Zum-bad to the Bone!

August 2, 2011 / foodsweatandbeers / 23 Comments

Hey hey y’all!

I’m feeling absolutely FAN-tastic after a killer workout at the gym. I was so stoked for today’s Zumba class because my favorite instructor was back from summer “break” (aka her son or daughter was on a swim team during the EXACT time of my Tuesday zumba classes.) I love her because she just jumps right into things, stays high energy the whole time, and mixes up the music. In fact, today we did an awesome track to, of all things, a country song!

It involved a lotta belt buckle holding, and a lotta kicks but, most importantly, a lotta shaking it. I get the feeling that my instructor might be a little bit of a country girl herself… There’s a twang in her voice and she held onto that “belt buckle” a little too well to not be….

In fact, she kind of reminds me of some sort of hybrid between:

Kristin Chenoweth's looks and Southern cuteness

Erin Heatherton's shaped (yet still feminine) abs

Beyonce's Bootylicious moves!

It’s truly the perfect storm of Zumba. Her abs are so toned that it makes you wanna do any of the moves she does in hopes to get em, and her moves are so fun you forget when you even started.

Oh, did I mention it’s a killer workout?

756 sexy calories burned

She also tossed in an arms-only track to Justin Timberlake’s “Carry Out” that left my arms shakey.

After having not exercised in two days (and one of them was mostly spent feeling sorry for myself), it was so crucial to get right back into it. I feel like a new woman. Only sweatier.

I guess it’d only make sense to shower, really complete the process of “new woman”ification.

Do you Zumba?

I Zumba on the reg, but honestly I tend to use it as a “gimme” workout… except with this instructor. And even though I have a super cute Zumba shirt, I’m not a zumba-holic…. but I saw one girl today wearing a Zumba tank top, a Zumba skirt, and Zumba SHOES!

Ready to take it to the next level? ZUMBA SHOES!

In case you’re in the market for these bad boys, check out McCarley Fitness aka the first website I found that offers them.

Do you have special outfits you wear for particular workouts?

I’d never wear my Zumba shirt to a BodyPump. Faux pas, I think.

Pipe Dreams

August 2, 2011 / foodsweatandbeers / 7 Comments

I don’t normally do this, but honestly, this dress is just stunning and I need somewhere to save it.

Dawid Tomasczewski Dress from That's So Rue

If I ever get married, I want it to be in this dress.

We will return to normal-person posts later tonight.

In the meantime, thanks for allowing me to geek out, girly style.

Milltown & Great Divide Brewing’s Hercules Double IPA

August 1, 2011 / foodsweatandbeers / 8 Comments

Good evening friends. Hope you made it through Monday. I’ll admit, after a lovely weekend of loafing (with a hearty amount of cleaning yesterday) I expected to jump into the exercise sea with arms wide open. But alas, the world (and my anxiety levels) had other plans. So after a long day at work, I rushed home, got the mail, paid the rent, got a toilet repaired, and started organizing what I’m going to need when the beau leaves at the end of the month for Philly (i.e. what he’s going to take with him.) On the list:

TV
Knife set
More body pillows to cuddle with and cope with my loneliness

Those are the big three, I guess.

But body pillows aside, I will truly miss having him around and given my glum thoughts about the future sans beau, it only made sense to nix cooking and have a date night! We decided to finally make good on a LivingSocial deal that I got FOREVER ago for Milltown, a “gastropub” in Carrboro, a town that I feel like could be described as “Chapel Hill’s artsy hippy little sister.” The last time I was at Milltown was during Lent, when I had given up eating red meat, so my dreams had been thwarted. However, this time, I knew they could come true. “What was my dream?” you may be asking…

Bahn Mi ::$9
Miso Marinated Grilled Steak with Radish, Baby Carrot, Pepper, Red Cabbage, and Bok Choy Slaw Tossed in Asian Vinaigrette on a French Roll

Doesn’t that just sound sexy?

