Not sure “favorite” and “March 2020” necessarily belong in the same sentence. First and foremost, I hope you and your families are all safe, healthy, and weathering this craziness as best you can. Posts like this feel a little silly given the state of the world, but focusing on positives—regardless of how small and trivial—is never a bad thing.

Favorite Products

Small Home Fitness Equipment

I made a page linking to all the fitness equipment I use for at-home workouts (resistance bands, dumbbells, sliders, etc.). So if you’re looking for recommendations, check that out. Amazon is selling out of a lot of fitness gear now that we’re all forced to work out from home, but I did my best to only link to products still in stock.

Favorite Workouts

IG Live Workouts

Not only have I loved going live myself, but I’m so grateful for all the fitness instructors hosting classes on Instagram! If you want to join me for a workout, I’m going live on Instagram every Thursday morning at 7:30AM (EST) with an apartment-friendly (no jumping) workout.

I also want to share a couple other instructors whose IG Live classes I’ve been loving:

• @karaduvalpilates – I love Kara’s Pilates classes! She also teaches a class called The Foundation, which is her take on functional bodyweight training. Highly recommend both.
• @bootybybrabants – If you’ve never taken one of Kelly’s classes in Boston, now is your chance! Think dance cardio bootcamp. So fun and her energy is unreal. There’ll be jumping around, so maybe not your best option if you have downstairs neighbors.
• @jppilates – This is for all the parents out there! Jenn does family workouts with different themes on IG Live (Frozen, Greatest Showman, etc.). They look adorable and fun.

Apartment-Friendly “Quiet” Workouts

I’m doing my best to post quiet apartment-friendly workouts for those quarantining with downstairs neighbors. Here are a few, and I’ll continue to make more:

• Quiet At-Home Bodyweight Workout (embedded above)
• Mini Band Workout (No Jumping)
• Bodyweight Workout (No Jumping)

Favorite Eats

Slow Cooker Shredded Mexican Chicken

This is an old recipe from the archives that I recently re-vamped with some new photography. Just three ingredients needed—it’s so easy and delicious! I don’t eat chicken, but Joe does, so I’ll cook it from time to time. 🙂

Favorite Things I …

Read

• The Last Time I Lied by Riley Sager – So good! Couldn’t put it down the last 100 pages. It’s a thriller/mystery that’ll keep you guessing. And if my marriage doesn’t survive this quarantine, I may have to pursue Theo (lol).
• The Silent Patient by Alex Michaelides – I half recommend this book. The story is great—total page turner, will keep you wondering what the truth is right up until the end. The writing, however, is terrible. One cliche, forced simile and metaphor after another. If you want a quick beach read, this could be a good choice. But UGH it had the potential to be SO MUCH BETTER.
• The Husband’s Secret by Liane Moriarty – I actually didn’t like this book, but I wanted to share the reason why I read it. Jackie from The Morning Toast started a podcast book club (Readheads Book Club), and this was the first read. I LOVE the idea of a podcast book club. So while I didn’t enjoy this first choice (cheesy and anticlimactic IMO), it was fun to listen to a group talk about it afterwards. I probably won’t read every book they choose, but when it’s one that’s already on my list, I’m excited to listen to the corresponding episode afterwards. I could talk about books and listen to others talk about books all day!

Watched

• [Netflix] Tiger King – I’m sure we’ve all watched this by now. Joe (my Joe, not Exotic lol) and I binged this series in a single night—we couldn’t stop! It’s incredible. A documentary about the wildest characters imaginable. I spent the next day watching Joe Exotic music videos on YouTube, and I highly suggest you do the same when you finish the series.
• [Instagram] Jessica Yellin News Updates – Former CNN Chief White House Correspondent Jessica Yellin does daily news updates on her Instagram account that I really love. Super informative, no BS.

Listened To

• [PODCAST] Joe Exotic: Tiger King — Yes, I’m obsessed with Joe Exotic. Before the Netflix series, there was this podcast about our favorite lunatic. You can only listen to the first two episodes on normal podcast platforms, and then you have to join Wondery+. It’s annoying, but you can do a 7-day free trial, binge Joe Exotic, and then cancel your Wondery+ membership before being charged.
• [SONG] Roses – Imanbek Remix — Current favorite workout song!

Favorite Moments

Dude Ranch Bachelorette Weekend

Before shit hit the fan with Coronavirus, I celebrated my college roommate’s bachelorette weekend at Tanque Verde Ranch in Arizona. We went horseback riding, hiking, lounged by the pool, and drank at the Ranch’s saloon. So fun! And I’m extra grateful in retrospect that I got to spend that weekend with my girlfriends before social distancing become the norm.

Pickles’ Favorites

Her Dad

Pickles definitely feels safer around women than men (might be due to some trauma before she was rescued). So she’s never let Joe take her on walks without me present, and has always been a little hesitant to warm up to him. Now that Joe is home all the time, we’ve seen such a great improvement here, which warms my heart! Pickles now lets Joe take her for walks while I stay home, which is a huge step. One silver lining to the quarantine. 🙂

If you have any recommendations to share, leave a comment below! I think we could all use every book/podcast/etc recommendation we can get at this point!

xo Nicole

I’ve got lots of goodies for you in February’s roundup of favorite things! A true crime podcast, a couple books, products for your furry friend, and a huge personal highlight from the month.

