• Recipes
    • Search my Recipes
    • Recipe Categories
  • Lifestyle
  • Fitness
  • Nutrition
  • |
  • About
  • Work With Me
    • Brand partnerships
    • Nutrition Coaching

Home » Uncategorized

January 25, 2016 (Updated April 20, 2023)

Snowy Weekend + Blizzard Wedding

by Anne Mauney, MPH, RD

24 comments
share this post:
  • Pinterest
  • Facebook
  • X
  • Email

Well, my friends – it was quite the weekend! As you know, starting on Friday afternoon in the DC area, it snowed. And by snowed, I mean it snowed A LOT. Like, 2 feet when all was said and done by Sunday.

dc snowzilla jonas

Want to save this post?

Enter your email below and get it sent straight to your inbox. Plus, I'll send you great content every week!

Save Recipe

On Saturday, Matt and I took full advantage and enjoyed walking around and playing in the snow.

dc blizzard

As you can tell in the photo below, I lost the wrestling match. 😉

dc snowzilla

It was crazy to walk around – so. much. snow! Everyone was out wandering around on foot – lots of people sledding, cross country skiing, and snowshoeing. I felt like we were in Canada, not the DC area!

dc snowstorm jonas

Then this also happened. Because happy hour while sitting in a pillow of snow (so comfortable – my favorite thing was to fall back into it like a trust fall) is cooler than normal happy hour. And your drink always stays cold. 😉

snow happy hour

We also spent some time attempting to shovel (which is quite the workout – oof!). We figured even if tons more snow fell at least we’d have gotten a head start.

P1230021-001

Oh, and then we went to a wedding.

blizzard wedding

No, seriously! On Saturday, our friend Gretchen, who is my high school best friend Jenny’s younger sister, got married. All day we debated what to do. The wedding was down in Alexandria, VA, which is normally about a 20 minute drive for us. Could we possibly make it down there? Walking around, we saw that the main roads were being plowed well, and we really didn’t want to miss out – I have known Gretchen since she was like 9 years old – but we weren’t sure if there was any way to get down there. We tried to dig out our car – nope, not happening. We had almost given up when we heard from my high school friend Lara that they were definitely going, from Vienna, which is even farther. She said the roads weren’t great but that driving slow was working fine.

Okay, let’s do this! We ended up wearing snow clothes, packing our wedding outfits and some “just in case” overnight items in a bag, then walking to the closest main road to us that was plowed and snagging an Uber SUV from there. The guy who picked us up was in a huge Suburban and visibility wasn’t great, but in terms of actually driving the car had no problems. No slipping around at all and we took it nice and slow and stuck to mostly main roads. About 45 minutes later (and one VERY expensive ride, for good reason) we had made it!! Their wedding was at the beautiful George Washington Masonic Memorial building in Old Town, and thanks to their staff plowing the driveway all day we were able to drive right up to the entrance. Whew!

masonic memorial blizzard wedding

I seriously couldn’t believe we’d made it. Hooray! About half the guests weren’t able to show so I knew it would mean even more that we had. The wedding was black tie, so I threw on my navy blue floral gown once we arrived. Fun to get to wear this again!

navy blue formal gown

As for the wedding, it was lovely and I’m so glad we were able to be there! Everyone did a great job pitching in to help out, and many people went to great lengths to be there. The caterer and the venue both put up staff at nearby hotels to make sure they were able to pull it off, and the photographer made it, too. The DJ, hair, and makeup bailed, so friends and family stepped up to take their place. Only one member of the string quartet made it – and he walked 2 miles to be there. Quite the memorable occasion, to say the least!

All that made it even more special, I think. <3

gretchen powell sean fox wedding

I knew that Gretchen had spent the better part of the last year creating a ton of beautiful DIY items for the wedding, and I loved seeing it all come together in person. Everything looked wonderful! Luckily they did most of the decorations (and the flowers) themselves – made it easier given the snow situation!

diy wedding keys to success

gretchen powell sean fox wedding

See that pretty canopy with all the paper cranes (white and gold) below with the (awesome) dessert spread? That was also the backdrop to the ceremony, and Gretchen made it herself. Friends and family hand folded every single one of those cranes – amazing!

diy canopy wedding

Gretchen loves Harry Potter – the Mischief Managed cake topped was too cute!

