spoiled

The last few mornings I've had some caffeine waiting for me in the kitchen as I head out the door to work. I could get used to that.

o poot

The new chandy has shipped but gets here the day Lee leaves so it won't get hung anytime soon. Crikey. Maybe Lee will have time to get it done when he comes home for a couple days of R&R before he heads to the sandbox...At least I get it before I leave. Yep. I'm heading out again.
I've been planning my 10 year class reunion for a bit now. Yep. I was that girl in high school. Ha! Class officer pic:

Kinda stinks that Lee heads out the day before but I'll grin and bear it on my own.
I'm hoping to wrangle someone local to head up our next reunion. It's not hard but it's not easy to coordinate when you live miles away, ya know?

The next day I'm catching a flight to the beach for my cousin's wedding. Solo again! Grrrr. But it should be fine. I'm sharing a spare room with my grandma in the condo that my parent's are renting for the wedding. It's the same place we stayed when I was a kid on Summer vacations! Super excited about getting sand between my toes, reading/sleeping in the sun and seeing my cousin walk down the aisle. I've already been told that I better bring my camera so I reckon you can count on plenty of pix.

I bought a few suits. I can't find a digital image of one of them right now.

such a sap

Apparently I need to quit being a big tit. Don't be alarmed. Ha! Inside name calling between our friends. I just got through complaining to my buddy Taylor about my day thus far and in walks these babies from my dear hubby:

There are so many peonies in the mix that haven't bloomed yet (still the cute little pre-bloom peonie balls) and I can't wait to see what the bouquet looks like tomorrow. Either it was a happy accident or a nod to our wedding day that a couple stargazers were thrown into the mix. Maybe the cactus balls are a nod to the rough week we have ahead. Ha! Nonetheless, one of my favorite flower deliveries yet.

And we all know that I love peonies. Remembering this pic I took in NYC recently:

weekend deets

Friday,  I took off work early to spend the last of my vacay time with Lee before it renews. Do you know I got home and had to upload my computer to send some emails "that were incredibly urgent" to a customer in UAE? I was a little ticked. Other than that, this long holiday weekend was spent being lazy around the house and it was so nice to spend some much needed time with my hubby.

We tried to test out a new Mexican place for dinner (my fav food ever ever ever) but there was a 70 minute wait! No thanks. We went next door to my current favorite Mexican restaurant. Funny how they're next door to one another.

I woke up to breakfast in bed on our anniversary and a little later we took Cooper for a walk around the corner to Starbucks for a frap. We're kinda addicted to Venti Coffee Frap Lites right now.

It was a great weekend filled with the little things that don't seem as neato on a normal basis. Like getting groceries together, picking out an appetizer to share, walking Coop together, having another hand to fold the laundry...we savored the simple things this past weekend. And kept the phones on silent!

My stomach is a little in my throat this morning. I try not to think about it but Lee will be at pre-mob by the end of the week. I did my best yesterday to get out of my head by getting Lee excited about my excitement about his return home in a year and all we have to look forward to at that time. I'm a work in progress but I'm learning;)

4 years

Lee and I have been married for 4 years today! Go us. Ha!

I wish I could put him in my pocket to keep him safe this next year.

"You are the state lottery, the cure for cancer, and the three wishes from Aladdin's lamp all rolled into one." -Ana from Fifty Shades Freed, by E L James

Yes, I'm reading that naughty trilogy. So what? I may have mentioned before that my girlfriends (Mal and Caroline) all live scattered about America. Reading books together keeps us doing stuff together and in check with one another since going our separate ways after college. Anyway, this author is no literary genius (a lot of lines could have been edited better to not be reiterated so much) but she does tell a juicy, risqué story and I like it. A lot.  From one book worm to another: Check it out if you're feeling frisky but don't say I didn't warn you! Ha!

alma mater

Oklahoma Sooners!

My alma mater posted this on their page this week in regards to Memorial Day weekend. LOVED it.

"Stay safe and come home SOONER!"

bling

I had Lee take down the skank nasty heater/vent thingy so I could paint the ceiling to the bathroom since I'm painting everything else in there. It was so gross and I'm not sure he could get it back up there even if he tried. The thing has prob been there forever and it's official. The vent has seen its better day. We said our farewells and I painted the ceiling. I then batted my eyelashes and Lee agreed to not replace the vent with another but add some bling. Yes, please. I ordered this baby:

nyc (my birthday)

My birthday was spent having lots and lots of fun.
We started the day off with The Met and then free tickets to MOMA. We went to see Wicked and then headed to Tiffany's afterward. We soon realized that Tiffany's wasn't happening on my birthday. Womp womp womp.

