A needed face lift

Notice anything new around here?!? Anything look a little younger, fresher, or tighter to you? 

Um hello. It's the blog! 

I've been investing a little extra time in sprucing Marissa Says... up a bit and I hope you like the new clean look. As I mentioned a few weeks back I'm really feigning for a nice new camera. With that in mind, I'm starting to move the design of the blog in a direction that focuses more on photos. Is this the direction I should be going? You tell me. You're the people I do this for in the first place!

 

Photos above show Marissa Says... on launch day compared to what it looks like now. And it's only been seven months since I launched. Imagine what it will look like after a couple of years, it will be super snazzy then. 

My Week in Photos 5/20 - 5/26

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I was surprised to see that I only snapped a few photos last week. I hope everyone had a great Memorial Day weekend. We had no plans but somehow a weekend of no plans turned into a weekend of lots of activity. 

Friday we went out for some drinks with friends. Saturday we had the same friends over and grilled, played card games, and roasted up some 'mallows by the fire. Sunday we drove up to Jersey to hang with the same friends for another cookout, complete with lots of beer pong, and then Monday we actually got some work done around the house and then met up with friends (yes...the same ones we spent the entire weekend with) to see the new Star Trek movie. Good times! 

1. We ordered an eighth of a cow this from Philly Cow Share and this is what it looks like in our freezer. Looks like we will be eating meat for the rest of our lives. We also may have ordered a extra 5 lbs of ground beef in addition because they were having a Memorial Day sale. Yikes. But in all honesty, this company is great. I love eating LOCAL grass-fed, antibiotic-free beef. 

Perfecting the kale salad

The good old super food strikes again. I've had my fair share of kale in the past year, I've done the kale chips, sauteed kale, grilled kale, kale in soup, and the smoothie with kale (I was not impressed. I think I put in way too much, the whole thing tasted like dirt). But the one thing I kept hesitating to do was the kale salad. 

It was my theory that kale, being a similar texture to collard greens, really needed to be cooked down to be enjoyed. It just seemed way too tough and bitter to eat in the raw form. Well after some web surfing I quickly learned the "secret." 

Homemade margaritas by the margarita snob

I simply adore margaritas. They are the perfect warm weather drink, all citrusy and refreshing. I'm do not really discriminate when it comes to margaritas, I'll take them frozen, on the rocks, flavored or classic. I do prefer when they are not overly sweetened and I always take them without salt (or sugar). 

BryGuy however, is the worlds biggest margarita snob. He likes them one way and one way only. On the rocks, fresh squeezed lime juice and some agave nectar to sweeten. Don't you dare try to give him a salted rim, he'll throw that drink right in your face. Just kidding, he's not that mean. 

My week in photos 5/13 - 5/19

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1. This little Cook's Essentials coffee maker gets used every day in my office. Before I brought it in, I was spending $10 a week on coffee, now it's like $2 a week, if that!

Help! What's the best digital SLR camera for a newbie?

There are a THOUSAND websites out there recommending what camera I should get as a newbie to the DSLR category. However, none of them agree with each other and some of them get into all the nitty gritty details that I don't need. And basically, I don't trust random people on the internet as much as I trust my family and friends. So folks who have some experience with DSLRs, what do you think? 

Here's my criteria:

Purpose
I have this totally awesome blog (Right? Am I right? Can I get an Amen?), but my images are not measuring up. I currently use my Samsung GSIII camera phone for a lot of the photos and I also have a little point and shoot that I'll use at home for some food or home decor images, but I'd really like to elevate the quality of my photos. Plus, I have a little artsy side to me so I think I'll enjoy the hobby. 

The thrift shop score of the century

BryGuy has been looking for a black leather biker jacket for about...a lifetime (well realistically like a year or so). We thought maybe he'd find one on our honeymoon in Italy. We stopped in Florence, (known for their leather goods), but unfortunately, he didn't find the style he was looking for. 

A few weeks back, we made a trip to Boston to celebrate Greek Easter with our besties. On Saturday morning, we woke up and took a little stroll from my friend's place in Southie over to the South End for some fabulous brunch at Gaslight Brasserie. After brunch we strolled around the neighborhood taking in the sites and sunshine. 

We stumbled upon this little shop, Bobby from Boston, and I asked Bryun if he wanted to poke around a bit. He reluctantly agreed, thinking it was going to be one of those trips where I browse for way too long, while he sits in a chair looking at sports scores on his phone. As it turns out, the store carried mostly men's vintage clothing and accessories. We walked in and BryGuy's eyes lit up, then he bee-lined it for the leather section. 

