to MA
  • Sunday- Pending on my workouts earlier in the week will determine whether or not I’ll workout on Sunday.

Schedule

This is a fun week because A.- there’s only 1 real day of work for me and B.- it’s Christmas so that means I get to go home to Maine for longer than usual! I am heading home on Tuesday morning and will be there until Saturday. It will be so nice to get out of the city for some extended R&R.

Things I’m Looking Forward To

Gosh. So much! Dinner at the Palm on Monday will be fun and I can’t wait to take the train home. We host a party on Christmas Eve with a bunch of family friends and it’s pretty much my favorite night of the year. We drink lots of bubbly, enjoy lots of homemade pizzas and laugh so much. I can’t wait!

Questions for you: Do you plan to workout over the holidays? What’s your favorite Christmas tradition? What are you looking forward to the most this week?

Weekend {Picture} Recap: Kennebunkport, Lounging, Shopping

This past weekend was awesome, partly because it was a long weekend, partly because it was spent with my family in Maine and partly because I was able to relax and have some “me” time. Here’s my recap.. in pictures!

Friday

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We decided to share some pizza’s (David’s is known for their pizzas), as well as a burger and I got the Beef and Barley soup.

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got my hair highlighted/lunch at Davids KPT/Drinks at Hurricane Restaurant/Checking out mom’s “ugly Christmas sweater” collection. Could be worth lots of money these days.

Saturday

Danielle and I got up early on Saturday to head back to Brighton for my kickboxing class and then hung around and relaxed for the afternoon.

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Gathering my Christmas decorations/relaxing/shopping at the Gap

Sunday

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Sunday morning workout/Birthday shopping for my sister (We got her AMAZING deals on workout clothes- 3 tops, 1 sports bra and 2 pants for $47!!!)/shopping for me (because I hadn’t spent enough $$$ all weekend! In all honesty, though, I needed both pairs of shoes!)/weekly food/salad/lunch prepping

Questions for you: What was the best thing you did all weekend? If you could always have a 3 day weekend, would it be Friday-Sunday or Saturday-Monday? What is the last thing you splurged on for yourself while shopping?

Thanksgiving in Maine {Recap}

My family doesn’t really have a “tradition” for Thanksgiving, but I think that’s what makes it fun- every year we have the “what do you want to do this year for Thanksgiving?” conversation? I’ve spent Thanksgiving in Bath, England (studying abroad), Athens, Greece (visiting my sister when she was studying abroad), Quebec City (family trip) and Burlington, VT, to name a few. This may seem weird to some, but we love it! It makes Thanksgiving an adventure each year and as long as the 4 of us are together, it doesn’t really matter what we do. Our tradition is to not have a tradition.

This past year, we went back and forth, debating on whether to do Thanksgiving at my sister’s apartment in Somerville or to do Thanksgiving in Maine. In the end we decided to do it in Maine, and I couldn’t have been happier. I got home late on Wednesday night (taught a 5:30 class and then met up with friends at a bar not far from my parents’ house), but still, waking up to a snowy, Thanksgiving morning on Thursday was perfect! Not long after waking up, we all got very busy in the kitchen doing all the prep work for our meal. IMG_5892 IMG_5891 I made these Pumpkin Pecan Bars, which have been a hit every time I make them! IMG_5919

And this delicious Pumpkin Pudding:

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Once the prep work was done, I got busy doing this workout. Fitness instructors: do you ever make workouts and then do them, only to hate yourself for making pieces of it so hard? Yeah, the 5 minutes of cardio (3 times) in this was killer. But, it was an effective workout since I did feel quite sore yesterday! Good thing it was my rest day 😉

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The best way to hydrate after a good workout is by drinking bubbly, right?!

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Our meal was absolutely delicious and it was so fun prepping for it together! Here’s the spread of what we had!

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Is it just me, or is it really hard to keep “portion control” when you’re serving your Thanksgiving meal? Granted, I don’t ever eat everything I put on my plate (my eyes are always way bigger than my stomach), but I cannot help but fill my plate to the brim every.single.time

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SO good! Everything was unbelievable, but I am happy to say that I saved plenty of room for dessert (my Thanksgiving could consist of stuffing, mashed potatoes and pie… lots of pie). My dad canned his own pumpkin this year and made pumpkin pie with his own canned pumpkin, which is pretty cool if you ask me. Mom was quite skeptical about the pie, but I had faith in papa bear and he did not disappoint! I was REALLY impressed with how delicious and REAL his pie tasted. Nice work, dad!

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After we digested most of our meal, we headed over to our family friend’s house… for dessert… round 2.  Christine always makes the best desserts, so even though I was full, I had to have some more. On top of dessert, we got lots of Zeke snuggles! I cannot believe he is almost 6 months old and 20 pounds!!!

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Oh my goodness, I cannot even handle his cuteness!

