The year of cotton

wedding, st. joseph church, ceremony, catholic, springfield illinois wedding, wright photographs, st. joseph church, catholic wedding, wedding program

Can you still count yourselves as newlyweds if you sit down to dinner the week of your second wedding anniversary and agree that neither of you have anything important on the schedule this week? Oops. The truth is year two was just about as full as year one, minus a few international soccer trips. Let’s […]

Read More

Bad karma and good chocolate

chocolate brownie oreo trifle, halloween trifle, halloween dessert, brownie, oreo, spiderweb trifle, holiday, chocolate, halloween oreo

Have you ever had one of those days where you knew the whole day was going to be off before you even left the house? You know the kind. You’re just leisurely walking the dog (emphasis on the leisurely because your dog suddenly walks like a 90-year old who needs a hip replacement) when your […]

Read More

Rome: It’s like Chicago but older

Rome, Roma, Coliseum, pantheon, honeymoon in italy, Italy, michelangelo, Roman Forum, visiting rome, rationalist movement, bernini

Today we land in Rome and I must admit this city far exceeded my expectations in the three days we explored it. I was excited for Rome because I knew Matt would be really excited for Rome. Why do you ask? In the short six years we’ve known each other, I’ve come to learn that my new […]

Read More

Visiting Venice: Day 1

venice, italy, honeymoon in italy, venezia, travel, wedding, canal, bridge

Today you’re off to Venice. Get excited! Wait. Not yet. First you have to get to Chicago. And then Toronto, dontchaknow. Add in a brief stop for Fruhstuck (thanks 4 years of German class) in Frankfurt and you’ve made it. But you’ll get there eventually. And you’ll be pleasantly surprised by both the quality (very good) […]

Read More

Weekend recap: Chicago style

Historically I’ve not been the best at weekend recaps. Especially weekends that involve all of my favorite females in one room, baby snuggles and Chicago nights. I suppose it could be because recapping a weekend means it’s over and I have to accept the finality of it all. And just like knowing when to end […]

Read More

Approaching 30

family, surprise party, birthday, chicago, summer

Do you know how hard it is to write a recap of a weekend you aren’t ready to let go of yet? Hard. Chicago had everything going for it this weekend. Great food, perfect weather, a music festival that keeps hundreds of thousands in Grant Park so you can enjoy the rest of the city crowd-free and a […]

Read More

Currently I’m…

grilled shrimp with chimichurri, parsley, cilantro pesto, marinated shrimp recipe, herb pesto,

In the middle of a full-on middle school crush with The Mindy Project. It’s been about 4 years since I had sophisticated TV equipment so I’m on technology overload as of late. How did I go so long without this show in my life and why can’t all OB/GYNs be that funny? Finding it hard to concentrate […]

Read More

Almost 30

moving to a new city in your 30s versus 20s, elitedaily, moving to a new city, lessons for an almost 30 year old,

I noticed this article circulating on social media over the past few days. Sounds pretty familiar, no? I thought so too. And since I just so happen to have recently moved to a new city where I didn’t know anyone except the person I moved with, I clicked on the article, fully expecting 3 minutes of […]

Read More

Very Berry French Toast

french toast with fresh berries, breakfast, brunch, french toast recipe, cooking, recipes, cinnamon raisin french toast

We decided to mix up our Sunday routine and go to a later mass today. I know what your thinking. Real crazy life we are living these days. Truth is, since we moved in, we’ve been going to an early mass so we could get to the beach each Sunday. Matt’s family was in town most of […]

Read More