MIMM : Summer in the City

This weekend seemed to fly by!  It felt like the last official weekend of summer (is it really the last day of August!?) so there was a lot going on in Pittsburgh.  Luckily, the weather cooperated and it turned out to be a gorgeous weekend!  

First things first- congratulations to the freekeh giveaway winner Kristen (I'll be sending you an email shortly!).  Thank you all so much for entering and for all your amazing lunch ideas!

Here are a few highlights of my marvelous weekend:


Dan and I went to a Renaissance Fair!  Every year, there's an amazing fair near Pittsburgh that I've always wanted to visit.  It was a ton of fun!  We stopped by a few different shows- my favorites being Cast in Bronze (who appeared on America's Got Talent) and the Duelists (hilarious duo).

Every time I think of a Renaissance Fair, I think of this scene in How I Met Your Mother...hilarious!

pittsburgh ren fair 2015
Another highlight was definitely seeing the Jousting!  It was so entertaining and we had a great view of the action.

pittsburgh renaissance fair 2015
The entire place looked amazing!  It feels like you're in a small town, with lots of little shops and stages.  Most of the people came dressed in costumes, and it definitely felt like we stepped back in time.  The fair is open until September 27, and I highly suggest checking it out!  

pittsburgh night market 2015
Squirrel Hill hosted a night market on Saturday night.  There were vendors, food trucks, live musicians and entertainers.  It was PACKED!  We walked around for a while, but lines were too long at the food trucks and most were selling out of their food.  

The next market is September 26, and I'll plan on getting there earlier in the evening!

naya pittsburgh review
For dinner, we stopped at Naya, which serves Middle Eastern food.  Dan and I split a platter, which had tabouli, grape leaves, baba ghanouj, hummus, feta, olives served with pita.  It was so good!  I will definitely be back at the restaurant- the service was great and it was really affordable. 

I'm going to end this post with a picture of a camel..isn't he cute?

How was your weekend?
Have you been to a Renaissance Fair?
What's your favorite animal?


Comments

  1. Jenny @ apples & kaleAugust 31, 2015 at 5:31 AM

    I can't believe it's time for the Renaissance fair again already!! We went with my husband's coworker and his family last year, and my flip flop broke first thing, so I had a very authentic peasant experience walking around barefoot in the mud all day. Ha! I still had fun!

    I want to go again this year and wear better shoes. :)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Gretchen BraunAugust 31, 2015 at 8:39 AM

      Wow that's crazy! I definitely saw a lot of people without shoes so I'm sure you didn't stick out at at all lol! I hope you can make it down. It was so much fun!

      Delete
  2. UnknownAugust 31, 2015 at 6:17 AM

    I remember going to one of those fairs back in my teen travel camp days! Feels like yesterday.

    ReplyDelete
  3. JamieAugust 31, 2015 at 6:25 AM

    What a cool weekend! And I'm super jealous that you got to hang with a camel! Favorite animal would definitely have to be puppies... but since that's pretty generic, I'm also a big fan of koalas :)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Gretchen BraunAugust 31, 2015 at 8:40 AM

      Yes for the puppies! And dogs in general! Koalas are so cool too. Pretty much any animal I'm happy with :)

      Delete
  4. LesleyAugust 31, 2015 at 7:12 AM

    I think of the BBT when someone says Renaissance Fair. I went to one in 8th grade and it was pretty fun. Now I could indulge in the adult drinks.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Gretchen BraunAugust 31, 2015 at 8:40 AM

      I skipped on the alcohol, but was pleasantly surprised that it wasn't outrageously priced. $4 for a beer (even if it was a small 10oz cup..not bad!)

      Delete
  5. UnknownAugust 31, 2015 at 8:19 AM

    Oh, that camel is so cute! I love its smile. My favourite animal is anything cat.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Gretchen BraunAugust 31, 2015 at 8:41 AM

      he is cute :) I like big cats but I'm not always sure about house cats..they don't like me very much

      Delete
  6. UnknownAugust 31, 2015 at 9:05 AM

    Haha that camel is cute. I have plans on the 26 but if they fall through, I must get to the next night out! That sounds fantastic. I have never been to the Renaissance fair but have always heard great things about it!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Gretchen BraunAugust 31, 2015 at 10:15 AM

      You would love the night market! It was really cool. And you definitely have to stop by the fair sometime (maybe with your daughter in a few years??)

      Delete
  7. UnknownAugust 31, 2015 at 10:02 AM

    I have never been to a a Renaissance fair before, but it looks cool! That platter of food looks amazing! Hummus is one of my favorite foods ever.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Gretchen BraunAugust 31, 2015 at 10:15 AM

      It was so much fun! And I love hummus as well :) Delicious!