Patience, my friends.

Appe-teaser!

Noting the beau’s craving for wings as we passed Ba Da Wings (located conveniently across the street from Milltown), I knew he needed some, and needed them fast. I’d add a description of the wings from the menu, but they seem to have mistakenly put the description of the nachos, because I know these chicken wings weren’t offered as “topped with chicken”. They had a sort of spicy Asian-inspired sauce, with a (maybe?!) blue cheese, whipped kind of dipping sauce. I had two, and left the rest to the cravings of the beau. He was pleased as punch.

In the meantime, we split an appetizer beer (what? You don’t have those?)

Founder's Brewing Centennial IPA

This Founder’s Brewing Centennial IPA was a great kickstart beer, with a fruity smell but not overly floral, which I liked. It had a nice maltiness which counteracted the slight sweet fruitiness. Ryan said he probably could not have had more than one of these. I think I could’ve…. But I didn’t.

Because all of the sudden, guess who was coming to dinner?

Bahn mi?! FOR ME?!

On the menu was the Bahn Mi: Miso Marinated Grilled Steak with Radish, Baby Carrot, Pepper, Red Cabbage, and Bok Choy Slaw Tossed in Asian Vinaigrette on a French Roll. All this for $9. I’d seen a friend of mine eat it before…. the image didn’t do it justice. The steak was juicy, slightly chewy but accented so well with the slaw that the crunch was present enough for me. The fries, skinny and lightly seasoned, were delicious and had just the right about of softness to fold into two. Which I love to do. Just in case you were curious….

The other star of the show?

Great Divide Brewing Company's Hercules Double IPA

From the brewer:

Hercules Double IPA is not for the faint of heart. It is, however, fit for the gods. HERCULES delivers a huge amount of hops from start to finish. Its hefty backbone of nutty, malty sweetness balances its aggressive hop profile. 10% ABV

Considering the high ABV, I thought this was surprisingly smooth. The color was orange-golden color, with very little froth/head to it (which was important considering it was only a 12 oz pour). Initially, it smelled like apple juice to me. I really couldn’t even taste the alcohol, I tasted malt and I tasted a sneaky little fruit (the sneakiness of the taste was more like…. I could smell it through my mouth. If this doesn’t make sense to you, I apologize, but if you’ve ever had this happen, you know what I mean.)

Both beers were great. Ryan had the Smoked Cheddar Mac and Cheese with Smoked Ham, and it tasted like a warm, gooey hug in the most delicious way possible.

This night filled my belly with great food and beers, and my heart with great feelings. Though soon, we’ll be living far away, (SAP ALERT BEWARE!) I absolutely love and cherish every date night we have together. He’s just the best dining and drinking buddy, and the most fun to talk to, and too many gushy things to put in public. I’ll get over the whole not living together thing soon enough, but I’ll never get over what a pleasure it is to date your best friend. That’s something that just won’t go away.

Blogspiration and Some No-Bake Cake Bites!

August 1, 2011August 1, 2011 / foodsweatandbeers / 13 Comments

Hey there all, and happy Monday! It’s lunchtime around these parts and, after a weekend of wine by the pool and BBQ with old friends, that means salad!

Chicken Salad, sounds peachy!

Today’s salad included:

Grilled chicken
Bed of spinach
Low fat Mexican cheese blend
Salsa
Roasted red pepper and banana pepper
Fresh orange pepper!
White Chia Seeds

It was fantastic. I’ll be honest, when I first reached out to Anthony at Swanson Health Products, I was just interested in trying some new things. These chia seeds, though only used as a topper so far, are quite tasty and great for adding a little crunch. I haven’t the foggiest idea of whether or not there have been any health benefits to me yet, but soon I’d like to use them in something more creative than “sprinkle liberally on top of your food, no matter what it is.” So keep an eye out for that.

There was one thing I was looking for, though, that I was BEYOND excited to try!

Candles, a food processor... Looks like a hot date ahead.

