Happy Halloween!!

Cary really gets into the Halloween spirit sometimes. I'm kinda surprised, don't know why though. This is the first year that we have been home on Halloween & passed out candy to the kids. So Sweetie has been scurrying around all evening preparing the front porch. He carved our pumpin, while I watered the plants!

He made this scary costume so he could surprise the innocent children. The lights are flickering on the porch (the picture's flash completely ruins the mood) and some of the scariest music I've ever heard is being pumped out of the speakers. At one point I was sitting in the rocking chair watching for kids while Cary scoped out the street from the bushes. I couldn't take the music so decided to come inside!

The house is completely dark inside and I've been searching for take out food! Cary just freaked some high school kids out, so I guess that means it's a success!

Don't you like my purple plants? It's so me, a little "pretty" in what Cary wants to be dreary and scary. Oh well....

I'm eating way too much candy while waiting for more trick-or-treaters, tis the season!!

Yuck!

Can I just say that this economy and the affect it has on business is DEPRESSING?!

Girls Trip to New York City!!

Hey Ya'll!! I have been out of touch because I've been out of town with my friends hitting up the Big Apple. Oh my gosh, it was so much fun. Just a few days in the city with the girls was exactly what I needed. Well, minus the achy feet from all the walking but it was a small price to pay.

Okay, enough talk and here are the pictures!!


Shannon (on the right), my child hood friend, college roommate, bridesmaid & one of my best friends, lives just outside of NY. She picked us up from the airport and quite frankly took care of us by making sure we didn't get too lost and had fantastic places to go!

Okay, we're total dorks but who cares. We are excited!!

Our first official New York meal, pizza!

Sunday afternoon we saw the show Wicked. It's based on the movie "The Wizard of Oz." I would highly recommend it to anyone who is looking for a good show.

When we left the theatre, Aaron was exiting the "Cast Only" door. He's the lead male character. Cristy boldly went up to him & got his autograph, a hug & this picture!

Dinner at Orzo, an Italian restaurant, was incredible.

Crazy cab ride....check.

Times Square. We finally fit in with the other tourists.

The fun M & M's store in Time's Square.

Making purchase from street vendor....check. Shannon bought her son, Sean, a drum so he could play drums with his dad! So sweet!

Long day of traveling & walking. We were pooped. Monday is another story....

Monday In NYC!!!

Monday morning came fast and it was an early morning. On tap for today, The Today Show, view the New York City Skyline from Top of the Rock (30 Rockefeller Plaza), shop, shop & shop some more, then dinner at Serendipity.

Of course we had to get coffee at Dean & Deluca!


Jaclyn & I have been waiting to stand in the Today Show Plaza for months!!

Amy Roebuck, a co-host with the Today Show came out to do a segment on cute Halloween costumes for the kids!

Rockefeller Plaza, you can see the ice skating rink behind me!

The girls checking out Central Park.

Shannon getting a closer look at the Statue of Liberty.

It's an amazing view!

Then we headed to FAO Schwarz. So fun! I picked up a couple of things for the baby. :)

Right across the street was Central Park and the classic carriage rides. By this point our feet were about to fall off, so a 20 min. ride was perfect!

After more window shopping, we found Jimmy Choo!

The best part of the store.....the sofa!

One last stop, H & M. I dragged these tired ladies with me into the fitting room. Thankfully they had a bench! What troopers.

Okay, you'll have to indulge me over the next few photos. Our last stop for dinner was the famous Serendipity restaurant. The atmosphere & decor were adorable, but the dessert was A-MAZING!!

Jaclyn ordered a cappuccino. Turned out to be larger than anticipated.

Shannon had their famous Frozen Hot Chocolate. Again, HUGE.

Me? I ordered "Can't Say No" Sunday. (humble pie "a.k.a. peanut butter pie", ice cream, banana and hot fudge with whipped cream). And a Decaf Mocha Cappuccino. What was I thinking?

