Happy thanksgiving! Today I bring you a cliché "thankful" post because my life can be pretty amazing sometimes.
I'm thankful for:
-Fun times with great, lifelong friends
- Having the ability to laugh at myself for mistakenly wearing moccasins to the gym this morning, and pushing through a workout regardless.
Clearly I do spend too much time in the yoga studio and not enough time doing cardio. I forget what it feels like to wear sneakers...or have a brain haha.
- This wine, which I'm enjoying after a massive thanksgiving dinner. Drops of Jupiter red blend. If it reminds you of the Train song, you're dead-on. It's from the lead singer's winery.
Didn't snap a picture, but I had an enormous sweet potato, white meat turkey, gravy, chili roasted broccoli, and warm red cabbage salad. Yum!
- My amazing family
This picture is from the last holiday we spent together before my dad passed away. Easter 2010. Today we are smaller, but stronger, and I'm so grateful for what I grew up with and what I still have. I love my family and wouldn't trade them for the world.
I mentioned my pre-Thanksgiving Thanksgiving celebration with my godfamily in my last post. Needless to say, it was a blast. But let's be real, how could I not have an awesome day when I was sporting teal leggings? Bold colors make me feel happy.
As always, I ended up playing bartender and blowing everyone's minds with my drink concoctions. My favorite sampling of the night was what I called a Caramel Maple Cake. The Red Hot Apple Pie and the Cinnamon Pumpkin drinks were pretty incredible, too, if I do say so myself. (Just a side note, my "drink names" really do nothing more than describe the flavors of nips that were randomly purchased and combined. ) I sampled all night without actually imbibing, however.
Sunday morning yoga was great as always, and almost all of my favorite people showed up. Yay! A good workout + good conversation = success.
I spent the rest of my Sunday grocery shopping, doing laundry, joking around with my family, and taking the opportunity to watch Meet the Millers since my sisters rented it OnDemand last night.
Oh, and I have to mention that leftover turkey is the best and I enjoyed it for dinner on a salad with spicy brown mustard and habanero mustard for dressings. Yum!
Not to break from the positivity, but my Weather Kitty made me sad today with the forecast. So I put on glasses on him. Yeah, didn't change the fact that it didn't reach 30ºF
This is why I hate New England. At least this cat is amusingly adorable.
Monday's forecast, regardless of the physical outdoor temperature, is looking a-okay to me. Lunch with someone on my caseload as part of my workday, vinyasa and hot yoga, and a 3-day work week.
As always, thanks to Katie for the push to see the positive side of Mondays. Linking up!
Apologies for being MIA the past few days, it's been a really rough week, which called for some much-needed time out with friends. I'm trying really hard to be 24 instead of my typical 70-year-old cat lady esque self. Let me tell you, I feel happier than I have in a while overall.
Backtracking to some new-to-me snacks from the week that are worthy of review:
I won a mixed case of Quest bars recently and decided to heat up the Chocolate Brownie flavor in the microwave for 15 seconds after yoga on Wednesday. Is there any other way to enjoy a Quest bar? Seriously, it's heaven.
Unfortunately, chocolate brownie just didn't meet my high expectations. It was good, don't get me wrong, but not as good as the other flavors I've tried.
Another giveaway win from a while back: MuesliFusion. I decided to pack 1/3 cup with vanilla almond milk in a small mason jar for a pre-workout snack (FYI Stop & Shop unsweetened almond milk is pretty damn good).
Morning Zen blend had pumpkin seeds, cranberries, flax seeds, almonds, raisins, and oats. It was really tasty. I took the bag's advice to let it sit with the almond milk for a few hours to develop flavor and let the oats expand. I can't wait to try the other varieties I have at home.
Well, I'm off to enjoy an early Thanksgiving dinner with my godfamily. I love them!
