Yep, Haven't Posted in a Month...So Here's What I've Been Up To

Summer is flying by. (I feel like I start all of my posts lately with an excuse for not posting. So this time, I’m just jumping in.) Before the 4^th, I wrapped up my June and kicked off my July with a trip to Maine (for work, of course…let’s not get too excited). I had been to Maine when I was 4 or 5, but it was only a day trip up from Connecticut, so…I could call this my inaugural trip to the northern state. My trip was a little longer than usual, as I had two sites back to back. Both were coastal cities though, so I got to do a little exploring and check out several spots on the water. Also, another bonus on this trip was that two other trainers were in the area—our company is installing at a grocery store pharmacy chain up there, so there were five installs within about a week, and the three of us got to meet up and grab dinner and drinks in Portland. I also got to sneak in a beach visit on the day I traveled from Yarmouth to Damariscotta. It was quick lived, but it felt pretty good to let the freezing waves roll over my tired toes.

Hey, ya know what you do on trips by yourself? You take about 50 thousand pics of scenery and then, oh, you take selfies.

During my leisurely few hours off the clock (and when my feet were sufficiently numb), I decided to see what else the coast was all about and visit a “scenic” lighthouse about an hour outside of Damariscotta. Ummm…the lighthouse was two stories tall. Okay, maybe with the tower it was three. But still. Maybe I've been misinformed, but I was always under the impression that these suckers were big and tall—you know, to guide the ships in over the cliffs and crashing waves and such? ("Land ho!" "Thank God we saw the lighthouse!" and all that.) But nope, this guy was much shorter than I had anticipated. (I even took a pic of the house it was connected to for scale.) I mean...I was a little underwhelmed. But still pretty, Maine!! Still pretty. I'm fairly certain Kansas has no lighthouses, tall or short, so you got us there.

 

 

So, yeah…a whole 10 minutes of picture taking and salty air breathing later, I jumped back in my rental and headed back toward where I was staying, only to discover the home of the world’s best lobster roll (as proven by the three—THREE!—separate people who told me to stop here when I headed north). So, I stood in line at Red’s Eats and bought myself a $21 sandwich (cash only, natch).

It was…good.

Forgive my east coast naivety, but I thought a lobster roll was kind of like a chicken salad sandwich, only featuring crustacean.  You know, lobster with a little mayo (or aioli if you’re fancy), some celery for crunch, etc. NOPE. It’s a whole lot of lukewarm lobster, on a piece of buttery white toast. So. While not what I was expecting, it was still worth the trip. And now, I can say I’ve eaten the world’s best lobster roll, so there’s that.

 

It was a lottttta lobstah.

 

And then, after a solid week of northeastern living, I headed back to the midwest. My 4^th of July was low key in the best way—pool with pals, a barbeque complete with a mini-beer pong tourney and then we headed downtown to watch hear the fireworks (who knew that the rooftop of John’s Upper Deck is maybe the worst place to watch the fireworks set off from the River Market?). And July is continuing to roll on by…the month is already half over. Our work sched is finally picking up, and in the next three weeks, I’ll be traveling to Washington state, Saskatchewan (Canada…my FAV. Not.) and back to Maine again.  

 

Annnnd, since I’ve been rambling on about summertime today, I’ll wrap this up with a pic of the cutest (and smartest!) girl in the whole wide world, made a little cuter as she eats a mini-ice cream cone. Xs and Os to my Novy!

 

 

Hello, 30

So. Nearly two weekends ago, I entered into a new decade of life. (I’m so dramatic, huh?) Yes, it was my 30^th birthday on May 26, and I am happy to report it was celebrated appropriately. While 30 seems a little daunting, as I’ve now had almost two full weeks to reflect on it, I gotta say it’s not really that bad. I had a slight breakdown on my 25^th birthday, so I guess I got that out of the way back then and now, I’m ready to embrace a new era! I’m very blessed for the life I live, and I’m lucky for a lot of reasons, but I think one of the most important things I’ve learned in my 30 years of life is that who you surround yourself with truly make you who you are. I am so thankful for my extraordinary family and amazing friends who not only made my special weekend so much fun, but who love and support me every day of my life. Okay, okay, enough cheesiness—here are a few pics from the birthday weekend!

