Family Visit

The family visit was wonderful, though not long enough. We spent a whole day near Charlottesville visiting wineries. My Mom was a little tipsy halfway through the first one. The country out there is beautiful. We started out at Barboursville, where we sampled seventeen wines. No wonder Mom was tipsy. I enjoyed their Merlot, Reisling and Chardonnay. Then we went 2 miles down the road to Horton. Mom and I only sampled the fruit wines. It was something new for both of us. While sweet, the Blackberry and the Blueberry were very good. The Pear was also good, reminding us of most white wines. Her favorite was Strawberry. Then we had to sit outside to allow Mom some time to sober up.


I like this picture. I am the shorty of the family, but it makes me look taller than my sister and my mom.

Then we went to Keswick. Keswick was by far the favorite. Mom liked that they had bar stools and food pairings. We bought a bottle of Chardonnay for our picninc and a bottle of their Heritage Red for later. We had a fabulous picnic at the vineyard. Italian Sandwiches, pasta salad, and Bitter Orange Crostata. We had a wonderful time, and enjoyed the nap on the way home while Nick drove.

On Hold

I realize that when on hold, a phone system has to have music or some sort of noise so you know you are still holding and haven't been disconnecting. I am pleading with you, phone system makers, please don't make this the most annoying, repetitive, hold music on earth. I still need to be able to think when I finally get to talk to an actual person. And when that actual person puts me back on hold to figure something out, maybe you could switch the song up a little. How does the song never end? Don't all songs end?

Email from My Husband

"omg..

omg i just wrote omg"

The Roberts are coming!

My family is coming this weekend, all of them. My mom, dad, and sister. They should be driving up here as I type (when I really should be working). I am so excited. I have a wonderful Virginia weekend planned. We will do a little sight seeing tonight and then head out to dinner. Nick and I haven't been able to agree on a restaurant yet, so I'll let my family decide. Of course, I will make the places I want to eat sound delicious and the places Nick wants to go sound awful. Tomorrow is brunch at my favorite breakfast place and then we are heading towards Charlottesville to visit wineries and have a picnic. My sister is a wine steward, so it is a learning experience. After we get home, we will grill out, sample more wine, listen to music, and most likely, make Nick regret marrying me as we all break out into the Roberts' Dance. I can't wait.

Complaining

I guess it's wrong to complain about people complaining. That makes me a complainer. I get that we all have bad days, or bad jobs and we need to vent. It's not that kind of complaining I'm talking about. I am so tired of other people complaining about other people. There I go again, being a complainer. I don't mean like how I complain about Nick leaving change all over the house, I mean like complaining that the person in the car in front of you won't go when you think they should. Isn't it their choice? Maybe they are having a seizure, we just don't know. We never know what another person goes through, or why they make their choices, but unless they hurt you, they are their choices. I just wish we could all get out of each other's lives and just be happy for ourselves. Live and let live right.
I have made huge leaps and bounds in this area in the last few years, as I have been the new girl for the last 2 years. I've realized that my life is so much more whole when the focus of my life is, well, my life. The more I focused on other people the more miserable I was. I noticed that the less I complained about other people, the less I also thought that other people might be happier, or have better lives than me. Works both ways, I guess. Anyway, I'm sure you all already know this/do this. I just happen to be a late bloomer, but the happiness that I have experienced from making this change is amazing.

Work Out

I still don't know if the exercising is getting easier, but the results are starting to show. Nick and I have both lost 5 pounds and my wine belly and his beer belly are greatly reduced. I think I am starting to like this, the results anyway.

Great Weekend

Nick and I had a great weekend. We went up to DC for a night to celebrate a friend's wedding. While we weren't invited to the small wedding or the family reception, we did meet everyone out for drinks. Here is the happy couple:

They have a hard two years ahead of them while Andrew is in Iraq, but it's good that they have will each other to support.

We also got to see these guys.

We were a mess. But we had a blast and this weekend made me even more happy about living in Richmond.

Iditarod Dreams

Daisy has big dreams. One of which is to be the world's first 30 pound sled dog. This makes our walks somewhat unpleasant for me. Until I found this:

I'm talking about the collar that goes around her nose. I put it on her and she was instantly transformed. She doesn't pull at all anymore, although sometimes she think that we are playing freeze tag. But, I keep telling her, no one tagged her.

No Regrets?

In my early twenties, I used to tell myself that I would never live my life with regrets. That I would never think back and say , "I should have" or "I wish I had" or "why didn't I." Because what's the point right, we don't get a re-do in life. What I didn't realize then, was that those moments were already passing me by and if I didn't take every single one of them, there would always be something to regret. Now I have learned that, while there are still things I regret, not going away to college, not studying harder, not finding my dream job, I am very happy for where I have ended up. If I had chosen any other road, it's possible it wouldn't have lead to the life that I have now, and most importantly, it might not have lead me to Nick.