harry potter wedding

We ended up staying overnight at the wedding hotel nearby with everyone (glad we brought overnight bags just in case!) and hitching a ride home the next morning when the roads were better. Plus that meant we could hang out later with everyone. 🙂 My friend Lara and I were joking that we have now completed the “Triple Crown” or “Trifecta”, if you will, of Powell weddings. We were in Jenny’s wedding back in 2008, attended Ben’s wedding in 2013, and now we were at Gretchen’s! Matt has been at all of them, too. 🙂

gretchen powell sean fox wedding collage

This picture below is my favorite of those I took at the wedding – Gretchen looks so happy. <3 Another huge congratulations to Gretchen and Sean – the new Mr. and Mrs. Fox!

gretchen powell sean fox wedding

As for yesterday once we made it home, it was spent shoveling! I’m about to head back out now to do a little more. I seem to have caught a cold so I did some resting up yesterday, too, and Matt was sweet and made us a big chicken, rice, and veggie soup last night. Hit the spot. 🙂

chicken rice veggie soup

He winged it and didn’t follow a recipe, but it was chicken, carrots, celery, mushrooms, onions, and garlic with chicken broth and then some 90 second brown rice tossed in at the end. Yum! We have a little left I’m looking forward to eating for lunch today!

As for breakfast today, hot oatmeal sounded right – I whipped up a batch of my Microwave Banana Oatmeal with chia seeds and topped it with some almonds and blueberries.

microwave banana oatmeal

Don’t forget that today is the first day of the 2016 Winter Shape Up – I hope some of you are joining us! For more details, here is the main landing page, where you will also find the week 1 meal plan from me and the week 1 workouts from my co-host Gina. And don’t forget to join the Winter Shape Up Facebook group, too! 🙂

Who else got buried under a ton of snow this weekend?

- anne
share this post:
  • Pinterest
  • Facebook
  • X
  • Email

join the list

Sign up for my e-newsletter and I'll send you a meal plan packed with a week's worth of healthy meals, snacks and a shopping list. Happy eating!

you might also like:

