Spend more time with friends and family

Just got back from a cousin’s wedding in Philidelphia. We spent more time getting there (approx. 19hrs) than at the wedding, BUT it was worth it! It was a beautiful wedding (despite being late and the rain) and a great chance to connect with family. Which reminds me, I better call my aunt.

For the reception my cousin (the groom) who has a wonderful sense of humour, revealed his plaid pants at the reception.

And, I learned a few line dances. Can’t wait to do them with the ladies at work!

Just got back from a 5 day trip to Jamaica for a friend’s wedding. It was amazing. The blue skies and sunny days were a welcome relief from Ottawa’s summer. I saw old friends and made new ones. It was really fun. Every trip I take I try to learn something about myself. Spending face-to-face time with people you care about is very important and can’t be replaced by cellphones or emails.

...does anyone else worry about crowding their friends? Think I’m getting paranoid in my old age. I’m going to try and see at least one different friend/family member each week.

Actually, i met sue for lunch last week and I saw Sharon at the allotment last weekend. Now this week is my challenge…

Last weekend I went to Montreal for my birthday and had an amazing time hanging with friends.

This weekend family visited and helped in the garden. I had not seen my baby cousin in over a year!!!

This holiday has been nice. Sister, brother-in-law, 5-year-old nephew, Mom and Dad, brother, sister-in-law and brother-in-law. Lots of food.

Last night I went to a River Rats game with Dad, brother and brother-in-law. Nice.

Tonight, I think we’re going to dinner.

And I think I will be done by tomorrow :)

So I have two friends who wanted to go to midnight madness shopping at the outlet malls last night. And I said I would go with them. I figured:
1. It’s some good quality “girl time.”
2. Hey, I’ve never done it before.
3. I can’t afford to buy much anyway.
4. Who needs to sleeps?
5. So what if I hate crowded malls. This is mostly open, right?

So I went! I had planned to go with C & G but C backed out early last night. So it was just G and I. We met up and headed out. We swapped T-day family stories, laughing all the way.

And then, we hit the wall of cars lined up to get to the outlet mall. We were stopped in the shoulder nearly a mile from the exit ramp. It took 45 minutes just to get through the toll booth. Then, we had to park at the bottom of the hill in the grass.

We hiked up the hill to see lines everywhere! Huge lines in stores like the Gap, Ann Taylor, Calvin Klein and Bath & Body Works. Even a huge line OUTSIDE Coach, where they were only letting a certain number of people in at a time. They were being told it was more than an hour wait.

So we avoided those stores and hit a few others. Great buys, but were were not about to wait on line for an hour just to check out. So we left at 2:30 am with little in our hands.

Not sure it was worth it, this time. But if we can manage to get there early next year… I might just do it again :)

WEnt down to visit my sister this weekend. She needed someone to watch my 5 year-old nephew while she and her husband went to a bar mitzvah. Oh, twist my arm.

Although traveling down on Friday night was tiring, at least we didn’t hit traffic (amazing). And I had a blast with my nephew. We “rough-housed” as he calls it and snuggled and talked. We made a quick shopping trip and we shared snacks. It was great quality time.

Got to spend time with sister and brother-in-law. They are fun to talk with and watch movies. And the bonus? I got to bring back good bagels and go on a little shopping spree at Trader Joes!

And I’ll be seeing them again in a few days for the Thanksgiving holiday. What a treat!

Hubby and I went to my parents’ for dinner last night. Mom’s ziti is awesome.

Went to Larkfest, a local street festival with Mom, brother and hubby. A beautiful day. Great bands. My brother was mostly psyched because they were serving alcohol on the street. No, he’s not a college student either. But everyone had a good time and I talked by Mom into trying Indian food. I was so proud of her! Then out to dinner with Mom, Dad and hubby. I was so full I thought I might have an alien inside me ready to pop out.

This morning we went to brunch with friends. I wonderful place called Lippera’s. Check out the menu if you want to drool. Thank goodness it was at 11am because i was not hungry until then. A great time.

It was a lovely weekend. Now off for a busy week of work!

This weekend my sister and her family came to visit and stayed with my parents. Saw them for dinner on Friday and went to a baseball game together. On Saturday, went to African American Family Day with my brother and went out to dinner with the whole family.

It was a nice weekend. I hope they have a safe drive home today.