The Weekend Blate

I'm positive that I've never crammed as much awesome into my weekend as I did over the past 5 days that Melissa was in Portland. 

Not only did I get to meet this beautiful and confident lady in the flesh, Brooke and I were able to show her some of the "greatest hits" that the Portland Metro area has to offer. She's got the cutest Canadian accent and we enjoyed pointing out how it was even more obvious when she'd get excited. Trust me, there was tons to get excited about.

Food, scenery, girl chats, good music, wine, meat(!!!). Such a packed weekend that I don't even know how to recap it all.

Let's list some of the yummy places that took my moneys this weekend. So many meat sweats I can't even count them all.

- Casa Del Matador

- Smokehouse 21

- McMenamins Blue Moon

- Tilt

- Willamette (rhymes with "Damn it") Valley Vineyard

- Stoller Family Estate

- Red Hills Market

- McMenamins Edgefield

- Deschutes Brewery Portland

Each day was something differently epic. Wine tasting, hiking and taking advantage of the beautiful things I sometimes take for granted in this city I live in. I know the song is "Don't go chasing waterfalls" but why?! They are beautiful, I want to chase them all!

On Melissa's first night she even got to see the unicycling bagpipe playing Darth Vader ride by while all of the Portlanders looked at him and immediately went back to what they were doing without taking a second look. #KeepPortlandWeird

Maybe the biggest win was that Melissa realized how not-normal Brooke and I actually are. Surprisingly she seemed to be okay with that!

Blate weekends rock. Can't wait to see you again, Melissa!!

Thanksgiving Weekend

Welcome to December, the most magical time of the year. 

I laid in bed last night and listened to the rain tapping against my window and couldn't help but wish that it was snow. Snow in Portland means that the city shuts down and it's nearly impossible for me to drive in to work. A few more days of pajamas, house-work and time to focus on myself would be my biggest holiday miracle. #LetitSnow

And hey, before we ramble on about how much I ate, drank and slept this weekend - do things look a little different around?

You bet they do! 

I took some time out of this precious 4 days to switch from Wordpress over to Blogger, then did a quick makeover. The makeover is still in progress while I learn some HTML tricks, assign categories to old posts and re-size some photos from posts in the archives. Seriously, don't go exploring around this week - there's bad photos, missing video links and all sorts of weird things that didn't transfer right from one platform to the next. 

If you need to re-follow me on Bloglovin', you can do so using the new Social Media Links in the right sidebar or below:

Normally on Thanksgiving weekend, I feel something like this:

This time was different thanks to all clean foods and no pressure from friends and family to "eat more". 

Turkey (duh)

Paleo Mashed Sweet potatoes

Wine soaked pears

Kale + Cranberry + Pecan salad

Cranberries (no sugar added!)

One thing truly missing from the weekend was the usual homecoming of my brother (who lives in Europe) - so the house was a little quieter and there were more leftovers than usual. We are hoping that we get to see him soon in the new year.  

As far as wrapping up November went, Black Friday was a success and you'll even be proud to know that I completed my revised goal of 50 running miles - considering that I could barely move after another leg day on Wednesday (yes, I'm still stretching this morning)

Hoping that you had an amazing long weekend and that your 17 alarms were able to wake you up!

Cheat So Hard

Some of you may remember two months back when I announced that I was going to go down the Paleo path to help myself eat cleaner, reduce stress and improve my overall health.

I flood your Instagram feeds with my #hashtag #Paleo #omgSOyummy meals because Paleo is my main squeeze and I can see us in a long healthy relationship together.

As a promoter of a healthy lifestyle through food and running I feel that I owe you a sincere confession for all of the cheating I've been doing lately (on Paleo, sweetheart!)

It all started to fall off the wagon when I was in Toronto for the second time and had a piece of pizza here, a few tortilla chips there, maybe even some delicious croutons on a salad.  Beer and wine added into the mix and I forgot the reasons I'd started Paleo. Through travelling back and forth I was able to use that as an excuse for not being strict with a schedule, a meal plan and even my food prep has been non-existent.

I still do an amazing job at avoiding latte's, yogurt, cheese, bread and some of my bigger past offenders, but there's been a few 'occasions' where the amazing food groups you see below have been devoured, craved and even begged for.

