A Michigan 4th of July

For the 4th of July, Adam and I drove up to Michigan to spend a week with his family.  The 4th is his family's "big" holiday where all the family comes back to his parents.  Adam is one of 5 siblings so they have a very large family especially when you factor in spouses/fiances/girlfriends/kids/animals.  Adam and his brother Jason are the only ones that have moved away from his hometown so I know his mom is over the moon to have all her kids back under one roof. 

We spent the week swimming in the pool, jet skiing and boating in the lake, playing with the dogs, eatting and relaxing.  Oh, and I did sneak a quick trip in to Ikea on the 4th - - Love that place!!! 

Henderson loves going to his Nani's house for several reasons but especially because he gets to sleep on all the comfy furniture!!

Boating with Henderson

Beauitful sunset over the lake at Adam's parents

I also made my first trip to Mackinac Island.  Adam's brother flew us and his fiance Sarah up for the morning/afternoon.  We were going to go last year but the weather wasn't clear enough to fly so we finally got to go up this year.  I really enjoyed walking around the island and seeing all the pretty Victorian houses.  It was right up my alley.  I got some amazing Oreo fudge too!!

Before we took off for Mackinac

 

The Grand Village Hotel

Sarah, John, Adam and Me

Ariel shot of Mackinac on the way back home

The other big event while we were there was his sister Ashleigh's wedding!  She had a beauitful outdoor wedding and reception at her boyfriend's stepdad's house on the lake.  I don't know how she pulled it all off - she just got engaged in February! - but she did and it was a good time had by all.  His brother Jonathan is actually getting married a week before Christmas so there has been lots of wedding planning for the Gray family this year.     

All dressed up at the wedding - I actually had bought this dress for a Mardi Gras ball we had tickets to in Baton Rouge.  Unforunately, that's when my grandpa passed away and obviously we didn't go to the Ball.  So, I finally got to wear my dress that had been hiding away in the closet :-)

Adam's adorable nieces were flower girls - Sidney and Brooklyn

Gorgeous little bride!

"She doesn't have weapons - only her mouth."

Anybody else catch the season premiere of the new Lifetime show Dance Moms?  Of course, spending 16 years of my life dancing (private studio, competition and high school dance team) had me greatly intrigued so I dvr'd it and indulged last night.  

Now, I know that people are "portrayed" different when it comes to reality TV but I really think the owner of the studio in Pittsburgh - Abbey Lee - is REALLY as crazy and awful as she seems!  Then again, parents are paying her (GASP - one woman said she pays $16,000/year for her to teach her 6 year old!) so who really is the crazy one in the picture?!  Not to mention, the woman verbally abuses the girls from the minute their dance class starts to the minute it ends.  She doesn't even hold back when it comes to the parents... The woman runs a tight ship but she needs to find a way to get perfection from her dancers without all the verbal and physicological abuse.  Case in point... during a trio at competition one little girl's headpiece fell forward ... Abbey's comments to the mother..."Next time it better be sewed to her head!"  So while she was out in the lobby screaming at the mother, both the teacher and the mother missed seeing the little girl win first place for her trio. 

For me, dancing is one of the best memories I have from growing up.  I made lasting friendships and got to compete up and down the US.  When it came to perfection, time spent dancing, and expectations - I was way harder on myself than my parents ever were - I can't even imagine how these little stick-thin 6-year-olds are going to turn out after being told half the stuff their dance teacher screams at them on a routine basis.

Yes - part of the beauty of dance is the perfection, effortless, percise artistic movement - and lifelong lessons that can be learned from the art - discipline, dedication, showmanship, sportmanship - but as with everything else, someone can make it look bad for everyone else.  With this TV show, there will be a gauntlet of bad press about the dance world while at the same time, I would almost be willing to bet that the Abbey Lee Dance Company will have waiting lists out the wazoo of pushy moms wanting their daughters trained by the 'best".

Here's Abbey telling the 5-6 year olds and their mothers that she is going to have a pyramid each week of who is on top and who is in the bottom.  Nice lesson for 5 year olds don't you think? 

Tune in next time and see what you think... here's the previews from Lifetime's website...

Dance Moms

         

Romantic Getaway with my Love

It's really quite funny how things work out... in May, Adam and I were talking about how June was going to be such a good, slow, relaxing month because we didn't have to travel anywhere, no visitors, etc.  So, being the planner that I am, I thought well, wouldn't it be nice to sneak away to Asheville for a night and go see the Biltmore together???  About that same time, the Biltmore actually emailed out that they were running a special where you could get admission tickets for 50% off so I thought it was meant to be.  So, I booked non-refundable Biltmore tickets and a hotel room.  Naturally I ended up in Las Vegas that week and flew back Thursday evening.  Then, Adam's parents made an unexpected trip south and were staying with us Saturday night.  So sandwiched between Las Vegas and his parent's visit was our quick but fun trip to Asheville.  

It was a really nice drive over - I think it only took about 3.5 hours.  Adam had made reservations at a random restaurant he found online and it actually ended up being in the Biltmore Village right at the entrance to the Estate!!  He did such a nice job picking the place and the food was sooooo good!!  How cute are we??  (PS - doesn't the deer on the wall resemble Henderson?!)   

Love my strappy sexy little shoes! 

We knew time was going to be limited since his parents were en route on Saturday so it was up and out early to beat the crowds and the heat at the Estate.  After a semi-battle, Adam agreed to wear the head seat (that I had already bought as part of the package!) for the tour.  I think sometimes he just likes to get my feathers ruffled for the fun of it.. :-)  No matter how many times I see the Biltmore I still think it's beautiful!!  There's just something magical about it.   