Tuesday was not a pleasant experience for me. Nothing majorly awful, but just constant annoyances that really gave me a huge headache and resulted in a sleepless night, along with terrible dreams. I woke up in a panic after dreaming that my mom died of a heart attack, and my dadwas stabbed in the stomach, who then turned into my youngest sister, all American Horror Story style. Looking back on the dream this morning, it was actually kind of funny in some ways considering how ridiculous it was, but my sense of humor doesn't register in at 3am. I will say that I liked my unintentionally revolutionary idea to have 911 call centers Facetime callers to visually assess the severity of emergency situations would probably benefit a lot of people...butttttt for this to work, everyone would need an iPhone. Nightmares are flawed.
Other annoyances of Tuesday include:
State budget cuts
Arriving to host trivia and having no one in the restaurant, then having the owners make me wait over an hour, only to yell at me to start asking random questions to no one. I'm sorry, but it is NOT my fault that you are not getting people into YOUR establishment on a Tuesday night. I do what I can to promote, but it is your business and your job to draw people in. Oh, and giving me a really hard time about paying me AGAIN is not cool. That is both my pay and the company's pay. I arrived, I set up, and I stayed late to host trivia at your request. How dare you try to tell me and the company your hired to leave empty-handed. It's just so unprofessional.
My highly unsatisfying dinner of a Recharge Peanut & Caramel 100 calorie bar and 1/2 bag of roasted chickpeas. While delicious as a small snack, it does not suffice for a meal.
Snacks ≠ dinner. This made me cranky.
To avoid being completely negative, I did manage to successfully drive one of these bad boys around Cranston:
Bubble-top transvan, baby! Riding in style! Yeah, much different from my precious little Ford Fiesta. I was so uncomfortable operating that van. Talk about a major size difference.
Oh, Miguel Corona Ricardo Guacardo Avocardo, how I love you.
Wouldn't he be so cute with a mustache? I need to find one of those magnetic ones for the front bumper. Any advice on where to get one would be much appreciated :)
After last week's onslaught of disappointment, both within my own personal life and hardships of others close to me, I'm really trying to keep my chin up and appreciate what I have. I've also been making a point to step out of my comfort zone in a number of ways and, awkward as it feels and sounds, feel comfortable with my discomfort. I guess in my mind, discomfort means progress, and that should instill a comforting feeling.
A few highlights of the past week are making for a Marvelous Monday:
Today was freakishly warm and sunny for mid-November in RI. The forecast was calling for heavy wind and rain, so this was an extra special treat. I embraced the opportunity for a walk to have a much needed vent session with my co-worker. Perfect.
Quest delivery! LOVE this company.
I won a 12 flavor sampler pack of Quest bars from BusyBod's blog giveaway. To my surprise, they arrived with an extra three bars--the elusive cookie dough, white chocolate raspberry and double chocolate chunk flavors--and TWO packages of Quest Cravings Protein Peanut Butter Cups!!! I've been trying to find these EVERYWHERE and cannot wait to try them.
Note: I had every intention of microwaving one of these bars for my post-yoga meal tonight, making for an extra amazing end to my Monday, but I had a serious salt craving. Dinner was far too many carrots with about half a tub of garlic hummus, a lavash wrap with a Laughing Cow light swiss wedge and strawberry preserves, and a mini bag of popcorn with nutritional yeast. Yeah, portion control is not one of my strengths.
I successfully grabbed my toes from behind my head in dancer's pose tonight during hot yoga on both sides! So happy!
Last night, I made an incredible and super easy dinner that everyone else enjoyed just as much. (Let it be known that never happens.)
Baked chicken breast with roasted grapes & red onion and garlic roasted asparagus
Totally random recipe, but it was a success! My sister's boyfriend went home and asked if his mom could make it sometime haha. I also baked a batch of snickerdoodles.
Note: I consumed about 3x that much asparagus and finished off my mom's piece of chicken. Further evidence of my terrible portion control lol.
Chicken Breast with Roasted Grapes:
1 - 1.5lb seedless red grapes
1 small red onion, chopped
3 boneless skinless chicken breasts
1 T olive oil
salt & pepper, to taste
Preheat oven to 425F.
Toss grapes (removed from stems) and onion with the olive oil and a little salt & pepper. Pour into a baking dish and roast for 15 minutes.
