Red Pencils and Running Shoes

Or… not.  But since the wedding was on a Friday, Robert and I decided to make a fancy weekend out of our trip to Manhattan.  We started our Saturday by having brunch with the happy couple and my future mother-in-law.  Robert, his mom, and I walked to the Waldorf-Astoria where the newlyweds spent the night.  I couldn’t help but snap a few pictures of the beautiful, historic hotel.

Beautiful, right?!  From the Waldorf, we caught a cab and ventured to Sarabeth’s by Central Park… where we saw Kevin Jonas and his wife!  But since they were there, the table forbid me from taking a picture of the restaurant… and the Jo-Bro.  They didn’t want to make a big deal out of it or something… psssh.  But trust me when I say that 1) Kevin Jonas’ wife is beautiful and 2) Sarabeth’s is SO cute, and so delicious.  Definitely a great place for brunch in NYC!

From brunch, we all went our separate ways for a while.  Robert and I relocated to the Flatiron district to the Marcel at Gramercy; a boutique hotel by Gramercy Park.  Check out our cute room!  Apparently the Marcel hosts resident artists during the year, and all of the rooms are unique!  I loved it.  There was also a great rooftop deck and lounge with a great view.  I could have spent all day up there!

PLUS the hotel was right down the street from a little place I’d been dying to try…  Pinkberry!  I convinced Robert to stop in, and we both got originals.  I think I squealed when I discovered I could top my frozen yogurt with CAP’N CRUNCH!!!  I devoured the whole thing.  Robert wasn’t as big of a fan.  Probably because he didn’t add Cap’n Crunch  

We spent the rest of the afternoon exploring this new (to me!) part of the city. 

Before we knew it, it was time for dinner.  We had this dinner planned for weeks – it was 95% of the reason we wanted to stay another night in NYC!  Since Robert and I are huge (HUGE!) Food Network fans, we have wanted to go to Bobby Flay’s Bar Americain since forever.  We got all dressed up, collected the new bride (her groom was sending off his irish relatives!) and headed out.

The restaurant was so cool!  We sat upstairs, and got to watch all the swanky action below.  And the food… the food really was amazing.  We were expecting to be underwhelmed, but I was honestly blown away.  I started with the Chopped Asparagus Salad, which was light and lemony.  I wish it had a few more pieces of asparagus, but the rest of the ingredients more than made up for it.  I also had a few pieces of a grilled pizza with bacon and garlic.   And when I say bacon, I mean BACON.  Not that crispy breakfast type, but thick, salty morsels of deliciousness.  My mouth is watering while I type it!  I would go back tomorrow, just for that pizza!  Robert tried the Bar Americain take on a Philly Cheesesteak (yes, we were in New York… I gave him a free pass!)  It was a steak smothered in grilled onions and a provolone cheese sauce.  It was divine!   I highly recommend Bar Americain – please go and eat that pizza!

We finished off the night in Robert’s sister’s Manhattan apartment.  We had such fun gossiping and laughing and talking about her wedding.  And her apartment is so cute, I could have stayed there all night! 

It was a great day in the city, and a perfect follow-up to the wedding. 

What would be your perfect day in Manhattan?

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Alternate Title:  How to have fun without going to the beach

Hello friends!  I was thinking the other day that I talked a lot about surviving the rough times at work, but I hardly spend any time discussing the perks of working for the Big 4 Firms.  This past weekend was a prime example.  You see, as many workplaces get off for Martin Luther King day or Presidents Day, we don’t – in fact we probably work a 12 hour day that day.  To thank us for our efforts during busy season, the firm gives us 4-day weekends for the three major summer holidays… and my god is it wonderful!

To kick off the long weekend, I spent Friday [finally] getting back into the wedding swing of things.  I had three meetings with photographers, and in between I spent some quality time with some cute coffee houses.  The first was right in my neighborhood… I couldn’t believe I’d never been to Milkboy Coffee before!  After my appointment with Lindsay, I stuck around for a grilled veggie sandwich and a mint-hibiscus iced tea.  It hit the spot!  I spent a lot of my high school years lingering around coffee houses, and I know this would have been the hot spot back then.  I felt like I was merging two versions of myself… the HS coffee house self, and the foodie self.  The menu even has a seitan cheesesteak, and although I wimped out from trying it this time… I will be back

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After that meeting, I headed into Northern Liberties to meet with Dollface Studio.  I’d never been to that part of the city before, and once I got past the mild ghetto-ness of the area, I opened my eyes and found my new favorite place:  The Random Tea Room.

