Weekend Wrap Up: Women Be Shopping Edition

On Friday's Pancake Run, I tripped over a broken sidewalk, launched into the air, performed a triple salchow & basically erased two of the knuckles on my right hand.  But I didn't land on my knees, so...  yay?

This picture is (gasp) actually from Thursday, but it ties into my whole 'women be shopping theme' so I'm including it.  My mom had a Nordstrom gift card, so I met her at Green Hills Mall to help her spend it.  At Nordstrom, we were both introduced to Jo Malone, who kind of rocked our perfume world.  My mom spent her gift card on the perfume & bath oil, while I got enough samples to last me until I can afford to buy my own.  The combo I'm obsessed with is Pomegranate Noir bath oil with Wild Bluebell cologne.  Meow!

Also pictured, yet another grey cardigan (I needed this one!), another gold spiky bracelet (my H&M one is already turning - shocking) & THESE BOOTS!  Y'all, these boots are the deal of the century.  I wanted the pricey Madewell Zipcode boots, but they were sold out (tear).  I had heard Clarks had good boots, but I had never been in there.  Turns out, there's a Clarks store right outside of Nordstrom, & they were having a huge sale.  The boots I wanted weren't on sale, of course, but I decided to buy them anyway.  They were $139 - whatever.  But!  When they ring me up, the boots are only $59!!!  In your face, Madewell!

On Friday, I went back to Green Hills to spend the lululemon gift card my parents gave me for Christmas.  Plus, I needed to replace the running gloves I ruined on my fall that morning.  I bought a second, much-needed Swiftly Tech Long Sleeve top.  These are my favorite running tops - FYI.  Then I meandered around Hill Center, buying some clearance items at Paper Source & lusting over things at West Elm before heading back home (it was snowing pretty good at this point).

On Saturday, determined not to buy anything else & to do something productive with my day, I went down the street to Publix, PetSmart & Target.  Oh, Target.  You get me every time.  Fact:  I had two $25 Target gift cards.  Fact:  I "needed" a third pair of running tights.  Fact:  I forgot I already spent one of my gift cards on jeggings (like you do).  So yeah, I bought all of this.  Whatever, the gift card paid for the tights & the rest of it was on clearance.  YOLO.

It snowed like crazy all day on Saturday, which luckily kept me from going anywhere else that sells things I can buy with cash money.  I spent the rest of the day inside reading my new library book, Life After Death, which I am LOVING, by the way.

On Saturday night, Tiff & Chris were in town from NYC & wanted to meet for dinner.  John & I have loved Anatolia for just about the entire 8 years we've been together, but I've recently discovered their chicken stew & I'm obsessed with it.  It's all I think about when it's cold outside.  So we met Tiff & Chris there, warmed up over hummus, stew & kabobs & did what we do when they're in town, borderline harass them about moving to Nashville.  Sorry y'all, it's done out of love.

Yesterday was the 8 week mark from my next half marathon:  NOLA Half.  So...  shit's about to get real.  We decided to run 7 miles yesterday.  What we didn't know, is that it would be 22 degrees outside.  I, like most people, run better in the cold.  But 22 degrees?  Twenty-two degrees is a wild card.  Will I run better?  Will I slip & fall, AGAIN?  Will I ever get the feeling back in my butt?  All valid questions.  Turns out, yesterday was an awesome run.  Granted, it took hours to get the feeling back in my legs, but...  7 miles!

Because I can't quit documenting THE GREAT FALL OF 2012, I leave you with this:  a picture of my hand 2 days after the fall.  RIP, knuckle.  RIP...

Happy Christmas!

This year I had the idea to make our Christmas card a faux album cover.  I thought it was genius.  John did not share this sentiment, but alas, he is legally bound to me & my brilliant Christmas card ideas.

This was my inspiration.  See?  See how hilarious & genius this is?!  P.S. I tried to imitate the open-mouthed Paul Simon face, but couldn't really pull it off.  I just looked possessed.  See the photostream of the outtakes here.

