Merry Christmas (a day late)!

Merry Christmas from my family to yours!

New York at Christmas

Is there anything more magical then New York City at Christmas time? No, I don't think so. Zach and I spent a wonderful weekend there being complete tourists taking in the city. 

Saturday we started our day at Chelsea Market. This is basically a pregnant woman's dream ... shop after shop of amazing foods and desserts. We met up with my cousin-in-law and two friends at Friedman's Lunch where we dined on things like Chicken & Waffles, and Pulled Pork Eggs Benedict. Delicious! After lunch we walked over to Union Square for their holiday market. It was highly recommended, and I think everyone in NYC took the suggestion. It was packed! Zach picked up some springer spaniel socks and my friends got a few ornaments. From there we walked to Washington Square Park. The park has a replica of Paris' Arc d'triomphe (Sally drops Harry off there at the start of When Harry Met Sally). 

Once the sun set we started our NYC lights tour. We watched the Sacks Fifth Avenue light show, and went over to Rockefeller Center for the famous Christmas tree (two couples got engaged in the 10 minute period that we walked around the tree ... I can only imagine how many proposals take place there in December!). Then it was time to complete my main NYC mission - get a Christmas ornament for Gracie at FAO Schwartz! With the help of Yelp we had dinner at Cask Bar & Kitchen, and then finished the night off with a walk through Times Square (I told you we were being tourists!). 

Sunday we started our morning with a run through Central Park. You really can't get more New York than that right? Our run ended at a Jewish deli for some delicious bagels (salt for me, regular for Zach). Perfect start to a day if you ask me. We were then fortunate enough to catch up with more of Zach's relatives who were gathering in the city that day to watch the Raven's game. It was great to catch up with. It really was a perfect weekend and a great way to celebrate Christmas!

Oreo Cookie Balls

I love holiday baking, but hate my tiny kitchen. Getting the pans and mixer out that are  necessary to bake things is sometimes too much of a hassle for me. I have seen Oreo Cookie Balls on Pintrest for awhile now, but never clicked on the recipe. It always seemed like they would be too complicated to make. Thankfully I did investigate further and I was delighted to find out these puppies are 3 ingredients and super easy to make! 

Step One
Crush a whole package of Oreos (I do not have a food processor so I placed them all in a ziplock baggie and crushed away)

Step Two
In a mixer - combine your oreo dust with a softened package of creme cheese

Step Three
Put your mixer in the fridge for a bit to harden it up. 

Step Four
Roll your mixer into small balls. Place on a tray with wax paper and then back in the fridge for bit. 

Step Five
Melt a package of almond bark and dip your balls in the mixer. Place the balls back on your tray.

Full disclosure, when I made these I got about half the yield that the recipe said I would (maybe because I didn't use a food processor?). I also had to use two packages of melting chocolate. Nonetheless, the balls were amazing!! I would highly recommend. 

Shop Love

I don’t know where you all are in your holiday shopping progress, but here are a few shops that I am loving lately.

Erin Condren

For me, the new year means a new Erin Condren LifePlanner.  My girlfriends Kate and Sam clued me into this site a couple years ago, and I’ve been a loyal customer ever since. The products are colorful, customized, and very high quality. I also use their notepads to jazz up my CheerswithLove packages.

 

KissFishFabrics

I stumbled upon this Etsy shop this fall when I was looking for baby gifts for my family and friends. I am in love! I purchased an adorable state of Texas baby beanie for my nephew and a personalized baby beanie for my second cousin. The shop owner is also incredibly sweet and professional. She was a joy to work with. I can’t wait to order the personalized leggings for my girl! 

Hazel & Olive

I have really been trying to lock it up and stay on budget this holiday season. This means limiting the number of Christmas gifts I buy my self (admit it, you all do it). However I made the mistake of clicking on the email sent to me from Hazel & Olive and treated to my self to this tunic. Their clothes are right up my alley, and super affordable. Free shipping too!

