Yesterday, Darren and I hosted our first Thanksgiving day dinner for the Kepner’s and the Herman’s. Fifteen members of our collective family joined us to celebrate what we hope with be the first of many joint Thanksgiving celebrations together. A combined effort by all, we dined on two turkey’s, stuffing, sweet potatoes, cranberry ‘mush’ as we like to call it and other favorites. If we didn’t indulge enough during the meal, our dessert buffet put us over the edge. We featured traditional pumpkin and apple pie, pumpkin bread, chocolate dipped fruit and of course, both family’s favorite, chocolate cake.

We were so happy that everyone was able to join us for an afternoon of football and feasting and we hope to make this annual tradition! Thanks everyone – we had a fabulous day!

Click here to see some pics of the day.

Darren and I are celebrating Thanksgiving together this year for the first time.  Last year, we each spent the day with our respective families but since our wedding we are now one big family and will be celebrating the holiday all together.  We are very excited to be hosting and are looking forward to having everyone join us.  Of course, the pressure is on to impress everyone with our dazzling kitchen skills so I have a feeling we will be feeling more than just the heat of the oven tomorrow as we prepare. 

Thanksgiving has always been my favorite holiday.  First because it is about spending time with family and friends and second because it is a time of reflection.  Looking back on the year that is drawing to a close, it is abundantly clear to us how blessed we are to have each other to journey through life together.  We have achieved many milestones in the past year and have a lifetime of wonderful things that lie ahead of us. 

Since it is Thanksgiving, we would like to take this opportunity to thank everyone who has touched our lives over the past 12 months and we want you all to know we are unbelievably grateful for everything everyone has done for us.  It is with much love and gratitude that we thank you.  To all our friends and family, near and far……Happy Thanksgiving!!!! 

Last night Darren and I took his parents to experience the Dave Matthews Band at the Izod Center at Continental Arena.  I have seen them perform six times; Darren has seen them perform over 80 times (no joke!) and last night’s show really rocked the house.  It was their last public show of 2007 and they came out full of energy, grabbing the crowd right from the start.   Opening with One Sweet World, everyone was up on their feet and stayed there just about the entire show.  Starting off strong, they continued the high energy by playing Darren’s latest favorite – You Might Die Trying and my second favorite, #41 (nothing can top Crush!)  Both were phenomenal.  The show had a mix of old favorites (Watchtower, Warehouse, Stay) and some new songs too.  Playing for nearly three hours, Dave and the band finished the show with the same level of energy they started with.  Their final two songs of the night were Too Much and Ants Marching which left the crowd wanting more.  It was a fantastic show – I think the best since I saw them in Saratoga in 2006.

To read Darren’s thoughts on the evening click here or to check out the set list from last night’s show click here.   

I was watching the morning news today as I was getting ready and it is that time of year again – time to cut down the tree that will be in Rockefeller Center this holiday season.  I absolutely love the city during the holidays.  The last several years my nieces would come in and we’d walk around the city watching the ice skaters, see the tree and go to The Nutcracker or The Rockettes.  One year I even took them to Tavern on the Green and we had so much fun.  The food was surprisingly pretty good but it was the incredible holiday decor that really wowed the girls.  Every inch of the restaurant was covered in holiday decorations, the Christmas tree had all sorts of unique ornaments hanging from it and outside there were huge ice sculptures.  It was so great to see their little eyes light up as they experienced all these new things – and for me, they were the perfect excuse do something I’ve always wanted to do. 

According to this morning’s report, this year’s tree is a Norweign Spruce that is about 60+ years old and is currently on the property of a homeowner in Shelton, CT.  On Friday the tree will be cut down, put on a flatbed truck and brought to Rockefeller Center where it will be adorned with lights in preparation for the tree lighting ceremony on November 28th.  No matter what your religious traditions are, ligting of the tree in Rock Center is an annual tradition that shouldn’t be missed.  You don’t have to be there in person sinceNBC tv broadcasts a one-hour live show and at the end the lights are turned on.  This annual event is considered the official start to the holiday season and I just love it.  Let the season of shopping and holiday gatherings begin!

