What's Up Wednesday

Today I'm joining Shay and Sheaffer for What's Up Wednesday to share what I've been up to since last month! 

What I'm Eating: I made this Andouille and Rice Skillet and it turned out AH-MAZING! Will definitely be adding to the rotation for the future! I also tried this Southwest Tortilla Baked Egg dish and while it didn't turn out as pretty, it was still very tasty! This week I'm going to be using up some extra pasta that I already made with this Dragon Noodles recipe and this twist on Taco Tuesday with these Taco Stuffed Shells. 

What I've Been Up To: 
Celebrating my niece's first birthday, a delicious dinner date at one of our favorite restaurants, and a big celebration for our favorite brewery's 3rd Anniversary with lots of friends and family! 

Elle's 1st Birthday

short rib pasta, scallops and banana cream pie

What I'm Dreading: We are looking to switch to a new ticketing system at work at the end of next month and we are nowhere near ready. Instead of giving more time to prepare they are just pushing full-steam ahead which will surely end in disaster. 

What I'm Working On: Spring cleaning! I took a random day off last week and since the weather was pretty gross I spent the day cleaning and purging - it felt great to be able to see my closet floors again! 

What I'm Watching/Reading: I recently watched Nightmare Alley- what a strange and DARK movie! I also started Season 2 of Getting Organized with The Home Edit on Netflix (getting some inspo for that cleaning and purging!). 

What I'm Doing This Weekend: Checking out a new-to-me restaurant/brew house with Michael

What I'm Looking Forward to Next Month: A loong vacation (a full week!) with my family down the shore (the beach for those of you not from NJ!). 

And that's it! 

What's up with you this month?

What's Up Wednesday

Hi friends! Since I've been a bit MIA I wanted to join Shay and Schaeffer for a recap of all the things goin on lately!

What I'm Eating... Don'tcha hate it when a restaurant (or in my case a fast food chain) gets rid of your favorite dish? I've been missing my Taco Bell spicy chicken burritos for awhile now, when lo and behold I found a copycat recipe on Pinterest and it's so good! This recipe will definitely be repeated since it's so easy (especially when you use leftover shredded chicken)!

This I plan to try this creamy garlic salmon pasta, these crockpot Swedish meatballs over egg noodles, and these oven baked chili cheese dogs- man, I'm getting hungry just thinking about it! 

What I'm Reminiscing About... bigger vacations in general, but especially our last "flight" vacation to Jamaica 2019. Who knew then that would be our last international trip for awhile?! I remember I was SO COLD at Dunn's River Falls, but has so much fun too!

What I'm Loving... right now, my last day working remote! We go back to fully in office next week. I'm going to treat myself to a little lunchtime walk over to the library and lunch from this Italian deli around the corner from me which is never open when I get back from work! 

What I've Been Up To... Blue and I shared a 7-year anniversary! We both love "experiences," so she took me to a wine-making class followed by a scrumptious dinner at a new-to-us restaurant, and I took her to a wine and pasta tasting. As I told my friend, "Great minds think of wine!" 

What I'm Working On... decluttering! I just got rid of 5 boxes of "stuff" and I feel so much lighter! Definitely nice to see some more of my closets and floors again haha! 

What I'm Watching... Let It Snow - Netflix

I'm a BIG fan of book-to-film adaptations. In most cases, I'll wait to watch the movie version until after I've finished the book but when this movie came out in 2019, I couldn't contain myself and HAD to watch it. Luckily for me (I guess?) I have horrible memory, so I didn't have a problem watching the movie again right after I finished reading the book earlier this month.

The book was great (though I'll admit I'm a sucker for YA romances in general, and intertwined stories especially). The movie was pretty great too. That being said, this was not the same story- and THAT makes me mad/unhappy/upset. The movie was one story and the book was another, and they didn't intertwine and they should have just made a teen movie by another name because it was SO FAR from the book!

