Mo's Bachelorette Bash!

Mo is getting married in about 5 months so a few weeks ago we all flew into Las Vegas to celebrate with a Bachelorette Bash!! The extra special part was that the guys also had Brians bachelor party the same weekend. So I got to fly out with Jeff and also got to say hi to Brian, who we never get to see since he lives in Qatar. The guys and girls all met up at Yard House to catch up and have a drink, it was so much fun to see some college friends I haven't seen since our wedding!! After that we split up for our fabulous girls weekend, and what is any girls weekend without Hello Kitty?!?!? Mo loves hello kitty so I picked up some awesome pink hello kitty cups for our champagne!

Our Bar- complete with Hello Kitty cups and napkins

The beautiful bride to be! Sporting her amazing veil that Elvia brought

Bride and Matron of Honor

After grabbing some dinner we headed over to a bar at the Mandalay Bay

All the girls getting ready to head out for night 2. We spent the day lounging by the pool, drinking and eating- so relaxing. Ready for a night on the town!

At Paris, heading to dinner

At Mon Ami Gabi

After dinner we headed over to LAX nightclub to dance the night away! We got table service so we had a great area to dance, sit and not have to go back and forth to the bar. It was so much fun toasting to Mo and her upcoming wedding! Cant wait for the big day- Congratulations!!

Mr. and Mrs. Joyce!

In late August I had the chance to go home to California and celebrate Ryan and Renee's wedding weekend!! The extra special part was that I also got to see my family :) As soon as I landed Renee and I met up at the rental car office and chatted about all the fun details for the upcoming weekend. She dropped me off with my mom and dad and we had a wonderful family day!! We met up with Sarah and Kathy and had a delicious lunch, it was so nice to be able to see Sarah before she moved to Texas a few days later. We went shopping with Matt and Ashley and then hit up one of my favorite restaurants Lucilles! Delicious sweet tea and brisket! I also had the chance to meet Enzo- Matt and Ashleys adorable baby kitten!! Loved snuggling with him.

The following day was Renee and Ryans rehearsal dinner- full of margaritas and wonderful Mexican food. It was so much fun meeting more of Ryans family and getting to celebrate with all their friends.

Saturday morning, the day of the wedding, we all met up for a girls lunch for Renee's last single meal. We all got ready together at the hotel, it was like the old days getting all primped for school dances. Renee looked breathtaking!!!! What a beautiful bride. We all headed down to The Cannery, the wedding site, and helped set everything up. Cocktail tables with yummy gold fish crackers and swedish fish, candles and sand in the centerpieces, frisbees, and table names. It really came out perfect! It was all so beautiful against the blue backdrop off the harbor.

Beautiful view and cocktail tables

After the cocktail hour Renee and Ryan had their ceremony overlooking the water with all their friends and family watching. Karen, the officiant, also read a history of Ryan and Renee- it was so cute to hear all about how they met. This is the first kiss as husband and wife!!!

Table number and centerpiece

Me and my dad!

My amazing parents!

The 3 bridesmaids with the Bride, just missing Dani- the MOH

Mom :)

The beautiful bride! Congratulations Renee and Ryan, love you both and wish you a lifetime of happiness!

Feeding each other a bite of dessert. It was cheesecake and creme brulee!!

It was a wonderful weekend getting to see my family and also celebrate with Renee and Ryan. Busy October coming up! Next weekend we get to see Jeffs parents & Mindi and Aaron for our cousins Bat Mitzvah! And then my parents arrive for a fall Getaway! So excited to see everyone!

Birthday Boy!

2 weeks ago Jeff and I headed into Manhattan to celebrate his 28th birthday with friends! Since Jeff is living in New York during the week for his rotation our weekends are extra special. We checked into our hotel room then went to meet up with friends at Carmine's Italian Restaurant. They have the most delicious spaghetti and meatballs!! Everything is served family style so we all enjoyed plates and plates of food and some delicious oreo cupcakes that Lori and Nick brought.