Swanson sent along some Fancy Whole Medjool dates. Even though I knew I wanted them, I had no experience with them. So I turned to the blogger who I see use dates in the most fun and creative ways: Averie at Love, Veggies, and Yoga! And her recipes using dates were numerous. What to do, what to do…

Luckily for me, I was also using some Blogspiration from Meghann at Meals and Miles and pre-cutting my own carrots for the week ahead (much cheaper than pre-cut or baby carrots).

Chop chop

How could I merge these two into the perfect treat?

ENTER: Averie’s No-Bake Oatmeal Raisin Carrot Cake Bites!!

Though I’m not about re-writing folks recipes when I literally didn’t change them at all, I did document each step with excitement.

All my ingredients in the blender!

I was lucky enough to have every ingredient on hand, so I followed the instructions to a T.

Vroom vroom: tastiness being blended!

I used the mini version of my Ninja Food Processor which is actually the most efficient food processor I’ve ever tried for how affordable it was. If you’re in the market for something small, portable, and affordable to make some smoothies, grind your own breadcrumbs, make these little cake bites, or blend some sexy daquiris. truly check this out. I got mine at Target for something like $49 and it doesn’t owe me a penny.

Cake bites fit for a jellyfish!!

These turned out perfect. Delicious, really showcased the taste and versatility of the dates, and really resembled the flavors of a carrot cake without making me feel like they were syrupy sweet!! I will absolutely be making more, and have a newfound appreciation for these dates! I’ll have to find new ways to use them.

In fact, I think I’ll have one or two for dessert.

Are you interested in getting some free Swanson Health Products goodies to review on your own blog? Then check out the Swanson Health Blog for all the details.

Have you ever used dates? If so, any suggestions for a date newb like myself?

Back to work!!

Six Pack Sunday: Leftover Wedding Bits

July 31, 2011 / foodsweatandbeers / 8 Comments

Hey all!

I know I’ve been off my Six Pack Sunday game for a little while, there’s been tons of traveling and very little time to sum up the bits and pieces of my life a la previous Six Pack Sundays. But this past weekend, with the wedding, there were a bunch of little pieces that were hilarious and I wanted to share but didn’t fit into the primping and pictures sections.

So now I present:

Six Pack Sunday, the Leftover Wedding Bits!

Body Builder’s Booty Blunder
So, unbeknownst to the wedding planners, I’m sure, there was a huge body building competition happening at the hotel we were staying at. Everywhere we looked, there were giant, bronzed, muscular men and women rubbing oil on their bodies and practicing poses in the lobby bathroom. The best, though, was when I was in the fitness room early Saturday morning (since I’m an early bird and all.) As the muscled men and women filed into the small fitness room, clearly disappointed with the lack of weights over 80 lbs, one of them hopped onto the treadmill and that’s when I saw it.

White shorts + self tanner = the appearance of poop. It's simple math, people.

It was too funny to not creep a stealthy picture. He probably ended up winning the competition, but also won my heart with that sexy poop stains.
West Virginia: Classiest state ever?
On our drive to Pittsburgh, we stopped at a gas station in West Virginia for some gas and to relieve my tiny bladder. While inside, I spotted this little gem:

At least they're owning it.

As much as it pained me, I left without buying it. Ah, the one that got away…..
Champagne for my real friends, real pain for my sham friends.
Sometimes, when I see rogue bottles of champagne left by the folks at Izzazzu that are going to be thrown away…. I just can’t help myself.

Yup, snagged that from the table after it was orphaned by the other bridal party... Very sneaky, sir.
Steam Ghost
There may or may not have been a ghost in the steam room.

Casper? Is that you?

Whatever it was, it definitely led to a very sweaty Jordan. But that also may be contributed to the 40 minutes of cardio earlier.

Cute, right?
Ketchup is for lovers.
Aren’t these wedding favors just the cutest?

Heinz baby!

