What's with today, today?

In true Monday fashion, today has started out as a bit stressful.  I guess that's what happens when you have an awesome weekend!  Work comes too quickly when you're out having a blast!

This weekend we spent most of our time on the boat and hanging out with friends, although I did manage to clean up the house a bit on Sunday evening.

Here's the recap in pictures (plus a few from last weekend):

{All smiles in his sunspot.  Please disregard the drapes in a pile in the corner.}

{Docked at our very own "private" island}

{Marking territory}

{Adding to the sand castles}

{Saturday evening at the German-American Club Bier Garden}

{Selfie}

{Water Tower.  Anyone remember going to Rock the Water Tower and Reggae Fest in high school?}

{Louisville Skyline and I-65 and 2nd Street Bridges}

It was a fun weekend, kinda busy, but not so busy I was stressed!  Hope everyone has a good Monday!

Trying something out...

So if you want to follow me on bloglovin, I think I have to post this link.  I'm not really sure how all this fancy internet stuff works...  Hope this works!

Five on Friday Link Up!

So, I'm going to give this whole link up thing a shot.  I follow a group of bloggers in the Carolina's that always seem to have the best style advice.  Every Friday they do a link up featuring five things that they are loving that week.  Check out one of my favorite's here.  So I'm going to give it a shot.  I know absolutely nothing about embedding pictures or linking to things like this, so it might be a total flop.  But without further ado, my five favorite things this

week:

1.  Spending time with my best friend Beth.  We haven't lived in the same city since we were in high school, and I've missed her like crazy!!!!  She and her husband J.D. just bought a new house, so we're both going through the fun of moving and renovating together.  I must say, I am very envious of her kitchen!

2.  Going boating with the roomie.  I grew up in the water, whether it be on my dad's boat or at the pool, my summer's revolved around aquatics.  Every weekday of the summer started at 8:00 am with a three hour swim practice and lasted until 9:00 pm when the pool closed.  There were very few days of my childhood that weren't spent at Frankfort Country Club.  Those are some good memories!  But anyway, Robbie bought a new boat a few weeks after moving to the River City, and I couldn't be more excited!  Although, I have no desire to actually swim in the Ohio River, it's great to go out on the water for a few hours each weekend!

3.  Tons of new restaurants to try.  I am almost overwhelmed with where to go when we go out for dinner these days.  There are so many options and new places that I want to try!  So far, I've fallen in love with a few places that I know are going to be on the rotation regularly.  Namely, NamNam Cafe.  It's a teeny little hole in the wall Vietnamese place around the corner from our house and it is DELICIOUS!!!!

4.  New ideas at work.  My coworkers just suggested a simple but brilliant idea to save paper, money, time and storage.  Nothing earth shattering, but genius nonetheless!  I'm so lucky I get to work with such a wonderful staff.  They really are family to me!

5.  My baby brother (pictured with our nephew).  Man, how I've missed seeing this guy on a regular basis.  Last weekend we went to have lunch and hangout.  This weekend I think we're going to go see Despicable Me 2 (my choice, not his).  I love that I can hang out with him as much as I want without having to be in the car for two and a half hours!  Makes me super happy!

Happy Friday everyone!  Enjoy the weekend!

An Impromptu Adventure

It started with a weird noise coming from the back end of my car...and it ended in New Jersey.  In other words, we bought a new car for me for work.  Old Mama Lexi had seen better days and Dad said it was finally time to put her out to pasture.  Or at least to put her in someone else's pasture so they could deal with all the repairs that cost almost as much as she was worth.  After an entire day spent on the internet and phone trying to find exactly what I wanted and at the right price...I found one.  In New Jersey.  Oh no, the one I wanted in Charleston, SC couldn't have been priced just a thousand dollars less and given me a much more exciting road trip.  Ugh.  Jersey.  Yuck.  So off to Whippany, NJ Robbie and I went the next day.

