Monday, September 30, 2013

alstede farms

usually weekends are reserved for sleeping in, drinking endless cups of coffee, relaxing.... this weekend I woke up to an alarm both mornings, got in a nice 3.5 mile walk before kickboxing, stayed out on the lower east side until the wee hours of the morning, and discovered new jersey's obsession with apple picking at alstede farms (it really IS a fun little outing!) 

pair it all with good friends and amazing weather and I couldn't have asked for a better weekend!  well, except for that hangover that lasted halfway through apple picking (damn those "all you can eat AND drink" sushi places)
 
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now we've got 14 pounds of apples to eat before they go bad.  apple butter and apple pie are in our near future!!  does anyone have special tips or tricks for the BEST apple pie or butter??

how was your weekend?!

cheers.
jenn

Friday, September 27, 2013

it's friday, and you're not allowed to wear jeans.

....something about a senator coming through the office or something? i would think he would understand that jeans are appropriate attire for those who work at a construction company, but you know, what do i know.  i guess it's not so bad when i decide to wear my extra-soft black cotton chinos (by "extra soft" i mean "today's my 5th day wearing these pants", i KNOW you know what i'm talking about)

regardless, the important thing about today is that it's Friday, and it's September.  that's a recipe for an awesome weekend (even if we're NOT a football house, GASP). 

so what's in store?

- a night in with mr p's best cooking skills: cider-brined and roasted pork loin. at $1.50/lb we couldn't say no to that 10-lb chunk of pig at BJ's!

- morning jogs and kickboxing. i'm determined to look GOOD when we go to barbados in november, it will be my first time in a bathing suit this year.  i know i'm gonna be pasty white, but at least i shouldn't be pasty white AND flabby (correction, "AS" flabby).

- an afternoon in the bronx... the bronx ZOO that is, no switchblade required.

i hope your weekend is as fantastic! i hope you do something that makes you smile.  if not, you can always come back here and take a peak at this lil guy.  camden's his name, and rawr-ing is his game.

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rawr.

happy Friday!

cheers.
jenn

Thursday, September 26, 2013

simple inspirations

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oh hey, it's been a while!

partly because i was working long hours in boston.
partly because i was overwhelmed with the amount of traveling i was doing.
partly because i watched all 6 seasons of madmen in record time.
...then watched the entire season of orange is the new black.
partly because i was eating out every night instead of cooking.
partly because my "fun" time included going to whole foods every night just to get out of my dungeon of a basement apartment in beacon hill.
partly because i was feeling lonely being away from mr p.

...but mostly, it was being uninspired. life was getting very routine in an unhappy way. i didn't do anything cool, i didn't eat anything cool, and because there was no end in sight, i didn't have time to even think about anything other than work, eat, travel, sleep...

i've been back in jersey city for a few weeks now, and lemme tell you, i've been loving every second of it!   mr p and i have met up with many friends we haven't seen all summer, we've been going to kickboxing, feeling great, getting proper sleep (in my own bed for once!!), and eating mr p's delicious food again!  we had a few "clean out the freezer and fridge" cookouts, and haven't turned on the AC in weeks. 

i never really considered myself a homebody, but after so much travel, i just craved being home with no plans.  it's incredible how much better i feel, and how many times i smile just for simple things.

i didn't really work out while i was in boston, and i ate out WAY too often.  now that i'm home i'm back on the right track, and just getting back into kickboxing has made me feel awesome.  i've made a decision to at least get in a good walk on the days i have something going on after work. one of the benefits is seeing the sun rise behind the manhattan skyline (that beautiful photo above is from my walk this morning... #nofilter #whoops #jimmyandjustinaregonnamakefunofme)

when i walk out to the end of the pier and see that beautiful site i am so thankful that i made the leap of faith and moved out to this amazing metropolis, i smile, and i get inspired.

man it's good to be home.

cheers.
jenn