Alas, for me, that entire bottle is probably one burger’s worth of ketchup, so I’ll have to save it for a special occasion. Or a special burger.
Elliptical… of the future!
Anyone ever workout on one of these?

SO MANY BUTTONS!

On it, you could track your distance as a 5K, on a mountain, around a track, or watch tv! It was the most hi-tech piece of cardio equipment I’ve ever worked with, and I imagine that, in the future, ellipticals will eventually give you back massages, do your laundry, and compliment your outfits as well. In the meantime, though, this will have to do.

Enjoy your Sunday, ladies and gents, and I promise, this is the last wedding post!! Before you know it, I’ll be posting crazy things like beer reviews, workouts, and food again… Sounds nuts, right?

The Durham Farmer’s Market: My favorite Saturday morning pasttime

July 30, 2011 / foodsweatandbeers / 4 Comments

Hello friends!!

It’s an absolutely stunning Saturday here in the Triangle. The weather’s in the mid-90s, par for course here, but in a little while, I’ll head to the pool to cool off. This morning, though, was a nice and breezy day at the Durham Farmer’s Market. I’ve written about it before, or at least about my haul, but I feel as though I didn’t give justice to just how much I love it.

In the past few years of my life, I’ve become quite the early bird. I’m always the first one awake after a long night, and (alas) the first one to fall asleep. It is my burden. However, on Saturday mornings, before the beau wakes up and before the sun heats the world to a sizzling sauna, it’s my own private little gift.

I woke up at nine, stopped briefly at the bank to deposit a check and take out some cash (as most of the vendors prefer or only accept cash) and head to downtown Durham. I’ve been spending much more time there lately, visits to Fullsteam and restaurants in the area like Bull City Burger and it’s finally starting to feel like my city.

Today, when I arrived, the first thing I spotted was a welcome mini food truck rodeo.

Pie Pushers Truck, snapped with Instagram

There was also a Kettle Corn truck and a truck that featured chicken and waffles. As tempting as the intoxicating scents of the Breakfast Pizza and sugary kernels were, I had tunnel vision. I was on a mission and that mission was produce. The options seemed endless.

A rainbow of options!

Though I initially came in with no exact plan on buying anything, as I visited more vendors, an idea of what I needed came to me.

I had plenty of basil and spinach, no need for more greens.

As much as I wanted everything from the Chapel Hill Creamery, it wasn't in the cards today.

EUREKA! That's the ticket!

As soon as I saw the vibrant purple eggplant and all the different pepper options, I knew those were all that I wanted! I’ll admit, it was very difficult to resist the other tasty treats on the menu.

Oh, baked goods, I want each and every one of you in/around my mouth.

I'll admit, it's not very hard to resist meat sticks... but that's just me.

Resisting the baked goods from Scratch Bakery is always an uphill battle.... Sometimes I don't win it. But it's the most delicious loss possible!

The Durham Farmer’s Market also occasionally has Chefs from local restaurants and shops come in to sample some of their goodies!

Today's chef was from the Pomegranate Kitchen

I tried a bit of the split pea soup, but it definitely wasn’t for me. Not enough flavor, but very fresh tasting.

I also have a soft spot in my heart for the underdogs of the farmer’s market.

Aw, they're beautiful on the inside.

I just can't say no to them!!

I grabbed two of these peaches, and made one into some peach pancakes for Pancake Saturday.

The Durham Farmer’s Market just starts my weekend off in the best possible way. And I always get a look at the cutest little socially conscious kids!

She'll probably move to Carrboro when she turns 18.

I know I tease the Carrboro and Durham hippy kids a lot (and have ever since I went to UNC) but deep down inside, I love em, and am thankful that they exist so that I can keep visiting spots like the DFM.

My bag o' veggies! aka the good stuff.

Now, it’s a very welcome pool time.

Do you ever go to the Farmer’s market? If so, what do you get?

