So where the heck am I moving..

Sorry to leave everyone with a cliff hanger yesterday but I thought it would be more exciting to spread the good news over a few days! I will officially be moving to the lovely city of... Richmond! Not too far from home, not too Northern, and still in the south... I am one happy girl. Other then visiting Richmond for my interview a few weeks ago, I had never been there before, but was very excited to see the city and what it had to offer. It definitely has a "downtown" area and a few neighborhoods that I was able to walk around and get acquainted with. Here's a few of the different areas I was able to see and can't wait to get back to!

1. Cary Town

 Cary town is about 9 blocks of shops, restaurants, boutiques, salons... basically everything! I spent a good few hours walking up and down the blocks checking out the different shops. 

2.  The Fan

The Fan is a large area of apartments and houses, most of which are Victorian but renovated beautifully.This is also a popular place for younger crowds to live that I have been looking into!

3. Short Pump

Holy shopping. This "outdoor mall" had some of the greatest shopping spots- Lulu lemon, Apple, Francesca's, H&M, Gap, Macys.. the list could go on. I loved that it was all outside and I actually got lucky and was able to walk around on a day when it was 70 and sunny!

Unfortunately I was not able to get to Shockoe Bottom but I have heard so many great things, I am dying to get there before I move to check it out.

If anyone is from Richmond or lives there now, I would LOVE advice on places to live, where to shop, workout.. the whole nine yards! 

Hope everyone has a fabulous Friday!

Yours Truly,

Em

BIG NEWS!

Hello dolls, I am so so excited to being sharing this with y'all finally!! The past few days have been absolutely crazy and I feel like I'm drowning in things to do and not enough hours in the day! My big news that I am sharing today is...

I GOT A JOB!

... I know what your thinking... don't you already have a job? Yes I do, I have a great job currently as a pre-school teacher but have been looking for jobs more associated with my career to be a Child Life Specialist, which is also what I went to school for. In case your not aware, Child Life Specialist work with children in hospitals to try and normalize the hospital experience while also explaining procedures, diagnosis and overall making it a not to scary place. 

A few weeks ago I traveled to a city and did a 2 day interview and just this week received a call to let me know I had gotten the job! I am extremely excited but also a bit stressed about moving somewhere where I know no one, and also finding a place to live in such a short amount of time. For now I am going to keep it a secret where I am moving, but I promise to reveal the location tomorrow!

Now for a few questions- can anyone recommend a website that helps with young professionals moving to a new city and meeting new people or find roommates? I've heard of Newborhood but unfortunately they do not work with the city I will be moving to!

Hope everyone is having a great week!

Yours truly,

Em

Weekend Review

Hello dolls, hope everyone had a great weekend! Unfortunately I wish I could say we had lovely weather and I was able to spend my weekend laying out or being outside... however that was not the case. Wouldn't it just figure that we have beautiful weather during the week and nothing but rain on the weekend!

Friday night was spent catching up with one of my best friends, Ellen, who lives just on the other side of D.C. It was so great to grab dinner and catch up that we nearly forgot we were going to see Hunger Games! Ellen bought our tickets earlier that week so after dinner we scooted over to the theater to snag good seats. Anyone else see The Hunger Games this weekend, if so what did you think? Having read the first book almost a year ago, I have to admit I had forgotten some parts but I think overall the movie was fantastic! I hate when movies are always such a let down after a great book but I think this movie was done perfectly! Also, I am totally Team Peeta, in the movie and real life.

Saturday was spent doing a lot of babysitting! During the day I babysat for one family and another at night... not too exciting. 

Sunday, my favorite day of the week. Today included making an amazing breakfast for my family, laying around, working out, and more laying around. For this week's breakfast I chose to make a Spanish style omelet... it was amazing! I highly suggest you check out the recipe- it was super easy! As for my workout I did interval sprints! A 5 minute warm up followed up sprint for 45 seconds and recovery for a min- for 25 minutes. I was quite sweaty by the end but managed to fit in some strength/toning as well. 

 (Not my picture but this is exactly what mine looked like!)

Now for what everyone might be wondering... did I cut my hair? YES! In all I got a total of about 9 inches taken off and I promise to post pictures soon! This weekend I didn't really have an excuse to get get dressed up and do it but as soon as I do- I will snap a picture and post it! I have received a lot of compliments so far and have absolutely been loving it!

