Bling Bling – Bachelorette Finale Party Recap

July 31, 2015
by Emily

For those who don’t watch the Bachelor or the Bachelorette, I get it.  Maybe it’s not something you’re interested in or you have a hard time dedicating two hours of your time to a reality TV show every week.

I urge you to change your mind about the premiere and/or the finale though!  Since Kaitlyn’s season (#11 for the Bachelorette and somewhere in the low thirties for the whole franchise) was ending on Monday night I had a group of ladies to my house to all get together and watch.

Out of the 11 of us, I was the only one who had watched the entire season and only three others had been casually watching.  My mom did manage to at least Google a season recap so she at least knew the three major players’ names…  Don’t worry though; we still called Nick “the Other Guy” for the whole night!

Even though so many of the girls had no idea what had happened all season we had a great time.  Of course, we had a pink lemonade wine punch and everybody brought food.  The most discussed crowd pleaser was probably the ricotta cheese and truffle oil dip.

My favorite “suite treat” were the ring pops.  It was fun for us to watch while wearing our own rocks.  Even the one Shawn picked for Kaitlyn couldn’t compare to the size of those!

We had so much fun gossiping about the show, catching up with each other and making predictions about the next bachelor.  (I know it’s rumored to be Ben H, but I don’t buy until he signs a contract.  I’m sort of hoping it’s Andi’s ex-fiancee Josh.  I think Ben H would be boring for an entire season.)

Something I did that was really fun was make “Team Nick” and “Team Shawn” buttons.  The group was overwhelmingly Team Shawn or Team Reject Them Both, but a couple people felt bad that Nick had no one on his side, so I did see a couple of Team Nick buttons leave the bowl.

The gamemaster Dara even put together Bingo boards featuring various probable moments (blatant Neil Lane diamond product placement, Chris Harrison says “the most <insert adjective here> season yet, someone says “future husband or wife”) and we used M&Ms to keep track.  She even brought prizes for the first two bingo winners – bouquets of roses!

Already looking forward to the premiere for next season.  I’m hoping to have everyone do predictions and then reread them at the finale!

**All photos credited to Dara McBride.  Isn’t she fab for helping me out?

Looking Ahead (7/31-8/6)

July 30, 2015
by Emily


I’m SO excited for this coming week.  Honestly I did a little bit of digging and have found so many great things to do here in Delaware (and SE Pennsylvania and NE Maryland!).
Since my brother will be in town this weekend for my mom’s birthday, I’m not going to be able to fit in everything I’d like to do, but I know my schedule is still full!  Friday night we’re going to the Blue Rocks game on the Riverfront, and they’ll be playing at home all weekend.
Saturday I’m going to the festival at Dove Valley Winery (see below) with one of my girlfriends.  I’m really looking forward to it as I haven’t been there before.  I’m also hoping to fit in the Bike & Hike at Hagley and the Art Exhibit downtown, but I’ll have to see how the week shakes out first!
Friday – Sunday (31st-2nd)
Longwood Gardens, Kennett Square, PA
Friday (31st) and Saturday (1st) 8 p.m.
Fiddler on the Roof in the Open Air Theatre
Chaddsford Winery, Chadds Ford, PA
Saturday (1st) 11 a.m. – 8 p.m., Sunday (2nd) 11 a.m. – 6 p.m.
Steam crabs, jumbo lump crab cakes, live music
Dove Valley Winery, Rising Sun, MD
Saturday (1st) 12 p.m. – 7 p.m., Sunday (2nd) 12 p.m. – 5 p.m.
Free admission, wine tastings and tours, local articans, food, adult and children’s activities, silent auction, live musical performances, yoga & other classes available.
World Café Live, Wilmington, DE
Saturday (1st) 7:00 p.m.
Hagley Museum, Wilmington, DE
Wednesday (5th) 5 p.m. – 8 p.m.
Bring a picnic or order one from Hagley.
$2/person
H.B. DuPont Park, Wilmington, DE
Thursday (6th) 4:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m.
Dravo Plaza, Justison Street (Wilmington, DE)
Thursday (6th) 7 – 8:30 p.m.
Bring lawn chairs or blankets.

#10Kfor10: Be Barre Fit Review

July 30, 2015
by Emily

I have been rocking the #10Kfor10 challenge over the last couple of weeks averaging more than 15,000 steps per day in my first two weeks.  It’s an awesome feeling to really see myself accomplishing that goal.

Even though I’m crushing my cardio and aerobic goals, I am and always have been lacking in strength and core training.  To help me avoid picking up some weights and doing a few crunches one of my girlfriends invited me to join her for a Friday morning barre class at Be Barre Fit in Hockessin.

The reception area has plenty of workout merchandise, including Be Barre Fit grip socks – a must for not falling during class.
BBF has a locker area to keep your things while you’re in class.

Since barre classes have gotten so popular recently I felt like this was a good opportunity to give the trend a try.  I knew it was sort a cross between yoga or pilates and ballet style dance, so I was a little hesitant.  I’m not particularly graceful and I have a hard time with the meditation aspect of yoga, but I found that barre was nothing like that.

The class was essentially an upbeat and moderate paced strength and core workout with an emphasis on posture.  To be honest, I was sore for about three days after the class because our instructor Beth had worked us so hard without my realizing it!

We started off using free weights and resistance bands on our bands, then moved to other strength moves and a core workout on the bar.  Seriously, my obliques have not worked that hard in a looooooong time.

This was one of the “core moves” we did utilizing the ballet bar.

Pros:

  • Strength & core training:  Barre class was a great way to get in a strength and core workout (comparable to many circuit workouts) without having to hang out in a gym with men who could easily bench press me.
  • Easy transition to start the day:  I was able to get a full workout in (I promise that it was tough!), without getting super sweaty.  I did a quick Polish bath before changing into my work clothes and heading to the office.
I was terrible at this move where we did various leg movements while maintaining our posture and clenching the ball.

Cons:

  • Price:  If you commit to barre classes at least three times a week, the price per class can be reasonable.  Since I have an all-inclusive gym membership (gym, fitness classes, pool) I can’t justify paying an additional fee for a barre studio. 
  • Lack of cardio:  While it’s great to build some muscle, you absolutely aren’t getting your heart healthy needs met without some cardio.  A barre regimen would also require some kind of regular cardio activity.

Price:

Be Barre Fit (Hockessin, DE)
$20 drop in
$170 monthly

Local Competitors:

Pure Barre (Greenville, DE)
$23 drop in
$225 monthly

Skinny Barre (Wilmington, DE & Pike Creek, DE)
$15 drop in
$130 for 10 classes

FitRyde (Glen Mills, PA)
$19 drop in
$125 monthly

Tulaa Yoga (Kennett Square, PA)
$10 all classes

Fit (Wilmington, DE)
$15 drop in
$100 for 10 classes

Bliss Yoga (Kennett Square, PA)
$15 drop in
$100 monthly

YMCA (various locations in DE)
$10 guest pass for one day (all inclusive of facilities)
$60 monthly (all inclusive of facilities)

Bottom Line:

Barre seemed to be a great strength and core workout if that’s something you’d like to incorporate into your routine.  The ladies at Be Barre Fit were great and I really enjoyed myself at the class.

The owner Trish (rear) and our class instructor Beth (front) were both so polite and friendly.  Beth didn’t even make me feel bad about what I am sure was my poor form and posture!