Phew! That about covers our Thanksgiving. Even though it was a low-key day in that we didn’t have a huge family get-together, it was a perfect Thanksgiving. My life in Boston is so go-go-go, that when I come home, I appreciate just being home and with my family. I appreciate the slower-paced lifestyle and the ability to “recharge” my batteries.

I hope all of you had a fantastic Thanksgiving!

Questions for you: How did you spend your Thanksgiving? Do you have family traditions? Do you workout before you indulge in treats and drinks?

This Week: Weekend Catch Up, Workouts, Things I am Looking Forward To

Happy Monday, friends! How was your weekend? It felt good to have one since last weekend I was cooped up inside at MANIA on Friday and Sunday and ran the Spartan race on Saturday (I owe you that recap this week!), which didn’t leave much room for “weekending”.  Friday night I went to drinks at Warehouse on Broad Street followed by dinner at Anthem which is always a favorite of mine! Saturday I taught an amazing kickboxing class (46 people came!!!) then ran a bunch of errands and went to lunch at Not Your Average Joe’s with my sister. I went back to Warehouse on Saturday night for drinks with a couple of friends (they ate dinner and said the food was great!!) and Sunday I hosted a Pampered Chef party. So even though it was a busy weekend, it was fun 🙂

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Stemless champagne flutes at Warehouse? New to me… not sure if I’m a fan or not. Regardless, the bubbly tasted good 😉

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Winter beer for lunch and an amazing seasonal flatbread which had pesto, caramelized onions, butternut squash, Brussels sprouts, and cheese (can’t remember what kind, though).IMG_5872

The girls got the “Greek Nachos” to start, which I tried and thought were delicious. It was such a fun idea!

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How about the workouts? I took Monday and Tuesday as rest days because my body needed it! Holy moly did it need it. I was SO sore and tight after my weekend festivities that it felt good to rest and foam roll. Once I got back into workouts, I felt like I did the right thing by giving my body some time to rest.

Last Week’s Workouts

  • Monday & Tuesday- Lots of walking! Monday I took the long walk home and Tuesday ran errands and shopped. My muscles loosened up a lot by walking and getting blood flowing. Needed that!

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  • Wednesday- I ran a 5K on the treadmill (a slow one, but that’s ok!) before teaching UXF Burn. It was a big class, so I didn’t get to do as much of the workout since I was walking around correcting form (I brought in some new moves so that required a lot of coaching from me).

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Wore my new shirt from MANIA!

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  • Thursday- Taught SHRED using a format I learned at Sunday’s MANIA events and taught kickboxing with a totally new set of combos (that I made up as I brushed my teeth, haha). It was high cardio- we gotta burn those calories before T-day!
  • Friday- I did 10 minutes of random cardio (jogging, jumping jacks, burpees, jump squats, etc. etc.) and the upper body and core exercises from Athena’s Total Body Blast workout.
  • Saturday- I taught a super sweaty, super high cardio, super crowded kickboxing class at the Oak Square YMCA. I woke up feeling like I had done a million lunges on Friday, and since I didn’t, I blame it on Delayed Onset Soreness from Thursday’s workouts. Felt good to shake my legs out in class!
  • Sunday- Since I feel like I didn’t get a chance to get in some isolated and focused strength training in, I headed to the East Boston YMCA for their 10:30 “Y Pump” class. Felt great!

This Week’s Workouts

  • Monday- Subbing a kickboxing class at the Watertown BSC- it’s a 6:30, so BSCers if you’re looking for a good class, please come!
  • Tuesday- I will probably head to the gym after work for strength and maybe a little cardio.
  • Wednesday-My 6:30 UXF Burn class is cancelled, but I am subbing the 5:30 Sports Conditioning Class, so if you get out of work early, definitely come- we will work super hard to burn lots of calories before Thanksgiving!
  • Thursday- I will do some type of at-home workout at my parents house. I am trying to come up with a Thanksgiving-themed workout, so be on the lookout 😉
  • Friday- Rest day! I am getting my hair done and then my family is heading to Kennebunkport for lunch at David’s, walking around, shopping, and drinks at Hurricane Restaurant (fun fact: I used to manage the books and be a hostess there- so fun!).
  • Saturday- Heading back to Boston early Saturday morning to teach Kickboxing at the Oak Square YMCA- come burn off your holiday eats!
  • Sunday- Maybe a rest day? I’ll see how I feel.

Things I am Looking Forward To

Gosh! There are so many things! I am exited to sub a few classes since I am missing both of mine on Thursday. I am excited to be home in Maine for Thanksgiving. We are doing dinner just the 4 of us and then we head to Sara and Amy’s mom’s house for dessert… a tradition for as long as I can remember! I’m excited about getting my hair highlighted and then spending the whole day with my family because we have lots of fun together 🙂

Questions for you: What was your favorite part about last weekend? Do you plan on working out on Thanksgiving? What are you looking forward to this week? Please share- I love hearing from you 🙂