What I'm Reading... I just finished Jane Austen Ruined My Life by Bath Pattillo for Erin's Book Challenge and it was pretty good, though I wanted a bit more from the ending. Here are the others I read in January:

What I'm Listening To... Billy Bossa Nova - Billy Eilish

Loving this calming track that I actually Shazamed from a TV show (though I don't remember which one... maybe SATC?) I don't really like Eilish as a person/pop icon, but her voice can't be denied! 

What I'm Doing This Weekend... nothing on the books yet, but I have a Groupon for some bourbon tasting, so maybe that! 

What I'm Looking Forward To Next Month... a weekend getaway with 10 of my favorite people! We are heading to an Airbnb in the woods. I've actually never gone away for the weekend with this group but I can't wait. We're already starting to get a menu together haha!

What Else Is New... Blue got a new job! After several months of being unemployed she landed a fully remote program management position with a small company and I'm so excited for her! She said she really likes the vibe of the company and is looking forward to getting into a routine again. 

And that's it! What's up with you?

Monthly Musings About Spring

 

1. Do you celebrate Easter or Passover? What are your traditions?

My mom and I celebrate Easter by going to church and then out for brunch. This year it will be virtual, and brunch at home. 

Me, circa 1987-ish?

2. Favorite Spring tradition?

Spring cleaning! Opening windows and airing the place out! And of course, changing out the wardrobe to add more vibrant colors! 

3. What Spring activities are you and your family involved in?

I can't think of any Spring-specific activities other than going to baseball games and a Spring Break getaway that we usually take in March, all of which is cancelled this year. Does drinking deck beers count?! 

4. What are you most looking forward to this Spring?

A newborn! My niece is due in April so very excited to meet her! Also every other year or so I chop off and donate my hair but I skipped it last ear so looking forward to doing that this year.

5. Do you plant a garden or flowers?

LOL not if I want them to live! I leave the planting to my mom :)

6. Do you decorate your house for Spring?

Not really. I put out one or two potted plants and change out the fleece throw blankets for lighter material ones, but that's about it. My patio furniture stays out all year so it just gets a little refresh. 

7. Do you have a favorite Spring meal?

Again, I can't say one meal scream Spring to me. Though I did learn on St. Patty's Day that I actually like corned beef (still not into cabbage), so I'll say that one! I also tend to eat more seafood in Spring, but that's more because I participate in Lent and don't eat meat on Fridays. 

fried scallops and fries- yum!

8. Does it feel like Spring where you live?

It does! The temps are rising (60's-70's most days), some rain, and flowers and trees are starting to blossom. And more sunshine! I love coming home from work and there still being some daylight left! 

9. Will your Spring look different this year due to Covid?

Yes. In the past Blue and I would go to baseball games and outdoor festivals, but I'm still not ready to be around crowds yet, even with the vaccine!

10. Have you dined outside yet this Spring? 

Yes! We took a ride down the shore to a seafood shack and ate on the waterfront. It was great!

Day trip to Keyport, NJ

What are some of your favorite things about Spring?

Linking up with Patti and Holly!

What's New With Me: August

I thought I hadn't done much in August but after writing this I realized I has quite an active month! Here's what I was up to: 

One of our Mountain Mamas left the nest (or mountain rather), so we had a goodbye "party" for her.

Covid Test on August 5... followed immediately by getting stung by a bee for the first time EVER! I put ice on it, but the swelling took a full week to go down, and then it was so itchy! 

Checked out a new local brewery followed by a late night swim with a few friends- so much fun! (Summer Bucket List- check!)

"Sand Flu" aka beach day in mid-August with another couple (Summer Bucket List- check!)

Dinner with Blue's sister and BIL at a new-to-us restaurant. 

Back to working in the office on August 27. Luckily I only have to go in 2 days a week for the next month. 

Closed out the month with another al fresco late lunch at one of our old favorites. 

