Tapas Style Restaurants are Da Bomb

Tonight we are headed into Boston for an early dinner and a Red Sox game. I have never been to Fenway in all my visiting to Boston so I was super excited about it. Kelly selected 5 places to choose from for dinner and I chose another Tapas restaurant because I really love the concept of trying multiple items on the menu. J

94 Mass Ave is located just off Newbury street and really close to Fenway. Our reservation was for 5pm and when we got there our plan was to each order 2-3 dishes, collectively we like to eat a lot. Check out the spread we ordered below:

Bacon Wrapped Figs – The sweet and salty mix was great I enjoyed both of my bites. J  They are very filling so I would order this dish to share.

Tater Tots – These are simply the best tater tots I have ever had in my entire life. They had the perfect crunch and the center was sooooooooooo creamy. J Totally recommend these!

Beet Salad – The beet salad was beautiful. Everything on it was super fresh and quite tasty. If you are looking for a lighter option on the menu this would be an item to consider.

Truffle Oil Fries – Let’s start by saying that anything with truffle oil is delicious so these fries were AMAZING and the presentation was even better. Again the fries weren’t greasy they had just the right crunch and dipping them in the pesto ricotta dip was again simply AMAZING. Let’s just say that these are Kelly & Lindsay APPROVED.

Chicken Tacos – These tacos are so cute…there are four in total. J The meat was so tender and flavorful!

Pork Tacos – Everyone at the table said these were delish but I held out on having one because I was starting to get full and my Tuna Tartar and grilled cheese were still to come.

 

Tuna Tartar – This was super tasty and enjoyable, the tuna was bright and seasoned perfectly. I recommend this dish if you are looking for a light and healthier item on the menu.

Lobster Grilled Cheese – Finally the dish that Kelly & I were looking forward to the entire meal. And let me tell you it even surpassed our expectations. The presentation was awesome, the cheese was super gooey, tons of lobster in every bite and the tomato bisque was the perfect pairing. This was my favorite dish!! PERFECTION.

Dessert Time

Coconut Bread Pudding – The bread pudding was not your typical bread pudding. It was a little dry and lacked the gooeyness I personally love. I wouldn’t order it again but I did end up eating more than one bite. :)

Cream Puff Thingy - I didn't have a bite of this one but it went fast. The caramel sauce, ice cream and cream puff pastry was a perfect 10 to Kelly! She had trouble sharing it with my brother.

94 Mass Ave was a great pre-game spot. The atmosphere, service and food was great. I totally recommend hitting this spot sometime in the near future. Be sure and order a good mix of items because everything is so good. As we walked towards Fenway we all were stuffed…I’m not sure I will have room for a ballpark frank or pretzel. L

When we got to Fenway it was beautiful, our seats were great and the weather was perfect. I love this ballpark!!! I do have to admit I wore a Boston Red Sox had while they were playing the Seattle Mariners...it just felt right. :) The game was so fun and I can finally check Fenway off my Boston Bucket List. :)

We are so hot!

 

I am totally falling in love with the city of Boston...more to come.

Dead-Lifting Take 2

Today started off with a little blogging and catching up with the Royal Wedding. My gosh what a beautiful fairytale wedding.

Breakfast was super boring because nothing really sounded that great. I ended up having a bowl of my favorite blueberry flax granola with skim milk along with an egg with a little spinach. No picture because it was so unimpressive.

Today’s workout is with my brother again. I really want  to LOVE weight-lifting and strength training, so hopefully him showing me a couple routines will help me love it. J Here’s today’s workout:

Hip Activation

1)      Side – lying x8

2)      Standing glute kickback x8

3)      Hurdles x5

Core Activation – 3 sets

1)      Kneeling rollouts x8

2)      Side plank & thrust x8

Strength

1)      Barbell Dead Lift

a.       45lbs x 8

b.      75 lbs x 5

c.       95 lbs x 3

2)      Assisted band pull-ups

a.       3 sets of 2

3)      Unwinding x8

4)      Elevated reverse lunge

a.       No weight x 6

b.      10lbs x 6

c.       10lbs x 6

5)      Elevated push-up (chest to ball)

a.       3 sets of 8

6)      Curls 

a.       15lbs x 5

b.      15lbs x 5

c.       15lbs x 6

7)      Sled push

a.       4 sets of 45lbs x 20 yards

b.      20 seconds, 22 seconds, 12 seconds, 11 seconds

Wow is all I can say…this workout was difficult. I was actually making noises when I lifted! J Favorite part of the workout was the sled push and dead lifting. Least favorite part was PULL-Ups….okay assisted pull-ups because I am sooooo weak. I love trying new workouts and feeling sore the next day.