Special shout-out to Dawn, who came over after work one night to take this ridiculous picture; Michael (not that Michael), who designed the card; & last, but not least, John, who, against his better judgement, let his picture be taken in a turtleneck.

Happy Christmas!

Weekend Wrap Up: 26.4.26 Edition

On Friday, instead of our normal Pancake Run in/around Hillsboro Village, Mary Katherine & Marshall hosted all of us for breakfast & a run around their new neighborhood.  Marshall made lattes, cinnamon rolls, breakfast casserole, baked cheese grits & his amazing homemade guacamole.  It was delicious & a lot of fun.  Hopefully a new Pancake Christmas tradition!

Let's all take a moment to appreciate my new shoes.  I've been on the hunt for animal print loafers for months.  The few pairs I've been able to find in my price range were sold out in my size & all the others were more than I wanted to spend.  Then one day I went to Kohl's.  I only go to Kohl's about once a year, usually when I'm Christmas shopping & I always end up with a new pair of shoes.  Y'all, I love these shoes so hard.

We usually go to Maryland for Christmas to see John's family, but this year his dad & sister went to Albuquerque to spend Christmas with Nana.  They stopped en route for a night in Nashville to celebrate Christmas with us.

This is my new favorite app, I Swap Faces.  My friend Carrie turned me on to it & I'm obsessed.  I need practice though.  Still, hilarious.  Thanks for being a good sport, Sally (& Linda)!

On Saturday morning, I participated in a run in honor of the Newtown, CT victims called 26.4.26 -- 26 miles for 26 victims.  Here is a video from the run, made by fellow East Nasty, Mike Tarrolly:



If you watch carefully, you'll see me & Heidi around 2:13.  Jaime & Jessica are a few seconds ahead of us, at 1:59.

After the run, I picked up my friend Natalie for brunch at Loveless Cafe.  Natalie & I worked together years ago & even though she lives in Seattle now, she remains one of my favorite friends & we get together every Christmas while she's in town.  Natalie, I heart you so hard.  Shawtime!

Yesterday, against my better judgement, I went down the street to Nashville West to hit up Target & Publix.  It actually wasn't that bad.  I mean, the parking was a nightmare & I honestly would have been better off to have walked from my house, but it was tolerable once you got inside.

If you follow me on Instagram, then you know I'm gay for brown butter.  I also recently learned from my friend Heidi that European butter has less water & to use that when baking.  So yesterday I bought some fancy unpronounceable butter & made these brown butter cupcakes with chocolate buttercream.  So good!  A few were malformed, so obviously I ate those.  Obviously.

After my dinner of cupcakes, I poured myself a glass of wine & watched National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation.  Tis the season!

Merry Christmas Eve!

Birchbox Review: November

I received my November Birchbox later than usual due to shipping delays related to Hurricane Sandy.  A lot of my friends had already received theirs & were raving about their box, particularly the mascara.  This box was a tiny bit underwhelming after last month's goop box, but I was still glad to receive it.  Here's what I got:

Kerastase | Chroma Sensitive:  Kerastase's hair philosophy:  Cleanse, treat, & protect   This gentle cleansing balm, which purifies strands & locks in color, is your first step toward gorgeous locks.  Full-size, $42.

My Review:  Unfortunately, I haven't used this yet because I'm saving it for an upcoming highlight appointment.  The packaging says to use it in the first 1-2 weeks after having your hair colored, so I'll report back.  I received 2 packages of this, so I gave one to my friend Lana who just changed her hair from blonde to red.  We'll see what she has to say, too.  Let us know, Lana!

MCMC Fragrances | Phoenix:  We convinced our favorite Brooklyn-based perfumer to create exclusive samples of this warm feminine scent just for you.  Full-size, $45-$95.

My Review:  Meh.  I don't love this scent.  You know I was excited when I read the "Brooklyn-based" description, but it's not for me.  In related news, if anyone received this & liked it, let me know & you can have mine.

ModelCo | FIBRE LASHXTEND Lengthening Mascara:  Falsies without the fuss.  This innovative mascara uses tiny lash-extending fibers to give you a lengthy fringe.  Tip:  Rotate the wand inside the bottle to pick up the fibers.  Full-size, $24.

