Hihihi!!! This is a long overdue post comprised mostly of pictures from a myriad of happenings over the last couple of weeks.

Last night I was treated to a surprise 30th birthday party at the Black Rose in Boston! My Sister, Sam, orchestrated a fabulous time with family and friends. Details in the next post for sure. I came home to Longchamp, Celtics tickets, and tons of love! Everything last night made me feel so loved and extra special!!

Now I am on Cape Cod gearing up for dinner with old friends and preparing for my first half marathon in Hyannis tomorrow!!! Wish me luck!:D

First things first! Valentine’s Day. Yeah I know that was so yesterday and I am really not all for Hallmark holidays. However! I am all for using any excuse to be wined and dined ;) We actually went out the day after to avoid the masses. I really dislike dining out when it is sure to be incredibly busy. it’s not relaxing nor is it worth the money spent on service and food that most likely isn’t going to be 100%. This was my first and only cocktail at Nubar! Nubar is the new restaurant at the Sheraton Commander Hotel in Harvard Square. This was the Basil and Lime GIN gimlet. I adore gimlets and I don’t often have them with gin. It was a very, very strong treat that I thoroughly enjoyed over the course of the night… double fisting with wine of course ;) I think you really would have liked the gin gimlet, Nicole!

Nubar is lovely. It has a very modern feel with a long gas fireplace in the lounge area right next to the bar. We actually decided to eat dinner in the lounge area… I had my back right to the fireplace and it was heavenly.

I really love to start off dinners out with drinks at the bar. It’s nice to chill out and relax after long days.

And so it began!!

We started dinner off with a grilled Shrimp appetizer that had a pomegranate, lemon and chili oil sauce. The sauce was so flavorful and the made the shrimp delightfully sticky…. finger licking delicious. Andrew hates HATES that I lick my fingers in public haha It is a terrible habit I know. He tells me that it looks as though I am licking my whole palm like an animal. that is not true!

The soup that night was sunchoke! God I love sunchokes… especially when they are roasted and pureed into soups. Ever since the sunchoke soup we had in Aruba I have been obsessed ever since.

Aw.

Andrew ordered scallops with wild mushrooms, baby spinach and new potatoes. It was SO flavorful and the scallops were perfectly cooked. I rarely ever order scallops because they are just too rich tasting for me. Really, they are very light, but there is something about the flavor of scallops that is just too much for me… I can have one or two and I’m done.

I ordered the grilled organic salmon with lentils, horseradish, and glazed root vegetables. I annihilated that salmon leaving only a few bites of lentils behind. Lentils have never been my thing but they were awesome in this dish.

For dessert we had the flourless chocolate espresso torta and it was gone before we knew it ;)

And here is some VERY very very exciting news for you! My sister Samantha and I celebrated something so incredibly awesome that happened last weekend. Here we are at Scholar’s Boston Bistro!

I am thinking I like the camera on my new phone more than my regular point and shoot!

Sam got engaged!!!!!!!!

here is the bling that she texted me the night it all happened!

Sam and Nick are 100% perfection together. They make a gorgeous couple! They are both so kind and respectful to one another and their relationship is full of love and happiness. So so so happy for them! (plus I am super psyched to help plan the wedding! YAY!)

This past Saturday Andrew and I went on a hike at Blue Hills Reservation with our friend Benny bum bum heh. Before the hike we enjoyed an awesome breakfast at the Ball Square Cafe in Somerville.


I got the egg white omelette with veggies and goat cheese with a side of turkey bacon. It was fully loaded with awesomeness. If you get avocado in your omelette here… they really go above and beyond with the amount they give you.

And check out this huge fruit bowl. Pretty spectacular for a breakfast joint, huh? LOVE.

After breakfast we ventured off to Blue Hills!

A view of Boston from afar. It was actually a pretty darn vigorous hike and we worked up a helathy appetite so we decided to head over to Ben’s neigborhood for lunch at the Boston Beer Garden.

French onion soup minus the bread with my first glass of Pinot Grigio. Yeah there’s ice in there. Don’t judge the wine lady! Truth be told… if the wine is not that great of quality… *chill* the heck out of it to take the bitter edge off. I needed a combination of a cool down, hydration, plus some relaxation. That = wine with ice.

A really surprisingly great salmon Greek salad. Hit. the. spot.

That night started off With my famous frozen skinny margaritas. Just really good blanco tequila, Grand Marnier, fresh Lime juice, and Truvia. No one ever guesses they are ‘light’… Maybe it’s because I make them so so strong? ;)

I discovered sweet potato Popchips last week! They are slightly sweet and have an excellent balance of savory as well. They are perfect paired with my lunches.

But first… Breakfasts as of late. I have been using the left over black bean brownies (I swear, just like some wines, they get better with age! ) crumbled into Greek yogurt with Green Vibrance, bananas, and this delicious chocolate raspberry omega 3 oil. SO GOOD. I call them breakfast sundaes… Even though they don’t look that spectacular, they make me feel awesome. And that is what counts!

My lunches are usually in two parts. I have pictured a few of the first courses… Typically beet or lentil chips with cottage cheese and hummus with carrots and a kombucha. I always follow lunch with dried figs and almond butter or protein bars. Truthfully, many days I just have substantial bar and kombucha for lunch. It works for me.

Weeknight Dinners are usually roasted veggies or a huge salad paired with a protein such as a veggie or turkey burger, salmon, tofu, or edamame. Eaten with chopsticks and wine. Duh. ;)

This is some chicken I made for Andrew last week… Roasted with rosemary and garlic topped over caramelized onions and mushrooms in a red wine sauce and brown rice. Yums.t

Bars! So. Many. Bars. More on this later ;)

Strawberry banana coconut bars. Made with coconut flour, coconut butter, raw cocoa powder, and silken tofu. They were amazing. Recipient come!

Cheers for now!