Tag: wine

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?

Weekending: Relaxing, Spontaneous Girls Night, Sunday Dinner

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I wasn’t sure what my weekend was going to entail going into it, which is very unlike me! For once, I went entirely with the flow and sans plans. It was quite nice, might I add!

Friday was weird since I went into the office. Luckily, we can wear jeans on Friday’s now. Since I was dressed and had my hair done, I had wanted to get drinks after work, but no one was around and by the time I got home, the last thing I wanted to do was go back out in the cold so I just stayed in.

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Saturday morning I took a class at Recycle studio with my friend Lindsay which was the best way to start my day!

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We grabbed coffee (tea for me) at Starbucks after class and it was really interesting to hear how she got into teaching at Recycle. It makes me want to do it, but it was a huge time investment and I don’t know if my schedule allows for that right now. By the time I got home, I was starvinggggg, so I quickly whipped up this delicious quesadilla.

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Ground turkey, mushrooms, kale and cheese. It.was.perfect.

I was able to spend the rest of the afternoon catching up on a LOT of blogging. I don’t often have a solid chunk of time to do that, but I wish I did because I was so productive.

I met my sister and Amy at Stoddard’s in Downtown Crossing for a drink before our dinner reservations at 49 Social. It worked out perfectly because they are literally across the street from each other. If you’ve been reading my blog for a while, you probably remember that the “Shapleigh” girls like to get together for girls nights. Rachel was out of town, so it was just the 3 of us this time.

49 Social was really, really good! I didn’t take any pictures of the food, but we got hummus, a Duck Confit Quesadilla, a burger and some asparagus and everything was absolutely delicious. We always like to get things from the bar menu or appetizer section since we all like to share, so it was perfect. Danielle and I shared a bottle of this sauvignon blanc which was quite tasty.

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For once, I didn’t want to go home after dinner. We were having so much fun that we decided to keep it going and have “one more” at Gem as it was nearby. Well, “one more” ended up being “three more” without even really realizing it! I absolutely love nights that turn out like this. We were all just living in the moment and enjoying being out together, so we kept it going.

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We met the young man in the photo above when Danielle was showing off her stellar dance moves. He was visiting from Australia and I’m not sure he really knew how to handle us. It was hilarious.

Anyway! Sunday was productive, but also flew by. I went grocery shopping and then next thing I knew, it was time to head into the city for a class at Exhale Spa. When I got home, I got cookin’ in the kitchen. I made garlic and cheese mashed cauliflower, roasted veggies and marinated chicken. It was simple, but healthy and really good. The flavors were spot on.

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Fantastic way to end my weekend!

Questions for you: When’s the last time you were spontaneous? What was your best meal over the weekend? What was the best part of your weekend?

My Kind of “Boxed” Wine…

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I don’t think I’m surprising anyone when I say I love wine, right? Nope. Definitely not. Well, with that said, it’s safe to say that giving me a present that includes wine is never a bad idea. And when it involves multiple- 6, to be exact- bottles it’s a very good idea! Imagine my face when I opened the box and saw these beauties!

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I don’t know where this was bought, but what I love about it is that there was a sheet of paper with each type of wine’s flavors and good food pairings.

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Although I drink a lot of wine and have been to a number of wine seminars, I really don’t know that much about different varietals, food pairings, aging, etc. My fellow blogger “friend” (is it appropriate to call someone a friend if you’ve only corresponded via social media? I’m going to make it appropriate.) blogs over at The Slant where he talks about the perfect pairing of wine and running… Burpees to Bubbly, Running and Wine… I couldn’t agree more with his outlook on the two! Anyway! He writes hilariously witty posts and I’ve learned so much about wine from his blog. I’m hoping to get him to guest post for me when I’m in Dallas in a few months (hint, hint…).

So, what I’m trying to say, is I can’t provide any in depth analysis of the wines, but I can tell you that if they all taste as good as the Rafale French Merlot, I’m in for a treat!

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I like heavier/thicker red wines and this one was definitely that. It was very flavorful and was perfect for a casual Friday night.

The box came with 4 reds and 2 whites and I think I’ll try one of the whites next.

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I feel like I’ve heard of Terranoble and since I’m a Chardonnay lover (and love Chilean wines), I’m sure it will pass my taste-test approval (but, let’s be honest, what doesn’t? Well, Franzia boxed wine. Sorry mom- I just can’t do it!).