This week, live from Las Vegas, Fast Lane Daily is shooting from SEMA, the auto show at the Las Vegas Convention Center. Kenny, my brother-in-law and an exotic car enthusiast, is a fountain of knowledge when it comes to cars. No wonder he landed the job as executive producer of the show right after graduating college this past May. He is a natural in front of the camera and every so often he acts as host or hosts part of the show. This week I tuned in to see what he was up to and lucky for me, there he was on Tuesday’s show. If you are an exotic car enthusiast, definitely check out the show and see Kenny do his thing…

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The other night while Darren and I were having dinner with his folks, we realized we are almost two months away from holiday season.  Its hard to believe that most of 2007 has gone by already.  With all the excitement of our engagement in January and the planning of our August wedding, the months just flew by.  The holidays are my favorite time of year – I love buying presents, celebrating with family and friends and the general buzz of excitement that fills the shopping malls and city streets as tons of holiday shoppers come to town. 

In preparation for the holiday season, I thought it was more than fitting to order some fabulous holiday cards to send out to friends, family and colleagues.  And lucky for us, my mother-in-law is in the invitation, stationary, holiday card and gift business.   She has invitations for all occassions:  weddings, showers, bar/bat mitzvahs, birthday parties, anniversary parties, etc  and she carries all the top brands in the industry.

So, if you live in Westchester County, New York or very nearby and are looking for  invitations, stationary, holiday cards, personalized items, etc…and want high quality, friendly customer service do not hesitate to email wppaperetc@aol.com to inquire for more information or to schedule an appointment.  Serious inquiries only please.   My mother-in-law’s stuff is fabulous and she specializes in high quality customer service!  She’s the best in the biz and you won’t be disappointed! 

This afternoon Darren and I went out to NJ for a visit with our nieces. Spending the afternoon with them was definitely a throw back to our days as a kid. We started off the afternoon with a game of bowling where Darren and I tried hard not to embarrass ourselves. We both started out kind of weak (really embarrassing since we were playing with the bumpers up) but in the fifth frame we started to come around. We each managed a couple of spares and I even came through with a strike but our skills came a little too late in the game and we lost to my brother in the end. It had been a really long time since Darren and I bowled but not much has changed. Bowling is still a kid-friendly sport and bowling alleys cater to them – small shoes, colorful, lightweight balls, bumpers to avoid the gutters and of course, pizza. Surprisingly, the prices were low – $4 a game and $2 for shoe rentals, no wonder parents still choose bowling for birthday parties. It was definitely a great time and afterwards we treated ourselves to some yummy ice cream treats at Cold Stone Creamery.

The rest of the afternoon we just chilled outside, jumping rope, riding bicycles, playing croquet and getting an education on Hannah Montana, Miley Cyrus and High School Musical 2. The girls managed to get me and Darren involved in every activity they wanted and we were at their mercy. Like the good aunt and uncle we are, we followed their wishes and we all had a blast. The afternoon definitely reminded me of just how carefree life is when you are a kid…..

Happy New Year to all our friends and family. We hope everyone has a wonderful year ahead. We are sorry we are not there in person this year to celebrate with everyone but from clear across the country we are thinking of you all.

L’Shana Tova!

We miss and love you!!!!

We just got to Vegas this morning and finally have internet connectivity again. Below is a recap of the last 4 days and what we’ve been up to…..enjoy!

Tuesday morning we packed our bags, left the luxury of The Boulders behind us and started our journey north to Grand Canyon. The drive takes about 5 hours so we decided to do some sightseeing along the way. Our first stop was Sedona, about an hour north of Scottsdale. We drove through the clay colored rock formations as we passed through brush and desert along the highway. The scenery is absolutely breathtaking and we stopped along several inlets to capture the views. After a little sightseeing, we had breakfast at a restaurant who’s claim to fame is serving 101 different omelets. The restaurant was much what you’d expect, rustic tables, with a south-western feel. The food was just okay, not great – the eggs were a little too watery for my tastes and the coffee was awful. Oh well. Check out our Sedona pics.

A few hours later we rolled into the tiny town of Williams, AZ where we had lunch (well, pie) at the Pine Country Restaurant on Route 66. Darren was in heaven with all the pie choices and his mouth was watering before we even sat down. Frommer’s recommended this restaurant and we couldn’t agree more. Darren opted for the apple-peach-cherry pie and I went for the dutch apple – both of which were incredibly fresh and delicious. After a generous helping of pie, we took a little stroll around town where we saw the Williams train station which is the origin of the Grand Canyon Express. We then headed back to the car and continued on our journey to the South Rim of the Grand Canyon. Click here for pics of our time in Williams, AZ.

