It Was a Scorcher

Abe and I had planned on doing some Hudson Valley activities this weekend, but it was so freaking hot we didn't feel motivated to leave the house/yard. At least we managed to ride our bikes over the Newburgh-Beacon Bridge at dusk on Friday and then had burgers at Max's before I passed out on the couch watching Real Housewives of New Jersey.

At least the garden is enjoying the heat!

Siobhan came over Saturday night and we had a decadent meal at Max's on Main while listening to Chowderhead.  They play some serious hits for classic rock lovers like me & Sio.

After Max's we retired to the backyard with Abe and Paws and enjoyed the warm, summer night and s'mores made in the microwave.

DIMy: Radiator Cover

I complete my first major woodworking project: a radiator cover! 

We haven't really used our dining room because it's just a room with a crappy table and feels very unwelcoming.  There are a lot of other things to do in the room:  refinish the table, get a rug, put something on the walls...but the #1 thing on my list was to build a radiator cover so my plants would have a sunny home and my cat might have a place to gaze out the window.

More photos and details about the project after the jump.

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DIY: Raised Garden Bed

I have visions of a yard filled with bounties of the land, but about 3 inches below the grass there are so many rocks it's impossible to dig a hole and grow plants.  (Not to mention I'm far from being an expert gardener). Fortunately, there is a pretty simple solution for the rock problem:  raised garden beds.

There are books, websites, blogs and magazine that explain the best way to garden with raised beds, but I figured it couldn't be that hard to figure out and I was itching to plant my zucchini.

We had few pieces of wood from our attic that was a little too beat up to be used for furniture making, and some random pieces of wood the previous homeowner left in the basement & under the deck.  I pieced them together with brackets to form boxes and filled up the boxes with different types of soil.  Pretty darn easy and the veggies are loving the rock-free dirt.  It probably would have helped if we dug up the grass, but it we didn't have the right tools and it was a pain in the butt.

[More photos after the jump.]

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Happy 30th, Kim!!

Spent a lovely evening in Williamsburg, Brooklyn last night as we celebrated Kim's 30th birthday at Berry Park. We had a little sprinkling of rain while on the rooftop, but it cleared up and ended with a beautiful sunset over the Manhattan skyline.

Lychee, red bean & green tea ice cream cake from Chinatown Ice Cream Factory.

Allyson's Last Weekend of Freedom!

Allyson and I have been best friends since the 7th grade and now she's getting married!  We've gone through a lot in the last 18 years, but this summer is going to be one that we'll remember and cherish until the day we take our final dirt nap.

For her bachelorette party all 8 of Allyson's bridesmaids traveled from all over the country to meet up in Old Orchard Beach, Maine to celebrate the single life.  We did this by prancing around in our bathing suits, eating everything in sight, drinking all day long, and watching every single episode of The Hills.

Allyson wasn't quite sure what to do with this display, but it doesn't matter the shape or size, a Funfetti cake never disappoints.

On Saturday, if you looked forward, this is what you saw.

But, if you looked behind you, this is what you saw.

Either the world was about to end or it was about to rain.

It rained.

He is a very scary man.

Jill caught Whitney getting scrambled on the Scrambler.

Getting seriously about organizing our koozies.

R.I.P. my little koozie.  You were a casualty of the night.

Love you, Allyson!!!  Happy Bachelorette Party!  "I misss Miiiikeyyyy!"