04.25.11

My parents spent the long Easter weekend with us and, in usual Cartusciello fashion, we did lots and lots of eating!  We tested out some new restaurants, visited some of our faves, and cooked a few yummy meals at home, too!  Having already seen all the "sights" Cincy has to offer, we spent a lot of our time just relaxing (i.e., girls getting mani/pedis and boys playing Playstation!).  Relaxing comes in all different forms, I guess. 

 Lunch at Coffee Emporium

 Afternoon "snack"

 Dad with his seafood hot pot at Asiana

 Brunch at Anabel's

 Brunch at Anabel's

 Our beautification project -- the back porch

 The finished product!

 Easter Sunday at Hyde Park Methodist

  Easter Sunday at Hyde Park Methodist

 Dad overseeing Easter lunch preparations

 Me and Dad

Easter lunch -- rack of lamb, grilled asparagus, and panzanella

Cole Team in front of our house (Mom's trademark photo!)

04.15.11

A few weeks ago, Paula and Ankur came down from Chicago to spend a weekend in Cincy with us.  They actually had been here one time before, having spent the first night in our apartment with us back in July on their way to Yellowstone.  This time, however, we did not force them to sleep on an air mattress or sit on the floor!  The weather wasn't great (welcome to Spring in the Midwest) but it was warmer than Chicago so we did our fair share of bragging and hanging out outside.  After discovering my new favorite brunch place on Saturday (Anabel's in Mount Lookout) we walked over to Dutch's and spent the afternoon catching up over bocce ball and craft beer!  Paula moved here from Cologne, Germany about a year ago and she was thrilled to find that they had Kolsch, on-tap no less!  We walked over to dinner and finally made our way home in the rain, full and slightly damp, finishing the day with a showing of Black Swan.  Paula and I did a decent amount of hiding our eyes but, overall, I think I was expecting a much creepier movie.  Regardless of the dancing scandal, that Natalie Portman does crazy better than anyone I've seen.  

 

 Overwhelmed by the selection

 Kolsch!

 Bocce ball champions

 Dinner at Cumin

 Cole Team -- in desperate need of a tan!

Sunday morning at Findlay Market 

We love, love, love having visitors and had such a good time showing them our little town.  Can't wait for our next trip to Chicago, Udanis! 

03.14.11

We spent a long weekend in Tejas for "Spring Break" and had a wonderful time, as always.  My sister and her girls came up and we spent lots of time playing Barbies, fishing with Papa, and hanging out on the patio.  The main event was tea and an afternoon at American Girl with all the ladies and Dave Cole.  Our trip coincided with our friend Walter's trip to Texas from LA and a big dinner to introduce his lovely girlfriend Alexis to all of us.  It was so fun to meet her and to see all our friends together at one time.  I had to fly out at 5:00 am the following morning so I called it an early night after dinner but Dave Cole was able to represent and, from what I hear, it was one fun evening!  

 

 Miami Vice Ken and Peaches and Cream Barbie - my "vintage" Barbies

Hanging with Elle Belle

 Papa teaching Tori how to catch a fish

Dave and his little ladies

Tori's upside down smile

Gigi and the girls feeding the ducks

 The American Girl Extravaganza

 Tori and Aunt B

 Having tea!

 Waiting for the sugar rush to kick in, I'm sure!

 The Cartusciello Girls

 Walter and Lexi

The whole crew (horrible pic but lovely people!)

 $, DC, Jeff A

Me and the W

03.09.11

Happy Birthday, Dave Cole!

His actual day was a cold, rainy Wednesday in Ohio but we brightened it up with an authentic TexMex lunch and a steak dinner at the bar at Boca.  (As an aside, I love, love, love eating at the bar at fancy restaurants.  White tablecloths are not my friend.)  

Dave's birthday gift of choice this year was side tables.  Side tables, you say?  Yes, side tables.  We had purchased a fabulous bed with fabulous storage months ago and our existing side tables were making it unusable. 

So, there you have it.  A little food, a little furniture, and this boy is one year older.   Luckily, he keeps improving with age!

03.06.11

We made a quick trip to Chicago last weekend to celebrate Ankur's 30th birthday!  His wife, Paula, pulled together an Italian feast and managed to fly in people from NYC, San Fran, and Cincy with Ankur being none the wiser.  We were only in town 24 hours but managed to hit up our favorite pizza place and discover a fantastic brunch place in Bucktown.  We also planned no less than three future vacations (Dominican Republic, Oregon wine country, and Marfa) as good excuses to get together while we are all split up.  

Handmade pasta goodness

On balloon duty

The decorators

Happy Birthday Ankur!

30 candles

The birthday boy and his sweet wife

03.05.11

We are so lucky to have such sweet, sweet friends who are willing to travel to see us no matter the location! I never really questioned the Burks intentions when they came to visit us in Chicago but, traveling to Cincy in the dead of winter secured a special place in my heart.  To be fair, we wooed them with the promise of a Jimmy Eat World concert and the opportunity to sleep in!

 Eating at Nada before the concert

 Appreciative of the door guy for carding us

 Oh Jimmy!  This is at least our fourth (maybe fifth??) time to see Jimmy with the Burks and this concert did not disappoint.  They played at an old theater and we scored great "standing spots" on the balcony.  I love that the age of the crowd seems to stay the same while we grow older (along with the band).  I'm pretty sure they are no longer taking shots before the show but sipping on Pellegrino and talking to their wives and kids!

Friday was a gorgeous day so I took the day off and we headed over to Kentucky to enjoy the sunshine German-style.

At the Maypole

 DC insisted we play at least four games of Frisbee and Tasha was a willing participant.

Goal!

 Porch-sitting.  You can see our manicures in this pic.  Tash and I snuck away on Friday to treat ourselves to mani/pedis and were asked no less than 4 times if we were brides-to-be!  

Wine tasting at Findlay Market

Posing at Findlay Market

Entertaining ourselves while the Burks bought gifts for the girls

We thoroughly enjoyed every minute of this weekend!  For me, there is nothing more refreshing than spending time with those people who know all of you and choose to love you just the same.  Can't wait for Jimmy Eat World Tour 2012!