62. October 21st, 2010 Picture.

Thursday night I made it to my first power yoga class in what seems like forever.  I’ve really been slacking on working out ever since I cancelled my pilates membership, and I really need to make an effort to get back to the gym a few times a week.  I went to the 5:30 class, the one I could never make while at my last job because it didn’t typically get home until 6pm or after.  Just another awesome perk of the new job, I’m done at 4:30pm and it’s 15 minutes from my apartment.  WIN! 

I was really excited about the yoga class for 2 reasons.  I have the most tense back on the face of the planet, I can feel my muscles radiating pain throughout my back and arms, and it makes it almost unbearable to sit at a computer all day.  Massages help a lot, but I unfortunately can’t get one everyday, which is honestly how often I need them.  Pilates really helped, building strength while stretching it out, but ever since I cancelled my membership my back has gotten progressively worse.  I am noticing a trend here.  More negative things have been happening since I quit Pilates.  Hmm, maybe I should something about that.


I was hoping yoga would help alleviate some pain, and make me feel good.  It did both!  The second reason I was uber excited for the yoga class, was to use my brand new Lotus Pad yoga mat.  My cousin Katy (married to my cousin Phil) owns this small eco-friendly yoga mat business that is completely dedicated to offering chemical free products.  I guess most yoga mats are full things that aren’t good for you, like formaldehyde and other nasty stuff.  It makes them cheap to produce, but obviously not ideal for rolling around on.  It’s counter productive to do yoga, but use an unhealthy mat, so I purchased a brand new one at the beginning of October.  It’s a beautiful orange color on one side, while the other is a bright raspberry.  It is completely reversible, and is super thick and grippy, so I don’t hurt my wrists doing planks and my feet stay put doing downward facing dog.  I bought an adorable orange bubble/circle strap, so I can carry it easily, but don’t have to put it in a germy gym bag.  It’s a pretty awesome company, here’s her site.


Now that I'm being green, supporting a family business AND being oh so fashionable while doing it, I have no excuse to not work out now, do I? Damn.

62. October 20th, 2010 Picture.

Ratty had been in DC for a week to attend a work conference, so Thursday the 20th, the day after he got back, I planned to go to the North End and hang out.  And see what be bought me.  Yay presents!  I looped through the neighborhood, struggling to find a parking spot, but what else is new?  Unfortunately people park like idiots, taking up two spots with their one car, which makes my job that much more difficult, and annoying.  I passed this particular spot a few times, each time pulling up beside it and deciding it was just a touch too small to fit.  Finally, after the 3rd time passing it, I decided to at least try.  There was no one behind me, so I knew I wouldn’t feel the pressure of people waiting and watching me, because when that happens, it’s absolutely pointless to even try.  I backed in, with inches to spare in the front, and proceeded to go back and forth, back and forth, at least 8 times to finally fit in the spot.  People were walking by, each time staring at the car, shaking their heads in either amazement or doubt.  I started sweating, fogging up the windows in the process, getting nervous that I’d wedged myself in to a situation where my car wouldn’t fit, but also I wouldn’t be able to get out.  I finally got the entire car in the spot, with literally 1 inch in the front and back.  Here is some documentation to show just how good of a parallel parker I am.

62. October 19th, 2010 Picture.

Welp, it’s been over a month since I locked myself out of my bedroom which subsequently caused me to break my door down resulting in my door knob breaking into 50,894,543 pieces.  I have YET to go to Home Depot and get a new door knob, so every time I want to shut the door, I have to brace it with the following: A rock, pumpkin, bottle of wine, and 2 candles.  It’s kind of ridiculous.  I am pretty sure I need to make a quick trip to Home Depot and just buy a new door knob, but until then this make shift door stop will have to do.

62. October 18th, 2010 Picture.

Here's a pile of spray painted starfish that wass currently sitting on my book case.  They were the little favors at my cousin Kara’s wedding, with our name cards tied on in navy string.  They are SO cute and are honestly really heavy and durable.  I thought they were made out of rubber, but was told that they are just regular starfish that had been spray painted white, apparently making them indestructible.  I loved them SO much that I went around the tables at the end of the reception, scooping up all the extras.  I think I shoved 8 in my coat pocket, passed some to Ratty to carry for me, and put at least 3 in my clutch.  I amassed quite the collection and am now left with the task of figuring out exactly what to do with them.  Maybe some kind of craft project?  When I finally take up a craft, that is.

