Bad Blogger

I, Samantha, have been a very bad blogger. I could tell you it’s because I’ve been really busy at work, or because I’ve been sick for the past week, but at the end of the day, those are just excuses.  So I won’t tell you all of those things (even though they are true), and instead I will just tell you that I vow to be a better blogger and to no longer allow my work or my dying body to get in the way of my devoted readers. I feel comfortable saying that I have devoted readers only because I have received numerous threats over the past two weeks, I won’t mention any names….cough, Heather…cough, cough, Becca….for not updating my blog regularly.

Any ways, I know that I promised a recap of my trip down to Virginia.  I can’t lie; I was a little bit nervous about going down. My first trip back to Virginia since moving was in February and it did not go as smoothly as I had hoped. Part of it was that I didn’t go with the greatest attitude and was not in the greatest emotional place at the time, probably not the best recipe for a successful trip. I spent a good portion of the two days in tears and vowed on my drive back to Jersey that I would never go back again. Once back in Jersey, I regained my composure and decided that when the time was right, id give it another shot.  Grace’s first birthday seemed like the ideal time for me to make my return. So, I took a deep breath and decided that hey, at least it can’t be worse than last time!

Thankfully I was right. I had a great trip from start to finish. I had a wonderful time staying at my friend Becca and Ryan’s house. They recently moved in together and it was really great to see the “home” that they have made for each other. Becca and I spent tons of time catching up and just enjoying each other’s company.  We spent Saturday afternoon with my best guy friend Zack. We had lunch and saw his incredible apartment.  After running errands in the afternoon and relaxing a bit we went back to Zack’s and had drinks with lots of old friends. It was the perfect venue to catch up with people before enjoying the night out.

Sunday was my long day. I started out by grabbing brunch with two of my old co-workers, one of which just had a beautiful baby girl. It was so great to see them both and to hear how wonderfully they are doing.

Christine and her beautiful daughter Kaitlyn

I left from brunch quickly and jetted down to Leesburg to meet up with Heather to help her set-up for Grace’s first birthday party. Heather did such an amazing job getting everything together for the party. The theme was “Curious Grace’s Birthday” and let me say, she sure knows how to take advantage of a theme. Everything went together perfectly and you could tell she spared no expensive for her little girls first party. I must say, after seeing the pictures, my own mother felt as though she was quite the underachiever for my first birthday.

Momma and her birthday girl

She finally let me hold her...for a few seconds at least!

Grace enjoying her treats.

My best friend Carrie made a cake that I brought down for Grace. Isn't she talented?!

I immediately left from the party and went to Rockville, MD for dinner with my cousin Derek and his fiancé Catherine. Derek and I keep switching geographic locations. While I was in the DC Metro area, he lived in NYC. When I moved up to Hoboken/NYC, he and Catherine moved to the DC Metro area. Apparently we are doing our best to not live near each other. But, when I was in VA he was always so good at visiting me while he was in the area so I want to try and do the same and visit him whenever I can. Catherine’s birthday was on Monday so we went out to dinner to celebrate. It was so great to see them and I feel really lucky to have so much time to get to know Catherine. She and Derek are perfect for each other and I’m so excited for her to join our crazy family next July. I hope she’s ready for all of us!!!

Aren't they so cute?!

All in all it was a wonderful weekend. I finally saw friends that I had not seen in almost a year and tried to squeeze in as much as possible in 48 hours.  Next time however, I think I need at least 72 hours. Although I was exhausted, the trip was a success, especially because there were no tears!  No tears = a successful weekend!  Now…I think it’s time for my VA friends to make their way up to Hoboken/NYC.  I promise we don’t bite… that hard ;)