I grabbed a comfy seat and settled in with a Bourbon Vanilla Honeybush tea and a cinnamon scone.  I was in heaven!  Maybe one day I’ll open up such a wonderful oasis

Saturday we bummed around the house, and I got some cleaning done.  We headed out later to a BBQ at a good friend’s new house.  They recently moved really close to us… it’s going to be a good summer!  No pictures to report, but trust me – Kelly out did herself with the BBQ food   We finished out the night watching the flyers lose – woo hooo!

Sunday is when we really turned the weekend up a notch.  I may or may not have slept til noon… (I may or may not have had a few Coronas on Saturday )  But I woke up to the grand aroma of Strawberry Pancakes courtesy of the fiancee!  Later in the afternoon we went for a lovely five mile bike ride (approx 45 min!) and returned home to get all dressed up.

Our destination?!  The Waterworks Restaurant and Lounge.  I have been dying to go to the Waterworks since I moved to Philadelphia, and when I saw a Groupon for the restaurant, I jumped at the chance!  I had heard that WW is BYOB on Sundays, so fiancee and I grabbed a bottle and headed out.

First we took some pictures – of course

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I have to admit though, our dinner was sub-par. Once we announced that we had a Groupon, our server  changed his tone immediately.  The meal was set up in prix-fixe style, so we were to be served a salad, sorbet, and entree, and dessert.  We also wanted to try the grilled octopus, and supplement our entree with some mashed potatoes.  The server was happy to oblige (keep that in mind!).  But it wasn’t all bad.  Although I wasn’t a fan of the octopus, Robert loved it.  And our Waterworks salad was AMAZING.  But we had to beg for bread in between, and after the salad… we didn’t get our sorbet.  And when we got our chicken, it was plated with asparagus and MASHED POTATOES.  Which would have been great to know when we ordered an additional side of potatoes (for $8 I might add!)  But as all this was going down, so was the sun… and it made it all worth it.

Dessert was good too – a duo of chocolate flourless torte, and chocolate mousse.  It helped to quell our dissatisfaction about dinner.  That is… until we got the check, and we realized that our waiter had charged us for a salad instead of including it in our prix fixe.  And when we went to ask him about it, he was no where to be found!  Thankfully we flagged down a helpful waiter, and he took care of it for us (although he couldn’t find our waiter either!).  Anyway, we really tried not to let our poor service get the better of us.  While we were disappointed about our miserable service, we made the best of it with… more pictures!

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After we danced around Kelly Drive, we hit the hay.  We had a huge day planned for Monday – complete with a picnic lunch, a blues festival and….

Our favorite local winery was hosting a wine tasting and blues festival all weekend, and as blues music and wine are two of our favorite things, we didn’t want to miss it!  For $25, we got to hear two bands, have a taste of 10 wines, and keep that cutie wine glass above.  Did someone say worth it?!

(Yes, definitely worth it!)  Among our favorites were the Proprietor’s Reserve – a blend of red wine grapes (this wine has been a favorite of ours for a LONG time!), the Merican – another blend of red wine grapes with hints of cherry jam and chocolate, the Sunset Blush (a refreshing rose), and the Naked Chardonnay. 

It paired wonderfully with gelato   OH and why naked you ask?  Why not?!  Haha OR maybe it’s because it’s aged in stainless  steel barrels instead of the oak barrels.  This made a huge difference to me… and might have been the first Chardonnay that I actually liked! I might have even bought a bottle to take home!

Anyway, this afternoon at Chaddsford  Winery was perfect.   Where else could you relax with wine, music, and beautiful scenery?  It was the perfect end to the long weekend.

What did you do with your memorial day weekend?!

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Guess who’s back, back again…  (eminem anyone?  …anyone?)