Other than that, my reading took a  bit of a backseat this month as I continued to binge on all of the Sopranos, and then found Wentworth on Netflix. How have I never heard of this show? It's like a better, Australian version of Orange is the New Black, and there are 7 seasons! I'm already on S4... and S8 comes out Sept 30! Since I'm watching that with Blue, I may have to also start Cobra Kai- have you guys seen that one yet? It's supposed to be a continuation of The Karate Kid, and I've heard it's really good! 

What's new with you this month?

Linking up with Lauren, Dara, and Kristen! 

What's New With Me

I couldn't get my act together to get this up yesterday but better late than never, right?! This was officially the month for me getting *out*. Finally, an actual update! Let's recap, shall we?

Just a few of the attendees

For the 4th of July, the Mountain Mamas had a huge cookout and played lawn games and lit sparklers (not me, I got burned with a sparkler on 4th of July a few years back and have sworn them off ever since!). It was a lot of fun! 

The following weekend we had our annual glamping trip. This year we decided to head to a different place, Split Rock Resort and Spa (oooh fancy, not!). The drive up was TERRIBLE, sheets of rain where you couldn't see two feet in front of you. We had 2 cabins - the first night (always the craziest)  saw us karaoking (Blogger is telling me that's not a word) our little hearts out. 

The following morning a few of us went to walk around the grounds since we'd never been there before, and then spent the day lounging by the pool. In the late afternoon we found a pavilion with outdoor grills and made a feast. After that the majority of the group headed to the bar on the grounds. I couldn't understand this- we had plenty of drinks in our cabins- why would you go to hang out with OTHER strangers in a potentially unsafe environment?! They were pretty buzzed by the time they got back, so we ate and then called it a night. 

The next Friday we attended a Girls Night Out in a friend's backyard. It was the first time I saw these ladies since February (yes, the infamous hibachi/strip club night aka our last outing pre-pandemic)! We just hung out, had a few drinks and played games, and I forgot to take pics... oops.

My friend Jenn finally got her new pool installed, so we helped her christen it the following Sunday. It's a salt water pool which I thought would be weird and murky, but it's not and it's cheaper and better for you than chlorine. My skin actually felt smooth after a dip instead of dried out and stripped of all moisture! 

This was also Blue's birthday month! Usually we do a night away somewhere and this year was no different. We opted for a one night stay in Asbury Park, NJ. While somewhat concerned at first, my thinking was that it had to be cleaner than any other time we've stayed at a hotel. We got there early, just in time to be the last people allowed into the pool area before they hit max capacity. We spent the day drinking cocktails by the pool and then when out for a lovely dinner. 

The following day we checked out and headed to the beach across the street- my first time this season! We were there from 9AM - 1PM, and it was pretty much empty until around 12. After that it got more crowded and our umbrella decided to up and fly away, so we took that as our sign that it was time to pack it in! 

So that's all the good stuff. The bad stuff... Blue lost her job at the end of the month. She's smart and she has been squirreling money away in an "Oh Shit" Fund for years "just in case." This is why it's important to have an emergency fund people! Anyway, she is diligently applying for jobs and taking courses to up her skills in the meantime, and we will make it work. Look forward to a lot more "home recipes" soon!

And that's a wrap! We've been remote since mid-March, but I will have to return to work in 2 weeks for at least one day a week and I'm not looking forward to that at all. I just got tested for Covid two days ago because we have to submit those results before returning to work. Not gonna lie, I'm a bit nervous/concerned, but I'll put on a brave face!

What's new with you this month?

Linking up with Kristen! 

What's Currently Going On With Me

Welp here we are on Day eleventy billion (or 104) of sheltering in place, or in my case two places since I head to Blue's on the weekends since we both don't go anywhere during the week, so she's "safe." Like last time, I'm sharing Currently along with What's New With You because there's not much going on over here. 

