The Colored Pencil Project Yoga Event

Hey Y’all!

A very close friend of mine is on the Board of Directors for this wonderful organization called The Colored Pencil Project. It’s a Boston-based non-profit that distributes art supplies to children in underdeveloped countries. Pretty stellar work, huh? Well, the Colored Pencil Project is hosting a fundraiser in the form of a yoga event here in Beantown. Below are the details in case you are interested in participating. It’s going to be a WONDERFUL event, for sure. If you have any questions, please let me know. I’ll give you Beth’s direct contact info.

Thanks so much!

M

 

Do you live in a world of color? Do you believe every child deserves the opportunity to communicate their experiences, their hopes and fears, and most importantly their dreams? The Colored Pencil Project is a Boston-based non-profit organization that distributes art supplies to children in developing countries, facilitating art workshops that encourage children to visually depict themselves and their world.  Art is essential to childhood development; children worldwide need ways to express themselves and to explore their place in the world.

The Colored Pencil Project is hosting a yoga event at South Boston Yoga on April 7^th from 1 – 2:15 pm with Kathy Heartsell.  The suggested donation for the yoga class is $10.  All proceeds will go directly to The Colored Pencil Project and help fund our mission of providing children from around the world with not only the necessary supplies but also the confidence to continue to express themselves in color.

We are looking for creative ways to spread the word about our organization and the upcoming yoga benefit to people within the Boston area.  We would love your help in getting the word out to your readership through your blog.  The Colored Pencil Project is a global initiative and we believe help from people like you will lead to our ultimate success.  Our hope is that sharing the children’s artwork will ultimately foster global understanding and goodwill.

Please feel free to contact us with any questions or if you would like more information.  Thank you for your time and we look forward to seeing you at South Boston Yoga on the 7^th!

Sincerely,

The Colored Pencil Project

Panic

Morning y’all & Happy Friday!

I promise I’ll be back sometime this weekend for a full recap of my Chi-town adventures but I’m here this morning to share some fun news with you guys. Drumroll, please…

{Handsome Dan}

I’ve been accepted to grad school to become a nurse practitioner & I’ll be moving to the great New England state of Connecticut in August! While I am extremely elated and anxious to begin this new chapter in my life, I would be lying if I didn’t admit to being a tad panicked once the news finally sunk in. No, I’m not moving across the country but I am moving out of my comfort zone. The Boston area has been my home for the majority of my life (minus my 4 year stint in NH – a whopping 1.5hrs away) &  it’s where my friends & family are. Moving to a new place means moving to a place where I know a limited amount of people and is in the heart of Yankee/Giant’s territory. terrifying…

{duh}

Besides the obvious: “Where am I going to live?”, ” Will I make friends?”, “Where will I get my coffee in the morning?” questions, I also find myself rationally concerned about the future my gym membership. Normal, I know…

My friends can attest that for the past 3 years, I’ve been a HUGE fan of  Healthworks Fitness Centers for Women  & pretty much refused go anywhere else despite the high monthly membership rates. I shell out close to $90 dollars per month for a many reasons but mainly it is that the friendly staff and spa like atmosphere encourage me to keep coming back. Healthworks also offers an amazing line-up of group exercise classes. Spin, different types of yoga and BodyPump are my favorites. While spin & yoga classes are pretty standard, not all gyms have BodyPump. So after scouring the facilities/fitness class schedule at Yale, I determined that they don’t offer my beloved class! {Insert minor panic attack here} 

Now, a little background, I’m not a huge fan of weightlifting. I love the concept and know all about the health benefits but when left to my own devices, I just won’t do it. Or I’ll do it but I get bored quickly and fall off the WL bandwagon. BodyPump (for those of you that don’t know) is a strength training class coordinated to music that is typically an hour-long & works ALL muscle groups. They also change up the music & routine every three months to keep you on your toes. In essence, it is the only thing that can get me to effectively train all muscle groups. A Godsend, really.

So back to panic mode…

I quickly googled (thank heavens for Google) and found that there is a studio that offers BodyPump in all of New Haven. ONE STUDIO. Man, New Haven has to jump on the BP bandwagon! Boston has approximately eleven clubs that offer the class. Here’s hoping I can make some times the class is offered with my crazy schedule!

{The Pump}

Anyway, crisis averted. For now….Thanks for listening to my ramble about gym/fitness class nonsense. Here’s to new adventures!

In other news, I’m trying out Bikram yoga for the first time tonight. Cross your fingers I don’t pass out. K, thanks! Are you guys doing anything fun this weekend?

Now, I’m off to hydrate!

TTFN!

Workout Playlist

I don’t know about you but one of the keys to a great workout for me is the playlist. To save myself some moolah and I’ve been using Pandora’s workout playlists for my workouts. Occasionally though, I’ll update my Itunes collection with some workout worthy jams.  Here is what I’m listening to on repeat right now…

1. We Found Love (feat. Calvin Harris) – Rihanna

2. Turn Me On (feat. Nicki Minaj) – David Guetta

3. The Time (Dirty Bit) – The Black Eyed Peas

4. Love You Like A Love Song – Selena Gomez & the Scene

5. How Far Do You Wanna Go? – Gloriana

6. Grow a Pear – Ke$ha

7. Good Feeling – Flo Rida

8. Glad You Came – The Wanted

9. Drive By – Train

10. Memories – David Guetta

11. Barbara Streisand – Duck Sauce

12. Princess of China – Coldplay & Rihanna

13. Somebody That I Used to Know (feat. Kimbra) – Goyte (*Joe Caraoca remix)

Clearly, RiRi and Mr. Guetta make frequent appearances on my playlists but you can’t beat the beat, so to speak! Enjoy the rest of your Sunday! I’m hoping to take a walk to Harvard Square, soak up some vitamin D and sip on an afternoon latte!

