Busy, Busy, Busy....

Last time you heard from me was the end of June- the 27th to be specific. After I finished that last post on the kitchen Matt and I began a whirlwind vacation, and now on July 14th I'm finally settling back into life and have a chance to catch you all up.

July 1st through July 6th we were on vacation, in one of the world's most relaxing places- MAINE! The 9.5 hour drive to Maine is worth every minute on the road, not only for the beautiful ocean views but it is also a great time to relax with family.


We spent our time in Maine swimming, boating, kayaking (yes I learned and didn't tip the kayak!), and most importantly enjoying great food. Between Aunt Maripat and Aunt Kathy there is endless amount of amazing food for every meal, and of course a lobster. Yes, I ate a lobster. I think I like lobster, but all the work involved in getting to the 'meat' takes away the enjoyment for me. (Momma always said not to play with my food!) Everyone else enjoy at least two of the tasty creatures....I went back for seconds on the salad.


(Note: These aren't the actual lobsters because I kept forgetting my camera.)

4th of July in Maine brings many traditions. We start the celebration with the annual softball game- everyone arrives at the field, teams are picked, the national anthem is played on the trumpet, and everyone exclaims "PLAY BALL!" My team made an effort and we did manage to score few runs the last inning- but not enough for a win. Usually after a few beers or cocktails all is forgotten...

After playing about four innings we head back to the house for the festivities which means FOOD! Don's Sausage and Peppers, pasta salads, flank steak, and many other snacks. Trust me you can never go hungry...

Unfortunately all good things must come to an end- and we had to leave on Tuesday and begin to make our way back toward Buffalo. This time we made a stop in Liverpool to swim with my little brother and to visit my grandmother. Unfortunately we arrive at 8pm and left the following day after lunch so we didn't get to see everyone- but we had to head back to Buffalo to prepare for more fun.

Back in Buffalo we unpacked, then repack our bags in preparation for the Taste of Buffalo! Each year we volunteer on the Logistic Committee and assist in preparation from Thursday evening through Sunday evening. We are the first group to arrive and the last to leave- sometime not until 1 or 2 am Monday morning.

To give you a little background Taste of Buffalo is an annual food festival held on the streets of downtown Buffalo the second weekend of July. It is the largest 2-day food festival in the United States. This year feature 55 local restaurants offering four different food options- one of which must meet healthy requirements. Each year many people head toward their favorites from the prior year, but also venture out of their comfort zones to try new things from new restaurants. Here are some pictures from high above the event...

In addition to all the food visitors also can listen two live music on two stages, visit the Boy Scout of America's obstacle course, check out Zhu Zhu pets, climb the Lunchables wall, or watch a cooking demonstration. Matt and I took sometime to watch a cake decorating demonstration for a local shop called Zilly Cakes. The owner, Zilly Rosen, showed us how she makes her gauche, frosting, fondant, and sculpting- she created a beautiful buffalo and we even got a taste. It was amazing!!!!

I think that brings you up to date on our latest and greatest adventures...from here we plan to continue on with the kitchen journey. Our counter tops have been measured and will be arriving on July 23rd, so in the meantime will be working on the cabinet fronts, cover panels, installation of the dishwasher, working on installing the butcher block top, and many other things...

Plan to hear from me soon about a book I read on vacation. And you'll also get to hear about the page turner that I just picked up yesterday. I need to get a library card....