Tag: moving

Craving Normalcy

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Hi B2B friends! I’ve missed you! While we are not anywhere near being fully unpacked and settled, we are starting to feel somewhat better than we did last week, that’s for sure! And, we finally have a kitchen sink! Might not sound like much, but washing dishes in the bathroom sink or shower for a week was getting  a little old 😉 (still waiting on the back splash, so excuse that!)

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Our weekend was a mix of unpacking/organizing/renovating, but we did get together with family which is always nice. Friday afternoon my friend Jessi was in the area so she stopped by for some Prosecco. Later, RM’s brother, sister in law and nephew came over for pizza and vino. We got the pizza from Max & Leo’s, which is just a short walk from our apartment. I have to say, East Boston has pretty much nailed the pizza game, but Max & Leo’s may have them beat! This pizza was outstanding!

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Saturday we got up and I went for a 4.5 mile run before we hit the road to spend the day in Maine with some family. My mom had some of her siblings in town which is always fun! We went to the beach in Wells and then went to dinner at Billy’s Chowder House.

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Sunday was spent making a major dent in some renovations- I sanded the pantry- which is quite a workout- and then RM did a layer of primer on the cabinets while I cleaned and primed all the draws.

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It feels so good to make some progress with the rest of our move. While the living room is coming along and the bedrooms are mostly set up, we still have a long way to go until we are fully settled in!

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I’ll say this- moving is stressful to begin with. Moving 2 people with fully furnished apartments into 1 combined apartment is stressful. Doing both of those things AND living a midst a kitchen renovation is stressful X 3 🙂

As I said last week, my goal during this whole move has been to stay calm, understanding and to try and stay up-beat/positive. I’ve only had one minor meltdown, so I think that’s pretty good! I’ve got a lot less stress than RM since he’s not only managing all of the renovation work at our new apartment, but also a complete gut renovation in a unit back in East Boston and getting new tenants into both of our old units. Even though we are both very similar in our abilities to handle stress and change, I feel like staying positive this time around is the least I can do- two of us stomping around frustrated and stressed is just not going to help anyone or anything 😉

All in all, though, even with all the chaos and no sense of normalcy, we’ve been having a lot of fun living together. We’ve both talked about how it feels so good to have one home base that we share. We may be stressed and tired, but at least we are going through it together. Going for a walk to Starbucks in the morning and figuring out where we want to put stuff has been so fun! And, little by little we are making strides towards normalcy- we both like to have food prepped and ways to eat healthy food at home rather than going out, so making it a priority to even have a few key kitchen items unpacked has really helped.

I hope all of you had a great weekend and have a good week! For those of you in the Boston area, I’m subbing for Athena on Tuesday morning at 6am at the Oak Square YMCA- would love to see some familiar faces!! I’m looking for suggestions on what to teach, too!

Questions for you: How do you handle stress? Do you go with the flow or stress over change and lack of normalcy? What did you do this weekend? Have you ever done home renovations?

Weekending: Moving & Labor Day Weekend Edition

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Well, here we are- Labor Day has come and gone. RM and I were talking about how while we can’t believe summer is on its way out, summer actually didn’t feel incredibly short. We didn’t have a lot of weekend plans, weddings or travel this summer so we were able to take advantage of many weekends on the Cape and a few in Maine which was different than last summer. I also don’t remember a time when I went to the beach as much as I did this year. Whether just scooting over to Constitution Beach in East Boston or going to the Cape or Wells Beach in Maine, we did some serious beaching!

Last weekend’s long weekend started on Thursday when it was move day for me. While I don’t like packing and unpacking, the actual physical act of moving doesn’t bother me- I look at it as another workout!

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I had never hired movers before and although I had a slightly argumentative phone call with  the owner at one point, things ended up going very smoothly. Thanks to a recommendation by Stephanie, I hired Secure Movers and was impressed not only with their rates, but also with their speed. We (yes, I helped move boxes down my stairs and into the truck), were able to completely load up the truck, drive to Watertown and unload the truck in just under 2 hours. I call that a success!

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After they left, I spent some time getting the extra bedroom set up, grabbed lunch at the local Whole Foods (and an ice cream at the Market Basket in Chelsea- was totally craving one!) and then headed back to my apartment to clean.

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When all was said and done, I walked over 26K steps and climbed 100 flights of stairs. I honestly don’t remember the last time I felt so physically, mentally and emotionally drained. Even though I am so excited about our move, it was a weird feeling to be moving out of my last “single girl” apartment.