It's Tiffany's so of course the carpet was blue and not red! Being the not very shy person I am, I asked about 8 people what was going on before I found someone that knew. Most everyone was there watching and not moving only because everyone else was! The majority of responses I received, "I don't know what's going on...I just came over here to see what was going on because of the crowd." Apparently the Giants were in town to get their Super Bowl rings. I took about 25 pix and video of the huge giants getting off the buses, ESPN and everyone going inside. A couple players were so excited that they were videoing everyone videoing them! I thought that was really cool.

Lee literally lol'd because I was taking pictures of everyone and I had absolutely no idea who anyone was. When that got old, we headed across the street to Louis Vuitton to try on my birthday present. Much more important.
I made Lee laugh and roll his eyes again. Men don't understand the need to try on purses. It just doesn't register with them. My serious face again.

 






































We then darted back to the hotel to freshen up for dinner reservations at The River Cafe under the Brooklyn Bridge. It's a special place I came to with my family years ago and I've wanted to go back ever since then. Lee and I made a pact to come back whenever we're in NYC. We both ordered the 6 course Chef's Tasting Menu and anticipated the surprise of each course. I secretly crossed my fingers that it would be nothing raw. Of course I ensured we would receive the bridge for dessert before ordering. It's my favorite course, duh! I loved the small Happy Birthday chocolate sign on my plate that was dusted with gold. I took a nibble before taking a pic. Oops.

nyc (fun things)

Lee and I had a blast in NYC together. It's def become a place we want to frequent. We plan to go back when the 9/11 Memorial Museum is complete. It was really humbling to visit Ground Zero with Lee. Becoming a Solider is a direct effect of how 9/11 impacted him. So holding his hand through the grounds took my breath away.

We did so much and I tried my best to capture it all.
We saw my favorite musical, Chicago. He Had It Com'n is my favorite scene. I wish our community theater would produce it. I would totally audition for the ensemble so I can be in that number.

We saw Wicked. It was my first time to see it and I loved it. Both shows brought tears to my eyes. Broadway totally does that to me every time. I LOVE theater. Obsessed really.

We went to the MET. We both could have spent a lot more time in there so that just gives us all the more reason to return!

Lee drooled a little on Wall Street. That boy is really getting into the whole stock market world.

We took a horse carriage ride through Central Park:

We were on David Letterman:

Shared The Famous Frozen Hot Chocolate at Serendipity3 after dinner, that thing is huge! Note: Don't go there to eat food-food, only dessert. Wasn't impressed with my meal but I devoured dessert. But maybe that's my sweet tooth talking.

More to come tomorrow!

new throne

First of all...this kid makes it really hard to make the bed in the morning and leave for work in a timely fashion. He looked so cozy this morning. I wanted to snuggle in next to him and go back to sleep.

Lee is flying through his honey-do list before he leaves. I am excited about our new toilet. Yes. I said that.  The toilet is all shiny and unused. I know I'm a weirdo when I say that I get joy out of the fact that no previous family has used our toilet.

After the excitement of the new toilet lessened, I came to grasp with the fact that I need to freshen the paint on the wainscoting as this tank is more narrow than the old one. In true Erin form, I decided to not only freshen the paint of the wainscoting buy change the brown wall color too! I painted my 1st coat last night and I like it a lot. Of course I'll share a pic when everything is done.

