PRESENTS!

Happy Daylight Savings, Loyal Readers! I hope you all set your clocks ahead this morning. If not, please proceed to your alarm clock now, or else tomorrow morning will be an unpleasant surprise.

According to our wedding website, Mr. Handsome and I are getting married in 83 days! (OH-MY-GOD). There is LOTS to do before our big day, but we're right on schedule according to my extremely OCD task spreadsheet.

As we get closer to the wedding, the presents are starting to arrive! And if there's one thing I love, it's presents. The fact that people take the time and spend the money to buy you something and ship it to you is so touching. (Sniff, Sniff)... 

One of the gifts we received is a new WAFFLE MAKER! We were so freaking excited that we made waffles the very next morning. How amazing do these look!? #WafflingLikeABoss

Another gift we received is a brand new comforter for our bed! It's a beautiful hypo-allergenic down comforter than totally classes up our bedroom. Mr. Handsome did an immediate face plant on it yesterday and proceeded to take a nap... (NOTE: The panda you see in the background is Mr. Cookie, a very important member of our family)

We're looking forward to all the wedding adventures (and awesome presents) to come!

Attack of SNOWZILLA!

Hello, loyal readers! How's it going? If you live anywhere near me, it's likely you're cold and stuck inside because of the 2-3 feet of snow piled high outside your door. It is official... Snowzilla has fallen, frozen, and utterly conquered the DC Metro area.

Mr. Handsome and I tried to shovel our cars out yesterday afternoon. After one hour of shoveling, we had unearthed about 1/3 of our cars, so we gave up an went inside to drink more booze. When I went outside a few hours later, the cars were completely covered again... Snowzilla: 1; Humans: 0

We also spent about 30 minutes shoveling our balcony yesterday. Today, there is a fresh foot of snow out there waiting to be shoveled again... Snowzilla: 2; Humans: 0

We decided that we needed a hearty meal after all that shoveling. ERGO, I made these amazing Spinach Lasagna Roll-Ups! (NOM, NOM, NOM). My News Years Resolution of cooking more home-cooked meals is well underway, chillies!

On the down side, I probably won't be able to make it to the gym today due to my invisible, snow-covered car. I'm definitely getting a little antsy sitting at home. (She says while Googling "How to do cardio at home with no equipment")

Until further notice, I'll be hanging here at home with my BFF Olaf. Stay warm, folks!

Happy New Year! #2016

Happy New Year, loyal readers! 2105 was definitely an amazing year. I got engaged, bought a condo, went on 19 (yes, 19) crazy trips and vacations, and managed to increase my alcohol tolerance to college-level status. It's been quite an adventure!

Per tradition, I'd like to post today about several year-end topics.... 1) My personal 2016 IN/OUT List, 2) 2016 New Years Resolutions, 3) Books I read in 2015...

My Personal 2016 IN/OUT List

Out: Cozying up by the fire with cocoa

In: Holidays in shorts with margaritas

In DC this Christmas, the average temperature was 70 degrees. No coats, no mittens, no problems! I went for an 18-mile bike ride with Mr. Handsome in shorts and a t-shirt. May the warm weather continue into the new year! #ElNino #GlobalWarmingLove

Out: NOT carrying my favorite illy coffee beverage

In: Stocking my illy drink like milk and toilet paper before a blizzard!

Over the last few weeks, I've noticed that my favorite bottled coffee beverage has been out of stock at most convenience store locations. In 2016 I expect this sugary, yet not overly-caloric beverage to be on every shelf at every store! 

Out: Spandex

In: Fashionable Sweat Pants

Lounge spandex, (with the exception of some funky-patterned designs), are fading out. BUT, here's the thing... I bought 10+ pairs of spandex over the last 2-3 years. Unfortunately for my wardrobe, I'm going to continue wearing my spandex until they split from overuse. ERGO, I'll buy one pair of fashionable sweat pants to wear to the grocery store. But 90% of the time... I'm still rocking the spandex.

