Monday, July 29, 2013

An Edition of Family Photos














We took these pictures before going out to dinner on my birthday this past weekend.  At the end of the day, turning 30 doesn't seem too scary when you have a beautiful family and friends to celebrate with.  I want to say a huge thank you to all of you that wished me a happy birthday.  You made my day very special! XOXO!!! 

Thursday, July 25, 2013

Trip to DC (Part 2)

If you haven't figured it out yet, we are foodies around here.  Definition of a foodie?  A person keenly interested in food, especially in eating or cooking, according to dictionary.com.  So yes, this would describe us.  We like to try new foods, whether in our own kitchen or at a restaurant.  So if a foodie gets to visit a big city, then he/she is in for a treat...since you can try pretty much any type of food you'd like to.  We had lots of DC food suggestions from friends and some places we had before and were a "must" for a return visit.  All in all, I don't believe we were disappointed at any place we ate.  So this last DC post is dedicated to the delicious cuisine we enjoyed.  Disclaimer: I am pretty sure with all of the walking and sweating (heat index was over 100 degrees every day) that we already worked off every calorie we took in. :)

(one of our favorites from NYC, and I'm not gonna lie we ate here twice)


(organic, fresh, and healthy...we need one of these in southwest Ohio)




(if you do get a chance to try their cupcakes be prepared to wait in line for at least 30 minutes, but of course good cupcakes are worth it!)



(your all-American meal, but as fresh as it gets)



(oh for the love of a good pizza, I would go back to DC just for this place!!!)




Tuesday, July 23, 2013

Trip to DC (Part 1)

My 30th birthday is coming up this week, and I asked Matt to (in lieu of presents) take me to Washington, DC.  I have been there once, but only for one day...not nearly enough to accomplish all you can do there.  Matt takes annual trips to DC as a chaperone for the 8th graders of his school, so I knew he would be a perfect tour guide.  ;)  We left Ohio (and Jude...no worries he had lots of grandparent love) and tried to fit as much sight seeing as we could in 4 days.  I must tell you that DC was a lot better than I could have imagined.  As we visited the historical sights, monuments, and museums, I was overwhelmed with feelings of wonder, gratitude, admiration, and pride for our country.  If you haven't visited yet, it is a definite must for a future vacation.  Here are several (very touristy) pictures of some of the places we visited. 


Lincoln Memorial

Vietnam Memorial

The Capitol Building
(we had a wonderful tour given by Congressman Mike Turner's intern) 



The center of the city inside the Capitol.


Arlington Cemetery




Iwa Jima Memorial

National Archives


Washington Memorial



Jefferson Memorial

MLK Jr. Memorial

National Cathedral

Mt. Vernon



Note: Some of these pics are from our iPhones, so apologies for the blurry takes.