Or not.  But it’s true, I’m back.  Yes it’s been a month.  Yes I considered not coming back, but someone very special to me recently found my blog, and as a reward for her impressive stalking, I figured I owed her at least a few more posts

The past month has been busy.  True busy season is over at work, but the work never really stops.  In the past month, I seniored my first job (aka taking charge of the audit, and supervising a staff), got fitted for Kirsten’s bridesmaids dress, hit 6 miles on my broad street training, fell off the broad street training wagon, lost my wallet, went home for easter, started going to the total body conditioning class at the gym (ouch!), visited my one of my best friends in Boston, went to a happy hour for a good friend at work, and spent this past saturday at a combined bridal shower/bachelorette party for my future sister-in-law in NY.  phew.

Anyway, there are so many pictures and stories to tell you all but they all deserve their own posts.  For now let’s discuss fitness – or the lack of it in my life right now.  I started running outside this month… or should i say ralking outside this month.  Several things prevented me from actual running… 1)  lungs/allergies 2)  burning calves/year-old running shoes 3)  my over-active brain.  I figured out the first two (thank God for claritin), but I can’t shake my brain.  It’s always saying “let’s take a break” or “how about 3 miles today instead of 4.”  I just can’t get in the game!  But I’m going to rock broad street regardless.  A good friend of mine is going to run the race with me, and ever since he told me that, I’ve gotten excited.  I am going to try the galloway method of walking and running, and I will be happy about it.  Worst case scenario: Vinny and I take a nice 10 mile walk and catch up on life!  This summer I am going to restart my training outside from scratch, with the ultimate goal of running the Philly Half Marathon in September.  Send some motivating love <3

Anyway, onto total body conditioning.  This class is some sick form of torture, but I keep going back every week.  If I understand body pump correctly, this is the closest that my gym gets to body pump.  It’s intense, lots of weights and cardio, but you leave feeling awesome.  The only downside is that I only like one instructor, so if I miss class on Tuesday morning, I’m out for the week.  But wow!  I’ve already seen improvements in my strength, and I think I see improvements in my abs, but that might be wishful thinking

Anyway I’ll leave you with one picture… check out my new kicks.  I went to Bryn Mawr Running Company to get a professional opinion about my ridic feet.  Usually I am very loyal to City Sports in Ardmore, but this time I needed a better opinion than that of the local high school students.  I chatted with a guy who made me take off my shoes+socks and walk around the store while he looked at my feet.  (Wow that sounds really creepy!)  Turns out I need some stability around my arches, and I fell in LOVE with these Saucony’s but they were so expensive there.  (Think $140…)  Thank God for smartphones – I may or may not have googled the shoe price while he was in the back.  I ducked out of there – and since I was going to Suburban Square anyway, stopped in my beloved City Sports.  I walked out the proud owner of these beautiful girls – in pink+purple no less, and for $30 cheaper!  SCORE!  (Ash, I hope that makes you proud!)

Anyway, that about sums up my fitness life lately.  I’m going to kick ass this week, and totally rock broad street on Sunday.  Wish me luck!

PS remember that yoga challenge?  epic fail.  i hardly did yoga that month!  i just can’t motivate myself to get out of bed when it’s not for a hard sweaty workout.  now that life is slowing down a little bit, i’m hoping to make it to class at the gym on wednesday nights.  sorry for leaving you all hanging on that one!  hold me accountable guys!

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Greetings!  Looking outside today it’s hard to believe that we had such gorgeous weather this weekend!  It started Friday – we ate lunch outside, and it was actually HOT!  I’m so glad spring is here. 

I was meeting a girlfriend from work at Cheesecake Factory after work, and thought she said she was in DSW.  Turns out she wasn’t - but that didn’t stop me from looking around!  And I’m so glad I did!  Check these babies out:

World, meet my wedding shoes!  I know, I know, they’re purple.  I’m pretty much over the whole white-from-head-to-toe thing, although some brides definitely rock it.  What it comes down to is that I’m pretty jealous of the fact that my best friends will get to wear pretty purple dresses and I won’t - so I’m incorporating my favorite color into my own ensemble. 

