Weekend Recap | Parades and Precipitation

Y'all, guess what I woke up to this morning.

No, really. I promise - you're never gonna guess.

Keep in mind that it's March 21, the second day of SPRING.

Are you ready?






Isn't that just exactly what you picture when you envision the second day of spring? We got SNOW. A boatload of snow. Like enough for all of the schools in our area to be cancelled today. I still have work because my team is considered "essential staff," but we shall save that story for another day.

Regardless, last weekend we were working in the yard and planning our landscaping for the spring, and today we wake up with snow. I'm just glad we haven't actually planted anything yet because I'm thinking snow would trump any pretty flowers from sprouting up. Molly was also super confused this morning. I woke up to her sitting on the edge of our bed, staring out the window kind of like "What is this white stuff falling from the sky? I won't be able to track my squirrels!"

Anywho, they're saying the temps should be in the 40s by lunchtime and all of this should be melting, which is a plus. Bring on the sunny and warm springtime days! Plus I'm thinking there are lots of Easter activities around here this next week and snow will definitely put a damper on those plans!

Aside from that, our weekend was pretty lowkey. 

My company hosted a huge fundraiser on Saturday morning and my team assisted, which meant a report time of 6:45 a.m. Now, I'm usually at my BodyPump class at that time, but there's a big difference in being up for a gym class that early on Saturday, and being up and ready for the day by that time. BUT it was for a great cause, and everything went off without a hitch. Plus I was home with bagels and coffee by 10 a.m., so we still had the majority of our day to get stuff done. I took a quick nap then pulled my few little Easter things out to decorate (for a week, I know - whatever, I'M WORN OUT) while Brian ran a few errands, then we spent the afternoon browsing cars at a few dealerships.

I'm reaching the end of my rope with sharing a single car between us, so we've been looking for a second car for awhile now. I don't want to buy anything without being 100% in love with a car, but IT'S HARD, Y'ALL. How big is too big vs how small is so small we'll run out of room once we have babies? Cloth vs leather, dark vs almond interior? Which packages are essential and which aren't? Do we pick the car I love with not-so-great gas mileage (Brian would laugh at this because he's already nixed that option but I can't just throw in the towel yet!) or pick the car that I like that gets great mileage? Brian commutes on the train into the city for work, so I would be the one driving this car to my job, around for errands, if we take road trips, etc., so as annoying as it is, it would be driven a lot and I have to take that into account. I also think that my crack is new car smell because as I was sitting in the drivers seat and testing out the roominess of all of these lovelies, I would have taken one home right then. 'Tis the reason that my impulse-buying self married my econ "Let's evaluate and compare everything that we could possibly need to know before making a decision" man. Bless him for putting up with me. SO, while there's no rush, I'm hoping to have something by the summer - woo! 

We left the last dealership not fighting (progress!) then Brian went off to the driving range for a bit while I relaxed with Molly and caught up on my DVR shows. Honestly, it was one of those afternoons where the sun was streaming in the windows, the house was freshly cleaned, my favorite candle was burning and I had a stack of magazines to browse - it made me feel overwhelmingly content and happy and it was just the best little recharge moment to remind me that life is going pretty darn well right now. We took advantage of the nice evening and grilled for supper, then the early morning caught up to me and I was dozing on the couch by 8:45 p.m. Early to bed, early to rise...

Sunday morning I really really REALLY wanted to sleep in but we had to be at Brian's parents house by 11:30 a.m. for the annual St. Patrick's Day parade which meant I had to get myself to the grocery store, back home to prep the snacks I was taking, into the shower and ready to leave by 11:15. I dragged myself out of bed around 9:30, stopped for a quick coffee on my way, then did a Supermarket Sweep-style spin around the store. 

It was an act of God (and help from the husband) but we managed to get out the door with a few minutes to spare. The parade route runs in front of Brian's culdesac, so it's nice to be able to stay warm and inside until 5 minutes before the fun begins. It was COLD but still lots of fun, although at this stage in the game I'm way more interested in watching the little ones running around versus day drinking (#oldandowningit). This little town goes all out for this parade (lots and lots of Irish folk!) and I love the tradition of going each year! 

