Sherwood Gardens Tulips

My little family did not make it down to the DC Tidal Basin this spring to take in the cherry blossoms, but we made the quick trip over to Guilford this past weekend to walk along the tulips. Naturally, the little guy fell asleep as I was parking the car. My husband and I were able to enjoy a lap around Sherwood Gardens and take in all the sights, including some people and dog watching. We ran into friends, with their extremely cute and energetic little girl, and we were able to chat for a few minutes. 

I couldn't believe how many teenagers were in the park taking prom photos. That part didn't surprise me - the scenery is GORGEOUS. The part that surprised me was that most of these teens were working with professional photographers. I mean reflective boards, off camera flash, and one group even had an aisle runner down on the gross to protect shoes and dresses from grass.  My husband jokingly said, "that's you in 17 years."  I mean, I guess I could figure out how to use an off camera flash in that amount of time.

One such couple and their lovely photographer helped me get this family photo. I had my camera set up on a tripod and my remote in my hand. I had taken about 10 photos, but Sterling wasn't looking at the camera and we were getting closer and closer to food time.  Then there would be no more photos! The adorable teenagers stood behind the camera and their helpful photographer hit the shutter button for me.

It takes a village people! 

 

If you're in the Baltimore area I would suggest an immediate trip over to Guilford to take in the tulips at Sherwood Gardens. It's one of the prettiest little parks in all of Baltimore.  The stately homes surrounding the park are majestic. My husband was impressed by the structural soundness of the homes and was admiring their heavy slate roofs. Just prepared for tiny side streets that you swear should be one way streets! 

Open Walls Baltimore

Spanish street artist Escif's "Looks Much Better Now" 

Santtu Mustonen

"Frontiers" by Gaia, who is also the curator for the show. 

Nanook 

Baltimore gets a pretty bad rap sometimes. There's the murder rate, the crime, the abandoned buildings - all looming in the shadow of The Wire, but at the end of the day it's still Charm City and it's where we like to hang our hat and have a good time.

Part of that charm is the growing arts revitalization efforts occurring in Baltimore at the moment. The latest art installation is Open Walls Baltimore, which features renowned street artists from across the globe assembling in Baltimore's Station North Arts District and brightening up vacant and otherwise plain walls.

This past weekend I convinced the hubs to come with me to check out a few of the murals. We parked the Prius and walked along the streets admiring the murals. And you know what - we not only had a great time, but we got out of our comfort zone. I couldn't wipe the grin off my face from that massive smiley face mural.  Mission accomplished.

If you're interested the Closing Party is this Friday, May 30th. For more information click here.

Oh, and we happened to come across a street performance of a few of the hub's favorite Michael Jackson songs by an incredibly talented impersonator.  That was a huge win for the hubs.

Burgers & Brews

Made in USA: Gingham Top: Tradlands // Tee: American Apparel // Jeans: James Jeans (on super sale!)// Belt: c/o Chicago Belt Company // Shoes: Julie Bee's // Necklace: Loren Hope (on sale!) // Shades: Oakley (similar) // Watch: La Mer Collections // Nails: Essie 'Marathin' // Purse:  old Luciana Verde (similar)

It isn't much of a surprise, but in case you haven't picked up on it I kind of like beer. As in I avoid gluten as much as possible just so I can indulge in a beer or two and keep my mainly gluten-free lifestyle in tact. Yes, I love me some hard apple cider/vodka/whiskey, but there is just something about beer that I can't give up, nor do I want to give it up. 

I know wine may have that fancy street cred, but there's just something about a good craft beer that feels more natural to me. Although I've certainly met my fair share of pretentious beer peeps in my life who can go on and on about hops the way some folks can go on and on about grapes. Whatever, the more they're talking, the less they're drinking and then that means there's more booze for me to consume. 

However, this past weekend it was my turn to act as the responsible adult and play the role of  designated driver for the Heavy Seas Burgers and Brews festival. It was my fault, I was the one who signed up for a 10 mile race the next morning. So dearest hubs, you're on deck to be the designated driver for the next beer festival that rolls into town. 

