Monday, June 24, 2019

NYC

Michele invited me to join her and Baby Scott on a trip to NYC! She was playing an oboe concert Saturday night, it was Scott's first time flying, and she needed a little help. Don't mind if I do! I taught Scott how to do "Cheers!" A very important skill.



Scott and Michele!



Baby's first plane ride!



First time flying first class! Cheers, indeed!



We were hungry when we made it to NYC, so we went for a late lunch at Kefi.



It was delicious. That tzatziki! That feta!!



We stayed at the Lucerne.



Scott crashed HARD around 5:30 p.m., so we chilled while he napped.



Then we went out exploring! This was my second trip to NYC, but I've never seen Central Park. I was so excited to go there!



Scott and Michele!



Central Park is amazing.



The American Museum of Natural History! We're going there on Sunday!



Leaving the park, heading to our dinner reservations.



We went to Betolla Italian restaurant. Look at how close I was to the band!



Manhattan!



The food was delicious! Fresh pasta! Mushrooms with spinach, and gnocchi.



This caution sign was outside the elevator by our hotel room. When we first got to the hotel, Scott ran off with it! He brought it into our room and played with it for a bit. Later that evening, we discovered that it was taped down. The strange thing was, we couldn't find anything cautionary around that it was warning us about!



"Uh oh." The tape wasn't strong enough.



We went back to Central Park for a walk on Saturday morning!



We met this cute puppy named Grace.



Hello, Grace!



Then we headed to Alice's Tea Cup for breakfast! Scott got to wear magical fairy wings.



He got tired of them quickly, so *I* got to wear magical fairy wings!



Coconut Vanilla Rooibos tea! Delicious.



I love their bathroom sign!



Back to Central Park in the afternoon! Scott took a long nap while we explored the park.



As soon as he woke up, we went to the Central Park Zoo! Snow monkey!



Penguin!



We also went to the Tisch Children's Zoo.



Patagonian cavies! They were so cute! Like a cross between a bunny and a deer.



They had these statues where you could BE a cavy! Or a bunny?! I'm not sure. They actually looked pretty much like bunnies.






I'm a bunny!



Sparkle fish!



Alpaca! He was very nice.



Spider web to jump on! Scott loved it!



Central Park is so cool! Look at all those PEOPLE!






We had dinner at Angaar Indian restaurant. Mmm, samosa.



Mmm!



The next morning, we went to Irving Farm cafe for breakfast. I got a ham and cheese croissant, hoping to relive my vacation breakfast dreaminess from New Orleans. Unfortunately, this one was only okay. Nowhere even close to as amazing as the one we fell in love with in NOLA!



Then we went to the American Museum of Natural History!



Giant mosquito. Ew!!!



I loved the old wing. It was so old fashioned!






GIANT CANOE!



GIANT WHALE!



Dophins!



Walrus!



DINOSAUR!!!!! You can see Scott and Michele huddled between his knees in the dark.



Woolly Mammoth!



OMG DINOSAURS!






TYRANNOSAURUS REX!!!!!!!!!!!









We got Saba's Pizza from across the street from our hotel for lunch. It was DELICIOUS! I had the mushroom and ricotta slice, and the vodka sauce slice. Both were outrageously good. SO good!!!



Then we drove to Long Island, checked into our new hotel, and went to Jones Beach!



WE'RE AT THE BEACH!



The sunshine felt awesome.



It was Scott's first time seeing the ocean.



He loved it!!









For dinner, we went to Margarita's Cafe, which was right next to our hotel.



The atmosphere and view were amazing!



We had guava margaritas, also amazing!



I had fish tacos, yum. The only downside was the service was pretty lousy. Oh well!



We made the long trek back to Ohio on Monday. When we drove into Athens, a rainbow welcomed us back to town!

Tuesday, June 18, 2019

Father's Day Mongolian Hot Pot

For Father's Day, we met up at Mom and Dad's for Mongolian Hot Pot. Blast from the past! Mer, Pete and Kate were out of town so it was a small group. We ate dinner and then played euchre!



Mmm, so many delicious meats and vegetables to cook in the delicious broth.



Happy Father's Day, Dad!

Saturday, June 15, 2019

June Cooking Club: Poolside at Nancy's!

Nancy hosted cooking club at her pool this month! The theme was poolside snacking. Emily made cantaloupe rum daiquiris!



Time to eat!



Emily made miso hard boiled eggs. What an interesting flavor!



Nancy made little pots of baked halloumi with tomatoes. I LOVE halloumi. This was a hit!



Nancy made an herby salad with burrata cheese.



Emily made a swiss chard and ricotta galette!



YUM!



Summer made Jhalmuri, a street snack originating from the Bengal region of the Indian subcontinent, made of puffed rice and an assortment of spices, vegetables, and chanachur or bhujia. She used Kix and Fiber One cereals. Cereal snack! You mix the cereal in right before serving, and it's so crunchy and strange and delicious!



She also made cantaloupe rum popsicles! What a great compliment to Emily's daiquiris!



Summer also made these tasty desserts: whipped cheesecake with pistachio crust.



Mmmmm!



They were beautiful and delicious.



What a delicious cooking club! And such a treat to be poolside!

Sunday, June 09, 2019

Nelsonville Music Fest/Happy Birthday Jason!

Nelsonville Music Festival 2019 was a blast! ONMFG! Jason turned 40 on the final day of the fest, so all weekend long we recorded happy birthday messages to surprise him with.



Nelsonville Music Festival also celebrated a birthday this weekend, 15 years! Happy birthday, NMF!



I didn't take as many photos this year, but there are a few snaps from the weekend. We loved Orkesta Mendoza on the porch stage Thursday night!



Magical paper cranes in the VIP tent.



Dinosaur Friday!! Anne and I are starting a revolution. Wear your dinosaurs to NMF on Fridays, people. #DinosaurFriday



Orkesta Mendoza again on Friday night on the main stage!



The Breeders are starting!!!



Giant balloon people dancing to The Breeders.



The Breeders were so so so so so so good! Summer and I were freaking out about the goodness! They played EVERYTHING!



We ran into Jenny Wray and Kyle after The Breeders! Jenny snapped this pic of me and Summer.



Saturday! The D-Rays played the Skate Ramp for the second year in a row. This event is a highlight of the festival for me. It's so fun!!



Baby Jasper!



Yang with Vana's nose!



Me with Vana's nose!



Ben with my nose!



Yang with Jasper's nose!



Death Cab for Cutie!









Michele and Baby Scott came out for a bit on Sunday afternoon!