Lists

So while tooling around the internet, I stumbled upon a blog called Shutterbean. It is a nifty little website where they do something called 'I Love Lists, Friday'. This is simply a short list of things that the blogger found/saw/experienced that week that she loves. I think it is a cute idea, plus it puts the week into such a positive perspective to think about all the great things you love. Therefore, I thought I would try it out starting tomorrow. Sounds like so much fun!

Even More Foodie Finds Additions

Check out the new additions! Bakerella, Ezra Pound Cake, How Sweet It Is, and Sing for Your Supper. All great blogs you can find on the Foodie Finds page. Food = Love.

Great Friends

This past weekend was yet another weekend spent working on our new house. Some days I think the painting may never end! The great thing about this weekend, though, was that two of our friends came over to help! One is an electrician who was able to do some wiring we wanted to mount a TV in our family room. The other is great with general household projects and carpentry. We only had one small carpentry project, so the rest of the time he helped with installing ceiling fans, electrical outlets, light fixtures and light switches. Both of them were great helps and we couldn't have done it without them. Thanks Mike and Chad! We really appreciate you both!

New Addition to Foodie Finds: Serious Eats

Check out my newest addition to the Foodie Finds list: Serious Eats. This is a great food blog which has videos, pictures, and some stellar recipes. Also, this blog is like five blogs in one. If you're at the top of the homepage, you can click through to blogs dedicated to hamburgers, pizza, drinks and sweets. Now who doesn't love those kinda categories?! The pages are a little busy so it can be a bit hard to navigate, but the information on this website is well worth the hunt! Check it out on the Foodie Finds page or by clicking the link above.

Lucky In Love

This past weekend Ryan, my dad, my grandmother and I all hopped on a plane and headed to my cousin's wedding in Kansas. The actual wedding was on Sunday afternoon, but we flew in on Saturday morning so that we could attend the rehearsal dinner.

The rehearsal dinner was held at Bucca di Beppo in Overland Park, Kansas. It was a lovely downtown spot which I have been told is even more lovely when it is lit up at Christmas time. My cousin Hannah and her fiance Matt had invited around 70 people to the rehearsal dinner. This was the largest rehearsal dinner that I had ever been to. Ryan and my rehearsal dinner was only around 20 people and just focused on the wedding party. This dinner however encompassed tons of family who were in town and the large wedding party.

Ryan, my dad, and I sat with my cousin Emily and her boyfriend Ryan. Yes, two Ryans and my dad named Brian, that never gets confusing especially in a loud and crowded restaurant. Anyway, Bucca di Beppo served us all family style, which actually worked out really well. It meant that we never had to wait too long for food and that everyone got to try a bunch of different things. The food there is amazing and the wine our small group ordered was tasty as well. It was good getting to catch up with Emily and her boyfriend Ryan as I hadn't seen them since our wedding about 2.5 years ago. It was also good to see my cousins Hannah and Sarah, whom I hadn't seen in 20 years! Crazy how time flies!

Sunday morning, we woke up and had breakfast at the hotel. We had a couple of hours to kill before we needed to get ready for the wedding, so my dad, Ryan and I headed out to the Nicklaus Gold Club at LionsGate to have a couple of drinks. It was a beautiful little club, a member of the ClubCorp family, and the staff was really welcoming. We still had a few minutes to spare once we were done with our drinks, so we ran a few errands and then headed back to the hotel to get ready for the wedding.

The wedding started at 4pm on Sunday and while we were initially worried about rain that was in the forecast, the day couldn't have turned out prettier! The wedding was held at a newly constructed banquet hall that was designed to look like a big, red barn on the outside. It was called the Ironwoods Lodge and was in Leawood, Kansas. Since family got to sit in the front row, I got some great pictures as Hannah and Matt were married.

Hannah Elizabeth Graves & Matthew Thomas Allen

Here comes the bride

My uncle giving Hannah's hand in marriage to Matt

The bridesmaids

The bridesmaid's bouquets

Mr. and Mrs. Matt Allen

After the outdoor ceremony, we headed inside for the reception. It started with a wonderful catered dinner soon followed by all of the traditional wedding things. There were toasts, a cake cutting, a bouquet toss, the garter ceremony and dances galore. One of the best things was that the groomsmen and fathers had choreographed a surprise dance routine for Hannah, the mother of the groom, and the mother of the bride. They did the 'Call Me, Maybe' video dance that was made famous recently by the Harvard Baseball team. It was pretty funny!

After all of the whirlwind of wedding activities, we helped the parents of the bride and groom pack up as Hannah and Matt drove off to their Honeymoon. It was a surprise for Hannah, because little did she know that they were headed to Bora Bora! I was pretty jealous, not gonna lie. Welcome to the family Matt and best wishes for a wonderful life together as husband and wife!

Their cupcake wedding cake

First dance as husband and wife

My father and uncle with my grandmother 

My cousin Emily and her boyfriend Ryan

Me and Ry - LOVE!

Windsor's Supper Club

Tonight Ryan and I went to visit our grandfathers at their home, Windsor Senior Living. They had a supper club complete with dinner, live music and dancing. Both of our grandfathers live at the same place, so it is very nice to be able to go and see them both. We had an excellent time!

Me and my grandpa

Ryan and his mother, grandpa and sister

Me and Ryan

New Office

So, my new office is finally ready, after almost 7 months, and I got to move in today! It is absolutely beautiful and is quite large. I love having the privacy and the space. It is such a blessing to work at UT Southwestern Dallas!

The picture doesn't even do it justice! Love!

Tower Dallas Family Dinner

Last night Ryan and I took my grandma, who is in town from Arizona, to Tower Club Dallas. My parents joined us as well to celebrate their 30 wedding anniversary. We had such an excellent time! Ryan reserved a private room for us with huge windows that overlooked Downtown Dallas from our table on the 48th floor of Thanksgiving Tower.

We started with some excellent appetizers and drinks and quickly moved on to dinner and desert. The view and food were both spectacular! Also, as the night was coming to an end, we looked off into the distance and got to see a fireworks show. It was a very special night for our family and I wish my grandma lived closer so that we could have nights like that one more often.

Cheers!

Date Night ~ Avengers Assemble

So last night Ryan and I finally went to see The Avengers movie. It was brilliant! We have seen all of the individual movies (The Incredible Hulk, Iron Man, Iron Man 2, Thor, Captain America) and loved all of them. Bringing them all together in this movie, under the director of Joss Whedon no less, was just awesome. Plus, Marc Ruffalo was a million times better than Edward Norton as the Hulk. Good choice.

This movie had plenty of action, but was also very comedic. There wasn't a dead spot in the whole movie. You were either on the edge of your seat wondering what would happen next or you were laughing at a poignant punchline. This plus the Studio Movie Grill addition of a bucket of beer, nachos and popcorn made for the perfect date night. If you haven't seen this movie yet, don't just walk, run to your local theater and see it. Avengers Assemble!

(Also, I can't wait for Iron Man 3 (2013), Thor 2 (2013), Captain America 2 (2014))

Way Tired

So blogging just hasn't been possible ever since we got into our new house. Ryan and I have been in uber rennovation mode. We got to work every day from 8am - 5pm and then head straight to the house to work on painting and other upgrades from 6pm until at least 10pm or 11pm. We are both exhausted! Everything is starting to come together and it feels like we have been painting for a lifetime. Since we plan on moving into the house mid June, we really have to kick it into high gear to ensure everything is completed on time. I know it will be worth the work, but it is such a beating! It looks great and all, but I am ready to be able to just come home and sit for a second one day soon.

Just keep painting, just keep painting...