The Friday Five!

Linking up with the ladies for another installment of Five on Friday!

1. I couldn't resist the card above.. sometimes it is so true! But today I have the day off which I am so grateful for! I'm sitting here drinking coffee, writing this post with a sleepy love pup at my feet-- this is the life!  I have plans to hit Target, Whole Foods, and Michaels. I am also planning to get some chores done around the house and we have people coming to replace all of the broken closet doors in our house! So excited. 

2. I recently started using activated charcoal to whiten my teeth and it works! I was skeptical at first but it has whitened my teeth and lifted some stains. I use the brand above, found at Whole Foods, and I take one capsule and break it open and sprinkle the charcoal on my toothbrush. I have a separate toothbrush that I use for this. I then brush my teeth in circles, taking care to be gentle so as not to damage my tooth enamel. After that, rinse, rinse, rinse with water. I do this every few days and it has definitely made a difference. However, don't expect a Ross Gellar teeth whitening situation, it's definitely a more subtle whitening. Also of note, this will stain porous surfaces. It didn't stain my bathroom sink at all but I do this with a towel laid down anyway. Oh and don't be alarmed if there is still black residue in your gum line after all the rinsing, that happened to me and I panicked so I brushed with baking soda and all that did was irritate my gums. When I brushed my teeth the next morning, the black residue came right off.  

3. Another year, another Baltimore Running Festival relay that I am ill-prepared for! I think I've run once since my half-marathon in May. Once. Ugh, I am not sure why I do this to myself and I definitely don't advocate for running without training but I can't back out now. To make it worse, I'm running leg three this year, which is shorter than the leg I ran last year but it's apparently mostly uphill. Great. At least this year, my co-worker is also running leg three so I'll have someone to talk to while I'm waiting. Won't have someone to talk to while running though, he's planning on running an 8:30 mile. No thank you. I'll stick with 10:30.

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4. Planning on making this goat cheese lemon pasta with kale  from Two Peas and their Pod on Sunday and I am so excited. It looks so good and I am looking forward to eating kale in another form besides salad. Also planning on going to see Gone Girl on Sunday so it's shaping up to be the best day ever. 

Happy Friday, friends! 

Thoughts for Thursday: Honesty Edition

Linking up with Nat and Annie today for Thoughts on Thursday!

I've been having a lot of thoughts lately about my life, things I would like to accomplish, habits I would like to kick, traits I would like to embody, things I would like to start doing...

You get the idea. I figured I would write them down here since this is Thoughts for Thursday after all!

via originally sourced from The Wellness Warrior

1. I have to accept that with my new job title comes a lot of new responsibilities. I am still learning what is expected of me and figuring out this job as I go. My new job title comes with a lot of administrative responsibilities that I wasn't expecting which means I need to be at work earlier and stay later if I want to accomplish everything. This means less free time, which admittedly, has been an adjustment. I am happy in my new title but trying to accept that there are concessions that need be made and that is simply the way it is right now.  By concessions, I mean less time spent falling into the black hole that is the Interwebs. Sad face.

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2. Relating back to number 1, I need to stop procrastinating. This is one of my least favorite traits about myself. I have more to do now with my job and grad school plus the usual stuff that's my responsibility like the house and for the most part, the dog so I need to stop putting things off and manage my time better. Like A LOT better. I'm not saying I'm super busy because truthfully, I'm not any busier than anyone else (and I'm really starting to hate people who continually state how busy they are) but my time management skills are so lacking that I'm rushing to get things accomplished and I hate that feeling. By the way, I'm The Cleaner, The Panicker, The List Maker, and The Perpetuator all in one. 

3. Relating back to 1 and 2, I need to go to bed later. I know that sounds counter-intuitive because someone trying to better their life usually wants to get to bed earlier but I find that I'm getting in bed early just because I think it is a good idea. However, when I get in bed, I'm not all that tired and I end up playing on my phone or watching T.V. before even attempting to fall asleep. I could be using that hour or so to complete tasks around the house such as laundry or emptying the dishwasher. I need to start getting in bed about 15-20 minutes prior to attempting to fall asleep. 

4. I need to drink more water throughout the day. I love water. I drink a lot of it when I am at home but I definitely do not drink enough during the day at work. It is very challenging to drink water during the day because I am in and out of the building, on the field, in the gym, in my health classroom, or attempting to find someone I need to talk to about something student related and my H2O never seems to make the trip with me. I need a Camelback to wear during the day, ha. Anyone have any tips on drinking more water during the day? I would love to hear from other people whose jobs aren't necessarily stationary.

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5, I need to think more positively. I have an inclination towards pessimism and it is not a good character trait. I am in total juxtaposition of my husband who always thinks positively and has little tolerance for a "woe is me" attitude. I am guilty of thinking and speaking negatively and more so of complaining. I want to stop being a complainer and start living more gratefully, which is definitely going to require a lot of work on my part. 

6. Lastly, I need to be better about keeping my word. Far too often, I make plans or promises and I don't keep them and then I feel guilty about breaking them. Terrible feeling. I stumbled upon this nonprofit, Because I Said I Would, recently and really resonated with me. It is a social movement about bettering humanity through promises made and promises kept. I want to be better about this in all areas of my life: work, friends, appointments, exercising, etc. My trouble with this definitely goes back to my lack of time management skills and procrastinating. I often have to cancel things because I have other things that must be accomplished but if I had managed my time correctly I probably wouldn't have to break plans or promises. 