      Delete
  8. Kristen @ See You In A PorridgeAugust 31, 2015 at 10:04 AM

    oh yay me! how excitement.
    my favourite animal is probably a cat - i have 3 lol. i love tigers too, but have never met one ;)
    this looks super fun - that food looks soooooo good. i love mediterranean food.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Gretchen BraunAugust 31, 2015 at 10:16 AM

      Congratulations Kristen!! I sent you an email :)

      Delete
  9. Gretchen BraunAugust 31, 2015 at 12:24 PM

    Ohh fox is an interesting choice! I don't think I've ever heard that one before, but they are really cool animals! Thanks for stopping by :)

    ReplyDelete
  10. Lauren | Just a PinchAugust 31, 2015 at 12:50 PM

    Looks like a great weekend! We used to visit the Renaissance Fair every year in Minnesota and I loved it! My favorite thing was to get my hair braided because the women were super talented and always designed the coolest hair styles. We also got to ride on elephants, which was super fun as a kid :)

    And that camel looks like it's smiling!!!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Gretchen BraunSeptember 1, 2015 at 7:05 AM

      I was thinking about getting my hair braided but ended up passing. Now I wish I did it! I wish I got to ride on an elephant..that sounds really fun!

      Delete
  11. julie WunderAugust 31, 2015 at 2:15 PM

    I used to go to a Renaissance fair when I lived in Florida and loved it. Looks like a great time.

    ReplyDelete
  12. julie WunderAugust 31, 2015 at 2:15 PM

    I used to go to a Renaissance fair when I lived in Florida and loved it. Looks like a great time.

    ReplyDelete
  13. UnknownSeptember 1, 2015 at 1:23 AM

    Cool that Squirrel Hill has an evenining market! Too bad we'll be away for the next one. We went to the Ren Festival once...that was enough for us. ;)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Gretchen BraunSeptember 1, 2015 at 7:06 AM

      I'm sure they'll be back next year! They're fun but it was super crowded so you might not like it. It's nothing different than the arts fest but on a smaller scale!

      Delete
  14. Gina DailySeptember 1, 2015 at 6:09 AM

    I loved following along with your Snapchat of the Ren Fest this weekend! Those are so fun! Okay, actually I haven't been to one but I did go to a joust tournament and Medieval times once so that's kind of similar, right? LOL.
    Gina || On the Daily Express

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Gretchen BraunSeptember 1, 2015 at 7:07 AM

      I think that counts! Lol! Thanks for following my story..hopefully it was interesting :)

      Delete
  15. Jess @hellotofitSeptember 2, 2015 at 9:36 AM

    I've been to the Renaissance Fair twice! It's always interesting to see how many people dress up :)
    SO cool that you went to a night market. I'd love to go!

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Relationship Rules I Broke (and WEDDING PHOTOS!)

Image
Happy Thursday everyone! Today I have a different type of post to share today.  I don't talk about relationships or my dating life much on the blog, but I'm switching it up today!  I got married last Friday, and I thought it would be fun to share some relationship rules that I broke while Dan and I dated. I'll also be sharing some wedding pictures!  We got married at the Butterfly Falls at the Hidden Valley Inn in Belize (more on the Inn in upcoming posts!), and the pictures turned out absolutely amazing.  Since we had a "just the two of us" ceremony, there's not much to talk about the actual wedding.  In lieu of a full post on that, I'll be sharing some background information on our relationship, along with wedding photos and some #ThrowbackThursday pictures.  I hope you enjoy (and I promise- back to running stuff next week!) Guys are immature, so date someone older I've always read in magazines (which, by the way, have the worst datin
Read more

Towpath Half Marathon Recap

Image
Hi everyone and Happy Tuesday!  Today I'll be recapping my race this weekend, the Towpath Half Marathon.  Overall, I had a great experience at the race and would definitely recommend it!  Before I dive into the mile-by-mile recap, I just wanted to give some overall thoughts and reviews of the race as a whole. The Towpath Marathon features three races- a full marathon, half marathon and 10k.  All three races are in the Cuyahoga Valley National Park, but all run different courses.  The half and 10k start at the Brandywine Ski Resort, while the full starts at the Boston Mills Ski Resort (where the expo is held). The course is mostly on a narrow crushed limestone trail that is relatively flat.  There are a few sections that were paved and a few small walking bridges that provided the only real inclines.  It's really hard to pass people (particularly near the turn where it's two-way traffic) since the trail is so narrow. There are a lot of water stations, and each o
Read more

Review- Group Power

Image
Happy Weekend everyone!  Today, I'll be doing a review of another group exercise I do at my gym called Group Power !  Let's get right into it. First off, the description in our program guide is "This 60-minute barbell program strengthens all your major muscles in an inspiring, motivating group environment with simple, athletic movements such as squats, lunges, presses and curls." I don't exactly look like this when I'm curling..but you get the idea! Let me tell you, this is one intense workout!  For the entire 60 minutes, we're constantly moving and lifting and by the end I'm a pool of sweat!  We work out all the major muscle groups - Legs, Chest, Triceps, Biceps, Glutes, Shoulders, and Core with light to moderate weights.  We also use a step to do exercises like chest presses and split squats. For each song, we focus on one muscle group, and do a variety of exercises with lots of repetitions, set to the beat of the music.  The tempo of the
Read more