ashleyd /

Eye on The Prize

Bo and I are both highly motivated when there is an end goal in mind. Therefore, I knew that if every speaker was going to be mounted, every wire hid, box unpacked, and rug purchased, we needed to have a goal completion date. After debating back and forth we decided that having a housewarming party the first weekend of May would be a great opportunity for multiple reasons:

1) Celebrate our move into the city with friends

2) Get back to our Southern roots by giving it a Kentucky Derby theme and starting it before 5pm when the Derby takes place

3) Experiment with fun food ideas all relating to either the South or Bourbon in honor of the Derby. (Anyone have any recipe ideas?)

4) Have an opportunity to introduce all our amazing friends from different aspects of our lives.

5) A perfect address to don seersucker and a fun summer frock.

With only a week between our move in day and housewarming party, we knew that we had to make the most of every moment this weekend. Therefore, Friday evening until Saturday afternoon we lived and breathed the unpacking process. There were countless trips to The Container Store, Home Depot, Bed Bath and Beyond, and Pottery Barn. We were quite the site as we lugged our goods ten blocks having to stop every few minutes to rest our arms. Moving is hard work and lots of heavy lifting!  We made great progress on the apartment by the time we left for the first time around noon on Sunday for Lauren’s birthday brunch.

For your enjoyment, here are some pictures from our work in progress. We are very open to any design criticism or suggestion so please, feel free to provide! Blog Pictures 2010 010 Blog Pictures 2010 009It’s scary how quickly we were able to fill this walk in closet. The next thing on my shopping list is a full length mirror for the side wall behind the door. I do love how I can get ready in one spot since i’ve made one shelf into a mini vanity.  Blog Pictures 2010 008 Blog Pictures 2010 011It’s amazing how much one change can make to a room. Bo and I received this vibrant duvet cover as a wedding present and waited until our move to switch it with the old one. We went from navy and cream stripes to bright peacocks and florals. We both love the richness of this with the dark wood. Blog Pictures 2010 007 Our amazing wedding party gave us the hutch you see in the background as their wedding gift. It has been the perfect place to store our china and crystal. It is also a gorgeous piece. I can’t wait to clear all the clutter off of it so it is only displaying our one large floral piece and our 8*10 wedding picture.  Blog Pictures 2010 006 Blog Pictures 2010 005 The new kitchen is definitely smaller than the last one but they made great use of the space. The biggest adjustment is the tiny dishwasher. I’m sorry Earth but I feel like we’re going to be running the dishes every other night. Oh, and our building is very strict about recycling. This is exciting except when you don’t know about it. Imagine my surprise and fear when I was throwing trash down the chute and heard “RECYCLE YOU NEW PEOPLE.” Evidently the maintenance staff wasn’t pleased with my empty milk jug going down the chute. Ooops! Blog Pictures 2010 004I’m currently in love with this pantry! Bo and I installed shelves on the right side wall this weekend which compliment the California Closet shelves perfectly. A pantry may seem like a given but after not having one for the last year you realize what a great asset it is! Our has been freshly stocked on the top 3 shelves with teas, oats, cereals, and other staples. We’ve also restocked our spices after throwing out any that didn’t pass Bo’s sniff test. I kid you not, I can’t make these things up. 🙂 Blog Pictures 2010 003

This area isn’t complete as we are getting another component to our bar area via UPS tomorrow. The rug was one of my many stops today after work. I went from the UPS customer service area on the lower West side in search of a box, uptown to Pottery Barn where I lugged out this huge rug and two other bags, then over to Crate and Barrel! Phew.

Yesterday afternoon was filled with great food, friends, and laughter as we celebrated Lauren’s 26th birthday. It is amazing how convenient living in this area really is. Most of our friends live either in Union Square area or the Village. Therefore, our apartment is in between our offices in Midtown East and our friends. Leaving the apartment on Sunday and having the opportunity to walk from here to Lauren’s apartment in the village while making 3 stops along the way to pick up wine, gifts, and fruit was so refreshing. Even though LIC was only 1 stop on the 7 there is something to be said for not having to set foot on a subway. The afternoon included some spur of the moment blueberry margaritas made by Casey, Lauren’s boyfriend.laurens bday

Strawberry Shortcake, the birthday girl’s favorite: laurensbday2

and lots of smiles!

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The brunch birthday worked wonderfully as all 18 guests were able to socialize casually in Lauren and Casey’s apartment, everyone brought a dish, and there was no tipping or group difficulties to worry about. The hit of the afternoon was definitely Casey’s scrambled eggs. He made everything from plain jane, to cheese eggs, to finally bacon eggs! He went through 36 eggs in just a few minutes!