The red that I’m most looking forward to try is the Pallas, simply because I think the label is really cool (yes, I judge wine by the label).

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So, pour yourself a glass of wine and let’s chat!

Red or white? It depends for me! I really enjoy both, but tend to order white when I’m out at a bar since it doesn’t do as much damage if I get bumped and spill. Weather also plays a huge role in terms of whether I’ll drink white or red. Hot, summer day/night? Definitely an ice cold class of white wine, please. Snowy, cold, winter evening? Big ol’ glass of red always does the trick!

What type of red or white do you enjoy the most? Chardonnay or Sauvignon Blanc for whites and Cabernet Sauvignon or Merlot for red. Lately, though, I’ve really been enjoying a good Malbec!

What’s your “go-to” wine when you’re at a busy bar and need to just order something quickly? Chardonnay or Sauvignon Blanc

Do you judge a wine by the label? Yes! How can you not? Unless I’m craving something in particular (usually J. Lohr or La Crema), I’ll pick something out with a neat label.

Your turn! Let me know your favorites 🙂

Weekending: Pure Barre, Crock Pot Meal, Boston Visiters

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This past weekend was relatively quiet, which was good since I was still feeling pretty crappy unless I was drugged up on Sudafed. By Friday afternoon, though, I was itching to get out of my apartment (2 days in a row of working from home will do that to you!), so I decided to get my grocery shopping done. Woohoo, wild and crazy Friday night, huh? To spice things up, I stopped in at TJ Maxx first and scored this awesome Essie nail polish. Did you guys know they sell it there for $4.99?? I’ve been really into paining my nails recently, so I was stoked!

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My Friday night wasn’t entirely boring, though, as I did get together with someone for a class of wine, which ended up making me so stuffy I had to stop after one. The horrors!

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That was a bottle included in an awesome “box” of wine that I got as a Christmas present. I’m going to do a whole recap on that in another post because good wine deserves its own post, right?!

I had been looking forward to Saturday all week because I was finally cashing in my Christmas present from my sister, which was a class at Pure Barre on Newbury Street. I’ve been to a few barre classes, but I still went in without knowing what to expect. Well, 5 minutes in when I was dripping sweat holding all sorts of leg lifts and inner thigh squeezes and 90 second planks, I realized I was in for a real treat!

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I loved the class and could see myself going more often if it wasn’t so expensive, but I have to say that my first reaction of my first class wasn’t what I expected it to be. I think the reason I felt this way was only because the class moved SO fast and I had no idea what I was doing, which left me a little frustrated (it’s the Type A “I want to know exactly what to do, how to do it, what it should look like and how long we’ll be doing it for” in me.). I kept trying to look around for someone who looked like they knew what they were doing, but it was a class primarily full of “newbies” like Danielle and me, so I was out of luck. Even though I spent a lot of time fumbling around trying to figure out what to squeeze and tuck, I was able to “get” the move before it was time to move on, which was good. The instructor was also really attentive and walked around and corrected form (I kind of wanted her to just stand by me and fix me the whole class…) which was great.

I talked to the instructor after class to thank her for a great workout and to ask if it’s normal to be confused with the moves/terminology and she said that everyone feels that way after their first class and that after a few classes you learn the lingo and the moves and it becomes easier in that respect (not in terms of the workout). This made me feel better! And just because I was frustrated didn’t mean I didn’t like it, because I loved it. We worked muscles I didn’t know I had and when I woke up on Sunday morning, I could feel EVERYTHING. Holy moly. My hamstrings, abductors, triceps (I didn’t even think we did anything to work our triceps) and back were screaming as soon as I woke up. It was great. Thanks for a great Christmas present, Danielle! It was so fun trying something totally new and having it literally kick my butt. I want to go back!

After class, we headed to Douzo Sushi for a healthy and light lunch. We shared a Bento Box, Tempura Broccoli and Edamame. We didn’t share our wine, though 😉

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I love going out to lunch and having wine SO much. It’s probably one of my favorite things to do on a Saturday! I had to babysit on Saturday night, so I had to stop after 1 glass. Womp, womp.