62. October 17th, 2010 Picture.

Sunday morning I went to church with my family a memorial mass for my Uncle Frank.  He passed away when I was in high school, but my Aunt Nancy has a mass for him every year.  This obviously isn't a picture of us at church, it is a picture of some horsey rides taking place after.  

We all went to my cousin Carolyn's house after church for a nice brunch, which turned into an all day affair.  We hung around and watched the Patriots game, while eating LOTS of food.  The children were not as enthralled in the game as the adults, so during half time horsey rides took place to keep them entertained.  It was absolutely hilarious, as you can tell.

62. October 16th, 2010 Picture.

I woke up early Saturday morning and headed down to Bridgewater for their annual Homecoming celebration.  For the past few years I’ve had to work, so I was excited that I could make it to the Gamma Phi Alumnae Luncheon this year. 

Homecoming consists mainly of a parade, where different organizations build floats and perform skits or dances for the judges.  I loved float building because it would take place the night before Homecoming, in one of the parking lots on campus, and it would go until midnight, which was followed by our midnight breakfast.  It was always so much fun to assemble our kick-ass floats, practice our dances and scope out the competition.  The theme this year was BSU pride, since we recently went from a college to university.  The floats were great, per usual, but not as awesome as the ones we made (obviii). 

{Everyone waiting for the parade.}

During the parade watching festivities, Erin decided that she would work on one of her 101 goals, which was to hug 15 people.  Erin is not a hugger, or a toucher, or really into feelings all that much, so this was a huge feat for her.  We all lined up and gave hugs, I clocked in at number 10, with our equally as hug-a-phobic friend Jill closing out the goal at number 15.  Check that one off the list!

{Litch accosting Erin.}

{Number 15!}

Once the parade wrapped up, we skipped the football game and headed to our friends Erin and Courville's on campus apartment for a little reunion of sorts.  Erin is the RD of one of the freshman dorms and also my sorority sister.  Her and Courv got married about a year and a half ago (awesome wedding, aside from the fact that I came down with the swine flu during their reception and infected half of the guests.  No, I’m serious).  I gave them a glass punchbowl from Crate and Barrel that came with 10 little stemless glasses and a ladle, which they put to great use and made a yummy sparkling cranberry punch for the party.  Even though their apartment was small, we managed to fit quite a few people, along with a baby and stroller, inside.  It was a really great time, catching up with old friends and reminiscing about our good ol’ college days.

{Glad to see my gift is getting PLENTY of use!}

{Me & Mark.}

{Who doesn't love Homecoming?}

{Me and the birthday girl.}

We made it to the luncheon right on time, and spent the next 2 hours mingling with sisters new and old.  There was a good turn out, with lots of recent grads in attendance.  Kel came, bringing along Miss Sophie, which meant that I was busy holding her for the rest of the afternoon.  It’s really nice that the active sisters plan this event for all the Alumnae during Homecoming.  It’s nice to meet everyone, hear what the chapter is up to and catch up with some old friends.

{Shelby, Erin, Annie and me at the luncheon.}

After the luncheon, we all made our way to Bogart’s, which was our regular Wednesday, Thursday and Saturday (sometimes Fridays and the occasional Tuesday) hangout.  There aren’t many places that I know of where you can buy a pitcher of Miller Lite for $3, and even though I am now an ‘adult’ I can still appreciate a good deal.  It was our friend Lina’s birthday, so we spent a good amount of time celebrating and cheersing to her, even getting the DJ to do some shout outs.  At this point it was about 5pm and the bar was packed and the DJ was bumpin.  It may have still been light out.  If anyone had just randomly walked in, they would have thought that it was midnight.  Ahh, I love Bridgewater.  We all made plans to meet up in Somerville that night and go out for drinks in Davis Sq. to continue the celebration of Lina’s birth.  Woof, what a long day!  But it’s totally worth it when you’re doing things that are fun.  And with people you like.

{The T-Chicks are me, Erin and Shelby.  We made up this name in college and have referred to ourselves in the 3rd person ever since.  For the record, T stands for three.  You know, since there are 3 of us and we're girls.  So original, I know.  We even have nicknames and made t-shirts.  No really, we did.  We had a ceremonial sleepover at Shelby's when we made them.}

I headed back to Boston around 6:30pm, with the plan of meeting Lina & Co at the Joshua Tree around 8pm.  I had just enough time to stop off at my apartment and freshen up before I was back on the road.  We had a few drinks at the Joshua Tree and then made our way across the street to The Burren before I called it a night.  I had to get up very early the next morning, so I didn’t want to press my luck – no whammies!

Such a good day!

{Kev, Dave and Hannah.}

{All of us cheersing to Lina!}

62. October 15th, 2010 Picture.

Friday after work I had plans to meet my cousins Susan and Erin out for drinks.  Sue works down the street from my apartment, in the Fort Point Channel, so I met her at her office where there was a little party happening.  Sue works for a pretty cool company, they have a beer fridge, hi!  I'd been dying to see her office, since she works for a green office furniture company, and the space did not disappoint.  It is exactly what you'd picture a funky, green company who has offices in a renovated warehouse.  So cool.

After mingling with her co-workers for a little bit, we walked across the street to a relatively new restaurant called Barlows where we were meeting Erin.  It's a pretty cool place, with talented bartenders and yummy food.  We grabbed a few spots at the bar and settled in for a long night of martinis, pizza and lots of laughing and chatting.  They have the best pizza - arugula, gorgonzola and fig.  I literally dream about it.  All. The. Time.

We made friends with the bartender so he kept making us amazing French 75s.  I love just about anything with a champagne float, so this was an easy sell.  We kept joking that he should just leave the bottle with us, so we could top our drinks off whenever we wanted.  We must have wore him down because for our last round he actually did. We loved this, obviously, and I needed to document it, for blog purposes.  Granted it was only a mini bottle of champagne, but we got a few floats out of it.

Erin headed home after a few rounds, but Sue and I closed down the place, which is nothing new for us. We always joke that whenever we go out for 'a drink after work' in turns into a full blown night out where we are helping the staff sweep up and lock the doors.  Not literally, but kinda.  We obviously don't mind.

62. October 14th, 2010 Picture.

This was the first day that I got to see Miss Erin Rowe after becoming engaged.  It was also the night that her, our friend Jen and myself went to see Lady Antebellum.  I LOVE Lady A.  When I heard that they were going to be playing at the Agganis Arena at BU, I knew I needed to get tickets.  Jen, Erin and I have been to a few country concerts together, Carrie Underwood is one that comes to mind, so as soon as I heard about it I asked if they wanted in.  Obviously they did - who wouldn't want to see Lady A in concert?!

We made plans to meet right after work at Sunset Cantina, which is a fun Mexican restaurant right across the street from the arena.  Now that I was working right down the street, I got to the restaurant a few minutes before 5pm.  On my way over I got a call from Jen telling me that she had gotten off the train about 5 stops earlier because it was moving so slowly and had gotten turned around in Kenmore Square and wasn't exactly sure which way to go.  I picked her up and we headed off to Sunset to meet Erin.

We got a spot right in front of the restaurant, with the meter turning off at 6pm, SO PERFECT, and headed inside to grab a table.  Since Sunset is right across the street from the concert, it get's pretty busy, so we put our name on the wait list and grabbed a beer at the bar.  Once Erin arrived we hugged and cheered and toasted to her engagement and started inquiring about all the planning details.  That conversation pretty much lasted through dinner and until we got to the concert, typical girls.

Agganis is a small arena, about 2,000 seats, so there is no way you could have a bad view of the stage.  We got to our seats just a few minutes before David Nail came on to open.  He was great, although I am sure that no one really knew who he was until he finished his set with 'Red Light'.  After he finished Jen and I ran to the bathroom, where we bumped into him walking through the hallway.  He was being escorted by a police officer, but absolutely no one had any clue who he was.  Since he was right next to me, I told him how great his set was.  He didn't break his stride but very graciously thanked me.  We rushed back to our seats and told Erin who we bumped into in the hallway, and she was bitter, I'll say it.  She should have come with us!

Once Lady A came on, I was in heaven.  They were amazing.  I have been to a lot of concerts in my lifetime, LOTS, and I have seen some great ones and some not so great ones.  This was one of the best.  They sang every song off both of their albums and just knocked the whole thing out of the park.  They talked to the crowd, interacted with each other and even sang a few covers.  I know that Charles Kelley is married, but if I didn't know better, I'd say that him and Hilary were totally in love.  They had such chemistry on stage that it was electrifying and it was impossible not to notice.  We even joked that someday, when it comes out that they have been together all along, all anyone will be able to say was 'Amy Called It'.

I would kill to see them in concert again, they were amazing.  I love everything they do, and I am pretty sure I am not the only one that feels that way!  I hope they make it back to Boston sometime soon.

{TOTALLY staged!}

62. October 13th, 2010 Picture.

I spent all night on the 13th watching the Chilean Miners being rescued.  I sat on my bed and cried when the first man came up and stood in front of the TV and sobbed as the 33rd one was rescued.  I cannot believe that they were able to survive for 69 days under ground, not to mention the mental anguish that they must have gone through on a daily basis.  I am just in awe of their bravery, and their camaraderie.  They drew straws to find out who would be the LAST miner out.  No one wanted to be first and leave the rest of the crew underground.  That just goes to show what selfless and courageous men they are. 

62. October 12th, 2010 Picture.

October 12th was my very first day and my brand new job!  It wasn't crazy exciting, just a full day of orientation, where I learned everything about the company and their benefits.  We got free lunch and got our ID badges, both of those were pretty much the highlight of the entire day.  There were actually a good amount of people at the orientation, most starting that very day, like me.  There were a handful of people that had been there for about a week or two, but all in all, everyone was brand new.  

Like I said, other than lunch and getting my ID, the day was pretty uneventful.  There was a 3 hour section about how to pick what insurance plan was right for you, and what types of benefits BCBS offered.  Surprisingly, they're really good.  For the first time, I actually understood insurance, well I understood it better than I ever had before.  At most new jobs, they throw you paperwork, you fill it out, and then you just deal with whatever you chose.  Here they combed over all the different plans, the ways you could extend benefits, work with the system and choose the best plan that suited your needs at that moment.  It was actually pretty cool to have all that stuff explained, since I might of well have thrown a dart while blindfolded to have picked out my past plans.  It was really nice to have all the benefits broken down for me, and I walked out of orientation feeling like I actually learned something.

{The clip to my badge.  I would have shown the whole thing but my ID photo isn't that great.  And by 'isn't that great' I mean really bad.}

62. October 11th, 2010 Picture.

After leaving our hotel that morning, veryyy slowly since I was up until 4am starring at the clock thinking that someone was trying to break into our motel room, a la Criminal Minds.  Sometimes I ask Ratty if it's weird that I do that, or that I'm nervous going over bridges to the point that I roll down my windows so that if my car plummets I can swim out the window - for reals.  You know what he says?  'That's not weird for you.'  What exactly is that supposed to mean?!

Anyway, once on the road we decided to drive up cape to Hyannis to grab breakfast and coffee.  Once off the highway we flew past a Mary Lou's and I immediately did a U turn, I think I scared Ratty because I could hear him scrapping for the handle.  We grabbed coffee and proceeded to IHOP where we shoveled food in our faces to the point where we didn't speak to eachother and it was hard for me to breathe.

After completely gorging ourselves on pancakes, bacon and hash browns, we decided that it would be a great idea to walk it off in the Cape Cod Mall.  This is a picture perfect example of Americana.  Eat until you can't breathe or walk, then go shopping.  No wonder other countries hate us.

ANYWAY, in the parking lot, I came across this license plate.  Though Joy isn't my middle name, it might as well be, since I'm so damn happy!

62. October 10th, 2010 Picture.

TEN TEN TEN!  A casual 3 months later.  Whatever.

So the day after Kara's wedding, woof.  I was not necessarily feeling really chipper the next morning, and I am sure I wasn't the only one.  We woke up around 10am and hung around while cousins, Aunts and Uncles were coming and going from my mom's room, seriously she was like the cruise director on this trip.  As everyone was packing up to head home, Ratty had the awesome idea of staying an extra night.  He walked over to the front desk and within minutes we were booked for one more night in room 105.  As we said our goodbyes everyone seeped with jealousy, wishing they could spend another night away during the long weekend.  Parents were rushing back to make it to football or soccer games, swim meets and play dates.  Ratty and I waved them all goodbye and went back into our rooms to fall back asleep in separate double beds.  Slightly parallel lifestyles.

Even though it was a nice, crisp fall day, Ratty and I spent the entire time laying in different beds, drifting in and out of sleep while watching HGTV.  The first time we ventured out was for a late lunch at Hearth & Kettle, but then it was right back to our beds.  Ratty at some point stole my Snuggie, and before I knew it he was passed out for 3 hours.  That Snuggie is like magic, it's impossible to stay awake when you're wearing it.  I occupied myself with my own nap, followed by endless hours of Property Virgins.

We finally decided to go out to dinner around 9pm and drove down the street looking for a restaurant that was still open.  Because we were far down the cape and it was after Labor Day weekend, a lot of places had closed up for the season.  We stumbled upon an awesome restaurant right in the center of Orleans, which consisted of said restaurant and a stop sign.  We ordered a couple of martinis along with steak for Ratty and pan roasted lobster for me.  WITH risotto.  I die for risotto.  The food was fantastic and the barley lemon risotto was heavenly - I still dream about it!  I think I might need to try and recreate it sometime, it was seriously that good.