Remove baking dish from the oven, mashing about half of the grapes to release juice and stir. Place chicken breasts on top and return to oven at 450F for 45-55 minutes, until chicken is cooked all the way through.
I've been sleeping like shit lately and totally needed a boring day to recuperate. Nothing exciting to report: I went to Saturday morning yoga x2 (feels so good to be back, I haven't been since Monday!), did some grocery shopping, ate all day, and got a little paperwork done for work. Normally I hate staying home with nothing to do on a Saturday, but I've been keeping pretty busy lately and have a lot on my mind, so googling new recipes with a Modern Family marathon is a-okay with me.
I wanted to use this post to share some interesting things that I've come across online this week:
This was a great article about a fitness experiment that lead to some unpleasant, unexpected results. I think this is hugely relevant to our society today. We are so obsessed with obtaining the "perfect body," but it really just isn't worth the price you pay. Orthorexia and exercise bulimia are definitely on the rise, especially amongst young American women, and the obsession never seems to end.
Post-workout meals via skinnymom.com I really struggle to put together a meal that's nutritious and high in protein when I get home after a long day at work followed by a yoga class or two. Definitely need to keep these options in mind. It takes just as much time to pop a bag of popcorn and snack on random goodies from the fridge as it would for me to throw together a much healthier wrap.
Quinoa and black bean dinner via lowfatveganchef.com I'm trying to be more versatile in my sources of whole grains. Rice cakes, lavash wraps, and popcorn just aren't sufficient. I need to switch it up and eat actual meals rather than snacking all the time. This recipe sounds really easy and right up my alley. You bet your ass I'm making it extra spicy.
I am seriously in love with their clothes. I lustfully stare at everything I stumble upon through this site and struggle not to make an impulsive purchase.
For example:
Cozy Time Cardigan - so cute, but not even available on the site anymore :(
Unfortunately, I'm someone who needs to try clothes on before buying because nothing seems to fit right. For now, Modcloth, our relationship remains detached.
The last few days have been tough for a number of reasons, but it has put some things into perspective. Life is a learning experience and I've definitely gotten my money's worth of lessons, good and bad, this week.
I found out I didn't get that job that I interviewed for. I wanted it so badly and I was so upset. But it lead to a really meaningful, honest conversation that I've been avoiding for the last three years. Keeping that in mind, I think this is all meant to be.
That same day, a good friend went through a traumatic experience that is leading into an ongoing battle. My heart goes out to her and her family as she deals with the situation. I can't even justify being upset about my own things when she has all of this going on. Life is so fragile and we need to appreciate what we have. You never know when it's going to be taken away.
Times like these really put the memories of my dad in the forefront of my thoughts. I miss him so much. Three years, three months, and six days ago, and it still doesn't feel entirely real some days...
Just stopping in for a quick post before my usual hectic Tuesday schedule of work followed by a trek to Federal Hill to host trivia. At least I'm in at 10am today, so my first day back after a long weekend is a mere 13 (so I hope) hours rather than 14 or 15. Big props to the coffee manufacturers on days like today.
Yesterday was entirely uneventful. I had intentions of going out to look for new boots, but ended up staying at home all afternoon because 1) I'm lazy and 2) it's better that I save my money right now.
I had some apples in the fridge that were losing their appeal for raw snackage, so I thought, "Why not whip up some apple bread?" Cue Google. I came across this recipe from Southern Plate and figured it looked simple and delicious enough. Any recipe that only requires one bowl is for me. I also added a granola and cinnamon sugar topping to the top of the bread.
As evidenced by the final product, it was not such a success. When I took it out of the oven, the toothpick came out clean and it seemed done from the outside. Yeah, not the case. Apparently the inside wasn't cooked. Sigh, and usually I'm such a great baker. My family agreed it was still delicious, but more cake-like than bread-like. I think next time I use this recipe, I'll bake it in 8x8 square baking dish instead.
