Travelin' Fools

Well, John and I are off tomorrow to the lovely town of Albuquerque, New Mexico for Erin and Daniel's wedding. We are really looking forward to it.

I'll be sure to post pics and stories when I return on Monday.

Happy long weekend to you all!

Where in the World is Matt?

I couldn't resist posting these three emails from my brother Matt regarding his travels to Giuliana's wedding in Italy. For some reason I can picture him so clearly and it cracks me up every time I think of it. By the way, he's emailing from the Blackberry she got him recently. It's complete with international service for this trip.

Email 1
I made it to germany !!! Thank god for those sleeping pills - the gay flight attendent moved me up to business class and got me an entire row so I could lay across and sleep. He also brought me ice cream and plenty to drink - off to a great start !!! Almost to italy !! Love and caio - matt

Email 2
Plane - train - taxi - now boat !!! Sailing to the island of capri !!! Nobody speaks english - the views from the boat are spectacular - something I have never seen - old. Ancient buildings on hills - the men are either extremely good looking or frumpy - no in between . But so far there was nothing better than waking up in italy ! (Since I arrived in the dark) - I am off to go wake up g and bill at the hotel quisisana - that is where the wedding recpt also is - they told me to sleep in and rest but I couldn't!!! Oh one more thing - everyone smokes.

Email 3
I have to stay writing on this thing to stay focused on something the boat is bouncing on the water - so iam just going to keep writing - I think I drank too. Much coffee - I am a little bit too awake - I have two heavy suitcases and a duffle bag with me keep in mind - I have come to hate them emensly but I guard them with my life because they have wedding stuff in them - including the runner for the church isle - I can only compare my relationship with my suitcases to the movie Not With Out My Daughter starring Sally Field - I am Sally and where I go so do the suitcases - - tomorrow we start taping for the show . . I am excited to see g and bill - I have not had a conversation with anybody for 24 hours which is rare for me - ok - well that is all for now - I see we are getting close - love - matt

Birthday Bonanza

We had a good time Saturday and Sunday celebrating birthdays!

On Saturday night John's best bud, Rocco, turned 28 and all their friends got together to have a very laid back but entertaining night of drinking. I probably had one too many, but when your beers are free, it's hard to resist.

Last night we had a nice sushi dinner at Fuji in Haddonfield, NJ to celebrate my cousin Lauren's 28th birthday. As usual, we ate like pigs. Thank heavens sushi is relatively good for you.

Below are some pics...

Birthday girl and husband Bill

The ridiculously awesome plate of desserts that Livy brought special for the night. John and I shared this plate.

The two of us stuffed and happy.

My other cousin Livy and good friend Beth

No Rest For The Tired

Last night we went to see the movie Superbad (which was really funny) but it got out late and I didn't get to sleep until 1:30AM. Late night for me! I was looking forward to sleeping in but Duke was ready to go out so he took his loud trademark blue football and started to squeak away. Yep. He is that smart. It's like he thinks, "hmmm, what can I find to wake Mom that annoys her the most...Aha!" Here he is again with it as I sit here typing...





Over strong coffee I did happen upon this large article devoted to the city of Baltimore in the Inquirer's Travel section. I'm going to dive right in as Adrienne and I are always talking about how neat it would be to meet up there with Sam and John. It's a half way point of sorts.

My Pricey Mouth

I spent two very painful hours in the dentist's office yesterday just getting x-rays and a cleaning! They had a new technology where when they took the x-ray pictures of my teeth, it showed up on a computer screen right in front of me. Kind of a weird sight.

Anyway, apparently I grind my teeth so bad when I sleep that I needed a night guard like yesterday. They tried to sell me one for $475 but I think I'll opt for this $99 one I saw online. I have a wedding to pay for people! The dentist also suggested Invisiline (for $3,000) which my sister does have and raves about. I find this a tough pill to swallow, though, as I had braces as a teenager. Apparently my bottom teeth are just so tightly packed that I could have problems later on and it makes it difficult to floss. I'm going to have to hold off until after March 29th though.

I'm telling you...it's always something!

Sister Sledge

My sister Amy had me in stitches last night recounting things she remembers from our childhood. Her memory is stellar. I don't know if it was so much her incredibly dry sense of humor or the actual events themselves. John came home to me with tears in my eyes from laughter.

