Survey of Five

A few weeks ago, Julie over at PBFingers posted a little survey, and since my posts have evolved into a rather monotonous pattern of rehashing our weekends and a few meals, I thought I'd mix it up. I changed some of her prompts, deleted some that I have no business answering (you don't want to know what music I listen to, trust me--unless you, too, enjoy a super random assortment of country, musical numbers, and Britney Spears), and threw in an extra or two for fun.

Places I’m Dying to Visit

• Alaska (maybe on a cruise, but I’d be happy with a land tour, too)
• Norway/Denmark/Sweden

(Source)

• Scotland and Ireland
• New York City and Boston (we’re in the early stages of thinking about planning a trip here, perhaps in 2017)
• Florence, Italy (I took a few art history courses in college, and most of the art I studied is in Florence. Plus pasta.)

Five Foods I Eat Every Day

• Eggs, in some form
• Chocolate (only dark chocolate over here)
• Milk
• Tea--black tea with maple syrup and milk is my favorite
• Greens--I’ve gotten much more in the habit of incorporating greens every day

Five Exercises I Love Most (“Love” is a relative term)

• Jumping lunges--these get my heart rate up super quick every time
• Push ups/planks--always a challenge, plus lots of varieties, and you can do ‘em anywhere
• Overhead press--there’s something empowering about lifting something heavy straight up over my head. I feel super badass.
• Clams--my friend Heidi taught me these and I still do them at least once a week. They work my glutes/hips in a way no other exercise does.
• Walking. It’s simple, it’s awesome to get fresh air, and it is so versatile. Walk fast uphill for more of a challenge, or take a stroll around the block to unwind at the end of the day. Something for every mood.

Five Talents I Wish I Had

• Drawing anything more advanced than a happy face, which, thankfully, is Marshall’s only request when we play with crayons (for now).
• Interior design. I love Pinterest, but I have trouble translating what I like in other people’s houses to my own space.
• Baking. I think I’m a decent baker, but I’d love to do fancier stuff.
• Running. I really like running, and I think anyone who runs any distance at any speed is a runner, but I wish I had a little more natural running talent--it’s always been a truly challenging workout for me.
• Remembering stuff? I feel like I have a terrible memory. Is that a talent?

Five Chefs I Wish Could Cook for Me Every Day

• Julia Child

(Source)

• Ina Garten
• Gordon Ramsey
• Deb Perelman from Smitten Kitchen
• Michael Pollan (not technically a chef, but I’d love to see what he eats every day!)

Five Things I Wear (Almost) Every Day

• Walking shoes with my prescription orthodics to walk to and from work (yup, I look super cool in my work clothes + walking shoes)
• Workout clothes, lately long yoga pants and a long sleeve shirt because our house is freezing at night when we work out!
• Socks, all the time at home. I hate stepping into the kitchen without socks.
• Makeup--I say this because for a long time (when I stayed home with Marshall) I skipped makeup often. I didn’t mind, and of course my husband gave me the cliche that I look beautiful no matter what (awww), but I really feel more put together and more confident when I wear makeup, so it’s nice to be back in that routine. (Of course, I totally sympathize with people who don’t wear any makeup normally; I’m just one of those people who looks better with a little somethin’.)
• Work clothes. New (or renewed) for me since starting work in November, but I have enjoyed adding to my wardrobe and dressing up a bit when I go to work.

Five Movies I Can Watch On Repeat

• The Sound of Music
• The Sweetest Thing
• Father of the Bride
• Easy A
• Crazy, Stupid, Love

Five Books On My Current Reading List

• Currently reading: The Rest of Us Just Live Here, which is cute but not as good as I had hoped
• The Casual Vacancy by J.K. Rowling
• All the Light We Cannot See
• Prep (I’ve seen this book in bookstores for years, picked it up, put it down, and finally I bought it at GoodWill for $2)
• Lean In by Sheryl Sandberg, which many friends have recommended, especially now that I’m a working parent.

Five Things I Ate This Week

• Lots of oranges! The tiny ones (I guess they have different names, but these were the little ones from Trader Joe’s); they’re easy to peel, perfectly ripe, and great for throwing into lunches.
• Costco Spinach Salad--My coworker texted me to ask if I wanted to share because he had a huge salad (he wasn’t kidding; that thing was gigantic), so I gladly accepted an excuse not to pack a lunch!
• Smoothie bowls! I took a long break from smoothies for a few months, but this week I brought ‘em back in bowl form with sliced fruit and granola on top.

• Chorizo breakfast burrito this morning at our farmers’ market. We met up with some friends who recommended the burritos, and OH MY GOODNESS were they not kidding about how incredible these burritos are. I can’t wait to go back for another one!
• Chocolate quinoa bites from Costco. About as healthy as I’ve found for a packaged chocolate-covered snack.

Don't worry, I'll be back with my usual "What We Did Recently" this week, too! Gettin' crazy with multiple blog posts!