Tag: wedding registry

Five on Friday {4.1.16}

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Good morning! And happy April and Happy Birthday month to my fellow April birthday friends 🙂 I could’ve gotten you guys so bad with an April Fools joke (quitting the blog, canceling the wedding, being pregnant, etc.), but I’ll spare you that and just get right to the Five on Friday topics for today!

  • Mary’s Gone Crackers– We are always on the hunt for healthier chip/cracker varietals, so when I saw these on sale at Whole Foods, I had to try them out. The verdict? I am a big fan! RM likes them, but still prefers the Almond Thins we usually have on hand. I like the Mary’s crackers because they are full of seeds and the ingredient list is pretty clean.

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  • Signs of Spring- There may be snow in the weekend forecast, but for now I’m focusing on little signs of spring around our apartment, including these pretty flowers!
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  • Wedding Registry Gifts- With the wedding shower in just about a month, the gifts have started coming in and it’s so exciting. I joked that every day is like Christmas these days! I know we technically know and picked out everything we’ve been getting, but it’s still exciting to see and feel the gifts. I was especially excited to get 2 sets of the “fancy” place settings I registered for since I had only seen them on line. I love them even more in person!!

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  • Book Club- Tuesday night was book club night, which is always a fun time. Our friend Lauren hosted it in her absolutely adorable Charlestown apartment and the theme was “all the dips”, meaning everyone brought a different “dip” to enjoy. Since most people brought appetizer dips, I offered to bring a dessert dip, which was a big hit- we joked it was like we were eating grown up Dunkeroo’s (remember those things?!). I found it here, and chose it because it was SO easy… and because it was called “Cinnamon Roll Cheesecake” dip and that sounded heavenly. I highly suggest throwing a dip party at some point in your life!

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  • Dresses for Wedding Festivities- I hit up Assembly for some shopping before book club because between my shower, bachelorette party and rehearsal dinner, I am in need of some dresses. I found one at the Express Outlet that I liked, but then when I went to Off Saks, I ended up finding this baby that I liked even more. Best part? It was priced at $220, but I got it for $48! What do you think?

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And that does it! This weekend should be much more relaxed than the past handful of weekends. I’m teaching tomorrow and then hopefully going to a deadlift/hinge mini group training at Foster Fitness and that’s it for set plans. I hope to knock out a bunch more of the Box FIIT Certification, have a date night, meal prep and go to church- whatever you have on the agenda for the weekend I hope you enjoy yourselves!

Questions for you: What’s your favorite snack chip/cracker? What’s your favorite dip? Do you have any suggestions for where I can find a white romper or two piece outfit for my bachelorette party? What’s on the agenda this weekend? Get any good sweats in this week?

 

 

 

Five on Friday {1.29.16}

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Good morning! I had some of these drafted to post last week, but I ended up getting home later than expected after the blogger event at Social so I didn’t have it in me to break open my computer and finish the post. I’m sure you didn’t lose sleep over it 😉

Are you guys having a good week? I am! As I mentioned on Wednesday, I’ve been focusing on yoga this week and it’s been really great! I’m a little nervous for next week, though, because I’m teaching 4 classes in 3 days- way more of an intense schedule than I had this week! It’s all good, though- I’m excited for all of the events and classes I have lined up 🙂 here’s some noteworthy Friday things for you today:

1. Chromecast- RM finally took the plunge and got us a Chromecast so that we can start streaming Netflix through out TV. Also worth noting, we finally upgraded his subscription to be from receiving DVD’s in the mail (Yes, he was still requesting DVD’s to be sent to him!) to be a streaming subscription. We had already started recording Breaking Bad episodes on our TV so we’ve been watching them there, but once that is done it will be nice to be able to just stream Netflix. Welcome to 2016, Monique & Roberto.

2. Wedding room block/Registry- We’ve received an update on who has booked their rooms for our wedding and it’s SO exciting!! I seriously can’t wait until the big day is finally here. I am also obsessed with our wedding registry. While it was a little stressful and overwhelming at first (what to register for, what do we want/like/need, where to do it, etc.), I’m kind of loving it now. I check it daily and add new things- the worst that can happen is people don’t buy them for us- big deal! I’ll also admit that at first I didn’t think we needed anything, but then I realized that this may be the only time (for a long time) that we are able to start fresh and having matching everything- the Type A in me LOVES this.

