SERACUSE PARK...

Yes, you read that correctly, but I'm not the particular Seracuse for which this park is named.


This particular park is named for my DAD! Today is his 78th Birthday (which by the way you would NEVER guess) and I thought it would be a perfect opportunity to brag about him a little. I mean how many people do you know that have their own PARK? I only know one:

Jerome Mario Seracuse FAIA (those fancy letters stand for Fellow of the American Institute of Architects)

Because my dad is not only an amazing Architect with fancy letters after his name, but also an amazing man, he was given this little pocket park in the middle of the Denver Technological Center, a complex he helped create and continues to preserve as a member of the Architectural Control Committee.



Not by coincidence the park looks directly at one of his buildings!



We took a little trip to the park when Jay & I were home in CO for Christmas, which is why all the trees are a little bare. I can't wait to go back in a few weeks when I am there for the Fitness & Health Bloggers Conference, so I can take some pictures with everything in bloom!




Here is a close up of the placard:

This site is dedicated in recognition of
Jerome M. Seracuse's service to the Denver
Technological Center. As a member of the
DTC's Architectural Control Committee he was
instrumental in the planning and development of this
entire area, including the extensive network of parks
and landscaping throughout DTC.

Pretty cool huh? If you know my dad you know how special he is, and also how deserving he is of this recognition of his talents & efforts to preserve the beauty of nature in all of his projects. If you don't, then you'll just have to take this totally biased Daddy's GIrl's word for it. ;) I really could not be more proud! Happy Birthday Daddy! I love you!

F IS FOR...

-Fun-

Jay and I had an amazing memorial day weekend! We originally planned to go to the jersey shore for the weekend, buy plans changed and we ended up staying here & taking advantage of the Big Apple & it's surroundings.

-Food-

Anyone who knows me knows that I love food. And I love food centered experiences. So you can imagine how excited I was to head to Smorgasburg on Saturday!
It's an all food version of the Brooklyn Flea. I must say it was slightly over whelming, only because I wanted to try everything! After a couple laps, we finally settled on Asia Dog. Jay & I each had 2 (for the record they are small).

We both ordered the Wangding with a chicken dog: Then I had a Sidney with chicken too: And he had the Mash with beef: I liked the dogs. The Sidney was my favorite. I liked the thai flavors. For dessert we had Peoples Pops homemade popsicles. We both got Rhubarb Ginger. Yum! We almost went for the giant doughnuts from DOUGH, but we both decided that popsicles were the better choice on the 80 degree afternoon.
I'm glad we went to check out Smorgasburg, but I think going to the actual Brooklyn Flea is a better pay off. I mean the only thing ether than good food is shopping & good food together!

On Sunday evening we took advantage of our amazing backyard & grill and had some friends over. On the menu: Chicken Drumsticks Lamb Lollipops Corn on the cob Asparagus Potato salad Chips w/ roasted tomatillo salsa I only managed to snap one pic because I was too busy eating...


I assure it was all fabulous. Jay is a great grill master!

-Flowers-

Speaking of our amazing back yard... Check out these babies:



Our flowers have literally exploded with beauty this year. Maybe all that rain we've been having was good for something after all!

-Fitness-

Monday Jay & I took a motorcycle trip up to Bear Mountain where we did a 4 mile hike. It's only 50 miles away from our house! The hike we chose was labeled "challenging" & they weren't kidding... This is my OMG I can barely breathe face:

And another priceless expression... check out the nostril flare:


I love hiking because after all your hard work, you are rewarded with a view like this!


And lastly F is for...

-Freedom-

I don't just mean the freedom we enjoyed from a few days off work. I mean the freedom we enjoy every day because of the brave men & woman who fought & continue to fight for it. After all that's what memorial day is really about, right?

Hope you had a Fantastic holiday weekend too!

KEEPIN' IT GREEN...

30 Day Challenge!

Inspired my one of my Pilates & Blogging heroes, Lisa Johnson, and her 30 Day Challenge, I have decided to do one of my own.

At first I had a hard time deciding what I was going to do... I don't really like the idea of giving something up. That mentality has never worked for me. It only makes me want said thing even more. So I thought, what's the opposite of giving up?
Adding in!
I had my answer... For the next 30 Days (and hopefully a lot longer) I will make sure to have SOMETHING GREEN with every meal. In truth, I am already pretty good at this for 1, even 2 meals a day. But every meal will be an interesting challenge...

One way I plan to keep this promise to myself is by making Green Drinks in the morning. Greens aren't the easiest things to add to breakfast, but I have found that drinking them is so easy and tasty!!

Here is the Green Drink Recipe I am loving at the moment:

Big bunch of Kale or spinach leaves- I'm not going to tell you how many to put in, because it's up to you. I will say this: Imagine it is on your plate and you are eating it with dinner. How much would you eat as an adequate serving?
Big handful of parsley- adds some snap!
1 green apple peeled, cored and chopped
Handful red grapes- Blueberries are another good option.
1 banana
Juice of 1 lemon
Water- How much depends on how thick you want the drink. I like mine to be more like Juice so I add quite a bit.
Splash of Soy milk- optional, but I like the texture it gives.

Throw it all in a blender (or use your emersion blender like me) and viola...Yummy Green goodness- which I promise tastes AMAZING!

*This recipe makes 2, so you can have one now and one later, OR share (Jay is on board and really loving the green drinks).

Eventually I want to start experimenting with other green things/veggies to add in to my drinks, so if you have any suggestions I would love to hear them!

Being as it has never been my style to share everything I eat or drink here on this blog, I am not going to be documenting my every green meal. I will however be keeping you all updated on my progress (I'm thinking once a week) and sharing yummy green recipes I come across.

Also, feel free to share in the green goodness and join me on my Keepin' it Green 30 Day challenge!