I am leaving for another wedding weekend after work tomorrow, so blogging might be slim to none until Sunday. I promise a big recap on Sunday of all fun times and of course outfits Hope everyone has a great weekend!

When:

Our 3 Year Anniversary May 27, 2009

Where:

Work and casual date night celebration. Notice the new addition to the family? Her name is Lou-Lou and she was my anniversary gift from the hubby. I am madly in love…with hubby and the purse

What:

Hair – yuck, trying to grow it out some so I am skipping a hair cut…so it will be gross for a few weeks.

Top – Old Navy

Skirt and Belt – Banana Republic

Shoes - DSW, actually I was looking for this cute pair of white shoes to wear this morning, but they seem to have disappeared from my closet.

Purse – Louis Vuitton!!! I have never owned anything this nice before or been this surprised with a gift…well except for my car I got for college graduation

And just for fun…

Our first anniversary was spent with a long weekend in Atlanta. We stayed in a beautiful, swanky boutique hotel called The Glenn and enjoyed time at a Braves game (our FAVORITE b-ball team!), the new Coca Cola factory, Aquarium, and random other shopping and eating excursions.

Our 2nd Anniversary was spent in Asheville visiting the Biltmore House (a fabulous, affordable trip that I would HIGHLY suggest). We got a package deal that included a stay at the Doubletree Hotel (including their AMAZING chocolate chip cookies), a 3 day pass to Biltmore and several meals at the estate, and horseback riding:

And then, of course the most special day of my life:

Happy Memorial Day! Hubby and I spent Saturday evening celebrating our anniversary (a little early) at Charlotte’s famous McNinch House. It was wonderful! I started off by putting on my new dress:

Then we headed off to the McNinch House, an historic home built in 1891 and named after a former mayor of the Queen City. The home is gorgeous and I am surprised (and glad!) it was able to avoid the Queen City’s tear down trend.

We started off our dinner enjoying a glass of Riesling on the porch:

Then the dinner extravaganza began. This was by far the longest and most expensive ($400!!, never would have done this without the gift certificate!) dinner I have ever had in my life. I can’t believe people would ever pay this much for one dinner, but it was nice being catered to, especially with my picky food preferences.

Dinner started with a delicious crab-cake, by far the best one I have ever had:

Our appetizer was Tempura Shrimp (YUMMY!) with some sort of purple potatoes and horseradish sauce. Hubby loved the potatoes!

Then arrived a salad course (that I didn’t get a good photograph of and did not eat because it was covered in chopped raisins that I could not seem to eat around, ick!). Next was a rich white asparagus soup with truffle oil and served with a light, fluffy bread. All the flowers and herbs are also grown on the estate by the current owner who still lives on the second story of the home.

Our waiter brought me a tasting of wine called Evolution, that paired well with my food choices so I ordered a full glass.

To cleanse our palate, the next course was a White Peach Sorbet and it was heavenly. I could have been happy with a very large serving of this as my meal!

Time for the main course…Hubby had a grass fed organic sirloin that he vowed was the best steak of his life. Poor guy doesn’t get very much meat with me around I chose a Mushroom Gnocchi that was also quite tasty.

I was feeling pretty full (but not uncomfortably so) at this point, and still two more courses to go. Parmesan Crisps with gorgonzola cheese and a fig compote. I loved it, but hubby is not a gorgonzola fan. The presentation of everything was also beautiful, lots of attention to detail.

And lastly, dessert! Usually this is my favorite part of the meal, but honestly I did not like this at all. I am a cake and icing kind of gal, and this was not working with my taste buds. The chocolate cake part was good, but the white chocolate mouse tasted like whipped cream (ick!) and there was a layer of blackberry compote that I wasn’t feeling either. I am sure most people would love this, but it just wasn’t my ideal dessert.

It was the perfect place for a romantic anniversary dinner and the food was delicious. Without the gift certificate from hubby’s boss we would have never been able to go here, so I was thankful for the opportunity to spend a romantic night eating delicious gourmet food! I think our real anniversary on Wednesday will be spent with pizza and chocolate cake, definitely more our style

This is how I looked:

This is how I felt:

So obviously we didn’t get the house I am pretty disappointed about it, but I can’t bring myself to pay more for a house than it is worth….especially in this market. I guess the process continues, although I think I need a break for a while.

When:

Friday, May 22

Where:

Work, then dinner with Kath, Matt, Nate, Kate, and Kelsie. Kath and Matt made a wonderful Mexican dinner, complete with Fiesta music and mexican beers. Thanks for a great dinner guys (and for putting up with me in my grumpy mood)!

What:

Cardigan – Old Navy

Blouse – H&M, picked this up on my only trip to the store in DC with my girlfriends

Jeans – 7 For All Mankind, what can I say…I love the way they fit!

Sandals – Nine West

Necklace – F21

Earrings – gift from high school graduation

Hope everyone has a great holiday weekend!

One of my favorite (obviously) stores, Forever21, launched its new contemporary line LOVE21 this week. I must say I am already lovin’ it! Beautiful, affordable, and best of all age appropriate. While I love Forever21, I think that LOVE21 is much more age appropriate for someone in their late 20′s like me. Based on the sizing charts on their website, I am guessing that the LOVE21 brand is also more true to women’s sizing than its counterpart marketed to the tween sector.

Forever21 (typically fitted for Junior sizing):

LOVE21 (that’s more like it!):

Maybe I will actually be able to wear their pants/skirts now too The Forever21 line just does not fit my womanly figure on the bottom!

Here are some of my favorites so far…they are adding things to the website every day, so keep checking back to find your favorites:

Floral Shadow Dress - $22.80

This dress totally reminds me of something you would find in White House Black Market, but for a quarter of the price. Perfect for a summer wedding (which I happen to have a lot of!).

Ruffle Front Dress - $19.80

You probably know by now I am a sucker for ruffles and bright colors. Looks like it is straight out of the J.Crew design room.

Satin Silk Ruffle Top - $27.80

Work appropriate? Yes please!

Ruffle Trim Knit Dress - $24.80

A classic wrap dress in a beautiful shade of blue.

LOVE21 is only available online and in select stores. Check here to see if your store offers this new contemporary line. I will be doing some spending after my no shopping hiatus!