It was a fantastic 'extra' day of vacation, filled with nothing but good food, good drinks and pure relaxation.  I am pretty sure I could that every single day for the rest of my life.

62. October 9th, 2010 Picture.

{Kara and my Aunt Ceil walking down the aisle!  Her dress was SO beautiful.}

{Kara and Andy saying their vows.  The church was so pretty, all planked wood, stained glass and natural light.  Simply beautiful.}

{Kara's sister Erin as the Maid of Honor, the colors were navy and lime green, which was such a pretty combination!  In the background you can see Uncle Dave and Aunt Pat doing a reading.}

{They're married!}

{Ratty and I at the reception.  It was on Ocean Edge's front lawn under a spectacular tent.  The cocktail hour was just outside the tent, where it was a little breezy, hence the coat.  Cousin Rich kept making jokes that it looked like I was going skiing, but at least I was warm!}

{Shot of the reception.}

{Causal croquet court on the front lawn too.  You can see a group of people playing to the left.  There were 3 other weddings going on that day, so there were LOTS of people around.  Except for the bar inside the main house and the cars in the parking lot, you'd never know there were so many people there that day.  The tent was nice and private and the service was amazing!  As a former wedding planner, I really pay attention to the little details.}

{Kara with the Aunt (just my mom) and Uncles.}

{Tim and Becky sat next to us at dinner.  Obviously we found ways to entertain ourselves while waiting for our turn at the buffet.}

{Me and Ratty.}

{The happy couple!}

{My brother Ronny rocking it on the dancefloor.  I think he looks like Kevin Bacon, my mom says Clifton Webb.  Go ahead and google Mr. Webb, we had to.  And no, Ronny doesn't look anything like him.}

{The wedding cake.  I think love of nautical themes must run in the Downey blood.}

{Me and Steph!  Isn't she so cute?!}

{Me and Cousin Sue.}

{Cousin Alison on the dancefloor.}

{Ron and Sybil dancing up a storm.  The band was REALLY good.}

{Some of us cousins.  By some I mean, um, probably 8% of us.}

{I THINK this was a conga line...}

{Me and the lovely bride!}

{All the Downeys!}

{Me, Rich and Kathy.}

{Ratty, on the ground, doing 'a little bit softer now....'}

{I am pretty sure Kara had the greatest day ever.}

{It was SUCH a great wedding!}

{Everyone loves Eddie!}

{Quick shot with some cousins.}

{Confusion ensues at the after party.}

The wedding was just so much fun.  The ceremony was so sweet and thoughtful, and the reception was a blast!  The location was simply spectacular, and the food was out of this world.  The cocktail hour was filled with shrimp cocktail, oysters, clams and drinks while the dinner was stations serving everything from lobster to shrimp to pasta.  It was a truly magical day and I was so happy to be apart of it.  

Thankfully I brought flip flops because the second I stepped out onto that lawn my heels drove straight into the ground.  I always bring flips flops because I love to dance, and well, heels aren't really conducive to lots of dancing.  There was a great band there that played lots of recently popular songs, as well as the party favorites, like Bryan Adams.  I may have freaked a little when he came on, I love him.  No one gets it.

There was LOTS of partying back at the hotel, hours and hours of it.  I ended up crashing around 1:30am, which was considered early on all accounts.  My Uncle Paul ended up staying up until 3:30am drinking in his room with Sue, Phil and Neil - Go Uncle Paul!  So bummed I missed that scene, but I think it was for the best that I put myself to bed.  After a long, fantastic day of family and fun, I was beat!  Can't wait for the next Downey wedding!  Erin?  Liz?  Anyone want to claim that one now?  Carolyn literally got mad at me when I didn't catch the bouquet at the wedding.  She had pushed her way to the front, camera in hand, ready to apparently take a picture of me catching the bouquet.  I stood in the back row and didn't even reach for it while girls tore it to shreds.  Carolyn was bummed saying that she needed another good party to look forward to, I believe the exact quote was 'what are we going to do next summer?!'  I promised her that if there wasn't a wedding on the books that I'd throw a party for the cousins, that seemed to settle the issue.  We are all just looking for another reason to get together and have a big party - we're just so much fun and we love spending time together.  

Congratulations Andy and Kara!