My Week In Review (otherwise known as WIR) posts are just that: a review of my past week. I have moved my WIR posts to Tuesday to accommodate a new posting schedule. I post an update here every Tuesday sharing some tidbits of my previous week as well as an accompanying photo recap with selections from my Instagram. Here’s the buzz from my week:
Easter always feels like the real start of spring to me, and the week following it was filled with lots of springtime joys. I love being able to savor and enjoy the last of the Paska bread that I bake every year for Easter (you can find the recipe here). It’s perfect lightly toasted and properly buttered up with a nice cup of tea! I had a slice as a mid-morning snack every day last week. Yum! I’ve also been treating myself to a little bit of my Easter candy stash every day. I started the Tone It Up #BikiniSeries that I mentioned in my last WIR a week early and have been amping up my workouts and cleaning up my weekday diet accordingly with the exception of these indulgences. It’s all about balance!
In other springtime news, our hyacinths finally bloomed last week, filling our yard with their beauty and sweet fragrance. I decided to leave my Easter decor out for another week or two since I just love how sweet and festive it is. I’ve always loved bunnies, but lately they have become my favorite animal. Bunnies are taking over my office! I love seeing those sweet little faces. After I posted the bunny collage above on Instagram someone shared they believed I was a bit too old to have such a collection. I firmly believe that no one is ever too old to enjoy what they like. My fondness for little stuffed bunnies does not make me less of an adult. In fact, I would argue that having the kind of confidence to just be you regardless of what others might think is a true mark of maturity. I love bunnies and I have a feeling I always will.
Speaking of bunnies, my husband Don had ordered a handmade felted bunny from Etsy to include in my Easter basket this year, but it got stuck in customs in New York for awhile and did not make it in time. He was pretty cute about it, giving me real time tracking updates a couple of times a day, which we started calling “Bunny Watch 2014.” When the little guy finally did arrive (all the way from Estonia! You can find him on MiaPuPe’s Etsy shop), I decided to share him on Instagram and asked for name suggestions. He was so popular that Don and I decided it would be fun to take him on our travels this year and photograph him in different spots much like the garden gnome in one of my all-time favorite movies, Amélie. And thus, Bean Bunny (soon to be) World Traveler was born! Follow me on Instagram to see him pop up here and there. 🙂
Our weekends have been pretty jam-packed so far this spring with lots of fun family gatherings, time spent with friends, and special outings for just the two of us. On Friday I celebrated my Mom’s birthday with her at our favorite spot for lunch called Abigail’s. The salmon burger special was delicious! That evening Don and I joined his side of the family for a dual birthday celebration for Aunt Julie and our brother-in-law Dave at Gibson’s, a great Chicago steakhouse. We spent the day together on Saturday out on a day-ate (which is just my silly word for a date that takes place during the day). We headed downtown to the Museum of Science & Industry to see the Disney Treasures exhibit, which is only in town for another week (* Now extended through August 3 *). I’d never been to this museum before and wish we had allowed more time to explore. We’ll just have to go back. The Disney exhibit was fantastic, following Walt and Roy Disney through their building of the company and Disney brand. Afterwards, we made a pitstop at our favorite Chicago cupcake bakery, Molly’s, before heading to a lovely dinner at Chez Moi, a French bistro in Lincoln Park. As you can see, we ate very well this weekend! I work out hard and watch my diet during the week so I can splurge like this on the weekend.
If you’d like to see more about our day-ate this past weekend, check out my vlog:
Although the weather has been pretty chilly and it looks like we’re in for quite a bit of rain this week, I am enjoying the beauty of the season, both indoors and outside. We have so much fun stuff coming up in the next few months and I can’t wait to share it with you! I am going to test out vlogging over the entire weekend for next week’s post and see how that goes. I get so many comments about how much my vlogs are missed and I just want to say that I miss sharing with you in that way, as well! I hope to find the right balance in sharing these glimpses into my personal life in a way that feels safe, authentic, and enjoyable to me. I appreciate your patience while I have been sorting things out. Thanks for sticking with me through it all. I appreciate you more than you know. Take care!
* This is not a sponsored post. All opinions are genuinely my own. *
