theinbetweenismine

just a girl living the expat life

Archives for October 2018

Monthly Favorites | October

filed under: monthly favorites

1. The Boston Red Sox*. Do I need to say more? Go read my blog post from yesterday if you don’t know why they made my #1 spot on my favorites’ list this month!

2. It’s apple season again and Honeycrisp apples* might be my all-time favorites! Sweet and tangy at the same time and really crisp! Have you tried them? If not, you should! 

3. I don’t have a lot of eye makeup and I am not very adventurous with colors, so I always end up with a neutral color palette, but this  Maybelline Designer Chocolates Eyeshadow Quad* is a bit more adventurous with a hint of purple in it.

4. I don’t remember if I mentioned that I won another pair of running shoes on Instagram a few weeks ago, the Brooks Levitate 2*. Incidentally, I was in the market for a new pair of shoes anyway, so this giveaway win was just perfect timing. I’ve also been running a few different Brooks shoes in the past, so I was excited to try the Levitates and I’ve been really happy with them so far! Also, don’t you just love the colors? So cheerful!

5. I got this Cinnamon Apple Cider candle* at Target after someone recommended it to me and I love the smell. It’s not too overwhelming, but it definitely fills the room. It’s the perfect fall scent!

6. We recently picked up one of the frozen Trader Joe’s Cheese Pizzas* (just to have something in the freezer as a backup option) and the pizza is actually really good. Nice and crisp crust, simple ingredient list, affordable. You could also add your own toppings if desired. What’s not to love?

7. If you’d ask J and me to put our favorite snack plate together, it would look like an antipasti platter. We love snacking on cheese, olives, pickles, salami, and those Mezzetta Cherry Peppers*. They’re not spicy at all, but really juicy and sweet. 

What was one of your favorite things this month?

* #notanad, This is not a sponsored post. I have not been compensated by the brand or anyone else for linking the websites.

 

My Red Sox ♥ won the World Series

filed under: love, sports, yes!

I don’t think it’s a mystery to anyone who has been reading my blog for a while that I am a huge Red Sox fan and on Sunday night, my team won the World Series!

It was such a fun season (with the best record in franchise history), but the post-season beat all my expectations. The Red Sox allowed only one game against the Yankees (in one of the ALDS series), one game against the Astros (in the ALCS series), and one game against the LA Dodgers in the World Series. This team has been so much fun to watch.

David Price was outstanding Sunday night, Steve Pearce was on fire, but so were all of the other players really throughout this season! JBJ (Jackie Bradley Jr.) had some really amazing hits. Andrew Benintendi is the king of the left field, and Mookie Betts can’t do anything wrong if he tried.  I love how Craig Kimbrel (the closer) owns his pre-pitch pose (check out his Twitter pic!), which numerous people (grown adults, mind you!)  in the stands have mocked him for, but he had an absolutely stellar performance this season and he is the youngest pitcher in MLB history to record 300 saves. So hey, whatever works for you, right? 

In all honesty, I should list all the players by name here, because I am so freakin’ proud of all of them. Every single player in this team did their part to turn this season into what it was. There was a different guy at every game coming through for everybody else. This is what team sport is all about and the Red Sox are a real team. They never gave up. They always stayed calm and focused until the very end and this is how they were able to make magic happen again this year.

Congratulations, Red Sox!

Currently | October

filed under: currently

FEELING | a little all over the place lately. Lots going on and I haven’t had proper time (and brain power) to blog much, but I am planning to keep up my annual tradition of blogging my way through November by participating in NaBloPoMo. Do or die, friends. Who’s with me?

WEARING | my fleece jacket more often because it’s been cooling down (appropriately for fall). I would lie if I said I didn’t like it. Give me all the seasons!

EXCITED ABOUT | voting. I hope you are too.

READING | Hillbilly Elegy: A Memoir of a Family and Culture in Crisis by J.D. Vance.

EATING | zucchini-cheddar scones. I bought one from the local Co-op the other week (it’s what happens when you go grocery shopping hungry!) and then decided that I had to bake my own (which I did last weekend). Recipe will be posted soon.

DRINKING | tea.

WATCHING | the World Series! The Red Sox made it to the WS this year and J and I couldn’t be more excited. They’re playing the LA Dodgers and are currently leading the series 2-0.

MAKING | homemade bread!

ENJOYING | visits from our neighborhood cat. It’s so cute because whenever I pull up with the car, he basically sprints from wherever he’s been to our front steps and (loudly) insists on a nice, thorough head scratch. He snuck into the house twice recently and has been taking strolls through every room before turning around and running back outside. Haha.

LOOKING FORWARD TO | Halloween. I hope we get some trick-or-treaters again. J wants to watch the new Halloween movie but I am not sure yet if I can muster up the courage. We’ll see. 

LISTENING TO |  the Soundscapes channel.

TRYING | to get back into my gym routine. I realize that sometimes life happens and you have to adjust your schedule for a bit, but man, it’s always so hard to get back into your regular routine.

What’s up with you currently?