Baby’s Day Out: Grown Woman Edition

July 29, 2011 / foodsweatandbeers / 7 Comments

Happy Friday night!! I hope everyone’s weekend is getting started off right!!

I took the second half of today off from work as my shark week was getting the best of me, and I needed some R&R. After getting some nutrients in my body and laying on the couch for about 2 hours, I was getting a little stir crazy. It was time for an adventure.

Remember that film, Baby’s Day Out?

Baby Bink!

Well, basically, Baby Bink flies the coop and experiences some crazy baby shenanigans in the big city. My day was exactly like that. Minus the crooks and the gorilla and the city. And I’m not a baby so I can drive, not just crawl around. Other than that…. the same.

First up, Old Navy. I knew that today and tomorrow, all their swimwear left was only $4. Alas, the pickins were slim (as in…. hideous pieces that it’s no wonder no one picked them up.) I started to venture in the direction of the clearance section but, considering I was still feeling a little under the weather, the mere sight of the clearance rack chaos was overwhelming.

UGH, too much work.

Sometimes, I’m fully in the mood for sale hunting. Today was not one of those times.

Up next, I figured I’d swing by whole foods to take advantage of their one day sale on salmon. When I got there, I was promptly told that they were fresh out. AGHHHHHHHHH!

What frustrated me the most was not that they were all out (they’d sold over 600 lbs before 3pm!) but that there was no indication whatsoever. In fact, they still had their sign up advertising it, which was rude and forced all of us customers, with hope gleaming in our salmon loving eyes, to feel embarrassed as we, one by one, had to ask and be DE-NIED!

YOU SIT ON A THRONE OF LIES, WHOLE FOODS!

In hopes of making the day not a full bust, I went to the one spot that I was sure I would score: Trader Joe’s. Thanks to an earlier tweet and all the responses from the tweeps, I came home a victor!

Hooty hooooo!

Wine, light kettle corn, whole wheat pizza dough, sweet potato fries, frozen mahi mahi, carrots, Indian foods, light brie (meh, not all it’s cracked up to brie. LOL! GET IT?!) Flax seed tortilla chips (spicy), salsa, pizza suace, soy crackers, seaweed snacks, and a pepper.

I completed my day out with a brief (but HARDCORE) workout for the new release of BodyAttack. It was AMAZING but I’ll wait to do a full review until I get an actual full class (this was missing 2 tracks).

Not too shabby.

The last track shot my HR up to 187, which I haven’t seen since maybe the last time I did a spin class. Clearly, she had us working.

Now this Baby Bink is off to watch a movie with a friend and make a pizza. Perfect evening.

What are you doing this weekend?

What would you do on your perfect day out, alone?

The 61 Hour Wedding Whirlwind Weekend: The Reception

July 29, 2011March 8, 2012 / foodsweatandbeers / 3 Comments

Happy Friday, friends and neighbors. Today the weekend is starting a little early, though not for anything extremely fun. When I got to work today, I was feeling decidedly normal, but that faded fast. Slowly and surely, with tummy rumblings and general malaise, I realized it was bound to be a half day. It’s likely some perfect storm of not eating a real dinner last night (but nibbling on calamari, shrimp and salsa, and making a peach crumble sundae…), my past two weeks of travel catching up on me, and my own, personal shark week (explanation may be TMI for regular readers, but feel free to click if you don’t understand.) No matter the culprit, my body just needed some R&R (&S… for salad!)

Taco Salad + a special guest!

I sprinkled some sexy chia seeds on top for a little crunch (and because… you know… all the cool kids do it.) It reminded me of sesame seeds, and the salad was delicious. Probably very good for me to get some greens into my body after the lousy food and drink I put in my belly last night.

I thank you all for sticking it out and following this wedding journey to the end, and in case you haven’t (but want to) here’s the recap so far:

We all know, to quote a great man, that “After the show, it’s the after parrrrrrrrrtyyyyyy” (R. Kelly, 2003). The wedding party was danced onto the boat where the reception was held, one of Pittsburgh’s infamous Gateway Clipper Fleet ships. Unfortunately, one of the groomsmen didn’t quite have his “land legs” yet, and promptly spilled an entire glass of red wine on the table.