I took a break and ate a sandwich on the back patio to let Coop chase squirrels. I swear 5 different butterflies landed on me and one of my fingers. They must have been hungry. I was able to get a pic of one. This one appears to be going after my sandwich:

nyc (sweet tooth)

If you don't know already, I will tell you now. I have quite the sweet tooth. So you can imagine my giddy when we stumbled in Dylan's Candy Bar after a busy rainy day of tourist-ing NYC.
Fun fact: Daughter of Ralf Lauren is Dylan, the owner.
I filled my can with an assortment of candy and then an additional bag of gummies. THEY HAD AN ENTIRE WALL OF GUMMY CANDY!!!Crikey. I could barely contain myself. To me, gummies need their own bag. I love gummy candy. Gummy worms, bears, whales, letters, soldiers-they had it all. (The gummy whales are my fav by the way.) Lee thought it was hilarious and didn't hesitate to roll his eyes at my candy hoarding. We didn't have much time before they closed so I scooped fast. And don't you know it, Lee's laughing self had to take record of my childlike self I become around a candy store?
Look how serious I am filling my tin can:

My The gummy wall:

Happy girl:

angel wings - complete

I told you I bought a set of angel wings several weeks ago. I brought them home and propped them up in the hallway. I stared at them for quite sometime while liking them...I didn't love them. Something was off. Too shabby chic.

So I did this to them! But that seemed too...I don't know...bright? Just not right.

Then ta-da. I did this! I took a metallic glaze in dark coffee bean color and spot brushed it on to the wings. I then wiped it off with a towel. LOVE them now! Now what to do with them. Ha!

nyc (the hotel)

For starters about our trip...our choice of hotel was a surprise.

Funny how things work out and for the best. I'm a very settle in and unpack kinda girl where Lee is a adventure see more see more kinda guy. This story went very much his way despite all my trip preparing research. I'm so glad it did too.

I very much wanted to stay at a boutique hotel near Times Square in lieu of a Hilton or Marriott type. I fell hard for The Bowery but Lee insisted we search closer to Times Square and find a better price. I compromised and decided on The Paramount after seeing the clean and modern chic rooms on their website. When we checked in we were both excited about the impressive lobby. Very us. BUT we were royally disappointed when we entered our King Deluxe room. Womp womp womp...
The pictures were photo shopped clean on the website, the room was entirely too small for our tall drink of water selves. Just NOT what we had in mind for our NYC experience. I was thoroughly disappointed and of course I instantly blamed Lee for not helping me research. Ha! We vowed to never again reserve a hotel solo for vacation. It will now be a group effort.
I marched my booty downstairs and explained my concerns and asked for upgrade options. I inquired about their Entertainment and Couture suites displayed on their website as they are the only ones displayed. Do you know what they told me?! The suites displayed are only used for Corporate events and fashion shoots. Say what? Crikey. I was dumbfounded and then immediately went into demand mode. I encouraged them to provide keys to the suite that they do have available for purchase so that I can see it before we accept the upgrade for an additional $110 for our 5 nights in NYC! We saw it and it was another womp womp womp. The had simply take an wall and corned off 2 rooms at the end of a hall. No bedroom doors for privacy, still the typical secure hotel doors separating the bedroom from the living room. The bedroom in the suite had a double bed! OMG. Lee and I are a couple of giants. Sharing 5 nights in a double bed on VACATION didn't sound appealing, especially while paying for a suite. Desperately trying to see the positive, I looked out the window to see if our view had been upgraded. View from Times Square? The back of a billboard!!! Womp womp womp.
I irrationally headed back downstairs, handed them the suite key and stated that we will only be spending 1 night at The Paramount and will be checking out the following day. (Obviously, it was too late to cancel our room that night and not pay a fee, etc.)
Our King Deluxe Room at The Paramount:
I had Lee stretch his arms out so you can get a better idea of just how small the rooms were. Note our luggage on the other side of the bed spread out all over the little floor space we had. The closets were too tiny to be called a closet...more like a compartment for a few jackets. The suite seemed to be the same size but appeared larger because of the smaller bed.

After my brisk move to cancel our rooms, I discovered that we were homeless. Little did I know the city was insanely booked for graduations, Obama being in town and the Giants getting their Super Bowl rings at Tiffany's! Yikes.
Thankfully, I remembered my first of 23 picks for our NYC stay and gave them a call. They could only get us for 2 nights but I jumped on it. And I'm so glad I did. It was even more us. I love every detail. From decor to amenities to customer service. We will def be staying there again. 100% guarantee.
King Room at The Bowery:
Obsessed with the large blank pane windows and brass fixtures and exposed pipes...and and and...)

We literally had no other choice but to stay at the Marriott on Times Square the 4th and 5th night. They rocketed the price since everything was booked but at least we weren't homeless. And at least we had a great view of Times Square:

o shoot

I mentioned being O' so excited about these pics HERE. Finally, here's a few of my favs: