only in New York...

So one would think that an Episcopal service on Ash Wednesday would be pretty straightforward...ashes, prayers, communion, blessings...not in NYC!

I am in church on Wednesday night and the service has not started. I am sitting in my pew reflecting on my life etc. and all of the sudden I hear a dog bark from behind me. This is quite unusual for me. I am thinking who would bring their dog to church...and how dare the dog to bark...what could it possibly be barking at?

Literally five seconds later I see a woman walking down the aisle to the row in front of me with her 2 dogs...a golden retriever and one of those dogs with the "smooshed" face that snorts all the time!!!! Apparently the dog in the back that shocked me to my core was not barking at the late comers but another woman's dogs. It was crazy. Three dogs in church...only Episcopalians...only in NYC!

A little Mardi Gras in NYC

Well last night we celebrated Mardi Gras! We joined several friends...one from New Orleans...at a place in the Flat Iron District called Bar Stuzzichini for dinner. It was so much fun. Camille...our new friend from NOLA had brought a king cake and it was a great evening full of fun and laughter. Our friend Erin who has never had king cake before even found the baby! It was really a very nice evening and so exciting to celebrate Mardi Gras with friends...in our own NYC sort of way!

Hope your weekend was fabulous!

p.s. still waiting on our camera to be fixed and returned...i hate not having photos :(

When Friends Come to Town...

We had a surprise visitor to NYC last night! My friend Kaysie came to town for work and we were able to spend a fabulous evening chatting and enjoying the neighborhood. She first came to our apartment and we sipped and nibbled on wine and cheese while chatting and catching up. I have not seen Kaysie since December 2007 so it was a much needed catch up. We had a blast. We then headed to Cafe D'Alsace for dinner and again had a fabulous time. Our evening was full of laughter and entertainment. What more could you ask for on a Friday night! Thank you Kaysie for thinking of us when you came to NYC! We love having friends in our sweet home and the laughter lasts a lifetime. I will never forget it!

Oh the weekend is over...

We had a great Sunday and are enjoying our Monday and day off!! Yesterday we had a little bit of park time with Grace and then headed to midtown to get Orie some new shoes (more to come on the old ones later!) We picked up 2 new pairs on sale at Cole Haan and then were off for a little strolling. We enjoyed a champagne truffle at Rock Center (sorry Rodney!!!) It was delicious. We strolled home and enjoyed a fantastic evening.

We stopped off at Pier One to look at these outdoor wicker chairs that I had seen. I had mistakenly thought they were half the price of what they actually are...so I am hoping that the economy will take another downturn and Pier One will have to put these chairs on sale for 50% off!!!!! Once I get the chairs the economy can go back up! Orie thinks my thinking is not so great on this one!

Today we took Grace to Central Park and enjoyed the trails. We took her off leash and threw stick after stick after stick. She had a blast and was filthy from all the yucky mud and damp ground from all of the melted snow. Orie also showed me how I can walk home through the park from work. I am hoping the weather will get nice soon and I can start enjoying an afternoon stroll home through the park instead of the lovely city bus. It didn't seem to take that long...probably 38 minutes door to door which is about what it takes to take the bus. I will be thrilled when the weather warms up! When I tried to do this before, I took the wrong route and it took forever. I wasn't really sure where I was going either! Having him show me was a big help.

We have now cleaned our apartment and are about to go to the grocery store. Wow - reality sets in quickly but we had a great weekend of quality time...I hope it continues forever!

Happy President's Day!

A Great Day

Wow - today has been amazing...the best quality time I could ever ask for. We went to the park and enjoyed our sweet Grace. Orie cooked breakfast and then we straightened up our apartment (this always makes me feel better since our home is the size of your kitchen!!!) We were then off for excitement. We went to Union Square and visited their outdoor market. It was fantastic...great flowers, cheeses, jellies, paintings, nyc memorabilia and people. We had a blast. I almost purchased a small canvas with some very interesting photographic art but decided not to...we really don't have any more space for it any way. However, the art was really interesting...right up our alley!

We check out Filene's Basement and DSW today for some new shoes for Orie. Our shoe man looked at his black dress shoes and basically said they were done!! After little luck we moved on to Chelsea.

We strolled over to the West Side and finally arrived at the Chelsea Market. It was so different from what I was expecting. It was indoors in this really funky building and not outside open air like I imagined. It was mainly a food produce market and not artists like I had imagined. We enjoyed walking around and looking at everything though. We even picked up fresh Louisiana gulf shrimp for dinner!

After our excitement was finished we headed back uptown and enjoyed some wine at a neighborhood spot. I picked out beautiful flowers down the street (red and yellow tulips and white roses!) They are gorgeous! We are now back at home fixing some shrimp fajitas and enjoying a bottle of pink champagne one of my students gave me for Christmas. I was saving it for a special celebration and Valentine's Day seems like a good excuse to pop it open!

We hope your day was fabulous!!!

Happy Heart Day!

Well this has certainly turned into a very exciting weekend. Orie and I have Monday off of work for President's day and I also have Tuesday off. We have both been anticipating a nice long weekend to celebrate! After choosing to stay in NYC and not take a mini vacation I wasn't really sure what was in store...

I have to say I am married to one of the greatest men of all time...When I first asked Orie what we were doing for Valentine's Day he couldn't really give me an answer. He just kept saying that I would find out on Friday afternoon. Well this could mean one of two things....#1 he has something fabulous planned, it's a surprise and I am totally going to love each moment or #2 he has nothing planned, no ideas and is stalling until he comes up with something. #2 is typically the way we roll!!!

Well Friday afternoon I received a card that said I was getting the gift of "QT" for Valentine's Day...quality time! I was thrilled! Our weekend would start with an old fashioned dinner and a movie date on Friday night. It was fabulous. We ate in the neighborhood and then walked over to our local theater to watch He's Just No That Into You...Orie promised he would always be into me! It was a great date!

At dinner he gave me my second card which unveiled our activities for Saturday...we would start with a nice park excursion with Grace and then have breakfast at home. After that the day was mine to do whatever I wanted and he was going to come with me!!! This is going to be fantastic...Orie usually hates to come and do my Saturday activities. So far we have planned some practical things like the AT&T store, make a return....etc. but we are also going to go to the outdoor Chelsea market for some excitement. After that I get to go to the flower mart and pick out all the flowers that I want! I am so excited...I love fresh flowers and can't wait to see my choices. Tonight I am promised a home made dinner and a movie at home - this is our way of being economical...restaurants and bars turn into pris fixe places on Valentine's day and it's super fussy and expensive so we had a nice celebration out last night and tonight we will stay in. Who knows what my card will unveil for tomorrow. I am promised lots of fun all the way through the weekend!! I am sure I will keep you posted.

Just a thought...I am reading The Five Love Languages right now that a very dear friend gave me when we got engaged. It is a fantastic book on how to communicate with your significant other...I wonder if Orie is learning that my primary love language is quality time?!?!?! I am truly blessed.

We hope everyone has a Happy Heart Day with all of your sweet family, friends and precious pets! Love to all!

What is your favorite part about spring...

Well...this week has warmed up in NYC and I am loving it. I can see the sights of spring and I am already thinking about the long weekends in the park with Orie and Grace! Nothing could be better. Send us an e-mail about what you are most looking forward to this spring in your part of the country. We would love to hear about it!

It Must Have Been a Good Weekend...

Our little Grace...pooped after a great weekend...so are we. Hope yours was fabulous!

Happy Birthday Grace

Happy Birthday Grace!! She is the big 5 years old today. We told her about the day we rescued her and brought her home to live with us forever...she loves to hear that story! She was treated to a nice morning in the park and lots of yummy treats. She even received a birthday "phone call" from her sweet cousin Ethan!

Enjoy a pic of Grace and her mama...her daddy wanted nothing to do with photographs today...what a Scrooge!

A little bragging...

I wanted to brag about my fantastic husband in this post. He had his annual review and bonus/salary review yesterday. This is something we weren't even sure would take place during these trying economic times. Well...he had one and it was fantastic. He received the highest marks from his boss on all areas of review (that means exceeded expectations!!!!) He was thrilled! I am so happy for him and so pleased that his company sees the value of his work and that he is an asset not to lose!

I wanted so badly to celebrate last night for him but he is still a little sick (sinus/cold/weather change) so he stayed in the bed pretty much all evening. We were a very dull home on a Friday night! I am sure we will celebrate soon!

Tonight we are going to dinner with our dear friend Geoff and his very special someone Camille. She is in town visiting after they sparked a romance over Christmas break. We can't wait to meet her and see this girl that Geoff can't get enough of!!! Of course he wants to take her to all of our favorite place...UVA...!

Enjoy your weekend. Ours is supposed to be warm (40 degrees) and sunny! Hey...we'll take it!

Let us know what is going on in your world....

Also...if you are wondering about the lack of photos recently....our brand new camera battery is broken and we are sending it back. It's tragic not having a camera! I can hardly stand it...