Lex and Learn

Our crock pot is getting quite the workout lately. We’ve fallen back in love with the ease of prepping one or two meals in advance on Sunday to get us off on the right track (i.e. no eating out) for the first part of the week. Yesterday Mike tried a yummy pulled pork recipe that we took to his sister’s for dinner. Mike thought it needed more spice, but I really enjoyed it and would definitely make it again.

Here’s a link to the recipe. We did not use root beer concentrate (where do you even buy that?), and opted for no onions because we’re not big onion eaters (but also, we forgot to buy them).

Let me know if you try it!

A constant to-do in the world of PR is building and refining media lists. At times this can be a tedious task, but other times I am getting paid to research/find the coolest publications, websites and blogs for my clients. It rocks.

Yesterday I was looking for design and home (aka shelter) blogs for a new client and came across some blogs with incredible pictures and tons of cool DIY ideas. I am not a home owner yet, but I do love decorating and look forward to the days when I can get my hands dirty and turn the house we buy into a home that reflects our styles and taste. (Note: remind me of this statement when I blog about being exhausted and broke from home renovations).

Just wanted to share a few of my faves with you!

• Shelterrific
• Cupcakes and Cashmere
• Curbly
• The Inspired Room

Enjoy, and please pass along any home and design sites you love too!

If I could come back in my next life as a restaurant writer or spa reviewer, that would be fantastic. I think eating out at great restaurants is one of life’s greatest pleasures and I am pretty sure I could live off any monthly wage if it was earned for visiting spas worldwide.

Tonight I didn’t get to go to a spa, but I ate – for the second time – at one of the yummiest spots in Denver, Cherry Creek Grill.

The macho salad is divine and the skillet cornbread is worth every gram of carbs. They also have a fantastic wine list and the service, I have found, is fast and friendly. Cherry Creek Grill is surely a splurge, but I think it is a “must” do with someone special or girlfriends.

There are so many wonderful restaurants here in Denver and I am hoping to try at least one new one during Denver Restaurant Week.  Do you have restaurant week plans?

I love my slow cooker and the recipe below is idiot-proof (i.e. Alexis proof) courtesy of my beloved Better Homes & Gardens slow cooker recipe book.

• 1 (6-ounce) can frozen pineapple-orange juice concentrate — thawed
• 1/2 cup Ketchup
• 2 tablespoons lemon juice
• 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
• 2 tablespoons quick-cooking tapioca
• 2 inches stick cinnamon
• 8 whole allspice
• 4 whole cloves
• 2 1/2 to 3 pounds meaty chicken pieces (breast halves, thighs, and drumsticks) — skinned *Note: I use boneless, skinless chicken breasts. I’d lessen the cooking time slightly to avoid drying out the chicken.
• Hot cooked couscous

For sauce, in a small bowl combine juice concentrate, Ketchup, lemon juice, and cayenne pepper. In a 3-1/2- or 4-qt. slow cooker place about half of the sauce. Stir in tapioca. For spice bag, cut a double thickness of 100-percent-cotton cheesecloth into a 4-inch square. Place stick cinnamon, allspice, and cloves in center of cloth. Bring corners together and tie with a clean string. Place bag in cooker. Add chicken pieces. Pour remaining sauce over mixture in cooker. Cover and cook on low-heat setting for 8 to 9 hours or on high-heat setting for 4 to 4-1/2 hours. Transfer chicken to a serving platter. Remove spice bag. Strain sauce; skim off fat. Serve sauce over chicken and hot cooked couscous.

If you have a slow cooker recipe to swap please let me know or leave a link in the comments section!

Below are some fun pictures from my Los Angeles bridal shower earlier this month. It was such a special weekend spent with close family and dear friends.

Thank you again mom for hosting the shower. It was beautiful and so much fun! 

Life is good in the mountains. I cannot believe the number of weekends we have been able to enjoy the snow and the “free” feeling of getting away from Denver. We are so lucky to have a condo available to us all season (thanks mom and dad)!

According to my Epic Mix tracker I’ve had 13 days on the mountain and have skied 166,185 vertical feet. Epic Mix uses your pass to track every lift you take and assigns vertical feet and “pins” accordingly. The pin I am probably most proud of is the Blizzard pin, earned for skiing after 12 new inches of fresh snow. Until this year I was terrified of skiing fresh powder because I would fall and could not figure out how to “float” on top of it. This year I conquered most of my powder fears and have experienced some insanely fun days with Mike and our friends.

This weekend was a blast because our good friends Jessie and David came up to stay. We skied on Saturday and Sunday, enjoying many laughs over multiple glasses of wine and beer.

We’ve got it pretty darn good…

Lex & Jessie at Breck

On Wednesday morning I took my first Spin Barre class at Qi. I chose to do a quick Friday morning post on it because I AM STILL SORE! Sore in a good way, but achy nonetheless.

I had never taken a spin class and haven’t done barre work since I danced in my teenage years. The fusion of the two made the hour fly by and just as my booty was over the bike seat, it was time to switch over to the barre.

Trying new classes is all part of my quest to discover what does and does not motivate me to work out. For some reason I will pop out of bed to attend a class I signed up for the day before, but I won’t get up to go for a run or to the gym in general (I failed miserably at the second attempt yesterday and today). Part of my “reasoning” is that I don’t want to be sore for weekend skiing, but I am also just a master of the snooze button. Seriously, I could out snooze anyone in a snooze-off.

How do you motivate yourself to get moving, and do you prefer morning or evening workouts?

Real Simple has a great section every month with 10 recipe ideas for one key ingredient. Sometimes it is store bought (like ravioli) and other times it is a meat, like pork tenderloin. This month the ingredient featured in this section is rotisserie chicken ~ a weekly staple on our grocery list. We always eat it on Sunday or Monday, but then struggle to make good use of the leftovers…until now.

Last night we tried the Chicken and Gruyere Turnover recipe using leftover shredded chicken. Amazing! The puff pastry came out perfectly golden and flaky, a real shot of self esteem for our cooking. I made a small side salad and enjoy my turnover with a glass of California Cabernet called Juniper Canyon. Everything was divine.

Give it a try! and tell me what you think.

To Mike, my Valentine…

We’ve come a long way from weeknight bar hopping….(no pictures handy, but check out our ‘story’ here)

From the surprise and squeal heard ’round the mountain…

To relishing our roles of Auntie Lex and Uncle Mike…

To enjoying the mountains and our new Colorado home…

I cherish our past, enjoy every moment of our present and am so excited for our future. Thank you for being a wonderful Valentine. xoxo