Sunday morning I got up, did laundry, made granola (I’ll post it soon- SO good), went for a run and then got my crock pot meal ready since Danielle and I were getting drinks with our cousin on Sunday evening. I got the crock pot recipe from Eat, Live, Run and was happy with how easy it was to prepare. Are all crock pot meals as easy as cutting things up and putting them in the crock pot? I should do more of these…

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I followed Jenna’s recipe exactly except I used sweet potatoes instead of white potatoes. I tried to halve the recipe, but I ended up doing probably 3/4 of the recipe. Soup freezes well, so I’m sure I’ll be doing that!

On Sunday evening, my sister and I met up with our cousin who was in town for various camp fairs (He’s the director at Hosmer Point in Craftsbury Commons, VT.) at Otto Pizza in Coolidge Corner. We got to meet some of his former campers/counselors which was really fun. We talked about Burpees to Bubbly (Hi everyone if you’ve ventured over here!) and I loved it 🙂

And that about sums it up! All in all, it was a good weekend… a little quiet/laid back, but with this stupid cold thing that’s probably just what I needed.

Questions for you: What was the best part of your weekend? Have you been to Pure Barre or another Barre studio in Boston? Do you have tips for a newbie?? What’s your favorite crock pot recipe?

Being snowed in, afternoon cocktails and Cards Against Humanity (aka, best game ever)

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Did the cold weather and snow ruin anyone’s plans on Friday night? I kind of liked being snowed in and was fully prepared to drink wine by myself until my upstairs neighbor ended up being around and joining me. I have no problem drinking some wine by myself, but it’s always nice to have someone to drink it with, too 😉

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Especially when she comes with cookies in hand 🙂

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Don’t worry, before I enjoyed one of them I had some homemade pizza. I used whole wheat dough, which I don’t always do, and it wasn’t bad!

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Saturday started off with a super sweaty kickboxing class and then I met up with a friend for afternoon cocktails at The Kinsale in Boston. I had never been there before, but I’ve been to the Asgard, which is their sister restaurant. It was a nice way to spend a cold Saturday afternoon!

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I went over to my sister and Amy’s apartment after and got to snuggle my little Zeke, who is not so little anymore. I can’t get enough of his cuteness!

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Cards Against Humanity

Ok, so have any of you played this game? I first heard of it when I went to Chicago and JP had us play, but now it seems as though everyone is equally as obsessed with it. If you’ve played, then you know why. It’s very similar to Apples to Apples, but I like it better because it’s a little edgier and just has funnier cards. I’m not a very funny person, but somehow I came in second place- a total shocker!

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I want to buy this game because it’s literally the best game to play with a crowd of people. You get to know everyone pretty well after a few rounds 😉

After a number of rounds of CAH, I went to The Playwrite Bar in Southie with my sister and some of her St. Michael’s friends. I stayed for a few drinks and called it a night before I got to the point where I’d have a hangover on Sunday 😉

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On Sunday, I started out my day with some serious puttering. I cleaned, did laundry, changed my sheets and took down all my Christmas decorations- womp, womp 😦 Does anyone else ever feel a little sad/depressed when it’s time to take down Christmas decorations? I wasn’t ready to do it, but as it was already January 5th, it was time.

I also went grocery shopping (drove to Market Basket and immediately turned around and left. It wasn’t worth facing the masses of people to save a few bucks.), worked out and made a delicious dinner! Remember that Spaghetti Squash Casserole I made a while back? I made another one, but this time with different (colorful!) veggies and chicken sausage. The verdict? Amazing. I love eating a super healthy meal on Sunday nights because it sets me on the right path for the rest of the week. My goal is to also cut back on week night drinking again. It seems I’ve had at least a glass of wine probably 5 out of the 7 days in a week lately, which is fine, but I’m ready to cut back!

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I hope you all had a great weekend, too! Here’s to a new week- what are you doing to make it great? Have you ever played Cards Against Humanity? When do you take down your Christmas decorations?

P.S.- Get excited- I’ve got a new, little January fitness challenge going up on the blog tomorrow!! Hint: it involves burpees 😉

P.P.S.- Do you Uber? If not, it’s the best way to get around the city. They’re running a promotion right now, and if you use this code as a first time user, you’ll get a $20 credit after your first ride. That’s a great deal!! Code: zjbnz