Funny story actually.  When I first got engaged, somehow it came up that I wanted to wear purple shoes under my gown.  My mom… well, she wasn’t quite a fan.  She’s far more used to traditional bridal garb, and was never allowed to even dream about anything else.  I figured, ok whatever – we’ll fight that battle when we actually decide to buy shoes.  Fast forward 2 weeks.  My fam and I are driving down to my uncle’s house, and I’m reading a book.  Mom is talking to my aunt about my shoes.  She goes “Cassie wants to wear purple shoes.  HOW COOL IS THAT?!”  I put down my book and went “you said that?  really?!”  Hahaha!  Oh well – no matter how it shook out, the moral of the story is that I found my wedding shoes -  by accident, on the clearance rack.  Gotta love it!

Saturday after work (the last Saturday of busy season, woo hoo!), we had another lunch outside, this time from my all time favorite place in the city, Tampopo.  I will go into my love of Tampopo in more detail when I have the proper time to devote to it.  It is certainly worthy of its own post!  But for now, lets just say my fresh tuna and rice bowl was amazing, especially in the sunshine. 

(That’s a stock picture from their website, but it’s amazing.  Look at all the fresh veggies and the avocado!)

We followed up the amazing lunch with a pedi and GELATO!   Since it was the first day of spring, I was hoping for some free Rita’s water ice, but I couldn’t find a close one in the city.  We made our way to Capogiro, which was a new-to-me gelato place close to the office.  I tried a handful of flavors (kiwi, I’m coming back for you next!)  and settled on chocolate banana, and burnt sugar.  The burnt sugar was the exact flavor of the top of a creme brulee, and it was divine.  And the chocolate banana…. swoon.  To my surprise, the flavor of the banana wasn’t overpowered by the chocolate – it tasted so fresh.  It was true love at first bite.  The only downfall was that the counter was a little small, and couldn’t fit enough employees to deal with the crowd.  We made it out unscathed though, and enjoyed some ice cream in the sunshine!

Despite our sweet treat on Saturday, I could still hear Rita’s calling me.  Anyone who is from around the Philadelphia area knows about Rita’s.  Free water ice is a tradition that goes back to high school for me – on the first day of spring, we’d all load up as many people into Bill’s smelly car and visit as many Rita’s in one afternoon as we could.  And of course you have to try a new flavor (because you’re not paying for it!).  This year I was dying to try the peeps flavored water ice.  YES – PEEPS flavored water ice! 

Since Robert and I were pretending that it was free water ice day on Sunday, I committed to trying the peeps water ice.  Let’s just say it’s a good thing I had a sample first… wooooo it was SWEET!  It definitely tasted like peeps though – but I knew I wouldn’t make it all the way through a regular sized ice.  Instead my strawberry margarita gelati hit the spot.  And with that, it’s officially spring!

Do you have any specific traditions that define spring or summer for you?!  I get so excited to get my water ice!

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One thing “they” forget to mention when it comes to busy season is how behind you feel with not just the cleaning, cooking, and sleep; but the little things like getting a haircut and taking care of your appearance.  I know these are silly, superficial things, but it just makes you feel really out of control.  Lately I haven’t been able to wear my hair 100% down because my bangs are atrocious, I’ve had two caterpillars crawling above my eyes, and my nails have taken the brunt of my stress.

Luckily today as we were walking back from breakfast, I found a salon in Ardmore that was open on Sunday.  I couldn’t believe it – this place has been sitting right under my nose and I never even knew it existed.  Huge props to Coco Blue for helping me feel more like a girl today!

The salon was gorgeous and the store owner was so sweet and helpful.  The salon was busy too – I guess I’m not the only one who needed a pick-me-up today

(Clearly this picture is from the website and NOT from my trip today!  I promise it was packed!)

I feel so much better now!  Check out the fun color I picked – I wanted something happy and spring-y.  Do you like it?

