Hello Again.

 

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I would like just a little recognition for the fact that while it has been FOREVER since my last post on here, I did manage to come back within the same year.

Why am I back? Oh, just because I have a minute here on this NFL Sunday - CBS, if you want my fullest attention, I need the Steelers game, not Washington. I understand I live in the Washington market, but some courtesy please.

I've also decided to resuscitate Sunday Brunch because fall is in the air, while only a little, and I am feeling inspired. Who knew lighting a pumpkin candle and buying new sweater at H&M could fill a girl with such adrenaline?

Anyway, I am back willing to try and make an effort. Will you take me back?

I hope you will understand. It's been quite a jumping summer for me. I don't think there have been many weekends that I've actually spent at home. I've been back to Pittsburgh several times, visited Michigan to celebrate my college roommate's wedding, fangirled over the Backstreet Boys in Las Vegas (I could talk about this experience forever), spent Labor Day in NYC, and the travels aren't even over yet!

I've still got another trip to Pittsburgh in the next couple of weeks and my friends and I are still kicking around the possibility of scurrying up to Boston/Salem for a Halloween trip. Sounds like I'm successfully saving money, huh?

But even with these upcoming trips, I can feel myself slowing down and I'm not complaining. With cooler mornings and earlier evenings, I totally embrace taking a minute and taking a breath - I need to before the holidays hit!

- Ashley

Are you feeling the effects of fall already?

PA to DC

Okay technically PA to MD...the budget of the average 23-year-old communications grad doesn't really allow for a move right into D.C.

We are rapidly approaching the one-year anniversary of my first big move after college. I moved in with my uncle in MD after I accepted my job, which actually IS in the District. In fact it's right down the street from the Washington Monument. #views

Moving to a new city right after the bubble that is college can be a real challenge. I find it difficult to open up and make friends right away. It was a real blessing to have family in the area when I was starting out. I had the opportunity to save up my money to move out and had someone that I knew to show me the area. Just a few months ago, I finally flew the family circle and moved in with some young ladies (and I couple of cats) still in MD, but a bit closer to the city.

Luckily, I love my roommates. It's nice to have people to watch The Bachelor and eat Hawaiian pizza with. It's also super convenient that this house is 75% Steelers fans. :) We need to do something about the one from Patriots country. ;P

But the move also hit its hard parts. I don't know what moving to other states is like, but I would not wish moving to Maryland to my enemies. I don't want to feed into conspiracy, but I'm convinced initial state auto inspections will fail all vehicles so that they can make a cool $1000 off of you. Am I bitter? You bet I am. Many more hundreds of dollars later, I have a state approved car with new plates and a new license. It feels eerily like my PA-proud identity has been stripped from me. But I digress...

Since the nearly a year ago that I moved down here, I have done my fair share of exploring (mostly happy hours if we are being honest!) I look forward to exploring the city further and sharing some of my favorite D.C. finds with you. Stay tuned Friday for one such adventure!

<3 Ashley

What was your first year on your own like? Also, any D.C.-based bloggers have any suggestions of places to go and people to see in the city?

Movie Night

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What goes better with movie magic than a little candy and buttered popcorn? Honestly ... nothing. Nothing goes better. All eyes on my movie theater that thinks they can be out here pushing frozen pizza and subpar hot dogs. Stick to what you know, theater!

At-home movies are just as magical as going out to the theater ... and substantially less expensive, amirite? Of course, having gone through a childhood of going to the movies and getting snacks, I associate film with food and must have something to accompany.

Setting up a movie at home allows for preparing some heathier snacks. No buckets of butter here. One thing I like to reach for is sweet potato chips. I should probably stop reaching for them too because the bag disappears; or the pan if I've made them myself.

I also like to occasionally take a time machine back to childhood and cut up an apple or banana and slather it with peanut butter. That's a snack that is both health and timeless.

My rule for movie snacks is that there can't be any effort. I can't be focusing on cutting something up and viewing. When I'm watching a movie I need to be able to mindlessly snack only coming to 20 minutes in (because I'm aggressive and lack real self-control) to find that I've already finished the snack!