After my tough workout I headed to Pejamajo Café, it is right by my brother’s house. I love this crepe café because they use natural, local, sustainable and organic whenever possible in all there dishes. Today I opted for their Billy Goat sandwich: Westfield Farms goat cheese, organic honey, sundried tomatoes and organic mushrooms on toasted wheat bread. My mouth was watering before the sandwich even came because seriously how can anything taste bad with goat cheese & honey! J When the sandwich arrived I inhaled it and enjoyed every single bit! It was also paired with a light mixed green salad.

I seriously wanted to bathe in the goat cheese that was in my sandwich. I totally recommend this sandwich and cafe! Check it out.

Today is a big day we are all headed to the Red Sox game tonight. They are playing Seattle but you can bet I will be wearing a Red Sox hat!

Half Marathon Update and Stella & Dot

This afternoon was checking my email and.....I got into the Nike Women's Marathon in San Fran this year. I am super excited because at the finish line fireman are dressed in tuxedos presenting each finisher with a Tiffany's necklace. :) AMAZING. I can't wait to start training for this half marathon and setting a personal best time...plus I love the idea of making this a long weekend. :)

As soon as Lily woke up my brother came home and we decided to hit the sprinkler...okay they decided to hit the sprinkler. :)

Her reaction to the water was priceless.

Another great thing happened today....my Stella & Dot jewelry came in the mail today. :) The packaging and jewelry were so cute. I can't wait to buy more Stella & Dot stuff when I start working again. 

How freaking cute are these bracelets?

For dinner Kelly cooked an awesome pasta dish with broccoli & sweet chicken sausage. She said this dish had no sauce which was surprising but it tasted awesome. This is a super easy recipe:

1) Cook the pasta

2) Cook chicken sausage (take off the casing)

3) Cook broccoli

4) Mix all ingredients together with a little pasta water 

5) Serve with parma 

So delicious!

For dessert my brother saw a recipe for a easy banana ice cream with only 3 ingredients on the food network. Check it out: Peanut Butter & Nanna Ice Cream. The texture was a little different but the flavor was really tasty, definitely worth trying. 

3 ingredient ice cream....who knew.

Auntie Lindsay Time!

Today I get to babysit my niece for the entire day! I decided that I must get in a good breakfast before my day of entertaining. :) I had some delicious Blueberry Flax Granola topped with fresh strawberries and a sandwich thin with peanut butter and Nutella! Oh don't forget my large cup of coffee to give me some energy!

Lily and I both said goodbye to Mommy and now it was on....Auntie vs. Lily! I can't even tell you how many times she told me "NO" to different outfits, doing her hair and putting on sunscreen! Probably about 100 times. It made me smile though because she is 2...you can't really reason with her. It took about 45 minutes to do the three tasks above! :)

Thank goodness it was nice outside because Lily loves to go outside! We played on the swing and throw rocks in a storm drain for about an hour. :) She loves finding rocks and playing in the dirt. AWESOME! Auntie didn't even have to entertain her because she entertained herself. We headed back inside to have a quick lunch before nap time. Lily wasn't really feeling lunch but I got a few cute shots of her.

 She is so much fun!! Next step was nap time...I tried laying down with her and she took the bait but then got up and wanted to go outside, so of course we went outside for about 20 minutes. Attempt #2 had a similar outcome. :) But Attempt #3 she was down for the count. :) While Lily slept I decided to do some workout videos on On-Demand. Here is my workout:

Workout 1 - Boot Camp Cal Burn w/ Kendell Hogan
This workout was pretty darn good and I had a decent sweat going for the entire 30 minutes. I liked that you didn't need any equipment...think jumping jacks, mountain climbers, push-ups, squats and lots of looking ridiculous. :)

Workout 2 - 30 Day Jump Start w/ The Biggest Loser Contestants
This workout was only 10 minutes but pretty darn intense. It was similar to my first workout but still enjoyable. I am not an avid watcher of The Biggest Loser so I didn't know any of the people leading the workout...but I still liked it.

Workout 3 - 20 Minute Incredible Abs 5 w/ Cindy Whitmarsh
This workout was a little different than I expected because I just thought you would be doing a ton of crunches. To my surprise I didn't do one crunch instead I did a lot of variations of a plank!

Sweating it out w/ Cindy Whitmarsh!

It was awesome that I could do these workouts in the same room as a sleeping toddler! :) I had no idea that On-Demand had so many fitness shows available for free. Check out Exercise.TV.com for all their workouts.

Lily was a champion napper today she slept for 3 hours making my job super easy. Today was a great day because I got to spend the entire day with Lily, she is such a cutie! Now its time to see if Auntie makes it past 7pm tonight. :)

Such an easy toddler to hangout with!

