My Birthday Weekend

Thursday was my birthday and it was the best one ever! Amy, Jennie, and Julie flew in on Thursday evening. Julie got in early so we carved some pumpkins and cooked pumpkin seeds while we waited for Jennie and Amy. Unfortunately, Amy's flight was delayed so, after picking up Jennie, we went to Bahama Breeze for some Mojitos! We sat in the bar and the one-man-band sang me like 5 birthday songs and I had a "birthday" keylime pie (all thanks to Mike).
Friday morning, we piled in the car and Mike took us for a hike in Rainier National Park. It was a beautiful day! Like usual, I was worried about time and thought we should turn around as Mike had to be back for class at 4pm, but Mike said he thought we should be able to see Mt Rainier at the next turn, I argued but pressed on. Sure enough, about 50 ft ahead, the trees parted and there was a great view of the mountain! We took a break and had birthday cupcakes with candles (Another one of Mike’s surprise). Friday night we watched the Cardinals Win the World Series over a pot of chili and some beer. (Katie skipped class to come over and watch the game too).
Saturday we slept in and then headed downtown for the rest of the day. We went to the Pikes Market, had lunch in the Soundview Deli, then for the highlight of the trip - we went to the tattoo parlor. Of all people, Amy was the one getting a tattoo. She got the Ironman symbol on her low back in a "mostly red but a little orange" color. She had given this a lot of thought and was ready to make the plunge. It was not all easy though, as she almost passed out when the artist was tattooing the border. I have never seen Amy so yellow in my whole life! We were trying to hold her legs over her head while she was sitting in a chair trying not to let the tattoo touch anything.
To celebrate the successful completion of the tattoo, we went to a chocolate bar and had drinks and then headed out to dinner. We ate at the Hilltop Alehouse and then went to Ozzies. Second to the tattoo, the highlight of the night was Mike singing Karaoke at the bar. The girls could not picture Mike actually doing this, but a few drinks later he was belting out Sweet Caroline, and dancing all around. He got the whole room singing and he wasn't half bad!!! Sunday afternoon we said a sad good bye to Amy and Jennie. Julie and I made a fabulous dinner out of Cooking Light and Katie and Jim came over for some episodes of "The Office" - Mike gave me seasons 1 and 2 for my birthday!! Thank you guys for coming to visit, it was great!!

The Duphy's

Jim Murphy and Katie Duda got married last weekend! No, they did not change their name to Duphy but Marcie and I definitely tried to convince them. The wedding was Saturday morning at a chapel in Kirkwood and it was a beautiful ceremony. Jim and Katie both wrote their own vows which turned out great and got everyone teary-eyed. We had some time before the reception so after the ceremony was over, we walked across the street to the farmers market. Marcie decided that we needed to get a pumpkin and within minutes had found the biggest mutant cutest pumpkin I have ever seen! So big in fact that we felt it necessary to buckle it in for the car ride home. After the pumpkin carving was complete, it was time to head out for the reception at the St Louis Zoo. What a great place to have a party! The decorations were great, everybody was dancing and monkeys were running around everywhere :)

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The Fox comes for a visit

Steve Fox came out to Seattle last weekend for a couple days of fun and excitement. He got in Thursday night, just in time for some of Marcie’s fabulous cooking. Vodka-Pasta was the night’s special dish and although it sounds a little strange, it tasted great. We headed down to Seattle on Friday for a little kayaking around the lake and then down to the fisherman’s pier for lunch. We made sure to hit up REI before leaving town to stock up on camping gear. While there we both climbed the Pinnacle rock wall, which is about 60 feet up. Steve had never tried it before but he shot up there like a pro. That night we meet up with Jim and Katie for a little Sushi (actually a lot) at a place in town.

Saturday morning we left for the Olympics. After some debate, we decided to go back to the Enchanted Valley Trail since Marcie and I had been there a couple months back and found the perfect campsite. It was a short three-mile hike to our spot along the Quinault River. Once we established camp, Fox and I decided to jump into the 40-degree water. It seemed like a good idea at the time but with the air temp at 55 degrees and a steady breeze it was a little chilly on the way out! Luckily, Steve had gotten a pretty good fire going before we took the plunge so it didn’t take long to dry off and warm up (yes, I do have pants on in that picture!). On Sunday we packed up and headed out after a couple hot bowls of oatmeal. Once back, we enjoyed frosty beverages in the hot tub.

We managed to stuff a lot into the few days that Steve was in town but I think he’s ready for more. Next time – winter camping, snowshoeing and skiing ☺

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Karen's Bachelorette Party Weekend

Two weekends ago, I flew home for Karen's Bachelorette Party, which was on Sept. 23rd. I flew home on Friday and Brianne and Mary picked me up and we set out for some preparations for the big party. Most importantly, we had to get Brianne and Mary's hair done. Now, I know I don't do much with my rat's nest but over 3 HOURS in a hair cutting place??? I had no idea hair cuts and highlights took that long!! Luckily, in my boredom I decided to call Cousin Laura who just happened to be across the street at happy hour with Tim's work friends (no Laura wasn't drinking) so we chatted for a while. After the hair cut marathon, we met Jennie for dinner at Modesto, a Spanish Tapas restaurant on The Hill (I strongly recommend it).

Finally, down to business. We went to the grocery store to buy food for the party. We planned to make Boboli pizzas, salsa and chips, shrimp and cocktail sauce, beer, wine and the best part - a cake that closely resembled a part of the male anatomy! Saturday afternoon we went to Karen's wedding shower given to her by her family and then in the evening the girls all met at Erin's house in Dogtown for a little preparty - food, drinks, cake and a fun little game! We dressed Karen up for her night on the town and went to a few clubs - 1014 on Locust, and then Layfette's Bar and Grill. The night wouldn't have been complete without Karen being arrested and thrown into a cop car (JUST KIDDING)!! We did beg a cop to pretend like he was arresting her - which he was MORE than happy to do. I think Karen got a little scared when she was handcuffed and locked in the cop car.

To finish the night, 7 of us stayed in 1 hotel room (it was a little crowded). Then in the morning we called Travis, Karen's fiancé and begged him to pick us up and take us to breakfast (since we were poor planners and only had 1 car at the hotel)- which he eventually agreed too (Thanks Travis).

The weekend was a blast! Unfortunately, I forgot my camera, but as soon as I get Brianne and Mary's pictures, I will post them.

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