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November 5, 2012

Weekend Adventures

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Hello everyone – I hope you had a nice weekend!

Thank you for all the support so far with my Hurricane Sandy Relief Auction/Fundraiser! I know that my site was down last night and this morning but it appears the auction should be live and actually working as of this afternoon. Please let me know if you can’t get it to work, and thank you in advance for your support in bidding and spreading the news so we can help those in need!

And now, back to the weekend! On Saturday, I started my day with some yoga:

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I decided to check out a new (to me) studio called Edge Yoga; I hit up an hour and 15 minute long power yoga class and LOVED it. Great instructor (Mark), and I loved that it wasn’t just a typical power vinyasa flow type class (I like those, but I’ve been to a lot of them lately). His class was HARD and awesome – lots of challenging poses and fun different moves I hadn’t tried before. I definitely want to go back to his class again!

After getting my sweat on, Matt and I headed over to Pho 75 to enjoy some pho with my brother and my mom. My brother was in town visiting this weekend and it was great to see him again!

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There was a HUGE line – I guess everyone else had the same idea on such a chilly day – but the pho was well worth the wait.

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Here I am with my little brother! 🙂 As many of you already noticed from the photos I’ve shown so far, he was not able to attend our wedding 3 weeks ago. To say we were disappointed that he wasn’t there would be a huge understatement. He was deployed at the time and we were originally told he’d be able to come back for it; we made plans for him to be a groomsmen and all was going well until about a month before the wedding when my brother told us the bad news – his request for leave was denied last minute. I found out he wouldn’t be able to come when I was at one of my internships and more or less burst into tears in front of my boss at the time. Even lamer? He was scheduled to return home and finish out his tour 2 weeks after the wedding.

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There was unfortunately nothing we could do about it (and I tried to keep things in perspective – yes, he couldn’t be there, but at least he was still safe – there were obviously far worse scenarios that could have been involved in him not being able to come). We made the best of the situation and my brother was able to record and send a toast for us to play at the reception, which was wonderful. Also, my friend and fellow Verizon Wireless Ambassador Meghann was able to Skype (video chat) my brother in to watch the whole ceremony using our Samsung Galaxy S3 phones that we’re both currently reviewing; a HUGE thank you to her for offering to do that for us (and to Verizon for having a phone fast enough that it actually worked – blows my mind you can do something like that)! Meghann sat near our family and got him on the phone video chat early enough that he was even able to say hello to a few family members before the ceremony started. I remember walking down the aisle and seeing her holding the phone out towards us and knowing that it must have worked. I gave it a little wave. 🙂 We held off on getting my wedding dress cleaned so I could try it on in person for my brother; I tried it on for him yesterday and he loved it – much prettier in person than on a phone, he said. 🙂 It was fun to put it on again one last time!

Anyway! Here are my mom and Matt enjoying their pho:

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We spent the rest of the afternoon wandering around doing some shopping/errands that my brother wanted to get in now that he’s home. I’m happy to report that we stopped by Starbucks and the holiday red cups and seasonal gingerbread lattes – my favorite – are back in action! Life is good. 🙂 Tip: Ask for a regular latte with 1 pump of gingerbread syrup (instead of the regular gingerbread latte which has 3 pumps in the tall size) – still delicious but without the sugar coma!

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Sunday morning, I enjoyed the extra hour of daylight savings time sleep (yay for brighter mornings again!) and then headed over to my parent’s house to go for a run with my brother. Finally – the sun came out to play! It’s been a very gray week here weather-wise.

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We had a great run and enjoyed chatting and catching up the whole time. I forgot to start my Garmin watch, but we ran for 38 minutes and covered what I think was about 4 or so miles. It was a VERY hilly route but I felt pretty good. My brother is speedy so he kept me motivated!

For lunch, my brother requested Ray’s Hell Burger. Matt is obsessed with this place too and I’d never been. It was as good as everyone says! Great quality meat, delicious toppings, and not super greasy. What I look for in a burger! I had lettuce, grilled onions, tomato, pickles, and BBQ sauce on mine.

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My mom and I also shared an order of unpictured sweet potato fries.

We spent the rest of the day walking around and enjoying the nice and sunny weather. Last night, I met up with my college friend Lu who was in town for dinner. We hit up Cava Grill in Tenleytown, which reminded me of a Greek chipotle. You build your own meal and you have a choice of a pita sandwich, two mini pita sandwiches, a rice bowl, or a salad bowl which came with pita on the side. They had all sorts of fun toppings, too!

