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Back in the USA and Giveaway Winners!

Greetings from Dulles Airport! Our day started quite early this morning since we had to be on our plane at Heathrow Airport by 6:30! Luckily last night was a very relaxing and early evening in London so the 4:30 wake up wasn’t too painful.

I landed at Heathrow at 6:30 and was home by 7:15! The Heathrow Express isn’t cheap but on nights like this it makes a world of difference. Bo and I cooked an easy dinner together before toasting the holiday vacation with some champagne.

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Dinner was baked chicken thighs, homemade Greek inspired brussels sprout salad, couscous and a small green salad. It was so nice to enjoy dinner together on a Thursday night! 136So far our travel day has been almost too good to be true. We flew United from London Heathrow to Dulles Airport and though the flight was 1.5 hours longer than normal due to weather in the North Atlantic, Homeland Season 3 kept us occupied the entire flight. Season 3 is definitely my favorite season thus far!247 As we flew over northern Newfoundland we were able to see the glaciers and icebergs even though we were over 30,000 feet high! Check out the formations!252

We have three hours until our flight takes off for Savannah, plenty of time to grab lunch and relax. I’m so relieved our flight from London to Washington, DC didn’t have any issues. It’s one thing to rent a car and drive from DC if there are issues but that isn’t exactly possible from Europe.

Now, for what you guys really want, the winners of this year’s Favorite Things Giveaway!

2013 Favorite things

Inspire Yurbuds: Leah

Bauble Bar Pave Links Bracelet: Abby

Kindle: Brandi

Diptyque Candle: Maureen

Fresh Sugar Baby Gift Set: Tammy M

Congratulations to all the winners! I will email you all for shipping information!

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Baby It’s Cold Outside No Equipment Workout

Most of us have already seen the winter in full effect this season whether through ice storms, snow, frigid temperatures or just the far too dark mornings. In case you find yourself unable to get to the gym or get outside for a workout this season this workout is for you! It will work your entire body in under 25 minutes, can be done in your childhood bedroom and requires no equipment. This helps take the guess work and excuses out of holiday travel workouts.

Bo and I did this workout Sunday evening when a cold drizzling rain deterred us from heading to Hyde Park for a run. I highly recommend using your phone as a timer and blasting your favorite playlist while you power through these ten exercises. This workout is perfect for people of all abilities since it’s based on time and bodyweight, not number of repetitions. Quality over quantity, like many things in life, is most important for this workout.

At Home Workout

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London: Our First Football Match

Based on all the comments I received regarding what you all want to see more in 2014, travel adventures was the top request. Lucky for you I have a long list of upcoming travel posts, starting with today’s London bucket list item!

This weekend we had the opportunity to attend our first football (soccer) match in England! When our friend Emily planned her weekend visit to London with us she had one request: go to a Chelsea football game. As Emily grew up playing soccer and even played at Emory during college, there was no way we couldn’t help but get excited about experiencing a very European sporting experience with someone who is an expert on the sport! It didn’t hurt that this was already one of the items on our ever growing London bucket list!

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The experience was absolutely incredible! Unlike many professional sports stadiums in the United States, the Chelsea Football Club stadium is in the city. Therefore there isn’t a tailgating tradition, instead people frequent the nearby pubs and restaurants before and after the the games. The stadium felt very intimate, which we loved. The stadium holds around 55,000 people and there were over 47,000 at Saturday’s game.

On our way into the stadium both Bo and Emily purchased Chelsea scarves to get into the spirit and stay warm. They weren’t alone as I felt like i was the only person not sporting one of these scarves.

Photo: Completely incredible experience at the Chelsea match today!!!

Since there is no alcohol allowed in the stands, we stopped for a proper pint before the match while also checking out the food offerings which we’d take advantage of during half time. On our side of the stadium there were 6-8 different food stands each specializing in a different type of food ranging from burgers, fish & chips, mince pies, and bangers. 245

At halftime Bo and I split one banger and one meat pie so we could have a taste of each. The meat pie was warm and hearty but tasted similar to something they stuck in the microwave. The banger however was DELICIOUS! The banger was served on a roll with sage stuffing and all the toppings including onions, sauerkraut, mustard, relish and peppers!

774The match itself was an exciting one with action at both ends of the field. While the Chelsea fans obeyed the “please no standing during the game” other than cheering after goals, the Crystal Palace fans were the complete opposite. They were small but mighty in a way you can’t imagine! The 2-1 match is something that all 3 of us enjoyed so much that we’ve already decided we want to squeeze in a few more football matches this season, sampling the different local clubs.

If you’re a London local and haven’t been to a Chelsea game yet I highly recommend it. Even if you aren’t a football fan per se it is a great experience. If you’re visiting the London area and interested in going to a game, make sure to start searching for tickets as early as possible as they are hard to find. In addition, make sure that you buy them from an authorized seller as the Chelsea Football club is cracking down on ticket resale.

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