{Miserably long layover and delay in Midway}

After what seemed like forever getting the deal wrapped up and paper work signed, we headed out the door for exciting Harrisburg, PA!  Woo hoo!  We wanted to go into Manhattan for dinner, but since we didn't leave the dealership until after 9 pm and we had a hotel reservation over 3 hours away, we scrapped that idea.  Somewhere around 1 or 2 am, we arrived in Harrisburg.  But not without a few detours and some, uhh, beautiful scenery...

{Note to self: do not choose the shortest route option on the GPS}

{Wild, wonderful West Virginia}

{Feet on the dash for Beth}

So without further ado, meet Carlton, the most white bread vehicle out there.  He really likes the musical stylings of Tom Jones.

This dealership was the Lexus dealership of the stars, FYI.  Apparently a lot of pro athletes from the Giants and the Jets bought their cars there.  Or at least that's what our weirdo salesman told us.  I did not see Eli Manning.  Very disappointed.  And no one cares about meeting anyone from the Jets.  Anyway, I'm very happy to be driving a new(ish) vehicle that we got at a very good price and that doesn't sound like a jet taking off when you change lanes.  If you see me coming down the road, be careful aroung my new ride!  But let's be honest, I'm probably the most likely to wreck it...

Forecastle Festival

So, I'm finally getting around to posting about the Forecastle Festival that was held two weekends ago in Louisville.  This is the first time I've gone since the first year that it was held, mainly because I had a work convention that usually fell on the same weekend.  Since my meeting for that trip was on Thursday and I'm now living in Louisville, it was really easy for me to make it this year.  Living in this city has been awesome in regards to cool stuff to do!  Friday night started out with seeing Old Crow Medicine Show and Moon Taxi.  I missed the first few shows of the day due to a unexpected trip to the ER in Muhlenberg County.  I'm fine, and the story isn't really exciting enough to recount, so let's move on.  The last show of the night was an awesome set from String Cheese Incident.  I hadn't seen them since I went out to Colorado for Telluride Bluegrass Festival back in 2007.  They were absolutely awesome, and I danced like a fool most of the show!

{Day Two: from center going clockwise, Me, Lindsay, Heath, Chris, Jodye, and Jenna}

{Sunglasses askew}

{Photobomb from some dumb drunk chick}

{Chris and Heath}

{Stage performers for Moon Taxi with me and Lindsay}

{Busting a move sometime on day two}

{Natalie, Sean, and Sarah}

{Me, Natalie, and Sarah at Black Keys}

The second day we set out after lunch for a day of music, beer, and lots of people watching.  We started at Foxygen, but didn't get to stay for long.  The entire Waterfront Park was evacuated due to an impending thunderstorm that never really happened.  Once that was over and we got back in, we saw Dawes, Tokimonsta, Alabama Shakes, Jim James, Flaming Lips and the Black Keys.  The highlight of the night was the late show at the Palace where we saw String Cheese again.  They put on another awesome show, and despite Robert Plant NOT making a guest appearance (a story too ridiculous to tell), I had a blast!  It was a pretty late night, and Sunday morning came too early.

{This guy had way too much fun before the show, I guess.  He woke up three quarters of the way through the show and starting rocking it out, though.}

{No idea why we were being evacuated.  It barely rained.}

On Sunday, Heath, Lindsay and Chris headed back to Lexington, and I met up with these crazy fools!  I can honestly say, there has yet to be a time when my college roommates and I get together and don't have a good time!  I love these girls!

{Flaming Lips}

{Charles and a rather annoying inflatable sea turtle at the Forecastle Incident}

{Purity Ring}

{Water feature}

I pretty much hopped around from group to group of friends on Sunday to catch all the shows I wanted to see.  I started the day with Toro Y Moi (awesome!), some Killer Mike, Grace Potter and the Nocturnals and Forecastle Incident.  During Robert Plant, we were hit with a huge downpour and got stuck under the overpass for shelter.  They didn't evacuate, so we were able to catch Purity Ring and Datsik before ending the night with Avett Brothers.  The lineup this year was great, and I saw almost all the bands I wanted to.  Can't wait until next year!  I highly recommend going if you're in the area next July!