It’s off to bed for this tired gal! I’m looking forward to another morning of running at our new Equinox after having a great 5 miler this morning. I guess after almost a week break my legs were craving a run. This week I’m going to focus on running versus spinning as I’ve been a bit burnt out on spinning lately. Hopefully tomorrow morning I can beat today’s 5 miles in 47 minutes!

Please feel free to provide any Kentucky Derby/Southern recipe ideas, decorating ideas, or more! I value y’alls feedback and comments!

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What Has Your Blog Done For You?

Today was a long day. The last eight days have been a bit of a nightmare for many reasons. It’s been a bit of an emotional roller coaster, work is going to be crazy between now and the National Sales Meeting (May 23-28 in Vegas), and I haven’t run since Sunday. This week my workout schedule looks like this:

Monday: Spin

Tuesday: Oversleep for morning spin but do evening body pump (holy squats!)

Wednesday: Spin (The Wednesday night Lululemon Run Club was cancelled due to the random thunderstorm)

Thursday: NONE Woke up and my quads were still so sore from the squats in Body Pump on Tuesday that I decided 12 more hours of rest would make them feel better.  I planned on a great six mile run tonight after work but alas, I just left the office and it’s 8:45 and Bo and I have a TON of packing to do.

My body is missing running. I feel like some of this funk that i’m in may be related. I wish there was a way to run and spin on the same day. Maybe, since our new apartment is 3 blocks from the gym versus a subway and walk, we’ll be able to run before spin. I think i’d feel better even putting in 2 miles before each spin class. We haven’t decided if we’ll continue going to 44th and Lex for Dave’s classes or only go to one of his classes per week and enjoy our closer more convenient Equinox locations the rest of the week. I’m excited about this locations class schedule and one of their spin instructors- Eric. His mom was one of my mentors while I was at UGA! How random?! I love small world coincidences like this!

After the stress of this weekend’s move is over I think it’s time for a good ol’ fashion challenge. Stress and Ashley seem to equal an evil cycle. Stress leads to worse eating, more processed foods, less grocery shopping, less productivity due to low energy, less evening workouts, worse sleep, which leads to less effective morning workouts…which all leads to the feeling of blek. 🙂 I feel like my stress is getting the best of me right now which I don’t like at all! I have too many great things coming up:

April 30th or May 1st: Housewarming Party (NYC blogger meetup at my new casa?)

May 7th-9th: Impromptu Rudolph family reunion in South Bend due to recent events (I have to find some silver lining in this whole situation)

May 11-13th: Cincinnati for business and a chance to catch up with my maid of honor Amy

May 22nd: Brooklyn Half Marathon (The NYC runners are dropping like flies out there due to injuries! Let me know if you’re doing it as I’d love to meet up with some folks)

May 23-28th: National Meeting in Las Vegas

May 28th-June 1st: Ryan and Amy (MOH) in NYC for Memorial Day weekend along with Bo’s parents

Like I said, I have too many fun things coming up to let stress get the best of me. In order to start smiling a bit more and overcoming this stress, I thought i’d take a page from Quinn’s book and focus on the positive things in life including

What my blog has done for me lately…

I typed my first blog entry almost a year ago  Um, okay somehow I totally missed my “blogiversary” which was on April 1st. Oops! I think this happened since I don’t feel like i’ve been blogging for a full year since I took a hiatus July through December.

But, blogging has lead me to the following beliefs:

Oranges and almond butter are the perfect pre-run fuel!

Granola is best when baked in applesauce not oil!

Calcium in the form of chocolate is the perfect daily treat!

NYC is filled with friendly people and blogging/Foodbuzz has helped me meet many of them! Thanks!

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Group Shot Gridiron 4 Mile

Running with others is more fun than running alone. (Jesse, Meghann, me, and Dori!)

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The NYC food scene is AS incredible as critics make it seem.

Even the most meat loving guys love a vegan restaurant as long as the food is delicious and flavorful!

My daily posts, while not as witty or creative as some other bloggers, is the perfect outlet for my writing bug.

I can run a distance longer than 13 miles!

With proper training and a support system, training for a marathon isn’t scary or impossibly but EXCITING! I’m so blessed that Bo will be that training partner and support system for me this year..even if he looks goofy as heck with his Bondi Band headband! 🙂

Due to the amazing amount we tent to have in common, fellow food and fitness bloggers make great friends! You will even plan trips and races just to ensure you get to see each other.  Meghan, Leslie, and I all decided we had to see each other and therefore decided the North Face Endurance Challenge in DC was the perfect venue!