Smooth, bro.

Luckily, the crew had it cleaned up in a jiffy, and in a few minutes, after the rest of us got our drinks, the table was again ready for sitting.

Groom, bride, and Bre, the other MOH

Up next was the part of the night I was the most anxious about… the SPEECHES! First up was Miles, brother of the groom, and best man.

Dapper dude

His speech was top notch. Clever, touching, and to the point. It touched on the loyalty of the groom, the generosity of the bride, and how right they were for each other.

The other MOH, Breanna, discussed the meeting of Caitlin and Eamonn as a fairytale, starting with dorm rooms and shot glasses. I’ll admit, I had very little knowledge of this inside joke, but I know it meant a lot to the happy couple, and was happy that someone who actually knew them well as a couple could speak to their love story.

I don’t have any pictures of my own speech, since I was giving it and all, but all of my anxiety flew away the moment someone handed me a microphone. I looked back at Caitlin and tried to speak from the heart, and I did it all without crying at all (though there were some seriously intense cracks in my voice, made me feel like a pubertal boy… one who was about to weep openly in front of his friends.) It went over well, though, and then the fun could begin!!

Ryan and I cutting a rug (Source: Chrissy K Photography)

Adorable cake topper

Woops, how'd that one slip in there?

Love on the top deck!

And the night was capped off with beautiful fireworks (that were meant for the Pittsburgh Pirates… but we felt like they were all for us!)

Boom boom boom

All in all, I’d say a successful wedding. Romantic, inspiring, and on a boat. All the best parts of a night out, right?

Bahahaha now that I have a blog I can post pictures like this ALL THE TIME!

PS my sincere apologies to Ryan, my beau, for being such a camera ham…. and for posting pictures like this. Thanks for ~~tolerating~~ dating me.

Ok, now I’m off to try and feel better…. maybe with the help of this week’s US Weekly. Apparently Denise Richards is gonna “tell all.”

I’m riveted.

Do you like celebrity gossip?

Do you take ridiculous pictures of you and your significant other in hopes that one day, you can show them off for all the world to see?

Yeah. Me too.

North Carolina Girls Pint Out invades Tyler’s in Durham

July 28, 2011 / foodsweatandbeers / 4 Comments

Good evening y’all!! Even though it’s about a week overdue, I’ve definitely had this post on the backburner for a little while. Admittedly, most of that week was preparing for/driving to/being in/returning from/recovering from my best friend’s wedding but truly, no excuse for letting ladies who love craft beer down, right?

Last Thursday, I sped over to Rockfish at Southpoint for my favorite night of the week, Glass Night! And, lemme just say, the place was poppin’!

Oh, hey, every beer lover in the Triangle!

The beer of the night was the New Belgium Trippel , and it. was. tasty! So tasty, in fact, that we ran out of glasses early in the night. Even though I gave mine away, it was not until after I took my essential “beer at Rockfish” picture.

Chin chin, people!

I’ve been a fan of New Belgium beers since I first tried Fat Tire, but even MORE so after being a part of the New Belgium Tour de Fat in Durham, which was a TOTAL BLAST! It was also great to see what they’re all about, namely promoting self-powered travel via bikes!!

Though I’m a huge fan of their beer, I only had one glass before I headed out to Tyler’s Taphouse in Durham for the Inaugural North Carolina Girls Pint Out event!!

When I got there, I was immensely pleased with what I saw (other than just a bunch of hot ladies drinking beer… which always is a joy to see, no matter the occasion.)

Check out our Hoppin' Spot!

Tyler’s really went above and beyond the call of hosting-duty for us, allowing us to post signs, reserving a great spot for all us ladies, and providing a few complimentary appetizers to keep the ladies drinking and the conversation flowing (big thanks, Tyler’s folks! we LOVE you!!)