My Review:  As I mentioned above, a lot of my friends also received this & were raving about it on Instagram, so I was excited to try it.  I finished my Chantecaille mascara sample from last month (which I LOVED) & switched to this one by ModelCo.  I didn't love it, but you know, sometimes mascara isn't awesome that first week you use it.  But I'm a good 2 weeks in now & still don't love it.  Here's the problem, I have long, blonde lashes & I can't get this mascara to cover them.  It does good at the base, but it keeps leaving the tips of my lashes blonde.  I don't know.  I'm under-whelmed.  Those of you that like it (Jenn & Heidi) - what am I missing?

One Love Organics | Aromatic Body Serum:  Made with pumpkin seed & sea buckthorn oil, this fast-absorbing oil keeps skin supple & hydrated.  Bonus:  It has aromatherapy benefits!  Full-size, $39.

My Review:  I wasn't 100% sure what this was.  This is when the Birchbox how-to videos come in handy.  In the video they spray it on their bare legs, but since I'm mostly in black opaque tights this time of year, I've been spraying it on my heels & elbows at night.  I like it.  I don't like it enough to buy it, but it's a neat product.  Good scent, too.

LIFESTYLE EXTRA
Chuao Chocolatier | 7-pack Assorted ChocoPod:  These bit-sized artisanal treats are made with premium Venezuelan cacao & come in a range of unexpected flavors.  Full-size, $7.95

My Review:  I forgot to eat this.  Sorry.  Cute packaging though.

P.S. I bought the amika Obliphica Nourishing Mask from October's box.  Y'all, I love it so hard.  It's the best smelling product I've ever used on my hair.  I use it every Sunday & spend all day tossing my head around & smelling my hair.  I'm not even kidding.

Weekend Wrap Up: All I Do Is Go To Christmas Parties Edition

On Friday night, my very talented friend Gio had an art show in East Nashville.  Beforehand, I met my girl Carrie at Fat Bottom for much needed after-work, de-stress beers.  God, Friday...

I love Gio so hard.  Here are some very bad pictures of very good art.  It was amazing in person.  Yay, Gio!

My Warby Parker glasses came on Friday!  I went with Ainsworth, which was option #1.  I love them!  I put those suckers on & we headed out for the Christmas with the Colverts party.  Y'all, I did three events on Friday night.  And I had been up since 5am.  It was like I was 32 again!

Saturday morning was another Yazoo Barely a 4K Beer Run, but this one was Christmas-themed.  Instead of paying a race registration fee, we all brought $20 worth of toys to benefit The Last Minute Toy Store, who's goal for this year is to serve 5,000 people in the community.  Pastor Paul Slentz spoke before the race.  With the events of the day before on everyone's mind, we were all a little emotional.  Being part of something like this helps.  I don't know the final count, but I know that Yazoo collected & donated at least $5,000 worth of toys to Pastor Slentz & The Last Minute Toy Store as soon as the race was over.  I may have cried in my beer a little.

Y'all, this dog.  I mean, does it even need a caption?  Not really.  He had a brother in a coordinating outfit, but I couldn't get them both in the same picture, which I will regret for the rest of my life.

I take a circuit class every Tuesday & Thursday morning that I affectionately refer to as 'Hell Class'.  It's kind of a cult.  On Saturday night, John & I went to the holiday party for Hell Class.  This is my Hell Class partner-in-crime, Lana.  It was hilarious trying to recognize everyone in full hair & makeup as we're used to seeing each other in various stages of being upside down & one more burpee away from cardiac arrest.

Sunday morning was another NOLA training run.  Since we ran the Yazoo race the day before & some of us had also ran Friday, we opted for a flat, out & back route.  We ran 6 miles at Shelby, then completely negated it with lattes & breakfast biscuits at Barista Parlor.

Last night I watched White Christmas & wrapped all of our Christmas presents.  As you can see, Linda helped by laying on everything & making sure every present was sufficiently covered in white fur.  You're welcome.

