Swinnyinthecity: I think I'll go to Boston...

Well, kids...

I am officially off from work for three weeks. I do love my job, but I cannot wait to put responsibility and focus on the back burner for a bit! Thus far, this week has been busy, but fun. On Tuesday evening, I went to a birthday dinner for my friend Katie at a fantastic tapas restaurant in SOHO called Boqueria.

Happy 29th!

Me and the birthday princess! Friends since 2002!

I took pics of every dish that we had, but I'm going to post my faves. The above photo was definitely a crowd pleaser: Roasted brussel sprouts with apples and chorizo.

Quail egg flatbread!!

Cheese and meat plate!

Paella. This was the grand finale, however I was too full by the time this dish came out to eat it. I heard it was pretty fantastic.

We finished the meal with some Churros. We enjoyed so many creative dishes, and I didn't post half of them! I would HIGHLY recommend this restaurant.

Me and my gal pal Michelle. Check out how awesome her hair looks in this pic! I envy her ability to rock bangs! I have tried and failed with this look a few times, and I'm currently in the process of enduring the awkward "grow out" stage.

Boqueria charged $40 per person which included, tax, tip, and about 8 courses. There was ALOT of food. I think this type of set up is perfect for a large gathering (we had about 20 people!) because it takes away from the stress of splitting up the bill. I also felt like we were able to taste a little bit of all the restaurants best dishes! The $40 didn't include liquor, which is unfortunate as the wine was definitely flowing! Oh,well! It was a celebration, right?!

When I arrived home, Le-La and I decided to grab a beer at a local bar. As we were leaving, Le-La noticed this chalk heart! How cute! I'm pretty obsessed with this photo as I'm not usually the best at capturing an artsy fartsy photo. To most people, this pic probably does not constitute brilliant photography; However, as far as my talents go, this is as good as it gets!

Yesterday I ran around most of the day tying up loose ends before my big trip home to Boston. Yay!

Breakfast looked like this.

I enjoyed one of my fave DOCO juices before dinner Tuesday night and then again yesterday mid-morning. I love drinking my greens! I think I will be grabbing one of these before I leave for Beantown today!

Egg Salad Sandwich

I was on the go during lunchtime yesterday, so I grabbed an egg salad sangy from Starbucks. It was actually pretty tasty, but unfortunately it left my belly feeling a bit funky later in the day.

When I returned home last night, I was kind of frantic about everything I had to do for my trip. I took a quick break, had a snackeroo, and did 45 minutes of yoga which really helped me to calm down and complete all of the tasks that needed to be done. It was worth the 45 minute break.

I finally broke from packing to enjoy some dinner. Monkfish with roasted zucchini, kale, and leftover acorn squash. It was quite delish! If you have never tried Monkfish, I would highly recommend making this fish at home (or maybe try ordering it at a restaurant first!). It's often referred to as "the poor man's lobster". I'm guessing the association stems from this fish's thick, white, almost chewy consistency. It is definitely not your typical flaky white fish.

So the next topic I have on the docket is completely unrelated to food. With the holiday season upon us, we are all attending various events where we are required to doll ourselves up a bit. These events tend to include a number of photo opps (say cheese!), and these photos are often posted on Facebook. As I was starting to write this particular section, I was reviewing with PJ what I packed him for our trip to Boston. I did pack an outfit he had worn recently, and he said "I love that outfit, and there are no pics of me in it on FB ,so I can wear it again!". Now, I hate to demasculate my man, but hopefully he won't read this post closely enough to pick up on the reference to his rather vane comment. The reason I share this store is that I struggle with wearing outfits multiple times if there are already photos of me circulating the web in said ensemble. Listen, we all know I'm not a movie star. The likelihood of someone writing up a scathing review in US Weekly about how I repeated the same outfit for two separate premiers is extremely unlikely. However, I still feel pressure to have a fresh look for each event I attend. It makes me feel good to choose a variety of flattering, fun, and shiny new outfits to strut around in (yes, I said strut!) . On the flip side, it's impractical and simply too expensive to purchase a new outfit for each outing. Last night, I sadly (but proudly!) returned an ADORABLE dress that I purchased a week ago for no particular occasion. I definitely have places that I could have worn this winter white gem ( ugh, it was so pretty!), but I also have a closet full of other options that would work just as well. I would like to add that the other items I refer to have probably only been worn once, or they may even still have the tags attached. With all this said, I am challenging myself starting today to wear and repeat! I challenge you all this holiday season to make the same effort. If Kate Middleton can do it, so can we!