I'm also a fan of reaching for the classic movie snack - popcorn! When we were growing up, my mother would set us up with a movie and disappear to come back a few minutes later with two plates of popcorn, one each for my brother and me. It doesn't take long to microwave pop that quintessential film snack. Or perhaps you've purchased a few bags of pre-popped kernels. I love to grab a few bags of SkinnyPop, which is not slathered in yellow butter (so it's healthier!) and has several flavor options of their classic popcorn. My personal favorite is pepper jack — then again, I do love anything pepper jack.

- Ashley

What's your favorite movie night health snack?

Money Matters in 2018

 

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As I talked about in my last post, 2018 is going to be a year dedicated to really taking care of and bettering myself. A big part of that self-care is being smart about how I save and spend my money.

Looking at my bank account is often a very nerve-wracking task, but it can be especially painful immediately after the holidays. I know I can't be the only one out here, right?

One of the things that has really bothered me in the time between graduating college and starting my first job is the depletion of the savings account that I had be saving essentially since birth. The big reason for that was not having a solid job before my student loans repayments kicked in. But having been in my new position for about a year and moving into my new place and developing and understanding of my budget month-to-month, I feel more comfortable putting away money from each paycheck into a savings account to build that back up.

I also want to improve my budgeting to ensure that moving that bit of money over to my savings is not as painful as it would have been when I initially started out. I rely on apps like Mint to let me know when I am spending too much in a certain area, like entertainment or eating out (which I need to cut back substantially on!) I'm also looking at certain products I can spend less on.

Pro tip: TJ Maxx has a great selection of products like shampoo/conditioner in large salon pump bottles that will take you a bit further than the products in the drug stores. Plus, it's just so much fun to browse through the unique brands and products that they carry each time I walk into the store.

I have doubled down on making my coffee at home each morning before I leave for work. I use a French press, so it's an actual process to make it, but the end product is just so much better than anything I get at Starbs.

As I mentioned before, eating lunch out is a huge weakness of mine. It's hard to find soup or a salad appetizing after sitting through a two hour long meeting that ends right in the neighborhood of lunchtime. But the sandwiches from the conveniently located Mediterranean restaurant downstairs are no more (or at least they will be significantly reduced!) I've started making large pots of soup to take for lunch during the week. And if I do say so myself, I've produced some very yummy dishes!

I've also started using more budget-friendly products, like Harry's razors, which can be found at Target. They are less price-y than many women's razors (that pink tax, amirite?) and tbh provides a better shave. For the first time in a long time, buying razor refills doesn't stress me out because the refill pack I usually get is less than $10!

Cutting down on spending doesn't mean you are cutting out the enjoyable, luxurious things. You can find luxury without dropping a good portion of your paycheck in one shopping trip. Look around and find those things that work wonders for you. You might be surprised at how much it DOESN'T cost you.

-Ashley

How will you make a point of saving in 2018?

Happy New Year

 

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The east coast is currently experiencing some Canada-like cold temps this weekend after getting visited by the "bomb cyclone." Welcome to 2018.

D.C. didn't really see too much snow – mostly just wind and generally feeling like a tundra. I will not be leaving the house at all this weekend. But sending good vibes to comrades in New England who got slammed with the snow. I also saw an alert as I was leaving the office the other day that said every state in the country was essentially freezing or near freezing. Crazy, right?

But hopefully this year comes in like a lion and out like a lamb.

When I was with my friends Sunday night to ring in the new year, someone brought up resolutions and I realized that I totally forgot to even think about mine.

I always end up doing the typical: work out more, drink more water, eat healthier.

Since those are the go-to they become pretty mundane for me around March (I'm being generous here!) So, this year I decided to actually not get specific. I'm keeping my resolution broad this time around as an experiment: will I keep at it better than I do when I lay out specific goals?