#OmnomNom

- Fiery Doritos Locos Taco | Taco Bell

- Endless Shrimp | Red Lobster

- Steak and Endless Shrimp | Outback Steakhouse

- Reese's Blizzard | Dairy Queen

- Grape Licorice | All the places

I act like Dan is the instigator but I'm pretty sure even the golden retrievers would be witness to Monday night when Dan was looking in the produce drawer asking what I wanted for dinner and only a quick "TCBLL" was blurted from my mouth. Like I was ashamed to be saying it out loud but knowing that it was going to feel so right.

That fateful night Dan didn't hesitate to jump in the car and get almost every food group on the menu so that I could 'sample'. As always, he picked up the slack when I was too full and my eyes out-ordered my stomach.

Our meal included but was not limited to:

• Mexican Pizza (1)


• Fiery Doritos Locos Tacos (3)


• Cheesy Gordita Crunch (2)


• Smothered Burrito (1)


• Volcano Nachos (1)


• Fiesta Beef Taco Salad (1)

None of that was paleo, by the way.

So all I'm asking is for someone to help me be more like this adorable baby koala please and not be so bad at life? K Thanks!

The Month that Never Was

Typically around here at the end of the month I do a recap of all the wonderful things that happened to me over the past 30 days.

So August?

August had a lot of great. A lot of tough. A lot of hard. A lot of fun. And little to no blogging #oops.

Let's get right to the g o o d:

+ I had an amazing blate (Blogger Date) with Marisa who was in town to surprise her dad for his birthday! I was so thrilled we were able to connect and just as happy that we met up at Por Que No for some drinks and appetizers. #nom

+ I somehow completed my 100 mile feat for the month and it wasn't easy. While my guy was running Hood to Coast - I spent a weekend running as much as I felt was possible for my weary legs and logged 36 miles over a span of 38 hours. Ka-ching!

I still had 9 miles remaining when I returned home on Saturday the 31st, but made quick work of that in the mid summer evening and did a celebration dance as I hurried past my driveway for the last triumphant steps.

+ Made it to one year with this guy - even though we still haven't celebrated (see below for frowny faces):

+ I met some awesome people at work through my travels to Canada and wish I had more peers to play with who were as dedicated to work as I am. Geeking-out with people who are impressed my my Excel mastery is a wonderful thing. They also knew how to get me to come out of my shell a little bit. Beer in a Bag, anyone?

Work and work travel caused me to miss several wonderful things this month that I would have loved to be a part of. 

• Hood to Coast


• Intramural Softball


• My Cousin's Beautiful Barn Wedding


• My Own 1 Year Anniversary Celebration (are we still going to celebrate, Dan?)


• Thirst Thursdays

Doesn't my Hood to Coast family look like FUN!?

Hopefully a new month will bring winds of change - for the better!

Paleo Plan to Lose Stress

Before we talk about stress and how I'm dealing with it, let's give a huge Happy Birthday, gurrrl to Babbling Brookelyn!

Last year I got you a West Elm cutting board, and this year Ryan Gosling? Yeah I know I've stepped up my game.

Anyway back to this little thing called 'stress'.

I'm always so careful about what I wear, what impression I'm making and how other people perceive me, but lately I've forgotten to take an inventory of how I feel.

Simply put, I've neglected to admit to myself for the past few months that I'm stressed out.

Stress damages relationships, puts personal goals on hold and takes a serious toll on health. Stress negatively impacts eating habits and often leaves me feeling like I have no control.

Now that I've disclosed my stress and am facing it head on, I'm actively seeking ways to suppress the way I'm feeling and handle it efficiently rather than stress even more over it. I've got the exercise part down, even though I have 46 miles remaining to run in the next 6 days so the next place for me to research is the foods I'm consuming. 

I began this path by googling (scientific research, I know) foods that reduce stress. Interestingly, most everything that came back all fell into a very distinct category and followed after a 'trend diet' I've heard and seen a lot about lately. 

Vegetables

|| Spinach | Carrots | Asparagus ||

Fruits

|| Citrus fruits | Avocados | Berries ||

Meats

|| Salmon | Turkey | Grass Fed Beef ||

Nuts & Seeds

|| Almonds | Walnuts | Sunflower seeds ||

Immediately I was sold on going the route of clean and natural with the Paleo diet, so get outta my cart, cereal!

via

Sorry I'm not sorry if you follow me on instagram and you've seen the beautiful foods I've been nomming for two weeks. 

Do I feel like it's worked? Heck yes I do! Reaching for fruits and vegetables when I'm hungry wakes me up and doesn't give me the crash that sugary crap does.