 

We decided this would be a nice size yard for Henderson

After the house tour, we grabbed some ice cream and strolled through the gardens.  Our goal was the bass pond.  It was BOILING by the time we made it to the pond.  I think that was my first time venturing through the garden though - not much was in bloom - I guess we missed all the pretty flowers. 

We wrapped up our trip and headed back West to Ooltewah to wait for his parents to arrive.  It was their first time coming to see the new house and we had a good, but brief visit.  Even though our trip to the Biltmore was a little rushed I still loved getting to spend some quality love with my man :-)     

Via Las Vegas

Well, now I realize I am only about 4 weeks behind...  if things were to calm down a bit that would help!!

This has been my schedule the last month..

May 26 - May 30 = NYC
June 2 - June 5 = Dad & Grandma came to visit (mom stayed after we got back NY to help me get ready for a Yard Sale I had June 3-4)
June 6 - June 9 = Henderson, NV
June 10 - June 11 = Asheville, NC
June 11 - 12 = Adam's parents stopped by for a visit
June 20 - 24 = Mobile, AL
...and soon to be off to Michigan for a week!

So, it's been a tad crazy! 

I had to make an unexpected trip out to our Henderson/Las Vegas plant for a few days for work.  While I was out there, I finally spent an evening on Freemont Street.  I'm glad I got to see it but I'm ok if I don't visit that spot again.  It's always bittersweet to be in Vegas alone - there's SO many great shows I want to see but I don't want to go alone.  Plus, I don't think it's the safest thing to do!  I usually end up working longer days while I'm there and then I like the outlets near the strip.  I had dinner 2 nights with folks from the plant so that's always a good time.  Here's some pictures from my quick trip out west:

I always enjoy the scenery from wherever I'm flying, it's always so different than what we have here on the East coast



Freemont Street Experience



Once the lights came on, it's actually pretty cool to see.



 

The Golden Nugget.. one of the oldest casinos in Vegas

This was one of the coolest pools I've ever seen.  It has a shark tank in the middle!! 

Day 4 - NYC

Monday, (Memorial Day) was our last day in NYC.  Mom and I had several last things to check off our list so first up was a subway ride uptown to hit 5th Avenue.  Our first stop was FAO Schwarz.  The store was a lot smaller than what I imagined it to be but still really fun and cute. 

FAO Schwarz

The Big Piano

 

Leaving the toy store



I got a new pendant at Tiffany.  I mean you have to right?? When in Rome... :-)

Absolute cutest.note.ever. in the window at Tiffany's



Quick pic with the blue M & M before heading to the airport

So long NY!  How cool does Central Park look from the sky??

An added bonus on the way back.. Mom and I both got upgraded to First Class! 

Day 3 - NYC

Sunday morning we decided to do another tour on the double-decker since it expired that morning.  We did the uptown/Harlem route.  Here's some sites along the way:

Time Warner Building

Dakota Building

Ghostbusters anyone???

Can't remember name of this church...

Riverside Church

Brownstones in Harlem.. this just screams "New York" to me

Guggenheim

 Once we finished the bus tour I had to twist all 4 of mom's limbs to get her to go to Central Park.  I really just wanted to stroll through the park and enjoy the greenery.  Central Park is such a cornerstone of the city and in soo many books, movies and TV shows.  We decided the best way to see the park was to hire one of those drivers who pedals around on a bike while you ride in a cart attached to the back.  We had a knowledgeable guide who told us some history and pointed out all the famous movie scene spots.  I LOVED the park - it was so lush, green, calm and laid back.

My favorite picture of the weekend

The Plaza

The famous mall at Central Park

The Boat House!!

I think my mom wanted to shove her in her purse and run

The Friend's fountain

Once we finished at the park, Mom and I made our way back over to Rockefeller Square for lunch and then had tickets with the rest of the gals for a behind the scenes tour at NBC studios.  We saw Dr. Oz's studio (really small!!! Cameras must work wonders), where they film Saturday Night Live and Jimmy Kimbal and some other stuff.  Pretty interesting. 

Radio City Hall

 Mom and my next stop was Ground Zero.  Unfortunately, we got there about 10 minutes after the last tour of the day stopped (it was Memorial Weekend and in the early afternoon?!? Why don't they have tours all day?!).  So, we missed the tour and had to show ourselves around.  It's still so saddening to stand there and imagine what it must have been like for those people.  You really can't even begin to imagine.  There is a lot of construction going on in that area now - here's a picture of the "Freedom Tower" - it's supposed to be finished and open this September.  

St. Patrick's Cathedral

 From Ground Zero we headed back across town to the Empire State Building via Subway.. where we took the wrong line and ended up across the river.  It seemed like we waited forever for another Subway and I'm pretty sure we spent a good hour underground.  We finally made it to our pre-Empire State Building destination.. Macy's!  Anne and Lisa told us about a wonderful shoe sale they were having so we had to check it out - I did anyway.. I think Mom could have passed.  After searching for about an hour I only found 1 pair that I had to have.  Great deals though, just nothing really in my size and it was mass chaos in there.  I do love that Macy's though - it's amazing!! 

On to the Empire State Building.. our NY Pass covered an attraction called "Sky Ride" which is also in the Empire State Building.  Word of advice.. it's a waste of time and money!!  We definitely wanted that hour of our life back.  Then it was on to wait in the very very long line to get up to the observation deck.  After over an hour, no dinner, and being really tired and somewhat grouchy, we made it to the top.  I've decided I'm ok if that's the last time I go up to the deck.  Between there and Top of the Rock - Top of the Rock is a MUCH better view. 

Empire State Building

We came down around 10pm, grabbed some pizza by the slice, and drug ourselves about a mile back to the hotel where we crashed!