So excited it's Friday!!! I've been looking forward to this weekend for awhile now! Tonight, Neil and I are going to the Old St. Pat's "World's Largest Block Party" in the West Loop. Ben Fold's is playing  and I'm super stoked to hear him play! This Block Party is always a good time and reminds me of my first summer in Chicago. It was SUPER hot outside and the power went out in the building I was staying in. We all went to the block party and came home to the hottest room EVER! We put frozen vegetables on our heads to try and sleep at night but had no success cooling down. It was terrible at the time, but funny to look back at and laugh.

Saturday I'm doing a mini spa day with a massage and mani/pedi! Neil and I are going to try to hit up the Girl and the Goat for dinner as well! Looking forward to a super low key and relaxing weekend at home to recharge the batteries! Hope everyone has an amazing weekend as well!

Since I'm stuck in the Airport for 5 Hours...

1. Are you young at heart, or an old soul? I'd lean towards Old Soul.

2. Would you like to reconnect with any friends you’ve lost contact with? Definitely

3. You’ve got the TV on, but you’re not really watching. What channel is the TV on? Bravo and only Bravo.

4. Have you ever read the “missed connections” on Craigslist? Have you ever posted one, or wanted to? I've most certainly read them and have not posted one, but had thought about it once before just to see the responses!

5. Can money buy happiness? Absolutely! At the very least it can take a lot of stress out of your life.

6. If you could only eat one thing for the rest of your life, what would it be? Pasta.

7. Do you believe in God? Compeltely.

8. Name a TV series you didn’t enjoy until after it ended. Arrested Development. Sadly.

9. What is the best TV theme song ever? 90210 or Bay Watch

10. What part of the past year sticks out in your mind? Top 5 (no particular order): European Vacation, Mary Kate's wedding, Krista's wedding, New Car, New Job

11. What’s the best route to your heart? Making me laugh

12. Early bird or night owl? Early Bird

13. Do you believe in luck? Yes!

14. What song makes you happy? Right now it's "We found love in a Hopeless Place"

Book Club

I feel as though I'm in desperate need for a few good books. I just finished reading "Let's pretend this Never Happened" which was funny, but wasn't a nail biter and didn't have any sort of plot. Her stories were comical overall, but the commentary got a bit old after awhile. However, if you're looking for something light to read, this will kill some time!

After finishing that book I moved on to "Most Talkative" by Andy Cohen and naturally, I love it. Although I do wish he'd give us a little more dirt on the Housewives, the book is hilarious and well written and provides great stories on Andy's life and how he got to where he is now (which I've always wondered). I'm not done with the book yet, but I also wish he'd explain how he became BFF's with the biggest celebs in Hollywood! A book 2 is definitely in order!

Is It Time for Magic Mike Yet?!

Mary got Married!!

My friend, Mary Kate, got married this weekend!! Mary and I have known each other for 20 years and I have never seen her so happy and so beautiful as she was on her wedding day! She did not stop smiling the whole day and either did Kirk, her new husband. The wedding was beautiful and they (she) did an amazing job planning and coordinating everything!

Friday was the rehersal dinner and all of our college roommates were invited. We had an amazing dinner and then went out to celebrate Mary and Kirk at a bar in Lincoln Park. Mar's dress was amazing!

                      *Group shot and Mary Kate and Kirk the night before their wedding!!*

Saturday was the big day!! We were lucky enough to see Mary Kate come out of the limo on her way into the church and she literally took my breath away! She looked goreous!! The church was beautiful and the priest was great!

In between the wedding and reception we went over to my friend Hunter and Caitlin's place and had a few drinks and a dance party! It was an awesome layover!

The reception was STUNNING!! Everything was flawless and so pretty!

Congrats to Mary Kate and Kirk!! Thank you for letting us celebrate your special day with you!!

Things I'm looking forward to

This summer has already started off with a bang and I'm looking forward to so much more:

1. Mary Kate and Kirk's wedding this weekend!! I'm too excited to sleep!!! It's going to be such a beautiful wedding and I can't wait to see everyone again!

2. My trips to the OC. In addition to working, I plan on doing as much celeb stalking as possible!

3. Family trip to the shore! We went last year to celebrate my brother's birthday and I can't wait to go back and lay on the beach for a few days with my family.

4. My Birthday. Just because, who doesn't love their birthday!

5. Coldplay concert. So I have the coolest project lead and she said I can stay in Chicago that week and go to the concert!! Woo hoo (I'm practicing my Vicki Gunvalson impression already)!

5. Hopefully paying off my credit cards over the next few months (I'm secretly hoping that I have a long lost Parisian prince cousin who has decided to give me thousands of dollars just because he can).

6. Caitlin's bachelorette party! Since her wedding isn't until October, I can't put the wedding itself on the list, but her bach party is going to be off the chain, even if it is Nicki Minaj theme....

