Life Lately

Hi, friends! I hope you had a great weekend and are ready to kick off this week. Next Monday is Memorial Day so hopefully most of you will have a nice 3-day weekend next weekend. Just a little something to get you through the week 😉 Thanks for sticking with me through my lack of posting lately. I’ll get back to my normal routine one of these days, but for now, this seems to be working for me, so I’m going with it.

I’m still waiting to start my new job so I’m currently enjoying a little extra downtime. It’s nice to only be working at 2 gyms right now. Ha, never thought 2 jobs would be when I got to relax! So, where exactly have I been the past few weeks?

Well, Nathan’s sister came to visit for a week. She was here for his birthday which was spent at the Giants’ game. Birthdays and baseball go together like baseball and beer.. which, of course, we had.

Day 1! Drakes Brewery, straight from the airport. We don’t mess around!

A birthday win!

Finally made it to the Monterey Bay Aquarium.

Photo-bombing my own picture.

One of our new favorite wineries.

We also celebrated our 2 year wedding anniversary last week. It’s so crazy to think that it’s already been 2 years. And at the same time, it’s only been 2 years. I bet you wouldn’t be too surprised to learn that we celebrated with food and drinks.

Surprise picnic at work!

Aperol Spritz to take us back.

Oh, those porcinis and fresh pasta ❤

Holy Margherita!

We try to get back to our honeymoon as much as possible, so an impromptu picnic at Nathan’s office and Pizzaiolo for dinner had to happen. It was named one of the best pizzas in the Bay Area and it was definitely delicious; the crust was the most light, fluffy, tender crust we’ve ever had. That said, Il Casaro still wins for our favorite pizza since Italy. Next month, we’re going to see Book of Mormon. I called that the anniversary gift so we’re also planning on going to a nice dinner that night before the show. Any recommendations around the Orpheum Theater?

We’ve also made a successful foccacia bread at home [and by we, I mean Nathan..] which is HUGE for us! AND I’m dying over the fruit lately. Yogurt + cherries + nut butters [peanut and almond because I couldn’t decide] = heaven.

In the fitness world, I’m finishing up my 30 Day Kettlebell Challenge and have loved it. It’s been so refreshing to change it up and get my butt kicked in 25 minutes or less! Since I’ve just mainly been following that program this month, I’ve cut my cardio back significantly to typically one 30 minute run per week in addition to a quick warmup on the elliptical before my workouts. It has certainly helped me to fit my workouts in between clients. And speaking of clients, they’re picking up too! I’m searching for pockets of time but I’m so excited to have more clients these days. Only up from here, right?

My meal planning has been lacking a little bit lately, so let’s all get back to that, shall we?

Weekly Meal Plan

Sunday – Nathan’s whole roasted chicken with roasted sugar snap peas and [sweet] potatoes
Monday – Coconut Honey Lime Filipino Chicken Adobo Skewers with roasted red pepper and zucchini chips
Tuesday – Balsamic Watermelon Chicken Salad
Wednesday – Jerk Chicken Kabobs with Balsamic Fennel Salad
Thursday – Leftovers
Friday – Out!
Saturday – Leftovers

Food for Thought

What’s happening in your life lately?
Any restaurant recommendations near the Orpheum Theater in SF?

Let’s Chat.

I’m back!

After a 2 week blogging hiatus, I wanted to break the silence. Grab a cup of coffee; this could be a bit lengthy!

The break was totally unintentional, but absolutely needed. As you may recall, I had friends in town a couple weeks ago and while they were here, I decided I just didn’t feel like breaking out the computer.

Passing up on a few blog posts during their trip made me realize I was just going through the motions. Monday? Gotta get a weekend recap up. Tuesday? Link love. Wednesday? Pictures of food. There really wasn’t much behind it. And how many times can you look at a bowl of my oatmeal? I get it.

I’ve mentioned before that I’ve been working on figuring out a good balance with all of my jobs and as things continue be thrown up in the air, I just didn’t need the extra stress of needing to get a blog post up. Other aspects of my life were suffering; I was constantly exhausted from trying to juggle 3 different jobs, working some crazy hours, wracking my brain at different ways to get more personal training clients, cooking, cleaning, and somehow fitting in my workouts.

Thankfully, some changes have been made. Nathan is helping out with cooking and cleaning more [who knew all I needed to do was ask for help?!] and last week I gave my 2 weeks at Athleta. I’m swapping Athleta for another training gig, so while I’ll still be working at 3 different places, ideally, I’ll be cutting back on hours and make more dough. That would be lovely, yes? Good changes to start.