Southern Plate's Amazing Apple Bread
Ingredients:
3-4 medium apples, peeled and diced (about two cups)
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1/4 cup milk
2 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 cups sugar
2 cups self rising flour
2 teaspoons cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon allspice
1/2 cup cinnamon or oats & honey granola (optional)
1 - 2 teaspoons cinnamon sugar (optional)
Instructions
Peel and dice apples, place in large mixing bowl. Add eggs, oil, milk, vanilla, and sugar. Stir with a large spoon until well blended.
Add flour, cinnamon, and allspice. Stir again until well combined.
Grease a loaf pan with cooking spray and spoon batter into pan. Sprinkle granola and cinnamon sugar on top, if desired.
Bake at 350 for one hour, or until a toothpick inserted in center comes out clean.
Allow to cool in pan for five minutes. Turn out.
Anyway, time to head off to work. It's snowing right now in Pawtucket, but it doesn't seem to be sticking. I am so not ready for winter! Breaking out the trusty Northface today and hoping that the temperatures don't stay in the mid-30s all week.
Happy Monday! And a very happy short work week! Needless to say, this Monday is extramarvelous: I'm embracing the opportunity to sit around in my pajamas, sip coffee, and watch an America's Next Top Model marathon on Oxygen just because I can. Since weekend mornings typically have me (gladly) rushing off to yoga right after I get out of bed, this morning laziness is a rarity.
Just a few marvelous weekend highlights:
Saturday night I spent a lazy night in to free up some space on my DVR. Nothing exciting there, other than staring into Jonny Lee Miller's gorgeous eyes throughout last week's episode of Elementary.
Usually on the weekends I make a crockpot meal, but it just didn't happen this week. I gladly enjoyed a roasted acorn squash as part of my Saturday dinner. Hooray for winter squash being on sale for $0.89/lb at Stop and Shop the past few weeks!
Olive oil, sea salt, cracked black pepper, roasted at 450F until desired crispiness.
Always enjoyed with the skin intact, my favorite part!
Sunday was unusually busy this week. I started my day off with two hours of yoga, then headed home to grab a quick meal before heading to a Providence Bruins game with my mom, Kris, and her friend, who was so nice to get us free tickets!
Didn't mean to catch Kris with her eyes closed. Oops!
Providence Bruins definitely like to put on a show. There was a fight within the first 3 minutes of the game ending in blood shed.
Not sure what caused a fight this early, but it was entertaining.
In the 3rd period, every player on the ice was involved in an all-out gloves-off brawl. It was nuts. Bruins ended up dominating the game, shutting out the Hartford Wolf Pack 6-0.
After the game, I rushed home to eat a quick dinner, then headed to Hose Company for trivia. It's much harder to play than it is to host, that's for sure! We ended in last place, but had fun nonetheless.
I came home to end the night with Once Upon a Time. How sexy is Captain Hook?
Marry me, please.
Not sure what lies ahead for today, other than vinyasa yoga and hot yoga from 6-8pm. I expect today will be marvelously relaxing :)
On a not-so-marvelous note, Tuesday's weather forecast is bleak:
Case in point, Thursday night. I had made plans with a co-worker to hang after work at our usual spot, the Thirsty Beaver, but when she went home with a migraine, I texted a friend and suggested we go out that night. I'm usually really bad at coming up with new places to check out, even though there are a million places I want to try (I really should start keeping a list), but I suggested we grab drinks at The Grange in Providence.
Fast forward to 8:30pm. We park in front of this:
Weirdest store front display I've ever encountered. Napoleon Dynamite status.
We waited for a seat at the bar and asked the bartender what he suggested off of their drink menu. We were a little indecisive, but decided on some drinks...somehow he managed to make us both the wrong drinks. Go figure. But it was a pleasant mistake, I'd say. I ended up with the Holy Smokes (left), a mezcal-based cocktail with basil and a smoky aftertaste. It was mind-blowing. My friend got the Adonis, made with bourbon, Pama pomegranate liqueur, and a slew of other alcohols. It was really strong, but had a good flavor. The best part? The drinks were mixed in a beaker, it was like watching a mad scientist work.
The place was adorable. There were swings by the windows and a little lounge area, a dining area for the restaurant, the bar, and it looked like there was a bakery section with a display case to the right of the bar that might be open during the day. I loved the vibe.
