Despite the serious humidity over Memorial Day Weekend, the weather was beautiful. The sun was shining, everyone was in a good mood about having three days off, and the air was filled with music and the smells from friend and family barbeque's. I know it isn't the official start of summer, but to me this past weekend has always felt like it. My mind has constantly been thinking about what outdoor activities we can do next, when I can break out the baby pool and play-sprinkler for Tommy, and what else we can grill. This past weekend Tony and I made burgers stuffed with our favorite cheeses...mine was blue cheese, and his cheddar. They were sooo tasty! I'm going to make up some more for this upcoming weekend. 
Tony and I having been spending many quiet evenings sitting outside enjoying our fire pit. We spent so much time during the day and nights outside that I'm not even sure we turned the tv on at all this past weekend. I've been making some changes to the sitting area under our pergola, soon it'll be a nice little outdoor retreat - earthy and quiet, which is exactly the look I'm going for. Yesterday Tony and I picked out three large round tree logs that we're going to preserve so we can use them as end tables outside. I have a look in mind, and hopefully after this (or next) weekend it'll all come together...and all come in under this year's "outdoor" budget....Yay! Can't beat that! 
I did some baking this weekend. My girlfriend Tana sent me this amazing looking recipe for Reese Peanut Butter Cups Cake http://www.parents.com/recipe/chocolate-cakes/peanut-butter-fudge-cake/... I decided to change up the recipe a little (as per usual), and also make cupcakes instead of the cake. It turned out AMAZING. We brought the cupcakes to a bbq at a friend's house which was a great idea...not only were they well received but also, if they had been left in our house, I guarantee we would have eaten them all before the weekend was over. They were truly THAT good. Seriously...if you like chocolate and peanut butter, you owe it to yourself to try this recipe. Just so ya know, I used Hershey's light syrup instead of the dark chocolate the recipe calls for, and also - you may want to refrigerate the peanut butter cups (I used two bags of them...it takes some time to unwrap them all, and serious will power not to nibble a few) before chopping...it helps them to chop easier. Oh, and if you're wondering, what else can I do with the leftover frosting (if you have any) - I chopped up an apple the next day and used a bit of the leftover frosting for dipping...it was like heaven. 
Over the Mother's Day weekend we took him to Toys-R-Us. We had wanted a wagon for his first birthday gift, so we went to pick it out. He had a ball in the store, and remarkably, we left with only what we came in to buy. For stories I've heard from other parents, I'm guessing that is not always the case. 
We also went down the shore to meet Tommy's new little "cousin" Angelo who was born to our good friends Lori and Dano at the end of April. Our other friends Rich and Michelle must have woken up Saturday morning with the same idea we had, because they went to visit then too...so all of us were there together with our kids. We laughed at how different life is now than it was when we were running around the campus of Immaculata during our college years. 
I am so sorry it has taken me so long to post pictures from Tommy's birthday party. I sprained my right wrist the day after the party (I am right-handed), and while I'm still having pain and trouble using my hand/wrist. I didn't want to wait any longer to post pictures. Also - while it may not seem so from these pictures I am posting, I do not have that many from that day, so if anyone took pictures, could you please email them to me. I'd like to have them for Tommy's scrapbook. 
Tommy checking out his dinosaur cake and hanging out with Aunt Carrie the morning of the party.
Tent City - Tony sent up a huge tent outside since they were calling for rain the entire week, and weekend. Miraculously, at about 1pm...just two hours before the party was set to begin, the skies cleared, and the sun came out. It was sunny and warm and all-around lovely for the rest of the day/night! We decorated the entire area with paper mache volcanoes (which I made and painted myself!), green and orange plastic tablecovers, green and orange balloons, mini neon bubbles and dinosaurs, large blown up dinosaurs, chocolate dinosaur lollipops, and had a table full of appetizers and snacks - each one complete with a dinosaur named food label. Unfortunately, I don't have any other pictures of the decor, but I think everyone enjoyed the dinosaur atmosphere, and I think I used the space wisely enough to not make the dino-theme "overused" and gaudy. 
Posts