I also channeled my inner girlie-girl today by picking out a dress for some bridal showers and events I have coming up.   I have gotten into the habit of buying one quality dress that I will wear over and over instead of 3-4 cheaper dresses that might only get one wear.  I saw this dress in the window of  Styche in Ardmore last weekend, and the dress has been on my mind ever since.  The owner of the shop was so lovely, and even personally helped another customer pick out a great blouse for an upcoming party.  I loved the great service – and all of the beautiful clothes.  Most of them were out of my price range, but luckily this little girl fit the budget perfectly

I tried on two different sizes, and noticed that each dress was different – the patterns and colors were not identical on both dresses.  This makes it so special to me – it’s virtually one of a kind.  It will be so pretty for all the spring and summer events I have coming up, and I can dress it up or down with flats, heels, and cardigans.  Let the celebrations begin!
What’s your favorite way to channel your inner girlie-girl?  I love shopping, even if it’s only window shopping!

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For as much as I talk about surviving busy season, I have to admit that it’s been so difficult.  While I’ve managed to survive physically, it’s really taking a toll on my mental health.  I’m grouchy, irritable, and when I’m home all I want to do is sleep.  Not to mention that my apartment was a mess until this weekend, which in turn makes me more irritable when I get home.  I haven’t talked to my grandparents since Christmas, despite any new years resolutions that I’ve made.  I am falling out of touch with my friends and family members, and I miss them!  This isn’t how anyone “survives” busy season!  Quite the opposite actually!

When I woke up this morning and realized it was March, it felt like a weight has been lifted off my shoulders.  A new Monday, a new month, a new start.  The end of busy season is near, and dammit it’s going to be the best month that I can make it.  I am going to make more time for my loved ones, make more time for myself, and I’m not going to let other people get to me the way I have in the past. 

No goals really work without a plan, so let’s give this a shot.

1)  This morning on Carrots N Cake, I read about Tina’s yoga challenge.  She’s making it a goal for herself to practice yoga at least twice per week for 20 minutes.  While she invited us to choose the schedule that worked best for us, I think that her proposed schedule is perfect for me.  I would love to incorporate a longer podcast or class at some point, but for the time being, this will help my yoga practice – in strength, flexibility, and mind.

2)  Take time every night to talk to Robert.  I spend so much time on my computer all day, but when I get home – what do I grab?  The computer.  Now that our back office is nicely straightened, I’m moving the computer out of the living room!  It would be so nice to have tea time (once a nightly tradition) back in our lives. 

3)  Try to remember that people are just doing the best they have with what they’ve got.  I get so irritated by people who don’t know they’re actually doing anything wrong.  Maybe the old lady is just scared to drive faster than 23 miles per hour on the highway.  As Heather said, “it’s not my trip.”  Who cares why she’s going slow.  Maybe I shouldn’t be in such a rush anyway. By staying mindful of this, I will stay more calm, and hopefully this will carry into all other aspects of my life as well. 

So that’s the plan.  Hopefully this will keep me sane through these last few weeks of busy season.  We are so close to the end – I can almost taste it! 

How are you all surviving this winter?

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Guys.  I had the BEST lunch today.  And I’ve been thinking about writing this post for a long time, but this lunch finally gave me the proper motivation.

My senior and I are working in the city today instead of out at the client site.  Since I’ve already been going through withdrawl from the food I got used to while being out here on my last client, I decided to make the most of my lunch.  I was CRAVING veggies again, and headed down to the deli in our building.  They have this sandwich – grilled eggplant, zucchini, yellow squash, peppers, and provolone cheese.  And in case I didn’t have enough veggies – I got some grilled asparagus on the side!  It was amazing!  I washed it all down with my favorite Honest Tea – Moroccan Mint Green Tea.  I could drink this stuff by the gallon – and I would if it wasn’t so expensive   It was worth the splurge for one day in the office though!

Anyway, I’d been meaning to write this post for a while and my lunch just inspired me.  I’ve noticed that a lot of my meals this busy season have been vegetarian.   I know that part of this is thanks to the blog world for letting me know how creative you can be as a veggie, and part of it is thanks to one of my bestest work friends who is a veggie for religious purposes.  Being around her makes me feel more like being vegetarian is just normal.  Anyway, I’m not gonna lie – I know that the biggest motivation for going partially vegetarian is for the ease of preparation.

