Boston with Mom!

I got to visit Boston for a work event and my mom was able to join me which made it so much more fun! We arrived on a sunny, warm Monday and got to do tons of walking and soak up the city. We walked through the Public Garden and the Boston Commons after having a delicious lunch at Parish Cafe. Then we went to Faneuil Hall which had little shops and an armory or artillery museum to check out. Then we walked to Little Italy and got sweets from Mike's Pastry - so good! We also visited the Paul Revere Mall (what we'd call a square or park) and his house. Then we rested a bit before going to dinner at a nice Italian spot that had a great wine selection - perfect for us! The next day I was slow to get going and squeezed in a work out while Mom got coffee. Then we went to Neptune's Oyster for a lobster roll (awesome!) and then walked really far in the cold to the contemporary art museum which is beautiful! They had some really interesting pieces but we mostly enjoyed looking out to the water. Then we had to head back to get ready for my event that was at the Hampshire House. The event went well and afterwards we peeked into the original Cheers and then had dinner at an Irish Pub in our hotel. The next day we did an awesome free tour of the public library that reminds me of our Cultural Center (a former library). The guide was so informative and we saw so many beautiful things. It was such a treat! After that we got incredibly delicious salads for lunch and then walked around Newberry street and got manicures before heading to the airport. We squeezed in a lot in just 2 and 1/2 days! It was great to see a new city with Mom and I hope we can explore somewhere again soon!

Our 1st Anniversary!

I cannot believe it's already been a year since our wedding day! Rob and I decided to celebrate year one in the south just like our honeymoon. We flew into Greenville, SC this time and explored a bit of their downtown area. We loved Falls Park - pretty cool to have waterfalls in the middle of your downtown! We grabbed coffee and treats at some of the local shops and then we went to Bacon Bros for lunch. We enjoyed some cheddar biscuits, boiled peanuts and split a waffle with pulled pork. We loved this place because everything was locally sourced and organic. It was super tasty but very filling! Then hit the road and headed for Cesar's Head State Park which was about an hour away. It was an absolutely gorgeous day for a hike at the beautiful state park. We basically had the trail to ourselves and we enjoyed hunting for fall leaves and listening for wild life - we only spotted a bunch of chipmunks and a raccoon and lots of birds. We saw the beautiful waterfalls from an overlook and then hiked back to our car. Then we drove to the Asheville, NC area to check into our B&B, the Honey Hill Inn in Candler. It was so perfect! I'm so glad we found this place and got to stay there. We just loved it! We rushed and got ready for dinner and we even had to push back our reservation at Cucina24 a bit. I went in to get our table while Rob looked for parking for about 40 minutes!!! Luckily they were so understanding and Rob is the most patient and calm man alive - I was losing it! It's worse than Chicago! The meal was certainly worth the wait. Probably the best meal I've had in months. We enjoyed local Greenman beers and started with the burrata app which was heavenly. Then we got a pork and veal potato gnocchi dish - AMAZING - and a pork belly dish. We wrapped up the meal with a complimentary dessert - olive oil cake with berries and ricotta. DIVINE! We couldn't get over how tasty the whole meal was! so perfect. Then we rushed off to a show at Isis Music Hall which was SO cool! Great venue! We saw the Stray Birds - bluegrassy folk. They were so talented and we just loved every minute of it. It was all around an incredible day! The next morning we enjoyed a delicious breakfast at the B&B before walking around their beautiful property. Then we got ready to go white water rafting! But first we stopped by White Duck Taco - foodie hot spot in the River Arts District in Asheville. We got 3 tacos and tried each of them. They were giant and so good! Then we went to the rafting post - we had to wait awhile for an obnoxiously late couple but they had goats on their property to keep me entertained. Then we headed to the French Broad River and started our journey. It was the most gorgeous day I can remember! The sun was shining and there was a gentle breeze. Our guide Noah was great - very informative and nice. We went through a couple of minor rapids and then they let everyone jump off some rocks into a deep part of the river. I opted out but Rob ofcourse did it twice and was so happy! We also got to float down the river together which was super fun! It made me so happy to see Rob's smiling face the whole ride! We did about 5 rapids that were either 2's or 3's. We got stuck a few times but that was even fun. We just loved it! After that we went back to the b&b to change and I napped before we headed to Greenman brewery for a few beers before dinner. it was a really cool setting and we got to sit outside and take a load off. Then we headed to downtown Asheville for dinner. We had a lot more luck with parking this time and we were able to get to our reservation at Curate early. It's a tapas restaurant and we tried all sorts of stuff - we had patatas bravas, jamon trio, manchego on tomato bread, garlic shrimp and asparagus with lemon. We loved the ham and manchego dishes best. We did find it to be a bit pretentious - she told us one of the hams came from a "blackfooted hog that only feasts on chestnuts" or something hilarious. We could barely keep straight faces but it did taste incredible! They also gave us a complimentary dessert - a crazy chocolate sculpture! After dinner we went to this crazy haunted forest near our hotel. It was so fun! The lady at the front called ahead to tell them we were from Chicago so they could add that into the act. One of the guys touched my hair which really threw me off because they definitely don't do that here! I was really really scared from that point on! The proceeds went to charity and all the villans had adorable southern accents - it was too fun! The next day we ate another amazing breakfast at the B&B and then checked out before hopping on the Blue Ridge Parkway to go hiking at the Graveyard Fields. It was such a gorgeous drive! We saw so many great leaves at the high elevation and so many great views. We made it to the fields and started hiking. We quickly found the lower falls which were awesome! Then we tried to find the upper falls but failed but enjoyed the views and scenery anyway! Then we hit the road for the airport had tbell for lunch - classy :) and then waited for our flight because it was a short delay. We made it home after a long day and Rob gave me the most beautiful diamond earrings and really sweet card before we went to Bistro Champagne for a romantic dinner. He had roses sent to the table for me! I'm SO spoiled! And they greeted us with complimentary champagne. So nice! They had all this cute fall harvest decor and we just loved it there. We enjoyed the baguette and butter and split a bowl of french onion soup. I got steak frites and Rob got a croque madame - his fav. It was so nice! It was such a special anniversary and I truly love Rob more and more as each day passes. I'm the luckiest.

