What Made This Weekend Wonderful

Happy Monday!

I don’t know about you but I wasn’t exactly ready to say goodbye to the weekend. Instead of dwelling on the fact that I wish I had the day off, I woke up bright and early to begin conquering today’s to do list.

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This weekend was one of the best weekend’s we’ve had in ages. If you follow me on Instagram you know that it included a half marathon PR which I can’t wait to tell you guys more about tomorrow. But, at the end of the day, this weekend was wonderful for so many more reasons than the race outcome.

Friday night we hosted an Italian dinner for our friends and family who were also running the race on Saturday. The two hour dinner included lots of questions as three of them were running their first half marathon as well as cuddle sessions with Sulley, our new furry nephew.

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For the first time in ages all three of us had a wonderful race on Saturday morning. Bo, Amy and I have been running races together for years, but Saturday is the first that we can remember where everyone ran a strong, healthy race.

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Due to friend connections, the three of us were able to enjoy VIP treatment during the Brooklyn Rock’n’Roll race which included bathrooms and bag check pre-race and incredible massages post race. It also gave me a chance to spend some quality catch up time with Dani and Megan, who are both Rock’n’Blog Ambassadors.

We celebrated the race with brunch at a new to us spot, Stone Park Cafe. Their biscuits and gravy are reason enough for us to return for brunch in the near future. Seriously, we are each still dreaming about that perfectly balanced gravy.IMG_5110

The ladies at Face Love Fitness hosted Amy and I for a relaxing introduction to their treatments which included 30 minutes of facial massage, exercises and relaxation. Enjoyed with a glass of rose, this was a perfect start to the evening.

As this was Amy’s first visit to Brooklyn, we spent Saturday night enjoying a mini bar crawl which allowed us to share our favorite spots with her as well as give her a tour around the neighborhood. We enjoyed a pumpkin beer flight, laughed by the fire and finally sampled craft cocktails from the new Autumn cocktail menu at our final stop.

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There were signs of Fall everywhere his entire weekend, but especially Sunday morning. Fallen leaves covered our doorstep, Amy and I donned sweaters and booties due to the cooler temperatures, and we all chose warm lattes over iced coffees at Smith Canteen.

Amy helped us put the finishing touches on our apartment using fresh eucalyptus we bought at the market. I love the way it freshens up the room and adds a natural beauty to the space.

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Bo and I prepared a huge batch of roasted root vegetables last night in preparation for a busy week. We have a number of different recipes we like but this one continues to be our favorite.

Your turn: What made your weekend wonderful??

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Fall Fashion Round-Up

Oh Fall, the season when I suddenly feel the need to pin every tall boot, cozy sweater and blazer I see in fashion posts and websites. But then the reality comes that I don’t need to spend exorbitant amounts of money on most of these trendy, cozy, non-investment fashion items.

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Luckily one of my best friends works at LOFT, a store that has become a reliable store and website for seasonal items both classic and trendy. Liz is far more fashionable than me, so over the years she has done a great job sending me emails and texts with her recommended items. This year, instead of relying on random texts, I asked her to put together a list of favorites in advance of my day of shopping in Dallas. I love her style and ended up buying eight of these items. Hopefully these inspire your next shopping trip too!

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Better yet, right now, LOFT is having a 40% off sale on their website!

 

Here’s the list she provided, along with her color commentary.

Coatigan This item needs no introduction. It’s so super comfy, you will see me wearing this over everything this fall.

Relaxed Dolman T This is the perfect basic. The fabric is magically soft, it’s a great length to wear with high waist skinny jeans, I’ve been tucking into skirts too.

Long sleeve split neck I absolutely LOVE this Vintage blush color as well as the length. One of my friends paired it with plum skinny work pants and it looked amazing.

Relaxed Turtleneck SweaterOkay, I know turtlenecks are on trend but I was NOT a fan until I found this guy. Perfect non-itchy material, and the cut is on point. I feel like it’s a solid work to weekend piece, I’m wearing the black one with a grey pencil skirt and dark rinse skinnies.

High waisted skinny jeansThese are my favorite jeans of all time. I usually go for their modern skinny, but the high-waisted version is SO comfortable and makes yo booty look nice.  🙂 This might be me transitioning into mom jeans. Only time will tell. I’ve also worn my pair like 4 times and only minimal baggy knees after sitting at my desk all day. Not bad at all compared to other jeans.

Tech skinniesI live in the black pair for work whether paired with blouses or sweaters. These are a total wardrobe staple.

 

Mock neck floppy dress: I have a feeling this might not be for all body types but it’s super cute on a ton of people I have seen wearing it. I am going to pick it up this week! Fabric is comfy considering it’s more of a work dress.

 

Drapery tweed joggers – obsessed. Live in them, white T and a black blazer with wedge sneakers or black patent pointed pumps. Also maybe with a black turtleneck?

So there you have it friends, my more fashionable friend’s picks for Fall!

What are you loving this Fall?

 

Disclaimer: This post is not sponsored and instead is a list of the things of my favorite things this week. As normal, it includes lots of fashion items which means there are affiliate links via ShopStyle. It takes time and money to maintain a blog so I thank you for the support and few cents that come from clicking through the links!

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Training Recap Week of September 28th

Good morning and happy Tuesday!

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This week is off to a wonderful but busy start. Tonight I finally get to catch up with my long lost London girl, Charlie, as we enjoy a new to us yoga class called REST followed by a delicious homemade dinner and pumpkin chocolate chip cookies.

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I have a lot to do this evening before the fun begins, including writing this post, a speed workout and multiple conference calls!

You know how the weekly training recap works. At the beginning of each week I share the past week’s workouts with you all in order to give you a glimpse into my training, hold me accountable and help me keep a record so I can see what works and doesn’t work after each races comes to a close. Last week was all about staying active and healthy but not pushing myself. I changed the order of workouts around but overall stuck to Jess’ training plan.

Monday: I started the week with an evening Bar Method class.

Tuesday: I moved my run to later in the week so I could join my friend Elizabeth at Brooklyn Body Burn. Okay, okay Jess I hear you loud and clear. When she says stick to schedule she means the EXACT schedule posted in Google docs. While I enjoyed certain moments of the class, it was everything I’d heard (hard, humbling, sweaty) and more. I will definitely not be taking another class until my two back to back half marathons are done because it left me sore for THREE days! I will hopefully get my full recap of the studio posted later this week.

Wednesday: Before flying to Dallas, I joined Theodora for Nike Run Club’s Morning Miles. It was my first Nike Run Club and I really liked it even though the weather was less than stellar. The coach planned a route for us in advance, leading us from the Flatiron Nike store to the Williamsburg Bridge and back. I split with the group at three miles to head back home and finished a total of five miles. It was a great way to see Theodora and run a new to me route.

Thursday: My original running buddy, Amy, and I were finally reunited in Dallas last week. We ran five easy miles through Downtown Dallas before a day of dark conference rooms. It was so much fun to catch up with her in advance of our half marathon together this Saturday.

Friday: Amy and I did a recovery workout together in the hotel gym which included 40 minutes on the bike, some weights,and lots of stretching.

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Saturday: The previous day’s recovery workout paired with nine hours of sleep had me ready and anxious for Saturday morning’s long run. The weather in Dallas was crisp and perfect as I ran six miles, finishing the final five miles at an average pace of 8:48. It wasn’t easy but it felt great to know I could hold that pace for that distance.

Sunday: A complete rest day including nine hours of sleep, some foam rolling and time spent in compression socks.

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