In fact, it's been more difficult to teach Dan what Paleo is than it has been to follow the rules. Just the past week he brought me home a latte, prepared a salmon burger with pepperjack cheese, reminded me that I didn't use my rice from our take-out stir fry, set out yogurt and granola bars for my lunch, asked if I wanted pizza for dinner, asked if i wanted a bowl of dry cereal... (ALL AMAZINGLY NICE THINGS). If you're like him and don't exactly know the rules, you'll probably learn a thing or two from Cats showing us how to do Paleo.

Some great places on the internet that have me headed in the right direction:

The Beginner's Guide to Paleo

15 Mouthwatering No Bread Sandwiches

NomNomPaleo

A Day of Simple Paleo Meals

Thank you for your support as I try to use the way I treat my body to reduce the stress I subject it to.

Ready for the weekend?

FRANKIE SAYS RELAX

Breakfast!!!

Okay team, you were going to see a million slight exaggeration kitten photos today, but something so important came up that I had to stop the presses!

What happened?  This Happened 

I love Thug Kitchen and I love breakfast. If you're not familiar with Thug Kitchen, please get familiar - otherwise I don't know if we can be friends.

So this breakfast thing - how about a show of hands for how many of you eat breakfast every morning? 

Whoo! Go you! You're probably reaping all of the rewards that I do!

• Increased energy


• Less mid-day snacking


• Less calories consumed by latte's, mocha's or whatever energy drinks the kids are drinking these days.

Oh, wait - I see you back there, reader. Don't hide, I'm not going to get mad at you for skipping breakfast.

I know you really want to and I know you're just too busy in the morning, or you have lunch plans later - but you probably suffer from low energy throughout the day, you probably are starving when 11am comes around and any calories you do take in during the morning are probably from coffee drinks that pack more dairy than caffeine.

Studies show (here) that breakfast is the healthiest meal that people eat for the entire day, and as time goes on our choices toward health decline at a steady rate. In fact, the average dinner is up to 16% less healthy than breakfast! What the ?@#$ happens to our brains?

That flashy infographic also shows the proof that if you eat breakfast and you'll crave less and actually eat less on a daily basis.

Simple Tips to get you on the breakfast train and even to revive your current bland routine. 

• Pack protein into your breakfast (Eggs, meat, peanut butter, protein shake)


• Make sure it's fiber rich to keep your system moving


• Prepare what you can the night before to make your breakfast a no-brainer


• Wash it down with at least 16-32 ounces of water, maybe on your commute into work!


• Mix it up, literally and figuratively. Include variety and blend up a shake like Thug Kitchen suggests

Sunday for breakfast Dan had a bowl of non-children's cereal (which is huge news) and I topped a perfect banana with a tablespoon of organic crunchy peanut butter and honey drizzle. #omnomnom!

If this hasn't made you hungry enough, please head over to a few of the recipes I've drooled over my keyboard for:

Almond Butter and Bananas - From Carrot Bowl

Breakfast Tacos - From Love and Olive Oil

DIY Fiber Filled Cereal - From The Skinny Confidential

10 Healthy Breakfast Ideas - From The Lean Green Bean

Breakfast tastes wonderful, but success that tastes like strawberries is even sweeter!

Weekend Prep Returns

Even though I've been quiet about my weekend food prep it's still been going on.

For you new faces around here, I recommend that you check out the archives:

Take the Time: Meal Prep and Weekend Food Prep will give you an idea of what usually goes on in my home on the weekends.

Lately however, food prep begins with a sweet and gentle, "Dan, can you please please please grill some chicken and salmon burgers? I bought lettuce yesterday."

From there, he jumps out of his seat if there's no sports on TV and heats up our extra convenient grill. He's finished in under 45 minutes, has protein ready for the week and all I have to do is chop the lettuce, squirt the sriracha and make sure the avocados are ripe enough for bliss at work the next day.

Okay, so I know that arrangement sounds unfair and I'm working on it, but this weekend since he wasn't home I had to take meal prep back to my top standards and make a mini-production out of it. It was especially fun this weekend because I didn't even have to go grocery shopping!

1. Egg 'pancakes':

Nothing involving pancakes goes into cooking up these eggs, just the shape the finished product ends up being after a quick 90 seconds in the pan. At work I can pop these into the microwave, add spices or 1/2 of an avocado and voila - protein made easy.

