Full house

You know what was fun?  Being woken up at 3am when Brendan and his friends came stumbling home from whatever bar he took them out to.  THEN, I was "entertained" while trying to eat breakfast before I had to head to work.

It's a miracle I was in a good mood this morning.

Not sure how I'm feeling about this outfit, but considering it's ridiculously humid at 6am, I'm going with it.

*shirt - some boutique in San Diego, skirt - JCrew, shoes - Nine West

Also, last night while I was watching TV in the living, I saw Samson wander aimlessly into my parent's bedroom.  Almost an hour later, I was looking for him so I could take him outside and this is where I found him...

He was sleeping in the dark in my parent's closet.... in the way back of the closet.

My mom is sure it's because he misses her.  :)  I have a sneaking suspicion that this area was the coolest place in the house yesterday.

Lose It

I've posted before about my desire to lose weight again.

I did so well last year.  Remember this post from back in June 2011?  When I had lost 20 pounds?

Yeah.... well, let's just say that I've practically gained all of that back.  Right now I would say I'm somewhere closer to the June 2010 picture than the June 2011.  But I'm going to change that.

I'm going to give myself a workout plan, and STICK TO IT.

I'm also going to start monitoring what I'm eating.  Last time when I was losing weight and getting into shape, my dad texted me about this app called, LoseIt.

I downloaded it but never used it.

This time, I am using it.  It's only been this week, but it really does hold you more accountable about what you eat, when you see the little warning thing telling you that you are reaching the calorie limit for the day.

With the goal I set for myself, and the determination I have, I could be back to my playing weight (in college) by the time my birthday rolls around.

If that isn't motivation, I don't know what is!

I've noticed a few things that will help me this time around.

First, I tend to eat when I'm bored.  Solution - Don't get bored! :)  Ha, much easier said than done right?  Honestly though, I'm going to push myself to find something else to do every time I get that "maybe I should eat something" feeling.

Second, I will find any excuse in the book to not work out/run.  No more.  I will take Samson with me if I have to.  And I will see if someone can walk him one or two days a week for me, so that I can get a longer run in.  Also, I will look at a gym or other activity that is going to hold me accountable to actually do it.  This summer (starting in June), I will be playing in a 2's beach volleyball league.  This will help.

So it's progress.  I'll keep you updated as I go and if any of you join LoseIt and want to be friends, let me know!

A few of my favorite things

Favorite City...

Favorite springtime smell...

Favorite skirt...

*sweater - JCrew, skirt - Anne Cramer, shoes - Payless, belt, Target

May Day

Cannot believe it is May already!

It's supposed to be in the high 60s today.  April was a terrible weather month in Chicago.  I hope this dreary, gloomy weather is the last of it.

*sweater - Express (old), skirt - Jcrew, shoes - BCBG (old)

Happy Birthday Lauren!

I feel  very fortunate to have three ridiculously awesome siblings.  I also feel fortunate that now that I am back in Chicago, I can see them anytime I want to.

Today is Lauren's 26th birthday!  Happy birthday Lauren!!!  Welcome to the downhill slide of your twenties. :)

Goals Update: April

I have a feeling it is going to be my birthday (and thus - halfway through the year) before I know it!  April seems to have been a blur.

Here's my goals update:

1. WORK ON MY 101 IN 1,001 LIST - If I could remember to take pictures, I could check off a few more things.  Little bit little.  I'm getting there.

2. SAY "YES" MORE OFTEN - Brooke loves to remind me that I still regularly say 'no' to her.  My post the other day detailed why I'm struggling more than I want to on this one. I WILL address the house situation and get better at this soon.

3. SAVE, SAVE, SAVE - Considering I had to pay $1,900 to move my POD to IL, I'm feeling pretty good about this.  I chunked away a portion of each paycheck I received that still didn't have any insurance payments on it yet.  The last one of those was last Friday.  Now, I will have to re-evaluate what I have available with my new paycheck and make some automatic deposits from there.  


The biggest hurdle for me right now is dealing with the house.  I NEED to get rid of it and move on.  Which means, I am going to have to be heavy-handed with the ex.  Good times.

#4 Best Thing about living in Chicago

What seems like ages ago (okay, at least 7 years), we - Amanda, Brooke and I - discovered our favorite restaurant in Chicago....

Cafe Ba-Ba-Reeba!

website

Anytime we had a special occasion to celebrate or a reason to head out to Chicago, we went there.  It is a Spanish tapas place with sangria on tap.  ON TAP!

Even when we would all have our "reunion" weekends in Chicago, we would make our way there at one point or another.  We have tons of jokes that come from nights at Ba-ba-reeba.  I've taken my siblings there.  I plan to take my DC friends there when we they visit.  I just love it.

While I lived in DC, I could never find a tapas place that I liked better (from the perspective of food AND drinks). 

Being back in Chicago means that I can to to Ba-ba-reeba whenever I want.  Like tonight!

Brooke and I are having a little birthday dinner tonight at our historical haunt.  Can't wait!