But the festival was not a total loss, I made it through 7 of the 12 available  gourmet sliders to sample. I didn't have the nickname, "Heidi Cheese Burger" for nothing growing up!  I stayed away from the beer infused ice cream and fries just so I could chow down on more burgers.  I sported a serious food belly the rest of the day, but don't worry I'm certain I burned it off the next morning. At least that's what I tell myself.

I milked the daylights out of my one tasting! Thanks to Heavy Seas for offering free water and soda throughout the event.  Here's to the upcoming festival season. May you have fun, avoid sunburn, make ever lasting memories, indulge in some good food, and enjoy even better company, but please always remember to designate a responsible driver. 

Tourist For A Day

I moved to the Baltimore area in 2007 and I'm ashamed to admit that up until this past weekend I had never visited the National Aquarium. I've been to the Zoo, a few museums, numerous concerts, and almost every supporting event this town has to offer, yet somehow I was missing out on Charm City's most well known attraction.

Thankfully, the weather was gorgeous this past weekend and the hubs and I took advantage of the unseasonably high temperatures to wander around the Inner Harbor and spent a few hours amazed inside the Aquarium.  The hubs read every sign, placard, and piece of information (besides the map - obviously!) and I was pleased to remind him that we have to use our reusable grocery bags in order to save the turtles.  It's so funny, but we failed through on previous plans to visit the Aquarium numerous times over the past seven years, but we're already planning a second trip back with friends and family.  I think we'll probably spend even more time in the Jelly Fish exhibit because while terrifying, they are dangerously beautiful.

Are there any major tourist attractions in your area that you've yet to experience?  We still haven't done a harbor cruise and I think we need to cross that item off of our proverbial "Baltimore To-Do" list sooner rather than later.

Baltimore Running Festival 2013 Recap

The walk leading up to the start of the half marathon. Photo stolen from my sister's Instagram feed. 

This past weekend I joined a few thousand other runners in Baltimore and took part of the Baltimore Running Festival. This is now the third year that my best friend and I have run the half marathon as a fun run leading up to our fall marathons. My bestie, Bee, is getting ready to run the ING New York City Marathon in just a few weeks so she added on a few miles before the race and turned this into her last 20 milers.  I had wanted to go sub 1:50 for my half, but unfortunately my hip had other ideas in mind and I was able to get through the course in 1:57. Every hill felt more difficult than I remembered and I kept thinking to myself, "when are these hills going to end?" Even the down hills were painful! 

Bee and I pre-race. The hat was a last minute addition as it started to rain right before the start of the race.  The weather was definitely fickle on Saturday morning - there were periods of rain and wind, but overall a nice, yet humid, day.  

One knock on the race - the start line for the half marathon was moved north a few blocks. Bee and I were supposed to start in the first wave, but we ended up starting in the third wave because we didn't realize the start line was moved and we had to walk north to get to the start line. That change also meant our significant others missed us starting because they were also camped out by the old start line. I know that it is our fault for not reading the map in more detail, but I guess we got lazy because we've run this race a few times. 

However, the real attraction for this year's race was the 5k. I registered my nephew to run the 5k as an invitation to get my sister and him to come down for a weekend :) Just like any stubborn 13 year old he had to come in late the night before the race because he refused to miss one of his middle school soccer games. We're so alike it isn't even funny! 

Bee's boyfriend was kind enough to run the 5k so that there would be a set of eyes on the kid during the entire race. Thank goodness for speedy friends who can dog out a 20 minute 5k without a speck of training! 

The 5k utilized the same start line and first mile of the marathon course. This allowed us to watch all of the marathon pageantry and cheer for all of the marathoners as they started their long trek toward 26.2. After the start of the marathon I pulled the kid aside and told him to make sure he was in the first or second row to start the 5k. I had examined the results for the past few years and based on previous results the kid had a solid chance of finishing in the top 25 if he ran his race. 