A Nathan-style dinner.. chopped rotisserie pork knuckle with roasted veggies.

But as I’ve been going through the motions with blogging, it seems I’ve also been doing the same with my workouts. That’s not a good look for me. I told Nathan the other day that I’m a rare breed—one that consistently works out and eats healthy [with the exception of when we have visitors..] and yet still continues to gain weight. It’s true. My friend told me I just look “a bit thicker.”

Let’s get really real here, shall we? I mean, we’re all friends.. Since moving to California, I’ve mostly ditched the scale. It was a good thing for me and I would occasionally break it out just to check in. Recently, I was feeling like my clothes were just fitting a little tighter and in general, I was uncomfortable. Well, when I say a couple extra lbs found their way back to me over the past 6 or so months, I actually mean 15. Ouch. That’s not a pretty number. So yes, thicker it is. And it sucks. But I’ve decided that the old saying rings true—you really can’t continue to do something the same way and expect different results.

So now it’s time for me to get back on the wagon, really put the effort back into my workouts, and figure out how to find the balance that’s right for me. The blog with fall into its place in time, but right now I know I need to put most of my focus on finding balance in my jobs and at home.

Thanks for sticking with me today; I’ve been looking for the words to write this post and it’s nice to finally hit “publish.”

No questions today, just thoughts.

Beer, Wine, and Sunshine

Good morning! Today is the last day to enter my Manitoba Harvest Hemp Hearts giveaway.. are you in on it yet? Also, I’ve announced the winner of my Peanut Butter & Co. giveaway. Such excitement to start the week!

We had another fun-filled weekend with Nathan’s mom. Friday we went into San Francisco to shop. We were on a mission to find Nathan a new suit and were especially successful leaving with 2 suits! We also finally had success at Liguria Bakery. Our most favorite pillowy-soft foccacia bread has been on our radar for months and every time we’ve had the chance to get over to Liguria, they’ve been closed or sold out. Friday, however, we picked up a plain square and a rosemary garlic square. It’s just the best!

After a beautiful day in the city, we made our way to Jupiter in Berkeley for a little patio beer, pizza, and salad action. It was too nice a day to let it go to waste so we spent as much time outside as possible.

Saturday was another day of amazing weather and what better way to enjoy it than in Sonoma? We tried a couple new places—Gloria Ferrer for sparkling wine and charcuterie, Viansa Winery, Park 121 Cafe for lunch, and Meadowcroft Wines. While we don’t typically purchase any wine when we go tasting, we couldn’t pass up the cab franc and port. They’re definitely bottles that we’re going to be saving for a more special occasion. Two-buck chuck does just fine on a regular basis 😉

Saturday night, we had a wonderful dinner at Homestead, a farm-to-table style restaurant that changes their menu daily based on the freshest ingredients they can get. Nathan and I had been eyeing this place for practically a year and had read great reviews so we were pretty excited to finally try it out. It definitely lived up to our expectations! I ordered the pan seared black cod, chickpeas, artichokes, grilled treviso, almond pesto; it was seasoned perfectly, the skin on the cod had a nice crisp to it and it was overall a pretty light dish. The housemade sourdough levain with housemade sea salted butter to start out was a real treat too. I probably could have eaten a whole loaf of that bread!

Nathan got the pork loin, spaetzle, grilled onion, sauerkraut, whole grain mustard. He agreed that the flavors in his dish were on point and it was also rather light.

Sunday was pretty much back to normal; we dropped Nathan’s mom off at the airport in the morning and I headed into work. Back to reality, I guess. Ahh, it’s gotta happen sooner or later, right? We’re currently guest-less for 2 1/2 weeks before my friends get here and while we’ve enjoyed having company and are looking forward to more, we’re definitely going to the enjoy the quiet and home-cooked meals!

Weekly Meal Plan

Sunday – Leftovers
Monday – Crunchy stuffed buffalo chicken with ranch roasted potatoes and asparagus
Tuesday – Burrito bowl with perfect black beans [<–the best!] and chicken
Wednesday – Leftovers
Thursday – Thai chicken satay noodle salad with coconut peanut dressing
Friday – Out!
Saturday – Leftovers

Food for Thought

What I Ate Wednesday #126: We Ate It All

No really, aside from breakfast, we haven’t eaten at home in a week. If there was food to be had, we had it! [And then some..] But don’t worry, we all got in our 10,000 steps pretty much daily. Plus, I dragged Mom to barre again. It was a tougher class this yesterday than it was last Thursday and I bet she’s cursing me right about now.

