Bon Bini!

That means "Welcome" in Papiamento, Aruba's national language. (It's also the only word I learned in Papiamento - most people spoke Spanish and English.) Steve's parents have a timeshare at the Marriott Ocean Club and generously invited us along for their August vacation. As you can imagine we jumped at the chance!

So yes, I'm back after a week of surf, sand and sun, with a sunburn, a yen for Cuban food and an itch to try making mojitos at home.

Want to see some pictures? Of course you do!

Welcome!

Aruban national beer...extremely delicious

A restaurant inland called Papiamento, situated in an old house. Amazing!

Another restaurant, the Flying Fishbone. It's a little hard to tell from the picture, but all of the tables are on the beach and some of them are right in the ocean!

Another view at Flying Fishbone - looking out over the harbor

View from the hotel heading towards the beach

My efforts at being artsy on the beach

Sunset on Saturday night

How can you not like a place they call "One Happy Island"?

My daily view

Giant lizards were running around everywhere...they'll go right up to your table and you can feed them french fries!

Sunset on the beach, Insta-gram style

It's definitely not easy to be back after a tropical beach vacation! At least now, after 14+ hours of travel back to DC (a combination of Hurricane Isaac, the lovely ground crew at National Airport, and a quirky Aruban airport system that requires you to go through customs and security not once, but twice) I'm exactly where I want to be after a long trip - laying on my bed, catching up on DVR, wearing my comfy pants with the AC blasting, eating a leftover sandwich.

Now it's on to Labor Day weekend and an upcoming trip to New York!

Anyone else take any fun summer vacations?

xoxo,
b

Happy Friday

Cheers to the freakin' weekend, right? Here are some heart-warming things I found online to start your weekend off right:

Gawker: A baby elephant running and farting at the same time.
ABC: Bill Clinton and a Ugandan baby named after him 14 years ago


Also, my apartment has been swallowed by packing. Exhibit A:

I hope to one day retrieve my coffee table.

Posting will be light the next couple of days as I'm on vacation, but I'll be checking in from the hotel when I can. Happy weekend!

xoxo,

b

It's Okay Thursday

I'm linking up with Brunch with Amber today to get a few things off my chest and tell myself it's okay!

It's okay that I'm supposed to do my aunt's makeup for my cousin's wedding this weekend...and I have NO idea what I'm doing.

It's okay that I'm bringing 3 dresses with me to Chicago because I want my sisters' opinions on which one fits best.

It's okay that none of those dresses really fits me right.

It's okay that I served a nutritionally questionable meal last night for dinner consisting of everything that I have to get rid of before vacation. It involved a fried egg, a so-so casserole that I have been eating for what seems like every single day this week, and two turkey burgers that pre-date healthcare reform.

It's okay that tonight's dinner might include bagged "party meatballs" from Trader Joe's that were leftover from my last roommate. What makes them party meatballs, you may ask? I don't know.

T-minus one day til vacation begins!

xoxo,

b

Summer Travels: Chicago Edition

I'm kicking off my summer travels on Friday with a jaunt to Chicago for my cousin's wedding! Since I haven't spent much time in Chicago (one St. Patrick's Day in college and one baseball game at Wrigley in 2007), there's a few things that I'd like to check off my Chicago bucket list while I'm there:
1. The Bean.

Yes, I know it's touristy, but I've never seen it. It seems like a fun activity to do with the fam too.

2. Deep-Dish Pizza

I'm not sure that I can really count this on my bucket list since I've had it before, but it's worth a #2 spot on this list. The rehearsal dinner is at a well-known pizza restaurant so I'm pretty sure I can get this box checked off.

3. Boat Tour

I normally hate boats, but a river tour has been recommended to me as one of the best things to do in Chicago. It seems like a great way to see the city and learn about the history, plus I took a boat tour in 2006 (in Holland) that was one of the more fun legs of the trip.

4. Sears Tower Ledge

Another tourist destination I'm sure, but doesn't this look scary and fun and scary?! Emphasis on scary.

What else should I do while I'm out there? Any restaurants that I must try? Places I must see? Let me know!

xoxo,

b

Little bookworm

Since I got my Kindle last year, I have been reading the way I used to when I was in grade school -- which is to say, incessantly. Coupled with my new DC library membership, I've been quite the little bookworm this summer. Here's what I've made my way through so far:

I thought this was an adorable story...not too long a read but an engaging story and characters. Quite British too!

This is where my inner nerd shines through. I probably shouldn't put it on this list because I'm not done with it yet (it's a beast, and only the first in a trilogy) but I'm finding it really fascinating. I've written about my love for TR before, but this book gives a deeper look into a truly amazing American figure. Yup. You caught me. I'm a nerd. Highly recommend this one if you like politics/history.

I didn't expect to like this one as much as I did...the story of twins growing up at a hospital in Ethiopia in the 60s and 70s. It starts off slow but it's a captivating story that I was thinking about long after I finished the book.

This one probably deserves its own post. I saw the author speak in DC a few months ago and picked up the book on a lark. Basically Rachel Bertsche moved to Chicago after college knowing very few people and figured that she would make friends, but didn't anticipate how difficult that would be after college. She decided to actively work at making friends over the course of one year, and included research about the sociology and science of friendship. (She has a blog by the same name if you are curious to find out more.) I think that this is an especially timely subject for women my age (really of any age) and it's a subject that I've often struggled with. It gave me a new outlook on making friends and I found it extremely relatable.

A book club pick. I know as a 20th century feminist I'm not supposed to like Hemingway and his machoism. However, I have sported a big literary crush on him ever since I read The Sun Also Rises in high school. Personal faults aside, you can't beat the man's prose. This book is told from the perspective of Hemingway's little-discussed first wife, Hadley, and gives an idea of what E.H. was like before he was famous.

Another book club pick. Super creepy, super scary, and super addicting. I finished it in approximately 4 days because I absolutely could not stop reading it. I actually stayed up late reading, went to sleep, had a nightmare about it, woke up at 4am, and read it some more until I could get back to sleep. Worth the sleep-deprivation -- I think this is a perfect summer read.

Since my vacation is coming up next week (3 days, not that anyone is counting), here's what I've picked out to bring on the trip and what's on my library wait list. If you've read any of these or  have any other suggestions, let me know - I'm always looking for a new book!

 

(nerd alert # 2.)

 

xoxox,

b

So

So, I made some changes to the layout. You like? I think I like. At least, I like it more than how it looked before. But I can't promise I won't change it again.

And oh! I joined Instagram. Among the many things I did the last few months. Want to see some pictures? Of course you do.

Visited New York for less than 24 hours to surprise my sister (and took some sweet/homesick pics while I was at it.)

Summer veggies at the farmers market that make 99+ degree heat almost worth it.

Just another day in DC...

Discovered a new favorite wine + cheese shop in Virginia that has the most amazing goodies up front

Slowly but surely working my way through Downton Abbey Season 2, and sampling one of the many fine varieties of white wine that Harris Teeter has to offer me.

Real road sign in Virginia Beach. No cussing!

Asparagus pizza in the works!

So...what have you all been up to?

xoxo,
b