3. Trillfit Event on 1/31– Looking for a workout on Sunday? Consider checking out the Trillfit event at the Hotel Commonwealth from 10am-2pm. From their site: TRILLFIT presents BRUNCH + BURN, Boston’s first wellness day party. Join us at Hotel Commonwealth for two high-energy, sweat-inducing workouts, delectable + healthy brunch bites, on-site beauty treatments and more . Celebrate your 2016 resolutions, grab your squad, and get live to a set by TRILLFIT’s own DJ Nick Bishop. 10AM: TRILLyoga with @LadyDork (60 min – *bring your own yoga mat*), 11AM: TRILLfit* with Melisa Valdez (60 min), 12PM – 2PM: Brunch + Day Party. Sounds like a blast, right?

4. Easiest Buffalo Wings– RM’s brother sent him a recipe from Bon Appetite (I think) and we decided to whip them up for the game the other weekend. We usually do wings in the crockpot using RM’s signature honey-garlic recipe he created on his own, but this recipe is WAY easier and faster. Get this- you just bake the wings in the oven at 450* for 35-45 mins, take them out and toss them in a mixture of 2tbsp butter and 1/4 cup sriracha. Could you get any easier? NOPE!

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5. SWEAT-Kick Event 2/4– I’m saving the best for last! If you follow me on social media, I’m sure you’ve seen me advertise the launch event for my first class at Foster Fitness, which is next Thursday at 5:30pm. The gym is in Wakefield and the event is going to be a blast- we will run through some cardio kickboxing combinations, throw in some bootcamp exercises and core work at the end and then refuel with protein shakes and salads from sweetgreen. If you’re interested in coming to the FREE event, please let me know- I would love love love having the support from friendly faces in the crowd!

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And that’s that! I hope you all have a fantastic weekend. Tomorrow is a busy one for me/us, so I’m happy to have taken a half day today to hang out with my sister and have some time to amp up for the weekend.

Questions for you: Do you have a Smart TV or Chromecast where you stream Netflix or Hulu? Did you watch Breaking Bad? What was the best part of your week? What are you looking forward to this weekend?

 

Weekending: Pizza, Patriots, Puppies & Babies

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Good morning! I’m not sure how many of you will be checking in today as it’s a holiday and it seems as though everyone I’ve talked to has today off… except me 😦 I am WFH so I guess it’s not so bad. Did you guys have a good weekend? We did, although we didn’t get to spend much time together because of separate plans/obligations. Let’s recap!

Friday

I WFH on Friday because I had to go in the office on Monday. It was actually so nice to be home on Friday- I hadn’t slept well all week because of my cold so it was great to sleep in a bit and stay in my jammies all morning! It was my rest day so I decided to do some active rest by taking my errands on foot. I had to go to the library to pick up our new book club book- has anyone read this?

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That night, RM and I went to meet up with his family at Charcoal Guido’s for a going away dinner for his sister. She moved down to Atlanta on Saturday to be with her boyfriend. The food and company were both great, but the Nutella pizza at the end kind of stole the show.

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We weren’t ready to go home after the dinner so I suggested swinging by Branch Line for another drink. It was crazy how busy it was there for 9:45pm! I always like seeing that with new restaurants.

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Saturday

On Saturday, I headed out in the rain to go teach. The January crowds are back and I love it! My class worked so hard- it was awesome.

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I was supposed to go visit my friends Christy and Kia since they both had baby girls a few weeks ago, but the weather was apparently bad up there so I ended up postponing it. With a free day ahead of me I decided treat myself to a Starbucks Chai Tea Latte (thanks for the gift card, Dana!!) and headed into the city to start our registry at Macy’s. I’d love to say that went great, but after an hour I walked out with a mere 5 things on it. Oops!

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Once I reached my limit of shopping, I headed to my sister’s apartment to hang with her and some of her friends and to watch the game. Her friend brought the cutest puppy ever and for some reason he loved me so I got lots of puppy snuggles!

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I had a blast hanging out with her and her friends- I hadn’t seen any of them in forever! the food was also great. I made some delicious pizza, there were meatballs, healthy buffalo chicken, veggies, pigs in a blanket, cheese puff pastries… I never do things for the game so I totally loved getting to check out what people do for “game day food”.

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Sunday

We got up and I offered to make us- you guessed it- pancakes! These were probably my best yet, so I wish I would’ve measured things so I could recreate them!

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After breakfast I hit the road to visit Christy and then Kia. I didn’t get any photos because I was busy snuggling the cutest little baby girls! It was nice to hang out with each of them for a bit- very relaxing!

Once I got back home I went food shopping and then we thought about going out to have a drink and catch up since we didn’t get to spend any of the weekend together, but we opted to stay in the house which actually worked out well because we were able to get lots of food prep done: sweet potatoes & brussels sprouts, kale, spicy broccoli and beans. I had taken a meatloaf out of the freezer earlier in the day so dinner was easy to throw together.

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This week is a busy week due to a few social engagements after work, so I’m happy we were able to get ahead of meal prep yesterday!

Questions for you: Did you watch the Patriots game? Do you have a favorite “game day” food to have at parties or bring to parties? What was the best part of your weekend? How is your week looking? Anything fun planned?

Weekending: Holiday Party, Registry Fun & Visits with Friends/Family

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Good morning! Did you guys have a good weekend? We did! Even with weird, unseasonable weather and the constant feeling of fighting off a cold, we had a pretty great one.

Friday

My company’s party was on Friday night, which was actually a nice change from squeezing it in during the typical holiday season. It was at the Hyatt in Cambridge- a great location for us now living in Newton Corner! We were able to leave work early so I took advantage of some extra “free” hours and ran errands. I skipped the gym because my back was bothering me and I felt the onset of a cold, so I opted to walk my errands which was a nice way to still get some movement in. Nails were a must!

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I didn’t take many photos at the event, but I’ll say the cocktails were flowing, the food was good and dancing definitely happened 😉 It’s so fun getting to hang out with coworkers/friends outside of the office! these girls! ❤

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Saturday

We didn’t get home and in bed until nearly 2am, so needless to say, we definitely took our time getting up on Sunday morning! Lucky for me, RM opted to make us his “specialty” breakfast: all the veggies, his special beans, homemade turkey sausage & an egg. It was so delicious!

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After breakfast, I cleaned the house and then we headed into the city. We had late lunch plans with another couple but decided to head in early to start on our wedding registry. We went to Crate & Barrel and had a blast scanning all sorts of things that we wanted! We have a long way to go to complete our registry, but it felt good to start on it!

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It was my first time meeting Roberto’s friends, so I opted to not take photos but we had sushi at Douzo which was good- we love that sushi restaurant.

The rest of the night was very quiet and I was in bed by 9:30 🙂

Sunday

We got up early and I made some French toast- I took pictures so I’ll post the recipe this week!

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I still wasn’t feeling 100%, but after 2 consecutive rest days, I was REALLY itching to move so I headed to the gym for a workout. I’d love to say that it felt so good to workout, but I’d be lying if I said that. The whole thing was just a mental battle, but I made it through the workout and did feel better after I was done so it wasn’t a totally wasted trip.

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I whipped up a quesadilla for lunch since I had leftover ‘dilla veggies & chicken already cut up from making them on Thursday night. It hit the spot!

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Later in the afternoon, we headed over to Brookline to visit with my cousin who was in town for work. It’s always nice to see family when they come to Boston!

I dropped RM off at home and then went to Whole Foods, even though between not feeling great and the ridiculous rain it was the LAST thing I wanted to do. I always feel better once I just do it and I bought myself flowers and a cookie to reward myself for getting it done 😉

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For dinner, I decided that it was the perfect weather for a roast chicken meal. Is this anyone else’s favorite winter meal?! I can’t get enough of it. I chopped up sweet potatoes, Japanese sweet potatoes, onions & carrots and then also cooked some kale. I’m going to make a great wife 😉

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And that about does it! This is a pretty quiet week which is nice- I am ready for a week with no after-work plans (and yes, I know I sound like i’m 60 when I say that!).

Questions for you: Did your company have a holiday party this year? Married friends- what’s the one think you would suggest we register for (maybe that you didn’t originally think you needed) and what’s the one thing you would suggest NOT registering for? What’s your favorite winter meal? Do you have a busy week?