An Evening at the Ballpark

Kim B. called me late in the afternoon on Tuesday, after I had gotten home from work. She said she got her company's seats to that night's Nationals game and asked if I wanted to go. I'm not the most spontaneous person in the world, and I had already planned on having a quiet evening at home, so I was leaning towards saying no. Then she told me the seats were five rows up from third base. Sold! How could I pass that up?

She wasn't kidding. This was the view from our seats (without using the zoom on my camera).



Being so close to third base, I got to watch the lovely and talented Ryan Zimmerman all night. So you know I was a happy camper. :)

Here are a few other pics from the night:

Things weren't looking good for our boys. They were down 6-1, but they managed to score 7 runs in the 7th inning to win their 4th game in a row. Go Nats!

NKOTBSB

This past Friday, Kim C. and I went to the NKOTBSB concert at Verizon Center (that's New Kids on the Block/Backstreet Boys for the uninitiated). I'm not ashamed to say that this was my third time seeing NKOTB in concert, and these boys just seem to get better with age.

Kim and I were super psyched for the show to start.

(Believe it or not, I recently bought that t-shirt at the Gap Outlet.)

As you can probably see, our seats weren't that great. In fact, we were in the second-to-last row from the top. However, I had my super awesome camera with the 12x zoom! So I was able to get some good close-up shots.

The boys take the stage and perform some of their oldies-but-goodies.

There were many costume changes.

Joey soulfully sings "Please Don't Go Girl."

Jordan croons another ballad.

I'm not going to lie, the highlight of the show was when Donnie Wahlberg ripped his shirt off. I can't believe he's 41 and still looks that good.

I wasn't as excited about seeing the Backstreet Boys, but they were pretty awesome too.

The New Kids came back for an encore with "Hangin' Tough."

I had such an amazing time. Maybe next on my agenda will be a New Kids on the Block cruise!



Vegas Vacation

I spent Memorial Day weekend in Las Vegas with my family, and I managed to leave without losing my money! Although I did lose some of my dad's money. :P

Dad gave me $50 to gamble with, most of which I promptly lost at 3-card poker. However, I had more luck with roulette. I actually hit one of the numbers and won $35!

Here's me with my winnings (Dad served as my advisor).

We actually didn't spend much time in the casinos. We went shopping, went to a museum, and just hung out with the family. Tricia and I drove down to the Strip one night just to look around. It was pretty crazy; I think both of us were ready to get out of there after not too long.

Driving down the Strip.

Inside the Bellagio (my favorite). It's famous for these beautiful glass flower sculptures, among other things.

They also had this whimsical display in the conservatory; not really sure if there was a particular theme or occasion for it.

Tricia with a replica of the Liberty Bell.

I also love the Venetian. This is actually inside. It's so realistic looking.

Outside the Venetian.

And here are a few pictures of Caesar's Palace...



More adventures in baking

I tried my hand at another recipe from Small Batch Baking; this time I made a mini blueberry upside-down cake with creme fraiche. It tasted like a slightly sweeter version of a blueberry muffin (i.e., nothing special), but it came out so pretty that I had to take a picture.

Congrats Will & Kate!

It's no secret that I'm a bit of a royal fanatic. So I was over the moon when Prince William and Kate Middleton announced their engagement. My two girlfriends and I immediately began planning a slumber party/wedding watch party. I'm glad to know I'm not the only royal fanatic among my circle of friends, even though my coworkers thought I was totally nuts for taking the day off. I had no trouble waking up at 4am to watch the festivities, and surprisingly I didn't even get tired throughout the day. I think I was running on a combination of adrenaline and caffeine (I had approximately 7 cups of tea - no joke).

Kim B., ever the gracious hostess, had everything set up for our wedding tea.

She even had a William and Kate wedding topper.



Her entire apartment was decorated with flowers and bows.

And if you look closely, you'll see a framed picture of the happy couple on her mantle.

I think I may have found someone slightly more obsessed than I am...



Cherry blossom time!

It's time for my favorite rite of spring....the cherry blossoms! I went down to the Tidal Basin Friday afternoon, which was allegedly the last day of peak bloom. Surprisingly, there weren't many people there. Usually I have to push my way through the crowds, but this time I could walk around leisurely and take pictures without a dozen people walking through my shot. It was quite pleasant! I suppose the chilly and damp weather kept people away. I was actually a little hesitant to go myself, especially since I had just spent three hours in the freezing rain the day before.

Here are a few of my favorite pictures; you can view the rest on my Picasa page.

Not many people were out paddleboating this time.

These kids were playing tag and they almost ran into me. Surprisingly, I didn't get annoyed. I may have even (gasp) smiled a bit at their playfulness!

There were a lot of mud and puddles after all the rain we had, so I got a little artsy with them. :)

This is one of my favorite pictures. I love the composition and the light/shadows.

This is another one of my favorites. I like the soft colors and the way the background is slightly out of focus. It reminds me of a Bob Ross painting. Happy trees!

That's all for now. Be sure to check out the rest of my cherry blossom pictures on Picasa! P.S. I L-O-V-E my new camera!

Opening Day 2011

I'm always excited for Opening Day, and this year was no exception. We have a whole slew of promising new players...I'm confident this will be the year we turn it around. (Of course, ask me again in July and my answer could be totally different.) Unfortunately the weather was miserable. The high was 42 and it drizzled nearly the entire time. My fingers and toes were numb by the third inning, but hey, it was better than being at work!

I was so excited to see my new camera in action! I got some really good zoom shots from way up in the second tier...

Ryan Zimmerman high-fiving everyone

Ryan Zimmerman getting the Silver Slugger Award

The Navy Band performed the national anthem

Livan Hernandez started the game for the Nats

Jayson Werth, our new mega-star

The presidents did a relay race this time...

and Abe was this year's first casualty

The Nats lost to the Braves 2-0, but as I type this they're winning the second game of the series. Go Nats!