Date Night and Mind Games

Jason and I got a much needed date night the other night and we went back to the scene of a crime: The First Date. Oh yeah baby! Our first date (!!!!!!) was five years ago and he knew one of my favorite meals was a Shrimp Po' Boy and this was the only place in town to serve one. How amazingly cute is he?!? Unfortunately, we have not been since because it is right in the middle of downtown Williamsburg and a tourist trap to boot. If you are in the area GO. It is just awesome. So awesome that I got distracted by delicious mussels and beer and I forgot to even get a picture of my date. Whoops! 

They have these cards on each table that are mind benders and conversation starters. Seriously such a cool way to get to know someone ;) 

Yum. Need I explain this? Beer is good. 

This pic is probably blurry because I was shaking from excitement. Mussels, tomatoes, mushrooms and parmesean cheese on bruschetta. Yes. Please. 

We had a great evening and for real needed some time together. He is just a fun guy to be around period. I love his face. 

xoxo

Pearl

FRIDAY!

Holy sweet pickles am I happy it is Friday! This week has been chock full of fun events and my favorite was celebrating my super duper father-in-law's b-day on Tuesday! We celebrated at the new restaurant in town, Waypoint. Food was just on point and wine list was ridic.

This was cornbread topped with whipped butter (yum) and Smithfield ham pate (double yum). I have had more cornbread in the past two weeks than I have had in like 2 years. You know what? I am ok with this. 

I got the 5 oz filet with lobster, green beans and au gratin potatoes. Please remember this is not a normal meal for me. I figured I would eat half and save the rest for lunch. Nope. I would have licked the plate if it was appropriate. 

The MIL and I split a bottle of pinot grigeo and so worth it. She was a cheap date and only had a glass and a half so I stepped up. Hey...I know when to man up! 

We skipped dessert at the restaurant and went home to enjoy some classic ice cream cake with a cool 1990's Garfield cake topper. (The in-laws house has everything. For real. Name it, the MIL will provide it and more)

The big 6-0. Or 1-5....haha

Mousse wanted some treats too so of course he gets whatever he wants. Spoiled dog. 

Jason had to get in on the action. That right there is a attempt at a hand shake. Mousse realized he could take advantage at this point and just do what he wanted. Jason = 0, Mousse = 1. 

Speaking of Mousse doing what ever the hell he wants, I bought him tons-o-toys the other day to see if he would stop playing with scraps of paper and balls of my hair and I had big hopes for the new toys actually lasting longer than 5 minutes. Mousse had other plans..

Oh! What is this!?

It tastes pretty good...maybe I will gnaw on it for a minute. 

AHH! It squeaks!!! YAY! Must kill it now!

Grrrraww!

Fuzz is my favorite!

Almost.....done.......

 Ears, legs and insides are all over the place. So morbid. 

What do I think is the best thing to do next? Get a beer. 

xoxo

Pearl

Gearing up and dealing with stress

This next few weeks are going to be super super busy with DJing, main job, second job, cousin's wedding planning, wedding showers, Foxfields, and much more tiny things, so I am prepping for my stress levels to go up. I would love to not be stressed out so I am going to make it a goal to do one of the following at least once a day:

• When I am in the car, drive with NO music or radio on. Sounds a bit funny but when I get crazy busy, this is like the only time I am alone to decompress.
• Take a hot yoga/yoga class.
• Walk with Mousse and Jason. Possibly squeeze in a marina date. (Fav thing to do, the three of us)

• Bake. Maybe these. or these.
• SLEEP at least 8 hours. 
• Stick with my exercising program and goals. I tend to slack when I have a lot going on. Plus I just feel better when I work out. 

• Bike ride. Long/short distances will do, as long as I get something in. 
• Skype with the Kobers. (Will help that they will be here at the end of MAY! YAY!)
• Learn to meditate. 
• Have a talk with Jason and go on dates with him as much as possible. He makes me feel better instantly and possible less crazy than I feel like I am. 
• Always remember this....

Yes. Easier said then done sometimes. I feel I am in the middle of SO many changes and seemingly huge life decisions so it is very important for me to remember that I am in control of my happiness. I let pressure control me and I need to just let it all go and do what makes me happy. 

Any tips on stress relief? What helps you?

xoxo

Pearl

Shrimp and that $400 Chair

The other night I met up with my mom, aunt and sister to pig out at one of the best pig pickin' places around here, The County Grill and then to do some shopping at Bed Bath and Beyond.