He did fantastic! A new 5k PR with a 19:24 and he finished in 12th place out of 3400+ runners! I'm not sure who was added to the official results because on Saturday the results stated he came in 11th overall. Eh, close enough!  Here's video of me screaming like a proud auntie at the start of the race. 

After the race he was upset with his time and he confided to me that he had kicked it in early. A spectator yelled to him when he came near Camden Yards that he was almost done, so the kid kicked it in only to find that the race finishes well past Camden Yards. A rookie mistake. Although my sister and I used that as rational that the kid will be getting a running watch from Santa this Christmas. 

I'm sure every runner can remember a race when someone yells to you, "you're almost there" and you're nowhere near the finish line! Not a knock on spectators at all because I love each and every one of them, but "almost there" is a very speculative distance.  I told the kid later in the day that someone told me once at mile 3 of a marathon that I was almost there! It happens. 

Honestly, this past weekend was amazing. I can barely focus on my race, but instead I can remember in vivid detail every second I got to spend with my family. I feel terrible that I didn't get a picture of all of us, but it was amazing. We had quite the cheering section for the kid: my sister, my hubs, my brother, my best friend, her boyfriend, and me. By far the most bizarre sight of the weekend was my 6'3" brother hosting our sister onto his shoulder so she could have a better view of her son crossing the finish line.  That's love! 

I can't wait to run another race with my nephew. I'm going to try to find a race around Christmas that we can do together in New York and I'm trying to find other races he can do in Baltimore.  I don't play video games and I have no idea what it is like to be teenage boy, but I do know a bit about running and I'm truly blessed to share my passion with the kid. Plus, he can play video games with my hubs! I don't have to learn how to play them. 

The best part of the weekend was having the kid tell me, "next year I won't kick early and I'll do even better." I'm already counting down to next year's Baltimore Running Festival when I can see him run again. 

Anyone else race this weekend? How did it go? Any PRs?

Beer and Bourbon Classic at Pimlico Race Course

There's just something about summer and festivals going hand and hand.  As the weather heats up it's always nice to get outside, have a few beverages, and see what's going on in the local community.  After having a ton of fun at last year's Brew and Bourbon Festival at Laurel Park, the hubs and I were looking forward to this year's festival at Pimlico. We were able to meet up with some friends and enjoy a few tasty brews. 

Please note: I left my camera at home (something I'm actually trying to do more of this year!) and all of these photos are from my iPhone 5. 

I have no idea what any of that information means! 

Oh yeah, a tropical storm was slowly rolling out which meant the day started with lots of mud and a few sprinkles.  In true form, I had NO IDEA what to wear!  I'm not kidding, but I had my rain boots in the car as a backup option. 

And then the sun came out.  Good thing I had SPF 100 in my purse. (not kidding)

Overall a great time was had by all.  There was plenty of free parking, the festival was indoors (thus protected from the departing tropical storm), lots of space to roam, and once the weather turned sunny it was nice to sit out on the grandstands and watch a few races. Oh, and there were over 60 types of beers, bourbons, and wines to try.  Minor detail. :)

Full disclaimer here, but I know absolutely nothing about horse racing.  This is somewhat of a shock because I actually have friends and family members who race horses. I understand win, place, show, but any other betting terms after that are completely foreign to me.  

You can imagine my surprise when the hubs bet something with the word, "box" in it and won $48.80 on that pretty grey horse above.  Seriously, I got nothing.  All I know is he bet on two races for a total sum of $8 and he won on the one race. All I know is I came home with $20 worth of premium chocolate form Parfections.  

Definitely a good investment in my book!  Dark chocolate, bacon and sea salt!

What festivals do you plan on going to this summer?

Also, please remember to drink responsibly and always designate a driver or take mass transit.  Drinking and driving is never cool. Ever.

Batter Up!