20 Weeks

Today I am “halfway” through my pregnancy (God willing she doesn’t come too early or too late)! My life changed entirely when I became pregnant, so it feels like I have been pregnant forever, but at the same time I feel like May will be here in the blink of the eye. Here is a little summary of how things are going so far:

Feeling: Good! Around week 15 I started to sleep on my side, which took a couple weeks of really bad sleep to get used to, but other than that I am doing pretty well. No morning sickness to speak of, thank goodness! I’m still jogging every morning, but I’m not sure how much longer that will happen. My nerves are still pretty high. I am very anxious for our sonogram on Monday.

Cravings: Bread, cheesy bread, give me some bread!!

Loving: The pregnancy pillow my sister lent me. It really turned my sleeping around. I purchased two Bella Bands from Nordstroms and that has helped me from having to buy too many maternity clothes.

Planning: Name – check, Registering – check, Nursery Ideas – check

Currently

City Center does Christmas

Listening: to Mariah Carey Christmas station on on Pandora

Sipping: on a Coke Zero 

Enjoying: the flurries outside

Celebrating: the birth of my cousin's baby this morning

Excited: about another repeat customer at Cheers with Love

Planning: for our weekend getaway to NYC next weekend

The Life Phase of Ikea's Lack Coffee Table

The Washington Post just published an article -  Beer, breakups and babies: Six stories pf the Ikea coffee-table phase of life. My friends and I took many different paths in life after graduating college, but one was never too far away from this little gem. Enjoy.

Thanksgiving in Texas

I know this is belated, but here is a recap of my Thanksgiving in Texas. Thanks to the East Coast freaking out about a little bit of snow, we were able to switch our flights for free, getting us in at lunchtime on Wednesday, instead of 11:00 at night. Thanks Southwest! And we took full advantage of those extra 12 hours. We started off with lunch at our favorite Dallas spot, Katy Trail Ice House. It is sports bar/restaurant with a huge outside eating area that backs up to the Katy Trail, a great running trail that goes through downtown Dallas. Dogs are welcome, and because it was November, they had a bunch of delicious smelling fires going. Zach got to meet our Goddaughter for the first time too … aren’t they precious? 

After lunch the girls took me registering. I never enjoyed registering for our wedding. I let Zach take control. It was even more overwhelming for a baby! I love buying baby gifts, but the fact I was marking things off for my child was just unreal. Don’t get me wrong; I am very excited to be a mother ... so grateful. However, the complete unknown about this monumental life journey I am about to go on is very nerve wracking!

Thanksgiving morning, now well rested because of our earlier arrival, Zach and I headed to downtown Dallas with his parents for the Dallas Turkey Trot. His mom and I stuck to the 5K, while Zach and his dad did the 8-mile race (which, lets be honest, I wouldn’t have attempted even if I wasn’t pregnant). There were SO MANY people there, but surprisingly the race didn’t turn into too much of a cluster. The course was really wide, so you had an easy time navigating. I was very happy with the whole experience. 

The rest of the weekend went by with lots of food, shopping and time with my cute niece and nephew. We celebrated my sister-in-law’s birthday with pedicures and Bundt cake. And I finished the majority of my Christmas shopping with a quick trip to the outlets. On Monday, after a delicious lunch at The Porch and on the way to the airport, we walked into my mother-in-law’s friend’s store, and found this gem. I got it and think it will be a perfect addition to the baby’s nursery. I’m obsessed.

Hope you all had a great Thanksgiving, and are really enjoying the Christmas season.

In the neighborhood ...

Prince William is a 5 minute walk away and Steven Colbert and the President are filming the Colbert Report across the street. Just another day in D.C. ...