Priorities first though people. The food is just amazing here. They also serve mouthwatering corn muffins with the creamiest butter in the world. I may or may not have taken like 5 with me for later.

You may drool. I give permission only because I did. 

Because I knew I would binge inhale delicately eat these muffins from heaven, I chose my entree carefully. I normally splurge and get the pulled pork sandwich with crinkle fries (duh) but I decided to go with something different and chose the bacon wrapped shrimp with black eyed peas. Southern meal WHAT!? 

I was a fatty and took a few bites of the beans before I realized I am trying to actually keep up with this blog haha and to do that you need photos! I at least did not mess up the fancy swish of bbq sauce on the plate. A picture of me licking the plate would have been classy. 

After, we rolled our big bellies over to BBB to pick up some gifts for my cousin, Sam's, bridal shower(s). (She will be having three showers over the next 4 weeks!) I can for real live in this store. You always realize how you cannot possible live without all of the kitchen gadgets this store carries. What is even better is it is actually decently priced and they always accept coupons that expired like 5 years ago. (EVERY time. I never even bother to look at the date any more, it is fantastic.) Those coupons save you even more money. Score!

Well we finally got out of the kitchen section (our basket was full) and stumbled across this beauty!

Who does not need this!? Ugh. If that baby was within my budget of $20, I would be doing this blog while swinging away in that bad boy. Who would pay $399 for this? Wowza. I enjoyed my swinging chair experience for a few moments and grudgingly got up to check out. Sad face. 

Ps. I bought my super power shoes while I was in MI and LOVE LOVE THEM! So comfy and once I got them a little dirty, they are even better. Is it just me or does super bright new shoes make you feel like a giant douche? I like to scuff em' up a bit. 

xoxo

Pearl

The Burg'

"The Burg" is a group of amazing people from my gym that has grown into a support system over the years. All of us have different fitness goals and passions and ages ranging from 26 to 65+. We all inspire each other to be the best we can be and to live healthy and fit lives. This group name really formed when we all signed up for The Rugged Maniac race this upcoming May 5th. Lynn, who works with me at the gym and teaches everything from spin to in-gym bootcamps, has set up a bi-monthy training course for everyone to prepare for this race (in addition to her regular classes that the majority of the group go to as a part of their routine). The training course is held at a local high school and consists of everything from hanging pullups, full on sprints, flipping tires and crawling on the ground. It is just awesome. Lynn is a body builder and has selflessly volunteered herself to be our coach and fearless leader by giving us advice and encouragement and coming up with amazing classes to keep things fresh and our bodies guessing. We all stay in touch through the classes at the gym and on Facebook. I could not ask for a better group of people to be around. Period.

In my post yesterday, I proudly displayed some battle scars from this past weekends training and I figured I could share some pictures of the pain fun we all had!

The whole group! Rear Row from Left to Right: Greg, Shay, Me, Jamel, Kevin, Melinda, Tony and Tracy. Front Row from Left to Right: Robin, Lynn and Kristin. * This is not the whole team. Just the ones who made it out this past weekend*



xoxo
Pearl

Roadblock & Battle Scars

I have hit a huge road block in my workout routines. My energy is drained. This past 3-day weekend I managed to squeeze in one Brazil Butt Lift video (ONE!) and my bootcamp workout on Saturday. Skipped my planned bike ride on Easter Sunday due to the aforementioned bootcamp because it straight up whooped me and I was SORE. (We do these hanging pull ups on the football goal post...oh. em. gee.) Meanwhile, I decided that jumping over a fence several times to avoid walking around was a smart idea. It was until I then decided to face plant and completely loose my balance that I got these bad boys.....

(Just know I didn't mean for my leg to be ashy in that last picture. It happens. At least I shaved, so bonus for you.)

So PITY PARTY for ME! Well, not really. I bruise so easy that this is nothing. I did man up and go to bootcamp this morning and stepped it up a bit. My arms were sore going into it but I think it loosened them up a bit. I am not sure that it is possible to do that but I am rationalizing it that way. So there ;)

Cheers to hoping I actually get back into my routine tomorrow morning! WHOOP!


xoxo
Pearl

Yard Work and Lincoln Logs

I had off work this past Friday and decided to get a good workout in first thing because Jason and I were set to make the trip to my parents house and help them with their landscaping bed out front. J-dog had to work (poor sucker) so I was free to get a few things done around the house. We headed out around 3:00 with the big dog tiller in the back of the truck and Mousse in tow. The dog was obviously exhausted about 20 minutes into our drive.