Easy Creole Haddock

This morning was a tough morning, there was no way I was even going to contemplate working out. I decided to just skip right to my breakfast. On today's menu was oatmeal with blueberries & bananas topped with strawberries! I paired this delicious breakfast with some coffee.

I think I could eat this every morning.

Kelly and I ran a few errands this morning for Lily's upcoming 2nd birthday. I just have to say that party stores are sooooo overwhelming, I don't enjoy them at all. I think the main reason is because I feel like I am getting ripped off. :)

Our last errand was to Old Navy and they had an awesome Clearance Special on their jewelry. All clearance items were an additional 30% off. I just love this place, I was able to get two necklaces and 2 sets of hoop earrings for $12.62. 

When we got home I made myself get in my workout clothes and drink some water. :) I went outside to do the Tone Up Anytime, Anywhere. This workout kicks my booty every time but I do always feel better after I sweat it out! After I completed this workout I headed in to make a Green Monstah in honor of being in Boston.

Pretty tasty!

After cleaning up I told Kelly and my brother that I would cook them a fish dinner. I went to my go to my cook book, which is CookingLight.com. I found a Creole Cod recipe that looked quite tasty. I headed to the store to grab some fresh cod but when I got there the haddock looked much better. Here is the recipe for Creole Haddock, it's so easy:

1) Make the marinate

    2 tsp dijon mustard

    2 tsp olive oil

    1/2 tsp creole seasoning blend

    1/2 tsp salt

2) Get out two long pieces of aluminum foil to place

haddock on

3) Coat the haddock with the marinate and wrap in foil

4) While haddock is on grill cooking (10-15 minutes)

start steaming the asparagus. 

5) Serve a piece of haddock with 5-6 asparagus spears

and some lemon wedges.

This recipe was delish and I think you could use the same marinate for chicken. It was wonderful, light, fresh and idiot proof! :)

Now its dessert time....my favorite watermelon sorbet with chocolate sprinkles. It never lets me down and it makes me sleep like a baby. :) 

A tiny piece of heaven!

Spaghetti Squash Addiction

I felt a little heavier getting up today. :) Celebrating Easter twice and getting a basket of candy can really do wonders to your body in a short amount of time. I decided to get my workout done early because I am pretty sure that it wouldn't happen later in the day. I ran around 4 miles (10 minute pace) around the surrounding neighborhoods. I really like the route I have made here because there is a nice variation in elevation. :)

After getting my workout done early I headed in for breakfast. I had a nice blueberry & banana protein shake paired with a half of Kelly's delicious sticky bun. Good thing I was headed to witness Lily's gymnastics so I could chase her around and potentially burn some of those calories off. :)

Kelly is the best baker ever!

We were off to toddler gymnastics next...Lily has the most ridiculous gymnastics outfit ever. She loves it so much and looks at herself in the mirror constantly. Check it out:

This class was so fun to watch as 2 year olds perform their version of gymnastics. Auntie's favorite part of the warm-up is shown below:

So much fun!

For lunch I decided to eat SUPER healthy because I had a sticky bun post workout. I decided to make a fruit bowl of strawberries and a half of a ruby red grapefruit. I also made a half of a turkey sandwich topped with mustard and goat cheese with a side of spinach. It was actually quite tasty and filling. 

Back on the wagon again!

It turned out just to be the ladies tonight for dinner so Kelly decided to make spaghetti squash again with a turkey meat sauce. We had this last week and we couldn't get enough of it so why not make it again. Here are the instructions:

Bake the spaghetti squash in the oven at 400 

degrees for 40-60 minutes. Tip: drizzle the squash 

with olive oil to prevent sticking.

Brown your ground turkey in a frying pan. When

brown add a jar of your favorite spaghetti squash

with lots of chopped garlic and fresh basil. :)

Simmer your sauce until the spaghetti squash is 

tender and easy to fork. 

Now you are ready to serve your spaghetti squash. Scoop out the squash and top it with the meat sauce. I recommend garlic bread too. :) I added some fresh spinach and balsamic dressing...I was still feeling guilty about that darn sticky bun. :)

Totally recommend this light pasta dish!

No dessert tonight but I can't wait to have it tomorrow. :)

Weight Lifting Is Actually Fun!

Today I woke up and headed to my brother's gym to be introduced to weight lifting. My brother always says that I need to do a bit of weight training and I always blow him off.

I was a little intimidated heading into the gym with him because he is a bit of a fitness freak. :) We started warming up and I was already sweating...I mean who does side planks as a warm-up.

