A Very Colorado Day

Today we had a very Colorado very awesome day.

We started out by waking up super slowly, taking the dogs for multiple walks, and going to the gym. Then we walked about a mile to have brunch at Root Down where I didn't take any pictures because I was too busy having a good time and I ate my delicious breakfast in like three bites.

Then we walked home and took the dogs out again (they're very spoiled) and then headed off for a hike on the Chautauqua Trail in nearby Boulder. It was really hard (I'm out of shape, friends) and beautiful and relaxing, and fun, and effing perfect weather.

(Mike took pretty pictures with the camera, I'll post those later)

After our hike, we drove to Wild Woods Brewery in Boulder and had some "good job hiking up that g-damn hill and not passing out" beers.

After our beers, we headed home, walked the pups again, and ate some mother effing delicious burgers from Blue Apron while watching Into the Woods. 

 

Find the recipe here

Then we saw a naked butt on our last dog walk of the night. Which maybe isn't a quintessential Colorado thing, but maybe it is?

We love you, Colorado!

Life Lately

I feel like every other blog post on here is titled Life Lately which is lazy, but also, isn't that what lifestyle blogs are about?

This is also kind of an iPhone dump.

You've been warned.

Unpacking is the worst. But our bar is set up and it looks great. Priorities, people.

The dogs are settling in well, except for Gizmo's nervous stomach. Which is a nice way to say that Denver has given Gizmo the squirts. (Aren't you glad you're reading this blog?)

We rocked Ikea, thankyouverymuch. 

One of the best things about our new neighborhood is that pretty much everything is within walking distance. I've gotten pretty good at talking myself into believing that if we walk to a meal, I'll burn enough calories to not feel guilty about that meal. That's a thing, right?

This guy loves Denver so much. No seriously, he can't stop talking about it and he's so smiley.

Scenes from my commute. I have a 15 minute walk every morning to work and I get to pass some really pretty sights like the ones above. I love having such a short trip to work (adios 2 hour commute!) and I like to pat myself on the back for the 1.5 miles I walk every day (it's that not a chubby girl thing to say, I don't know what is). Ask me when it's snowing or raining, but right now, I love my commute.

Today, I had a lunch date with this guy at a fancy/weird hot dog place which was delicious of course.

After lunch today, we went to the first of hopefully many Colorado Rapids games. It was just flippin' gorgeous outside, our team played really well, and it was really fun to hang out with a bunch of soccer fans and have some beers. Although, I've realized that I'm a little too sensitive for sports; I get really bummed out when people boo the other team or when they applaud when the other team messes up. That's just mean and I just want everyone to be happy and have fun. I'm going to be the worst soccer mom ever.

Right Now

Right now, I'm sitting on our couch with a pug to my right and a corgi at my feet. I have my computer on my lap so I can blog and shop for zip ties and replacement squeakers on Amazon (riveting shopping, folks) and I'm watching The Office on Netflix. (I will never ever get sick of watching The Office and neither will Mike) I'm wearing my Spring pjs (as in no flannel) because it's not freezing here (wahoo!) and my feet are killing me from the last couple of days.

Thursday and Friday we spent on our feet, covered in dust, unpacking our things, deciding what to throw away or donate (the worst), and trying to find a place for everything and get our shit organized. I always forget how awful that part of the move is. Your house is a mess and, especially when you're downsizing, you have to figure out what you're okay throwing away which is always hard.

Today, we ventured out to Ikea and Target to get the final items for our new little apartment. We got this print for the living room because Mike put his knee through our big canvas we had up during our move from Maryland to Virginia, this dresser for the bathroom that we plan to paint and replace the knobs with fun ones from Anthro, this shelf to go in between the washer/dryer and the wall for our dog stuff and cleaning supplies (hashtag no storage in our tiny kitchen), this rug for the living room that I'm pretty obsessed with, and a bunch of random stuff not worth linking (unless you really want to know what trashcan we got). We were in that joint for like 3 hours and didn't kill each other, which is a feat, and also their hot dogs are tasty and cheap so go Ikea.

We then headed off to Target to get some groceries finally and a bunch of other random shit. I forced Mike to buy a little decoration with a "G" on it and his comment was, "Everyone will know for sure know what our last name starts with." because I have bought about four thousand "Gs" since we got married. I can't help it!