I came back into the living room later & found Linda laying in front of the tree like this.  You know, like she had wrapped all of those presents.  Bless her...

Weekend Wrap Up: A Festival Of Lights Edition

On Friday, I went to Elizabethtown, Kentucky for an all-day meeting.  Ferdinand was in the building where we met.  Naturally, we all took our picture with him.  Naturally.

On the way home from Kentucky, we stopped in Cross Plains & I snapped this pic of Giant Tommy Lee Jones (not really).

The Book Swap group I'm in hosts an annual cookie swap around this time of year.  I've been eyeing this recipe on Pinterest for awhile now & decided to go with it since I'm so gay for brown butter right now.

Brown Butter Snickerdoodles:  recipe here.

These brown butter snickerdoodles are the best cookies I've ever made.  Which, of course they are - brown butter.  And they're easy.  They were a big hit both at Book Swap, as well as the Christmas party I brought them to later.  I'll be making these again, like tomorrow.

This is the table of cookies at Book Swap Cookie Swap.  Needless to say, I ate myself into a sugar coma, but sooo worth it.  Tis the season.

Kate (hostess), me & Jenn

This year, John & I got invited to our first Chanukah party.  Hooray, we finally have Jewish friends willing to invite us into their home!  Watch out, Gwyneth, I'm getting closer.

Saturday was the first night of Chanukah.  Kate prepared a feast of leg of lamb, potato latkes, smoked salmon & JELLY DONUTS!  There were also these skewers of pancetta, salami, olives, tomatoes & mozzarella.  I think we ate them all.  Sorry, Kate.

We had a great time.  Their house was gorgeous & all decked out for Christmas/Chanukah.  John ended up knowing half of the people there, including a fellow Eagle Scout, so there were a lot of shared stories about being 14, spirit animals, & being lost in the woods.  We had a blast!

After a few hours, we left Kate & Andy's & headed east for Dave & Alexis' A Very Paulson Christmas.  This is one of our favorite parties.  The house is always decorated, there's a breath-taking array of food, there's ice cream eggnog (don't ask) & basically everyone we know in the world is there, including Kitty Kitty Birthday.  You'll note her prominent placement on the mantle in the midst of the Christmas decorations.

As usual, after a few glasses of wine, I turn into an 80 year old & start haranguing people with all of my miscellaneous maladies.  It didn't behoove anyone that two days prior, I had two moles removed.  But I had a lot of fun.  I'm sure I can't say the same for everyone that got stuck talking to me, but whatever.  Enjoy your youth, girls.

As I mentioned last week, I'm training for my second half marathon.  Yesterday, our little group met for a 6 mile run.  How I managed to run 6 miles after a cookie swap, 2 holiday parties & 4 hours of sleep will remain one of the great mysteries of my life, but I somehow pulled it off.  We plan our runs around where I want to eat afterwards.  Yesterday we ran around Belmont/Music Row, so we feasted on Egg McBongos afterwards.  And then I basically slept the rest of the day.

Warby Parker Glasses, Part Deux

Ainsworth in Walnut Tortoise

Downing in Walnut Tortoise

Mallory in Gimlet Tortoise

I bought my first pair of Warby Parker glasses in 2010.  The Zagg has served me well, but it's time for an update.  I'm really into round frames.  The Warby Parker Class Trip bus has been parked in Nashville, so I went & tried on some new frames over the weekend.

P.S. The bus is still here.  It's parked in The Gulch until December 9th & then it's gone.  Go now!  (But if you can't go now, they have a showroom at Imogene + Willie.)

I'm trying to decide between # 1 & # 2:  Ainsworth & Downing.  I don't hate # 3, but they take up a little too much of my face.  I've completely taken # 4 out of the running.  They're way too Sally Jessy Goes To Brooklyn.  All signs point to Ainsworth.  My Warby Parker helper on the bus voted Ainsworth & then Warby Parker weighed in on the twitter & voted for Ainsworth, too.

I haven't bought them yet, but I plan to in the next few days.  This FSA money isn't going to spend itself!  So if you've got an opinion on which frames I should buy, weigh in fast.