Out: Nerdy Hipsters

In: Grungy Hipsters

Large glasses, neon colors, and excessive iPod use are SO out. In their place, expect grungy hipsters who don't shower, listen to much darker rock music, wear lots of black clothing, rock the dreadlocks, and grow even larger, unkempt brewer's beards. #GROSS

Out: “Netflix and Chill”

In: Netflix socks that turn off your show when you fall asleep

We all know the 2015 fad dubbed "Netflix and Chill" (AKA- "Netflix and BANG"). That's great and all, but check out the cool new Netflix socks that pause your show when you fall asleep! Technology, you are beautiful. Read about the socks HERE

Out: Spending lots of money eating out at restaurants

In: Cooking at home like a boss

An average dinner at a moderately-priced restaurant will cost $40 dollars. That's almost as much as I spend on groceries each week. What a TOTAL waste of money. Which brings me to the next section of today's post...

2106 New Year's Resolutions

In 2015, my New Year's resolutions were to... 1) Complete a dietary cleanse, 2) Whiten my teeth, 3) Open and use my Crockpot...

1) I "sort of" completed a dietary cleanse this year. The goal was to eat nothing but fruits and vegetables for 7 days. I ate nothing but fruits for 3 hours. Cleanses are stupid.

2) I DID buy Target brand white strips and used them for a week to whiten my teeth! Next time, (before the wedding), I'm splurging on name brand strips for extra whiteness.

3) I finally used my Crockpot 2 days ago! #LastMinuteSuccess... Check out the amazing chicken tacos I made using our Crockpot...

In 2016, my one resolution is to cook more often. I'm going to try to make amazing meals like the chicken tacos above, and the skinny shrimp scampi I made tonight... #NYE #NOM

2015 Books

In 2014 I successfully read 24 books. My goal for 2015 was to read even MORE books. I fell short due to the fact that I was way too busy. I read a total of 19 books in 2015. In 2016, I'm going to try and beat 24 again! #BookWorm... Here's a list of the books I read in 2015. My top three favorites are bolded and starred*

BOOK AUTHOR Windows On The World Complete Wine Course Kevin Zraly Game of Thrones Book #5 George R R Martin Chasing Harry Winston Lauren Weisberger Born to Run Christopher McDougall The English Patient Michael Ondaatje The Queen of Subtleties Suzannah Dunn Family Pictures Jane Green The Art of American Whiskey Noah Rothbaum A Bend in the Road Nicholas Sparks The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks Rebecca Skloot The Winter People* Jennifer McMahon The United States of Craft Beer Jess Lebow Left Bank Kate Muir An Abundance of Katherines* John Green The One and Only Emily Giffin Me and Mr. Darcy Alexandra Potter The Elements of Style Wendy Wasserstein One Summer David Baldacci The Kitchen House* Kathleen Grissom Overall, 2015 was an incredible year! I can't wait to see what 2016 will bring.

Southern Grub and Wine Wazoo!

As of this weekend, I am officially done with work trips for 2015! No more planes, no more delays or cancellations, crying babies sitting next to me, uncomfortable hotel sheets, damp rooms, travel expense reports... I'M DONE, FOOLS!

The last two work trips I had in 2015 were actually quite fun. The week after Thanksgiving I flew to Nashville, TN with several Chefs and F&B Directors to eat and drink our way around the city. #HardKnockLife... The southern food was AMAZING! (Fried chicken skins, pork belly poptarts, pimento cheese beignets.... #YUM!)

The next week, I flew to Houston, TX to taste all of the potential wines for our next beverage program. Over the course of two days, we tasted 425+ wines. It was QUITE an experience... #TooMuchWine... Unfortunately, all of the sugar in the wines hurt the enamel on my teeth. Dentist, here I come!

And now, it's Christmas season. Our tree is decked, our stockings are hung, the shopping is done... Let the baking begin!

Happy Thanksgiving!

Happy Thanksgiving, loyal readers! Actually, Thanksgiving was yesterday. I'm a day late in this post since yesterday was jam-packed full of food, family and more food.

Mr. Handsome and I started the holiday with our traditional Thanksgiving Tofurkey Trot! We ran 13.1 miles to prepare for two dinners. That's right... TWO DINNERS! (Next year, I've been promised only one dinner... so I can sleep in and watch the parade, WOO!)

