Over too Fast

Well, another long weekend has come and gone and Darren is safe and sound back in Wisconsin.  45ish days until we see each other again, and hopefully we’ll have a house by then.

We had a great weekend here in VA together that started almost the second Dar got off the plane on Friday evening.  We navigated home through rush-hour traffic where we met up with my roommate Dani and her boyfriend to head out to dinner.  We decided to check out the new Market Tavern (used to be Harry’s Tap Room), and while a little on the pricey side for regular visits, it was delicious and nice for a special occasion.  Oh and two words, bread bar.  That is all.

Spotted, my new Bridier Baubles Boca Grande necklace and matching earrings that came as a free gift!

Friday night lasted much longer that I’m used to, and I was dragging a little the next morning when it was time to get up and get ready for kickball.  Yes, kickball and all it brings with it is back for another season, which means afternoons spent on The Mall followed by Miller Lights and tots in the evening.  Bring, it, on.

After winning our game, and a few hours in the bar, Darren and I said our goodbyes and headed home to hang out and relax.  After a pit stop at TJ’s (which I’m appalled to say my love did not like) we figured out a solution as how to grill our dinner in the rain.

Why we never thought to move the grill to our front porch I do not know, but it worked just fine.  Darren braved the cold and rain, while I kept the couch warm :).  The kebabs were delicious, thanks to TJ’s pre-marinated meat and cheap produce.  So what if they don’t sell marinade, you don’t need it.

Sunday was spent lazing around watching movies, until we pulled ourselves up off the couch and joined some of my friends to watch the Caps game at Whitlows.  Darren is a strange guy, and not really a big sports fan, so I spent some time secretly explaining why such penalties were called the Stanley Cup playoff structure. Shh, don’t tell him I told you.

The rest of the weekend was spent much the same way, drinking, eating, and lounging.  We did venture out for few hours yesterday to drop my bridesmaid dress off for altering and some home shopping at Crate and Barrel.  We managed to pick out flatware and plates that we both like, which is a huge accomplishment.

Today it’s back to life as normal, with no days off until the end of May.  Luckily, Amy, Jess, and Steph are coming to visit Kacy an I in a mere 10 days and I CAN’T WAIT! It’s going to be a ridiculously fun weekend, and I’m excited to finally meet Jess in person.  Although, sometimes I forget that I haven’t.  Well, happy Tuesday you fools. s

What a Weekend

After tons of family time this weekend, I was more than ready to spend the majority of my day yesterday alone and relaxing to wind down the weekend.  Then I realized how absolutely gorgeous it was outside, and pulled my shit together and joined my roommates in Clarendon for an afternoon of beer drinking in the sun.  I got home around 8:30 last night, and immediately crawled into bed until it was bedtime around 11.  Let’s back up to the beginning though.

After a typically slow Friday afternoon at work, I decided to take 2.5 hours of vacation and call it a day at 2:00.  My mom, aunt, and sis were already in town and bugging me to come hang out with them before dinner, and so I did.  We headed out into Clarendon for pre-dinner drinks and Boulevard Woodgrill before moving on to our 6:45 dinner reservation at American Tap Room.  It was a wonderful evening that we capped off by doing some wine induced shopping at Lululemon and Ann Taylor.  I picked up this adorable new workout top, while my mom, sis, and aunt all got some things at Ann Taylor.

Saturday started bright and early, way too early for the amount of wine that was consumed on Friday night if you ask me, and my sister and I met back up with the fam (now joined by another aunt and uncle) for a day of sightseeing downtown.  You know what’s annoying? Having to get 4 people metro cards while trying to make a train arriving in two minutes.  We missed the train and ended up waiting for a good 20 minutes for another one.  We made it to our brunch reservation at Distrtict Chophouse about 30 minutes late, and I was more than ready for a mimosa and food by then.

After brunch, the 6 of us headed over to the Spy Museum for some culture and fun.  I really enjoyed the museum, but I think I would have liked it more on a Tuesday afternoon when it was less crowded.  It was hard to really take advantage of all the things it had to offer when there were so many people around.  My sister and I eventually found ourselves separated from the group and enjoyed the museum together.  Most amusing was this mug I thought about buying Dar for his birthday.