Safe Travels

Well it looks like the Northeast is in another full fledged weather freakout for tomorrow. I hope everyone has safe travels getting to ever they want to be on Thursday. May I recommend the Michael Buble Christmas station on Pandora to calm your travel nerves? We are actually hoping on an earlier flight tomorrow in hope of touching down in Texas with out too much trouble.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Week Wrap Up

On Monday Zach and I celebrated two years of marriage!! Our wedding reception was in Old Town Alexandria, so we got all dolled up and headed out there for dinner. We ate at this great place, Virtue Feed & Grain. The food was delicious and the ambiance was amazing - deep couches, farm tables, huge stools, exposed brick - we loved it. When I was in North Carolina the other week I had my aunt make me one of her cakes that we had at the wedding, so we kept that tradition alive and had our wedding cake as well. We also celebrated me being 16 weeks pregnant with a beautiful baby girl :) We are definitely in a different spot than we were at year 1 and can't imagine how different our lives are going to be at year 3, but we are both excited for the ride. 

We are having faux-Thanksgiving at my parents house this weekend. I will be trying out this salad, and this potato dish. Last time I tried to make potatoes for a faux-Thanksgiving I broke my friends' garbage disposal, so I am hoping for a better turn out this time. 

This sums up why I don't understand how people can be cat people. 

On our morning run today we passed Whole Foods with a porch full of Frasier Furs. It made me so happy.

Oh Baby

The past couple weekends I have been traveling to shower some of my nearest and dearest with love for their future babies. One of my closest cousin's and bridesmaid is having a baby girl this December. Her sister and friends through her a great shower at her beautiful new house in Greensboro, North Carolina. My mom and I drove down together, and made a pit stop at Elon along the way. While taking in all the beautiful decor my cousin created, I ate way too much, and managed to win a prize at the Stump Dr. Maggie game. My cousin who HATES attention really enjoyed her self, and I got to spend to spend some quality time with her after the shower was over. 

My sister-in-law is having her first child, a baby boy this January. Her shower was in Texas and was a  mini-family reunion. It was also at the start of the Polar Plunge so I don't think we left the house all weekend. We were celebrating my future nephew, but I also got to meet my new niece Camden for the first time (so incredibly precious!). Reed and Camden got spoiled with gifts from all their great aunties and cousins, and all the visitors were very impressed by October Road. 

I am very excited to meet all these precious new babies in my rapidly expanding family. 

Garlic Parmesan Chicken

I have been in a serious cooking rut lately. I've been cooking the same amount that I usually do, but I have not found any new recipes that have really excited me. However, Pintrest came to the rescue again in the form of Garlic Parmesan Chicken. This is a very simple recipe, with ingredients you most likely have already in the kitchen, and tastes amazing. I hardly ever prepare pasta, but for this dish I would really recommend going that extra step. Bon appetite!

Garlic Parmesan Chicken by  Jessica

 Ingredients

• 3 tbsp. butter
• 6 cloves minced garlic
• 2 chicken breasts-chopped into bite size pieces
• sea salt
• ¼-1/2 cups parm cheese
• 2 cups spinach

Instructions

1. Saute garlic in butter for a minute or two
2. Add chicken pieces, salt, and cook until no longer pink in the middle.
3. Make sure to stir chicken to coat with butter and garlic
4. Add parm cheese and stir until the chicken is coated.
5. Add spinach and cook until wilted
6. Serve by itself or over pasta or zoodles

Halloween Then and Now

Halloween as a:

Kid - your goal is to have to the coolest costume and find the house that gives the regular size candy bars. Become super jealous of the girl who got to rock the Princess Jasmine costume.

Teenager - become way to cool for the holiday but secretly want that free candy.

Twenty something - new mission, rock your "sexy costume," drink some beer and judge all the "slutty" costumes. 

Thirty something - your Facebook feed is entirely devoted to pictures of your friends babies in adorable costumes.

September and October Book of the Month: The Goldfinch

I really don't miss reading physical books. I find it super convenient to throw my iPad into my purse and take my book wherever I want. However, one of the drawbacks of an e-book is that you really don't know how long the book is. I purchased The Goldfinch by Donna Tartt for my September book of the month but I didn't realize how long it was, and this September book quickly became my October book as well. 