Thinking Out Loud #26

filed under: Thinking out loud

Hi friends. Long time no talk. The last couple of weeks have been a little crazy. No time to sit down and catch you up on life. I am taking advantage by linking up with Amanda from Running with Spoons for Thinking out Loud to tell you a little bit about what’s been going on around here.

+ As you recall, I was on back to back field trips the last few weeks and while I tried to prepare a couple of posts for the beginning of October, I completely failed to post or prepare anything last week. Oh well, you all lived, am I right? Things should go back to normal around here now.

+ Being out of the office is great and in my line of work that often means being out in nature (not just in conference rooms at a hotel in a different city somewhere). I love that aspect about working in earth sciences.

+ I probably have mentioned before that I am possibly the only German that doesn’t really drink beer, although people keep trying to convert me. I have to admit that in recent years, I’ve warmed up a bit to lighter beers, although I still prefer to drink them as “Radlers” (mixed with sparkling lemonade) because it’s way more refreshing IMHO.

My co-workers are known for indulging in a beer (or two), especially after a long day of field work, so I was offered a beer at the local Truckee Brewing Company last week. Since they had a Kölsch, the beer that traditionally is brewed in Cologne, Germany, I couldn’t really say no and it actually tasted quite good. It also came in an “almost” authentic Kölsch glass (or  Kölschstange), which is a tall, but narrow glass. Due to a low CO² content, Kölsch foam is not very stable and the narrow glass prevents the beer from going stale by losing the little CO² content too quickly.

In all honesty, I drank the beer more for the glass than for the taste (I love that bear logo!) and I should have bought the glass as a souvenir. I think I have to ask my co-worker (who lives closer by) to get me one.

+ I had a check from our health insurance in the mail earlier this week. Hallelujah.  It only took them 16 (!) monthS to process a partial reimbursement from a treatment visit from June 2017. I don’t know how much time I spent on the phone with them to get this processed, but I am telling you, persistence in life pays off. (Translate: what in the freakin’ hell took them so long and why don’t these people ever do their jobs right and in a timely manner?)

+ I finally (!) tried La Croix Sparkling Water to see what all the fuss is about and I have to confess: I don’t really like it. It might have been the flavor (passion fruit), but I was not impressed at all. It was also too fizzy for me (and I do like fizz). Can you believe it?

+ I just found out that I’ve started earning 2 more hours of annual leave per pay period after I hit my three-year mark as a federal employee back in August. It still “only” adds up to 15 days per year (plus federal holidays), but hey, that’s 30% more than I had before! I am trying not to think about all the accumulated benefits missed out on for having been a contractor for so long.

+ Oh yeah, I also ran another half marathon (my 5th!) a week and a half ago. Woot! Recap to come.

+ The Boston Red Sox made it to the American League Champions Series (ALCS) and they’re currently leading 3-1 in the series against the Houston Astros after a real nail-biter of a game last night (did you watch? What a game-save from Andrew Benintendi!). I do hope they’ll win the pennant and go on to the World Series this year! They deserve it!

What’s on YOUR mind today?

October Link Love

filed under: link love

Around the Interwebs

Have you read this? I wish every man would read this. It’s so spot on. Man Perfectly Explains Women’s Rage Today Using Brutal Analogy So That All Men Can Finally Understand It.

Voter registration deadlines. There is still time. Please, oh please, register if you’re not, and make sure you vote in November.

Your earliest childhood memory is probably fake. Regardless if this assessment is true, I do have some pretty clear memories of toddlerhood and I am pretty sure that these are real memories, because the things I remember haven’t been “captured” in photographs that I could have looked at later in life (like the layout of the first apartment we lived in or the view from the window down from the 3rd floor to a window with an old lady that used to wave to me.) Do you have early childhood memories?

The problem with “hey guys!”.

I usually don’t have trouble falling asleep as is, but I need to try this. How they teach people to fall asleep fast in the military.

The rise of the engagement photo shoot. Well, I guess I wouldn’t mind getting some nice couple shots taken… 13 years post-engagement. Ha.

Around the blogosphere

This thread about abortion is EVERYTHING. (P.S. It’s not what you think – go read.)

I always liked cacti, but now I know how much… 50 cactus home decor finds. All the heart eyes.

What I hate about living abroad. This was an interesting read for me as Helene currently lives in my home country of Germany and I can definitely relate to some of her struggles. Then again, I could probably write a similar list about living abroad – there is always going to be something, am I right? ;)

Craftiness

Free Printable 2019 Calendar

… and four more printable 2019 calendars.

Easy spider garland DIY – so cute :)

Do you know LAMY fountain pens? They’re a big hit in the bullet journal community and they’re from Germany (of course. Ahem.) I learned to write with them back in elementary school and I still have two of them at home.

For my runner friends

Have you heard about the Momentum Jewelry #beYOUtiful campaign? (Not just for my runner friends, btw!) Check it out!

Everything You Wanted to Know About Gait Analysis. 

Deliciousness

I want to make those Halloween handpies.

Comfort food anyone? Ham & Cheese Tortellini. Yum!

Apple crumble bars – just the right thing to bake in October!

I am on a Thai kick lately. Cauliflower and Butternut Thai Curry sounds so good right now.

 

Share a good link with me in the comments!