Reading: So excited it's finally time for Book Challenge by Erin 13.0! Starting with Beach Read - Emily Henry

Watching:

• Concerts - Full weekly lists from here
• Amy Schumer Learns To Cook- Hulu: so freakin funny! And I learned about "tonnato" sauce, which I plan to implement very soon (though maybe not with fennel lol)
• Love, Victor - Hulu: very cute so far. I'm only one episode in...
• The Sopranos - HBO: Yes, from the VERY BEGINNING. I've never seen it before and as a Jersey girl this was apparently "unacceptable" ::shrug::

Listening to: US Summer Hits of the 90's on Spotify

Procrastinating: Going to the eye doctor. My annual appointment was originally scheduled for June and even though they're open I'm not ready to be that up close and personal with any one or any equipment that's touching other people's faces, thankyouverymuch! 

Dreading: July 14th. That's when Blue's company is announcing lay-offs. Fingers crossed she's not one of them. If you can, please send some prayers or positive vibes her way! 

Looking forward to: the weekend (as per yoosh). Work granted us an extra day off tomorrow, so I have a 4-day weekend! Planning to watch Hamilton on Disney+ Friday,  and eat London broil, chili cheese dogs and burgers, corn on the cob (or Mexican street corn salad if we can find cotija cheese) and potato salad... yeah, the highlight of my weekends is usually food these days!

Cooking: Mac n' Cheese with chicken and broccoli from Budget Bytes

Photographing: My friend's niece, who graduated from 8th grade. We celebrated with a low-contact drive-by, followed by our first al fresco dinner experience of the year! 

Sharing: A lot of book posts and my summer bucket list. Oh, and beer. I bought 3 new-to-me ones the last time I went to the store, and I don't like any of them. Ah well, they can't all be winners! 

Trying: Homemade Immunity Shots that my niece is making and selling. Doesn't taste terrible but even if it did, anything to make sure I'm staying healthy, and supporting my niece! Once I go back to work I may try her meal plans as well! 

Wondering: How I'll be on a weekend getaway with 12 other people. The place is supposed to be really nice- pools, a lake, activities. This is in place of our annual camping trip and I'm nervous. I know everyone, but I don't know where they've been. And honestly if Blue and I can't get our own room, I don't think I'd be willing to stay. 

Since last time...

The birthday "gathering" didn't happen because they wanted to go to a bar with outdoor seating and I wasn't feeling it (and neither were most of the others invited). 

For those playing along at home, I had to use up my vacation days from work by June 30th so I had my last completely lazy, no plans day off on Tuesday.

That being said, work is going well, for me at least. I'm getting more responsibilities, so at least those higher up are talking about me in a positive manner. I'm looking forward to learning more and gaining some more tech skills. 

Places are starting to open up here in NJ (my favorites TJ MAXX and HomeGoods!). I'm not going to any of them, but it's cool that things are opening. I DID attend my first al fresco dinner after the graduation drive-by. I was really happy that they did temp checks before allowing us on the patio- that made me feel a lot safer. 

What's currently going on with you? 

Are places opening up near you?

Linking up with Anne and Kristen! 

What's New With Me

Hello! I hope you are all doing well. Thought I'd do a proper catch up since I haven't in so long. 

I've been in self-isolation since March 16th, and will remain so until May 18th. Though my company knew it *might* happen, we were unprepared overall. It started very suddenly. My boss texted our group Sunday night, saying that we were having a team meeting via Zoom in 20 min. And it was like "Ok folks, so we're officially working remotely, starting tomorrow morning." 

As such, week one was incredibly anxiety-ridden. While I thought working from home would be kinda fun, and "I'd have so much time... for activities!" (Step Brothers reference), it was quite the opposite. I'm actually working more now than I was when I went in to the office! There are no water cooler chats, or reasons to be late/away, or even "given" breaks, like lunch. 

I guess this is a good time to explain what I actually do- I work in User Support Services (read: customer service/tech support) for a university. I basically run the call center and the student workers, and do a lot of admin type stuff and trainings and less "techy," hands-on trouble-shooting stuff. So having to answer all of the help desk calls and tickets (because of course week one started when the students were on Spring Break), was incredibly stressful for me, as was acclimating to a new phone system and remote service application. 

