viva las vegas!

the strip (looking north)

at the beginning of august, craig and i packed our bags and hopped a flight to vegas.  we'd never been to "sin city" before, so we were both excited and wary of what we might find in the middle of the nevada dessert.

we met a couple of our good friends out there, which obviously sweetened the deal.  and after a lot of sun, cocktails and walking, we concluded that vegas is certainly a must-see at least once.  it's like an over-the-top disney world for adults :-)

one of our favorite things we did was a helicopter ride to the grand canyon.  we actually landed in the base of the canyon for a champagne dinner!  it was totally awesome!!

inside the bellagio

the exterior of new york, new york

we had just checked into the flamingo, and wanted some lunch -- we weren't there 5 min when the bartender started dancing on the bar as the wait staff danced in the aisles.  oh, yeah...we're in vegas.

enjoying a "fish bowl" with my ladies (from left to right: me, amy, ashley)

lounging by the flamingo's pool

our ride to the grand canyon

the eiffel tower...sort of...

the luxor

flying over the grand canyon!

view from the bellagio of the strip

more pics of the canyon

mandalay bay's over 21 pool

inside the wynn

craig and me in the base of the grand canyon!

as you would expect, the pics don't do the canyon justice -- it was truly breathtaking.  i'd tell you more about our trip, but as you know..."what happens in vegas, stays in vegas".  lol

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last beach weekend

this past weekend craig & i took our good friends (cate & chad) up on their offer to enjoy a final beach weekend at chad’s parents’ beach house.

we headed down early saturday – and after a bit of traffic – arrived in seaville (outside of ocean city, nj) around 11am.

after a quick change into bathing suits, we headed to the beach.  we spent the afternoon enjoying some sun, sand and delicious sandwiches cate had prepared.  turkey, tomato, baby greens and cheddar on whole grain bread smeared with mayo & grainy mustard.  sandwiches on the beach always taste great, but this one was particularly good.  and, we even had the privilege of watching an ocean-front wedding ceremony when we first arrived!

saturday evening found us back at the house for grilled turkey burgers and a garden-fresh salad.  after a few vodka cocktails, card games and a few rounds of “never have I ever…” ensued.  fun and very college-esque : )

sunday morning, we played tennis.  boys vs. girls.  cate and i are sad to report we lost our one set match 8-6…

early afternoon, we headed to downtown ocean city for lunch at a quaint sidewalk café.  we laughed as we placed our orders, realizing that both cate & i and both guys ordered the same things.

cate and i opted for the veggie-bomb sandwich on pumpernickel bread.  the sandwich was overwhelming huge…and delicious.  homemade bread piled high with fresh tomatoes, cucumbers, mixed greens, sprouts and avocado.  finished off with a bit of pesto mayo and provolone cheese.  omg.  amazing.  the guys opted for grilled chicken quesadillas, which did not disappoint, either.

the veggie bomb : )

after lunch, a long walk down the board walk reminded me of childhood summers.  the cool ocean breeze masked the hotness of the sun, and we had fun people watching before wrapping up our day.

once back at the house, craig and i quickly packed up, hoping to beat the impending rain which was threatening to slow our drive.  despite our best efforts, the rain won, and we slowly made our way back home.

it was almost fitting that our glorious (last) beach weekend was washed away by cold rain, reminding us that summer’s drawing to a close. 

craig & me

but…summer’s not over quite yet…i have my bachelorette extravaganza next weekend!!!  and i cannot wait!

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cheers!

today my cousin (and dear friend) erin is getting married!  i am unbelievably excited : )  erin is an amazing person, and i've admired and loved hanging out with her for years (and years).  she's the (girl) cousin closest to my age, and we've been close ever since we were small.  han (my sis) and i would always look forward to visits from erin and meg (erin's sis).  when we were growing up, they lived in michigan and then moved to texas.  with han and me living in nj, our visits with erin and meg were truly the highlight of our year : )

the reception will be at the pearl s. buck house

and now erin is getting married.  it's just all so wonderful!  and what's even better is that erin and her very-soon-to-be-husband, brian, now only live a half hour away.  needless to say, we get to see them much more, which is much more to our liking.

