On Sunday

This Sunday was a lazy one. I don't usually like to make too many plans on a Sunday but this week, I left the day completely blank! I started my Sunday like most, with a good breakfast and the Boston Globe. I always watch CBS Sunday Morning and once that I ends, I start my day.

I drove into Westport to go to Trader Joe's but got distracted and stopped at the library book sale. Surprisingly, I didn't end up buying any books, although I did carry some around to consider buying but changed my mind at the last minute. So off to Trader Joe's I went and got groceries for the week. 

AJ came over after and we had lunch together before falling asleep on the couch for a while. He's always tired from work so he slept longer and I took Bellefleur out on the deck to read for a while. It was such a beautiful day outside, not a cloud in the sky! I wish I had spent more time outside yesterday but I can make up for that today!

The day went by so fast and by dinner time I wasn't in the mood for a big meal so I enjoyed a bowl of Cheerios and blueberries. I ended the night with a long walk on the treadmill while watching Real Housewives of New Jersey, my guilty pleasure!

I hope everyone had a nice weekend and I hope you all have a happy Monday!

An Ode to My Blender

I have been blender-cursed for years. I really only use blenders to make smoothies and it's nothing fancy. I don't grind nuts for homemade almond milk. I don't puree anything or find the need to pulse anything until it is just the right amount of coarse. I just want to blend up my frozen fruit with spinach, almond milk, and green tea. And maybe the occasional ice cube. However, my blenders can never handle even that! I have to shake the jar to try to get the ingredients in the right position to blend, I shove a wooden spoon in there to free up the blades, I push mix then chop then liquify and nothing happens! Occasionally, smoke will rise from the base in a threatening protest of my desired breakfast smoothie. It typically takes me 20-30 minutes to make a smoothie and even then it's took thick to drink easily. Once, I tipped back my glass of green smoothie and the whole thing came out at once in a big plop on my face and shirt. Bad way to start the day.

So why did I never buy a new one? Because I know nothing about different types, brand, and models of blenders. I could go drop 70 bucks on a new blender and have the same issue. Yes, the Vitamix is a blending miracle but I do not want to spend over $500 on a kitchen appliance.

After trying to make two smoothies for my sister and myself the other day, which took about an hour overall, my mom convinced me to just go buy a new one, gosh darn it! So to Kohl's we went. I found a brand the sounded familiar at a really reasonable price ($40!) and I happily came home to test it out. And, oh, how happy it has made me!

It blends frozen kale like it's nothing! It turns the contents of the entire jar to the same consistency that can be easily sucked up through the straw of my tumbler. And the whole process takes less than five minutes. It's so easy! And it's incredible, and maybe a little frightening, how happy a good blender makes me.

So this morning, I treated myself to a smoothie made of frozen kale, frozen strawberries, frozen mango, green tea, almond milk, and spinach.

This is the finished product.

I like to have more than just a smoothie for breakfast so today I had it along with a tiny piece of toast with Trader Joe's almond butter and some Chia seeds. Toast and coffee are delicious together, coffee  and smoothie not so much but it's a delicious breakfast. 

A Wedding and Breakfast

June is off to a great start! I spent the last day of May with AJ, celebrating the marriage of our friends, Tyler and Melissa. It was a beautiful wedding and a beautiful day.

We danced and shared a delicious meal with their family and friends. It was touching to see such a loving and devoted couple to be surrounded by all of their loved ones. You could truly see how happy everyone is for them and how supportive and hopeful everyone is for their marriage.

They are a lovely couple who have a blessed future ahead of them! We were so fortunate to be able to share the day with them.

The wedding reception was over by 9 (the happy couple had to be up at 3 am for their honeymoon flight!) so AJ and I went to bed early to rise early on June 1st.

We went to 7:30 mass in the morning at a church in Saugatuck that overlooks the water. After church we swung by Dunkin Donuts. I got a bagel with strawberry cream cheese and an iced French Vanilla coffee—black. AJ got a Coolatta and chicken salad on a croissant. The man loves chicken salad.

I love spending time on the beach, it's such a luxury to have the shore and the Long Island Sound just a five minute drive away. It was before 9 o' clock when we got there so it was still quiet.

We ate and talked about the wedding the night before and about our upcoming wedding. It was a wonderful way to start the day and a great way to start June.

It was an ideal example of what I talked about in yesterday's post. If this morning was any inclination of what June and the rest of the summer holds, I can't wait.