Hello associates! I hope you’re having a pleasant week.
Riese turns 5 (!!) subsequent week, and we’re internet hosting a low key celebration for her this weekend – simply pizza + cake at a neighborhood playground (hooray for our home not being trashed by a ton of 4/5 12 months olds…). It will likely be slightly chilly however hopefully enjoyable!
I can also’t imagine Thanksgiving is subsequent week already. I’m going to take subsequent week off of posting, however right here is a few inspiration for you as you intend out your menus: Best Healthy Thanksgiving Recipes. It consists of all my fave appetizers and sides!
And don’t neglect the Fall Sangria (with apple cider + bourbon, yum) for a festive cocktail. 😉
And now, on to at present’s weblog publish! I’ve some random enjoyable issues I’ve completed not too long ago that I wished to share. Let’s do it!
Enjoyable Issues I’ve Performed Currently
1) Assembly up with fellow bloggers
Final weekend I spent a time out in Mathias, West Virginia with a gaggle of fellow bloggers!
I’m going to co-host a blogger workshop (actual theme is within the works, however it will likely be a kind of mastermind/enterprise visioning sort of state of affairs for skilled bloggers) in Could with Abbey, the founding father of Tastemaker Conference.
Abbey was co-hosting a meals images workshop in West Virginia over the weekend on the similar venue the place we’re going to host our Could retreat, so she requested if I wished to return out for one of many days to test it out and get an concept of the area, which might assist in our planning.
On Saturday of the workshop the group was going out for a hike after which doing a little extra basic classes within the afternoon (not photography-specific), in order that appeared like the very best day for me to crash the get together. Y’all know I by no means wish to miss a climbing alternative 😉
I met up with the group instantly at Misplaced River State Park, and had a blast chatting with them about all issues running a blog whereas we hiked!
There’s nothing like getting to interact with others in one that do comparable work – it had been so lengthy since I had met up with a gaggle of different bloggers and it was tremendous enjoyable to share concepts and ideas with one another. (About 3/4 of the group went on the hike, with a couple of others opting to remain again on the home.)
One of many bloggers and I noticed we had truly met earlier than – Jodi was in attendance at one of many Weblog Brûlée workshops for dietitian bloggers I spoke at way back in 2016!
It was tremendous attractive on the market and a pleasant morning for a hike. Win/win throughout!
(Thanks to Rachael for the group image above – the scenic one beneath is hers too!)
After the hike, we headed again to the home, the place I used to be ready to take a look at the area and meet the group that had stayed behind. I used to be slightly nervous earlier than arriving that I’d be coming into a gaggle of girls who had already had a pair days of bonding time, however everybody was tremendous pleasant. 🙂
One other enjoyable shock was that V, the chef for the weekend, and I noticed we had additionally met earlier than!
She based the DC-based juice firm, Goûter, a couple of decade in the past, and a fast weblog search confirmed me that we met at a DC fitness blogger meet up (the place she was sampling juices for us) at a spin studio method again in March 2013. I miss the times of blogger meet ups like that… it used to have way more of a neighborhood vibe again within the day!
V has since offered the corporate and moved out to West Virginia, and cooks for occasions as her facet gig, therefore her being concerned within the workshop on the market. She’s going to do the meals for our Could workshop, too – yay!
We had a blast chatting within the kitchen, and I had the pleasure of having fun with V’s cooking for lunch and dinner earlier than heading again to DC that night time. It was such a deal with – the meals had been regionally sourced, inventive, and veggie-packed.
For lunch, we had roasted veggie sandwiches with an avocado feta unfold and home made pesto, plus some tremendous savory chorizo for many who ate meat.
My plate – very scrumptious!
For dinner, we had pasta with roasted cauliflower (love roasted cauliflower) and turnips, and a yummy sauce made by boiling carrots, onion, walnuts, garlic, and a few tomato paste in water, then mixing it collectively. Tremendous inventive, proper?
Plus some colourful recent salad with a pesto French dressing!
I used to be actually unhappy to say goodbye to everybody after dinner and make the two.5 hour drive again to DC. Womp, womp.
It was such a enjoyable day and nicely well worth the lengthy drive to get to know the area and begin brainstorming for our workshop in Could. I’ll share extra particulars as soon as they’re dwell on the Tastemaker web site!
2) Good friend Run + Brunch Date
Switching gears to a different enjoyable factor I obtained to do not too long ago – the weekend earlier than final, my greatest pal from highschool, Jenny (whose birthday was the explanation for that Turks and Caicos journey I went on), was on the town visiting!
We did a enjoyable play date at her brother Ben’s home (he lives close by and Matt and I’m going over usually with the children – Riese loves their daughter who is barely slightly youthful, and their son is sort of precisely the identical age as Wes – lower than per week aside), however we additionally wished to verify to have some one-on-one time, so we met up for a run date!
I took her on my favourite loop from Iwo Jima in Rosslyn down and over Memorial Bridge to the monuments and again. We lucked out with an epic climate day and had a good time on the market collectively.
I believe I moved my cellphone too rapidly taking this image so it got here out kinda wonky, however I believe it appears cool so sharing anyway. 😉
We made it slightly over 3 miles and even ran the steep hill on the finish to complete on a excessive observe.
After the run we grabbed brunch collectively at Tupelo Honey in close by Courthouse (a brief drive away). I attempted to return right here with Kathleen after the Marine Corps 10k the weekend earlier than, however it was mobbed, so I used to be glad to get an opportunity to get pleasure from it this time!
I made a decision on their fried rooster and waffles and it was sooooo good. The rooster had a very scrumptious sriracha honey sauce with it that I used to be obsessive about! Should return for this once more…
3) Monument Journey with Riese
I’ve been within the metropolis so much currently – Riese and I had a monument journey collectively one morning not too long ago as nicely, on a weekday that she didn’t have faculty!
Matt was working and Wes was with our sitter that day (I used to be imagined to be working – oh nicely) so I believed it will be enjoyable to do a date simply the 2 of us. We ended up having an important morning!
I used to be telling her how cool it’s that we dwell so near one thing like this that folks journey from everywhere in the world to see! It’s fairly particular to only be capable of pop in to the town once we really feel prefer it.
I hope you all are nicely till the subsequent time I see you right here – thanks for stopping by my nook of the web! I recognize you studying.
See you again right here the week after Thanksgiving!
