sunday routine

I'm truly obsessed with the New York Times regular feature, "Sunday Routine," which chronicles a typical Sunday in the life of a local celebrity. Now, I'm hardly a local celebrity. But I do love my Sundays. So, here's my indulgent riff on this fun little column.

BREAKFAST WARS Dan and I start each Sunday off with the same half-serious argument: Where's breakfast? If I win (and that's been happening a lot lately), we go to Iris Cafe for maple yogurt and granola (me), avocado toast with poached eggs (him), and the best chai lattes in the universe for both of us. If he wins, then it's Le Pain Quotidien for scrambled eggs and Belgium hot chocolate.

GROCERY RUN Sundays used to be the day to be lazy and nurse the hangovers from the night out before. But now that things have calmed down for us a bit, we try to spend at least part of the day planning for the week ahead. This usually involves braving the crowds at the Trader Joe's in Carroll Gardens after breakfast and stocking up on groceries for the week. We're pretty good about eating most of our meals at home and bringing our lunch--but that sort of responsibleness only happens when you have time to plan ahead. And a rolling utility cart to get all those groceries home helps, too!

WORKING OUT THE MIND AND BODY Trader Joe's is quite the project, so by the time we get home we're ready for some relaxation. We spend the next few hours reading the New York Times, watching Sunday morning political talk shows, making lunch, and then--provided we can summon the energy--going for a run or (recently for me) other exercise.

FOOTBALL (SORT OF) During the spring and summer we'll spend the afternoon drinking coffee and walking on the promenade or hanging out in Brooklyn Bridge Park. But in the fall, Sundays are all about football for Dan and the games will be on in our living room for most of the day. Can I tell you a little secret? I'm only sort of watching; I'm in the same room, yes, but I'm also usually reading, Pinning, blogging, or baking a fun treat.

SLOW COOKIN' My grandmother gave us a crockpot for our wedding and we've been using it on Sundays to make a big meal with leftovers that we can eat during the week. Tacos are a favorite of ours, as is shredded barbecue chicken. Today we're making turkey chili!

LIGHTS OUT I wish I could say we turn in early to be ready for Monday morning, but we're usually up late watching Mad Men or Homeland and following the action on Twitter. We're both pretty addicted to double screens--I'm planning to break the habit one of these days.

So there you have it. Not the most exciting day of all time, but a lovely and relaxing and frivolous one that totally recharges us for the week ahead. Let's see how much my Sunday routine has changed by this time next year!