Weekend Getaway: New York, NY

Last weekend, Dave and I drove up to Brooklyn to visit Meghan and Derek. We were hoping to spend a relaxing weekend exploring the city with our friends. Luckily for us, that's exactly how things went down.

We drove into the city on Saturday morning...

Crossing the Verrazano-Narrows Bridge on our way into Brooklyn.

...and grabbed some delicious hot sandwiches at a local cafe before heading over to Roosevelt Island. We walked the length of the Island and checked out the lighthouse and the brand new memorial park at the southern tip.

Looking into Manhattan...

...and then looking over to Queens.

Check out the Oz-like FDR memorial just beyond Dave's shoulder!

As the afternoon grew cooler we started to make our way back to Meghan and Derek's apartment where Derek mixed up some Manhattans and we snacked on cheese and crackers.

Our college friend Julia joined us at Talde for dinner with her boyfriend. We ordered enough yummy Asian food to fill our entire table! My favorites were the Korean fried chicken and the Brussels sprouts.

We finished off the evening at the Brooklyn Academy of Music where we enjoyed after-dinner drinks and a jazz band.

Meghan made us buttermilk waffles on Sunday morning and then we headed home. Dave and I were so glad that we took this little weekend trip since we were stuck inside for a couple of days when Hurricane Sandy hit on Monday. I hope everybody stayed safe during the hurricane!

D.C. Weekend Getaway Recap

Now that September has arrived, I find myself clinging to all things summer. I'm enjoying dinner and wine on the balcony, long walks around the neighborhood in shorts and flip-flops, and hot, sticky days more than I have all summer because I know they will be gone before I know it.

So, I thought this would be a great time to recap a little trip Dave and I took to D.C. in early August. I blogged about our fabulous hotel already - it was as lovely as ever. After we checked in on Friday evening, we strolled over to our friends Bekah and Nate's house for drinks. Bekah and Nate live in a sweet, cozy garden apartment that was the perfect place for catching up. Later, they took us up to their roof to show us the D.C. skyline at night.

On Saturday, Dave and I ate a leisurely breakfast near our hotel and then headed over to the Newseum. We spent the afternoon wandering around the museum before heading up to the roof (are you sensing a theme?) for some fresh air. The view was great up there and it felt like a little bonus to the exhibits.

Dave is such a trooper - he very patiently let me take
several pictures of him throughout the weekend.

We worked up an appetite in the Newseum, so we headed over to Oyamel for tacos and limeade. 

Later that day, we met up with Bekah and Nate in Alexandria for a bit of window shopping and dinner. Alexandria is lovely and you will have to visit for yourself to get a feel for the town because I forgot to take pictures - bummer.

On Sunday, we drove over to Arlington for brunch with our friends Andy and Danielle. Danielle made us delicious omelets and mimosas which fortified us for our drive home.

I feel so fortunate to make this trip every summer and we always have a great time. I hope you enjoyed reliving a bit of summer fun with me. :)

Thirty

So, I turned 30 last week. That's a big deal, right? It felt really good to enter my thirties - I was starting to get bored of my twenties. :)

Dave planned an awesome birthday week for me. In our family, we welcome birthdays with a week-long celebration that includes small gifts, dinners out, and fun activities all in addition to cake and gifts on your actual birthday. For my thirtieth birthday week, I received some really sweet gifts like a bottle of my favorite perfume and gift certificate for a manicure. Dave also surprised me with flowers, dinner at our favorite Thai restaurant, a night at the movies, and he made me homemade pizza.

Our families joined us for dinner at Heirloom, a fabulous restaurant in Chestnut Hill. We dined at a long family-style table in the middle of the restaurant. I tried foie gras and had short ribs with grilled peaches. So good! We all went back to our house for cake, coffee, and gifts. It was a super fun night and I felt like one fortunate girl.



P.S. My parents gave me a new camera and I'm so excited to share some much-improved photos with you soon!

A New Coffee Routine

After 3+ years of starting my work day with a cup of free office coffee I finally reached a point where I just couldn't take it any longer. Our office coffee isn't brewed in a traditional coffee pot, but dispensed through a large machine that takes the contents of small packets of "coffee" and combines them with hot water for a truly awful coffee beverage.

I treated myself to a small French press this past weekend and it makes delicious, hot coffee in just a few minutes. Now, I find myself wondering why I waited so long to make the switch.



I love small rituals that make the day a bit brighter. Now, I count my 10:00 cup of coffee as a small pleasure that I look forward to each morning.

Happy May Day!

Friday Night Shake Run

Last week was a bit rough for me, so Dave and I decided that a late night shake run was just the thing to get the weekend off to a good start. We headed to our local Micky D's for some delicious, minty Shamrock Shakes. The shakes are quite good this year (sometimes they taste like toothpaste - yuck!). 

Have a great week!