2. Tempeh, Lentils, Avocado, Sriracha Salad

Here's where I get to use the other half of the morning avocado and also get to watch all my co-workers turn their heads to see what the amazing smell is that's coming from my area.

Tempeh is a protein powerhouse so it's no wonder that I love to include it in my meals wherever I can. What you see below is 4 servings worth of the good stuff, and I can pre-portion it into my convenient tupperware for the whole week - each day's ration alongside 1/2 cup of wonderful Trader Joe's Lentils.

I pop the lentil / tempeh / sriracha mix into the microwave for 35 seconds and have a clean and filling meal ready to be instagrammed and devoured.

3. Sweet Potato + Quinoa Stir Fry

This one's for dinner every night this week.

Sweet potato, Quinoa, Jalapeno peppers, black beans, grilled chicken and a dash of love make this the perfect 'comfort meal' after the long days of work I've been experiencing. 

The recipe is here and you'll find the peeled thin potato slices to be the perfect texture and just the right size for cooking without extra time or effort.

Have you ever done your food prep on the weekends? What are your favorite easy fixes for a whole week of quality meals?

Week 18: Cohabitation

I'm so happy that Dan and I headed to the coast last weekend because we really haven't seen much of each other this week. We've both been so busy that when we do see each other it's dinner time, it's get-ready time or it's 'dont-bother-me-i'm-blogging-time'. Rough life

Before we get started with the week - check out the Bad Lip Reading for The AMC's The Walking Dead

[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jR4lLJu_-wE?feature=player_embedded&w=640&h=360]

...Dan says that's me at 2:45

Back at it -

House chores have fallen by the wayside and just yesterday we sorted week old mail into three important piles. The yours, mine, and 'how do we stop getting this...' piles are still sitting on the dining room table, but at least they've been sorted. Third time was a charm on loading / running the dishwasher as well. Soap was in, racks were loaded, but somehow there was no urgency in actually running the thing. Lastly, you know it's bad when you decide to just buy more athletic wear to stretch out the frequency of laundry loads rather than just find the time. Love the new sports bras though!

Enough about what we're doing wrong! How about what we've done right this week! Food related, obvi

1. Avocado + Sriracha Toast at the Coast

2. Costco trip turned into a belated Happy Birthday cake

3. Cinco de Mayo guacamole prep - yum! 

4. Post dinner-date with Brad and Brooke led us to ice cream

Dan wanted to make sure that I shared some of the cuteness from this weekend. Bella is an excellent snuggle-bug and my handsome Daniel was happy to take a nap on a hot day. Daniel is a favorite among the two golden sisters, they find it hard to leave his side when he's around.

Can you even believe that he and I have lived together for 18 weeks? I can't - it feels like much longer than that and I am so thrilled to call this house a home.

Enjoy your weekend and hug/call/cherish your mother!

Grill Time

A heat wave has hit Portland this past week and is honestly the warmest streak I can remember ever coming through our city this early in the Spring.

With arrival of the beautiful weather also comes a constant need for sunglasses, increased time spent outside in the evenings and naturally the inclination to invite some friends over and fire up your grill.

I am very fortunate to have grill-master Dan by my side who loves to put grill lines on anything and everything - but sometimes we can fall into a rut of doing the same thing over and over - like grilled chicken, burgers, veggies in tin-foil, etc.

This summer we are planning to step up our grill game and I wanted to share some recipes from Pinterest and other blogs that I'm dying to try out.

My hope is that you can find something you'd like to try too - and maybe share some of your own or your favorite recipes with me!

1. Pineapple Mango Tropical Chicken Skewers

2. Grilled Focaccia Bread

3. Jerk Chicken & Grilled Pineapple Salsa

4. Grilled Zucchini

Sorry, I know - I'm drooling too.

Happy grilling!

Throwback Thursday: ¡Olé!

We made it to Thursday - ¡Olé!

Today has me thinking about how close we are to a holiday that is very near and dear to my heart: Cinco de Mayo

What's not to love about celebratory margaritas, chips, salsa, guacamole and other traditional cuisine not Taco Bell, Dan!.

I know that whenever I don't want to put dinner on the table the first restaurants that come to mind serve chips by the basket, keep the salsa coming and have eclectic flare and mariachi bands. Seriously - my salsa to chip ratio is 2:1, I have plenty of tomato stains to prove it.

Lately around the house we've been mashing avocados, chopping onions and chilling that guac like we've never tasted something so decadent! I'm looking forward to maybe putting together my first shot at making Sangria this weekend. Who knows, maybe I'll share!