The Goldfinch won the Pulitzer Prize and seemed to be on the top of every Must Read list. The novel tells the story of 13 year-old Theo Decker and the journey he takes after he survives a tragedy that kills his mother. He travels from the upper East Side, high society living; to the seedy drunken debauchery of Las Vegas; back to New York; and over to the art underworld of Amsterdam. The reader sees Theo grow from that curious 13 year-old boy to a twenty-something troubled man. Tartt's story is not a page turner, but an intricate, intense story. I can see why it was rated so high. This isn't a quick weekend read, so make sure you have enough time to dedicate to it. 

TCU vs. Tech

The Fall of Travel has continued, and this past weekend we were in Texas for the Texas Tech - TCU game. With one weekend off a month we really try to maximize it for Zach's sake. 

I know Texas stays hotter longer, but it was record breaking heat all weekend ... oh joy! Thankfully activities at Zach's parents house go hand in hand with water. Friday we took their boat out on the lake and pretended like we weren't in the middle of fall. Later that night we had happy hour while lounging in their heated pool. I love my seasons, but I could get used to that happy hour every week of the year. 

Unfortunately the reason we came for the weekend showed us no relief from the weather. It was 94 degrees at game time. I tried my best to put on my game face, but I was miserable. I was in disbelief during the tailgate - so many girls in cowboy boots. I was obsessed over how hot they must have been. To add insult to injury, TCU creamed Texas Texas, 27-82. Yikes. 

Sunday was a good recovery from the day before. Before the heat got too bad, we woke up and sat out on the porch reading and drinking coffee. The view never gets old. We finished off our trip with burgers at the Katy Trail Ice House, a great restaurant along one of Dallas' most popular running trails. It's really casual, tons of outdoor seating, and dogs everywhere. 

My friends got married the same weekend as my cousin, and the groom just shared this video. Oh my goodness, adorable. Love the song, love the love.

I just learned what mole sauce (Mexican spices and chocolate). I wish I learned what it was before I ordered it on my chicken enchiladas, but hey, you win some, you lose some.

Any the only person not obsessed with pumpkin beer, scones, cereal, etc … ?

I’m going to the Texas Tech, TCU game Saturday. Three days ago it was supposed to be 74 degrees. Now it's going to be 89 degrees. Yikes.

I just had to help a student get a VHS tape to play. Be kind, rewind – a phrase completely lost on all future generations.

Happy Friday

In honor of Elon's Homecoming, here is a little flashback to my homecoming past.

Jamestown, NC

Well they did it! My cousin and her fiancé tied the knot this weekend in a very beautiful North Carolina way. Zach skipped his first ever grad school class to be there, and it was great to be able to celebrate the family gathering together. 

Drew got married at the barn she grew up riding horses in. The ceremony was in a field, and officiated by my cousin and her brother. He was able to add those funny and sweet moments that you just can't replicate with a hired officiant. The ceremony took place in a tent next to the stables. The tent was was lit with chandeliers, the tables where decorated with sunflowers in cowboy boots, and we dined on pulled pork, coleslaw and hushpuppies. The band performed up on a trailer hitch and they had a set list that ranged from the 60s to present day. Brendan, the groom, entertained the crowd with a spot on rendition of Ice Ice Baby. It was a great night. The barn owner was having such a good time he paid for the band to stay an extra hour, however the crowd forgot to think about the shuttles, so there was some creative thinking to get everyone home at the end of the night. 

We got up on Sunday and met the rest of my family in the hotel lobby for Bojangles chicken biscuits. It instantly brought me back to college and into my happy place. 

Congrats Brendan & Drew!

Finally Fall

We just had our first full Fall weekend of the year and it was glorious. There is nothing better than Fall hoodie weather if you ask me. I'm also finally starting to feel better after a week and a half of the GW plague, so my outlook in life is pretty good right now. Here are few Fall things I'm getting excited about. 

Meeting my incredibly adorable niece. 

My new fall nail color. 

Trying a new cookie recipe. 

One final wedding of 2014. 

Hoping the Nationals pull a miracle out of their hats and go a little bit further in the post season.