These favorites posts are never sponsored, but they do contain some affiliate links. 🙂

Favorite Products

Gold Hair Clip (under $10)

I found this cute triangle hair clip on Amazon and ended up wearing it to the Boston Winter Ball this year. An easy way to dress up a loosely pulled-back hairstyle! My friend Christine at IMBUE Salon on Newbury did my hair.

Secondhand Style

I am FAR from perfect when it comes to living an eco-friendly lifestyle. But In recent years, I’ve been more conscious of the impact the fast-fashion industry has on our environment, and have started shopping secondhand more frequently in an effort to reduce my impact. I’m not a huge shopper in general, but I’d say that the clothes I do buy are now 75% secondhand. That remaining 25% is basically Amazon workout leggings lol.

The two main places I’ve been buying secondhand from are Poshmark (sign up with the code NICOLEPERRY to get a $10 credit) and ThredUp (<– that link will also get you $10 off your first purchase). I prefer Poshmark because you can negotiate prices. For weddings, I’ve been buying once-worn dresses off Poshmark that are like new, and then turning around and selling them right back on the app after the event. Yes, more effort involved than Rent the Runway, but brings the cost down to like $30. In one instance I actually made money! (These are things that thrill me in my 30’s lol.)

Favorite Workouts

30-On-30-Off HIIT Workout

Of all the workouts I published this month, I think I loved the 30-on-30-off structure the most. Hope you did too because I’ve got another one using this format coming tomorrow! 😉

Favorite Eats

Moroccan Lentil Soup

I made this Moroccan lentil soup from Making Thyme for Health the other week—SO GOOD (photo preview is from her site). Joe and I loved it. Will definitely be making again!

Dinner at Bambara

I did a project with Hotel Marlowe this month, and as part of my stay, got to enjoy dinner at Bambara in Cambridge. The food was excellent! Joe and I started with a roasted beet salad, and he got a salmon dish and I got a falafel and squash dish. If you go, definitely get the bread!

Southwestern Stuffed Bell Peppers

Yum! Made this recipe from the blog archives for dinner one night this month and used it as an opportunity to take some new photos.

Favorite Things I …

Read

• Life by Keith Richards – I’m on a rock memoir kick! The first third of Keith Richards’ book is a little slow (compared to the rest of it at least), but I thoroughly loved it. Yes, it’s sex, drugs and rock ‘n roll, but with an element of history class that I found fascinating.
• Three Women by Lisa Taddeo – This would be a great book club choice—so many thoughts! It explores three different women’s experiences with sex/sexuality. It’s brutally honest. If you’re uncomfortable with detailed sexual content, skip this book, but otherwise it’s raw and captivating and I’d recommend it.

Watched

• [HBO] McMillions – This docu-series dives into the Monopoly game that McDonald’s did back in the 90’s. Apparently it was completely corrupt with ties to the mob. The episodes come out weekly which in annoying because I want to just binge the whole thing, but that’s my only complaint.

Listened To

• [PODCAST] Your Own Back Yard – This recommendation is for those of you who love true crime. It’s about the disappearance of Kristin Smart back in the 90s. The first episode introduces you to the victim and her disappearance. The second episode is “Oh, he totally did it!” The third is “OMG they totally helped him cover it up!” And the rest goes into all the evidence and the ways the police botched the investigation. Gets a little repetitive by the end (most true crime podcasts do), but I still binged it.

Favorite Moments

Starting STOTT Pilates Mat Training

HIGHLIGHT OF MY MONTH! I can’t explain how excited I am for this STOTT Pilates Mat training. I’m going to do a whole video or blog post about why I’m going this route and have become so passionate about this modality of fitness recently. I’m learning a ton and am going to be even better able to help and train you all as a result.

Boston Winter Ball

The 12th annual Boston Winter Ball benefiting the Corey C. Griffin Foundation was this month and, as always, it was a blast. I LOVED my dress (it’s For Love & Lemons for Revolve).

Pickles’ Favorites

Bone-Shaped Dog Toy Basket

I found this cute bone-shaped basket on Amazon for Pickles’ toys. Love that it’s shallow enough that she can go through it on her own and grab a toy.

Canada Pooch Highlighter Sweater

Love this Highlighter Sweater from Canada Pooch (it comes in lime green, too). It’s so soft! And I like that it doesn’t have sleeves, making it easier for Pickles to run around like the little spaz she is at the dog park. It has a hole in the back so your harness clip goes through it.

Aussie Naturals Chew Toys

Pickles loves the “Wigglies” chew toys from Aussie Naturals. They’re made with natural and sustainable materials, so they’re not the cheapest toy option, but the quality is great. Pickles will be kept busy chewing them apart for days and days. They have a selection of their toys available on Amazon Prime which is where I usually get them.

xo Nicole