Denver is filled with people celebrating St. Patrick's Day which is hilarious because you get to drive by young people dressed in embarrassing green outfits who are drunk already by 3:00pm and you can shake your head and say, "Oh silly kids." and pretend that you weren't doing that exact same thing ten years ago.

The apartment is finally coming together and we are having so much fun exploring our new neighborhood. I'm super nervous for my first day of work on Monday, but I'm ignoring that for now. I can't wait to get all these boxes out of here and the broken furniture that we have to hold onto for the moving company to come inspect in order to pay us back. Urgh, that's a whole other story.

This is a pointless blog post, but that's what's going on with me right now...

Another Opening, Another Show

So, the title of this blog post should be "another move" or something like that, but everyone knows how much I love Smash and I constantly have their songs in my head including this one today, so there it is.




Anyyyywho.

We moved again!

Three days, 1,686 miles, and one dog barf later, we are in our new home in Denver, Colorado. This move was definitely easier than the last one where we had to drive a giant Uhaul towing our car across the country, but it still was not easy. I love those dogs you guys, but ugh. They make moves not so pleasant. But we're here! And my "holy shit we moved here for me and what if we hate it" panic attack is not as bad as anticipated so that's good...right?

Day 1, we drove from Triangle, Virginia to Evansville, Indiana. I think moving across the country is kind of like childbirth or getting a tattoo. After it's over, you forget how horrible it was and don't even hesitate to do it again. A couple hours in, the car was covered with dog hair, it smelled like dog butt, and Tuffy kept jumping from lap to lap and wouldn't sit still. Thankfully, we had candy and the Disney Pandora station to lift our spirits and no shortage of very nice rest stops along the way. Side note: is California the only state with horrible rest stops?!

The only truly bad part about that day's drive was that a good chunk of it was on a curvy and hilly road that lead to this little munchkin barfing all over his bed in the backseat. We pulled over, got him all cleaned up, forced another car sickness pill down his sad gullet, and refused to let him sit in the backseat the rest of the trip. Thankfully, that was our only barf of the trip which is pretty good for little Gizmo.

Day 2, we drove from Evansville, Indiana to Salina, Kansas. The dogs were a lot better on day 2, mostly because they were exhausted and slept a lot more. Kansas looked exactly like you think Kansas looks. We drove by the town where my brother-in-law went to college, and watched a bunch of 30 Rock on my phone. The best part of day 2 was that we got to our hotel super early and Mike ran back out to get us some Kansas bbq and local beers. We sat in our giant hotel bed (we need a king bed at home, STAT) and watched Brooklyn 909 on my laptop while eating DELICIOUS bbq and drinking beers. That is the way I like to move.

Day 2, I also realized this is what I looked like when I checked into our hotels and that's probably not great. I'm not a crazy person guys, I swear.

Day 3 aka last day! We drove from Salina, Kansas to Denver, Colorado. We were pretty over it by this point. I mean, check out Tuffy's face, he was sick of the damn car. The only bad thing about day 3 was that there were long stretches with nothing out there so we ended up STARVING and having a late lunch. We were ridiculously excited to find a Del Taco when we got into Colorado. We can't help it, we love us some veggie works burritos and we've missed them living on the East Coast! We headed off to the Post Office to get a money order because we're geniuses and packed our checkbooks before we left for Denver. We signed our lease and now we're home! 

Our apartment is super cute and super small and super new and I can't wait until we get our furniture so it can feel like more of a home. Be good to us, Denver!

Stuff Lately

Random stuff, ready go!

I walk by this dress in the Loft window every day and I may be having a love affair with it

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On his lunch break the other day, Mike bought us this really nice bottle of wine that has special meaning to us to open our first night in Denver. And then he proceeded to drop it straight onto the concrete steps of his work. And it didn't break. Moral of the story:  wine is magic.

I've given up trying to grow out my hair color and am going to dye it dark again the second I get to Denver. Reverse ombre is not cute.

Our second week in Denver, we already have more things planned than we've done pretty much the whole time we've lived here.

I have finally figured out a way to get my hair to stay curly/wavy and not get super poofy and it's curling it with a straightener which people have been doing for years, but I'm slow okay shut up.

I haven't worked out in about 6 months and I'm actually kind of excited to have a gym in my apartment complex in Denver so I can lose some pudge. I bought myself this super cute outfit as motivation:

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The pants are super cute foldover pants and I will not wear them with a cameltoe like the model, I promise.