For 2018, I'm just aiming for general betterment of my life. I know the 2017 baseline that I'm coming from. When I make food, fitness, financial, professional, even social moves this year, I want the voice in my head to say "Okay, but is this better or is it keeping me at the baseline?"

All those little goals end up pointing to that big, overarching goal anyway, right?

<3 Ashley

What is your 2018 promise?

Healthy Tech

I'm sure there are plenty of you scoffing at that title. Is any tech healthy? Well...that depends on how
you use it and your dependence on it.

Funny enough, this post is coming to you at a moment I am using technology to be lazy and unhealthy — I've been watching Drunk History for a solid eight hours. I do want to point out thatI did get up several times to do laundry and make food. So I wasn't totally stationary ... That's what Sunday is for though, right?

In defense of myself, I do use the tech at my finger tips to facilitate healthier behavior as well.

One of my favorite apps is Aaptiv. I discovered the fitness/personal trainer app awhile back. I enjoy running — it's like the one physical activity I can perform successfully — but sometimes it can be very dull to sustain for more than 30 minutes. With Aaptiv, I select whatever workout appeals to me that day. I remember last year there was a Halloween workout set to songs for the holiday ... it's pretty great to run to the Monster Mash. In your hear, you've got a great running playlist and the encouragement of the trainer. Honestly, it makes the workout go a lot faster than my typical running playlist, and even ends with a cool down yoga sesh. Disclaimer: it is $9.99/mo. for a subscription.

For mental health, I turn to Headspace. Now, I admit that this doesn't get used as regularly as my other apps. I used it more in college when I had more time in the morning before class. Headspace is basically a guided meditation app. For three minutes each morning, I close my else and practice some measured breathing with the help of the most soothing English accent probably ever.

I have also dabbled a bit in My Fitness Pal. This app helps track both workouts and food consumption. I will admit that I have only ever used it to plan workouts. The app will be honest with me and be like "Girl, you have GOT to get some weights up in here at some point." Spoiler: I don't do weights. Oops. I tried the food tracker/calorie counter at the beginning, and it was very easy and comprehensive to use. However, I'm not one for counting calories ... that's just not how I prefer to enjoy food. But it's great for whatever aspect you want to track.

New apps are always in development to help facilitate health and wellness in a sometimes more accessible ways. For instance, Warby Parker has recently developed a prescription check app for those who wear eyeglasses. This app (just for iPhones at the moment) allows you to have your refraction checked for a lower price than you would if you had it done in conjunction with your eye health exam with your eye doctor. After the exam, a doctor will review your results, and if nothing has changed, will write you another year's prescription for your lenses. Please note, this does not apply to contacts - only eyeglasses.

- Ashley

What are your favorite health apps?

New Digs: A Work in Progress

 

I was very happy to close a weekend of moving with not moving in my bed :)

Hello, hello!

I come to you live from a new chapter in my life. I have moved out of my family's place that I've been staying at for the past few months as I get used to being an adult with a job, and have found a lovely group of roommates in one of the cutest little brick houses in the DMV.

Words cannot describe the excitement of making the big push into being more independent. Of course, I'm sure that excitement will fade after the first electric bill comes through my mailbox – what is this new tenant deposit and why is it so much?

This weekend was the big move and my body is still feeling it. That's how you know you need to hit the gym right? When arms scream in agony and you vow to hire movers for every move in the future?

As of now, the master bedroom I inhabit is very sparse on furniture and very abundant in space. It makes me nervous to see so much open space. I would make a bad minimalist. I like a room to be full, home-y, and cozy. I like it to look like someone lives there. Give me a few weeks ... there will be more than just a bed and a dresser in there.

I am thrilled to be back in a larger kitchen and even more thrilled to see a cleaning schedule on the wall next to the stove. Context: Roommate chores in college were annoying to coordinate and I cleaned the kitchen more than 1 of 4 roommates should.

Additionally, this is the first time I am living with cats. I consider this to be a huge adventure as an AVID dog person. But these are very sweet cats who just want love and to sit on my bed. If it wasn't for the white bedding I might allow it ;P

- Ashley

What did you do this weekend?