He didn’t see the humor in it that I did.  Oh well.  After we all made it through the museum, our adventures continued with a walk down to The Mall. My aunt had never seen the Jefferson Memorial up close, so we strolled down to the Tidal Basin to take a look and see if the Cherry Blossom’s were blooming yet.  FYI, they’re not.

Then it was back to the metro to head to the hotel for a quick outfit change before our dinner in Georgetown.  My aunt and uncle treated us all to dinner at their favorite place, Neyla.  I was a little apprehensive about the meal at first, as I’m not a very adventurous eater, but I ended up loving it!  We ordered an array of appetizers, and for my meal I went with the Chicken Shish Taouk and was happily surprised.  I told the roommates we’d have to go back and check it out again when it’s warm enough to sit outside.

It was a long and exhausting weekend that left my feet and lower back aching, but I’m glad we had good weather and got to explore DC.  Now I just need to get my sis out to Wisconsin and show her that it’s not too bad…

Happy Monday!

NYC Part 2 and a Celeb Spotting

Happy 1st day of summer everyone!  I guess that means that these 90 degree temps and 80% humidity are appropriate now?  My sister and I made it home from NYC yesterday just in time to sit on the couch and watch True Blood.  Traveling is exhausting.  Anyway, back to recapping my NYC weekend, did you miss part 1?

NYC Weekend So Far

Saturday morning after a breakfast of bagels, we set out on an adventure of the city.  My sister hasn’t really seen much of NYC so we wanted to show her around.  Of course the many parks and dog runs were a high priority.

Union Square Park

And of course a stop in the Union Square Lululemon shop was a necessity, the bf got a little nervous when he saw me talking to a sales lady.  I escaped without spending my whole savings account though.

We went into Crumbs and just stared at all the cupcakes, they all look so amazing.

Washington Square Park

I was about ready to jump in this fountain, it was so hot!  Both my sis and I ended up with sunburnt shoulders, woops.  And of course we stopped for some self-serve froyo, because no trip to NYC is complete without it.

After and exhausting afternoon of sightseeing, we all needed a nap.  The three of us passed out for a little while, and woke up to start getting ready for dinner.  My one request of the weekend (besides froyo obviously) was to go to my favorite Mexican place, Hop Devil Grill.  They have the best sangria, and I’m obsessed.  It’s located on St. Marks between 1st Ave and Ave A.

After stuffing ourselves to the brim, we moved on to Horseshoe Bar on the corner of 7th Ave and Ave B where we spent the remainder of the night playing games like Photo Hunt, Lawn Darts, and Big Buck Hunter.  My sister was amazed at my bison killing skills.  She was pretty excited about spending the majority of the evening in Alphabet City because she is as obsessed with RENT as I am.  Her and I thought it would be completely appropriate to burst into song and dance in the middle of the street, but the boys disagreed so we refrained.  Our night ended with a few Natty Lights and Man vs. Food episodes at home, all in all a success.

Sunday I managed to sleep in until 10:30, which is amazing because lately I’m always wide awake at 8:30.  After lounging around for a bit, the bf, sis, and I went out for a little run.  I wore my new Lululemon shorts with a back pocket, so I was finally able to bring my camera to take some pics of the path we always run along.

Luckily there was a great breeze coming off the water yesterday that kept us a lot cooler than if we had been running through the city.  Yesterday was so hot and humid!

Group runs are so much more fun than running solo, I loved having the bf and sis with me.  After a run through the Stuyvesant Town sprinklers and a round of cold showers for each of us, we again set out to explore more of the city.  This time we ended up in Soho, where I had my first celeb spotting!  There I was walking down the street and a very skinny lady was walking towards me.  My first thought was “wow she is very thin”, then “she kind of looks like Rachel Zoe”, finally “OMG that is Rachel Zoe!”.  Rachel Zoe and her husband walked right by me on the sidewalk!  I used to watch her show, The Rachel Zoe Project, on Bravo all the time, so I was pretty excited.  And yes, she is that skinny in real life.

All in all, it was a very fun and eventful weekend, and I am exhausted today.  Luckily I only have to get through 10 days of work before I’m off on my week-long OBX vacation.  I hope everyone had a great weekend, try to have a great Monday as well!