Philly | Valentine's Day 2015

I have passed through Philly around 50 times now. Richard has been to visit Philly, but only to walk from the train station to a client meeting. So we thought it was about time to actually visit the city of brotherly love. And with Valentine's being the day of love, it just made sense. 

We took the super cheap Bolt bus down in the morning and rode the train back (thanks to one free Amtrak ticket :). With a pending snowstorm, we were ready for a day adventure! 

We walked so much of the city, and it was so pretty and historic. I think we both agree that our favorite three things were the "Rocky" stairs, LOVE park and a late afternoon coffee date at La Colombe while it snowed. Oh, and the incredible Philly cheesesteak pretzel that we smothered in cheese! 

Happy Valentine's Day from the city of {brotherly} love. XO! 

Rocky Steps @ Philidelphia Museum of Art | LOVE Park | Reading Terminal Market | Miller's Twist (2009 Best Pretzel) | Liberty Bell | City Hall | Oyster House | La Colombe Coffee Shop

A little getaway, to Boston we go.

When Boston calls, smack at the start of Fall, you answer. And you answer fast. 

Boston, we kinda like you.

Richard was asked to take a quick trip to Boston for work… so we rented a car, and headed North with two dogs in tow. 

Quite the view from our room. Hey there, Cambridge. 

Kimpton Hotels are just great.

On the way, we stopped at the beautiful Bear Mountain. Then we ate and walked our way through one of our favorite cities of all.

Our unhealthy tradition. 

Boston has some of the most gorgeous architecture. 

I fell in love with lobster mac 'n' cheese all over again.

Another shot from Bear Mountain. 

Our hotel was right next to Boston Commons.

The dogs were thrilled.

After Boston Commons, we strolled along the Esplanade and took in the neighborhood. 

Lobster roll heaven. 

Until next time Boston!

What on Earth is a Deckerville? 2014 Edition.

Over the summer, we took a road trip to Deckerville with these friends of ours that have made life in New York City so wonderful. I learned some things in Deckerville. 

But first, you are probably wondering WHAT ON EARTH IS 'A DECKERVILLE'? 

So let's start there. See the guy flying through the air touching Richard's shoulder? Meet Scott. To the left of Richard is part of Scott's fun family. They are all from this magical land of Deckerville… found in Michigan. Not to be confused with Ohio. 

Michiganders don't like Ohio, I learned. And by the time we arrived back in New York City with a speeding ticket in hand, we hated Ohio too. Darn you Ohio. 

Thank you, Ohio, for not entering Richard's speeding ticket into your database… and for not telling us what we owe… and for that arrest warrant… and then that extra special fine for not paying the ticket that we didn't know the amount for. Thank you, Ohio, for being great. 

I learned that eating every single meal outside over the fire is amazing. And Scott has an amazing family, who are wonderful hosts and so welcoming!

I learned all about the Great Lakes. I can't tell you what I learned anymore, but it was good knowledge at the time. And absolutely gorgeous. 

The entire gang played a scramble one day, drinks in hand. And it was SO MUCH FUN! 

Richard and I celebrated our sixth wedding anniversary during the trip...

… our marriage has been so blessed by great friendships along the way. They have helped to mold and shape us, laugh and cry with us… and create memories with us. 

We also got to tour the Dairy Farm that Scott grew-up on… and a cow licked me. 

Sipping coffee and looking at this view was probably my favorite part of the trip. 

You learn quite a bit about people when you drive over 12 hours in 1 car with them. We survived, and we still like each other. At least that's my story… ;) 

I learned that I do not like bows and arrows. I'd say that I don't like to shoot bows and arrows, but considering I actually shot the arrow backwards, I don't think that counts. 

We stood in Lake Huron and experienced Pure Michigan! 

And it was oh so cold, but oh so pretty!

These two are fabulous. They help me to stay sane as I try to figure out this life - and we have a lot of laughs along the way. 

And these three are quite entertaining to watch and make adventures pretty fun. Who knew that a couple from Michigan, Florida and Texas would have so much in common? 

**MOM / Crazy Gun Talk Alert*** No these guns are not loaded. Yes, we checked 21431234 times. No Scott is not pointing the gun at Richard's head - you can't see the depth in the picture. No we were not drinking. No we did not shoot animals or anything other than a target. Yes, we were supervised and safe, safe, safe. :) 

Now you can breathe and say… Awwww! What a cute picture!!! And that was my first real time shooting a gun! And it was scary, and loud and fun! 

We went SWIMMING! I sure love living in NYC, but I sure miss swimming all summer long. It was so nice get some sun with the ladies!

Life is about creating moments and memories. Thanks for growing up on a dairy farm Scott. And thanks for making plans with us over beers - they always lead to the best memories. :)

Cheers! Until our next adventure… or our next beer together. Whatever comes first!

XO Deckerville! Not Ohio!

Cabo 2014

We traveled to Mexico over the summer and returned tan, energized, overloaded with photos and filled with vitamin D! Oh Cabo was lovely, and having best friends by our side made it all the more fun and memorable.

We stayed at the all-inclusive, Riu Santa Fe and loved it. 

We soaked up tons of sun in this gorgeous infinity pool overlooking the ocean. One of the staff members was named "white boy" and he loved to follow Richard around with tanning oil because he said he was the true white boy. :) 

We ventured into town another night for a lit bit of market shopping, gigantic margaritas paired with delicious Mexican food at The Giggling Marlin and late night fun at Cabo Wabo. 

I bought this beautiful serving dish in one of the local markets... and talked them down half price. Okay, maybe Richard helped a bit. 

The sunset views were so pretty and relaxing - perfect setting to steal a kiss with this guy. 

One of my favorite things we did was an early morning sunrise walk on the beach, coffee in hand. The coffee reminded me of raisins, so I like to talk about our raisin coffee. 

We both did a ton of reading by the pool. I dove into Emily Giffin's newest book, The One and Only. Richard wrapped up For Whom The Bell Tolls and started on Anne Frank (he's still reading thru the classics!). 

And, of course, we enjoyed tons of time relaxing at the swim up mini-bars, onstage musicals, floating in the pool, meeting new friends (enjoyed drinks and dinner with a fun couple from Australia!) and taking in the scenery. 

One day, we did an island excursion that turned out fantastic! The above photo is the four us snorkeling! Right after this picture was snapped, we were given "power" snorkelers to speed up our adventure - think motorized snorkeling. Amazing. 

We brought an old-school water camera (which Kristi had quite the adventure getting developed). Apparently we are not up to speed on our technology. :) I love this photo Kristi captured of Richard jumping off the boat. We also got to paddle board for the first time - and even stood up! It was just as challenging as surfing, really fun and worked out muscles that I did not know I had.

On the boat ride out we had the opportunity to see the Cabo Arch, a reef that Cousteau explored, Lover's Beach and Divorce Beach (which is the filmed where the original Planet of the Apes was filmed). Fun thing we learned: Lover's Beach and Divorce Beach are connected - one side is swimmable and the other side is extremely dangerous, thus, the name.

We are so thankful for these friends of ours, how our lives have intertwined since our college days and how we continue to experience new adventures together. We left Mexico with new memories, inside jokes and smiles on our face (well, minus my lip swelling three times it's size due to sun poisoning :). 

Cabo til you Wabo. XO.