Valentine's Day Archives - Popcorn and Pandas

{38} Lately…

Live Fully

Lately I’ve been…

reading Creativity Inc. – slowly but surely.

writing Emails to plan out Luca’s upcoming Baptism. Looking forward to this amazing celebration!

listening Still listening to the “Happier” podcast by Gretchen Rubin and Elizabeth Craft. I am catching up on all the past episodes, and I am still absolutely loving it.

thinking About ideas for my next free challenge group. Any requests?

smelling Tomato sauce and garlic. Mmmm…

watching The Bachelor. GUILTY as charged.

wearing Loose, comfy layers that make it easy to nurse and run around with the babes.

feeling Super excited about our upcoming CRUISE to the Caribbean! Thank you Beachbody! So excited that I am able to treat my boys to this amazing trip 🙂

wanting To go shopping for some new resort wear! I LOVE summer clothing!

needing To stick to those workouts! This mama will be getting in a bikini soon for the first time since baby #2! Eeep!

loving How STRONG I have become since starting P90X3. It’s amazing how easily I can knock out some pushups these days. Pull-ups are still another story, but I am getting better, and I’m even knocking out new yoga poses with this program, and I only just started Block 2!

wishing To relive last Friday night’s date night! It was so wonderful to have a night out to dinner with the hubs for the first time in Brooklyn since having Luca. We have decided that date night is going to be a weekly thing for us (either at home or out…point being…quality time). So far we have stuck to it, and it’s been awesome. I think it’s so crucial to make sure to get that time with each other, especially when you have so much else going on with kids, work, etc.

hoping To find some more fun indoor activities to do with my toddler, Nico, through the rest of the winter season. I have been searching Pinterest, but if you have any fun ideas that have been a hit at your house lately, please send them along!

craving Salty snacks! Anyone have any good, healthy options?

clicking For Valentine’s Day and Birthday gifts for the hubs. It’s double whammy season over here! 😉

HAPPY TUESDAY!

What have you been up to lately?

XO,

Gina

Comfy Cozy

On Me: Sweater: Forever 21 / Coat: ASOS / Jeans: Paige Denim / Boots: Sears (believe it or not!) – similar / Bag: Thrifted / Hat: Gifted

On Nico: Coat: OshKosh B’gosh / Jeans: Carter’s (on clearance!) / Boots: Old Navy / Hat: Target

Last weekend we wandered around SoHo popping into art galleries and shops before heading to a playdate with friends at CitiBabes. This winter I am all about comfy cozy, and this was the perfect casual weekend outfit for me.

This week, I have been partaking in a clean eating challenge, and so far it’s been going really well. I have been making delicious smoothies, attempted to make overnight oats for the first time, made hard boiled eggs and homemade hummus in advance, and stocked my fridge with healthy snacks like yogurt, fruit, veggies, and even a little cheese. My husband has been AMAZING with helping to keep up this challenge by cooking a healthy, clean dinner for us every night. We’ve had a fish taco bowl, pork tenderloin with swiss chard and sweet potatoes, stewed chicken with zucchini, and more. I am feeling super healthy, and I am hoping I have inspired my group to feel the same this week.

On another note, my friend Shirin sent me a little sample of a microdermabrasion cleanser from Rodan & Fields to try out. As someone who doesn’t use these often, the texture was a little weird for me at first, but after rinsing it off, I couldn’t help but notice how soft my skin felt afterwards. I also really enjoyed the lip serum that she included in the package. Thanks girl!

Happy it’s Friday! My mother-in-law is coming to town today to hang out with us, and we are very excited to catch up! The hubs and I are also very excited to have a night out this weekend to celebrate Valentine’s Day. We are heading to The NoMad for the first time for a fancy date and couldn’t be more excited! Even better, we are also going to catch a flick beforehand. No, it’s not going to be your typical 50 Shades of Gray…we talked about it…but the reviews were just too bad. Instead we are taking the non-traditional route and heading to the IFC Center to see the Oscar Nominated Animated Shorts. It’s one of my favorite programs that I see every year having worked in the animation industry for so long. I wasn’t sure we were going to make it this year, but I’m happy to say we will!

Hope you all share lots of love with family and friends this weekend and enjoy the long holiday for the Presidents as well.

XO,

Gina

#96 See Phantom of the Opera on Broadway

Friday February 22, 2013

When I was a little girl, my parents went to see Phantom of the Opera, and they came home bearing a soundtrack of the performance. My sister and I started listening to it, and we quickly grew addicted. We played this soundtrack day after day, memorized all the songs, sang them around the house, and fantasized about the day that we would get to see this show ourselves.

Fast forward to about a month ago. The hubby and I now live in the Big Apple with Broadway at our fingertips. We decided that we were going to check this item off my bucket list, and we bought tickets as our Valentine’s Day present to each other. To say I was excited would be an extreme understatement. I skipped around the city for the past month giddy with anticipation. I played the songs around the house to get Zack as equally pumped up for the show (well maybe not equally.) I counted down the days until I would finally be able to see the show of my dreams.

Well, let me tell you. It was everything I had dreamed of and more. The sets were absolutely stunning. The acting was superb. The music was phenomenal. You know how you wait for something for so long (almost your whole life), and the excitement builds up, and then when it finally gets here, you are just overcome and overwhelmed with emotion?!?! Well, that was me on Friday night. Blubbering in my seat to all of my favorite songs that I had been waiting to hear live for all these years. I almost felt silly for tearing up at a Broadway show, but I just could not believe that I was actually there seeing Phantom on Broadway. Before Friday, I only knew the music. Now I could put faces and emotions and stories to the tunes. It all came together, and it was just perfect.

I cannot believe it took me that long to see this show, but I will say that it was worth the wait. I will also say that I am pretty sure there will be a “second time” of me seeing this show. So Angela, (my little sister) you better get your butt up to New York. You have no idea what you are missing!

Love Is…

Love makes the world go round.

Wishing a Happy Valentine’s Day to my husband, my family, my friends, and all of my readers out there. Whether you are spending today with a loved one, or spending today slugging back wine on the couch by yourself, know that someone out there loves you.

Although we should spend every day spreading love throughout the world, try and do something nice for someone else today and bring a smile to their face. Everyone loves to be loved 🙂

XOXO,

Gina

P.S. Image above is sold as a print by Kari Machal on Etsy.