My friend ordered the quinoa dish with butternut squash, avocado, and lettuce. Delicious. The Grange is owned by the same people who run the Garden Grille so we expected nothing less.
We opted to stay for a second round of drinks, something I don't typically do since I'm a lightweight, but we just weren't ready to leave and I'm trying to embrace my 20s. I had a tequila-based cocktail with various citrus notes and orange oil; Kristen ordered an apple cider cocktail served with a dried apple chip. Again, both were amazing.
Gotta give The Grange a solid 9/10. A little pricy but so worth it for the experience. I'll definitely be back!
Sancho Panza (left) and Helen of Troy
Good thinking on having a hearty breakfast-for-dinner before I consumed all of that alcohol: Bob's Red Mill Scottish Oatmeal with 1/2 scoop of Designer Whey Sustained Energy vanilla protein powder and 1T dry butterscotch sugar-free Jello Pudding mix.
+
I love the texture of Scottish oatmeal, especially when you add in the pudding mix. Dessert without the sugar.
Time felt like it was standing still throughout my entire workday on Friday. This long weekend is going to feel so good. I already started it off on a good foot last night when I made out like a bandit at JC Penney. Colored tights on clearance for under $3 a pair! Plus two unpictured fitness tops for $5 each and an adorable pair of workout capris. I rang up at $34 for it all, but the cashier gave me a random $10 off. Steals.
We ended up buying a new "Smart" TV for the basement with built-in wifi and all that jazz, so I spent the rest of the night with my sisters assembling the TV stand and setting up the TV while my mom watched, glass of wine in hand. She claims she helped. Whatever helps you sleep at night, Mom ;)
My snack before said TV assembly. Weird, but so good.
Pictured above is a typical snack when I know I need to take in a little more fat and protein at the end of the day and when I'm blessed to have a near-empty jar of peanut butter. I was especially fortunate this time to have Peanut Butter & Co White Chocolate Wonderful <3.
Basically I use 1/2 cup of egg whites and 1.5 T dark chocolate cocoa powder with a little chocolate stevia to taste. Mix it all up in a large microwave safe bowl until it's combined and microwave on high for 90-120 seconds. Then I break up my little chocolate egg white puff and scoop it into the nut butter jar, seal it up, give it a shake to melt all the peanut butter into the egg whites and enjoy straight from the jar with a spoon. Damn right I make sure to scrape every last bit of peanut butter out of that jar.
We took advantage of the WiFi to watch this hilarious Jimmy Kimmel segment where celebrities read mean tweets about themselves, then segwayed into Zach Galifinakis' Between Two Ferns videos. I also enjoyed a glass of Redvolution red wine. Don't hate on BotaBox.
I'll leave you with some LOLs, courtesy of Jimmy Kimmel:
P.S. Apologies for the long-winded post, but it's been an eventful past few days!
I have energy for two brief rants tonight, as described by my post title.
1. It's November 6th. Despite what American retailers insist, it is not time for Christmas yet. Halloween literally just happened.
Dear CVS, This is wrong. Sincerely, Jordan.
I am no Scrooge. I love the holiday season with all its decorations, cheesy TV specials, Yankee Swaps, and bad sweaters. But what I don't love is hearing Paul McCartney's "Wonderful Christmas Time" playing on the radio while I'm at work. WTF?!101.5, no. Stop.
2. It's November 6th. I've been waiting for some sort of feedback for what will be two weeks tomorrow. As someone who has no patience and hates the indefinite, this is driving me insane. At this point, I don't care what the answer is, I just want to know.
That's a lie, I totally do, but I'm trying to make a point here.
This whole not-knowing thing is just throwing me off my game.
This sums up how I've felt for the past two weeks. By the way, it's totally the latter.
Last night I had the "privilege" of DJing the most opulent 16th birthday party I've ever attended.
Bear in mind that the classiest 16th birthday party I went to was held at a banquet hall in Pawtucket with a faux-French name (LeFoyer), acting under the ruse of being any better than a 9th birthday party at Chuck E. Cheese. It was the lack of greasy pizza and rats that really gave it that air of glitz and glam.
