Five on Friday!

Happy Friday, Y'all! Linking up with April and friends for another Five on Friday. I'm keeping it short, sweet and random today. I hope you've had a wonderful week!

{one} I found out this week that my mom is coming up for a visit mid-April! I am soo excited to see her {but will miss my dad, of course!} and it will be wonderful to explore the city with the weather being warmer {hopefully!} than the last time they were here in November. We love visitors!
{two} We are gearing up to celebrate our FIFTH wedding anniversary in September and want to take a special trip. We're throwing around a few places but I'd love any suggestions you all might have of places you've visited and loved for a special trip! We went to St. Lucia for our honeymoon and absolutely loved it but would like to visit a new place this time.
{three} Have you heard of an app called FoodGawker? I just saw it on the Today show and immediately downloaded it. It's similar to Pinterest in some ways. You can see what recipes are trending on various blogs, or you could search for recipes by food type, etc and it will give you so many beautiful options with links to the recipes! I think I'll use this lots for recipe inspiration.

{four} Speaking of food, I've been eating this chia seed pudding everyday for breakfast and it's so good. I follow the recipe except I don't soak the berries in additional maple syrup because I think it's just right without it! This kind of has the consistency of tapioca pudding, but it's very simple and healthy, too. Don't be afraid of the chia seeds!  Love this simple breakfast.

We also added this easy salad to the rotation this week. I am a vegetable girl, and rarely think you can have too many veggies, but my hubby is adamant about the number of ingredients that belong in a salad. haha. So, this salad is simple with grilled chicken, strawberries, greens, almonds, and some yummy cheddar we picked up at the famer's market over the weekend. You could use goat cheese or gorgonzola and it would be amazing, too. We also used Trader Joe's champagne pear vinaigrette and it was the perfect topper. I love the mix of sweet, savory and crunchy in this salad. It would be wonderful with shrimp, too, or without meat at all!

...And, not so healthy, but equally delicious...

These macarons are SO GOOD. They are in the freezer section of Trader Joe's and you refrigerate them after they are thawed. Please go pick these up so I won't be the only person devouring them. You won't be sorry. :)

 

{five} We're going on a "photo safari" this weekend through Central Park! As a part of TJ's birthday present, I booked us in a photography class where we'll learn some things about our DSLR. This is something we've been talking about doing and I'm glad we found one that's in the park. I might also have booked this class because we will visit spots where various romantic movies have been filmed.

Have a fabulous Friday and weekend! Thanks so much for stopping by!

Five on Friday-Hello Spring!

Happy Friday! It's time to link up for another Five on Friday with April, Christina, Darci and Natasha.

We had the best time in Vermont for TJ's birthday! It was so nice to get away for the weekend and the change of scenery was good for all of us! We're so lucky to have the opportunity to go to Vermont {and drive there now that we are in NYC!} I've been going almost every year since I was born, and same for my brother and sister and now our families go with us, too. Woodstock is a very special place! Usually we go during the summer time, so winter was a change for us.

 

We drove up, got settled and took the dogs out to play in LOTS of snow. We thought New York had a lot!

Um, this is looking out of the front screen door. Note to self: stop complaining about the snow in New York.

We then celebrated the birthday boy with a few presents and headed to dinner.

 

 

 

On Saturday, we decided to go skiing at Killington. I will tell this story for our memory purposes and not to spare my dignity, which I left on the slopes of Killington.

Before we began our day up the slopes

All smiles

After...the last one standing skiing.

So, let me start by saying that I am not a thrill-seeker. I love life and appreciate small and big joys but I do not want to jump out of an airplane, ride rollercoasters, or go bungee jumping. I just don't. Some people do, but I'm not one of those people. My husband doesn't seem to be bothered by heights or any of those other things I mentioned, so we balance each other out a bit.

 

I skied in college. I've skied with TJ. I don't want to go fast or high up but I can take some enjoyment on going down some green runs. That's about it. I don't have any interest in a black, or blue for that matter, and don't talk to me about a double black diamond or I might hyperventilate. One time in Snowshoe  TJ tricked me talked me into going down on a blue and that was too much for me. So, keep that in mind. Greens are good in most cases.

