Worth It

On Saturday night we saw this delightful movie written by one of my favorite authors, Dave Eggers, and his wife, writer, Vendela Vida.

It follows a couple as they travel the US and Canada looking for a place to call home and raise their baby which is on the way. Not only was it smart and funny, but it also struck a cord with me on the many definitions of family. I've often thought of all the different places that John and I could have called home, but maybe it doesn't have much to do with location at all.

Definitely a must see movie.

Two For Me

Exactly two years ago, I started this blog. I still can't believe how quickly time has flown by, and more importantly, that I am still keeping it up after all this time.

I really can't express how much it has meant to me to be able to share my experiences and thoughts with those of you out there. I must admit, though, that sometimes I'm not exactly sure who my audience is, except of course for my fellow bloggers who support me with comments frequently.

So, I have a favor to ask...to those folks that I may not have heard from yet, if you are reading my blog, please let me know. I would appreciate hearing your voice as well.

I look forward to the comments and more years to come as your friend in PA :)

Down in Virginia

Our weekend turned out to be a huge hit, despite torrential downpours and mosquito bite attacks (my legs look like those monsters had a field day on them).

John and I had a nice dinner downtown for his birthday Friday. The food was pretty good and the service awesome. He loved the new I-pod I gave him and the fact that the restaurant didn't sing, but he still got flan.

Saturday we headed to VA with John's brother Chris and his wife Stacey. The four hour drive to Fredricksburg is never an enjoyable one in my opinion. The drivers outside of DC are terrifying and the rainy weather didn't help my nerves, but when we finally arrived to celebrate Andrew's 30th it was well worth it. Andrew and my sister-n-law Sue had a BBQ and a joint cake for he and John (they share the same actual birthday) and our niece Victoria helped make the moment even more enjoyable.

Here John is with his brother's and me with my sisters-n-law.

After the afternoon party, we all got some needed rest and then headed out to the Capital Ale House in downtown Frericksburg. They had a novel for a beer list, which made us all giddy, and very delicious food.

Hubby enjoyed his specialty cider so much that the night ended with him going for a swim, fully clothed in our hotel pool. Needless to say it was a very fun and memorable weekend.

The Big 3-2

Today is my husband John's 32nd birthday.

Many of you know that I wouldn't be where I am today without his constant love and support. He is my rock, my soul mate, my best friend and all the other cheesy names you could think of. I am one lucky woman!

Tonight we are celebrating with dinner downtown at brazilian steakhouse Fogo De Chao and then it's off to Fredricksburg, VA tomorrow where we will console his brother Andrew as he turns 30. It's a birthday bonanza!

Just Do It

Lately I've been really into nautical themed jewelry and recently began to covet this locket I found on (where else) Etsy. 

However, today when I finally went online to purchase it, the necklace was sold! I'm so bummed. Let this be a lesson to those of you, who like me, snooze than lose.

Speaking of coveting, though, I want to mention my pal A. who in addition to her already awesome blog, has a second one devoted to finding great deals. I find it very enjoyable to read. Who doesn't love a bargain?

Check it out, here.

Until Next Time

I think one of the true measures of a good friendship is when you see someone after a long period of time and it was just like only yesterday that you spent time with them. That is exactly the case with my dear friend Kyle whom I have known since my Seattle days (almost 7 years now!). He visited us on Sunday with his girlfriend Caddy and we had a great time talking, catching up and dining on our 'new' deck. Caddy and Kyle are truly fun and interesting people. They decided a few months ago to buy a 1977 RV and drive it around the country, visiting family and friends, as well as documenting it through photographs, a passion they both share. I can't tell you how much this makes me smile to think about. I admire their free-spiritedness because as much as I would love to travel the US all summer, I'm not sure I could live out of an RV for months at a time!

While John was off at work and Caddy still asleep this morning, I got the chance to spend some additional time with Kyle just chatting over coffee and reflecting on how far we have both come. Sometimes it takes a person who has truly known you to make you realize that you have done a lot in a short time. I definitely feel a bit more inspired today. Thankfully, we also have A. and S. coming to visit in a few short weeks, as well as my sister Amy soon after. I have a feeling there are many more good times ahead...

My Favorite Lady

I would like to take a moment to recognize my wonderful grandmother, Clare who celebrates her birthday today. She is not only one of my most loyal blog readers but also an incredibly kind and special person. She holds a big place in my heart.

Happy Birthday Nan! Hope you have a great day :)

Asleep At The Wheel

I must be slightly retarded because for as much as I love music and am a big fan of actor Jason Schwartzman, I had no idea he had such awesome tunes out there. While reading the great Perez Hilton today I stumbled across his new song Microphone and so logged onto I-Tunes in search of more. Low and behold he has a one-man band called Coconut Records and a 2007 album Nighttiming along with the newer album Davy (featuring Microphone). As a big fan of eclectic music such as this, I am definitely going to bring my slacker self up to speed and buy them. 

Wedding Revisited

A few months ago after we watched our wedding video on our 1 year anniversary, I decided to order the raw footage. I didn't even know this is something you could do until this random girl told me about it. Well, the three discs arrived today and I'm dying to watch it in all it's unedited glory. I betcha it's hours of stuff you never thought you'd want to see but are kinda glad you did. I'll be sure to let all of you know if there are any funny outtakes worth mentioning.

Oddly enough, this is also the day I was in the neighborhood where the jeweler's office is who made my rings so I decided to take them in to get cleaned and dipped.  Mind you, this hasn't been done in over a year. They are now just as shiny as the day I got them and I LOVE it. 

What a special day this turned out to be.

The Travel Bug

I have lots of cousins here in PA but three particularly wonderful female cousins that I am basically the same age as. One of them and her husband just returned home from 12 days in Paris, the other two traveled together to London/Ireland for 10 days around the same time. After viewing all their photos I must say that I am officially jealous! Everything looked like so much fun and I give them all a lot of credit for traveling as much as possible while they can. It definitely gives me something to think about and aspire to.