{I had some rockin "30" balloons and a very special birthday cup, thanks to my bestie Kelly.}

{Jay, manning the grill, and Josh, being Josh....(I think he was shaking up some shots?)}

{Yep. These are my friends.}

On Monday evening, I headed over to my parent’s house for celebrations with the fam-bam. Since Nova and I are halfsie birthday buddies, we shared celebrations for 30 years and 18 months.

 

{With my seeester-in-law, Heather}

 

{Novy loves to "water" Mimi's plants (and the deck!)}

 

 

{My sweet Daddy-o picked out some AWESOME gifts—Ray-Bans and macaroons!}

 

 

 

{We heart cake!}

A Morning at the Market

This summer, I have declared a lofty goal: I am dedicating my weekends in town to exploring more of what Kansas City has to offer. I’ve been a longtime reader of KC Spaces and always dog-ear the pages of new restaurants I want to try and events or spaces I’d like to see, yet somehow, making the time to go always seems to get away from me, or when posed with the question of, “where should we go?”, my list flies right out of my head. It seems to me that in the last decade, Kansas City has really started making more of a name for itself in terms of food, places and entertainment. Or maybe, since I am embarking on a new decade this Monday (gulp), I have finally started to grow up and realize that there’s more to a Saturday night than vodka sodas at the Falloon. Regardless, I’m making it my summer mission to get to know my city on a more personal level. I have my ever-growing list of eateries, concerts and events, and can’t wait to see what summatime has in store. Luckily, I found the perfect companion to accompany me throughout my quest—my friend Sarah. Sar always has her finger on the newest, hippest spot to hit up for crafted cocktails, for amazing atmosphere during dinner, or to find the perfect gift for a friend. The ironic thing is she’s not even from KC, but somehow, she always knows a fresh spot we need to check out.

While this first place on my list isn’t exactly a new feature around town, it was newish to me. Last weekend, Sarah and I ventured down to the Farmers’ Market in the Rivermarket. I had not been down in this area for quite some time, and we had such a lovely day. The fruit and veggie stands were gorgeous, the flower stands were bright and cheerful, and we topped off our morning with grilled cheeses for lunch on the patio at Harry’s. It was the epitome of a perfect Saturday, and I hope to frequent the market again very soon.

{This place! I never knew KC had a Chinatown Market and man oh man...it is sensory overload. There is literally a sign inside saying you can't take pics or video; I'm not sure why, but I wish I could have because we saw some of the weirdest food you wouldn't even know existed. There is also a fresh fish counter in the back, and every Oriental fruit, vegetable and weird protein you could want. Next time I'm in there, I'm taking some secret stealth pics for sure!}

Celebrations, Labor Day Style

Hello! Happy officially-end-of-summer. I’m ready for fall…I’m ready for cool, crisp weather; I’m ready for jeans and scarves and riding boots; I’m ready for pumpkins and bittersweet wreathes; I’m READY for some new happenings. Ya know? New season, new start. (Oh, I’ll just be honest and cut to the chase—I’m ready for a JOB!)

Anywho, my holiday weekend celebrating the end of pool season was slam-packed with birthday celebrations for my besties. Brooke celebrated her last year of her twenties on Thursday night. (She was always the baby of our grade at school.) This was her golden birthday—she turned 29 on August 29!

{This one happened first...I think it's a pretty accurate representation of our many years of friendship. Lots of laughs, lots of...primping...}

{With Brooke and Erica. Loved these girls since elementary and high school!}

On Friday, it was a doubly-big day. First game for the Kitty Cats (and we aren’t going to speak of it…wow. North Dakota State? Really? I spent the entire second half of the game sobbing, “I miss Collin Klein” to anyone who would listen) AND a SURPRISE birthday for my best pal Megan. She turned the big 3-0 and wanted really nothing to do with it…but her friend Jamie and boyfriend Bryan concocted a plan to get her to Maloney’s to “watch the game.” Her reaction was priceless! She was shocked, truly had no idea, and I think she cried a little bit. (Megs is a crier.) We had a fabulous time celebrating her (her sister brought an album entitled “30 Years of Megan,” and it was such a sweet, fun gift) and then of course, watching the Cats embarrass themselves. (North. Dakota. State. D2 school?!? COME ON!)

