Surprise Trip to Gainesville

So a couple weeks ago I had a surprise trip to Gainesville – well it wasn’t a surprise to everyone! My parents knew I was coming – but I flew into town to surprise my friend Janeen for her baby shower. Janeen and I have been friends over ten years – since beginning of high school – and we’ve stayed close despite going to different colleges and living in different cities. She is so special to me and I was excited to be there – and I know how much she loves surprises! I really committed to it too – Friday night I was sitting at home with my parents when I wrote a facebook status about “staying in for the night with my sweetheart” – and my mom commented “miss you! I’ll tell Janeen you say hi!” Hahaha so we really had her fooled!

I arrived early for the shower and surprised Janeen by walking in behind a whole bunch of balloons! Shortly after, our friend Ashley arrived and the three of us got to catch up before the shower started. Ashley and I have been friends since high school as well, and she lives in Orlando but was in town for the shower. These two ladies are such special friends to me, I love them so much! It's also hard to believe Janeen is going to be a mommy - we are really growing up! She is going to be amazing, I am so excited for her!



And of course, I had to bring the baby a New York present – an I <3 NY onesie! It’s too cute! I am sure once the baby is old enough she WILL love New York and hopefully she’ll get a chance to visit when she is old enough to appreciate it!



The rest of the weekend was perfect – relaxing and fun. My parents, grandmother and I had a special dinner at Embers and I also got to catch up with one of my OLDEST friends (she’s not old – but we have known each other since the 2nd grade!). Erica was in town (she lives in North Carolina actually) for her niece’s birthday so I was lucky to get to see Erica and her family at one of our favorite Gainesville restaurants – Las Margaritas! It was a wonderful weekend and while I love coming home, I was also really happy to head to my current home – New York City – with my sweetheart.

One Year Anniversary in Philly

Philadelphia – The City of Brotherly Love

Belated update on our anniversary trip to Philadelphia! We had an AMAZING weekend in Philly, it’s my second favorite city in the northeast, after New York of course! We left Friday after work, arriving in Philly around dinnertime. We went to Tria Café, where I had been with Kelly during my first trip to Philly in fall 2008. We loved it – amazing cheese, wine, and sandwiches. Very cute place! After dinner we met up with Kelly and Sam and went to a local bar called Triumph. It was so great to be reunited with my college friend!












After a fun night out we returned to our adorable bed and breakfast, the Thomas Bond House. In lieu of gifts, we decided to make our anniversary special by staying at this B&B – and it was worth it! All the furniture was authentic, pre-colonial period furniture. We had an electric fireplace and poster bed – it was perfect!



Saturday it was raining, much to our disappointment – so we decided to visit all the “indoor” Philly activities. We started at the National Constitution Center (which I expected to be boring) and were pleasantly surprised at how much fun it was! It’s incredibly interactive with hands-on virtual exhibits to learn more about our country’s history. I would highly, highly recommend it to anyone who visits Philadelphia! After that we stopped by the Visitor’s Center and then headed straight to the Liberty Bell. I’ve seen it twice now, and it never gets old – thinking about how this bell survived so long despite all the turmoil in Philly! We loved the bell, as you can see! We also toured Independence Hall (you gotta do it) and of course, it never fails to impress you! The restoration of the room is exceptional, you can really picture the founding fathers debating the constitution!



After that we walked to the Betsy Ross House, stopping for lunch at Fork’s restaurant in the area. Our last sightseeing stop was Elrick’s Alley, which is still inhabited – but the houses are from the 1600s! Finally, we headed back to our B&B to get cleaned up for our anniversary dinner. We choose Amada, literally around the corner (and a 29 food score on Zagat, for all you foodies our there!). It came recommended by my uncle and friends, and they did not let us down! We had delicious sangria, cocas with artichokes, mushrooms (like a pizza), goat cheese stuffed lamb chops, a variety of cheeses including the incredible queso de cabra with balsamic soaked strawberries (YUM!), scallops, and we were treated to a complimentary anniversary dessert (a sweet bread). It was an amazing meal, absolutely the perfect way to celebrate our anniversary.



Sunday we were blessed with beautiful weather (especially for February). It was sunny and cool - not cold, and not too windy. We started at City Hall and then of course stopped for a photo at the LOVE statue. So cheesy but still cute! Next we walked the Ben Franklin parkway up to the Philadelphia Museum of Art, AKA the “Rocky” museum (where he runs up the steps in the movie). We took pictures at the Rocky spot – terribly tacky but too funny not to do it:

We then walked to Rittenhouse Square and had cappuccinos at “the best coffeehouse in the US” (according to Food and Wine Magazine – La Colombe. We cabbed from there down to the Italian Market where we indulged in a few cheese purchases at DiBruno Brothers’ House of Cheese. We walked down to Pat’s and had the classic Philly Cheesesteaks before heading back to Old Town, where our B&B was located. We stopped by Christ Church before packing our bags and heading home. It was an AMAZING trip and could not have been any more perfect!

End of January

January was a low key month for us! Mostly we got back in the routine – work, gym, and hiding out from the snow! End of the month was Jenni’s birthday and we celebrated by going to Union Square Café and getting our nails done! Lots of fun! The next weekend I visited her at Dance Marathon – it was her THIRD year and I was super proud! Back at FSU I did Dance Marathon 4 years and it’s such a great fundraiser for important causes. Columbia’s benefits the Elizabeth Glasser Pediatric AIDS Foundation.

Nate and I have also started neighborhood scouting for our move this spring! We are looking at the Upper West Side – it will put both of us much closer to work – it’s just south of Columbia and Morningside Heights without being too far from my work in midtown. It’s a really cool neighborhood and we’re looking forward to finding the perfect apartment with a much shorter commute! And we can take advantage of living in the city and discovering new favorite places!




More soon on our one year anniversary trip to Philadelphia!