Towards the end of the week, I realized I could (and should) schedule calls, as opposed to answering random hotline calls. That way I'd still be productive, but not working on the fly- I would be prepared for whatever the issue was and could research solutions beforehand. 

Because of this, Week 2 went much smoother. I also remembered that I didn't have to answer every call that came to my phone. The system is set up as a round robin, so if I didn't answer, it would ring to the next person on the list. This allowed me to take breaks when I needed to. Worst case, I could always call them back. 

And that brings me to now, towards the end of Week 3. The work part is getting easier. I'm still going over to Blue's condo Friday after work through Monday, and I love getting that time with another person. We she cooks, we play games, catch up on our shows, and just *be*. We went to the grocery store last week and now we're both fully stocked again, but that was anxiety-inducing and I won't be going back. It's going to be delivery groceries for anything else I need! I'm still having trouble getting into any books and have mostly been either puzzles or phone games. I'm going to keep trying though. 

Things I've Learned During Social Distancing/Isolation:

• I cannot listen to the news for extended periods of time. It gives me a headache and makes me incredibly anxious. I can only handle about 30 min at a time.

• I need light. Preferably natural light. This means even on cloudy days, all of my shades are open. I never thought I was one of those people who needed this before, but I've learned the hard way that I am. 

• I also need sound. Music works just fine, none of that "white noise" business. 

• I'm not great at time management at home. I need to set a schedule and stick to it. Writing "to-do" lists, even for work stuff, helps me stay focused and on task. 

• Wearing "real clothes" makes you (just me?) feel different, specifically more productive. I used to think Blue, who worked from home 2x a week, was crazy for not wearing PJs all day. "Why not?" I'd ask in awe. I get it now. Just like going to bed and waking up at the same times every day, even changing from daytime pajamas to night-time pajamas helps with sticking to a schedule and differentiating between work and non-work time, even when you're in the same physical space for both. 

• Video chats and daily check-ins with my people really do help. I used to hate video chats and even speaking on the phone, but there is something to be said for hearing another person's voice (and no, the TV doesn't count), especially when I'm home alone. 

TL;DR: This time of self isolation and social distancing started out really stressful and I was incredibly anxious, but now I'm finding my groove and generally doing okay!

How bout you? How are you REALLY doing?

Linking up with Kristen! 

What's New With Me: February Recap

As usual, I'm joining Kristen for "What's New With Me?," where I'm recapping last month. Let's jump right in! 

{via}

I started my month with a training and exam for work which I was really nervous about (not the training but the exam part). I'm notoriously terrible at exams. I've always studied hard, but I remember even for the SATs, I signed up for those Princeton Review prep classes and went every week, took multiple practice exams where I did great, and then did terrible on the actual exam... twice. 

So yeah, I failed this one by ONE POINT. And that was just the first week of February.

During second week of February, I tried to order GrubHub one night and my debit card got denied. "I should eat what I have anyway," I reasoned with myself. But the next day I logged into my bank account and got a shock. I saw a pending transaction with the description "JPMORGAN EXT TRANSFER" in the amount $1,350. And, to add insult to injury, a bank overdraft fee! So I called my bank to report this fraudulent charge. I said to the very nice (and patient) rep, "Yeah, it's really weird, because I don't even HAVE a JP Morgan account." He replied, "So all these other charges from them are fraudulent as well?"

....'Scuse me?! Say WHAT NOW?

Long story somewhat shorter- someone called in pretending to be me, robbed me 8 times, and got away with a grand total of $12,150.00. It took a week to get all that sorted out, but eventually my money was refunded by the bank. Moral of the story- check your bank account regularly!

It wasn't a terrible month overall though. Blue and I threw a SuperBowl party that I forgot to take pictures of... the following weekend we went to see  Star Wars: Return of the Jedi in concert with the NJ Philharmonic Orchestra which was super cool...

I took off Valentine's Day to sort out my bank shit and had a lazy day with Blue. We don't go out for Valentine's Day because it's super expensive and crowded. Instead, we started the day with mimosas and pastries, hung out in the afternoon, and then she made my favorite chicken parm and I made these Snicker's stuffed cupcakes that were amazing but took forever! 

Blue and I both had off on President's Day, so Sunday we headed to a new-to-us brewery called Bolero Snort Brewery. They had so many delicious beers, and even though I don't normally like "fruity" flavors, the Magically Bullicious and Fruity Pebbulls (yes, named after the cereals and tasted similar) were my faves. Then we headed to my friend's place where I was able to share the Snickers because I accidentally made 20 and Blue needed them out of the house lol. 

We ended the month at a friend's birthday party that started at hibachi and ended at a strip club! I think I've only been to one before, and this was Blue's first time. As you can see the stage was empty for the majority of the time we were there which we thought was pretty strange for a Saturday night. We didn't mind though, we had fun just hanging out with everyone- there were 10 of us! 

And that's a wrap! 

So, what's new with you? 

What's New With Me: Hibernation Season

I've always joked that after December I go in to "Hibernation Season," but it's completely true! I hate going out in the cold, and I'm a bit over "people-ing" after celebrating my birthday and then the holidays with friends and family. Don't get me wrong- I love seeing all of my nearest and dearest, but especially as I get older, I feel the real need to rest and reset afterwards. I've definitely become more of an ambivert/introvert with age. I ain't mad about it, but I do need to recognize this and do what's best for my mental health without forcing it. 

That's not to say I lock myself away completely come January but instead of going out I invite other people to come visit me and just plan less in general. Blue bought Yahtzee which I realized I've never played before, so we spent a few nights playing that. Michael and her boyfriend came over for dinner and Scrabble one night, and I actually won! Woot! 

Another friend group decided that we should meet up monthly and one person would choose where we went/what we did, in alphabetical order. The first person was Blue, so we decided to host a potluck brunch. She made 2 different quiches (taylor ham and swiss and broccoli and cheddar) which were a hit. I made Crescent Roll Cinnamon Rolls (done in 30 min and delish, highly recommend), someone made some ridiculously good french toast monkey bread type thing, so we shared our maple syrup aged in bourbon-barrels which was off-the-freakin-chain. Not boozy at all, but definitely tasty! Other items of note: rainbow bagels (and fixins), BACON (5 lbs... and we ate every last piece!), chocolates, and of course mimosa/screwdriver fixins! 

Blue and I celebrated our 5 year anniversary in the beginning of the month, marking my longest relationship ever. I sent her flowers at work to embarrass her and (finally?) gave her a spare key to my apartment, which I have also never done before. We went out to dinner at a new-to-us tapas/wine bar that night, and the following weekend we went to brunch at one of our favorite restaurant/cocktail bars followed by seeing Alanis Morisettes' "Jagged Little Pill" on Broadway. Honestly, I didn't have any expectations for this show. I loved the album, but didn't see how were they gonna turn an album into a story/Broadway show. Welp, they did it. It caught me by surprise. It hit me in ALL the feels and it BLEW ME AWAY. It also addressed a lot of serious issues of today (as opposed to 25 years ago when it was released-can you BELIEVE that it's been that long?!) So yeah, if you have the opportunity to see it- do it. You won't be disappointed, even if you're a fair- weather fan of the album. 

Let's see...what else? Well, Blue and I both had a head cold near the beginning of the month... and then we both had a 24-hour stomach bug (on separate days) somewhere in the middle of the month that was AWFUL. But thankfully only 24 hours. And I couldn't miss out on the Dolly Parton Challenge that was all over IG, so here is Keebler in all his (white-undies) glory!

What's new with you?

Linking up with Kristen!