Green monsters are the most delicious way to get in some of  your daily greens and vitamins!

All I can say is thank you. Thank you for reading. Thank you for commenting. Thank you for coming back after my hiatus. Thank you for the support. Thank you for helping me live a happy, healthier life!

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An Emotional Few Days…

I apologize for the lack of posts over the last 3 days. Wednesday morning, I enjoyed an intense workout session at the Westin gym. This gym didn’t disappoint though it did feel like a sauna due to the pool area. I did a 4 mile hill workout on the treadmill before Heather and I did a 30 minute lifting session together. She shared some of the tips her trainer has given her along with some exercises. We did a number of arm and leg workouts including squats, calf raises, step ups, lat raises, bicep curls, and pushups.

Afterwards we were able to enjoy a lovely brekfast from the Westin continental breakfast buffet included with our room. There were huge strawberries, blueberries, and bananas. In addition I was suprised by their delicious egg whites and asparagus dish. Heather and I took advantage of the gorgeous weather and worked outside near the pool in the sunshine for 2 hours before we had get ready for an afternoon of management store tours.

My trip to Dallas and week was going wonderfully until I returned to my room at 11:30 to shower and get ready for the afternoon. As I was heading down my Backberry rang and I saw that it was my brother. He told me to sit down before he’d continue. He shared with me the unfortunate news that my Uncle Carl had passed that morning. I felt like I was hit with a ton of blocks as this was my dad’s oldest brother but still only in his mid 60s. He’d died of a major heart attack and had passed before the ambulance even arrived. My mind went into shock as I realized that my father had suddenly lost his mother and father within a short month time period. After immediately calling my father and other relatives I immediately started reseraching airfares in hopes to be with my family during their period of difficulty. Unfortunately, airlines are not very understanding unless an immediate (mother, father, husband, or wife) has died and therefore all flights were over $1500! During all of this all I could focus on was how happy I was that these people were all together along with the rest of my dad’s extended family for our wedding on November 21st!

My father and his siblings decided to have a delayed memorial service since other family members were out of the country and wouldn’t be able to attend this week. Therefore, May 8th my family and I will all come together in South Bend, Indiana to celebrate two wonderful people: my Grandma Hazel who died at the age of 102 and my Uncle Carl who died at the all too young age of 67. This memorial weekend to celebrate both their lives is unfortunately the same weekend as my dear friend’s wedding. As you may recall, I was down in Atlanta celebrating Meg’s bachelorette just last month. I am so glad I was able to spend that weekend with her but also very sad that i’ll be in South Bend instead of celebrating her wedding in Macon. While it will be a very sad weekend it will also be a wonderful weekend of remembrance in the town where my father and his siblings grew up. I haven’t been to South Bend since I spent a prospectus weekend at University of Notre Dame during senior year. I’m sure our weekend will include dinner at Roccos and Little Italy, walks through campus, and maybe even a trip to the lake.

The rest of the week in Dallas was a blur because I was trying to keep my emotions together while also focusing on the business. Oh and yes, I forgot to tell you that the below is my BROKEN computer. I somehow stuck my thumb completely through my screen when I was trying to adjust the screen. You see that thumb mark at the top. Oh yes, I kid you not, I can’t make these things up! To make matters worse, this happened on Wednesday morning right after my phone call with my brother. The screen went from this (below) to completely black in about 3 minutes. Needless to say, I have never been happier to arrive back home than I was last night! All I wanted was a big hug from Bo.

Luckily, he was also able to greet me with wonderful news. We’re officially moving into our new apartment next Friday! After sleeping over 12 hours, we headed to the apartment to take measurements, tape off furniture ideas, and take pictures.

Bathroom #1

Living room (the previous tenant left the lights but we’ll be removing them when we move in)

100 square foot walk in bedroom closet. Oh yes, I kid you not!

Bedroom view #1

Front hallway closet

Kitchen

Guest bathroom

Dining nook and living room

This is one of the benefits to having a husband with an architecture background. Sketches, measurements, and plans.

We’re spending the rest of the evening posting ads on Craigslist (need a Pottery Barn entertainment console? Patio furniture? Pottery barn Bedford desk?), watching a very odd moving called A Serious Man, and relaxing. I still feel a bit off both physically and emotionally even though I worked out daily and ate well in Dallas. I think part of it is the emotional stress paired with the fact that my team was out at the Ghost Bar until nearly 3am on Thursday night! Three hours sleep is NOT enough for this gal!


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