Write Me Away From Here

"There is no greater love than to lay down one's life for one's friends." It's Memorial Day... a day most of us enjoy family, friends, cookouts and cold beer. But today is so much more than just a day off from work. Although we need not forget on every other day, this one in particular is a time we need to remember our fallen heroes. CrossFit is not only a place to meet some of the best people in the world and get your ass handed to you... it is a place that recognizes our country's military and honors those who have paid the ultimate sacrifice with "Hero WODs" (workout of the day). Memorial Day is a special one. Memorial Day we all do "Murph." Of course you have to wear flags when you do this... I wish you all could have been there to listen to our coach explain the meaning of this workout and the enthusiasm in his voice... those Marines, they are no stranger to sacrifice and honor... but instead you get to hear me try to reg...

Working out is hard. There are so many times I'm in the middle of a workout and I wonder why I torture myself like this on a daily basis... well, because I want to be a badass... but that's a story for another day. Want to know what's even harder than working out? Eating clean. It is so freaking hard... especially when I have a wicked sweet tooth... and Ben is no better... so together the struggle is real. It's like we feed into each other's problem... no pun intended. I've found that when I try to eat clean, I do well for a short period of time, then I cheat and everything goes to shit. And by shit I mean ice cream on a daily basis. I've also found that days I'm working are so much easier to be good... I pack my meals and eat what I bring because I don't have another option. AND I've found that when I make food I actually want to eat, I'll even eat it when I'm home and not find something better. Ben and I decided that when we both ha...

Just in time for Memorial Day, this is one of my go-to desserts to bring to summer cookouts... and given its red, white, and blue colors it fits perfectly with Memorial Day and Labor Day. The dish is fruity and light but, don't let those berries fool you. It has its fair share of calories but worth every one 🍓🍓🍓 Ingredients : 2 pints fresh blueberries  2 pints fresh strawberries  1 stores bought angel food cake, cut into 1 inch cubes  1 block cream cheese, softened to room temperature  1 can sweetened condensed milk  1 cup milk 1 package jello vanilla instant pudding mix  1 large container Cool Whip In a bowl, combine milk and pudding mix. In another large bowl, combine cream cheese and sweetened condensed milk, then add pudding mix. Fold Cool Whip into mixture.  Arrange half of angel food cake in bottom of trifle bowl. Add a layer of blueberries followed by a layer of pudding mixture. Repeat above layers, alternating ...

Country music, whiskey and not a care in the world made for a great mini vacation. Since we can't get enough of "my-wife-left-me-and-my-dog-died" country music, Nashville was the perfect place to visit. The flight was quick and cheap, the hotel was a block away from Broadway (the main strip), downtown was a 20 minute Uber ride from the airport and southern people are just nicer than us northeastern folks. We went for three nights which was plenty of time. Unless you really enjoy museums, this city is truly for drinking, listening to music and partying... and buying cowboy boots... and none of us should be drinking for more than three days straight. The main strip (really the only strip) is lined with bars and restaurants with their doors open and music pouring out all day long, stores filled with cowboy boots and a few souvenir shops. That's it. But you're not going to find better music anywhere... nearly everyone plays the guitar and sings in that place. W...

I know I'm so late talking about this... a month late... but my goodness time flies by... there just aren't enough hours in a day. Marathon Monday came and went and of course I spent my day at work... although, to be honest, I don't think I would have ventured out to Boston on April 17th even if I had the day off... waaaaaay too many people. It's hard to believe 4 years have passed since such a historical event in our city was bombed. I remember sitting in my car in the parking lot of PA school, listening to the news broadcasts, mesmerized and unable to pry myself away to go to class. Like most, I was shocked to have something so tragic happen so close to home. Sure, I've seen the news and know many countries live in fear for their lives on a daily basis, but not us. We're supposed to be safe. We aren't supposed to be attacked in broad day light, surrounded by thousands of people. But we did. And my heart broke that day.  But one of the reasons...

No one is born a warrior. They become one when they refuse to stay seated. When they stand up for what they believe in, even when that means standing alone. Even when that means being hated by many. They become one when they decide to do something most people shy away from. Warriors are not people who are fearless. They are those who choose to keep moving forward despite their fears... despite the trembling of their knees, the racing of their heart, or their logic telling them to turn around. They become a warrior by choice and then become a hero by default. Police officers... these men and women are warriors and heroes every single day... our real life supermen. Heroes. We all need them... someone to believe in, especially in a world where the majority of people will eventually let us down.... and is there a better time to talk about heroes and warriors than Police Week? They stand in freezing rain for hours, search woods so thick and dark they can't see in front of their fa...

Ever become a mini farmer by accident? I did. Except it wasn't really an accident. I made the conscious decision to buy chickens which evolved into goats and then pigs. Oops. When I bought my first house, I couldn't wait to start "living off the land" as I used to say. The first summer I went straight to work planting a garden and, when I came across baby chicks, there was no way I could tell myself to leave empty handed. And my urban farm began.  I quickly learned that I planted way too many tomatos for one person to ever eat and not enough of anything else... so everyone I knew got tomatoes. I also learned that chickens fly out of their coop despite attempting to cut their wings (it doesn't hurt, just prevents flying... or so I thought) and make a nest in the woods to lay their eggs (which I eventually found and collected). Every morning my little chickies flew out to wander around the neighborhood and returned each night... until they slowly, one by...

A whole weekend off together... I mean like Friday night, Saturday and Sunday... like normal people... those never happen! So, naturally, we packed as much into our weekend as possible... starting with Cinco de Mayo margaritas and guac at my favorite Mexican restaurant. After two drinks each we called it quits and headed home to bed early in anticipation of Saturday morning... Our crossfit gym hosted a rowathon for autism so Saturday morning consisted of rowing... lots of rowing... 42,195 meters (a marathon) of rowing... which took my team of 8 people around two and a half hours. The turn out was amazing... 42 teams and around 400 people all smooshed in! Our team came in 13th place which was great considering a lot of our competitors looked like they belong on the cover of a crossfit magazine. Sunday was my favorite day. Skipped the gym, took the puppies on a walk and met mom for breakfast. Every time Ben and I go out for breakfast we each get eggs and then split pancakes...

When you get invited to a wedding in Maine (and have been meaning to plan a trip to Portland) on a weekend you're both off, you pack up your bags and make a mini vacation out of it.  One of my best friends married the love of her life and it was so wonderful to be part of their special day. Weddings do something funny to me. During vows, or the first kiss, or the first dance, or the father-daughter dance... there's always a point where I feel like I could cry. Not a bad cry... one of those cries that comes about because you're so overwhelmed... so happy that someone you care about found another someone that makes them feel like the most important person in the world. I can't think of a someone more deserving of this feeling than my friend Kate.    Since I wear scrubs most days and never dress up, it felt good to wear fancy clothes, high heels, and sip fancy peach martinis all night.  The morning after the wedding, Ben and I woke up early and heade...