As I’ve been packing my lunches and dinners for the week, I’ve tried to make things as easy as possible for myself.  This includes not having to cook chicken or beef or pork any more than I have to.  Instead, I try to incorporate my nutrients elsewhere.  I am a big fan of canned beans – they provide protein without any additional prep work.  I throw as many different veggies in my soups and meals as I can so that the fiber will fill me up.  And if I think it won’t be enough, I just add some grains.

Going veggie for most of my meals has also encouraged me to be more creative.  Instead of just chopping some chicken over rice, I have to think about the individual flavor of the beans, veggies, and any condiments.  Will carrots change the taste of my butternut squash soup?  Hardly.  But will it add additional beta carotene, and vitamin A?!  Certainly.  They were well worth the addition to the soup.  So far my two favorite meals so far have been the above mentioned butternut squash soup – and this little scrumptious number… adapted from trader joe’s “polka dot mac and cheese.”  I prepared one box of Annie’s mac and cheese, and added frozen broccoli, and shelled edamame.  Edamame and cheese?  Don’t knock it til you try it. And the protein content is out of this world!  It kept me full for hours.

I grew up in a veggie-starch-protein family.  Prior to this busy season, I’ve never appreciated a vegetarian diet before – but I’m slowly coming to find that it can be just as delectable as eating meat based dinners.  Vegetarian recipes can be so simple, and if cooked properly are missing the grease and fat which are so frequently a side dish of meat entrees.  While I don’t think I am in a proper mindset to appreciate a full veggie diet, I strongly consider giving it a shot – even if it’s just for a few days.  Your tummy and mind will appreciate your creative veggies dishes!  Godspeed

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Happy Monday friends! 

I don’t know about you guys, but this week feels like a fresh start.  I had a fantastic weekend relaxing with all of my girls… both from work, and from SJU.  On Friday, my best girls from work and I went to dinner at California Pizza Kitchen, and then we saw VALENTINE’S DAY!  I checked out the menu before hand, and decided to go with asparagus soup and half of a grilled vegetable salad for dinner.  Not only was it one of the healthier options, but I was craving vegetables!  It was so delicious… just like the cast of Valentine’s Day!  I don’t know what it is lately, but I have been boy crazy!  First my crush on King Henrik (so dreamy), then all of these gorgeous actors!  Robert’s been making fun of me like crazy because I never ever have celebrity crushes!  And the movie was so cute.  Very predictable, but quite charming.  It was just what I needed after a stressful week at work.

Saturday was almost (almost!) my perfect day.  I had to go to work in the morning, but left and went to watch a surprisingly competitive SJU game vs Temple.  Some of you might not know how fierce the inter-city rivalries are in Philadelphia, but SJU v Temple is always a scrappy game.  We held it close – even pushed it into overtime, but it just didn’t cut the mustard.  Anyway, there was no time to be sad over the loss – I had a bridesmaid’s dress fitting to attend!  My friend Georgia picked me up right after the game, and fitting with the theme of the day – I asked her to be my bridesmaid!  My bridal party is starting to come together – one girl left to ask

The dress we tried on for Kirsten was beautiful!  It was a shimmery blueish gray, with a sweetheart neckline and a big bow in the back.  It looked so good on everyone!  After the fitting, we headed up the street to StoneRose, a new restaurant in Conshohocken.  I had almost the same dinner as the night before – this time with potato soup and duck salad.  Paired perfectly with two glasses of wine

The girls and I had so much fun catching up on all things wedding related (3 of us are getting married in the next year or so!) and baby related (Georgia’s going to be an aunt!)  and house related (Mariola just bought a house!).  We had so much fun!

Anyway, back to business!  As you might have noticed, I have not gone for a run for almost two weeks now!  Yesterday, we had beyond gorgeous weather here in Philly.  I got home from running errands, and immediately set out for my first run outside in… months!  It felt so nice to have some fresh air in my lungs… until the cold started burning whenever I took a breath!  I had to take some walk breaks, but I still made pretty good time (for me), so I am happy!