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I loaded mine up with hummus, veggies, and some falafel. Delicious! Great dinner choice and Lu and I had a really nice time catching up. It was great to see her again since we didn’t have a ton of time to talk at the wedding!

I hope you’re all having a great day. See you tomorrow!

—

*Disclosure: As part of the Verizon Wireless Ambassador program I have been provided with a wireless device (the Samsung Galaxy S3) and three months of service in exchange for my honest opinions about the product.

- anne
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17 comments
  • Sana
    November 5, 2012 · 5:46PM:
    Cava Grill sounds awesome! I need to check that place out :)
    Reply
  • Cate November 5, 2012 · 6:22PM:
    I'm glad your brother is home safe, but it is a bummer they denied his leave. My last two trips to Starbucks have been for a nonfat latte with one pump of gingerbread. Anything more is just too sweet!
    Reply
  • Caroline
    November 5, 2012 · 6:50PM:
    I loved this post! My brother's in the military, and the thought of him missing out on big life moments makes me want to cry too! I'm so glad that you got to see him and try on your dress and everything with him.
    Reply
  • Karen
    November 5, 2012 · 6:50PM:
    Cava Grill looks amazing! I will def be keeping an eye out for that when I am in the area next week. Glad you finally got to hang with your brother :)
    Reply
  • Carrie @ Fitness and Frozen Grapes
    November 5, 2012 · 7:26PM:
    It's great you spent some quality time with your brother! And it looks like a great weekend overall. :)
    Reply
  • Libby November 5, 2012 · 7:50PM:
    So glad he's home safely! And that you're getting some sibling quality time :)
    Reply
  • Julie
    November 5, 2012 · 8:05PM:
    Hi Anne! I'm a fellow Arlington resident, so I love reading about the places you've tried eating. It's funny because both Cava Grill and Ray's Hell Burger are on my list to try, and now I'm even more motivated to try them!! The food looks delicious from your pics and very fresh. Looks like you had a great weekend and hope you have a great week! :)
    Reply
  • Lauren
    November 5, 2012 · 8:38PM:
    Glad to see your site is back up. I was bummed when I went this morning to check out your donation post and it was down. I'm heading over now to check it out. :)
    Reply
  • joelle (on a pink typewriter)
    November 5, 2012 · 10:12PM:
    Looks like a great weekend! I'm so bummed I missed your message about yoga - I'll have to check out one of Mark's classes soon.
    Reply
  • Jill K November 5, 2012 · 10:45PM:
    Great photo of You, your Brother, Mom & Matt! Looks like a real fun/foodie/fit time --my kinda weekend! ;-)
    Reply
  • Kathryn November 5, 2012 · 10:59PM:
    Spending weekends with family is truly the best- especially when you don't get to see them all that often. Weird coincidence- I was at Ray's Hell Burger Saturday night, first time I've been in about a year or so and just as good as I remembered! Hands down, my favorite burger of all time
    Reply
  • Zulma November 5, 2012 · 11:07PM:
    I'm glad that your brother is safe and you were able to spend time together, but you have to take advantage of the good times even though few so enjoy with him very much!! I LOVE that burger, looks delicious!! have a great week.
    Reply
  • Adventurer November 6, 2012 · 7:20AM:
    Good fun, ANne. Glad to see your brother with you. Great weekend!
    Reply
  • Robyn @thereallife_RD
    November 6, 2012 · 9:02AM:
    I am so jealous you went to Cava Grill! I am obsessed with their hummus they sell at WF here in Charlottesville and would love to try out the restaurant! Aren't runs with brothers the best? My older brother always kicks my butt Glad he is home safe and sound :)
    Reply
  • Renie November 6, 2012 · 3:57PM:
    I am so happy that your brother made it back to see you and the family even if it was after the wedding. At least he is safe and sound. It was very nice of you to put your wedding dress on for your brother before having it cleaned. Were you able to have your hair braided as well.the burger looks great. The portions look like two or three meals worth. WOW
    Reply
  • Charise
    November 7, 2012 · 1:03PM:
    Uggggh, what a bummer about your brother not making it to your wedding. One of the reasons I had such a long engagment is because I wanted to be SURE my little brother's deployment would be over. I would have been devastated if he couldn't be there, and probably would have had the same reaction you did at work. I am very glad he is home safe and you got to see him this weekend!
    Reply
    • Anne P
      November 7, 2012 · 1:23PM:
      I know, sadly by the time we found out he was getting deployed our date was already set! :(
      Reply
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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!
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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!

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