Hope everyone has a great start to their week!

Yours truly, 

Em

Major Updates...

Hello dears, where to even begin on the updates...

1. I have started a new workout regiment, the Drop 10 Challenge

If you are familiar with these two women from Tone It up you know that these workouts are amazing! The diet and workout are very easy to follow and I have been loving it since I started on Monday. I highly recommend you check it out! One of my favorite things is that an email is sent to you everyday that gives you your workout and meal plans for the following day... how awesome! It has been great getting off work and already knowing exactly what I am planning on doing rather then fumbling around wasting time. 

2. I am going to see the Hunger Games on Friday!

Having read all 3 books, I can't even begin to describe just how excited I am to see the movie! I'm even more excited that I'm going with one of my best friends, Ellen, who I am way over due for a catch up session.

3. I'm getting my hair cut... and no not just a trim. I've talked several times about how I would love to cut my hair but I just haven't been able to work up the guts to do it. Well dolls, I finally have and an appointment has been booked. Here are a couple of the pictures I am taking with me to show the stylist. 

I am extremely nervous and getting mixed reviews from my friends but would love to hear from those who have undergone a major hair cut and turned out to love it!

Hope everyone has a fabulous day!
Yours truly,

Em

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

Yours truly,

Em

It's the little things...

- The feeling after a haircut that was way overdue

- Friendly cashiers

- Falling asleep to the rain

- A good dream

- Throwing something in the trash and actually making it

- A marathon of Sex and The City or Friends

- Waking up and actually feeling rested

- Hearing your favorite song on the radio on your way to work

- Waking up with semi appropriate hair

- Pulling a price tag sticker completely off with no residue

- Clean sheets

- A parking meter already having time on it

- Taking your shoes off after a long day

- Your favorite wine being on sale at the store

Yours truly,
Em

Where did the weekend go...

Good morning dolls! Hope everyone had a great relaxing weekend!

Friday night was not that fun, I actually found out one of my favorite patients I had worked with in Charlotte passed away. She was a 2 year little girl, diagnosed with neuroblastoma. She actually past away the end of January but I just found and feel absolutely terrible about not knowing sooner. I am planning on sending her parents a card just to let them know they are in my thoughts and prayers. Here's a pic of the little cutie herself. She was way beyond her years as a 2 year old and had the ability to make you smile no matter your mood. She also had a love for the color pink and her favorite shoes were crocs.

Like I said... absolute cutie. Even though the thought of her gone is so hard and still brings me to tears, its comforting to know she is in a better place. Please keep her family in your thoughts in prayers. 

Saturday was not too eventful and included getting my oil changed and watching this movie...

I had never heard of this movie but it was recommended by my friend Kaitlin and once I saw Paul Rudd was in it, I was a sucker. This movie was great and definitely had me laughing through a majority of it. 

Sunday I traveled up to Philadelphia for the day to see my dad! We met at a lovely french restaurant in Ritten House square called Parc.

I of course had my favorite brunch food of all time- eggs benedict with spinach... it was amazing. 

The rest of the day was spent walking around and attending the Philadelphia International Flower Show! The theme this year was Hawaiian and all the different flowers were absolutely beautiful.

That's it for now! Hope everyone has a wonderful day!

Yours truly,

Em

It's already Thursday?!

Anyone else thankful for these weeks that just seem to be speeding by! My goodness I can hardly keep up! This week has been busy but felt even busier due to this dumb cold I still have. I have decided that If I'm still feeling miserable on Saturday... I will give in and go to the doctors. I'm extremely excited for this weekend for a few reasons..

- hopefully sleeping in

- going up to Philly for the day on Sunday to celebrate my dads birthday. I can't wait to see my dad, we're planning on grabbing brunch, walking around, and possibly catching a movie!

 (One of our favorite brunch spots- Le Bus in Manayunk)

- possibly getting dinner with one of my best friends on Saturday that just accepted a position with Whole Foods to be on their Marketing team. I am so so happy for her and can't wait to celebrate, sadly she will be moving to Connecticut but that just means excuses for girl weekend getaways.