She remembers my Dad taking Matt, Danny and I to the Eagles games when they were in town to play the Cardinals every year and being dropped off alone at our grandmothers with a TV dinner. I don't know whether that is the saddest thing ever or funniest. Nobody thought she wanted to go. Poor Amy. I hope she knows how much she is loved by us all today.

Rain, Rain, Go Away

Last night I finished my third book in just over a week and a half. I feel like a machine. All good memoirs of course. Lately it just feels really nice to lay on the couch and read. That and it's been raining non-stop for days so the gloomy atmosphere makes me feel so tired. I was the same way a lot when I lived in Seattle. I swear I should look up the amount of rainfall there and here in Philadelphia. I know it could be the same.

Man Time

Yesterday my house was taken over by testosterone as John played host to his Fantasy Football league's draft party. Every year all 12 of the guys gather together to pick the best players possible for their fantasy (a.k.a. fake) team. Looking at how excited they all are by it is really neat actually. I'm very supportive since it's football and can actually follow along. Plus he's pretty good so the opportunity to win money is very high. I cooked up a really yummy four cheese baked penne and some cookies and John picked up a hoagie tray. As soon as everything was set, I ran out the door just as everyone was arriving. About three hours later, my wallet was empty from killing time shopping at Target and Marshall's Home Goods when John sent me a text that it was OK to come home. Truthfully, it's a guys day and I prefer to be out of the house. I'd also be too nervous they were getting crumbs on the sofa or not using coasters to stick around.

While at Target I did manage to snag 19 silver picture frames for my wedding table numbers and feel good about the price and budget on that project. Also makes me very excited to get these little tasks out of the way now. Leaves more time for freaking out over other details later!

Style Guide

Every time I receive my In Style magazine in the mail, I want to drain the wedding savings account and go on a shopping spree!

And by the way, if Gwen Stefani is 37 (and a new mom) then she must have made a deal with the devil. The girl looks amazing!

Can You Hear Me Now?

I'm growing a tad tired of Cingular/At&t or whatever the heck that company is nowadays. I used to have impeccable reception and service with Cingular and now all of that has changed. I can hardly hear anyone on my phone and it's now prone to making a horrid gurgling, static sound part way through my conversations for at least 30 seconds at a time. They better get some things straight over there, man. When your cell is your only phone it can get a very frustrating. I did a Google search and I'm not alone. Many bloggers are saying the same thing so I feel validated.

Tonight I have an eyebrow wax and alone time as John is working late. I'll probably settle in with my taped reality shows and re-runs of The Office (our absolute fave). I really heart John Krasinski who plays Jim on the show. In a very tame adult-crush way of course.

Sick

I'm sorry, but this image is just the scariest thing in the world to me! Every time I log on to Yahoo for my email, he pops up on this animated ad screen to the right, walks, turns and smiles...AAAH!

Just gives me the creeps. How about a new ad campaign GEICO? Sole reason I use State Farm.

Are You Ready For Some Football?

It's begun! Football season! My beloved Philadelphia Eagles began pre-season play last night against the Baltimore Ravens resulting in a pitiful loss, but it really doesn't count. So much so that while I energetically watched the first half of the game with John (who was squealing like a school girl at any great play) I began to fade from boredom. I know it's great to learn about all the players and watch them battle it out for starting position but lord if I wasn't struggling to stay awake. My dad raised me a true fan and I rarely miss a game during regular season. I even think the team was part of the reason I opted to move to Philly, but I'll save my energy for the first regular season game Sept. 9th.

Me Likey

I had a very girly weekend (aside from helping John's friends Jeff and Erica move ALL day Saturday). It started with us seeing a really great movie on Friday night called "Becoming Jane". It told the story of Jane Austen's love life which led to the inspiration behind many of her novels. I can't put my finger on it, but I was totally in the mood for a female friendly film and this one was just right. Very touching, sad, funny, had everything. Including this adorable actor named James McAvoy. He was also in the movie "The Last King of Scotland".



I also finished (in 3 days) a very well written and hilariously self-deprecating memoir called "The Late Bloomers Revolution" by Amy Cohen. She's the kind of writer that makes me continue to be obsessed with non-fiction. Definitely worth a read.