What else has been happening lately? Well, LOTS of traveling for work! I've been to Sea Island, GA, Columbia, MD, and am heading to Nashville, TN and Houston, TX in December. #PrayForMyFlights

I also had the pleasure earlier this month of being the maid of honor in my cousin's wedding! She looked beautiful. Everyone danced. The wine was flowing. Her dress only broke once. There was only one midnight fire alarm. It was a grand celebration!

In other exciting news... We're getting a REAL Christmas tree this year! And by real... I mean fake. But it's 4 1/2 feet tall and can hold real-life ornaments. We're such adults. It's kind of a big deal.

As we start the holiday season, I hope you all have a safe and wonderful time buying presents, baking cookies, and sipping lots and lots of wine! #Merry #Merry

"Now watch me sip, my chardonnay-nay"... Cheers!

Planes, Tutus, Condos & Pumpkins

Hello, Loyal Readers! It's been a very, very busy couple of weeks here in Hilary-ville. Since last blogging, I've taken four big trips, moved to a new home, ran a half marathon, hosted a Bridal Shower, and consumed a great deal of wine in the process...

Trip #1: Kentucky! One of my beverage partners at work invited me down to Louisville, KY to "hike" the bourbon trail. I visited the factories of Jim Beam, ABM and Makers Mark and got to taste and take home some amazing bourbons!

Trip #2: Charleston! Mr. Handsome and I flew down to Charleston, SC for the wedding of his childhood friend and his lovely new wife. It was a sunrise wedding, so we had the pleasure of waking up at 3:30am on a Saturday! #AfternoonNap... We also got to dine at some GREAT Charleston restaurants and drank some tasty brews at Holy City Brewing.

Trip #3: Chicago! Work asked me to take a quick trip to Chicago to help with the photo shoot for our next big food promotion... Skillet Cookies! If my fall allergies weren't so bad, I may have been able to smell all of the delicious baked goods. I love Chicago. It reminds me of a miniature NYC, but with more wind and unhealthier food. #NOM

Trip #4: Me, my mother, and my aunt Amie packed the car hillbilly style w/ pumpkins and mums to drive to NJ and host a "Fall in Love" themed bridal shower for my cousin, Kitty. I'm the maid of honor in her wedding November 7th in Redbank, NJ. (Expect a fun little blog post about my MOH speech in a few weeks)... The shower was a success. Everyone loved their baby pumpkin favors!

1/2 Marathon: I ran the Diva's Half Marathon at Tarara Winery a couple weeks ago out in Leesburg, VA. Despite being exhausted and slightly out of shape, I busted out a PR of 1:49:22! Average mile pace was 8:22. I credit the sugary illy coffee I drank before the race. And I would like to thank the race coordinators for the sweet tiara, tiara-shaped medal, pink tutu, and pink boa.

New Home: Mr. Handsome and I finally bought a place! We moved from Arlington (Courthouse) to Arlington (Shirlington). So far, we LOVE the place! We painted the walls different shades of gray, bought some amazing new rugs, and are loving the hardwood floor situation. #HomeOwners

May October be slightly less busy, but just as adventurous! This afternoon, I'm headed to a rocking and rolling beer festival in Shirlington Village. PROST!

#Nickary Wedding Preview

Happy Sunday, loyal readers! As you know, Mr. Handsome and I got engaged back in May. Since making it official, we've been super busy planning for the big day. We've booked almost all of our vendors, I bought a wedding dress, we've selected our cake flavors, and we had an amazing engagement photo shoot session at Old 690 Brewing with our photographer!

Instead of a cake, we're going to offer our guests cupcakes and cookies. We decided on the following flavors of cupcakes: (Red Velvet, Carrot Cake, Key Lime, and Strawberry), and the following cookies: (Chocolate Chip, Italian Wedding, White Chocolate Macadamia w/ Cranberries, and Snickerdoodle).

The brewery-themed engagement photo shoot was a huge success! Our photographer over at Traci J. Brooks Studios did an incredible job. Here are a few highlights from the shoot...

6.4.16 :)