A Slice of...Providence, Rhode Island

Hello! My name is Adriana  of Just By Living and I will be showing you around Providence, Rhode Island, my home sweet home. I live here with my husband, a DJ and daddy blogger (check him at The Hipster Dad), my 9 year old step son, and my 1 year old son, Hendrix. I am a freelance writer and owner of the (coming soon) vintage shop Runaway Vintage.  Providence is a small city, I like to call it "manageable" especially with a kiddo in tow. You get everything you would want from a big city, nightlife, restaurants, shopping, art, and culture but without the headaches of city living. Traffic is hardly ever an issue, cost of living is low, and there is a great small town feel to Providence. I love that when going for brunch at our spot (more on that later) we will run into people we know, block parties are a pretty common occurrence, and the people at the farmers market know Hendrix by his first name. It's a welcoming, warm community and we are so proud and lucky to be apart of it.

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Let's start with food.

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 If you want something yummy to eat head to Julians. This is my absolute favorite spot in Prov. The food is amazing, the cocktails are great (and cheap!), and the decor is really fun. Hendrix is always fully entertained looking around pointing out his findings. It's a bit like being inside an eye spy book. The bathroom even has an enormous collection of vintage pez dispensers and old school cartoons running on repeat. Art from rotating artists hang on the walls and they have a lot of options for vegetarians and vegans.

AS220 is an artists gallery, restaurant, and event space. They specialize in vegetarian and vegan meals and everything is made from fresh ingredients right in front of you. You can sit at the counter and watch the cooks do their thing just a few feet from you.

Chez Pascal is one of the most popular restaurants in Providence and it's not surprising. The food here is exquisite. I can't really say a bad this about Chez Pascal. They have a food truck that comes to our farmers market and i usually stand in front of it, salivating, for a good ten minutes trying to make up my mind about which delish dish to try.

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Olgas Cup and Saucer is another fun spot to grab a good brunch or a coffee to go. It's right down the street from the Providence Children's Museum (more on that later) and we like to hit up Olgas before heading there for some fun.

Shopping 

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Queen of Hearts is a womens clothing shop filled with indie, hip clothing designers. Next door is an adorable shoe store called Modern Love (LINK http://www.queenofheartsandmodernlove.com/). Both are highly recommended. They carry some of my favorite brands including I'm Your Present and We Love Colors.

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Rocket to Mars is a funky little vintage shop with great prices, friendly staff, and a fantastic collection of vintage goodies. They carry mens, womens, housewares, and furniture.

Craftland is an over the top craft store. When you step inside it's walls you feel like you fell down the rabbit hole. Colorful displays brimming with supplies, whimsical artwork, and crazy pinatas make up the decor.

Some other noteworthy shops include Frog & Toad for fun trinkets and gifts, for toys Creatovity and Pow Science.  If you are in the mood for a day trip head to New Bedford and go vintage crazy at Calico and Circa.

Family Fun


 

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The Providence Children's Museum is just lovely. I can remember going as a child and loving it. They have a really cute forest themed toddler area, large water room, huge outdoor play area, and giant sized light bright.

Roger Williams Zoo is a beautiful zoo surrounded by a large park.They have everything from a carousel, to a pond with swan boats, and of course, the animals. The elephants are Henry's favorite and if you time your visit right you can catch them getting their daily bath.

 

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The Museum of Art at The Rhode Island School of Design is stunning. They have a family fun day on Sundays where you pay only a donation of your choice and man times on the weekends they will have activities for children to get them involved in the exhibits.

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Providence is filled with playgrounds, splash pads, and parks. It seems like there is one on every corner. For a list and more info on some of my favorite parks head HERE.

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If you are looking for some nightlife you can head the dubstep night called DGAF on Saturdays, Shake for indie music on wednesday, and  the monthly night Flipside on the second Friday of every month.

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Rhode Island is a small (the smallest to be exact) state but it is filled with culture, beaches, activities, and restaurants. Rhode Island boats so many fun little towns for day trips. My favorite is Newport, RI. It is a seaside getaway most famous for being popular with the rich and famous of the 1920's You can take tours of many of the Newport Mansions. They have names like "Rosecliff" and "The Breakers", overlook the sea, and make you feel like you are straight outta the book The Great Gatsby.  You can head to one of the many beaches, my fav known a "1st beach" has a carousel, aquarium, and amazing views. You should stroll the cliff walk, play games at the giant arcade called Ryan's Amusement, shop on Thames Street, and dine at my favorite Newport eatery, The Salvation Cafe.

I hope you enjoyed my Slice of Providence, Rhode Island. Thanks to Dani for having me! xo.

This Week on Hello Giggles: On Making New Girlfriends

Today I'm over on Hello Giggles discussing making new girlfriends as an adult. I've shared some tips too! Head on over and let me know what you think. xo

Blueberry Pie Baked Oatmeal!

