The US Open

A couple of my friends had an extra ticket to the US Open, so I got to go with them.
I've never been before, and it was very exciting!

There are all these different matches going on, booths and exhibits, etc...

We caught the end of a women's doubles match, then we went to another stadium and watched an amazing game between this guy from Spain (ranked 4th) and this Japanese kid (ranked 126th). Nishikori, from Japan was the major underdog and ended up beating the highly ranked Spanish guy! It was a really great game!

Then we went to Arthur Ashe stadium where we had tickets to the Men's singles, where we watched Mardy Fish and James Blake.

Ferrer and Nishikori

Ferrer

Nishikori

Our seats in Arthur Ashe Stadium

James Blake, taken on the big screen (my camera is not that good!)

That's John McEnroe!

James Blake

A little bit of everything...

Well I have been a very busy girl... With traveling, vampire novels and the Olympics, when does one have time to blog about it all?

Traveling:
So at the end of July, five of my friends and I took a road trip to Montreal!
Nothing says true friendship like being stuck in a van with them for 7 hours...
We ended up having a great time though and getting along well (for the most part).

The six of us visited our friends Rachel Dave (center) before they move to Scotland.

Us gals went to the salon to get our hair cut. It was a fabulous experience and we came out looking like supermodels (obviously)

Shilo, Rachel, and Rachel (oversize sunglasses also pictured)

All of us gathered around the kitchen [and dining room] table for our Sunday, Family Dinner

Eating Poutine. (French Fries with Gravy and Cheese -sounds gross, but its very tasty!)

Now on to bigger and better things...

The Vampire Saga:

So these books have taken over my life for a bit. There were several weeks where I was entirely consumed by the characters Stephenie Meyer created. Luckily I am not alone in this obsession. Many good friends have stood by on my vampire journey. Even friends back home like Brittany, Bob, Marilyn, and Mom (thanks for the support guys).

My New York kindred vampire spirit comes from Amber, and I somehow managed to talk her into going to the "Prom Party" release of Breaking Dawn at midnight (the fourth and final book). We had a great celebration among the fourteen year old girls, goths and wannabe vampires.

Amber and I all dressed up for th Prom Party!

They served red velvet cupcakes. Yum!

Then finally, after weeks of waiting... the torture was over! Just after midnight I laid my hands on a copy of Breaking Dawn.

Sorry about the lipstick Mom- I usually don't wear something so severe, but in light of the vampire party I found it forgivable.


Since then, I have finished the book... It took me 5 1/2 days which is a long time in comparison to some people I know!

Now, I have the OLYMPIC GAMES:

I am obsessed with watching the games every day. It's getting out of hand. I stay up way too late and it's causing me to suffer the next day. But it's totally worth it to see Michael Phelps and the other US Olympians.

So for Family Home Evening this week, I organized our own Olympic events!

I took home the "gold" in The Hymnal Relay- which consisted of balancing a hymn book on my head and running the length of the room. I should have went to finishing school after all!

Amber and I took home the silver for the Three-Legged Race challenge. And yes, our Senior Missionary couple won the bronze!

Well I am off to go watch the Olympics!

I realize this blog was quite lengthy. Thanks for sticking through it. YOU deserve a medal.

Summertime!

Although the weather is pretty miserable in the summer, there are always SO many things to do in the city during this time of year... and don't get me wrong, there are many pleasant days...

Outdoor, Saturday Brunch is one of my favorite things. This is Jenny and I at a French Restaurant in Brooklyn.

I had the FRENCH toast at the FRENCH restaurant... how fitting!OJ (not a Mimosa!)

Okay, so my other obsession this summer has been "The Twilight Saga". You may have heard of it. Basicaly its a teenage vampire series written by this LDS woman. I am 25 yrs old.. I should not be enjoying this so much! Luckily I got my friend Amber hooked as well...

We met up in Central Park after work one day to... read! (what else?)

FYI: Breaking Dawn (the 4th and final book) comes out August 2nd. I can't wait! (Mom, I hope you're reading...)

We were also in Manhattan for the phenomenon that is "Manhattanhenge"

Manhattanhenge (sometimes referred to as Manhattan Solstice) is a semi-annual occurrence in which the setting sun aligns with the east-west streets of Manhattan's main street grid. The term is derived from Stonehenge, at which the sun aligns with the stones on the solstices.

Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Manhattanhenge

Okay, so my picture is not that great, but you get the idea... It's KIND OF exciting.