It snowed like crazy yesterday and we had to come to work super late this morning because the effers didn't plow our street until 6:30 this morning. And they left about 2 inches of ice. It was a harrowing drive to the train station, let me tell you.

And then I got into DC and all the sidewalks in my neighborhood are just ice rinks. If I don't break my ass today, it will be a miracle.

I caught the dogs spooning the other night and the look on Gizmo's face when he realized I was taking a photo was priceless.

LAST DAY COMMUTING!!!

Commuter Thoughts - Fashion Don'ts

I spend a huge chunk of my commute non-creepily checking people out and either judging or being inspired by their fashion choices. Based on that, here are some things I've decided are giant no-no's.

(This blog has really just become a place for me to show my true bitchy colors, hasn't it?)

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White Tights

White tights on adults really bother me. Unless you're a nurse or going to dance class, leave the opaque white tights at home.

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(DON'T GOOGLE FISHNETS! I SAW VAGINAS YOU GUYS, VAGINAS.)

Fishnets at work. Unless you are a dancer or in a Halloween costume, you shouldn't be wearing fishnets. Ever.

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Novelty hats on adults. Unless it is some kind of holiday I guess? Nope, still not okay. If you're over the age of 12, just wear a normal hat.


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Sequin uggs. I don't think this needs an explanation...

(All the photos for this one were just too mean)
Pants or boots that are way too tight. I am not the skinniest minnie on the planet so I understand how hard it can be to buy pants that fit properly or boots that fit your calves right if you aren't stick thin. But ladies, don't squeeze yourself into things that don't fit. It only brings attention to areas you don't want attention brought to and it looks super uncomfortable.

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Wearing sunglasses inside on the train. Unless you are currently having a migraine that makes seeing light painful, you don't need to be wearing sunglasses indoors or on the train.

Tucking baggy pants into boots. I usually give people that do this the benefit of the doubt that they are only wearing those boots for their commute and when they get to work, they put normal shoes on underneath their pants. But if you aren't, stop it.

Socks with flats or Sperry's. Maybe I'm the only one who hates this, but I totally do.

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Socks that show over the top of your boots. This cool for a hot minute a couple of years ago and some people will not let it die.

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Saggy pants. I can't believe this is still a thing. I have never understood why dudes think it's cool for everyone to see your tiny little butt. Also, it makes you walk like a penguin. I saw a guy's pants fall down on the street the other day because he was wearing them like this and it made my whole year.

What fashion trends drive you nuts?

Want It Wednesday

Because you missed my super selfish and overly materialistic Wednesday posts, right?

Here are some things I want this Wednesday...

Balmain Dress

If I were on The Bachelor, I would wear this dress to a rose ceremony and then get too drunk and start shimmying all over the place inappropriately.

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A vacation here with my husband and pups. Hot cocoa by a fire while we read and play games and the pups nap nearby and we listen to the sounds of the woods outside. Dreamy.

The Juice Truck 3 Day Cleanse

I don't believe in "detoxes" and all that, but three days of just fruit and veggies and healthy juices would be just what the doctor ordered for this chubster.

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This hairdo every day all day.

Lotus Garden Loungers

These pants. I wold WEAR these.

20-Minute Lower Body HIIT Workout

This Wednesday, I want the motivation to work out. Also, having her body would be good, thanks.

Sneakers

Regular ole' sneakers with a twist.

What do you guys want this Wednesday?

Bonobos

One of the funnest things about my husband is that he's almost as into fashion as I am. Sometime in the first year of us dating, he went from being some skater/college kid wearing PacSun and slip-on Vans to shopping at JCrew and drooling over double monk straps at Cole Haan. I love that he loves to put together outfits and isn't afraid of patterns or colors. One of the stores that he loves and I love is Bonobos.

The awesome folks at Bonobos emailed me today to make sure I knew about, and could share with you guys, their current sale. Right now, you can get 20% off new arrivals with new customer code SPRINGSTYLE (new customers only, one use per customer).