 

I've never skied in Vermont before, but you can imagine that it's a little more intense than what I'm used to. We rode the "gondola" up verrrrrrrrry high to get to our first run. This is when I knew trouble was brewing. I told TJ this seemed a little long and most runs weren't that long, right? He assured me that some are, but most aren't. Once we got to the top of the mountain, there was nothing to do but go down. I panicked. I hadn't skied in a few years and I thought I'd have some time to practice on some bunny hills to get my confidence going. But, no such luck for this girl. Our choices were green, blue, or black. Well, let's just say about 15 seconds into the run I started crying, y'all. I realize how crazy this makes me sound, but this is what happened. I didn't like feeling out of control and I wasn't comfortable on skis and I did NOT want to go fast. Picture me snowplowing the entire way down the mountain when I wasn't falling, which was approximately every 30 seconds or so. It didn't help that a not-so-friendly skier yelled out as she flew by me "can you get out of the way, you're kind of in a bad spot". Yes, lady. I can definitely do that with no trouble at all.

 

Okay, so tears and falling, snowplowing, falling, tears. TJ was behind me and so patient the entire time, coaching me all the way. I just wanted to sit down and roll down this hill. It was never-ending! We were on this one green run for an HOUR. I could not believe how long it was and the only choice I had was to keep going. Whew. By the end of it my feet were numb and I marched myself right back to the car, changed into my boots and parked it in the lodge with some magazines for the remainder of the day.  We both knew it was the right call and I'm glad TJ got to do some real skiing during the afternoon. As for me, I think I'll hang up my winter sports hat for a little while. Après ski is really more my thing, anyways.

 

 

On Sunday, we headed to charming downtown and had a delicious breakfast at Mon Vert. Eggs,tomato,vermont cheddar, avocado and chai tea latte make for a happy girl.

 Just a couple cell phone pics of downtown. Wish I'd taken more!

We then proceeded to get stuck in the driveway since it was covered in ice and had to be towed out before leaving. One more quick stop at the outlets in Manchester and we were on our way back to the big apple. So long, winter!

 

Spring is here! I can hardly wait to get my toes in these cute sandals that arrived this week in celebration of spring and warmer weather to come. :)

 

 

Sadie turned 6 on Tuesday! We love her so much and she's been through so much with us during those 6 years. Our wedding, first house a move to NYC and lots of joys and sorrows that have happened in between. We're so happy she's a part of our little family.

I hope you enjoy your first weekend of spring! Lots of March madness on our agenda this weekend. Let's go Duke and Cal Poly! :)

 

Thanks so much for stopping by!

 

Five on Friday!

Woo Hoo! It's Friday! I'm happy to link up with April, Christina, Darci and Natasha for another Five on Friday!

{one}
Today is one of my favorite days because it is my sweet husband's birthday! Happy Birthday to the most handsome man who has my heart, makes me laugh and smile everyday,  and is my very best friend. I am beyond blessed to call you mine and to be able to celebrate 8 birthdays with you! Here's to many, many more. I love you, babe!

For fun, us in 2007...

 

Us today :)

 

As a part of the birthday boy's celebration, today we {pups included} are driving up to Vermont for a weekend of skiing and relaxing. We are so excited to escape from the city for a few days!

Truth be told, I get way more excited about celebrating his birthday than he does. He understands and appreciates my love of birthdays, which is a plus, but doesn't want anyone to make a big fuss over him. I enjoy making a big fuss for him and I think that in the teeniest, tiniest bit, he likes it, too. If not, at least one of us is finding a reason to be festive! ;)

 

{two}

I have been in a breakfast rut! This week I finally tried avocado on Ezekiel toast, and oh my! So good. I don't know why I hadn't tried it for breakfast before like this. I love avocado on just about everything, so why not eat it on toast? I added tomatoes this morning. A little sprinkle of salt and it was just right. I also tried chia seed pudding this week, but forgot to take pictures before I finished it! That can be for next week. I used Giada's recipe and it is delicious! What are you eating for breakfast these days?

 {three}
Fancy Ashley shared about these amazing little balls of goodness on her blog, and once I realized I had all of the ingredients on hand, I got right to it. You can find the recipe here. I added chia seeds and didn't have the flaxseed so I skipped that. If you like peanut butter, oats, coconut, chocolate and honey, these energy bites are for you! Warning--They are so good you may not be able to stop eating them.