We arrived at Grand Canyon mid-day, checked into our cabin at the Bright Angel Lodge (which was surprisingly clean and charming) then caught the IMAX show just past the south entrance to the park. The 34 minute show told the story of the Grand Canyon, providing historical as well as geological and philosophical context to the park. It was well worth the time and the $12 entrance fee.

After the show, we only had a few hours before nightfall, so we headed down the Desert View Drive stopping at several lookout points (Yaki Point, Grandview Point and Mather Point) to take some pictures. We ended the night with a surprisingly delicious dinner of prime rib and barbecue ribs at the Arizona Room at Bright Angel Lodge.

Wednesday morning we were up at 6am for our trip to Glen Canyon for our smooth river raft day trip. We started out with a little sightseeing by stopping at the Watchtower at the Desert View which is the highest point at the south rim (7,522 above sea level) for some early morning views of the canyon. We then drove 3+ hours to Page, AZ, passing thru Indian Reservations, grazing farm animals and beautiful mountain ranges where the rock formations were rich in red and pink hues.

We arrived at the Glen Canyon Dam around 11:30am where we boarded our raft. Luckily, for us there were only 6 of us, so we had a semi-private ride down the river. For 4 hours we meandered through the calm waters of Glen Canyon, taking in the indescribably beautiful rock formations that were created by water erosion thousands of years ago when the canyon was under the ocean. Before we knew it, the hours had passed and we were docking at Lee’s Ferry to meet our bus and head back to the Canyon. It was an awe-inspiring day.

For our final evening at Grand Canyon, we strolled Bright Angel Trail, caught the sunset from El Tovar and grabbed a light dinner at the Bright Angel Restaurant which was fair in comparison to the previous evening but certainly much cheaper – the two of us ate for $23!

To see our adventures in Grand Canyon, click here.

Thursday morning, we were up and at it, ready to hit Highway 89 for our trip to Bryce Canyon. We traveled another 5+ hours, and 277 miles from the vast hole of the Grand Canyon through some desert before crossing into the prairies of Utah. We stopped briefly for lunch at Grandma Tina’s Coffee Shop in Kanab, Utah. The food was fair but expensive for what we ate – sandwiches and salad for over $20. A couple of more hours in the car and we arrived at Bryce Canyon National Park.

We only were staying one night at the Bryce Canyon Lodge so we needed to make the most of the time we were there. After checking into our room – a corner room on the second floor of the Sunset Lodge with a nice balcony, we geared up for seeing the canyon and a nice hike to the canyon floor. We began our exploration at Sunset Point and started to descend the canyon on the Navajo loop trail. The Navajo trail is a moderately difficult hike but only1.3 miles in total. With our camera and Nalgene’s in tow, we ventured down the path to the bottom. The views were spectacular and we marveled at the different rock formations of the hoodoos. The 0.6 mile hike back up to the top of the canyon wasn’t as easy as you’d think and I totally disagree with Darren that going down is harder than going up! We made it back to the top though – doing the hike in just over an hour although the guide books say, it takes almost 2 hours to complete. Maybe we are in better shape than I thought!

Friday morning we drove the scenic loop of the park passing Inspiration Point, Sunrise Point, Sunset Point, the Natural Bridge and Rainbow Point before stopping at Bryce Canyon Pines for a delicious country breakfast. Frommer’s called this little restaurant a ‘find’ and we couldn’t agree more. A charming country front store, motel and restaurant, this place is known for its homemade cooking, especially their pie and soup. Since it was breakfast we order traditional fare – eggs, hash browns and pancakes. It was by far the best breakfast of the trip so far! For pictures of our hike and the canyon, click here.

We then ventured back to the car for a two hour drive to Zion National Park. We rolled into the park just after noon-time, checked into our Western Cabin and geared up for another hike. We explored the Emerald Pools (lower, middle, and upper) ascending over 400+ feet while hiking 2.7 miles. The climb to the top was amazing and the pools and waterfalls were inspiring. We completed the hike in 2 hours, much shorter than we expected. We spent the rest of the day exploring the park and Springdale, the neighboring town just south of the park and then playing several challenging games of chess in the lodge. Darren whipped my butt! To see the park and the Emerald pools, click here.

Early this morning we headed to Interstate 15 for our favorite city…..VEGAS BABY!!!!!! We are destined to have a great weekend here at THEhotel before heading to the wilderness again.

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