My Week in Photos 5/6 - 5/12

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1. This ring was left to me by my late grandmother. I don't usually wear gold, or antique looking jewelry but because this has sentimental value, I fell in love immediately. My grandmother was probably the most organized person on the planet, she had almost all of her belonging accounted for and assigned to someone (with specific reasons why) before she passed away. 

Guest Post - BryGuy Takes the Wheel

From Marissa: 
The other day, BryGuy says to me, "You're so cool, you have a blog and write about all the fun stuff we do. I feel like I'm just here, not doing anything with myself..." I mean, it's true. I'm significantly cooler than him. But I didn't want to make him feel bad. So, I proposed an idea. I suggested that he guest-post on my blog from time to time. This way you can learn a little bit more about him in his own words and I can take a day off. So here he is, BryGuy in all his glory.

From BryGuy: 

Thanks Marissa. Oh thank you thank you for being ever so gracious and allowing me to taint the sanctity of your precious blog.

Marissa gets so much love on this blog and I am just a mere prop she places here and there for her own enjoyment. I'm sure a lot of you feel this way and are thinking,"Wow, does BryGuy just sit there and watch Marissa do awesome things?" The answer to that question is YES. But, the few times I am a functioning individual, this is what I am doing (in no particular order):

Christos Anesti - Greek Easter in Boston

I'm blessed with some pretty amazing friends from my college years at Northeastern. Unfortunately, they ALL stayed around Boston after graduation. I'm the odd duck out. I lived in New York for a while and then made my way down to Philly to be with BryGuy. While I do get a little jealous at how often they get to see each other because of geographic proximity, I try and make a few visits a year to Boston to spend some quality time with them and cackle like we used to do in college. 

Last month, Bry and I visited Boston and had a blast, so much fun in fact, that while we were visiting (and under the influence of a few espresso martinis) we booked a trip back for May. The real reason we had to get back to the Bean so quickly was because they were hosting their annual, and world-famous Greek Easter celebration! If you don't know about Greek Easter, you clearly don't have any Greek friends. This party is the real deal -- it's a full day of chowing down, drinking and spending time with friends and family. Don't ask me why Greek Orthodox Easter and Western Christian eastern don't fall on the same day, I don't really know... except a quick Google search explains that they are simply calculated differently.

My Week in Photos 4/29 - 5/5

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1. I finally got around to planting my little herb garden. I love having fresh herbs around for cooking and making cocktails. I always plant some rosemary (perfect for my roast chicken recipe), basil, cilantro, mint, and a jalapeño plant.

My Week in Photos: 4/22 - 4/28

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1. I had a work event on Penn's Campus this week, well actually it wasn't really on campus, but it was in this new building they recently acquired that will be used for lab and commercial space. The space was really raw, but it had a very cool view of the city through these dusty windows. 

Our "Style Me Pretty" Wedding Debut

We're so excited and honored to be featured on the Style Me Pretty: New York wedding blog! SMP was a blog I always browsed when I wanted to swoon over gorgeous, detailed, and highly personalized weddings during my planning days.  

I was one of those crazy bride that actually enjoyed the planning process and I didn't want the wedding to actually come, because that would mean it was all over! BryGuy and I were so lucky to work with wonderful vendors that made the day extra special. 

See our post on Style Me Pretty: New York - Upstate Wedding from Bailly Photography 

You might be interested in reading:

• Post-Wedding Depression is Legit
• Tips for Future Brides - Part I
• Tips for Future Brides - Part II

Should We Get A Dog?

What do you think? Should we? I think I already know the answer to this. I have a feeling that you are probably going to say YES. I can hear it now, "But Marissa, they are so cuddly, and cute, and man's best friend, and it will keep you company when your husbands away, and it'll protect your house, and blah blah blah." I KNOW dogs are wonderful, I really do. 

My family had dogs growing up and they were awesome. Cody was super lovable, he had very little brain power, and he just wanted you to pet him or hold his hand. Seriously. He liked to hold peoples hands.... Abbey was kind of moody, some might even call her bitchy or a princess. She didn't like to go outside when it was wet and she was really picky about how her bed was set up, but she was super attuned to human emotion, like a little nurse dog. Both have since passed away, but I still think of them fondly.