This is not a sponsored post.  Warby Parker has no idea who I am, nor did they ask me to write about them.  I just think they're a great company with a great product.  This will be my second pair of Warby Parker glasses.  My last pair is 2+ years old & still going strong, which is a lot more than I can say about my previous SEE glasses.  Also, Warby Parker glasses are just $95.  You can't beat that.  And!  For every pair of glasses they sell, they donate a pair to someone in need.

I'll report back once I get my glasses.  I'm 99.9% sure I'm getting the Ainsworth.  I think.  To be continued...

EDITED TO ADD:  I bought the Ainsworth, aka # 1.  And I love them!

P.S. This post is from 2012. Read an updated post here!

P.P.S. I partnered with Warby Parker in 2014 to launch their Concentric Collection.

Weekend Wrap Up: The Claw Edition

On Friday night, John & I cashed in The Catbird Seat gift certificate we've been sitting on for a year.  Treat yo self!  This was our first visit to Catbird Seat & I had no idea what to expect.  For those of you who haven't been, it's not a normal restaurant.  There aren't tables.  Everyone sits up at the bar & the kitchen is inside the bar, so you watch them make your meal.  There are 3 chefs & which ever one makes that specific course, brings it to you & describes what it is.  A friend had recommended we ask a lot of questions, so we did & they really seemed to appreciate it.  Plus, we learned all kinds of crazy stuff.  The chefs are awesome.

Now, the important stuff:  the food.  Having just been to San Francisco & eating better than I've ever eaten, I don't say this lightly, but my meal at Catbird Seat is the best meal I've ever had.  We had 10 courses over about 3 1/2 hours.  We also did the wine pairing, which I highly recommend.  Speaking of, take a cab.  Turns out, you can't really drive yourself home after drinking champagne, white wine, red wine, beer, bourbon & sherry for 3 1/2 hours.  You're welcome.

I was trying really hard not to be that girl Instagramming her entire meal, but I had to take a picture of this.  Y'all, that is a claw.  And I totally ate it.  One of the neat things about Catbird Seat is that they seat you 15 minutes apart, so you can look around at the people seated before you & see what's coming down the pike.  When I saw this claw served to the couple beside us, I whisper-shouted to John, "I am not eating that."

Thanks to the pairing, I was 4 or 5 drinks in by the time the claw made it to us.  The chef told us that the egg was in a little pond of brown butter & to break the egg, stir it into the browned butter & to dip the pigeon meat into the egg/browned butter.  Holy effing shizz, y'all.  That little pigeon leg BLEW MY MIND.  I've never had anything like it.  It was my favorite course.  Claw!  Who knew?!

This was kind of a banner weekend.  The morning after Catbird Seat, John bought me a bike.  Merry Christmas to me!  A few days ago, Marshall sent me a Craiglist ad for this bike, telling me to buy it.  Quick backstory, I've been riding (& racing on) John's old college mountain bike.  I needed a road bike.  And now I have one!  Hooray!  It's a 2007 Specialized Allez Elite.  It needs new pedals, but other than that, it's good to go.  I can't wait to see how fast I am on a bike that doesn't weigh more than I do.

My mom came up on Saturday & we went to Porter Flea.  It was a madhouse, but I managed to score 2 awesome purchases.  I'm obsessed with that mask from Arcade Death.  It's my new favorite thing.  And the orange critter face by Thimblepress?  Forget about it.  I love it!

I'm officially in half marathon training.  We ran 5 1/2 miles on Sunday.  Oy.  I swear, the main reason I agree to this is the coffee & breakfast bagels I allow myself afterwards.

Later on Sunday, I cruised on down to the Warby Parker bus in Hillsboro Village & tried on a crap-ton of glasses.  I haven't made a decision yet, but need to soon.  Follow-up post to follow later in the week.

If you want/need glasses, I highly recommend checking out the Warby Parker bus while it's in town.  It's parked in The Gulch December 4-9 & then it's gone.  $95 glasses, y'all!  And for every pair they sell, they provide a pair to someone in need.