Hopefully posting these thoughts will keep me accountable. Maybe I'll give periodical updates to keep myself accountable..?

Weekend in Cape May, NJ

Friday afternoon, some gal pals and I loaded up the car and headed north to Cape May, New Jersey for the weekend. Our husbands and boyfriends all take an annual guys trip to see the Redskins play an out-of-town game (Phoenix, this year) so we decided it was high time we did something, too! I've never been to Cape May before and it was absolutely lovely. It is such an adorable little town and we had a wonderful weekend of eating great food, drinking wine, and shopping. It was so nice to get away with the girls and the weekend was just the relaxing weekend I needed. Girls trips should happen every month!

Everyone got in at different times on Friday so we posted up on the couch with wine and pretty much talked and laughed the entire night. We are all in different stages in our relationships with these boys of ours (newly dating but serious, dating and living together for years, newly married, married for ten years, etc.) so there was much to be discussed and I really got to know some of these ladies better than I did before. Nothing like pizza and red wine to bring chicks together! 

We stayed at a house about mile from the beach. Since it's off-season and we knew we wouldn't be laying out on the beach, it was perfectly priced for the location. It also lent itself to being girls weekend friendly-- huge sectional couch and big plush chair so we all fit comfortably during our gabfests! The house sleeps 10 people and there is a huge backyard with a table and chairs, chaise lounges, and a grill, making it great for families as well. There are also Adirondack chairs on the porch that I would definitely take advantage of in the summer!  Here is the link to the house we rented if you are interested in heading to Cape May!

Saturday morning we were up bright and early for breakfast at The Mad Batter. This place is so cute and the food was amazing. I had a Belgian waffle with a side of hash browns. I am making a bold statement here, but I have to say that these hash browns may have been the best I have ever had. Cooked to perfection and perfectly seasoned!

Unfortunately, the weather wasn't so nice on Saturday but that didn't stop us from hitting the local shops and doing our part to support the Cape May economy. Among a few things I picked up: the softest mittens I've ever had on my hands (perfect for freezing cold Redskins games to come), a Cape May Christmas tree ornament, a beautiful dark green plaid scarf for only $20, and a print of two Schnauzers drinking red wine (I could not resist). After all that shopping, we were hungry and hit up The Ugly Mug for some beers and appetizers to tide us over before dinner. 

After our day out, we headed back to the house to get ready for our dinner reservations at The Pier House that night. 

Self-timer for the win! Wearing J.Crew Swing Sweater  (currently sold out) and 7 For All Mankind The Skinny Jean (a part of the Friends & Family sale using code Family25).  Not pictured but wearing the J.Crew Factory Sylvia Wedges in Bronzed Clay.

Dinner at The Pier House was nothing short of amazing. I had the lamb shank with asparagus and lemon and oregano potatoes. While dinner was very delicious, the desserts were out of this world. We shared 4 desserts: triple chocolate mousse, creme brulee pie, pumpkin cheesecake, and a peanut butter and chocolate ice cream pie. It was like the scene with Meg Ryan out of When Harry Met Sally, there were so many "oh my Gods" uttered at the table, people were beginning to stare but the desserts really were that good! We headed back home and ended the night with a rousing game of Cards Against Humanity. That game is always so hysterical.

Sunday morning we woke up to the sun shining! We decided to take the opportunity to get some exercise and walk to breakfast. A few of us were feeling the effects of the night before so we decided to hit up Uncle Bill's Pancake House, which was fine but I wouldn't recommend it. The food was okay but definitely not what we were going for. A couple of the girls had to leave after breakfast so they headed back to the house and the rest of us went back to the shops to pick up some items we missed the day before. I stopped to snap a few pictures of the beautiful Congress Hall. I am definitely going to try to get my husband to bring me here to stay for a long weekend soon! 





On our way home, we took the scenic route home and it was lovely. Cape May in October really is gorgeous. The temperature was perfect - not too hot, not too cold!







The rest of the day was spent hanging out and enjoying each other's company. Those of us that stayed had dinner at Lucky Bones on Sunday night and ended the night with a viewing of The Devil Wears Prada. I forgot how much I like that movie! Lucky Bones was very good, we all ordered pizza and I shamelessly ate my entire pie! It was the perfect atmosphere to end a girls weekend - laid back and we could sport jeans and tee-shirts. 
Monday morning before heading back home, we had breakfast at Bella Vida in West Cape May. Maybe I don't go to breakfast often enough but again this place was so, so good. I had french toast with a side of bacon and the french toast was some of the best I've ever had! It definitely has a laid back vibe and the service is not fast-paced like some other places you might go to for breakfast. Personally, slow service doesn't bother me at all and sometimes, like in this case, I rather enjoy the opportunity to linger over coffee and conversation. 
All in all, it was a great weekend spent with great friends and it was hard to get back to the daily grind yesterday. I would definitely recommend Cape May if you are looking for a girls weekend destination! Thankfully, I have a 3 day week this week so I think I can make it!