We wrapped up our Sunday with a solid afternoon nap at home with Molly, soup for supper, then I read for a bit while Brian studied.

All in all a great weekend to head into a busy work week ahead! Cheers to Monday, friends!


Confessional Thursday


I'm linking up with Jess today for Confessional Thursday!

I confess...

That I make Brian holiday surprises (Easter baskets, Christmas stockings, Halloween treats) just to reap the benefits and CANDY. Brian's Easter basket stash has been tucked away for a few weeks now... and I might have already dipped into one or four of the mini Reese's egg stash. #sorrynotsorry

That I'm trying to stick to eating carbs for breakfast OR lunch, and avoiding them at dinner. Dinner is easy but so far this week I've failed every day at the OR part earlier in the day.

That we're starting back up with training for Molly and as much as I'm looking forward to the end result, I'm dreading the process.

That I am a sucker for sale emails. It's not unusual for me to have items in my JCrew/JCrew Factory, Old Navy, Gap, Anthro and Nordstrom baskets at all times but rarely pull the trigger on actually buying something.

That even though we like our house now and that it's perfect for us, I could spend hours upon hours browsing my Pinterest boards and dreaming of building a custom home.

That I've been contemplating starting a round of Whole30 for the past... four months? I did it a few months before our wedding in 2014 and as hard as it was, it really made me stop and think about what I'm putting into my body and I felt amazing. But... wine. And pizza. And coffee with my salted caramel creamer and cheese. I didn't read the book the first time and think it will break the process down a little more for me if I read it with this round... we shall see. Until then, I'll have my glass of wine tonight thanksverymuch.

Happy Thursday, y'all! And remember...

Wednesday Ramblings

::: I've managed to get myself into a nice little morning routine lately, and I'm loving it! Mondays and Thursdays I let myself sleep until 5:45am, which gives me plenty of time to get ready, make/eat breakfast, and take care of Molly things before we leave at 7am. On Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Fridays, I'm up at 4am and at the gym when they open for my workout. I pack my lunch the night before and have a few outfit options in my mind, so once I'm home it's right into the normal routine and still out the door by 7! I'm pretty darn proud of myself - getting up that early is no easy feat, but it makes me feel SO much better throughout the day. I'm still going strong with weekend workouts too, but I have more flexibility based on what we have going on those days. 

I think a huge contributor to this whole routine is that I'm in bed and reading no later than 9pm each night, with lights out at 9:30pm. If I go any later than that, there's no way I'm waking up early. It's all (not shockingly) making such a big difference in my productivity throughout the day though - no better reason than that to keep at it!



::: I took the plunge this weekend and ordered a Hayden Reis tote for beach and pool days this summer. I've been lusting after one for the longest time, and they had a 20% discount applied to their sale items. This green and grey striped bag was calling my name, and once I added a pink monogram, it was perfection. I can't wait for it to be delivered... but I REALLY can't wait for that first warm, sunny beach day when I'll need it! I'll certainly share a pic once it comes!

::: The Pandora "Feel Good" station has been my jam lately. Just this morning, I've heard:

Float On - Modest Mouse 
Here Comes the Sun - The Beatles 
Imagine - John Lennon
Twist and Shout - The Beatles 

...it's like the British Invasion this morning but I am loooooving it.


::: Transitioning from winter clothes to spring outfits always stresses me out, especially when trying to figure out what to wear to the office. It's too early for spring dresses and skirts, but a lot of them are a bit too light and springy to wear in March without leggings or tights. Guess I'll be doing lots of layering between now and... June? Regardless, I can't wait for all of the spring colors!

 






::: I'm loving this list of reasons why a husband should love his wife's mom bun - it made me teary!

::: My parents gave me a Yeti tumbler for Christmas and it has changed my morning coffee game. I fell into a routine of buying a large iced coffee... every single morning, and not only was the coffee not good, but it was a waste of $3... again, every single day. So now I've been making my own coffee and this beauty is amazeballs. 


::: And on a final note, I'm going to need this for my office, stat.


Happy Wednesday, lovelies!