Write Me Away From Here

happy sunday! i hope you're all having a lovely weekend filled with all your favorite people and things! we've had some unusually warm weather for november in massachusetts but yesterday and this morning felt as autumn should: blustery, crisp, surrounding by dancing leaves and with the world covered in a gold blanket. it's so ironically poetic as all this beauty comes from dying leaves.. and i'm trying to soak up every second before the world turns gray as winter approaches. my saturday was definitely been filled with some of my favorite people.. my gym hosted its annual halloween crossfit competition and we celebrated my brother's birthday.. so much excitement for one day!  as i've talked about before, our decision to join crossfit was one of the best i made. the sport has made me physically and mentally so much stronger, i've met some of my closest friends and there is nothing better than finishing your hour long workout, covered in sweat and out o

i can't believe it's already november.. thanksgiving will be upon us in a couple weeks and then the craziness of christmas begins! i'm so excited to share all the yummy recipes i'm trying, decorate our house for the holidays, spend lots of time with family and friends, and watch as many hallmark channel christmas movies as i can squeeze in (i might have already watched one this week)! my new (well 8 months ago new) job allows me to have so much more time at home and i think this week i'm finally starting to use my time properly and be super productive (only took me 8 months, no biggie). but with this in mind, i've decided to start making a list of goals for myself each month in hopes to achieve them. so here goes.. things i want to do in november:  clean up the yard for winter  visit my brother in connecticut  read 2 books  try a new restaurant  blog a food related post each monday  host a dinner party  get to bed and wake up earlier  decorate o

this chilly weather has got me in a nesting, cooking, cozy mood and i'm loving it. for a while ben and i were stuck in a bad habit of going out to eat or ordering take out which is great when you've had a long day and don't feel like cooking but terrible in so many ways. first of all, it gets super expensive. second of all, we always eat way more than we should. and third of all, going out wasn't special anymore because we did it all the time. thank goodness we finally broke that habit! let me tell you how.. to start, as i said before, this fall weather always puts me in a cooking mood which has been very helpful. but mostly what has helped is that i started planning simple and delicious meals to make.. you know, the kind you actually want to eat.. not plain chicken and broccoli.. and, to be honest, we've made some meals lately that have been so much tastier than anything we'd get in a restaurant.. so it makes dinner quite appealing. planning also eliminates

little brother, who is not so "little" anymore, happy birthday! 27 times around the sun.. where the heck did the years go? there was a time i could act like your mom, boss you around, and actually get away with it.. remember those days when i was bigger than you? yeah, i hardly do either.. but there was a time! growing up by your side was so much fun.. all the trouble we caused, the fights we got into, the memories we made and continue to make have all been some of my favorite times. eventually, we started to grow up, you turned old enough to make adult decisions and decided to join the marine corps. i know i've told you so many times, but you will never be able to truly understand just how proud i am of you for this decision. how much i admired you then and still do today. you were barely 18 years old.. most kids your age were worrying about which party they were attending that weekend.. and you were more concerned with serving your country.. which is exactly wha

finally, we made it to our punta cana wedding reception. you're all probably so sick of reading about our wedding(s) but i'm definitely not sick of writing about them or reminiscing.. so, there are a few more posts and then we can finally move on to other topics.. maybe! any who, our punta cana wedding reception was epic.. more than we ever imagined. i planned all the decorations via pictures and, despite my skepticism, it turned out to be an absolute fairytale. the dj did an amazing job, the food was yummy, the cake beautiful, the lighting magical, the dance floor a perfect size, and just the right number of guests to have our own dance party but not feel super crowded.. i mean look at this, it couldn't possibly have been better. i kept our decorations neutral - white, green and gold which were simple and beautiful. my mom says i need more color in my life.. i disagree. ben and i did not actually attend our cocktail hour because we were busy taking the most