Mom and Dad are heading home today and I’m bummed. I can’t believe a week went by so quickly and it was so nice having them here. Anytime I told people that all of our upcoming visitors would be staying with us, I got a “ohhhh, geeze!” But we loved it. It also didn’t hurt that my mom can’t sit still so she was always cleaning something up or putting something away! I’m so not ready to get back to real life but for their last day, we made sure to make it nice and relaxing.

[Post-Barre Breakfast]

Our first trip to Mama’s Royal Cafe on Broadway was delicious! They’re pretty well-known around here and now we know why. I got their special omelette, chock full of kale, sweet potato, and gruyere with a side of fruit, potatoes, ACME sour levain toast, and lots of coffee. We’ll definitely be heading back there for breakfast or lunch soon.

[Lunch]

Oh. I did say lunch, right? Well, after hiking through Mountain View Cemetary in Oakland [sounds bizarre, but it really is a beautiful place.. and much of a hike!] we made our way back to Cato’s Ale House for a brew and late lunch. I had the roasted beet salad with feta, candied walnuts, and chicken. More importantly, however, the 21st Amendment Kilt by Wildfire Scotch Ale is deeeelicious!

[Dinner]

Late lunch calls for a late dinner. We’d planned on cooking, but that didn’t happen once over the course of the week. Instead, we walked down to Ohgane, a Korean BBQ restaurant, for dinner. My parents had never been to one and this was our first time trying this particular restaurant. We went through multiple rounds of the little banchan plates along with the Galbee [short rib], chicken, and shrimp. The charcoal grill at the table was fun and gave the meat such great charred flavor. Another repeat restaurant, for sure!

Like I said, I’m bummed that my parents are on their way home today but it’s been such a fun week full of amazing food, lots of walking, and just great quality time together. I can’t wait for them to come back again.

Now if you’ll excuse me, I’ll be doing hours of cardio and eating boiled chicken and asparagus for the rest of week 😉

Food for Thought

Do you go out to eat with visitors or prefer to cook at home?

#MomAndDadInCali

I had every intention of having this post scheduled and ready to go early this morning. Until I fell asleep on the couch last night while we were watching House of Cards. I blame it on the beer all the excitement 😉

We’ve been having such a great time with my parents here. I don’t mean to leave you hanging, but hey, life just gets in the way. So let’s do a little recap so far.

Thursday

Post-barre muscles with Mom!

Farmers’ market lunch.

Mmm!

Salmon & Hamachi Kama. A new favorite.

Friday

Ooh that pizza..

WE WILL NOT!

Saturday

A fun trip to Oxbow Public Market. Let the drinking begin!

Sunday

Blue Bottle Coffee.. strongest in the world! Ha.

My 2 favorite Orioles fans.. right?

The best chick peas ever.

Sunny day selfie.

The beginning of the end.

The best ending to our beer-filled excursions. Our most favorite ice cream from Ici.

Now excuse me while we go drink and eat some more!

Food for Thought

What’s your favorite part of having company?

Sunshine, Group Asses, & Red Thai Curry

Oh man, Monday already, huh? We had absolutely beautiful weather this past weekend and even though we had a ton of packing to do, we also wanted to take full advantage of the sunshine. Saturday we went into San Francisco. It had been almost a month since the last time we spent time in the city; we didn’t go in with much of a plan but to just walk around and enjoy our time outside.

One of the first things we passed was this fabulous sign. Take note.. always be careful of where you place your specials.

Would you like a $99 special on some group asses?

The city was hopping and by the time we made it to Blue Barn Gourmet for lunch, it was packed! We ordered our lunches to-go but snagged a table by the window while we were waiting. I’d been to Blue Barn by myself when we first moved out to California but had never taken Nathan. It was so good!

Winter salad with brussels, roasted squash, grated parm, pomegranate arils, pine nuts, and smoked salmon.

We continued our hike through the city and made our way over to the Golden Gate Bridge. It was a pretty clear day and the scenes were awfully nice!

You’d think by now we’d be better at taking selfies..

The Palace of Fine Arts was looking pretty wonderful too. We laid out a blanket and as soon as my my head hit the blanket, I was out cold! Clearly I needed a nap.. ha!

We stayed in for dinner; I made a chicken and broccoli stir fry with red Thai curry sauce over spaghetti squash and it was delish. I added some sriracha to the sauce and it gave it a nice kick. I will definitely be stashing this recipe away to make again soon!