Sorry for the shorty post - today is going to be one of the busier days of the whole month with quite a lot of pressure on the little girl below's shoulders.

Today's Throwback Thursday is brought to you by a little girl who has always been chasing the sun with a smile on her face, sombrero and all.

¡Olé!

Today in History - 4.24.1999

Hello everyone!

There's so many things we could chat about, like the weather, the new clothes I've bought lately {on sale!}, my job, what motivates me, my man, etc.

It almost crept past me but something reminded me of a decision I made 14 years ago that has significantly improved my life and my health.

Today, April 24th, marks 14 years since I've drank soda.

I could harp and harp on why soda is bad for you, here and here for example - but instead I'll talk about what pushed me to the decision and the many reasons I've stuck to it over the past 14 years.

I was in Seventh grade, 12 years old and incredibly focused on softball and the things that I could do to improve my game. As a team, we were working on the 'mental game' to strengthen our minds and work out our discipline, so we were encouraged to choose something to give up for a week. Instantly I knew what I wanted to give up, but would have to enlist some help from teammates and my very own family.

See, my brother had given up soda a year prior and had always boasted about it - and being the competitive little sister I decided to lead follow my own path. I also was not such a light consumer of the sugary beverage. We would go to fast food restaurants for convenience after practices + games and I would consistently order the biggest Dr. Pepper or Root Beer I could get my hands on. No fault of anyone's, just the health concerns of high soda consumption weren't public knowledge as they are today - so it was more about the bubbly bite I'd experience from an ice cold soda rather than the taste of it.

I recall the 'last supper' like it was yesterday. My dad and I left the practice in Beaverton and headed to the East side, but not before a pit stop at McDonald's to order a #2 (Two cheeseburgers) No Cheese, Ketchup Only with a Dr. Pepper to drink. I remember slowly sipping out of the straw, calculating what I was putting into my body and ultimately feeling sick as a result. The cup sat overnight on my nightstand, half full and eventually poured down the kitchen sink.

Realizing that I didn't want to finish my last one, I knew I had an easy road ahead to look forward to both with this commitment and many others that followed.

Weeks passed, months passed. I noticed myself feeling better, my teenage pores were clearing up kind of and I was full of healthy hydration {water} like I'd never been before. Soon it was six months later and there was no way I was going back - I'd come too far to ever put a drop to my lips again.

Since giving up soda I have:

• Saved a lot of $$


• Avoided a lot of extra and worthless calories


• Encouraged others to quit/limit their bad habits


• Found the will to give up French Fries (going on 13 years)


• Nodded my head to every health conscious reason to give up soda


• Much less fast food dining


• ...Saved a lot of $$

I don't nag or judge those who drink soda now, but I sure am happy that I don't crave the stuff.

I know that I'm a happier person because of this commitment and the endless personal strength I gained in experiencing success will serve me well for a lifetime.

Like I said, happy:



Just try it for a week, see how much better you feel!

Feel Good Weekend

This weekend was full of good vibes for the house.

Dan and I spent a good portion of Saturday making our home clean and happy. It's been a little while since we had a nice, deep clean - so we treated ourselves to a brand new Swiffer Wet Jet for the occasion.

Toilets were scrubbed, counters were scraped, three loads of laundry, two loads of dishes (mostly my tupperware) and even recycling/garbage duty.

More than just cleaning, we had some fun too!

As a result of cleaning, the pool table in the garage that has been covered with boxes since the move was unveiled, and we had a great time playing a few games with loud jams and competitive glances. The pool cue was an awesome gift from my brother for my birthday two years ago and I haven't given her enough time and attention.

We've been killing it at the burger game lately. This beauty below was a result of the weekend prior's food prep, fresh avocado & the perfect amount of sriracha topping. Dan is the grill master and anything I do never matches up. He's happy that I'm so dependent.

Salmon Burgers

{Costco Salmon Burgers + Thin wheat buns + Mozzarella + Avocado + Sriracha}

Feeling even better, we had a special visit from mom, dad, Bailey and Bella for some landscaping work (more house help). Dan was out golfing in preparation for  his tournament next weekend, but when he came home he was greeted with kisses, wags and puppy dog eyes galore!



What else am I missing... oh yeah - I Ran! duh

Saturday Morning: 5 quick miles with Dan

Sunday Morning: 12 refreshing miles solo - nothing but good tunes and my thoughts.