Can someone please take a stand on something?

As a registered Democrat, this kind of thing frustrates me to no end. Watching the presidential race is like seeing a sporting event with no outcome. Granted, it's the nature of politics but what would really be so wrong with speaking out on behalf of ALL people?

Dems take sharp questions on gay rights - Yahoo! News
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070810/ap_on_el_pr/democrats_gay_rights

Home

John and I had another in depth conversation about moving to another house once we get married. It always comes up. He thinks we should invest in another bathroom upstairs to drive the price up for our house, though I want to cut and run. I love our house, and all the work we have put in, but I don't want to spend more energy, time and money on additional renovations. I'm ready to find my dream house. Large closets, porch, maybe a fireplace. He wants a garage or basement. Just wish I could develop the same level of patience that he does. I know he always has our best interest at heart, but darn if I don't challenge it.
We'll have to see how the next year pans out.

Here's a good quote for me to live by:

"Patience is the best remedy for every trouble."
-Titus Maccius Plautus

Ribbonitus

I just went a tad nuts buying ribbon for my escort/place card/where you are supposed to sit at my wedding card project. It was all a steal, though since my dear friend Adrienne was kind enough to pass along this website for JKM Ribbon and Trim.
Here is one of my purchases...

Oh What Fun...

The weekend was super fun. We hung out with friends, laughed a lot, went to church, watched our Sunday night shows, ate sushi, played chip and putt golf, drank lots of beer, saw the Simpsons movie, went out in Manayunk. It was all good times.

The highlight was getting a chance to see my Aunt Heather and Uncle Michael who were in town on the spur of the moment to visit friends. They used to live up near us a few years ago but are now back in Phoenix. I met them for breakfast on Sat. at a tasty diner in Doylestown and they came over for omelets yesterday morning before heading to the airport. It was great to be able to show them the house and catch up. I'm looking forward to our next visit to AZ in October.

After they left Sunday we did head over to Tyler State Park and biked for awhile. I'm not going to say it was all together enjoyable, as at one point we ventured off the trail (thanks to John's navigating) and I had to carry my bike up a hill. Uh-huh. That's why I got the sushi dinner as John was trying to make it up to me.

Here he is getting ready to head out...



And a pic of my girly bike...

Gym = No Fun

Hang on to your hat, but I had a burst of energy yesterday and decided to march my butt over to the YMCA for some working out. Considering the fact that I have cute new workout clothes from Target and filled my I-pod with awesome new tunes AND the Y is literally a block from our house, one would think I'd do this more often. But I HATE exercising. Just being honest.
I was there for an hour, did cardio and some crunches and even lifted the lady weights in an effort to get rid of what Matt calls my "fat arms".

Anyway, I'm in a lot of pain. Hopefully that means it's working.

Just Breathe

Well, we didn't make it to the movies last night. I was too exhausted from our meeting yesterday with our wedding coordinator up at Peddler's Village. It all turned out fine in the end, but I've learned a lot about myself while planning this wedding. I often think I'm overzealous about details but then you realize that if someone isn't, things will start to add up and the cost can get out of control. She put our mind at ease and spelled things out more clearly after we talked. I think the best thing is that John and I are on the same page with what each other wants out of the day and that is the greatest feeling in the world!

Last night we ate out at our local (and pretty tasty) Mexican restaurant, then watched 3 hours of our newest favorite show The Tudors on Showtime. We never had Showtime before (just HBO) but John called up Comcast Cable and yelled at them after our bill was getting out of control. They dropped it nearly in half and then threw in Showtime and Starz for a whole year for free. Tiger! We started to tune into The Tudors when the first three episodes were rentable from Blockbuster. Now we are playing catch up. It follows the life and times of King Henry complete with scandals, betrayal, religion, politics...LOVE IT!



Yesterday I also got an email from my brother Matt living the high life out in LA. Turns out that not only is Ms. Depandi, his boss, flying him out for her wedding over Labor Day in Italy but he is also being featured on a Style network special about her event as her wedding planner. Uh-huh. Wedding planner. Now, precious Matt calls me with tons of ideas for my wedding that mirror hers. Only difference between the two is about $100,000!

Anyhoo, here are some pics of him taken from his interview for the show. I'll be sure to let you all know when the special airs in it's entirety.