Until next time, whatever you do, take care of your shoes!

A Very Patriotic Birthday

Fourth of July is one of my favorite holidays for many reasons.  First, it's America's birthday, obviously!  Second, it's exactly four days away from my birthday!  And most importantly, it's in the SUMMER!!!

This year marked my first year celebrating America as a Louisvillian.  We headed to Waterfront Park for fireworks, friends, and a few beers on not only Wednesday, but Thursday night too!

{There's just something about fireworks that makes me feel all nostalgic and warm inside.}

That Friday the 5th, I threw my first official house party in the new locale!  I wanted to have a small get together for the 4th, my birthday, and as an excuse get my Lexington gang up to the new house!

{Drink station, featuring my newest creation, the Sangria Sparkler!}

Sangria Sparkler

2 bottles of Champagne or Prosecco

1 cup St. Germaine Liqueur 

1 package of each: strawberries, raspberries, blueberries

In a large pitcher or beverage dispenser, layer berries on the bottom.

Pour remaining ingredients over berries.

Serve with a striped straw!

It helps to make some champagne ice cubes to keep the sangria cool without watering it down.  However, I didn't have a chance to do that, so I had to resort to a Ziploc of ice stuck down in the center.  Not the most attractive, but it works in a pinch!

For dinner I served strawberry, avocado and feta salsa, Green Goddess dip with pita chips, Quinoa Tabbouleh, Greek Chicken Skewers and Avocado Tzatziki (not pictured), Grilled Vidalia Onion Steaks with Praline Glaze (also not pictured), and Sriracha Grilled Corn.  Courtney surprised me with pimento cheese from the Mousetrap in Lexington.  I cannot tell you how much I miss this dip!!!  It was all delicious and perfect for a Fourth of July party!

 

I found the inspiration for the grilled corn on Pinterest, but there wasn't a recipe attached to the pin.  I decided to wing it, and the results were delicious!!!  Here's what I did:

Grilled Sriracha Corn

4 tbs. melted butter

2/3 cup Sriracha Hot Sauce

8 ears of corn, shucked

Light brown sugar to taste

Sea salt, to taste

It's as simple as melting the butter and mixing it with the Sriracha sauce and then basting it on the corn with a pastry brush.  After each ear was thoroughly coated, I sprinkled them with brown sugar and a pinch of sea salt.  Place directly on the grill or on a grill pan (we used a grill pan) and let cook until corn is slightly caramelized.  Let cool and enjoy!  These were the absolute hit of the party, especially for my spice loving friends!  I even went for seconds, even though I'm usually a wimp when it comes to spicy!  These had just enough heat and spice but weren't overwhelming!

{My best gals, Kate, Courtney, me and Beth}

{Birthday present from Kate, lobster claw oven mitts!!!}

On Sunday, the family and I headed to Mitchell's Fish Market to celebrate both my birthday and my mom's. I was born the day after her's and I like to say that I was the best birthday present ever, but sometimes I think she got a raw deal!  Above is my nephew, Eli (19 mos.).  He is an absolute doll and I could just squeeze that little chunk all day!!!

{Niece Emily with her ice cream Sunday}

On Monday, my actual birthday, Beth, JD, Robbie and I hit up a restaurant I hadn't been to yet called Dragon King's Daughter on Bardstown.  It's a Mexican-Asian fusion restaurant and it did not disappoint!!!

{First ginger beer, pretty tasty!}

{Full after a dinner of tacos and sushi}

This year's birthday and 4th festivities were an absolute blast!  Thanks to mother nature for holding out long enough for us to catch some fireworks, grill some delicious eats, and spend some much needed time outdoors!  And a huge thank you to everyone that sent me birthday wishes and celebrated with me!  I couldn't ask for better people in my life!   Cheers and here's to another 32 years!