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Thankfully, dinner and wine at Kelly’s Pub (awesome local joint in EB) made me feel muuuuuch better and I slept like a baby that night.

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Friday morning I worked from RM’s apartment for a half day and then fit in a quickie workout, which actually left me sore for a few days! I ran 1.5 miles and then did this tabata workout, which I still really loved! We went to the new apartment to do some stuff and then grabbed dinner at Jeveli’s before heading south for a weekend at the Cape.

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(Ashley P- finally opened the bottle of La Crema that you gave me a long time ago! I always save my “nice” bottles of wine and figured moving was a great time to crack it open!)

The rest of the weekend was spent relaxing- both at the house and on the beach! We had a delicious dinner on Saturday night consisting of burgers, hot dogs, chicken, sausage, rice, salad and corn on the cob.

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Sunday morning I fit in another quickie workout: run 1 mile, 4 tabata rounds (squats & lunges, push-ups & jabs, high knees & squat jacks, side dips & standing crunches), run 1 mile. Short and sweet! We attempted a day trip to Martha’s Vinyard, but logistically it didn’t work out so we ended up just heading back to Craigville Beach.

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It was the perfect beach day, but unfortunately I only made it in the water once because I got stung by a jelly fish… TWICE! Hurt so freaking bad! Roberto later got stung on his neck- it was weird! I used to think that going to the beach was such a process: packing the bags, chairs, lotion, lunches, drinks, etc., but this summer we have nailed the process and can get ready and on the beach in no time! For lunch on Sunday and Monday, we opted for “wrapless wraps”- something I think we are going to do a lot more of! Basically, we used the turkey as the “wrap”, then layered cheese, hummus and spinach and rolled it up. I also put rice in mine and Roberto put pickles in his.

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Really enjoyed this “healthier” and “lighter” lunch option!

For dinner, we stopped in at Baxters in Hyannis for a drink and then had dinner at Tugboats.

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Monday morning I went for a 3 mile jog before an earlier beach day.

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We contemplated heading back to Boston early, but the weather was just too perfect to not take advantage of it. One more beach day was well worth the traffic on the way home!

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All in all it was a really fantastic weekend, and perfect timing since last week was stressful and this week likely won’t be much different. I really focused on being present in the moment and soaking in all the goodness that the weekend brought rather than stressing about all that we have to do this week. Such a simple change in perspective really made all the difference in the world. I don’t like living in limbo and chaos, but I’m really working on not having any expectations for the rest of the move and kitchen renovations and just letting things be. If we have to eat out every night- so be it. If we don’t have a kitchen sink for a while and have to wash veggies in the bathroom- it’s only temporary. If I drink wine every night and break my “rule”, who cares! This sort of mentality doesn’t happen naturally for me, but I realize it will make the next few weeks a whole lot better if I do it!

I hope all of you had a great long weekend, too! And for those of you with recent moves, I feel your pain! I’m not sure how much I’ll be blogging this week because on top of moving I am teaching on Wednesday and subbing on Thursday (6:30pm cardio kickboxing- Wellington BSC), but I’ll pop in when I can 🙂

Questions for you: Did you grill this past weekend? Did you go to any Labor Day Parties? Do you prefer the beach, lake or pool? Was this summer busy for you or did you have time to relax?

Weekending & Preparing for the “Big Move”

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Good morning! It’s hard to believe we are entering into our LAST week of summer, huh? I mean, I know September generally bodes good weather, but it’s crazy to think that Labor Day Weekend is right around the corner. The Cape seemed to be a bit quieter than normal this past weekend, and I wonder if it’s because a lot of schools have already started so people don’t hang around as long on Sundays anymore? Whatever the reason, I’ll take it! Here are some pictures from the weekend- it was a good one!

Part of our dinner on Friday night- whipped up this delicious quinoa salad… hope to share it with you this week!

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RM had a bunch of stuff to do for one of the apartments he’s renting so after I taught I went to the beach in East Boston for a few hours.

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Ahhh, finally made it to the Cape just in time for cocktail hour 😉

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Have you guys tried these Spiked Seltzers? I loveeedd it and want to try more flavors!

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Soaking up the sun on a beautiful Sunday beach day. The water was the perfect temp and was so fun to play in!

