Margaux's Bridal Shower

Margaux's bridal shower was this weekend at my parents' house on the Cape. My mom and I had fun planning and pick out invitations, flowers, and coming up with a menu. It was A LOT of work but Margaux's maid of honor, Kristen, and one of her bridesmaids, Sarah, drove up to the Cape on Friday night with Margaux. The four of us had dinner at the Land Ho and then came back to get ready for the shower. On Saturday morning I raced around picking up flowers, balloons, and last minute items. Thankfully we had nice weather... a little warm but a breeze picked up in the afternoon and made it more bearable! Margaux got a TON of presents and made out like a bandit!

After the shower a bunch of my cousins, aunts, and uncles all stayed over at the house and we started in on the wine! In no time at all we polished off 12 bottles of wine!!! We ended up watching family movies and my Grandma's slides from 1955-1956. We had a great time and it was a great way to end the day!!

Needless to say I spent all day Sunday recovering and relaxing on the beach!!

Sunset on Cape Cod Bay

I've been trying to catch a sunset for the past few days but every time I would go down to the beach, the clouds would roll in and spoil the sunset. Last night was the first one I was able to see and although I was a little late (I was visiting with my Aunt Edna), I did manage to get some really good pictures. Enjoy!

Another Great Day on Cape Cod

On Sunday Ryne and I spent most of the day with my parents. Ryne and I took a quick trip up to the National Seashore Visitor Center. We went through the museum and then walked around Salt Pond. We then picked up my parents and headed to the Land Ho! for lunch - Ryne's treat!! After lunch we then drove down to Chatham to walk around. Our first stop was to the harbor. We got to see several of the fishing boats come in and unload their catch -- lots of dog fish (sand sharks), skates, and several different kinds of fish. Hanging out in the harbor were several seals. The seals would swim right up next to the boats and wait for a few scraps to come their way. The biggest seal always hangs out there and is named Brutus. The fisherman tossed him several scraps to eat which results in a seal fight over the food!! They were very cute though. After the harbor we drove by Chatham Light and then headed to the center of town to walk around and do some shopping. It was a very nice and relaxing dinner. That night we grilled steaks out on the deck and had a wonderful dinner. Ryne and I left for Boston around 8:30 and headed into Boston. Margaux got us a great rate at the new Westin Waterfront in Boston since Ryne had an early flight on Monday morning. We watched the Red Sox - Yankee game and enjoyed a few cold beers at the hotel. It was a great way to wrap up an amazing weekend!!

4th of July BBQ

On Saturday we got together with my Aunt Sandy, Uncle Peter, Aunt Barbara, Uncle Gerry, and cousins Michelle and Kristin for a cookout. The cookout wasn't until later in the afternoon and since the weather was not the greatest, Rob, Margaux, Ryne, and I went to the Cape Cod Beer Brewery. Traffic was heavy heading to the brewery (thanks to the bad weather and it was change over day for renters). We waited in line since the brewery was packed!! I guess everyone had the same idea as us! We got a tour of the brewery...it amazed me just how small it is! They literally are making beer 24 hrs a day to keep up the demand for beer. As part of the tour we also got to sample some beer! Rob and Ryne each bought a few growlers on the way out.

The cookout at the Fink/Reinke's was a lot of fun. Rob and Ryne brough their growlers to the cookout and Barbara and Gerry had some of their home brew beer -- which was very good!! Michelle's boyfriend Ron was up with her for the weekend so it was nice to meet him and hang out. We played several rounds of the bean bag game and ate a ton of great food. As the night went on it became necessary for a beer run! Ron, Michelle, Ryne, Rob, and I ended up playing drinking games and had an absolute blast! We walked down to the beach to see the fireworks but were disappointed as it had started to rain and you could only see the clouds lighting up. All in all it was a great day!

4th of July 2008

Whales, fireworks, drag queens... oh my!!

I had the best 4th of July!!! Ryne flew in the day before and I drove into Boston to pick him up at Logan. We hit a good bit of traffic leaving Boston but once we hit the bridge to the Cape we were in the clear. Our first stop was to the Land Ho! for dinner and drinks with my parents, Rob, and Margaux. We had a great time there and of course the food was soooo good!! After dinner we came back to the house and hung out on the back deck enjoying the nice breeze and some cocktails!

On Friday we gave Ryne a tour of Eastham and showed him around. We went over to the Ocean as well as Cape Cod Bay. After a quick lunch we then headed up to Provincetown to partake in the 4th of July festivities. On the way to P-Town we stopped at the Truro Vineyards of Cape Cod. Once we got up to P-Town we walked around and took in the sites. Ryne was rather amused by the drag queens and trasnvestites! He got some great pictures and videos of a "woman" decked out in a flag bikini singing away. We later saw him walking around with his purse!! We went out on a sunset whale watch and had one of the best whale watching trips ever!! We saw three different kinds of whales: humpback, finback, and minke whales. We saw mostly humpbacks and were fortuante to see several mother - calf pairings. We also were treated some great shows by one whale who kept breeching (leaping out of the water and landing on his back). Several of the whales came right up along side of the boat and we were able to get some great views of them. Thankfully the seas were calm and no one got sick. On the way back into the harbor we were treated to a beautiful sun set even though it was a tad on the cloudy side. When we got back to the harbor we stayed on the boat to watch the fireworks. What a great view we had!! The fireworks literally were going off right over our heads!! After the fireworks we all went out to a late dinner at the Lobster Pot. It was such a fun day... it was the perfect 4th of July!!!

Back on the Cape

I am back on Cape Cod and am loving every minute of it!! It's been really hot and extremely humid the last few days. It's at the point where you don't even want to go outside! But I have been to the beach a handful of times and started reading one of my trashy beach novels! I have also been helping my dad out with yard work. Yesterday we spent over five hours putting new mulch down in all of the flower beds. Now if you know my parents, they have a TON of flower beds scattered throughout the yard. I think I lost about 10lbs due to sweating so much!! But it was all worth it as the yard looks great!

Rob and Margaux are coming up tomorrow for the 4th of July. Mad Max, their psycho cat, will be with them as well so any shot of peace and quiet will be out the window as soon as they arrive. On Thursday I am driving to Boston to pick Ryne up. We will have a very busy 4th of July weekend. On Friday we are going up to Provincetown to go out on a sunset whale watch. We will then stay on the boat to watch the fireworks which should be amazing. On Saturday we will go out on the boat (weather permitting) and then to a cook-out at my aunt and uncles's house. Sunday I am sure we will hit the beach and squeeze in a ton things that we want to see and do while Ryne is here.

Have a wonderful 4th of July and I will post pictures from the weekend!!