Here are some of my favorite new arrival pieces that you could ave 20% on:

Washed Chinos - because real men wear cantaloupe

Americano Meade Check - wear it with jeans, wear it to work, wear it with chinos

Marled Cotton Crew - because marled sweaters are always a good idea...and because I would totally get to borrow this

NoMad French Terry Sweatpants - there really isn't anything quite like attractive sweatpants

Cotton Bowtie - my husband is a man who unabashedly rocks the bow tie and this one is a goodin'

Yarn Spun Printed Tee - throw on a fun tee, some jeans, and some Sperry's, done and done

This sale ends today at 11:59 pm so go grab some fun pieces and then let me borrow them, k thanks!

*This post contains affiliate links and I will be compensated if you make a purchase after clicking on my links. 

Things I Won't Miss about the East Coast

Part of me feels a little bit like we failed the east coast. We never actually moved close enough to DC to really enjoy it even though we commuted in for work every day and we've only lived in the NOVA area for about six months. So it kind of feels like we didn't give it a full go even though we've been here for over two years.

But, this opportunity was just too good to pass up and we absoeffinglutely cannot wait to move to Denver. We are getting a little overexcited about it, let me tell you.

So, sorry east coast, we kind of failed you, but there are some things I will definitely not miss about yo' ass.

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Commuting! My daily commute to work goes like this:  get up at 5:45am, leave the house by 6:30am to get to the nearby VRE station, train leaves at 6:55am, get to Union Station around 8:00am, walk through Union Station and get on metro, get off metro at Dupont and walk to office, get to office about 8:30am. That's already two hours out of my day  just to get to my job. Commuting has really kicked our asses. We knew it would suck, but we didn't realize how much of our lives it would affect. I am adding an extra four hours to my day every day just to get to and from work. By the time we get home, we are exhausted and just ready to eat dinner and go to bed. If we moved closer to DC like we had planned before I got this new job, we still would have had an at least 45 commute on the metro with at least one line change to get to work every day which is still not ideal. Or cheap.

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Dealing with people on my commute. To be fair, I spend a lot of my commute checking out people's outfits and being really inspired in that way. But I spend an equal amount being super mothereffing irritated at those around me. People who take up multiple seats on busy trains people who shove others to try to fit into a stuffed car, people who talk super loudly on their phones on a quiet train, people who eat McDonalds in small spaces on the train, people who stop in the middle of the walkway in Union Station because they're lost, people who glare at everyone (seriously DC, you ever heard of smiling?!), people who put their purse on their shoulder instead of holding it in a packed metro and shove it into you at every jerk of car, people who stand on the escalators, people who fall asleep and snore on the train, and just, you know, people!

Also, and this one might make me sound like a giant turd, but I will not miss the crazy people. I feel for homeless people; especially in a cold place like DC, but some of the homeless people I walk by every day are not just homeless, they are straight up crazy. It's never fun to not feel physically safe on your commute. I have had people sit next to me on the train who, when you looked in their eyes, you knew they were cracked out of their minds, and there's nowhere you can go; you just sit on that train trying not to make eye contact. My work neighborhood is home to quite a few crazies, as is Union Station and I will not miss the uncomfortable feeling of walking by crazy people screaming BITCH at the top of their lungs on a daily basis.

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The 95. Don't even get me started on the whole HOT/HOV lane bullshiz. The 95 sucks and everyone knows it and it's the only way to get anywhere in Virginia. Boo.

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Dirty DC snow. I know this happens a lot of places, but it seems like here, once it snows, it never melts. This is what my entire work neighborhood looks like today. Just sidewalks filled with dirty ass snow. It's pretty gross.

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The allergies. None of us (Gizmo included) ever really had allergies until we moved to the east coast and now we're all periodically sniffy, itchy, and sneezy monsters.

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The cost of living. In Denver, we'll be living .75 miles from my work so I can walk to work everyday; which means we are smack down downtown Denver. This beauty shown above is only .86 miles to my current work in DC and is a dream on the inside and costs over $300 more a month for 400 less square feet and doesn't include parking, a gym, a pool, or any outdoor spaces. 

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Having to spend so much time indoors because of the weather. I'm okay watching 15 hours of Netflix in my pjs, but all the time indoors has been making Mike INSANE.

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The honking/traffic. 'Nuff said.

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The mosquitoes. This was more a Maryland problem than DC, but oh man did we get eaten up by mosquitoes the second it got a little warm. It was miserable outside all summer.

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The humidity. We're desert people and we never quite got used to humidity. My hair hates it and I hate it.

I promise to do a Things I will Miss about the East Coast post to try to counteract my bitchiness in this one, I swear.