So big, but SO good!

I mean seriously, it doesn't get much better than this! Behold, the face of a very happy woman.

When I was done, it looked like I hadn't even started. WOW!

I did, however, manage to make quite the mess. At least it was on the table and not down my shirt!

Okay, they rolled me back to the hotel. But only after another short stop in Bloomingdales for some hysterical moments. No more. I'm done & tired!

Tuesday In NYC!!

Tuesday morning we woke up at O'Dark thirty to stand in line for the Regis & Kelly show. About 3 days before we left for New York I received a letter stating my ticket request had been granted and we were going to be in the audience. Thrilled is not the right word for my reaction, more like constant squealing and clapping. Is there a more perfect way to end a girls trip to the city?

After the show we headed down the street a few blocks and had brunch at the cutest place, Alice's Tea Cup. My friend Kathryn recommended it and it was PERFECT!

I ordered "Mother To Be" tea and a delicious breakfast. Every plate and tea cup is different. Each person receives their own tea pot. One day I hope to have a little girl and bring her back to this spot for an enchanted brunch.

And so ended our fantastic trip. We hopped a plane back to our Sweeties and were exhausted. I will admit, much to our surprise, when Jaclyn & I boarded the plane I was convinced we would pass out. It was only an hour flight but the weekend caught up to us like a ton of bricks. However, we ended up talking the ENTIRE flight and before I knew it we were in Richmond. Thanks Jaclyn!!

Shannon deserves a HUGE Thank You! She drove us into and out of the city. She organized our site seeing adventures based on our requests. She printed maps so we couldn't get lost. Jaclyn, Cristy & I just followed her around the city like little ducklings. There is absolutely no way this weekend could have been such a success with out her. I can't say Thank You enough, Shannon. Love you lots!!

Whew

The past 2 days have been a whirlwind. Mostly due to work being crazy and having to take on the jobs of 2 people while LOTS of folks are out of town. But it's done. So tonight I told Cary I HAVE to relax. Simple dinner and a movie sound perfect.

Tomorrow the plan is for Kenny to come over (he's the tile man/carpenter from my company who has been helping us in our renovations of Greenford & here) and work on installing the shower pan as well as begin installing the floor tile. It should be an exciting day. I'll be packing and doing random errands. A few girlfriends are headed to NYC on Sunday for a few days of sites and lots of girl time. We've been looking forward to this weekend for several months now and I can't believe it's finally here! :)

Off to relax.

My Sweetie, the Plumber

We (okay, way more Cary than me) have been working very hard over the past several months to finish the second floor. Sweetie installed hardwood floors in our new Master Bedroom and along with a little help from some carpenters, all of the trim. I picked out the paint color and he painted the whole room in a day or two. I can't wait to move into this room. The baby will be right down the hall and guests will have plenty of room on the first floor.

The plastic on the floor leads to the hallway.

This picture shows the bathroom entrance.

Well, since today is Columbus day and the banks are closed my Sweetie was able to play "plumber!" We hit up Lowe's yesterday afternoon and purchased a ton of plastic piping and tools.

Here is the wall for the vanity.

Here is the shower corner and by the window will be the toilet & urinal. Yes, you read that correctly. While building the house and the original plumbing was being roughed in I called Cary and asked him "if you could have anything in this bathroom, what would it be?" He responded with "A urinal" of which I gave him.

This is what my plumber did today! He relocated hot & cold lines to a new wall (which he built himself) and installed the 2 shower shower head valves. I am SO PROUD!!

This photo might not mean much to anyone, but shows the original location of the hot & cold lines that Cary moved. What I loved was the empty beer bottle in a koozy that has MY NAME ON IT! Hey, it's a perk of working at home I guess!

And here he is....my Sweetie, the Plumber, under the house working on hooking up the water line to our instant hot water tank. He's so cute!! Aww....

I can't forget the trusty assistant! I had to work, but at least Amos was there to get excited for me.