Tonight begins one of the Jewish high holidays - Yom Kippur. If you're not Jewish or if you just don't know what Yom Kippur stands for, it's a time right after the Jewish new year to reflect and 'atone' for your "sins." 

I'm not a very religious Jew, I don't go to synogogue often, but I do practice Jewish traditions and I especially like to observe for Yom Kippur. I don't like to think I'm a sinner, and I'm definitely not a perfect being, but for me it's a good reminder to reflect on the past year, set a tone for myself for the upcoming months ahead and really set some intentions of where I would like to see myself in the next year. 

Get out of your comfort zone.

Working  full time now and adjusting to adult life has me even more so 'reflective' at this time of year. I feel SO lucky every single day that I get to come into work every day with a group of extremely talented people and then I can go home and teach my fitness classes and hang out with my main squeeze. It's a fun life, but I tend to get in my little 'comfort zones,' and I think that it's important at these times to realize why it's so important to get OUT of my comfort zone - personally and professionally.

This is the perfect time for me to start setting some new goals, not only because it's Yom Kippur, but also because my second quarterly review at work is coming up very soon. I've been working at Group Two for 5 months now (how did it go so quick?!) and I finally feel that I'm really getting the hang of things! It's time to challenge myself a little more. I'm excited to grow my knowledge in the advertising industry and keep learning new things. I have some specific goals but this isn't a work blog so I'll spare you the many specifics. 

In terms of personal goals, I have a few. I definitely want to grow my experience in the fitness industry. I've been teaching consistently about 1-2 times a week, but lately I've just been craving more. I don't know exactly what's next, but I want to eventually get my personal trainer certification and start networking a little bit more to take advantage of the awesome fitness scene in Philadelphia. Last night I met an instructor who teaches spin at a women's prison. How cool is that?! I also am determined to finish my first half marathon on October 31!

On another note, I'm determined to keep family on top. We're all spread out now. Womp. It's not so easy to hop in the car to drive home anymore, so I have to be more conscious about picking up the phone. Family is everything. 

Reflect.

With all of the above being said, I always like to take time to appreciate the past year and think of everything that I was able to accomplish. I'm happy with where I ended up after graduating and who I get to spend my days with. Life is really such an adventure! #RachelsDeepWordsOfWisdom.

Real time now - the Pope is coming to Philly this weekend and it's already a mad house here. There are porta-potties lining JFK Blvd. We're expecting 1,000,000 people. YIKES! The preparation is intense.

XO - Rach

Let's chat!

What are you excited for in the next few months?

How do you plan ahead and make goals? 

How often do you talk to your family?

Happy Monday! I hope everyone had a nice relaxing weekend. My dad and sister were in town this weekend! My sister had a break between summer session at UF and Fall session, so they took a road trip through Charleston and West Virginia on the way up to Philadelphia to bring me my car. We definitely ate well this weekend...

Friday night I took my family around the Chestnut Hill area where I live and we ate dinner at Earth Bread & Brewery . It's a funky little place! They brew their own beer and specialize in flatbreads. It also reminds me of home (Gainesville) a little bit because their menus are placed in old quirky story books, like The Top (#1 favorite restaurant of all time.) We started with a cheese plate and I got the house wine.

Side note: the house wine is a blend and they call it 'draft wine,' meaning that it's kept in a bag inside of a big keg. I was a little skeptical at first, but it was delicious. Smooth and easy to drink. I don't think I could tell the difference between bagged wine and a $150 bottle. Unless of course it's Franzia.

The cheese plate was awesome! Honey, homemade jam, a brie and a goat cheese.

We also tried out an amazing black bean curry dip that I'm going to try to recreate at home. For my dinner, I ordered the Summer Smash flatbread because it sounded so interesting. It had pea pesto, yellow squash, mint, lemon, pine nuts, mozzarella and a honey balsamic glaze. It was incredible! The honey balsamic really made it.

After dinner, we took the train back into center city and realized that the Ben & Jerry's shop was right across the street from the hotel my dad and sister were staying at. The Tonight Dough all the way.

Saturday started on a sweaty note - Julia came to my Super Circuits class at Sweat Fitness! We worked up an appetite. To be quite honest, I felt like all we did for the rest of the day Saturday was eat! We had brunch at Continental Diner and then made our way down to the Italian Market after digesting in Rittenhouse Park. Couldn't go to the Italian Market without getting a cannoli!

Once we made our way back toward the hotel (Dad and sister had to catch the airport train at 5:30) we needed a cold beer and another snack. We ended up at Monk's Cafe. Such an AWESOME bar. They have more than 200 beers on their menu and beer battered chicken fingers. Super dark inside though so no pics, but such a great bar in Philly!

I live for the weekends full of good company and good food. There's nothing better!

- Rach

What was the high light of your weekend?

Happy Monday! How was everyone's weekend? Mine was spent in Ocean City, MD with Michael and some of his family. I was really excited since I had not been before and I was seriously craving some beach time. It's been too long! We arrived on Friday just in time for the beautiful sunset. On Saturday we woke up late, had some eggs and bacon and headed out to the beach around noon. We didn't leave until 7. It was perfect! I don't think I really moved from my beach chair that whole time and that's exactly what I wanted to do. Because Saturday consisted mainly of sitting, I woke up earlier on Sunday morning to get in a run before going to the beach once more. I ended up doing 5 flat, sweaty miles. After refueling with some breakfast, we all headed back down to the beach again for a few hours.

Michael and I wanted to hit the road around 6, so we went for an early dinner at the Crab Bag. It was really fun and really messy. I kind of wish I could eat on a big paper table cloth with my hands all the time. Lady like?

Another highlight of the weekend: finishing this 1,000 piece puzzle. I've decided that I really enjoy puzzles and need to buy some for my apartment. They definitely increase concentration and alertness. I'm all for games that are good for the brain! We've been playing Bananagrams at work when we can't focus and it really does help!

Another random thought - how cute is this romper? I got it from Loft for half off! It's super comfortable and I love that it can easily be dressed up. Find it here.

- Rach

What's your favorite weekend getaway?