Happy Halloween!

Image found on Google from wall sizes.com

Ghost and goblins and witches...oh my! It's that time of year again! I love this holiday. It is an excuse to dress up and eat lots of candy. What more could a girl want? This year is extra exciting for me. Being that it is our first year in the new house, I am very excited to be handing out candy to all of the trick-or-treaters in our neighborhood. Since we were on vacation this past week, I did not have a lot of time to prepare. Therefore, pretty much all of my decorations, baking, and pumpkin carving occurred last night. And of course, I documented the activities. 

Sunshine, Friends, and Food

This past week I was able to enjoy the sunny, warm weather on the Gulf Coast of Florida. Friends of ours were married last weekend on the beaches of Longboat Key. It was a beautiful wedding with their closest family and friends. Unfortunately I was unable to attend the wedding due to the fact I was in a wedding myself in New York. However, I joined everyone the day after and was still able to spend time with friends and the newly married couple.

Happy Birthday Quattro!

If a stranger were to walk up to our dog, I am pretty certain they would not realize he is just one year old. The day we picked him up at 8 weeks old he was smaller than my parents 12 pound Bichon. Today on his first birthday, he is pushing 75+. Now I must confess I am writing this post from Bradenton, FL. Therefore I will not be spending my babies first birthday with him. As any mother would be, I am quite distraught about this. Luckily he is with my parents for the week, so he will get the attention and love that he needs! 

A Visit to the Vineyards

I have previously posted about my friend Cara's bridal shower. We in fact hosted two showers for the bride-to-be since her family lives in Upstate New York and the grooms family lives in Downstate New York. Both went off without a hitch. The next scheduled event was of course the bachelorette party. The MOH planned a wonderful weekend for the bride and her friends. We kept it small and intimate with just the bridesmaids. Liz arranged for a limo to pick us up in the morning to take us out to Long Island vineyards. Anyone who knows Cara is aware of her love for wine. So this was nothing but perfect. 

Autumn Chicken Stew and Pear Salad

Girls Night has been a tradition for over four years. What started out as three friends going out to dinner every week, has now turned into five friends eating in and enjoying each others company. Since Deirdre, Tara, Dianna, Sabrina, and myself are all in the same town again we like to make time for each other once a week.

Happy Birthday Mom!

I know everyone says this about their own mothers, but mine really is one of the strongest and unselfish people I know. Between working her day job, serving the people of her village as Mayor, and keeping tabs on her four kids who are all over the East Coast, I would say she has a lot on her plate. Despite all of that, anyone who knows her is aware of her caring and giving nature. She will be by your side at the drop of a hat in your time of need. She will talk to you on the phone for hours on end just to keep you company. I want to thank her for all that she does for me and our family! And for being someone to aspire to. 

Today I wish my mom and day of relaxation. To brush away her worries about others and focus on herself. Nobody else deserves that more than her. 

Happy Birthday Mom!

The Fundamental Things Apply

When we decided to start the renovations on the house, the bathroom was pushed to the back burner. We figured we would wait to save money at the present moment and complete it at a later date. However, as we started getting into the demolition we quickly realized it was something that had to be done now otherwise we would be living in a war zone. Boy am I glad we did. The bathroom is one of the fundamental rooms in the home. Being without it for any period of time would have proven to be very difficult and stressful. 

National Taco Day

Just your typical Friday afternoon. Sitting at work while wasting away after the busy week in my trail. Naturally, my mind was wondering and was trying to decide what to make for dinner. It was then that I was made aware of a very interesting, yet fun fact. Today is National Taco Day! So of course we had to have tacos tonight. I personally am a big fan of fish tacos. My friends Deirdre and Dan really know how to create an amazing meal with Dan's fresh caught fish. I would have loved to recreate their recipe tonight.  However, Nick is not a fan of the creatures from the sea, so we stuck with the plain ole' tacos. I substituted turkey meat though being that I do not enjoy ground beef.