My lovely friend Lindzee was married at the end of August and it was an affair to remember. We had a blast in the days leading up to the big day and WOW, the wedding was absolutely beautiful and such fun for everyone that took part in the special day. Lindzee looked absolutely gorgeous and the day went off without a hitch. Congrats lovely lady, love you!
Lindzee’s Bachelorette
A few weekends ago we celebrated Miss Lindzee in style in Walla Walla. Crissie planned the entire weekend and it was fabulous! We stayed in an amazing house that fit all 10 of us called the James McCool House (if you go to WW, you must stay here), drank lots of vino and had even more laughs. Thanks for a fun weekend Cris! Cheers to Lindz as she winds down here last few months as a single lady!
Ragusa Wedding
Wow. We had such a phenomenal time in NYC (more posts to come later). The reason for our trip was to celebrate our two friends, Phil & Sarah, joining in marriage. They were both beaming and beautiful on their special day. We are so happy to have been a part of their wedding. Clearly they are both head over heels for one another and we look forward to sharing in their happiness for years to come.
Below are a few videos of the ceremony. Sarah is Portuguese so during the vows she spoke in Portuguese and Phil in English to incorporate their two backgrounds. I thought it was a very sweet way to celebrate their history. And by the way, isn’t Sarah gorgeous!?!
Cookie Party Extravaganza 2010
You know it is Holiday Season when Lindzee throws her annual Cookie Party! It is oh so much fun. Each person brings 5 dozen cookies to the party (or in my case cupcakes) and then you get to go around the table and load up with 5 of each cookie. You leave with a full tummy and a huge variety of delicious treats.
My new favorite this year was Celia’s Frosted Lemon Cookies. I ate all 5 of them tonight! Not to worry though, I have emailed her for the recipe. My fingers crossed she will share.
Thanks Lindz for throwing a fab party for all of us–it is one of my favorite traditions!!
The Windy City
Wow- Chicago blew my socks off! I was looking forward to this trip and knew it would be fun, but let me just tell you, this city was a flat good time!
Our first day there we started the day off with brunch at Feast…yummy delish. The bacon was super crispy just how I like it. After we stuffed our bellies, we walked around downtown…a little more than we had originally bargained for. I blame it on all the fantastic shopping on Michigan Ave. The stores kept calling my name distracting me from where we were going. About 5 miles later we caught a cab (thankfully!) to the Shedd Aquarium. This is a MUST SEE! The building is absolutely beautiful and the animals are adorable. I even got to see Beluga whales, dolphins and penguins in a live show! My heart was very happy. From the aquarium, we shimmied on over to dinner at Bin 36. This is a great place for wine flights and cheese tastings. We had several yummy combinations here. And if that were not enough, they even had Chocolate flights..yep you heard right. Bin 36 won me over at this moment. Lots of mini desserts all with chocolate? Yes please!
Saturday morning we slept in…it must have been all the desserts. You would think that would have kept us from eating again so soon, but fear not…we made our way over to Uno’s Pizzeria. We met up with our buddies from NYC, Phil and Sarah at the pizza joint. It is always so great to see them. We try and get together every summer and it is just the best feeling to pick up right where we left off. So much fun. After we filled up on pizza pie, we walked around Grant Park and took in some of the scenery there. We tried to visit the Art Institute, but sadly it was closed due to a private wedding. Next time we’ll hit this place up for sure. For dinner we went to Rosebud Prime to celebrate Miss Sarah’s birthday. I have to say that my steak was among the top 5 steaks I have ever had in my life…so juicy and wonderful I ate every single bite! We had the greatest waiter who took such good care of us we ended up staying for 3 hours without even knowing it! Sarah even received a custom birthday dessert with all of her favorite toppings, yummy!
Sunday we had brunch at Bistro 110 and I had the best Bloody Mary that has ever touched my lips. (I know, a lot of “bests” aren’t there?!?) The brunch was great, tasty food and a great live jazz band to get us all in the mood for a fun day. From brunch we hopped a cab to Wrigley Field to watch the good ole Cubs play. It was a trip to see the field and take in the crazy/loud/obnoxious/wonderful crowd that makes up the Cubs’ fan base. Even though the Cubs lost this one, we sure had a blast cheering them on in the bleachers! Since we needed to unwind a bit after the game, we ended up down at the beach off of Oak Street. We found a little joint called the Beachstro and enjoyed a pina colada while taking in the massive lake and views. For dinner we hit up Cafe des Architects at the Sofitel. Very trendy and urban joint, loved the decor and the food was just as sleek. Tasty and trendy, very cool combo.
Sadly we had to leave our new friend Chicago behind on Monday, but not to fear we will definitely be back someday. Too many things to squeeze into one trip alone…although we tried our hardest!
Wedding Bells
I am beyond thrilled to share that my dear friend Lindzee Frei is engaged to her Mr. Wonderful, Javier Barrera!! They are perfectly sweet together and I am so freaking excited for them.
Congratulations you two—enjoy this amazing chapter of your lives!































