(Me and Ang)

Also here's a little update of how I have been doing workout/eating wise:

Wednesday- Rest day

Breakfast- 2 egg whites and piece of whole wheat toast

Snack- Broccoli and hummus

Lunch- Luna Bar, half an avocado, nectarine

Dinner- Taco Salad from Mexican Cafe

Thursday-2 Mile run before work

Breakfast- plain oatmeal and banana

Lunch- Brown rice and barely medley, carrots and hummus

Dinner- chicken breast, potato salad, and a roll ( I could have done better)

I wanted to do hot yoga tonight but I was absolutely exhausted after work and hot yoga isn't exactly something you can do if you aren't feeling 100%. I'm hoping to get in a workout tomorrow before work and possibly restorative yoga after work!

Hope everyone has had a great week!

Yours truly,

Em

This girl is in search of the perfect...

 

Suggestions are always welcome!

Also here's a little progress report on my "not being a beached whale- at the beach" plan:

I worked out this morning before I went to work- I ran 2 miles on the treadmill, nothing major but better then nothing. I absolutely loved working out before work and can't wait to workout tomorrow morning. I am planning on waking up a bit earlier so I can also incorporate some strength training!

Today's meals:

Breakfast: 2 egg whites and a piece of whole wheat toast

Snack: Banana

Lunch: hummus, broccoli, half an avocado, Kind granola bar

Dinner: whole wheat pasta, ground turkey, pasta sauce, piece of Texas toast (I had to, sorry)

Overall I'm happy with today, shouldn't have indulged in the Texas toast but I mean come on... bread, garlic and toasted cheese... how could I say no. However I did manage to turn down a cupcake at work... hooray for will power!

Hope everyone had a great day!

Yours truly, 

Em

Officially booked a flight...

I have officially booked a flight for a getaway girls trip in April! Two of my best friends and I will be flying to Tampa mid April for a 5 day relaxing retreat... I could not be more excited. Beach, sun, sand, fruity drinks... hurry up April. However... not before I lose some weight. In about a month I will be laying on the beach and when I'm laying on this beach I'd prefer not to look like a beached whale. From here on out I will be determined to lose weight and tone up! A month is a long time and while I am not expecting to lose 15 pounds, 5-10 would be great and a little extra toning never hurt. I'm going to use my blog to try and keep track of my progress and I'm hoping it will make me a bit more accountable.

So just how am I planning on losing this weight and toning up...

- Start exercising more. I do work out a few times a week but this girl could definitely kick it up a bit

- join a gym- I have been putting this off ever since I moved back home but am officially joining this week! One of my best friends from home is also joining and I'm planning on making her my workout buddy. Love ya Kell!

- Continue meal planning for the week- especially lunches. 

- Continue with hot yoga-

- Cut back on portions and essentially eat like a rabbit... kidding...but really. 

Here's some things that should motivate me...

(my favorite)

Hope everyone had a great Monday!

While I've been away.,,

Hello loves! Anyone have one of those weeks where it ends and you just wonder "um what the hell just happened?" Well that's how the past week went for me! It flew by, which was great... but it was jam packed. Unfortunately the other teacher I work with got sick so I took her hours for the week which consisted of getting up at 5 to be at work by 6:30 and getting off at 2:30 completely exhausted. Last week we also celebrated both Leap Day and Dr. Seuss' birthday... it was quite the week. My body also decided to retaliate against the hectic week by getting a nice sinus infection which has consisted of a fever, not being able to breath, and sounding like a man when I talk... lovely. Here's a few updates on how I spent my weekend...

- Babysitting one of my kids on Friday, I was off by 8:30 and in bed by 9:30... perfect

- Dentist on Saturday morning for a teeth cleaning... I loathe the dentist

- Watching St. Elmo's Fire for the first time

- Running a few errands with momma and picking up a white pizza for dinner

- Catching up with my old roommate from Charlotte, it absolutely made my night and I miss her so much! (Kell is the one to the right of me)

Kell is currently training to run a 10K and I loved hearing about her training, I think she gave me a little motivation to take my own running a little more seriously!

- My tradition of making Sunday breakfast for my family, today's menu included toasted coconut french toast, turkey bacon, and fruit salad... it was amazing!

-As for the rest of the day I plan on going for a run in my favorite neighborhood that overlooks the bay, making a stop by Barnes and Noble, and possibly a trip to Target.

I hope everyone has a great Sunday!

Yours truly,

Em