If you like Pina Coladas…

Good morning, friends!

Happy belated Father’s Day to all the dads out there – what a great weekend to celebrate 🙂  I have to say, things have been a little crazy around here and I obviously have not had much time to put together a post to share.  This past Friday, I spent the day with my sister and mom out in the suburbs to celebrate their school year being over and to enjoy the beautiful sunshine.  We spent hours chatting by the pool and enjoying a couple skinny pina coladas.  I found this recipe via Carrots N’ Cake a while back and love drinking it whenever it’s hot out:

Skinny Pina Colada

by: Carrots N’ Cake

Ingredients:

• 2 oz Coconut Run
• 5 oz coconut water
• 2 oz pineapple juice

Directions:

1. Combine ingredient in a cocktail shaker with ice.
2. Shake and strain into a glass filled with ice.
3. Drink and enjoy!

Makes 1 cocktail

Kristan and I headed back into the city shorty after dinner to rest up for the big day on Saturday.  As you all know, I have been participating in a charity flag football league called Blondes vs. Brunettes for the past couple of months and Saturday was our big game day!  To fuel up for the match at 2:00 p.m., Kristan, Brian and myself headed to my favorite Brunch spot in Chicago – Tweet!  Tweet is located in the ‘Uptown/Edgewater’ neighborhood and is one of the first places Brian and I ever went together.

We each ordered one cocktail… just to wet our whistle 😉

And enjoyed a delicious and filling brunch.

Country Benedict sans sauce for me!

We at breakfast around 10:00 a.m., so there was plenty of time to fully digest before running laps and pulling flags on the field.  We ALSO had time to squeeze in a walk with Bailey along the lakeshore path.

Such a beautiful day.

Before I knew it, it was time to get my gear on and head out the door.  This was my third year participating in BvB and each year we luck out on AMAZING weather.

The blondes ended up winning this match, but the brunettes raised the most money which makes us the true winners in the fight against Alzheimer’s 🙂

The fun did not stop on the field, after the match both the blondes and the brunettes headed to Sheffield’s to enjoy a couple of beers in celebration of the hard work everyone put in to the season.  And as if the day was not already jam packed enough, Brian and I had to duck out of the party early to attend a dinner party at my friend Lauren’s apartment!  Lauren and her roommate served a bunch of delicious Mexican eats and included a cocktail hour on their roof that provided some spectacular views.

Needless to say, I woke up Sunday morning both extremely full and sore.  I was very happy to hear that my Father wanted to spend his special day relaxing at home by the pool because that is exactly what the doctor ordered.  It was another awesome weekend in the books!

It’s That Time of Year Again…!

First, let’s just talk about how beautiful my tulips are…

Haven’t they opened up nicely?  Whole foods had a great deal on the bunch this weekend, only $6! Win!

This week has been jam packed thus far.  There has been lots and lots of leftovers eaten.

Workouts have been pushed back indoors – boo.

 

Best friends have come to visit from New York

#selfie

And my BvB practice has commenced!  For those of you who are relatively new to this blog, BVB (Blondes vs. Brunettes) is a charity powderpuff football league I participate in each year.  The charity that we raise money for is The Alzheimer’s Association to help fight for a world without Alzheimer’s.

I was first introduced to this league by a former colleague of mine who was part of the planning committee.  I remember thinking to myself, how tough could it be?  I thought I would show up to practice and it would be more of a social hour of women having fun on the field.  I wasn’t wrong about the social aspect, but I did underestimate how much effort goes into our seasons.  We start practicing two days a week for only ONE game that is played in mid June!  Talk about dedication.

Until that June game, we also throw various fundraising events to try and help us reach our yearly goal of about $35,000.  Each player is set to reach a minimum of $350 in their fundraising goal and this year, my friends and family thus far have been rockstars.  I always love exceeding the goal and having those funds go towards such an awesome cause and this year is no exception.

Although I love getting in a good workout two days a week, and I’m serious practices are awesome and intense, the real reason I keep coming back to play (3rd year in a row!) is because of the awesome women I have met through this organization.  All of the women are smart, driven and hilarious – practices may be tough but I usually cannot go a full night without dying of laughter.

If you feel like donating to this awesome cause, feel free to check out my personal page here!  Or come cheers us on at our big GAME DAY June 14th, 2014 at Hawthorne School Turf Field in Lakeview, Chicago.

Ta Ta for now, friends!

Bru Cru Team Party

Hey Y’all!

I’m in such a great and happy mood!! Why? Because my Blondes vs. Brunettes game is TOMORROW!  3 months of practice has lead to this day and I hope that my team is able to come out victorious.

Last night was our annual Brunette aka “Bru Cru” team party.  One of my teammates hosted it in the backyard of her condo and it was such a perfect evening for it.  The party was potluck themed and we all always bring way too much food to finish.  Burgers, brats and hot dogs are thrown on the grill, but the shining stars are always the desserts – of course!  I brought a delicious salad to the party that had arugula, feta, pomegranates and a lemon vinaigrette.  I got the recipe from one of my closest family friends who I think adapted it from a Giada recipe.

It’s always a crowd pleaser and so simple to throw together!  I buy the pomegranate seeds that are pre-seeded from Trader Joe’s so there is not messy prep.

Another tradition at the Bru Cru party is giving out coaches “Thank You” gifts.  This year we got them sweet flat rim hats that had the word “Bru” stitched in the middle.

Plus, their favorite bottle of alcohol.  Pretty sweet deal!

After the gifts were given and our bellies were full, the team made a poster for game day that we are going to run through when we step onto the field.  I really hope that the poster rips and we don’t look like fools try to run through it 🙂

And last, but certainly not least, the good ol’ tradition of the blonde piñata.

I think you can understand where this goes 🙂

If any of you are in the Chicago area and have nothing to do Saturday during the day – stop by our game!  Here are the deets:

What: Blondes vs. Brunettes (BvB) Flag Football game for the Alzheimer’s Association

When: Saturday, June 22nd – 1:00 p.m.

Where: North Ave. Turf Field between Stockton and LaSalle

Why: Because it’s for a good cause and I said so!

Hope you all have a fabulous weekend!