Honorable mentions: Jazzing at the Shedd, trips to the LP zoo, Cub's games, Sox games, visits from family, enjoying drinks on the balcony, recovering from all the wedding fun, walks outside, concerts in Millennium Park, the beach, laying out (obvi what I'm most excited for).

Cheers to the summer!

I'm Going Going...

We've recently been handed new assignments at work and I've been aligned with Orange Coast Hospital in sunny California! I'm excited to spend some time there, although anyone who has been on a work trip knows that we don't really get to see the area.

The downside of this trip is that I am going to miss the Coldplay concert Neil got tickets for back in December as well as the Bare Naked Ladies and Blues Traveler concert I had been looking forward to!

The plus side is that I think Neil is going to fly down for a weekend and we can stalk all the Housewives of OC and Beverly Hills as well as the Kardashians!

Custom House

I realized  today that I have not been talking as much about the fun meals we have been having lately, so I'll get back on that! Last night Neil and I went to dinner with his Dad, mom and sister (Lizzie) for Father's Day. Lizzie picked Custom House, which is located near our new place (http://www.customhouse.cc/). It was very good and had a great ambiance. We split a few appetizers, which were the Veal Sweetbreads, grilled octopus and chicken liver pate. I really liked the sweetbreads and octopus (not so much a fan of chicken liver pate, probably just because of the name).

For dinner Mr. Berman and  I had steak. Lizzie got the scallops which looked amazing, Mrs. Berman did the pork chops and Neil had the chicken, which was super good! For dessert we all shared mint ice cream, which tasted like real mint, not your normal mint ice cream.

Overall, it was really good! I think it would also be a good place to go and have some fun cocktails. Neil and I are super excited to explore the South Loop/Printers Row area more and get to experience some fun, new bars and restaurants.

The First to Get Married

Friday, Krista, one of my college roommates got married!! It was such an amazing wedding! Krista is the first of my college roommates (420 Kiefaber) to get married so it was fun to all be back together again!

Shea, one of the other roommates came in late Thursday night and Friday Laura, another college roommate came in. We spent the day running errands, lunching and wrapping our head around the fact that Krista is getting married! I can't believe we are even old enough yet to be getting married!

We all took the train to Park Ridge (very near suburb to Chicago) and made our way to the country club. The actual wedding was outside and it was beautiful! Krista looked STUNNING (an American Kate Middleton) and it was a perfect day!

The reception was so much fun as well!! We ate and danced and had a great time! Krista did an amazing job planning and putting the wedding together. Such an amazing time! Congratulations Krista and Joe!! Below are some more pics of the wonderful day!

Reminds me of college Away Messages...

What a Difference a Day Makes

After days of going nuts and complaining to anyone who would listen (sorry, all) we finally finished unpacking and getting the new apartment organized!

 And, for you Dayton people; The. Back. Bar. Is. Open!!!

We just have to hang a few things on the walls and we should be (mostly) good to go!

Catching Up

So, I've been a bit of a slacker when it comes to updating this blog, but in my defense, it has been crazy around here! (This was actually my horoscope I read while getting a pedicure on Saturday, quite ironic)

Last Thursday Neil and I moved in together to a place in the South Loop. I'm really excited about the place and can't wait to actually get everything set up (because I am continuing to have panic attacks until everything is unpacked and set up).

My sister Megan was in town during out move-in weekend. We went to G.T. Fish and Oyster on Friday (aammmmaaaazzzzinnggg) and then Saturday, Megan came over to help us set up the apartment and all the new furniture we bought. She was a huge help since I can't read instructions and was about to throw the new table out the window. While we put together the furniture, Neil assembled the grill. Very productive day.

Sunday we were able to get lunch together before I had to catch a flight to leave for Atlanta for the week. With this new job I am going to be traveling a lot more and we typically stay for the week when we are out of town, which I am excited for, but the timing was not the best for this trip! I wanted to spend the week at home, unpacking and exploring the new neighborhood, but the trip was a good experience and is helping me rack up the reward points :)

Friday I came home to Neil cooking dinner on the grill. We ate outside and enjoyed our new view!

Saturday I went shopping in the morning (to prepare for the upcoming weddings), got my hair cut (about 6 inches off!) and ended the day by celebrating my good friend Krista's last week as a single lady at her bachelorette party! We went to Sable for dinner (which was awesome) and then out to Lizzie McNeill's for drinks. Krista, ever the responsible one, sipped spritzers throughout the night in preparation for her big day. It was so much fun to be with everyone and celebrate Krista's upcoming nuptials.

Sunday, after finally sleeping in a bit and a massive brunch, we went to Glenview for Krista's shower at her aunt's BEAUTIFUL house. I'm so excited for Krista and Joe. I've never seen Krista so happy and can't wait for next Friday!!!

This week we moved into a new office for work, so I will be testing out new routes to the office while continuing to unpack and settle into the new place!