Right now, the "Waterfall Exhibit" is also going on...

You can see one waterfall on the other side of the bridge. (This is the Manhattan Bridge over the East River)

Closer View

The Brooklyn Bridge (obviously)

This is the waterfall under the Brooklyn Bridge (not the best view, but you get the idea).

I would also like to take this opportunity to wish my dear Ashley a Happy Birthday!!! Her special day was yesterday and I was so sorry to miss all of the celebrations that come with turning the big 2-4! Love you Ash!

Happy Independence Day!!

Yay! It's 4th of July!! Which means I get a 3 1/2 day weekend :)

So my friends and I took a train out to long beach...

The train ride was really fun...
...obviously
It was only about an hour ride to the beach.

Compared to the public beaches we usually go to, this one was SO NICE!!! It was raining in the morning when we left, but when we got the beach we had great weather all day. It was a little overcast most of the day, but it was still very enjoyable.Jennifer, Sara and AmberSara and I

Sexy Beach Hair!

After we left the beach, we went to Buffalo Wild Wings for Dinner (BAD IDEA!!) Then we crashed a party at Jenny's co-workers house. They had a nice roof deck and we could see the firework show. These were taken with my camera phone, so they are not that great, but you get the idea.

It was drizzling the entire time. We were pretty much soaked by the time we went back inside!

We had a great time though! I got a little too much sun, and now I am suffering the burning consequences :(

I hope everyone had a great 4th of July as well!

My little sister is married

I always knew that Ashley would get married before me. I had no doubt about it. But now that the big day has come and gone, it seems so surreal!
Little Ashley: The adorable kid sister with the chimunk cheeks and freckles is now someone's wife! I am so proud of her and I am happy that she has found someone who makes her so happy. Brandon is a great match for her and I hope that he is grateful everyday to have found someone as wonderful as her... I alluded to this in my toast at the reception, but I was a bit emotional and less than eloquent.

She was the most beautiful bride I've ever seen... and I'm not just saying that because she's my sister and I helped do her hair and make-up. She ws stunning!

Mr. and Mrs. Robison

The Proud Parents

The beautiful bridesmaids... if I dare say so myself

Big Daddy and Tiny Dancer

Yum!

The Mayer Family

My Birthday and Erin's Visit

So my old roomie Erin came to visit me during my birthday weekend. We went out for brunch on Saturday morning then shopping around the neighborhoood...

Later that evening we went to the little shop of crafts where we painted pottery!
Erin and Rachel did Mosaic tiles.
Then we ate dinner at this great persian restaurant, called Persepolis.Then we had delicious Junior's cheesecake to top off our perfect evening!

I had a great birthday!!!

So A LOT is going on, and I'm going to be pretty busy. My Best Friend from High School is getting married in San Diego this weekend, and I am going to be in the wedding! So I'm flying down there, but coming back to meet my parents and hang out with them for two weeks! It's going to be so much fun! I am so happy to be able to see everyone.

Lips

Do you remember as I child I always wanted to have a birthday party where I was princess or even Queen? Well, I got my wish... sort of. I had a DRAG queen birthday party!


It was a co-workders birthday Wednesday, and she wanted to celebrate my upcoming birthday as well, so we went to this restaurant called, "Lips" where all of the waitresses are also drag queens! It was so much fun. And let me tell you, these diva's have got it goin' on! We had about 25 people in our party! Lots of people from work as well as some close friends came out to celebrate.

Happy Easter

I admit it. I am a terrible Blogger!

Having said that, I feel comfortable to move on with my life and let you know what's been going on.

1- The weather. It's not spring. It's cold and evil. I would love some warmth. It's literally freezing when I wake up in the morning (31 degrees today!)

2- But...The hills are alive with the sound of music. The Ziegfeld Theater was playing The Sound of Music. So I went to see it with some of my friends and had a marvelous time. It was so much fun watching it on the big screen. The crowd was cheering after the songs, and we couldn't stop singing all weekend.

3- Goonies never say die. We watched another childhood favorite of mine at home Saturday night, while pigging out on junk food. I love The Goonies!

4- Happy Easter! We had an excellent Easter program at my church on Sunday. My roommates even came to watch. Then after church we went to Rachel's parents house for a huge, fantastic Easter Brunch! Her whole family was there and we had such a nice time.
Then my Mom sent me a great Easter basket. I will be eating candy for the next couple months! I love peeps!