My birthday

First can I just confess that we are Panera Bread addicts?
The chicken salad sandwich, blew my mind. And I am not a huge mustard girl... This is like 4 for 4 now. I've also moaned over every bowl of soup I've had there.
So I had this huge honking sandwich... with my portion sizes now, more like two sandwiches... on some sort of fresh semolina bread. The perfect scoop of chicken salad with lettuce, tomato a light yet impressive dose of spicy mustard (no onion breath for me please, hold the onion) A dill spear, and this is a decent dill. This isn't the fluorescent science project. Kettle cooked chips that I begged Brad to help me eat and my giant bowl of creamy tomato soup while the croutons soak up all that absurd goodness.

We had our shared bucket of diet soda (Pepsi or Coke, these are the standard diet fountain soda choices diet drinking customers have to face, fuck you very much.) cranked up with about 5 lemon wedges and went to town. Besides the shared interest in the creamy tomato, Brad ordered the Mozzarella and tomato panini, also a wise choice. Fresh Mozzarella, sun dried tomatoes, fresh tomato and basil... I have taught you well.

The engagement shoot was awesome. I recommend it to anyone getting married... our photographer giggled with us non stop, he probably went home and laughed with his wife over what he got us to do. We really had a great time. I just wish the weather wasn't so fickle and frigid today!
Huh, maybe there really is something to this "Global Warming" epidemic lol I wore a really cute black Converse knit sweater, jeans and a pair of Studio 1940 black kitten heels

updated pic


Brad was beyond adorable. He is so awesome for being such a good sport even at times it was clear he was feeling awkward lol He eventually got the hang of it, let loose and nailed it. He even asked Brad to dip me for the last picture.

The Thinker is on display there, admittedly it gave me the creeps. He is such a huge guy, and when I am standing there tall, his face is right down in mine. Looks like at any minute this pissed off dude is going to stand and crush you.

I got some thoughtful gifts, ate some kick ass food, shared this experience of something I never imagined we'd do... solid day.

Happy birthday hunny!

My fourteen year old turns 24 today, they grow up so fast don't they?

Prepare your gag reflexes, I am going in! Have I mentioned how much I love this man? I had no idea life could be this way, and I hate myself for the words I am typing lol
I have the best life! Such a stretch from the mess I was even a couple years ago. I fear the inevitable "birthday" every year, though I can't help but to admit that it just keeps getting better.

Also people, we are in no rush for kids at the time being. Partly I think, because I realize I am just too selfish to share him with anyone else at this point, and I love the life we have today. We are young, I adore the ability to just take off whenever we want to... we stay up all night and sleep half the day. Our house is quiet, and with our sense of style it isn't really baby proof.
We don't have to worry about not being able to cover bills, we are comfortable financially but we are not the type of people to go out and just blow money either and I don't know if you've noticed but those little chubby people cost a lot! Planning our wedding strangely, has put a lot of things in perspective for me. I am more into my sisters babies where I can go get them, then send them home.

I am so proud of us and how far we have come, those who know us best, know what I am talking about. We've literally grown up together, moving in at 18 and 20 and that means some of the time we were more like bickering brother and sister than boyfriend and girlfriend. We want to enjoy married life before adding kids to the mix, what is the rush? My oldest brother told me, he enjoys things more now in his early thirties than in his twenties.

Don't get me wrong, we love babies and children (well, most of them lol I am talking to you mom at Target who awkwardly ignores her red faced screaming brat) and I think we will make amazing parents. However, we want to enjoy it, plan it and be ready for it when it happens. Turning 26 in 9 days, I definitely hear my clock ticking, I just opt to keep hitting the snooze button...

*UPDATE* So today we went forth and celebrated the day his mother expelled him from her uterus. I picked him up Kat Williams new DVD it's pimpin' pimpin' and the Offsprings CD Rise and Fall, Rage and Grace. We met his Aunt where she plays on a pool league so she treated us to a meal of buffalo wings (I hate the drumsticks so Brad eats those lol) and Brad also wanted the buffalo chicken pizza.
The wings were killer, but the bleu cheese was horrid. She says she treated me too because "my bday was a few days after Brads" (ehrm, that would be almost 2 weeks lol) I had a few drinks, dependable/responsible Brad did not, and sure enough I passed out when I got home... poor guy didn't even get birthday head!

"How was your vacation?"

Simply put, my vacation was all a vacation should have been. Got to experience Autumn in New England (one of my very favorite things). Welcomed a break from the everyday shuffle. Did things I never have the chance to do in everyday real life. Vacation sex. Hung out with my best friend and some wonderful people... which brings me to nostalgic company, food & scenery. Even scored some decent broad time to myself.

Towards the end however, as is the case with any extended vacation, it was time to come home! Our moods had dwindled as I begun to wilt like a flower, borderline basket case missing our animals. I was sick of lugging around our shit and disappointed I hadn't spent enough time with my family. I didn't even give my oldest brother and his girlfriend (one of my bridesmaids) a proper goodbye.
What a douche bag. I didn't want to bother them on the day we took off for Foxwoods, so I figured I would catch up with them when they came out to hang at our suite.

Well silly me, not everyone has the sort of free living lifestyle we are spoiled with, so I didn't even take into account in this big head how difficult it might be for them to accomplish that. If I had one do over, it would be to have knocked on their door. (and most certainly that peanut butter fudge brownie I devoured from Douwe Egberts) So for financial reasons they weren't able to make it out to Foxwoods to hang out, wah wah wah.

Got to see my sisters boys, haven't seen them since August. The oldest is taller than me now, and at thirteen, the same age I was when he was born *rubs chin whilst delving into deep thought* interesting.

Brad got wasted and passed out on the bathroom floor after mixing malt beverages in between numerous shots of jager and grazing on chinese. I of course, blacked out for some of the evenings events but I am told I had a great time lol

We stopped by Mohegan Sun for the first time the day we checked out of the MGM Grand, before we hit the highway homeward bound. The shopping beats Foxwoods, but Foxwoods over all... (Casino's, hotels, appearance and such) is far superior. I did get to step foot in a Tiffany's and try on a two thousand dollar platinum wedding band, that was crazy.

Here are some visual highlights:


























Our crazy 22nd floor MGM suite views














I love my life.