{It's kinda blurry, but look at her face--so surprised!}

{I think she's crying in this one.}

{With her sister, Carrie}

{I may or may not have submitted some college photos of Megan for her album. This was the infamous "Laundry Night," one of my most favorite memories from K-State and with Megs. It's a story for another day.}

{Happy Birthday to my Soulmate!}

Saturday and Sunday provided more time with friends and many more cocktails to consume. (I need a job so I quit thinking I can booze like I’m in college.) Overall, a fantastic holiday weekend.  Now, if anyone is in need or is looking for someone who has seven years of teaching experience (but has A LOT of transferable skills) to do something other than teach, hit me up, won’t you? This girl is ready to get back to work.

Summertime Shows, Part 2

Hello! Hope everyone had a fun 4^th of July last week. While I didn’t make it to the lake this year, we hit the pool pretty hard. Always a good time! And did I take plenty of pics? You know, to document all the fun and festivities?

Nooooope.

So, instead of showing off bbqs, food, fireworks and pooltime, here is the second installment of my summer-love concert series.

We hit Grinders in the Crossroads district and while I wasn’t crazy about the headliner, Reverend Horton Heat (??),  the band who opened for those guys was such a bonus. Ha Ha Tonka (weird name, great sound!) were part rock, part hipster-twang, and overall, AMAZEBALLS. They’re somewhat local (one of the guys is from  Missouri), and they were def my fav part of the show.

Sidenote-Grinders is the COOLEST place to catch a concert. Great venue, not too big, plenty of beer and of course, Grinders pizza late night? Perf.

{Ha Ha Tonka, my new music love. And yes, we bought a CD.}

 

Finally, a group of pals and I headed out to Starlight to see Imagine Dragons. This is probably the best show I’ve seen this summer (so far). We missed Churchill, who opened for them (sadness…I really wanted to see them, but the pool cocktails were flowing, so…we arrived a little late), but we did catch Capital Cities. They were great, but Imagine Dragons kicked it. It was such a fun show, and Starlight is a great venue to catch a concert—no bad seats and the sound is awesome!

{Capital Cities, Safe and Sound}

{My pal Josh, "owning the crowd."}



{Fountain pics? Yes, please}

{Main attraction-Imagine Dragons}

{And Radioactive closes the show. AMAZING NIGHT!}

 

Summertime...

…And the livin’s easy. So easy and relaxing, in fact, that I’ve pretty much thrown all responsibilities to the wind and am enjoying my last summer of freedom. (Don’t worry Mom, I’m still paying bills. But that’s about it!) My days have been filled with soaking up some sun at Woodside, reading books that aren’t laden with symbolism and allegory, and spending time with friends and family. And—catching some great concerts! Is it just me, or has Kansas City really stepped it up a bit with the music scene?

(I’m going to divide these concert posts—so many pics!)

First up—I caught the Buzz Under The Stars, Night One show in early June with my friend Crystal and a fun group of girls. The Mowgli’s, The Neighborhood, and The Cold War Kids were awesome—but The Lumineers closed the show with a stellar performance. Although it was kinda chilly and overcast, we had a fab time. These pictures don’t do the sound justice—those guys are amazing live!

{With Crystal, tailgating pre-show}

{Girlfriends! With Crystal on the left, and with Gina and Tara on the right}

{This guy was ALL. OVER. THE. PLACE.
We were lucky enough to get a pic...and a super sweaty hug.}

{Lumineers! I heart you guys.}

My friend Michelle is always down for the free country concerts on Thursday nights at Power and Light, downtown. We saw Pat Green a few weeks ago, and Gloriana a couple Thursdays ago. Pat was great, but Gloriana was AWESOME! “Wild At Heart” is one of my all-time fav summer songs, and they definitely rocked it out.

{Got to break my boots out for Pat Green! With Michelle}

{Pat Green; with my friend Taylor}

{Gloriana show! With Michelle; With Brittany after the show}

 
Up next—some Grinders action, and prob my fav show of the summer (so far, anyway!). Check back later, gators!