{four}

Are you loving daylight saving time? What a difference it makes each night to have that extra bit of daylight. The other day it was around 60 degrees here {which feels balmy compared to where we were!} and I decided to take a walk around Central Park. I love this picture because it literally shows how the city is thawing out from the winter. The little ducks are out and about and the icy pond is changing. The park was packed with people coming out of hibernation. It's so refreshing to leave one season and begin another. This winter has been long and cold for everyone and I love the hope and warmth that come with spring on the horizon.
{five}

I have a prayer request for you. Owen Parker was born on February 23rd to Brian and Allison. Less than 24 hours after he was born, it was discovered that he has a severe congenital heart defect and he was rushed via helicopter to Children's Healthcare of Atlanta, where he is today. He is a fighter and his parents are amazingly strong. I cannot imagine what they must be going through right now. While I do not know this family personally, I have been praying for them constantly since I learned of Owen's condition through a friend's facebook page. If you would please take a moment to pray for Owen to grow stronger, his team of doctors, and his parents. Allison has created a Caring Bridge  page to update on Owen's progress, and Ginna designed t-shirts with the logo above, as an effort to help support Allison and Brian with these unexpected medical expenses. You can read more about how to help the Parker family here. Thank you so much for helping lift this sweet family and precious Owen up in your prayers and support!

I hope you have a wonderful weekend!

Five on Friday: Southern Style

Hey Y'all! It's been a couple weeks since I linked up for Five on Friday, so I'm happy to be back and joining up with April, Darci, Natasha and Christina!

 





I'm down in North Carolina while TJ is away on a big work trip. We decided all would be happier if the dogs and I stayed in NC with family and friends while he's away. This is definitely true, and I'm thankful to spend time with the ones I love down here! I sure do miss him, still.

Bailey loving the car ride

Protein Pancakes: Oh my! I have eaten these twice since I've been here. They are SO good and super easy. The pictures are not the best, as they were taken with my phone, but you'll get the idea. I adapted a recipe from Ambitious Kitchen. I have made the switch to full fat dairy (and prefer organic anyhow) but you could of course substitute egg whites, lowfat or skim milk and lighter cottage cheese if you preferred.

Here's what you'll need:

1/2 cup old fashioned rolled oats

1/2 medium banana

1 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon vanilla

1 egg (or 2 egg whites)

1/4 cup cottage cheese

1-2 tablespoons milk

optional add-ins:

I chose blueberries this time but treat it as you would any other pancake!

What to Do:

1. Put it all in a blender or food processor and blend until completely smooth.

2. Lightly coat a nonstick griddle or skillet with butter or cooking spray over medium low heat. Drop batter by 1/4 cup onto skillet. Cook until bubbles appear on top. Flip cakes and cook until golden brown. Repeat with the rest of your batter! Makes 3-4 pancakes.

*I doubled the recipe, even though I was making them for myself and enjoyed them as leftovers!*

Easy and Pretty Burlap Wreath: With some extra free time on my hands, I thought I'd channel my inner Martha Stewart and attempt to do something crafty, yet simple. I love the look of a burlap wreath and had been waiting to try making one for myself. I followed Laura's directions at Top This, Top That and her pictures are better than mine! Since we are living in a tiny apartment in NYC, decorating can sometimes be challenging. My thought with this wreath is that I will leave it up year round, and switch up the embellishments to fit the season, holiday or mood I might be in. This satisfies my need to switch things up and my husband's need for me to not collect seasonal decorations every chance I get.

 This part looks trickier than it is. Just looping through the top, middle and bottom bars and pushing the fabric together to give it a fluffy, layered look.

the mini chalkboard might be my favorite...

Also, I realize it is not spring yet. Just wishful thinking. :)

Aside from dodging the big snow storm in NY, one of the perks of being in NC is the ability to go to Target all the time . It's no secret that I love nail polish in a big way, so the fact that I've picked up two more since I've been here really should not be a surprise.

left: smokin' hot       right: on a silver platter



Words, Friends, Food

a reminder. 

 I just adore this scarf that happened to also be on sale this week.

 One highlight of my week was going to Charlotte for a quick visit. My sweet friend, Danielle and her family, put me up for the night. It was such a treat catching up with her and the other precious neighbors and friends that I saw. I visited school and spent time with my {former} first grade class, which truly was good for my soul. Again, I am wishing I'd been better about taking pictures of it all!

I have been dreaming about this Salmon Niçoise salad for days. I must try to



duplicate at home!

Thank you so much for stopping by! I hope your Friday is fabulous!