Being able to run outside made me feel a lot better about the Broad Street Run – so much better in fact, that I took the plunge… and plunked down $75 to join a training group.  Mildly freaking out over here!  This is the biggest commitment I’ve taken towards a race, and I really don’t know what to expect.  So far I think that it’s sorta like Team in Training… without the fundraising part (a portion of our registration fee goes to charity, but I don’t have to raise any additional $), and the training plan is specifically tailored for the Broad Street Run.  I think there are a lot of other runners who are just starting out, so I think it will be good for me to meet people and hopefully force me to get out there and actually run!  I’m so excited, and even a little proud of myself for finally making the commitment!   It’s time to get back in the saddle!  I’ve already started off the week with healthy meals, and a little yoga this morning… so I feel like I’ve got this now.  I’m excited to challenge myself and bring my running and health to the next level!

Have any of you ever run with a training group?  What was your experience?

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Will you check this out – a real post!   I wanted to share with you guys the fun times Robert and I had last weekend.  As I mentioned, Robert is a HUGE New York Rangers fan, so for his birthday I surprised him with tickets to a game at Madison Square Garden!  (wait, is it still a surprise if I get it for him every year…?)  We stayed with his mom in Queens on Saturday night, and headed into the city just in time for the game. on Sunday afternoon

I love going to MSG because the fans and the city are so passionate about their team.  The whole building was full of Rangers jerseys!  Robert didn’t want me to feel left out, so he bought me a Marc Staal t-shirt!  I love the Staal brothers – they are so good and Marc is about my age.  I wish I had a picture of me modeling my sweet t-shirt

Before the game, they had an awesome tribute to the NHL players on the Rangers and the opposing team (Tampa Bay Lightning).  They brought out the cutest little kids holding the flags of the countries represented by the players.

Gotta love King Henrik – they adore him at the Garden!  He’s on the Swedish team, and they won the gold medal at the last Olympics.  And whoa is he hot too!  (It’s ok,  Robert knows my hockey crush!)  Ow ow!

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Phew, ok, back to the game.  It was so intense, with the Lightning going up 2-0 first, and then the Rangers answering with 4 goals in the second period!  We were hoping that one of the players would score a hat trick, but alas the game ended 5-2 with no hat trick

The crowd was going crazy!  Everyone was on their feet.

Considering it was Valentine’s Day, we weren’t surprised when we saw the makings of a jumbotron proposal.  We were all shocked to see that the girlfriend actually turned down the hopeful groom-to-be!  The woman looked so angry, and stormed out of the arena.  My jaw was ON THE FLOOR!  I had always joked with Robert that I’d say no if he proposed at a sporting event, but when this happened I had to reassure him that I wouldn’t have actually said no!  (Of course this is easier to say after he already proposed!)  Check out the video though – once you get over feeling bad for the poor guy, it’s pretty funny.  Besides, I’ve heard from more than one source that the whole thing was a hoax, so don’t feel too bad

Unlike these guys, Robert and I had a great time!  I can’t wait to see the Rangers again  when they come to Philadelphia in April!

We topped off the night with a feast of BBQ at a nearby restaurant.

We shared a platter of all sorts of goodness: ribs (my favorite!), brisket, pulled pork, and bbq chicken.  We were in heaven!  There need to be more bbq places in Philly!  The restaurant was a little dead because it was Valentine’s Day – but that’s how we like it!  I’ve never really been into the whole fancy dinner and flowers thing for V-day.  Robert spoils me enough during the rest of the year!  But it’s always fun to do something we love, and this day was perfect.

What is your idea of a perfect day?

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Hey guys!  Sorry posting is still sporadic.  We’ve been swamped at work [still!] and haven’t even had time to get a post up at lunchtime.  Robert and I are going up to New York right after work today, so I’m pretty excited about that.  We are spending time with his mom and sister tonight, and then tomorrow we’re going to see the NY Rangers play the Tampa Bay Lightening at Madison Square Garden!  Robert’s a HUGE Rangers fan, and I bought him these tickets for Christmas… the game just happened to fall on Valentine’s Day!  I’ve never been much for the holiday itself, but we always manage to do something fun anyway! 

Anywho, I hope you all enjoy your weekend!  I’ll be back tomorrow – hopefully posting more regularly after that.  In the meantime, please aquaint yourself with this fellow.   We met yesterday morning while I was stuck in traffic on the way to work.  I loved how the kids made a snowman even though they don’t have a backyard in the city.  I miss being a kid!

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