I posted a photo of my breakfast the other day on Instagram and got a lot of questions about the recipe. It's actually quite simple, and I do it two ways depending on time and ingredients. On this particular morning I made it the "long" way...but most mornings I'll do it the cheater way, which isn't really making anything at all, unless you count throwing already-made oatmeal into a bowl! ha.  I also found this recipe for it that looks good as well. It just has a couple different ingredients like honey and soy milk.

But here's my super tasty recipe (I'll also show you the cheater way down below):

1 cup oatmeal (I prefer steel cut)
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1 teaspoon cinnamon
a pinch of salt
1 cup unsweetened vanilla almond milk (you can add more if you prefer your oatmeal to be less thick)
1 cup blueberries

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees. Mix all ingredients in a large bowl. Spray an oven-safe dish with some cooking oil, pour your oatmeal mix into it and bake for about 30 minutes or until it thickens up.

And for that super quick-store bought way-

2 packets Kashi GOLEAN Hot Hearty Honey Cinnamon Oatmeal
a huge handful of blueberries
water to achieve your desired thickness

Throw all of that into a bowl. Microwave for 2.5 minutes. Let it sit for 1. And voilà! A delicious and quick breakfast you can even bring to work with you!

Happy breakfast-ing!

Tattoo Tuesday V.104

Name: Jen Ricker
Age: 27
Occupation: EDI Specialist at a footwear company
Age of first tattoo: 19
Favorite tattoo: Feather tattoo
Featured tattoo/location: Cat Saints 3/4 sleeve on my left arm
Artist/shop/location of feature tattoo: Katie Williams at House of Tattoo in Tacoma, WA. I live in Seattle where there are tons of tattoo shops, but I drive 45 minutes to see Katie because I love her so much!

1) Tell us about your featured tattoo- is there a background story about why you chose it, or maybe a special meaning? 

A few years ago I decided I wanted to get tattoos of my two cats, but I didn't want to just get their portraits. I thought for several months on how I could do something fun and came up with the idea to turn my cats into saints. Religious icons are popular tattoo subjects, and while I am not religious I find the artwork beautiful and interesting. I did some research on different saints and chose the Virgin Mary and Saint Francis of Assisi. My cat Uma is depicted as the Virgin Mary, and her baby Jesus is a pink beanie baby cat that she's been carrying around and loving since she was a kitten. My cat Dumbles is depicted as Saint Francis of Assisi with his little paws reaching up for birds.



2) Do you have any other tattoos? If so, what do you have and where?

I also have a dad tattoo and a feather on my left arm. On my right arm I have a good luck cat, a Dia de los Muertos cat, gypsy cat, mom tattoo, jack-o-lantern tattoo for my sister who was born on Halloween, a tea cup, and a bunch of vines. I have flowers with script on each shoulder, the word legendary across my wrists, a key and a diamond on my fingers, pin-up up girls on my stomach, and paw prints behind my ears. On my legs I have tokidoki characters just below my knees, and on my lower legs I have a bunch of sanrio stuff.













3) Do you plan on getting more? 

Yes, I do. I've always gotten bright colorful stuff because my skin is so pale and takes color really well, but ever since my feather tattoo I've wanted more black and gray.

4) How do your family and friends feel about your tattoo(s)? Have you run into any adversity or negativity because of them? Do you have a significant other? Does he/she have tattoos? 

My family is fine with my tattoos. At first they weren't too happy, but they quickly warmed up to my tattoos, especially since I kept getting more. When I first met my husband he only had one tattoo, but has gotten several more since, and plans on getting more in the future. We got matching feather tattoos together, and it's my favorite one. All of my friends are fine with my tattoos, and some are heavily tattooed themselves.

I've never ran into any adversity because of my tattoos. I have a job where it's important to look professional, and no one even knew I had tattoos until I had already worked there for a year, and finally told everyone. Once they saw them they loved them and even used me in a few footwear ads than ran in a footwear magazine, catalog covers, and banners displayed at conventions. Random people have given me some weird looks, and strangers will sometimes make comments and that can be annoying at times, but there's not much you can do about it. I find that even if someone doesn't like the idea or look of tattoos they eventually warm up to it once they get to know you better.

5) What's the most interesting experience you've ever had in regards to your tattoos?

One interesting experience was going to San Diego Comic-Con and having people ask to take photos with me or of my tattoos. It happened several times both years that I went. Tattoos are so popular now and so many people have them that I found it very interesting that people were asking to take photos with me when others are walking around in super elaborate costumes.




6) Any advice for those interested in getting tattooed but haven't gotten one yet?

My advice is to find an artist that you really like who does solid work AND who you like as a person. If an artist is a jerk towards you, they probably aren't going to put the time or effort into giving you their best work. There are tons of awesome tattoo artists out there, you don't have to settle. It's also important to not just try to find the best deal, usually that just ends up in a crappy tattoo. Get tattoos of things you like, not just what is trendy at the time. I have six cat tattoos. That's probably not something a lot of other people would do, but I really like cats so it works for me.

