We Got a Grill!

There's something very grown-up about having a real grill. After toying with a portable charcoal grill, we finally decided to go with this one. Here's Eddie proudly showing off our newest addition to our home. Looks great on our patio.



A man with a grill is a happy man.

Huntington Beach Getaway

Huntington Beach, also known as Surf City USA because of having the most surf shops per square ft. and surfers in the water, was just what we needed. We started off our getaway at The Sky Room, a dinner at the first Hilton hotel. Surprisingly, we drove the route of the Long Beach Half marathon. The drive was much less strenuous, but still a good 40 min. away from our hotel. We took the old elevator to the top floor where dined with sweeping views of the city. Eddie ordered the short ribs with gnocchi and I had the ahi tuna with soba noodles. The night before I surprised Eddie with a swing dancing class, so with a live band, we attempted to show off some of our moves. It was nice to take in a run in the am, while Eddie opted for the super nice gym onsite. We had a relaxing lunch at the resort in the shade. Although we had planned on going to Oktoberfest nearby, we opted to not drive and took a walk across the street to the beach boardwalk where we rented a surrey bike. It's a lot harder than it looks! We didn't go anywhere very fast, but it was a fun day.

Dessert - Panna Cotta, Bread Pudding, and Crème Brulee

The Sky Room

Surrey Bike

Eddie couldn't resist a photo op by the fountains at our hotel.

Go Yankees!
 

Los Angeles and Wine Country

Me and Mom at my fitting.

We had an action packed weekend with my mom in town. First, Mom and I drove to LA to pick up my wedding dress. While I was a little nervous about my mom's reaction since she had said she had liked another dress better based on photos I had shown her, I breathed a sigh of relief when she said the dress was beautiful! My dress designer couldn't have been more sweet to us with all of tips and patiently explaining the nuances of slight alternations for the dress. Having watched a gazillion episodes of "Say yes to the dress", she reacted like any mom did when the designer put on a veil. My mom said, "I can't believe my daughter is getting married," and she was glowing with happiness. Of course, she raved about how perfect Eddie is - I couldn't agree more. The next day we visited Temecula for a lunch at a winery and then followed by a champagne tasting. The favorite of the day was Wilson's Creek Molly Medley with a miniature pig on the label - who can resist the pig in a tutu? We had more than our share of some fantastic meals beginning at the Lumberyard and ending with dim sum. Can't wait for the next visit.

Mom initially declined, but then couldn't help saying yes to Rose. 

These grapes were very sweet.

Eddie was very hot here.