Friends, Blues & BBQ

Well this was one of our last weekends before reality sets back in for both of us. I have two inservice days this week and then start work after Labor Day. I think Orie will miss Grace being taken care of, a clean house, and dinner ready!!!!

Friday we had dinner with our fried Geoff at a neighborhood place. It was a nice break since the two previous nights Orie and I have been busy looking at apartments in NYC. After dinner we took Grace to the park to play and she had another great evening. She loves having the park to herself!




Today we joined Geoff for the 9th annual Blues BBQ at the Hudson River Park. It was a great event. We went to Pier 54 I believe at West 14th street. The pier was a full asphalt pier and it was HOT! We waited for quite some time in a line for BBQ and then made our way up to the stage for some blues. The whole day was really great and the experience was again, like nothing else you think you would find in New York. Enjoy some photos!

Close your eyes and imagine...

So Grace and I were in the park today and they had the sprinklers going. It's the kind with the revolving head that goes tick tick tick tick and then shoots back. I hope you know what I am talking about. Anyway, a sprinkler really has some force when it sprays water out - and there was our dog trying to attack it. It was hilarious. Everyone stared at us laughing but Grace was having a great time. I am not sure if she was confused more about the ticking or that she couldn't get her mouth around the water to drink it!! She tried and tried though and then she gave up...sopping wet!

Another great day...

A Great Day with Grace in the Park!

Today Grace and I set out for a relaxing day in Central Park. It was fantastic. I'm not used to carrying all of the gear by myself. Usually we go on the weekends and Orie can help carry and control the dog on the streets. We decided that we were real girls today and could handle it on our own. My shoulder was killing me from carrying the heavy bag and having Grace on her leash. We made it though. Once we got there, we picked the perfect spot and sat out to have the perfect day. We certainly did. I read and Grace ate sticks, people watched, squirrel hunted and really just had an awesome day. Perfection to a 70 degree day in the city!

Grace Loves Ethan!

Some cute pics of Grace and Ethan in Cape May Point. She didn't really understand why Ethan wasn't going to throw the ball for her!!!

New York is Favre Country!

What a super night for us at the Jets game!! We had a friend Jeff come in town to take in some sites and suggested going to the Jets game because it was rumored Favre would start. We were all over that!! We recruited another friend Geoff and the four of us headed off on the shuttle bus from Port Authority. It was fantastic from the first moment we got there. A sea of green and white - tons of Brett Favre fans - and the four of us super excited! We are Jets fans for sure now - we needed a reason to identify with at least one New York team. I don't think other New Yorkers are real proud of us when we say we hate the Giants and we are really Red Sox fans - the Saints never fit into that equation either!!!!

We captured LOTS of moments from the game that are in the slideshow but here are a few of the highlights.

Our group...


Tom Cruise - in the black pants and grey jacket


Brett Favre's first huddle, pass, etc.



Brett Favre's first touchdown completion!






Jets Show #1

Jets Show #2

Jets Shows #3

Grace

Just wanted to give a clean slate of health for Grace! All her tests were good and she is back to her old self!

It was a great health week for everyone. I had my physical for my new job and would you believe that a doctor approved me to work with nursery school kids?

So, I found these pics that I forgot to post a while back. Can you believe the size of these beers. It took me several hours to finish! FYI - these were consumed before the annual physical!

Waiting and waiting....

Well, we are still waiting on the lab results from Grace's tests. They were to call by Tuesday or I could call on Wednesday. I called but he was in a meeting so now I have to wait for his callback hour this evening. She seems to be doing much better though after taking three days of the medicine and special food they gave her. Our sweet girl - she gets so anxious sometimes - I think that is half the problem.

Last night we took her to the park really late, not sure why but it was almost 8 before we got there. What a good blessing in disguise because it was movie night in the park. People seated on the court with a huge blow up movie screen - the smell of popcorn on the river. What more could you ask for in an evening? We stayed for 2 of the preview cartoons and then headed home. Grace even watched a little bit wondering what that big picture was!

The weather in NYC is beautiful this week after the huge storm on Monday. Temperatures in the 60's in the morning and an afternoon of beautiful sunshine! Summer is definitely better in NYC than Louisiana - come visit!!!!!!

Until next time...

Sweet Grace...

So Grace is a little puny right now. She had some tummy problems on vacation and they have continued since we got home. Today they were of enough concern that I walked her down to the vet. They did a bunch of tests (which she didn't quite love) and sent off all her samples to the lab. We should hear from them tomorrow with the results. Poor baby hates being poked. We then went to walk home and got caught in the worst thunderstorm I have seen in New York since I have been here. That was great fun!!! Orie called us and said though at least it was moving through quickly - we didn't really agree with that as we sat under an awning and then had to continue in the rain due to time! Life is never dull.

What Fun!!

Wow - did we have a great time with Kat, Jen & Rodney here in NYC. It was an awesome long weekend and we enjoyed each moment. Kat got in on Friday and we shopped in SoHo, visited baby Brooks, had drinks with New York's finest at the Met's rooftop garden, dined at a fantastic French Belgian restaurant and conquered Century 21 on a Saturday!!!

When Jen and Rodney arrived after a very LONG day of traveling we all enjoyed a cold Yuengling Lager in Rodney's honor. After a few of those we headed to the streets and had dinner at a neighborhood restaurant. It was delicious and yes we did not forget to eat while on vacation!! We failed to party like Rock Stars but we defintely had a night full of great laughs!

The next day we took a circle line boat cruise. It was pretty cool - we went on the semi circle island cruise from West 42nd street south and around to East 42nd street and then back around. We saw some super sites! We had a great trip to China Town and Little Italy but it was short lived. We had to then quickly head home to get ready for Chicago on Broadway. It seems we wasted most of our time eating in Little Italy!!! The gnocchi was delicious though - just ask anyone.

Monday was another day full of shopping and fun. We started off with a little trip to some baby stores in our area - Marie Chantal of course. It was a little run down and the sales help was quite rude. I was glad to no longer be a part of that operation! We went back to Chinatown to get some goodies but were a little dissappointed with the lack of Chanel, Gucci, and Louis Vuitton. It seems they have really cracked down on our old super finds. We shopped Rock Center, Fifth Avenue and then headed home to get ready for our last evening on the town. We had reservations at UVA one of our favorite places. It was full of serious laughter, lots of wine, and 5 clean plates!!! We had a spectacular evening - thanks again Jen and Rodney. It was a night to never forget.

Tuesday we had to pack up and end our fun in NYC - it was quickly replaced though by fun in Cape May Point with the whole family. Jen and Rodney were ready to reunite with Ethan and we were all looking for some beach time and maybe a little more space! Our car ride (including Grace) was great. Kat kept us full of trivia and Rodney provided short lived radio entertainment! It was a fantastic week full of family and fun. Thanks Mom and Dad for a great trip - absolutely perfect! More pictures to come of that soon. Have a great week!

A Sneak Peek....