Tee Shirt: Venley by Youth Monument (Made in the USA!) // Jeans: Old Navy (super old) // Flats: J.Crew (similar) // Bag: Etsy (gift from the hubs) // Cap: Unknown (stole it from the hubs' stash!)

Meeting up with the hubs and a bunch of his coworkers for happy hour - definitely a great idea on a Wednesday night.

Picking a bar across the street from Camden Yards - even better.

Watching the O's take down the Royals in crisp fashion - perfect Wednesday evening.

This was the first, of many, games that the hubs and I hope to attend at Camden Yards this season.  Wednesday night was absolutely amazing, even through a tad of a drizzle, because the play was fast and we were home by 10pm.  Yes, you know you're old when you get excited a baseball game ends at 9:30 and you're home by 10pm.

I'm definitely a flats/sneakers at a game type of girl.  The last thing I want to be worried about while getting my responsible amount of beer on is tripping in a pair of heels.  I don't care what you're wearing, but tripping is never cool. 

How about you?  Do you get dressed up for sporting events?  Obviously a polo match or the Kentucky Derby are different in terms of dress code, but I'm always amazed when I see women dressed in their Sunday best at the ballpark.  Especially on a night with rain in the forecast! 

And I don't think the hubs is ever getting that camo hat back.  I'm claiming ownership on that one! 

Weekend Antiquing

Shirt: Ann Taylor old (similar) // Jeans: J. Crew // Jacket: Anne Klein via Marshalls //  Flats: J. Crew //  Belt: Michael Kors // Purse: Kate Spade old (similar) // Necklace: Forever 21

The key to surviving a few hours antiquing is simple - wear comfortable flats!  The hubs and I spent the better part of our Saturday hitting up various antique stores in Baltimore and two breweries.  That much trekking around meant we had to deal with a lot of anti-heel friendly elements - rough brick sidewalks, cobblestone streets, fleeting rain, and scariest of all really, old, uneven, and slippery staircases.  I'm not even kidding you half of the 100+ year-old buildings we dove into didn't even have fully functional staircases. No, really, half of the railing systems were missing! 

Every time the hubs heard a creak or a crash he would look at me and ask, "did you do it?" 

Thankfully, I survived.  

What did you get into this weekend? Anyone go anywhere fun for the three-day weekend? 

Baltimore Ravens

First, let me make it clear that I am a die-hard New York Football Giants Fan. However, since living in the Baltimore area the past six years I've grown to adopt the Ravens as my AFC team.  Now, I know Ravens fans will get up in arms and say, "damn straight, we beat your Giants in the Super Bowl."  To that I immediately come back and say, "you know what, I'm okay with that because the Giants have gotten two more rings since we lost to you. And each time we beat the Patriots. You're welcome."

But, my beloved Giants are no longer the defending Super Bowl Champions.

And I'm okay with it.  Actually, I'm more than okay with it. I cheered like a crazed Ravens fan last night for the home team.  I mean, I did use my fantasy football winnings to buy Hunter Boots. The only reason I won fantasy football is because of Ray Rice!

Plus, I have to give some credit to my fellow Blue Hen, Joe Flacco, because let's be honest he doesn't get a lot of the positive credit he deserves for leading his team to the playoffs five years in a row.

Back to Super Bowl Sunday.  It would be bit of an understatement to say the hubs used the day as an excuse to grill and make a bunch of meat.  Yes, we had amazing salsa and guacamole as well, but the meat took the center stage as usual.

Season a 6lb pork shoulder.

Start grilling before 10am.  

Around 3pm, pull the pork shoulder off of the grill.  The hubs even soaked wood chips in Jim Beam to give the pork a nice little whiskey flavor. 

The tennis ball doesn't hold a candle to the shredded pork and chicken strips. 

The hubs compiled with my wishes and used peanut flour to make gluten free chicken strips for me.  That's love!

Pork shoulder is shredded and ready for pulled pork sandwiches. 

Brotherly love.

Love him or hate him, Ray Lewis will always be known as the Original Raven and one of the greatest defensive players in the NFL.