pearl s. buck house

so...cheers!  uncork the champagne and let the bubbles flow.  cheers to erin & brian on their happy day.  they will undoubtedly have a lifetime of happiness.  love you guys : )

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dinner with friends (alternate title: champagne & jell-o shots)

champagne & jell-o shots

last night craig and i had 4 of our very best friends - cate, chad, erin & brian - over for dinner.  with summer weekends numbered, we decided to get together for one last warm weather hurrah before the fall craziness sets in.  erin & brian are getting married the end of october, so needless to say, they have a lot of busy weeks coming up.  (just to catch you up to speed, cate & chad are getting married in june of 2011, and craig & i are getting hitched november 5th, 2011!)  fun times ahead : )

well, back to the party.  we actually invited them over for a "bbq", but since i was working until 6pm, i had to make all the food in advance.  i decided to make sausage with peppers and onions.  ok, ok, i know that doesn't sound all that gourmet, but it turned out pretty good, if i do say so myself.  (i actually got caught squeegeeing my own plate last night to savor the last few remnants of sauce - good thing they're good friends!) 

i opted for chicken and turkey sausages - a spinach & feta, a mild italian and a white wine, parsley & garlic.  i sauteed chopped vidalia onions and red peppers in olive oil in a large pot.  i pan seared the sausage separately, chopped them and then added the sausage and pan drippings to the onions and peppers, added a jar or so of good marinara sauce as well as a can of chopped tomatoes and presto!  pot-o-sausage&peppers&onions.  to really make it a homerun, i made homemade bread.  (it's much easier than it sounds - but it always impresses.  thank you, hannie!)  i made a pesto loaf and also a garlic loaf.  yummy!  cate brought a fresh, delicious green salad with countless farmer's market toppings and erin made super good cauliflower & curry dip that she served with whole grain tortilla chips as an appetizer.  we ate well.  and drank well too...

i greeted my guests with two pitchers of fun summery drinks.  a simple sangria (and when i say simple, i mean simple) - one bottle of red wine plus (don't laugh) two 24oz cans of mike's hard lemonade.  yes, that's right.  i'm classy, i know.  but it did the trick.  i added fresh squeezed orange slices and added fresh peach slices and ice.  it was good and went down a little too easy.  the other pitcher was spiked iced tea.  sun tea + (don't laugh, again) two 24oz cans of twisted tea.  (don't judge, the large cans were leftovers from a fun trip to ohio to see my sis.)  again, i classed it up with some fresh lemon slices.  both drinks were refreshing and the guests had no complaints.

since i was at work all day, craig was at the helm for the day-of-party prep, and boy oh boy, did i train that boy well!  the cottage and yard looked beautiful.  the lights were on, candles were lit, dinner was simmering, music was playing, the yard was prepped with table and chairs and the fire pit was awaiting a match.  well done, craig.  well done.

after drinks & appetizers accompanied with wedding talk, girl talk and a few rounds of quoits (a yard game kind of like horseshoe but better), we enjoyed dinner at the dining room table inside.  the dinner was enjoyed by all and yes, as i mentioned, i did a hostess "no-no" and practically licked my plate clean.  (i know you've done it too at one time or another.)

on to dessert.  the boys headed outside to light the fire pit and we "prepped" dessert.  meaning i got the marshmallows, hershey's bars and graham crackers out of the pantry : )  i mean, honestly, is there anything better than s'mores on a cool summer evening?!  dessert was paired with champagne.  we uncorked the veuve clicquot that my parents gave craig and me when we got engaged and toasted to the inexplicable twist of fate that we're all engaged at the same time.  (erin, cate and i have been friends for years - i've known cate since i was two, and erin is my cousin.)  i don't think we ever would have imagined in all our childhood discussions that we'd all be at this life step at the same time.  it's wonderful and has been a lot of fun!

so what's the only thing that can make s'mores and champagne and summer and hanging with good friends even better?  raspberry jell-o shots.  chad seemed especially appreciative, but come on, what says "party!" and "fun!" more than good old-fashioned jell-o shots?!  it was a fun time.  a really fun time.

me, cate, erin

well, thanks to a brilliant team effort on all fronts, the party was a huge success.  the only one who didn't enjoy it (unfortunately) was little olive, our dog.  she hid in her crate all night.

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