We even had some extremely well written beer handouts about Girls Pint Out and the special beers of the night!

Love that logo, too cute.

Expertly written. What a pro...

Well, I’ll be honest. I’m kind of biased, since the author of those BEAUTIFUL beer write-ups and pairing suggestions was none other than yours truly. I’m also great at being humble, and available for parties and Bat Mitzvahs.

I even got to share my hard work with the class! Great practice for my Maid of Honor speech.

So many ladies showed up, they actually had to give us an extra table!

Initiate my HEART SWELLING PRIDE!

The beers were cold, the koozies were free, the queso was divine (and welcome after a long day of eating diddly) and the company couldn’t have been better. I was so excited to work with the ladies that were part the “Founding ~~Mothers~~ Sisters” (mothers just sounds too weird) of the organization, and we’re already planning some events in August (possibly even a little outing or two for August 4th #IPADay!)

Big thanks to all the Founding Sisters for helping put it together, to Tyler’s for showing us a good time, and to all the lovely ladies of Lager who came out and made it as fun as it was!! (oh and big ups to Melissa for being my personal photographer for the night!)

Founding Sisters, looking classy as per.

Are you a lady who likes sipping on beer with ladies?

If so, check us out on twitter and facebook or find a chapter near you!!

The 61 Hour Wedding Whirlwind Weekend: Pictures and the Ceremony!

July 28, 2011 / foodsweatandbeers / 9 Comments

Hey y’all and TGIT!! Truly, though, I’m feeling FANTASTIC on this Thursday. It may have something to do with the unplanned extra hour and a half I got this morning when I decided that the great dreams I was having were more important than the 7 am BodyAttack class…. No matter what is causing it, I hope this feeling doesn’t fade anytime soon!!

Lunch today also may have something to do with my great mood, because it was a perfect one. One of my coworkers brought a little treat for everyone in the office and put it on the “community microwave” which is usually where we put snacks that we made or leftover goodies to “share with the rest of the class.” Today’s was MUCH better than cupcakes.

Tiny tomatoes, perfect for lunchtime!

They completed the salad for the ages:

Even better than last night!!

This little taco salad was very similar to last night’s taco salad but tasted much more delicious. I think it had something to do with the freshest little tomatoes and the fact that there wasn’t 1/4 lb of SUPER STRONG spicy turkey (which I replaced with a 1/3 can of Bush’s reduced sodium blackbeans) overpowering everything. I really tasted the avocado, and it gave the salad a creamy counterpart to the crisp peppers.

Anyway, here’s the fourth installment of the wedding weekend (sorry if you’re getting sick of this, but not too sorry because it’s been a blast to write and great for my mom to get a play by play of the wedding!!)

In case you missed it, here are the other parts:

After we finished getting all dolled up, we rushed Cait’s room to observe her (much more laborious) preparation.

THE DRESS!

Cait’s dress was a total looker, fitting for such a flawless bride!

The bow on the back was difficult, apparently, but we had a bridesmaid for that! Juli, one of Cait’s old roomies, was ready to step up.

Bow-i-gami!

There were many many pictures snapped of the bridesmaids, of Cait, of the moms, of the photographer:

This is so meta.

Then, we hopped onto a trolley to head up to Mt. Washington for THE BIG REVEAL!! In case you’re unaware, the big reveal is the first look that the groom gets at his bride. Especially important when you’re taking pictures before the ceremony!

Trolley beers

Love at first sight.

Clearly, the tallest of the bridesmaids.

It was incredibly hot and sweaty during the picture taking, but we had a good time in the trolley thanks to our dear friend: beer.

Cheers to the happy couple!

Unfortunately, I didn’t get many pictures from the ceremony considering how annoying it would’ve been having a Maid of Honor snapping shots inside the chapel. But thankfully, my handsome date snapped a few.