the weekend + committing to...

happy monday! are you ready for a new week? i feel like i am--i'm taking a deep breath and jumping right in. and speaking of jumping in, i love these engagement photographs by michael costa. the setting is pretty perfect, and the couple looks so sweet and happy.

how were your weekends? mine was good; i got to catch up with my friend k., who finally came back to town after two weeks away; finished the fantastic book i'd been reading (more to come on that); and went to the beach on sunday afternoon with some work friends. swimming is my new favorite thing; there's nothing quite like the salty, warm water of the gulf washing over you--especially when it's so clear you can see your legs and feet the whole time. follow it with a scoop of mint-chocolate-chip ice cream (green only, please!) in a homemade waffle cone cone from kilwin's on st. armands circle and you've got yourself a perfect day.

here's hoping this week is as good as the weekend--and in that vein, here's my list of commitments for the next seven days:

+ gym it up. now that my membership issues are finally cleared up (yay!), i can get back to a regular routine. and after a carby weekend, i am ready for it.

+ on a related note, brave the heat and go running at least one night this week. i did it last week and it felt amazing; i can do it this one. i just have to pick a night when the humidity isn't 100 percent.

+ this is going to sound completely counter-intuitive, but i also want to bake something this week. i'm on the hunt for my great-aunt rita's incredible brownie recipe and i have a list of relatives i need to call to try to get it. i'm determined to succeed, too. i don't mess around when it comes to baked goods.

+ trying a new recipe again sounds good, too. this will be an ongoing commitment, i think, and i'm going to try to share more of what i end up making with you.

+ remember that stuff i posted about on friday? i meant it. and i'm going to try really hard to take my own advice.

+ and finally, start a new book. on the list: ian mcewan's solar; david mitchell's the thousand autumns of jacob de zoet; yann martel's beatrice and virgil. (more on the book i just finished to come.)