Since I've been awful this month about my morning runs / Nike Training Club Goals, I've self prescribed myself a few more miles over and beyond my 100 as motivation to get out in this week's forecast of sun and 70 degree weather.

How was your weekend?

Restaurant Review: Torta-Landia

Saturday night Dan and I were couch potatoes. We kept talking about what our 'plans' were for the rest of the evening and couldn't come up with anything better than catching up on our DVR with shows dating back to March. No time for TV

I really didn't want to spend the rest of my night just sitting, but I also only wanted to spend the evening with my guy. I saw an update on Facebook that my parents were headed out to date night and I was convinced that Dan and I needed to have one too!

The last time I was with miracle worker Maggie, she recommended a restaurant that was great for an upbeat vibe, delicious chips + guacamole and a feel good 'hole in the wall' spot off the beaten path. I told her we'd check it out and I wanted to do it before my next appointment at the end of the month.

Torta-Landia is located on SE 60th avenue just off of Foster Road and within 2 miles walking distance of our home. Since we were feeling like bums we weren't going to drive so we bundled up, put on our walking shoes and headed out the door holding hands and soaking in sights of the neighborhood.

We arrived to the restaurant just past 8pm and found a packed house with live music and margaritas everywhere. We had to join in!

What We Drank

2 House Margaritas ($5.50 each)

We almost went with the Corona-rita (Margarita with an upside-down corona) but had already been drinking most of the day while watching the Masters. #Sorrynotsorry

What We Ate

House Made Chips + Side of Guacamole ($3 + $2 Guac)

Carnitas del Diablo Burrito ($8.50)

Slow roasted carnitas sauteed with habaneros & jalapeno peppers, borracho beans, green rice cilantro-lime crema, queso oaxaca, and habanero salsa.

This burrito was big enough that both of us felt satisfied with the food we'd eaten and our bodies were warm walking back in the cool 50 degree evening.

Know Before You Go:

• It really is off the beaten path, hidden behind a used tire lot on Foster Road


• Happy Hour is 3-5pm Tuesday-Friday and 9-close Daily


• They had live music the entire time we were there - it looked like it was set up for the same scene every night


• Even Dan thought the burrito was massive - check the menu before you go and split a dish or two


• Location: 4144 SE 60th Ave, Portland, OR


• Hours: Closed Mondays, open Tuesday-Sunday starting at 11am.

Enjoy!

30 Miles + Many Smiles

Another weekend come and gone, and everything about it was time well spent!

Flowers are blooming, birds are chirping and my mister was home all weekend - not working, not playing golf and not sleeping in. Bliss.

{Credit to my neighbors, beautiful flowers!}

More Running for Days

If you remember that last weekend I ran 20 miles you'd call me crazy for the goal I set for myself this weekend.

20 miles in two days was a worthy challenge, so I decided to shoot for 30 from Friday - Sunday to put myself where I need to be for the month.

• Friday 7:20 pm - 7 Miles


• Saturday 8:40 am – 11 Miles


• Sunday 9:20 am – 12 Miles

 Why would I set my goal at 30 miles in three days?

1. It reaffirms that I can do anything I set my mind to.

2. I've been worthless at getting mileage during the week and I see that trend continuing through the end of May.

3. Why not?

Eats

After my Saturday morning run, this is what I had waiting for me on the counter, piping hot:

{Eggs + Avocados + Jalapenos + Mozzarella}

{Poor Man's Mimosa: Light or Wheat beer topped off with Orange Juice}

Dan is becoming quite the contributor to the magic made in the kitchen and I couldn't be happier. The rumors are that he's been known to live off of Mac n' Hot Dogs - which proves that he's had to really step up his game to keep the woman in his life happy. Thanks, dear!

Special Visitor

We had a special visit from Tanna (Happy Birthday week!) and Olive on Saturday and they were happy to meet Dan for the first time. It wasn't the usual girl-chatty catch up sessions Tanna and I are used to, but we are looking forward to some warmer weather where we can get take walks in the park and take adorable photos of miss Olive feeding ducks at the pond.

Onto the Next

Sorry, Tiger Woods - you didn't reclaim the green jacket but I hear you've still got years and years ahead of you before you retire. Next time. We're still happy to have a son named after you.

Is it weird that I was excited to get to my desk this morning? I have a suspicious feeling that this is going to be another quality week for myself and my team.