We did a bunch of cooking over the weekend in hopes of keeping this week super easy. We don’t have a specific meal plan for this week because we’re moving Saturday and are trying to keep our dishes to a minimum without going out a ton. It’s going to be a crazy nuts week but we’ll be in a new place soon and we’re definitely ready for another new experience! And on that note, let’s do this thing!

Food for Thought

Did you do anything fun over the weekend?

Five Things Friday {12/26}

Happy Friday, friends! I hope everyone is able to enjoy a nice 4-day weekend!

1. We kicked off our Christmas day with our second annual dim sum brunch at Lai Hong Lounge. We figure there’s a reason Jews eat Chinese food on Christmas, but we wanted to one-up it with dim sum and it’s just so darn good! We kept a bunch of faves from last year, too.
   

   BBQ baked pork buns.. these are my fave!

   

   Dry braised green beans are SO good.

   

   Garlic pea shoots.

   

   Pan-fried mixed mushroom bun.

   

   The prettiest Christmas duck I ever did see.

   

   Duck bun all wrapped up!

2. No trip into Chinatown is complete without a stop at Rogue and a walk by the water.
   

   The Bruery – Seven Swans a Swimming Quad

   

   Such a clear, beautiful [and windy] day!

3. I’ve been powering through some sort of cold or something this week so I’ve spent a lot of time on the sofa the past couple days. I’ve also done my best to make sure I’m getting my greens and proper fuel to get better fast. I decided to whip up this smoothie on a whim and it was awesome!
   Chocolate Cherry Protein Green Smoothie
   
   Ingredients
   – 1/2 bottle Cherry Charge Mamma Chia Energy drink
   – 1 bottle Chocolate Light Core Power
   – 1 scoop Skoop A Game
   – 1/2 english cucumber
   – 1-2 handfuls spinach
   – 4-6 ice cubesBlend it all up and enjoy! It would also be awesome with some frozen cherries in there too.. next time!
4. We watched The Interview on Wednesday night. I’m not really sure what all of the craziness was about but I’d say if you’re in the mood for a silly, chuckle here and there kind of Seth Rogan movie, go for it. Pretty much what you can expect from him. On the flip side, Gone Girl. Watched that last night; you need to watch it, too. Best movie I’ve seen in a while.
5. If you are in the bay area, or know anyone in the bay area, looking for a personal trainer, I’m running a special in January. First 1-hour session is $50, normally $80, and if you purchase a package of 10 sessions, you get 10% off. If you’re not in the bay area but still want to train with me, check out my 4-week personalized training package!

Hope you enjoy your last weekend of 2014!

Food for Thought

Any fun weekend plans?

What I’ve Learned From 1 Year in California

Happy [waddle] day after Thanksgiving! I hope you had a wonderful day yesterday and were able to spend time with your friends and family. I ate entirely too much [who doesn’t?] and I fully intend on doing the same thing tonight!

Trust me. There was WAY more food!

The Friday after Thanksgiving last year, Nathan and I packed up and shipped out to California. Thanksgiving was certainly an emotional day and I can’t believe 1 year has already passed. It’s pretty ironic that we’re back in Baltimore this week but it definitely feels good to be home. Over the past year we’ve had our ups and our downs. Nathan and I have had so many new experiences together that I wouldn’t trade for anything. I’ve learned so much in that time.

1. Nathan is my best friend.
   We couldn’t have done this without each other. We are each other’s biggest cheerleaders and strongest support systems. Moving away from all of your family and friends into an unknown world is scary and trying. Like I said, we’ve had our ups and downs, but ultimately, this experience has made us stronger and grow closer.
   
2. Making friends is tough!
   For real, I don’t know how kids do it. There has been a lot of trial and error and I’ve had a few people stick. I’m not really sure why they put up with me, but they do!
3. I’ve done a lot of growing up.
   I haven’t had much of a choice. Before Athleta and personal training, I spent a lot of time at home by myself. If there’s one thing that really makes you think about what you’re doing with your life, it’s spending hours of time alone. Sure, I may still question what I really want to do when I grow up, but hey, I’m only 27. I still have some time to figure that out.
4. California is a pretty cool place to live.
   Nathan and I have gone on so many mini road trips and fun adventures that we couldn’t have done in Maryland. From wineries to beaches right around the corner to incredible hikes to eating our way through the city, we’re certainly not taking our surroundings for granted.
   