The dog has a rough life, I tell you. We had a couple of hours worth of sunlight so we got right to work!

Dad and Jason tilled the front landscape bed to prep for a new fantasgreat plan that will be executed in the few shorts weeks ahead.

They had a little too much fun with that machine. You know who had more fun?

This guy.

I wish I loved anything as much as this dog loves tennis balls and mud. Oh wait. I do. Easter M&M's. Yum.

My mom, sis and I went to pick up dinner and got side tracked at the DAV Thrift Store. I am super stoked that we did because we scored hard core. I have been on the hunt for things to assist in my craft projects around the house and I got everything and MORE. One fun thing I did score on was a bunch on wooden toys, including Lincoln Logs! The whole dang set for $7! I love thrift stores. Dad was upset about us getting sidetracked until I distracted him with my new toys. 

He was so proud! 

I will explain why I was so excited to find wooden toys. Not only are they just awesome and makes me feel nostalgic about my childhood, they are better quality than cheap plastic toys that I am told seep toxins into our children's bodies. But Amanda. You do not have any children. Yes. I realize this, thank you. What I do have are friend's with gorgeous babies and they will have something to play with when they come over and if not, we happen to have like 6 closets I can hide them in. Jason happened to think the toys were cool so at least I did not get a weird reaction out of him. Score. 

xoxo

Pearl

Mornings with Mousse

To say I love my dog is a little bit of an understatement. Mousse is pretty awesome. With our crazy schedules, it becomes a little hard to keep a strict routine when it comes to him so me knowing that we have our mornings together is just super duper. As of recently, I have been working out at home so I get up around 5:30am and trot downstairs and find him slowly and sluggishly getting off the couch before I "catch" him. (Jason and I have been at war with Mousse and the couch. We all three came to a compromise that as long as he didn't jump up there during the day or while we were sitting on it at night, he could have rights to the couch when we were gone or while we were sleeping. It is going well. He doesn't jump up on the couch whenever he wants to and that is all we really care about. Plus it is pretty funny that he thinks we don't know he gets up there "behind our backs". Sneaky bastard.) So while he is basically walking around still asleep, I pop in my dvd and get ready to do my thing. 10% of the time he slumps down on his bed and goes back to sleep or just stares at me like I am having a seizure. He might even decide that during my workout that I am annoying him and gets up and re-locates to the freaking MIDDLE of the floor where I happen to be jumping around and such. Geez. The other 90% of the time...well...Mousse wants to work out too. He thinks we are playing and either brings a toy to me and I multi-task with high jumps and a rowdy game of tug-o-war. Or I will be doing floor work and he will come right up and help out with the sweat by licking my face off. Crazy dog. Days like this I like to end the dvd early and go for a nice run with him to get that energy out that I love oh-so-much!

This mornings rendition of Tug-O-War. I won. 

He hydrated.....

....and do did I! Yummy Shakeology!

xoxo
Pearl

French Dip Crescents

Every now and then a girl just wants to make a quick dinner that is pretty decent for you that tastes amazing. Ladies and Gents? I give you the French Dip Crescents (courtesy of Plain Chicken via Pinterest).

When cooking, I try to keep it balanced and pretty healthy for you. This was a little splurge but sooo good and the husband and I just loved it. I also tried to make a healthier version of it so here ya go!

Skinny French Dip Crescents (recipe altered from www.plainchicken.com)

1/2 pound deli roast beef, thinly sliced
4 slices provolone cheese
4 tsp low fat ranch (oppose to horseradish sauce)
1 can refrigerated low fat crescent rolls
1 packet Au Jus Gravy mix.

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

Separate crescent rolls onto counter. Since the original recipe was intended for a lunch version, I took two triangles and "smooshed" them together so I could make a bigger sandwich. Spread 1/2 teaspoon horseradish sauce or low fat ranch dressing on each crescent.  Top each crescent with a slice provolone cheese and some roast beef.  Roll up crescents and place on baking sheet.  Bake for approximately 15-20 minutes or until golden brown.

While crescents are baking, make the Au Jus according to directions on packet. I actually was lazy and used the McCormicks Au Jus seasoning which could be lower in sodium for my taste so I am on the hunt for a decent Au Jus recipe now. Overall, it was just fantastic paired with fresh green beans and grated parmesan.

Let me know if you try this! Enjoy! 


xoxo
Pearl