Bumps, Fives, Cheers

Nick and I went to the Richmond Beer and Seafood festival this weekend. Yum! Who would have thought that Virginia would have so many drinking festivals? Anyway, Nick and I ended up with an enormous amount of beer tickets and started giving them out at the end of the night. The first people we gave them to gave Nick bumps. The next people we gave them to gave Nick fives and the last group of people we gave them to cheersed us. Bumps Guy, Fives Guy, and the Cheers Girls.

Exercise

Nick got me back into running about 5 years ago. I would get off of work at Rosewood Market and drive over to Nick's place, reeking of health food, and go for a jog around his neighborhood. I would be yelling at him to stop and walking and faking injuries, anything to get him to let me go home. He would be running circles around me, literally. It was annoying and embarrassing. Then we moved in together and he stopped running and I kept going. I ran alone or with Daisy in Cedar Terrace, in Gregg Park, in Charlotte, in Dallas, and then in Richmond. Until, we came across some running buddies and amazingly, Nick was out from under his laptop and running again. We just recently discovered the gym at our apt. It is really nice and not too crowded. We have been going a lot and working out very hard. After all, I have to wear a bathing suit in 4 weeks and he has to wear one in 5 weeks. I am so proud of Nick and well me. I love the feeling of calm I get after I finish. Nick thinks I'm crazy when I say that. He feels drenched and sore. But it is so nice to do this together and support each other. We both keep asking each other, why didn't we start this sooner.

Viva Las Vegas!

I'm going to Las Vegas next month to celebrate the last few weeks of singlehood of one of my oldest friends. It's going to be a blast, I'm sharing a room with my sister. Quality Vegas/Sister time. I'm very excited, but I'm also kind of nervous. It sounds like there will be some pool time and I haven't worn a bathing suit in 5 years. Not only is the bride-to-be beautiful, she happens to be a personal trainer. I don't want to wear a bathing suit in front of a personal trainer and I'm sure she has personal trainer friends. Also, my wardrobe is not the least bit Vegas friendly. Its a mix of Old Navy, J. Crew and Ann Taylor. So, I look like I'm going camping, going to the beach, or going to work. None of that works for Vegas. And lastly, I will miss Nick. Its hard to imagine a vacation without him, but I just keep reminding myself that I am still young and there probably aren't a lot of Vegas Bachelorette Parties in my future. Now, if I can just get through the next 4 weeks of Weight Watchers, extreme exercising and bathing suit shopping.

Fantasy Shopping

Does anyone else fill up fantasy shopping carts online? Just today I racked up $1,700.00 in wishful thinking on Nordstrom.com. I really like the websites that remember you and your cart is still full the next time you visit the website. I've been working on one at Jcrew.com and Zappos.com for about a month now.

I live in a zoo

Nick and I have two cats and a dog. The tabby is Spidey. Spidey is the first cat I got when I moved out and the first cat that Nick ever had to live with. In Spidey's mind, she is always in control. Then we got The Sir, the black cat. He's a laid back guy with a squeaky voice and a life-long need for prescription cat food. Before we got our dog Daisy, the cats used to play twins, they also used to sleep on the bed.

Now we have Daisy, the cats have been replaced and she has taken over the bed. Daisy is our first dog and the only dog that I have ever lived with. This is her playing where's the Daisy.

I really love my pets, they brighten up my day, but every now and then it would be nice if they would clean up after themselves.

St. Ives

Does anyone remember St. Ives Apricot Scrub? It was the first exfoliant I ever used, back when I didn't even need exfoliant. I haven't used it in years. I didn't know they still made it, but I just bought some to get my legs beach ready. The smell really takes me back. I wonder what ever happened to the friend that first introduced me to Apricot Scrub. By the way, spell check thinks exfoliant isn't a word.

Anniversary trip in Pictures

Our anniversary trip was fantastic. We started out at a beer festival in Strasburg at a plantation surrounded by cow pastures. It was actually a festival of history and ale. I think the history part was tours of the house. We stuck to the ale part. Screw history. Just kidding.

The next day we went to Shenandoah National Park. Here is the view from out hotel room.

We stayed for a few days and did some hiking. This is Rose River Falls. It was so peaceful and serene, until I twisted my ankle and had to limp back to the car.

Then we went to Charlottesville to visit some wineries. It was gorgeous out there and the wine was very good too.

It was a wonderful trip and since I planned the whole thing, Nick has decided that I should plan all of our trips. Thanks Nick.

In-laws

Unfortunately, the in-law invasion didn't happen. Just my parents-in-law came. My sister-in-law got put on bed rest a few days before they were supposed to visit and my niece got sick, so my brother-in-law stayed home to take care of his ladies. Bed rest must be miserable and Kit has a lot of work on his hands for the next few weeks. But my niece is adorable isn't she and is trying to help out.