Ladies night with a touch of hoarding

Before I get into the thick of my post, I have to say THANK YOU to my hubby.  I came back to my desk today to find this beautiful arrangement staring back at me.  The occasion....nothing?  Totally unexpected and completely out of the blue.  It had been a rough day right from the start and this made it all better. 

The pictures do not do the flowers justice.  The colors are absolutely amazing and the arrangement is beautiful. 

On to my faboush Saturday evening. My girlfriend, Jennifer, invited me over for a little soiree with her girlfriends, who were visiting from Minneapolis. The ladies couldn't have been friendlier.  I felt like I had known them for years.  When I left her house my stomach and cheeks both ached from all the laughing we did. Stomach ache + cheek ache = good girls night!

We did a little eating, a little laughing, a little more eating, a little drinking, discovered Jen's got a hoarding problem and oh yeah, did some more eating!

Eats for the night:

Best brand ever!


I may have gotten a little decoration happy with the hummus


Ten Bucks from Mount Pleasant Winery. It was delightful!


My Vinturis. No party would be complete without them!


The spread


So, so good...

Random acts of the night:

Jennifer taking a picture from the floor...because that's how she rolls.


Too much laughing. 


Group shot

The hoarding:
A simple trip to the bathroom revealed that Jennifer has somewhat of a hoarding problem.  If she finds a product she really likes, she starts buying it by the boatload for fear that it will be discontinued.  Those fears have come true almost every time.  The bucket of 10 year old Revlon ColorStay nail polish says it all.  I want it noted that I was frisked before I left her house that evening.  My pockets came up empty.

Some were so old they had black gunk floating in them. 
My poor Jen...I still lover her!

One stop shop for all your cosmetic needs.


Her beloved Fructis Ultra Strong hairspray is no more,
hence, the two rows of bottles.

That's all she wrote, for now.  Hope you're having a fab week!  See you soon!

Happy Birthday Papaw Dave!

May your day include a LOT this...

Some good eats from the grill


Make sure not to let this guy

do the cooking because your birthday meal will end up looking like this...

And finally, your birthday wouldn't be complete if time wasn't spent with these cuties...

Much love to you on your birthday Papaw Dave!

Summer Fun

Hello! I can't believe how fast this week went by. I kept promising myself I would post on the blog earlier and here it is Saturday! Oh well, better late than never.

I thought I would share some pics of our pre-canoe/canoe weekend (last week, not this week).

Wednesday
Started off with dinner here...

P.F. Chang's off Brentwood in St. Louis

With these yahoos (who were passing through town)...

I'm not sure what's up with Evan's face here.

Is it too much to ask for a normal picture from these guys?


Dinner also included live outdoor entertainment...very nice!

Thursday
Holly, Chad, Michelle, Kent and Jennifer arrived. We did a little lunch here....

And a little shopping here...

St. Louis Mills Mall

Michelle was extremely thirsty from all the great deals she found and treated herself to one of these bad boys from Chevy's...

Friday
We had a little breakfast and went to wine country before heading to our canoe resort.

Taste testing. Chad's such a ham!


Jennifer didn't realize she was having her photo taken, therefore, she put no effort into smiling.


Montelle's amazing view


Chillin on the patio

Our next stop included a tasting at Augusta Winery.

And finally, we traveled up the hill to Mount Pleasant, only to find out they were closed. They let us use the restroom and I snapped a few shots in the interim.

Mount Pleasant Winery

Augusta has some really quaint B&B's, shops and antique stores. The girls stopped at one antique store and the guys stayed in the parking lot and had a beer.

I think this antique jacket accentuates my sandals beautifully!


Jennifer and I didn't know if these would be considered an antique item per say, but we were stoked about finding these old school Reeboks!

Saturday
Let the fun begin!

Waiting for the bus


Blue Springs Resort




Look at that happy crew!






Evan taking care of business


Jennifer gave Chad the annual smack-on-the-back trick...classic!


Nice!


Chad thought it would be funny to untie my swimsuit when the photo was snapped. My face is priceless!


The damage...

The rest of the photos from this trip are probably not postable. Things go down hill pretty fast with our group; I'd say like 10 minutes in and things are bad.

Sunday
Jen and I had to fly back to Dallas on Monday (insert sad face) and Evan suggested we head downtown for a day-o-fun. It was a beautiful day in St. Louis and perfect for a trip to The Arch and a little sightseeing.

Down on the riverfront

Taken inside The Arch

Taken from Laclede's Landing looking south. I love this shot!

Whew...that was a long post! I guess that about wraps things up for now. See you soon.