Posts

Highlights from Douro Valley

Image
After a whirlwind of a trip to Porto (where it felt like we were always on the move), it felt great to head to our next stop- the Douro Valley. Known as the demarcated region where grapes are grown for port wine, I knew this would be the relaxing part of our trip.


We had one tour scheduled as part of our Groupon package, but other than that we were on our own!


Day One We left Porto around lunchtime, and made our way east to the mountainside. It was really hilly, with small, twisty roads wrapping around the hills and rivers. The drive took about an hour and a half, and then we arrived to our hotel to relax for the rest of the day

Hotel - Douro Valley Palace Hotel
This hotel was absolutely beautiful, with a gorgeous view of the famous Douro River (the same river that we had a boat tour on the previous day). There were a lot of different restaurants and bars all over the property, along with an outdoor pool and spa area. Unfortunately, since we were there in the off season, a lot of these…
Post a Comment
Read more

Cooking from Blogs : Love + Lemons

Image
Hi everyone and Happy Monday! Today I'm going to be starting a new series I'm calling "Cooking from Blogs". With it being a new year, a lot of people (including me) are trying to cook more at home to save money and eat healthier! To help inspire myself- I've been pinning recipes from blogs like crazy. The only thing is, I end up not making the majority of these recipes, go back to recipes I've made hundreds of times before, and before long am buying veggie lo mein or pizza because I have nothing to eat at home!

So- to help inspire myself (and hopefully a few of you!) I'll be trying out a full day of recipes from some of my favorite blogs, as well as a few new ones that I've recently discovered! Up first is Love + Lemons, which was recommended by my friend Alexa (spoiler alert- I'll be covering her blog in a future post!). After hearing her rave about this blog, I had to try it out. Here's how the day of eats went.



Breakfast :Overnight Oats with…
Post a Comment
Read more

Highlights from Porto, Portugal

Image
A very happy Monday to all of you! I hope you all enjoyed your first weekend of the New Year and haven't forgotten any goals or resolutions yet (I'm going strong with mine...so far). I have a fun set of posts that I'll be kicking off today- highlights from my recent trip to Portugal.


Dan and I went on this trip during Thanksgiving, and mostly found it by luck. We were a few months back from our trip to Japan early in 2019 and were already itching to go overseas again. Instead of booking a trip right away, we decided to find something months in the future as something to look forward to. We browsed Groupon Getaways (a favorite of mine- check out older recaps from Costa Rica; Budapest and Prague; and Ireland and Scotland) and found a great deal for a week in Portugal! This trip included flights, car rentals, hotels in three cities, and a few scheduled tours. I immediately bought two packages and sat waiting for months for our trip to happen!


The first city that we visited wa…
Post a Comment
Read more

January Goals

Image
Happy New Year! What did you do to celebrate the start of a new decade? This was one of the first years that I was actually home (we got back from vacation on December 30), but I stayed in and rested! 
I'm back at work today, so it seems like the new year is finally starting. Today I'm kicking off the new year by sharing my goals for the new month. Let me know what your goals are in the comments!
First, let's start with seeing how I did with my December goals...
No spend (minus trips) I would say that I did this goal pretty well but it wasn't a completely no-spend month.  There were a few times that I hung out with friends (especially the week that I tracked my spending), but it was definitely a lower spend month than normal! I packed my lunch every day, didn't pay for any coffee out, and also limited any eating out.
Gym 3 times a week This one definitely did not happen. When I got home from Portugal, I got a really bad cold and was bedridden for about a week! So,…
Post a Comment
Read more

30 x 30 Update - Six Months Left!

Image
Hi everyone!  Today I'm dropping by to share my annual update on my 30x30 list- six months late! I didn't share this on my 29th birthday, so I'm going to share it on my 29 1/2 birthday :)  I started this list when I turned 25, and now there's just six months to go.  Crazy how quickly time goes.  Here's a look at where I stand today, along with how many items I have left to go!

Buy a house4/1/16

Break 2 hours in the half marathon 10/11/15 (first time)

Break 4 hours in the full marathon
Complete a triathlon (sprint counts!) 8/5/19


Get Married5/6/16
Visit Mexico Isla Mujeres and Cancun


Splurge on a once-in-a-lifetime meal Kobe Beef in Kobe!
Bungee Jump or Sky Dive 10/17/15
Visit Falling Water
Go to all the east-coast MLB stadiums (Remaining stadium: Turner Field)
Cook a fancy 5-course meal
Plant a garden 
Learn how to ski
Stay at a BnB in Vermont
Learn how to belay11/6/15
Have a spa day
See a Broadway musical - Hamilton!
Ride a jet-ski 7/4/15
Stay at a really fancy house on AirBnB Se…
Post a Comment
Read more