The whole crew

Jeff scarfing down on one of his birthday cupcakes!

Lori and Me

After dinner we headed down near NYU to do some bar hopping

On Sunday, Jeffs actual birthay, we decided to be tourists! We hopped on the ferry to see the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island up close. Lady Liberty was so beautiful, even though she is made of metal her dress looks so soft and just drapes across her body. We had such a great time just staring up at the statue and imagining what it must have been like to build her or see her as your first sight in the US.

On the ferry to the Statue of Liberty

Lady Liberty

Main building on Ellis Island

Registry Room

Happy Birthday Babe! Hope you had a wonderful birthday weekend, we all enjoyed celebrating with you :)

Headed to the Track!

The weekend after my birthday Jeff and I headed up to Albany with Boris to explore his hometown and meet his family! We received such a warm welcome from his family and ate a ridiculous amount of home cooked Russian food- plates and plates of meat, potatoes, pickled herring, borscht, crepes and fried cheese pancakes! Everything was absolutely delicious!!

Boris, Jeff and I out on Saturday night in Albany at Boomers!

We also headed up to Saratoga Springs Race Track to watch the horse races. I absolutely love horses so this was a huge treat. We placed a few bets but didn't win anything big. We caught quite a few races because they race every 30 minutes alternating between turf and dirt. During the start of one of the races a horse went crazy and took off without the jockey and starting racing around the track and eventually jumped the center divider!! It was chaos!! They had to scratch him from the race because he was already so tired. I cant wait to go back to Saratoga- the track and the town are both beautiful!!

The entrance to Saratoga

Jeff and I before the start of a race

Thanks to Boris for inviting us up for the weekend!

Birthday Celebrations!

We did lots of celebrating a few weekends ago! Lori finished taking Step 2 and it was my 28th Birthday! It all started Friday night when Jeff and I drove in to meet Lori for some delicious NY Pizza and a movie- it was so relaxing and the perfect way to end the week. Lori and I won the movie choice and made Jeff go see Zack Efron haha :) Saturday we spent the day shopping, even a trip to Target (my absolute favorite). We got a great group of friends together and went to dinner at a local pub and then headed into NYC for some crazy bar hopping. We started off on a barge near Chelsea Pier, it was so fun to try something a little different and enjoy a gorgeous view of the city. After a few drinks we moved on to do some dancing- I can't even remember the name of the bar but they played some awesome music. We couldn't stop singing along and dancing and finally headed home around 3am- I haven't had such a late night in a long time. But boy I must be getting older because I was sooo tired the next day, I guess thats what happens when you turn 28!

Pre-gaming at Lori's apartment

All the girls, even Maggie!

On the train into NYC

Jeff and I on the barge

Not really sure whats going on here...LOL :)

Me and Lori enjoying our celebratory weekend

Rich looks like he thinks Jeff is a little weird

This is where the crazy dance party begins....

Dance party Jersey Shore style! fist pump!!

Jump on it!

And a little thriller to close out the night!

What a great weekend full of celebrations! Monday was my actual birthday and since Jeff was in NY on rotations my bosses (and friends) took me to a delicious dinner at Mitchell's Fish Market. They even surprised me the next day with Starbucks, singing Happy Birthday at the sales meeting and baking me a delicious red velvet cake. I am so excited to see where my 28th year takes me and enjoy all the adventures ahead.

Yum-O!!!

Work was running a promotion last month where the highest grossing sales team would get dinner at Capitol Grille, including riding there in style in a Limo!! As Office Manager I am very lucky to get to go along on all the fun promo outings. It was a blast, the people I work with have truly also become my friends! We ate SO much food!! Crab legs, oysters, lobster tails, shrimp cocktail, filet mignon, cheesy potatoes, lobster mac and cheese and coconut cream pie!! I was seriously full for 3 days.

Mike, Me, Jake, Mike, Ty, Daryl and Paul

Our Sweet Ride! We had so much drinking and jamming out to old school Michael Jackson on the way to and from dinner.