VLOG CITY LIFE: March 2018 4 Years in The City, We Love South Tampa- Gasparilla in the City, New Restaurants, Shopping Hauls and More!

Hi loves! This month's "City Life" was so much fun because we are finally moving into Spring. March is always an exciting time in the city for us because it is the anniversary of us moving here to South Tampa and I do believe it's been 5 years now. I still love this area as much as I did five years ago which is amazing because by the time I had been in the burbs for five years I ran from there. One thing that I love about being here in the city is that we are in close proximity of every event, every new restaurant, every classic restaurant, the beach, amazing parks, and the bay. Everything I could possible want is right here!

This year we finally made it out to the Gasparilla Festival of the Arts which is an event that goes on downtown every year, but we have never been. It was quite fun; I am an art lover so I enjoy going to art festivals and maybe day dreaming that one day I will pony up the money on a fantastic piece of artwork.

Another cool even that we went to was the 10th annual Parm Crack at Whole Foods Market. I have only seen cheese cutting on Instagram so I was super excited to watch this and take some video on snap chat. My husband was hemming and hawing about how it was going to be so lame and even he said it was quite interesting. It only lasted 2 minutes so what's the fuss anyway? So below you have the Parmagiano Reggiano that I have written about in the past. They said they go through one of these every few days at this Whole Foods which is not a lot compared to other markets. The cheese is aged for 2 years and it is kept at a low temperature. Since we were there right when they cracked it we got a rare taste of heart of palm which is the soft cheese in the very center.

10th annual parm crack at Whole Foods

I unexpectedly found myself at an orchid show this month. I can't really say if it was desire to see the orchids or the desire to go inside a Masonry Lodge that brought me there. Either way, it was a quick trip and only cost five dollars to get in and I got to see a lot of unique and beautiful orchids. My main objective was to find orchids that I did not already own to buy and add to my collection- which I did.

FITNESS: Oh boy the fitness! Every month my main goal is to maintain my routine and have fun. This month has been a lot of fun because I got to get outside and be in the sunshine instead of being in my livingroom. Right now the weather is in the sweet spot where it is not too hot, not too cold, not too humid and if the sun comes out you get magic. Since my husband is doing this Pescatarian diet I cook mostly seafood so I don't have to make 2 dinners. I am still on my same diet as before, I just eat more seafood than meat now. I have been trying to get it in when we go out to dinner having steak occasionally or pork. So...I am down 7 pounds and I actually wasn't expecting to loose any weight and it probably in fact is water weight. I am curious to see if I will in fact loose and keep off five more because that I would love!

Tree pose

I have been trying new poses that I haven't done much with in the past. I have been working on leg lifts and balance this month. I pretty much have been all over the place and just trying to get in enough fitness so that my joints do not flare up.

I also just want to add there are many things that I purchase on a regular basis from Amazon and you guys can find them here. This list has my staple hair products on it and I plan on speaking more on that in May. You can also find the same yoga gear that I use there in case some of you were wondering where I get some of my items to help me become more flexable.

Bitilasana- cow pose

Cat pose- Marjaryasana

Vishmama Eka Pada Urdha Mukha Shvanasana- Uneven One-Legged Upward Facing Dog Pose

Baddha Koṇāsana- Bound angle pose

Use my code AIRIE to get 3 free smoothies in your first order!

This month I got more goodies from Daily Harvest to try. I really enjoyed the smoothies as you can see they come in a cup that you can use to drink out of or you can put it in your own cup. The smoothies are easy to make and you can add your own liquid such as water, coconut water, milk, or coconut milk. Although their products are gluten free they are processed in a facility that has wheat so I did take the time to test what I was eating/drinking with my NIMA portable gluten tester.

The first smoothie shown is the one that my husband drank. I was unaware that it contained wheatgrass and although wheatgrass is gluten free, it's not recommended for consumption if you have Celiac Disease like I do; and I did test it anyway and it was gluten free.

The harvest bowls are a new addition this month and they are gluten free and vegetarian. They are pretty easy to heat up and just like with the smoothies they come in the same cups (frozen) and it's all organic. My husband microwaved his and I actually cooked up some sea scallops and then cooked my ingredients in the cast iron. It was pretty flavorful and I enjoyed it. It doesn't look like a lot of food, but it was more than enough for me. Remember to use my code AIRIE to get 3 free when you check out their website!

HAULS:

Adore Me- This bra is very very comfortable!

True Color highlight and kit C/O Avon

Feb and March's Rocksbox goodies

CANDLE REVIEW:

WINTER: Smells like hot dog water- sorry, but it does. I found this scent to be intolerable every time I lit it and eventually moved it to the hallway where my cats liter box was.

VANILLA SNOWFALL: Smells amazing!

WHITE BARN: This was not memorable.

DATE NIGHTS & BRUNCHES

This month was an adventurous month for us and I have all new restaurants to show you all - and one oldie, but goodie. I loved every restaurant that we visited and can't wait to go back a second time and eat more food!

Fresh Kitchen- Westshore

Rocco's Taco's Tampa

Steelbach-Tampa

March's first full moon

Green Lemon- Tampa

Bonefish grill

ALL GLUTEN FREE MEALS PREPARED BY MYSELF, RECIPES AVAILABLE APON REQUEST

Every year my husband likes to have corned beef and cabbage for St. Patrick's Day which was family tradition for him. He has been on a Pescatarian diet for almost two months and I was sure he was sticking to it so I set out to make him a traditional Irish dish that did not involve meat. I came across this Colcannon recipe which seemed really interesting to me. I have only had leeks once and I did not like them so I wasn't sure this was going to work, but to my chagrin it turned out amazing! The flavor did degrade over night meaning it wasn't as flavorful as the night before. Every time I tasted it to taste the salt levels and seasonings I just kept thinking "Man, this is good!" I may honestly never make regular mashed potatoes again.

I actually have never made mashed potatoes in this fashion- in a cast iron and I was a bit intimidated by the recipe, but it was easy. I am considering bringing this dish to the Thanksgiving table this year along with the stovetop Mac and cheese! You can fine the recipe I used here at Bonappetite.