Anyone watching the Oscars tonight? I’m crossing my fingers for the cast of The Help. Loved both the book & the movie!

xo, Maura

 

A Week In Review

{via}

Is it just me or do four-day work weeks go by a lot slower than the average five-day work week?  Despite the 9-5 hours (more like 7:30 – 5:30) moving as slow as molasses, I’ve had a great week. I accomplished the longest run in my training plan (my half marathon training plan will be another post, promise!) under my set goal time (a whopping 5 miles in 48 minutes, if you’d like to know), caught up with long-lost girlfriends, and plans for my trip to Chicago began to take shape!

{obviously, not me}

I’m now looking forward to a weekend full of cocktail hours with friends here, shopping here, and getting in a fun and new {to me} workout with my girlfriends here.

{bring it on}

Wish me luck!

Maura

And I’m Off…

I’ll admit it.  I’ve been hit with the travel bug! I spend my days inside my fake wood cubicle looking up airfares  to far away lands & planning vacations I probably can’t afford.  Let’s face it, all-day access to this  doesn’t help either.

In 2011, I was able to cross off a lot of wonderful places on my bucket list.. which reminds me, I really should do a post on New Orleans….but we’ll save that story for another time…

  Me and my friends at the Creole Creamery! Yup, the same place my favorite Gossip Girl & her hunky boyfriend were just seen. Just so you know, I was there first ;).

Back to my point…

 Lucky for me, I have a bunch of fab girlfriends who have been hit with the same bug. So to kickoff 2012 we’re heading some place I’ve been wanting to go for quite some time…I can’t wait to see this:

(source)

and eat lots of this:

(source)

Okay, so that’s a photo from a place in Phoenix…but I think you know where I’m going with this. Most of all, I really just want to see this:

(source)

Yes, what I affectionately call “The Bean.” It’s true, ask my friends, I would go to Chicago just to see “The Bean”.

So, when am I hitting up the windy city you may ask? March 1st! Yes, it’s about a month away but hey, a girl needs something to look forward to. Now, here is where you guys come in. Give me the low down on what sights to see, where to shop, where to eat, drink and most importantly get my dance on! Any suggestions are welcome!

xo, Maura

Grey Days

To start off the week, I thought I’d share some inspiration I found over the weekend to spruce up these dreary winter days.

{gorgeous bikini for the fauxcation I’m planning in my head}

{prayer that will force me to hit the pavement}

{where said fauxcation will take place}

{future husband who will meet in Hawaii after his BIG win on Feb. 5th}

{peanut butter cup popcorn that will foil all of those bikini dreams}

Help a girl out here & let me know I’m not alone in my Pinterest addiction! Any good pins lately?

(all photos found on Pinterest)

xo, M

Psychedelic

So, we like to celebrate birthdays here in Boston. No, I mean we REALLY like to celebrate birthdays. Jenn, my roommate, was turning  (24 +1) so we took to Pinterest for some inspiration (duh).  The birthday girl herself had a vision & so #discobirthday was born. (Hashtag necessary. We may or may not be Twitter addicts.) I digress…

I’m lucky to live among two wonderful girls who love decorating, hostessing, glitter & champagne as much as I do. Without further ado….dance, baby, dance.

Disco // pink LED champagne // Peace & Love // Dancing the night away

Thrown any extraordinary theme parties lately? I’d love to hear ’em!

xo, M

Going to the Chapel

No, not me, sillies! This past New Years Eve, I had the pleasure of being the Maid of Honor in my best friend Jaclyn’s wedding. It was an intimate affair consisting of the bride & groom’s closest friends & family. The ceremony & celebration took place at the Amara Resort in Sedona, Arizona.  It was such an honor to be a part of this special day & I thought I’d share some of the photos. We’ll kick off this mini-series with the pre-aisle photos…

Bachelorette party at the Cosmopolitan Hotel in Vegas // Rehearsal Dinner // MOH tying the bow // My Masterpiece // Finishing {sparkly} touches

xo, M

**to give credit where credit is due, these pictures were taken by both a fellow bridesmaid (thanks Kelly!) & the wonderful wedding photographer, Andrew Holman.

My Arrival

Welcome to my new creative outlet, Running to Saks. I’m just getting this bloggy off the ground so bear with me while I get up and running (pun intended!)

This morning was our second (maybe third?) snowfall in Boston this year which is kind of crazy. It did manage to put me in the mood for a weekend of chai lattes, red wine, bundling up to go exploring the city with friends, and maybe a work out or two (I have ‘Yoga Beats’ on my list to try!)

Have a fantastic Friday, y’all!

xo, M