Back to aforementioned 16th birthday party:
The theme was The Great Gatsby. Obviously, a lover of good literature, and of the recent film release -I'm a sucker for Leo and Baz Luhrmann style as a director - I took full advantage of the opportunity to dress up and enjoy my evening as best as I could while swallowing my jealousy.
Pardon the Instagrammed photo, but peep that $17 steal of a dress from Francesca's. WIN.
The party was held at Alpine Country Club in Cranston, RI. Absolutely gorgeous. Not to mention the beautiful lighting, the self-serve candy "bar"/favor table, the gold and silver-plated cake complete with a bejeweled flapper headband and frosting pearls, and the ice cream sundae station. I so wish I could have gotten pictures. Or have been 16 and friends with this girl.
But this is my life, so expect the unexpected. Surprise, the mom of the birthday girl has just finished filming a show for Bravo airing this winter called Game of Crowns. Think Real Housewives of RI / New England. So that explains the partying with tiny glasses of limoncello, her ability to dance and run in 6+ inch heels, and her willingness to throw such an over-the-top party, on a Sunday night nonetheless, for her daughter. She's going to refer her friends to the company, too, and claims they'll be hosting lots of parties that require a DJ. Perhaps we'll meet again before the big TV premiere. Another reality TV show added to my late-night to-watch list.
Today was much more low-key. The highlight of my workday was my pre-yoga snack of a sweet potato topped with Artisana raw Macadamia nut & Cashew butter, eaten at my desk. I've been really hesitant to try the combination of sweet potato and nut butter, but I actually really enjoyed this.
Ugly, but tasty. Don't hate.
Ended my Monday on a marvelous note with Vinyasa II and hot yoga, followed by Once Upon a Time and The Good Wife. The DVR is a wonderful invention.
After 700 abs in yoga this morning, I negated all that hard work with eating an entire jar (and a half, let's be honest) of salsa and probably close to an entire bag of blue corn Food Should Taste Good tortilla chips.
Damn you for being so tasty and addicting!
I did the grocery shopping at BJ's and Stop and Shop, then came home to do absolutely nothing. I think my mind is trying to compensate for my loss of a Sunday since I'm DJing that party tomorrow night from 5pm-11pm. I needed to catch up on my favorite TV shows / TV crushes anyway.
So I figured, why not share some of my favorite fall TV shows at the moment?
What's not to love about New Girl? This show is hilarious awkward, and Buzzfeed is always blowing up with New Girl posts to back my opinion up.
Case in point: http://www.buzzfeed.com/erinchack/most-relatable-schmidt-quotes
Yes, Schimdt has been my favorite since day 1, but Winston is really coming into his own this season.
Elementary. Who doesn't love a quirky detective with gorgeous eyes? I have to admit, a good part of my love for this show is inspired by my crush on Jonny Lee Miller.
I never thought I'd like Nashville. I wasn't into country music and I wasn't crazy about Hayden Panettiere in a lead role, but I have to say I'm completely changed my opinion. The acting is amazing and now I'm a country music devotee. Go figure. Sam Palladio as Gunnar Scott is the sexy icing on the Nashville cake, I must say:
My lord, he is gorgeous
By far my favorite new comedy this season is Brooklyn Nine Nine. I love Andy Samberg. His sense of humor makes him so attractive.
Some of my other favorite Fall TV shows include The Mindy Project (I can't get enough of Morgan the nurse, he kills me), Modern Family, How I Met Your Mother, The Big Bang Theory, American Horror Story, Meet the Goldbergs, and Top Chef. I tend to let shows pile up on my DVR and marathon them over weekends or at night after work and yoga. I always seem to be behind, but that will probably change as the weather gets colder and I go into hibernation mode.
Turning the clocks back tonight and crying to myself because winter is just around the corner. I'm not ready for a high in the 40s tomorrow.
Clearly I do spend too much time in the yoga studio and not enough time doing cardio. I forget what it feels like to wear sneakers...or have a brain haha.