Next I was introduced to dead lifting, the Kettle Bell, inverted push-ups, and rear foot elevated squats. This workout scared me to say the least and I wanted to say "I can't do this," numerous times but I knew my brother would never push me into an injury...so I just did what he said and he was right...I could do everything.

Introduction to Dead lifting: 60 lbs Kettle Bell 2x5
My brother kept telling me that Lily has perfect form and I should strive to look like her...she is my 2 year old niece. :) I have never used a Kettle Bell but I did like it and I think I will try and integrate it into my workout's more often.

My training inspiration!

Second exercise - Dead lifting with a barbell 3x5 reps (75 lbs)

I didn't think I could life this weight but I was so excited when I did. The most important part for me is feeling comfortable and sustaining good form. My brother had to repeat the steps to the lift everytime! He loved every minute I am sure. Note: Remember hamstrings, butt and core activations are key.

Third exercise - Elevated Push-ups

I did 1 set on the bench but my brother said they were to easy for me, so he put me on the floor using some sort of handle thingy...and I did 2x10 or until I lost perfect form ( I lost perfect form around 6 each set).

Fourth exercise - Rear elevated foot squats

I did 1x6 on each leg without any weight and then progressed to holding a 15 lbs Kettle Ball. Key to this exercise is perfect form (stay tall, tighten stomach and keep weight on front heel). I think this was my favorite exercise!

Fifth Exercise - TRX Body Rows

I did 2x6 and kind of liked it. Think doing a push-up upside down...sounds weird but is so much better than push-ups or pull-ups. :) 

After I finished the exercises above I hit the treadmill for about 15 minutes at level 4.0. This was an awesome workout and I really want to do it again before I head home. :)

Feeling super buff after my workout!

After my amazing workout we headed home to have some breakfast. On today's menu was a blueberry/banana protein shake with almond milk paired with a sandwich thin with peanut butter and bananas. :)

Very filling breakfast!

The rest of the day was full of playing with Lily and relaxing. I just love being a full-time Auntie!! Before we headed to Easter dinner I made myself a delicious leftover snack. I used a 1/2 cup of quinoa, slice of buffalo mozzarella, 5 grape tomatoes, 2 leaves of fresh basil and a drizzle of balsamic dressing. This is to die for...thanks  Kel!

Awesome idea for lunch!

Time to get ready to raid Kelly's closet for Easter dinner. This is the life!!!

Stella & Dot Party

It's finally Friday and we have a big day planned. No workout for this girl this morning because I am saving myself for my big weight lifting workout with my brother tomorrow.

Before heading to Lily's Gymboree class I had a very healthy and filling breakfast. I had my leftover blueberry & banana oatmeal paired with a half of a sandwich thin topped with a hardboiled egg. Weird combo as always but it hit the sweet and savory spot.

Mixing it up!

We headed to Gymboree class where Lily's gets to run wild and get some exercise. :) She is so cute because I think she is the only 2 year old I know that waits in line without pushing others...so dainty and polite. I love watching her climb, jump, swing and run around!

After gymboree we headed home to have some lunch and a nap before our crazy Friday night. :) Lily was so tired she didn't have lunch she just passed out. So Kelly had a great idea...let's have a Five Guys Burger for lunch. So she went and picked up lunch while I watched Lily sleep. I have never had a Five Guys Burger before but Kelly loves them. I ordered a bacon cheeseburger...big mistake. The burger comes with two patties and is over 900 calories. WHAT!!!!!!!!! It was quite tasty and the picture before doesn't do the flavor justice. 

Lets just say that this would not be my standard lunch EVER but I am glad that I tried it. I was feeling super guilty about not working out and eating most of this burger...so we put Lily in the stroller and walked a couple of miles. I am sad to say that I had a side ache. :(

After we got back from our walk we just laid low because Kelly and I had a Stella & Dot Jewelry party to attend after dinner. I was so excited about this party because I have seen there jewelry and love it. I didn't have much of a dinner before the party because I was still stuffed. On the menu was my favorite Blueberry Flax Granola topped with fat-free milk and fresh strawberries. It was just enough to get me energized for the Stella & Dot Jewelry Party.

I redeemed myself a little...right??

Kelly and I headed to our crazy Stella & Dot Party at her friend Perri's house. It was fun to have another girls night and meet some new people. When we got there we saw the jewelry spread and Kelly and I were in heaven. :) I really like the variety of jewelry they have because they have something for everyone. Trendy, Vintage, Classic, Simple & Chunky! I would have loved to have bought a ton of jewelry but the items really add up quickly. So I ordered two bracelets and I can't wait to wear them in 3 days. Check out www.stelladot.com to see all the goods!!

I bought the silver one and.....

I ordered the mauve/grayish silk bracelet

Numerous people asked if we were sisters! :)