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Traffic was on our side on the way home, too- love when that happens 🙂 What I don’t love, though? Is packing… it’s just the worst. I haven’t talked much about it on the blog, but RM and I have decided to move in together! We are moving into a house his family owns in Watertown/Newton Corner and while I’m sad to leave East Boston and the “city” life, it will be nice to have a bigger apartment… with a yard… and a big driveway, so even though we won’t be a few short T stops into the city anymore, it will be nice to have all of those things. Plus, I think it’s going to be a lot of fun living together and it is going to make my life so much easier because I won’t have to pack a bag and head to his place every night like I’ve been doing for the past year+.

While I’m a little nervous about moving in with a guy (this is a first for me!), I definitely feel like it’s the right time and something I really want to do. We spend so much time together anyway, that it will be nice to be able to do that in a place of our own, which is much different than doing it at his apartment, even though I feel super comfortable there. I’m sure there will be some adjustments that we will both have to make, but at the end of the day, I think our lives in terms of living will mesh really well together and I’m excited to have someone to come home to every night! I’m also excited to cook and shop together (even though we already do this all the time now) and have one “home base” to share so that no matter what our schedules are like, we know we will at least both be going to bed together every night.

So, I’m moving out of my place on Thursday and then we are both moving to Watertown officially on Tuesday the 8th. I know you’re probably going “why wouldn’t you just move in at the same date together?!”, and I get it… we are questioning the same thing! I think originally the plan was to have me moved out in early September so the new renters could move in. They are doing some renovations to the apartment we are moving into (new countertops, new sink, new dishwasher, new stove, putting in a washer and a dryer, etc.), so we were hoping to have that finished before officially moving in, which is why his move date is a few days out past mine. It’s going to be a little chaotic, but hopefully things will go smoothly!

I’m hoping to keep my blogging fairly regular over the next few weeks, but if I seem to go silent, at least you’ll know why 🙂

Questions for you: What was the best part of your weekend? Have you tried the spiked seltzers? Do you feel ready for summer to end? Any tips for moving in with your significant other?

 

Chicken & Veggie Zoodles- Scampi Style

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Good morning! It’s hard to believe that we are entering our last full week of August. On the one hand, this summer has gone by in a blur, but on the other, I feel like it’s been one of the most relaxing summers I’ve had in a long time. We only had 1 wedding, we didn’t have any big trips planned and we were able to get to the Cape for a few nice weekends. Even though I always want a nice, sunny weekend, this past one- rainy/gloomy/humid weather and all- was actually welcomed.

It was nice to be able to do stuff inside my apartment rather than go to the beach! Plus, my parents came down on Saturday for the night to help my sister and me with some packing and to celebrate my dad’s birthday. We ordered lunch when they got here on Saturday and then headed to Piers Park to hang out and relax before going food shopping in order to make dinner on Saturday night. We ended up grilling burgers- some were beef/veal/pork and the others were plan ol’ beef burgers. So good! On Sunday , mom and I went to church and then we all helped pack up some stuff that they were gracious enough to take home for us. All in all, it was a great weekend and so nice to just be home. I can’t remember the last time I woke up in my apartment on a Sunday and then had most of the day to do whatever the heck I wanted to do (which, consisted of watching part of a movie, doing a quickie workout, cooking, reading and blogging).

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Anyway! The point of this post was to share an easy “zoodle” recipe with you. It seems like spiralizers are all the rage these days, and I can’t lie- I love using mine! I’ve used it for carrots, zucchini and summer squash, but zucchini is my favorite. This recipe came together pretty quickly and I enjoyed it all week. Loaded with wine and garlic and veggies, you can’t really go wrong 😉

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Ingredients- rough estimate- I didn’t measure 🙂

  • 2 large zucchinis, spiralized
  • 1 ear of corn, steamed and kernels cut off the cob
  • handful of small Brussels sprouts- cut in half
  • 4 chicken breast tenders
  • 2 tbsp. pine nuts (or nut of choice)
  • 2 cloves of garlic
  • 1/4 cup EVOO
  • 1/4 cup white wine
  • Juice of 1 lemon
  • S&P to taste

Directions

  1. Steam the corn & cut the kernels off. Meanwhile, cut the Brussels sprouts and steam for 2-3 minutes to speed up the cooking time.
  2. Spiralize your zucchini and set aside. Head a skillet at medium heat and let the oil, garlic, wine and lemon juice simmer.
  3. Once it’s simmerd a bit, add in the steamed Brussels sprouts and let them cook for a bit. Once they are mostly soft, add in the pine nuts and corn and raw zucchini. While that is cooking, heat up another skillet and cook the chicken.
  4. Once the chicken is cooked, chop it up and add it to the veggies.