5. Home is where the heart is.
   After everything is said and done, I love just being home. Every time we come home, it feels like we never left. The time that I’ve been able to spend with my family and friends is unbeatable. I cherish every minute with my grandparents and it’s so fun watching Jilly grow. Staying with my parents has been fun too; any extra time I can get with them, I’ll take!
   

It’s been a hell of a year and I can’t wait to see what the next year holds for us. I have a good feeling about 2015; it should definitely be another learning year but I think now that we have our feet set a bit more, things will fall into place.

Food for Thought

Does your family have a second night of Thanksgiving?
Have you moved far from your family before? What did you learn from the experience?

What I Ate Wednesday #111: 24 Hours in San Francisco

Have you entered my WIN Detergent giveaway yet?

If you had 24 hours [or maybe just a little more] in a city, how would you explore? Or on the other side, how would you show someone around? I mentioned the other day that my friend, Jordan, was visiting over the weekend for work. We had Friday evening as well as all day Saturday to take him out and show him the city. He’d never been to San Francisco before so Nathan and I had our work cut out for us! No problem though; we let our taste buds lead the way.

[Friday Night]

First stop was for beer at Thirsty Bear. Nathan and I had been before but it had also been a few years since. Let’s just say next time, we’ll pass.

We more than made up for that with our Moscow Mule pitcher from B Restaurant. Jordan said it might have been the best cocktail he’s ever had!

After some strong drinks, Fresh Roll was the perfect dinner. It’s like a Chipotle-style Vietnamese restaurant and it was delish!

[Saturday]
We started our day at 10 a.m. for a dim sum brunch at Yank Sing in the Financial District.

Steamed Pork Buns

Seafood Basil Siu Mai.. my fave!

Shanghai Pork Dumplings

Shanghai Pork Dumpling

Taro Cake

From there, we stopped at Tout Sweet in Union Square. That was one of Jordan’s only requests, and it just so happens the owner and winner of Top Chef Just Desserts was doing a demo and book signing that day! We made a second stop back there in the afternoon to say hi 😉

Raspberry Peanut Butter Macaron

Jordan & Yigit

They’re famous for their macarons and having been disappointed when we bought the real deal in Paris on our honeymoon, Nathan and I had our doubts. These macarons, however, were fabulous! I may have to get more if we go back again.

After sweets, we trekked over to the Mission for a beer..

.. a few relaxing minutes at Dolores Park..

.. and our final stop in the Mission, El Farolito for some amazing Mexican!

The biggest plate of al pastor and beans I’ve ever seen! And demolished 😉

We waddled out of there and hopped onto a train and then a bus and into the Fisherman’s Wharf area all to see the beautiful bridge.

We finished our night in North Beach with a proscuitto and parmesan pizza from our favorite place, Il Casaro.

Best Italian-style pizza since Italy!

It was a long, fun, and very filling day and I’m glad we were able to show Jordan so many areas of the city and our favorite spots to eat in such a short period of time. So…… who’s visiting next?! 😉

Food for Thought

What are your favorite restaurants to take visitors?

Familiar Faces and Sunset Views

Good morning, friends! Have you entered my WIN giveaway yet? It ends Thursday at 11:59 pm PST so make sure to get your entries in!

We had a really fun and totally exhausting weekend over here. My friend, Jordan, came to San Francisco for work but since he was here for a couple of extra days, we got to spend some time together. It was so great to see a familiar face [even though we will be seeing him again in just 2 short weeks!]

Nathan and I both had some work to do on Friday, but we definitely made up for that Friday night. Moscow mule anyone?

Aside from the drinks, Friday was pretty tame.. especially in comparison to Saturday! We went all over the city in an attempt to show Jordan as much as possible in such a short time. Obviously when we show people around, it’s all about the food. There was dim sum.

There was beer.

There were fabulous sunset views.

And that’s just the start! Between this past weekend and Thanksgiving next week, I will absolutely be watching my extra snacks this week haha! Yesterday, Nathan and I started the day early, went for a nice walk, hit the gym, and got our lives back together. In just 1 week, we’ll be packing our bags and heading back to Baltimore for 2 weeks and I’m psyched! But for now, gotta focus on getting through the week.

Weekly Meal Plan

Sunday – Asian quinoa meatballs with roasted broccoli and baby bok choy
Monday – Thai chicken satay salad
Tuesday – Leftovers
Wednesday – BBQ chicken with roasted brussels and caramelized shallots
Thursday – Leftovers
Friday – Out!
Saturday – Leftovers

Food for Thought

What’s your favorite way to show someone around your city?
Did you do anything fun over the weekend?