Coming soon

I reeeaaally told myself that 2017 was going to be the year I post regularly, and I'm about 50% there.

I've been brainstorming and writing new posts regularly; I just haven't gotten to where I am ready to share them.

instagram : @hellodarlingsblog

I've been doing a TON of recipe development, and I've been pretty good about keeping at least a general idea of measurements. I even have a few that I've gotten the measurements down (YAY), but haven't photographed yet. I SWEAR THEY'LL BE READY SOON.

A few to look forward to:

• Indian Spiced Chicken & Veggies

• Protein-Packed Banana Bread

• Clean Eating Pot Pie

• Sweet Potato Nests Breakfast

instagram : @hellodarlingsblog

I've also been much more consistent with CrossFit - which for me means going 5-6 times a week. The workouts have been very snatch-heavy recently and I hate snatches oh so much, but I've been going anyway. uhg. Tomorrow's WOD has three segments and TWO of them are snatches.

It's really important that I get my body used to consistent CrowsFit because I'm going to add in triathlon training in early-April! Cardio is not my favorite, especially running, but I found a little spin studio that also offers cardio-circuit and tabata-style classes, so I've been mixing those into my workout schedule 2-3 times a week.

(PS. I hate tabata workouts more than snatches.)

instagram : @hellodarlingsblog

I'm starting to really enjoy stand up spin classes, especially now that I can manage to keep the beat and move the right direction (an embarrassingly huge improvement). Hopefully, stationary bike training translates to outdoor training! My sprint triathlon is in June,  but what I'm really worried about is a century ride I have scheduled in October.

The time I'm putting in at the gym inspired these upcoming posts:

• Gym Bag Essentials

• Best Post-Gym Shakes

• 500 Rep Challenge

• Best Benchmark Workouts

instagram : @hellodarlingsblog

I've been testing out a bunch of Clean Beauty-Swaps for my gym bag essentials and have found a few that I am OBSESSED with. I can't wait to share them!

Thanks for sticking with me during the radio-silence. I am regularly updating my instagram, even when I'm not posting here. Follow me here: @hellodarlingsblog 

Catching Up

I forgot how amazing school breaks were. Do you know how much more fun NYE is when you haven't worked from 7 a.m. - 6 p.m.?? Or how much more you can enjoy Christmas Eve when you aren't sitting in an office where your boss banned holiday decorations! It's AMAZING.

The boyfriend got almost an entire month off of school, and I was lucky enough to take that time off too.  

Since the majority of the students in his class do not have significant others who have to stay in town and work over the holidays, most people peaced out of LexVegas as soon as they possibly could.

Of course this is ridiculous for two (but probably more) reasons. One: how can you possibly pack properly while studying for exams or in a few hours after your brained was fried from exams. Two: Lexington is actually a pretty cool little town and they missed the opportunity to enjoy it without the stress of law school looming over them.

We started our break by taking Dixie to Crabtree Falls. She handled the hike like a pro and promptly passed out for the rest of the night as soon as we got back in the car. That is the biggest puppy victory you can ever have. Like literally ever.

Next, we had the honor (and the privilege) of hosting my newly legally-drinking brother in Lexington. He was only in for a night, so we used it as an excuse to go to the greasy and delicious Kenney's. We took our massive order of fried chicken, honey biscuits, mac & cheese, and green beans to Devil's Backbone Brewery and enjoyed our food with some local beer. Seriously, if you ever drive through the area, you should stop at Kenney's. You may not feel fantastic afterwards, but you'll definitely be happy.

Our time in Baltimore was mostly spent preparing for our annual Christmas Eve party (with some very important time set aside for sushi burritos). I got to make my favorite bourbon punch and candied bacon brussel sprouts (recipe coming soon). It's always my favorite party of the year.

We also had time to go to a Raven's game, before which we got to go on the field and watch them warm up a la a #sidelineVIP. The game itself wasn't as fun. The Ravens ended up losing by a not even close to being close 30 points and we left before the game was over.

After Christmas, the jetsetting really began. We flew off to the real Vegas where we had little to no luck gambling but some good luck picking shows. My absolute favorite was Absinthe, which is performed in a tent outside Ceasar's Palace. It's like a hilarious  scaled down Cirque du Solei meets burlesque. While I highly reccomend it, you should probably read the Yelp reviews before buying tickets. Seriously.

Back on the other side of the country, we hopped on a train to New York for the night to see Hamilton on Broadway. I know how hyped the show is right now, but we were blown away. The live performance is better than the cast recording. Everyone in the audience was so happy to be there and the cast played off that energy. The combination of Lin-Manuel Miranda's lyrics and Leslie Odom, Jr.'s voice literally brought the entire row behind us to tears. And you have to see Daveed Diggs as Marquis de Lafayette/Thomas Jefferson in action. Amazing and hilarious. Oh, and Johnathan Groff. I love him. King George is a million times better than a guy singing to an animated reindeer.

By the time we got back from New York, break was almost over and we had to drive back to Lexington the next day. Now classes have started and Dixie counts the days until her sheepadoole friend can come visit. As for me, I'll just be here wishing it was still 70 degrees. 

Until then... 

Summer Loving

We just got back to Baltimore after spending an amazing three weeks at the beach. While at the beach, we had no real schedule (except eventually making our way to the beach and at some point  finding something to eat). It was quite the reality check to come back to some very real deadlines.

Nine days until movers come.

Eleven days until we have to drive to a wedding.

Twelve days until our lease ends.

Thirteen days until our new lease starts. 

Sixteen days until we move to Virginia. 

So right now, my life looks a lot like this: 

and when Dixie gets into my craft supplies, it looks a lot like this... 

Don't get me wrong, I'm really excited for our next adventure. But it's impossible to be excited about packing. It's even more impossible when just last week, my life looked like this. 

Tower Beach, South Beach

I have a ton of pictures to share, but the never-ending process of packing isn't going to become slightly less never-ending by itself. Until then, here are a few pictures of my favorite places in Hilton Head.

01. Our Home

Lyndall and Dixie

Charlotte

Lilly x Target Hammock

02. The Beach Club

03. Harbour Town

04. The Beach at Harbour Town

05. The Harbour Town Yacht Club

Happy summer darlings!

Vacation days

There's a sad moment in every (full-time employed) post-grad's life when you realize that you no longer get a summer. Instead of getting three months off, you have to plan of months ahead to get three days off.

That's what I had to do in April, when I asked for special permission to get three days off to go visit Austin, Texas.

I would just like to say that I have never been happier to be in the 106 degree heat than when I am not at work. Especially when my paycheck was direct deposited in to my bank account while I was designing a new necklace at the Kendra Scott color bar midday on a Thursday.

So enjoy your weekend fellow yuppies, and I hope you like these photos from my trip! There are many many more to come when I return!

...and why would I go to Texas without learning how to shoot?