Munich & Merano Trip 2013

Rob and I journeyed to Munich this August for my best friend's wedding! It was such a great trip and we got to do so many fun things and end the trip with a beautiful celebration of Vanessa & Tobi's love! Here are some highlights from our trip:

Day 1

We got to spend lots of quality time with Ness, Tobi and her niece Izzy in Munich before anyone else arrived. We got to check out their apartment and then we went to the English Garden to relax and enjoy the sun. We also looked at the surfers that hang out on the river, got ice cream, toured around the city a bit, napped and then reconnected for sangria and tapas for dinner. We took a nice walk around the city center after dinner before going to bed early.

Day 2

Tobi picked me and Rob up to go to Dachau, a concentration camp just outside the city. It was huge and a bit overwhelming, but we all learned a lot. After that we picked up the girls and went to the Starnberger See for more relaxation and sun. It was so pretty there and I'm so glad we got a chance to see it! We went to a big biergarten for dinner and live music that night. We tried obatza (delic dip) with pretzels and radishes, schnitzel and roast chicken and ofcourse bier!

Day 3

Rob and I did a bit of sightseeing on our own this morning and went to the Viktualienmarkt for shopping. Then we shopped for souvenirs and a new shirt for me from Zara - my fav - and saw the glockenspiel work its magic around noon before meeting the crew for drinks at Hofbrau House. It was super crowded so we went to a Hacker Pschor brewery for food. We walked along the Isar (the river) and got cupcakes before heading back to their apartment for some crafting. It was so great to have 3 whole days with my best bud and gear up for her big day!

Day 4

Rob and I checked out of our Munich hotel, took the train to the airport, grabbed our rental car and then drove 5 hours to Merano in Italy. We thought the drive was going to take about 3 hours and 20 minutes but it just didn't work out that way! We drove all the way up a mountain and then back down to get to Merano. It was absolutely gorgeous but a tad stressful/frustrating. When we finally arrived we went to The Gardens of Trattmansdorff Castle - a huge botanic garden set in the mountains. We grabbed a bite to eat and then toured around in the hot sun. It was really beautiful there and we had a great time. Then we drove to our hotel, The Miramonti Boutique Hotel, that was up in the mountains. We have NEVER EVER stayed anywhere so luxurious/fancy in our lives. It was such a treat! They upgraded our room and it was gorgeous overlooking the mountains and town of Merano. We had dinner in their "stube" that night - incredible pasta for me and goulash for rob.

Day 5

We woke up and enjoyed a decadent breakfast at the hotel before driving into the city to the Thermal Baths. We had NO idea what to expect but when we arrived we discovered it was basically a pool facility that had heated pools and that there were pools with different purposes (i.e. helping with circulation, helping with vericose veins). It was an absolutely gorgeous day and we loved our time there. Definitely a highlight of the trip. After that we just walked around the city soaking in the sites. We even dipped our feet in the rapid river in the center of the city - it was freezing but so awesome! We got gelato - banana and nutella for me and vanilla and nutella for Rob. It was so nice! Then we went back to the hotel and did a little hike around the hills there and then enjoyed the pool and tried to do it up in the sauna but it was a bit out of my comfort zone (close quarters with naked strangers). Then we went to the fancy restaurant for dinner that evening and enjoyed some incredible food and views of the mountains. We shared an awesome caprese platter and Rob had a deer burger and I had a ravioline with mushrooms and truffles. It was a lovely last night.