3 Ways to Get Motivated Today

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If you're anything like me, with the new year usually comes a new resolve to get moving and get healthy.  I'm not sure if it's a subconscious thing, due to all of the new year, new body talk, gym membership price-slashing, or just the habit of making resolutions, but even if I'm on top of my fitness routine I still get the urge to step it up. I know I love fresh starts and all of the implications of a brand new 12 months on the calendar, but I think it's important to move beyond feeling like you have one shot to make and keep goals.  Resolutions are great, but I think with fitness and health it's important to acknowledge that the opportunity to change and move forward is always there. I think it's great to see a new year as a clean slate, but I think along with that mindset sometimes comes a certain attitude about failure. If you're making a big change in your life (or even small ones), there are bound to be missteps along the way. Let's say you got into a funk and didn't work out for a month...rather than get down on yourself, simply decide to change now. Being negative only perpetuates that downward cycle. Instead, recognize that you want to change, and make that change this very second. Not tomorrow morning, not when you have time, not on Monday.  Make the choice now- choose a healthy lunch, a walk around your neighborhood, and get back on track. It's so easy to fall into the trap of putting it off again and again and again, and like the saying goes, if not now, when?

So here are 3 little bits of inspirations to get you moving today.

1. Make a new workout playlist. Nothing is more inspiring to me than having brand new songs to listen to at the gym. I've recently been turned onto Spotify and I love it. For ten dollars a month you can make unlimited playlists to listen to on or offline, no ads, no skipping-song limits...it's awesome. There's a free version too, but I like it so much I had to upgrade. It's worth it to me though- every time I walk into the gym I look forward to listening to new music or old favorites. It's incredibly inspiring and makes my time working out not only more productive, but more fun too.  I mainly workout to rap and hip hop, but sometimes I'll throw some other things in there to mix it up- and feel free to find me on Spotify- I have a huge workout playlist going.

2. Visualize. I've talked about this many times before, but seriously, just take a moment and imagine yourself walking out of the gym, done with your workout for the day! This morning when my alarm went off at 4:45am I just stayed in bed for a moment, positively dreading stepping even one foot onto the ground. But I knew that if I didn't go, when Henry woke up at 7:30 I would be so upset with myself that I didn't take advantage of this wide-open "me" time. I remembered how great I would feel leaving the gym, sweaty and proud of myself. I know I'd be happier and more productive throughout the day knowing that my workout was done, and I reminded myself that I'd be able to just enjoy hanging out later tonight rather than using that time to fit in a workout. So I dragged myself out of bed and went. And now I sit here typing this as Henry naps, and I feel both proud of myself and excited for tomorrow morning's workout. And you don't have to go to the gym either- take a walk outside, pop in an exercise dvd (see some of my favorites here), or do some yoga. The more you get moving, the easier it gets.

3. Do it for you.  Really think about the fact that eating well and exercising regularly has such a great pay off in the long run. Making a change today results in feeling good today. You'll sleep better, you'll look better, and you'll probably be happier too. Show your body respect in the choices you make with food and exercise, try to get outside as much as possible, and make it a point to do something active everyday.  When I feel like I'm too tired and lazy to go to the gym, I remind myself that I'll feel even more sluggish if I don't go.  If I feel like I just want to sleep in in the mornings, I tell myself that I can go to bed a little earlier tonight so tomorrow morning will be easier. It's not always easy, but on the hard days when I push past my own negative talk and make good choices I feel even better knowing I overcame it.

I've talked about all of these things before, but I definitely needed a reminder this morning, so I thought I'd touch on some of it again. My wish for this new year is that we all get a little healthier and accept ourselves a little more...and all of that starts with today. 

Happy getting-healthy! xoxo

Autumn's 30th Surprise Birthday Party

Autumn's birthday happens to fall on Christmas Eve, so celebrating her special day often gets unintentionally pushed to the side due to a million Christmas and New Year's obligations. Not this year though!  It was Autumn's big 3-0, so her husband Jason decided to throw her a huge surprise celebration. Shirley and Jason combined their forces to create day of wine tasting all around Northern Arizona...on a huge bus!  It was a great time.  We all met at Autumn and Jason's in the morning, then headed up north (close by to where we live actually) to visit some of the vineyards along the way. We stopped at Alcantara, which is right along the Verde River, then continued over to Arizona Stronghold and walked around downtown Cottonwood checking out some other adorable spots. We ended the day eating delicious bruschetta at the Pillsbury Wine Company. 

I'm not much of a drinker so I stayed sober, but I still had the best time eating way too much cheese (it's the very best part of wine tasting in my opinion!), getting super hydrated with my 100 bottles of water and having intense conversations with my fabulously drunken friends. I love them. Our bus turned into a party bus on the two hour ride back to Scottsdale, and I think my cheeks still hurt from all the laughing and smiling I did. It was a great time, and most importantly the birthday girl had a great time! This is the 12th birthday we've celebrated together and every year it just gets better and better!  We've had our crazy ones (hello 21st birthdays while attending NAU!), we've had our calm ones, but this one was right in the middle, and a pretty perfect way to usher in a new decade. Happiest birthday, Autumn Skye.