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I’ll be honest, I had no idea what I was creating when I started this dish- I just knew I had a bunch of things in my fridge that I needed to use up so I went with it and I have to say- I’m pretty happy with the end result!

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I loved the flavor combination as well as the bright green and yellow colors- and the slight crunch from the pine nuts was great for a texture queen like myself.

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I ended up even eating it cold throughout the week and it tasted just as good as when it was nice and hot.

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I tend to eat more veggies in the summer (because everything is fresh and they are light and easy), and this meal totally hit the spot in that department. Nothing like quick, easy & healthy meals to throw together and eat throughout the week!

Questions for you: How was your weekend? Has your summer been busy with weddings and travel? What’s your favorite dinner to make in the summer? Do you have a spiralizer?

 

 

 

Weekending: Moving, moving & more moving

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Yup. Moving was the jist of my weekend starting on Thursday night. I keep telling everyone that moving to a new floor in the same building is just as hard, if not harder, than moving to an entirely new building! Instead of packing things up and doing a few big trips, I ended up not packing and just making a million trips up and down the stairs every time I needed something. It was a bad way to go about the move, let me tell you that!

After a few hours of strenuous moving on Thursday night, I had a glass of wine then treated my helpers to pizza and wine from Santarpio’s.

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#prioritiespeople Clearly wine is the first thing that should be in a fridge. Booze helps moving suck less 😉

I hadn’t been to Santarpio’s since my birthday weekend, and boy was I craving it! Per usual, Santarpio’s did not disappoint. Look at these bad boys!

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My parents came down on Friday to help my sister with her stuff (she’s moving in with me for a few months), so I rushed home after work to join the party. I was pleasantly surprised when I walked in and saw this beautiful bouquet of flowers from RM. For those of you who don’t know, he’s actually my landlord and that’s how we met 🙂 Last year, when I was just his tenant, he knew I was nervous about moving and surprised me with a bottle of wine and little note in my fridge. This year, as my boyfriend, he left flowers… I’m a lucky girl!

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I took a quick break for dinner (we ordered from Jeveli’s) and continued working until 8:30.. yuck! It was fun having my parents around, though. Dad broke in my new deck, I toasted to the new apartment and we all indulged on delicious food!

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I didn’t sleep a wink on Friday night, so I was up and making trips up and down the stairs at 7am on Saturday. This wasn’t a good idea before teaching cardio kickboxing! I was such a space cadet in class 😦 and tired- physically really tired!

Once I got back, it was nice to do some more organizing and a few additional trips. My downstairs neighbor, Lauren, came up for wine and snacks later that evening- it was such a fun night! It felt weird to sleep at home by myself on a Saturday night, though… and even more weird to wake up on a Sunday and have a quiet place to myself… I took advantage of it and watched tv and blogged. I can’t tell you how long it’s been since I’ve done that! I was even able to eat lunch out on my deck- such a beautiful day.

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The rest of Sunday was spent moving the final pieces of stuff from my old place, cleaning it and doing the last bit of organizing in my new place. I went to Target and picked up some new curtains and a lamp- what do you think of the place so far?

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I finally decided it was time to put together some dinner. Salads have been making me gag lately, so I knew I needed to prep enough food to bring for lunch and eat throughout the week. Since my dad brought me all these veggies, I tried to put them to good use.

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I made a big ol’ batch of roasted veggies, including carrots, parsnips and onions from my dads garden and sweet potato and butternut squash (side note: I originally typed SQUAT instead of squash… i have issues) from the store. I just put coconut oil, salt, pepper and garlic salt on them and roasted them at 400* for about an hour.

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On the side, I made some stuffed peppers with the peppers that my dad gave me. I put onions, summer squash, zucchini, broccoli, black beans and ground chicken in them. SO good!

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I made some ground chicken burgers with the leftover ground chicken. Thank goodness I had wine to keep me going through all that food prep!

So, there’s my weekend. I have to say- it was really nice being around on Sunday without a million plans. My sister was gone all day, so even though I got lonely by 7ish, it was a super relaxing day where I was able to do what I wanted when I wanted. I need more days like that 🙂

Questions for you: What was the best part of your weekend? Did you make any good meals? Do you food prep for the week? What’s a way to spice up a salad?