Day 6

After another amazing breakfast we made the drive from Merano to Oberdarching for the wedding! It took over 4 hours again :( so we arrived a bit late. The wedding venue is a gorgeous mansion overlooking the mountains and there are cows! We got to work - Rob helping with bar set up and me helping with pom pom assembling. We helped with decorating and other set up needs and then went to our apartment to get ready for the night before dinner at the hotel. It was so nice to be reunited with Ness and Tobi and finally connect with Darcy, Frank, Ry and Megan! We had such a great time at the dinner - Rob had Ox and I had fish. It was all delic!

Day 7

Wedding Day finally arrived! We woke up bright and early to a gorgeous day and met Ness and Tobi at the venue for a beautiful breakfast outside. Then Ness got ready in her gorgeous courthouse dress and we went to the courthouse in town for their ceremony there. Then we went back to the house for an awesome lunch and then got ready together for the church ceremony. Rob and the boys got to visit another lake and have lunch together while relaxing before heading back to meet us for the ceremony. Ness looked absolutely gorgeous in her gown and Tobi very dapper in his suit. The church was gorgeous and it was a beautiful ceremony. Then we went back to the venue to partttty!!! We had a great time at the cocktail hour and worked up an appetite for dinner. Some super sweet toasts were made (tobi's made me sob) and then we got to enjoy an awesome Argentinian buffet with tons of choices and cupcakes and treats for dessert. Then we danced and danced, enjoyed outside and danced some more. It was such a fun, special celebration!

Day 8

The next day we went to a biergarten in town by our apartment and they were having a celebration so they had cheap food and beer and live music! It was just what we needed. Then we went back to the venue to help with finishing touches of cleaning up and did some fun photos. Then we drove back to Munich and relaxed at Nessa's apartment for awhile watching funny videos before walking through the English Garden, grabbing a bier and more obatza and pretzels and then going out for pizza. Then we all crashed at Ness and Tobi's before we had to leave for the airport in the wee hours of the morning. It was SUCH an amazing trip - total whirlwind filled with great sights, good food and lots of love.

29

I turned 29 on July 2nd and even though I'm a bit sad to be nearly 30 - life has been great and it was an awesome birthday! I started celebrating the Sunday before with a big group of friends coming to the Maxwell Street Market for delicious quesadillas and tacos and sunshine. It was so nice to spend the afternoon with so many buds! That night we got to go to Cody's bluegrass show and have dinner with the Jensens. They got me a air popper and popcorn accessories and a book to read on vaca! I also received a book and some pretty paper from the Liebls! On Monday everyone sang happy birthday to me at bingo and Joe and Lee got me birthday cards. On my actual birthday, a bunch of my girlfriends helped me celebrate at LUSH Wine & Spirits. We all got bottles of wine and ate some awesome food and caught up. It was such an easy, low stress celebration. It meant a lot to me! My DePaul girls all donated somewhere on my behalf - Shalva picked Cardz for Kidz - brilliant! Tara picked Breakthrough Urban Ministries - my favorite place to volunteer! Cait adopted a freaking polar bear for me! And Ry and Mar donated to DePaul on my behalf. I have the most generous and awesome girlfriends! I also received some lovely gifts from the other ladies - Meg got me a paper cutter and some other crafting goodies - so awesome! And Darc got me a super cute Betsy Johnson wristlet. Cait brought delicious cupcakes, Mary brought an awesome balloon, Ry brought pretty flowers and Tara got me a gorgeous succulent. I got sweet cards from Leah and Mary plus a pretty mug from Mar. They are THE BEST! I'm totally the luckiest! I celebrated with my family on the 4th of July. It was such a nice day! My bro got a pinata and he also got me 2 different types of Jenga! My parents got me this grownup coloring book that I'm obsessed with - it's all paisley designs and it really relaxes me at the end of the day. They also got me a veggie noodle maker that we've been using non stop. I also got a banana republic gift card from them, a Michaels one and nice plant from my aunt anne, winning lotto tix from my cousin Carrie and tea towels and accessories from my cousin Kate. Honestly - I was so spoiled! The next day Rob and I went on our amazing trip to Brown County! Such a generous gift from my babe. I hope the rest of the year is as fabulous as my birthday celebration was!