Going Car Free for the Day

Oatless Oats

Things I’m Loving Lately

Sweet Potato and Black Bean Power Bowl

leave a comment

Cancel reply

24 comments
  • Nicole (Cuckoolemon)
    January 25, 2016 · 11:50AM:
    that soup looks AMAZING. can you share Matt's recipe?
    Reply
    • Anne
      January 25, 2016 · 11:53AM:
      Unfortunately he didn't follow one! He just sauteed onions and garlic in some oil, then threw in the rest of the veggies and the broth. Cooked the chicken separately in a pan, then added it in, plus the 90 second brown rice!
      Reply
      • Nicole (Cuckoolemon)
        January 25, 2016 · 11:56AM:
        sounds delicious
        Reply
  • [email protected]
    January 25, 2016 · 11:58AM:
    The snow was insane! We shoveled Saturday morning and by the time we were done, everything was already covered again. I felt pretty fortunate we live in the city and were able to walk and find places open to grab dinner/drinks. So fun you were able to get to the wedding--her dress looks gorgeous and I LOVE the cake topper!
    Reply
  • Cara
    January 25, 2016 · 12:34PM:
    I was wondering if you'd make it to the wedding! I'm so glad you could, I felt so bad for everyone getting married this weekend... Soup looks delicious!!
    Reply
  • Laetitia Brock
    January 25, 2016 · 12:36PM:
    Looks like a gorgeus wedding and I'm sure they really appreciated you guys being there. I was a maid (well, matron technically) of honor at a wedding there back in the days, it's a beautiful (and underutilized) venue!!
    Reply
    • Anne
      January 25, 2016 · 2:29PM:
      I had no idea that it was an event venue - very cool!
      Reply
  • turry234 January 25, 2016 · 2:03PM:
    what sad timing for anyone having a wedding this past weekend... esp. in the dc area! ugh.
    Reply
    • Anne
      January 25, 2016 · 2:27PM:
      They made the most of it! It was still a wonderful occasion - just didn't go quite to plan. :)
      Reply
  • Roadrunner January 25, 2016 · 2:17PM:
    Love it! Hat's off to you and Matt for being intrepid, great friends. Wonderful that you could make it. And the two of you looked great, too!
    Reply
  • Cassie
    January 25, 2016 · 2:31PM:
    We got 8 inches here in Nashville. I counted traisping around in the snow as my workout yesterday. Haha. I can't believe you made it to that wedding!
    Reply
  • Mary
    January 25, 2016 · 2:37PM:
    Ohhhh what a fun wedding! Hopefully she still had fun minus the half of guests... I shoveled a lot of snow this weekend, SUCH a good workout! (Even though my brother in law has a snowblower.... Oh well heheh)
    Reply
  • Jen Robinson January 25, 2016 · 3:19PM:
    You and Lara win friends of the year award for braving a literal actual blizzard to attend the wedding. You are the best!! (Matt too hehe)
    Reply
    • Anne
      January 25, 2016 · 5:42PM:
      xoxoxox :)
      Reply
  • Fiona MacDonald January 25, 2016 · 3:42PM:
    I had to laugh at your Canada comment, as a Canadian we were just as shocked by all your snow! We haven't even gotten that much in a few years! Big dumps for sure but not THAT much ;) Though it's always great for an awesome workout!
    Reply
    • Anne
      January 25, 2016 · 5:42PM:
      I've certainly been counting "shoveling ALL the snow" as my workout for the past few days!
      Reply
  • Biz
    January 25, 2016 · 3:59PM:
    I love the idea of having happy hour in the snow! Wow, sucks that half the people weren't able to make it, but the bride and groom look so happy so that's all that counts! :D
    Reply
  • masala girl
    January 25, 2016 · 4:02PM:
    ahhh *harrry potter fangirrling!* she did an amazing job with the decorations! i've also been loooving soup lately. we made some chicken soup & turkey soup (like yours), and a chicken tortilla soup!
    Reply
    • Anne
      January 25, 2016 · 5:42PM:
      Soup is really hitting the spot in this weather!
      Reply
  • Jill @ RunEatSnap
    January 25, 2016 · 4:15PM:
    That's a lot of snow! That is unfortunate so many people involved in the wedding were unable to make it! Glad it all worked out. That is funny you guys lounging in the snow with drinks!
    Reply
  • Erin @ Her Heartland Soul
    January 25, 2016 · 5:37PM:
    Wow what a crazy wedding story they will have to tell their kids one day! So glad you could make it!
    Reply
  • Kelli @ Hungry Hobby
    January 26, 2016 · 8:21AM:
    Congratulations on making it the wedding I would have been terrified! That's great!
    Reply
  • Kris S January 26, 2016 · 8:42AM:
    Wow!! So glad you guys were able to get there! Everything Gretchen DIYed looks amazing! Not that I'm surprised! And I even saw little Mia in the background of one of the photos- cutie :) Congratulations to Gretchen and Sean!!! :D
    Reply
    • Anne
      January 26, 2016 · 10:49AM:
      Cutest ever - Mia was dancing up a storm at the wedding!
      Reply
- next post
previous post -

about Anne

anne mauney fannetastic food
Hi, I’m Anne! I'm a Washington D.C. based Registered Dietitian, mother, runner, and lover of travel, adventure, and the great outdoors. I've been blogging since 2009, sharing a mix of lifestyle content, recipes, and fitness tips. Come for the recipes – stay for the fun!
Learn more

fannetastic reads

Top Posts
01

My Top 9 Most Popular Recipes + Posts

02

Why I Don’t Recommend Whole30

03

What Causes Sugar Cravings (+ How to Stop Them!)

04

How I Make Money As a Blogger

05

Blog Recipes We Make Again and Again

06

What to Eat Before and After a Long Run

07

What to Eat During Long Runs

08

7 Common Nutrition Myths

09

How to Love Veggies

connect with Anne

Email me
anne mauney

I’m Anne, a Registered Dietitian and mother. I've been blogging since 2009 and love showing others that eating nutritious foods and staying active can actually be fun rather than overwhelming!

When I’m not writing or cooking for fannetastic food, you can find me running, coaching nutrition clients, or on an adventure with my family. Feel free to reach out - I'd love to hear from you!

follow anne:

join the list

Sign up for my e-newsletter and I'll send you a meal plan packed with a week's worth of healthy meals, snacks and a shopping list. Happy eating!

back to top
  • About
  • Contact
  • Recent Posts
  • Privacy Policy
  • FAQ

© copyright fannetastic food