early birthday dinner

We had special guests arrive on Friday afternoon, the newly married Uncle Tom and Aunt Jess....they made a quick stop as they headed back to MI from FL......we showed them around our little neighborhood....grabbed a coffee then took Elle by the fountain, then hit up my Dad's favorite place- our local little pub for a beer, then back to the house for some appetizers and wine. Once we put Elle to bed, Ted cooked us a special early birthday dinner for Jess and I and we finished the evening with his homemade cake and chocolate butter cream frosting from scratch. My Mom would be just be in awe. He bakes. And his stuff is good.

It was a nice night but much too quick. We see them very little with us all living out of state and we'll see them only for a few days over Christmas. It's a bummer being away from everyone but we definitely enjoy our time much more when we actually get the chance to see each other and we try to make it a special occasion. We have become stronger individuals by doing this on our own and have wonderful friends and a fun little life going here in Cincinnati but we miss our friends and family all of the time and we look forward to the next adventure with them.

We keep ourselves really busy....always something fun to look forward to. It's the only way I can still go on is be busy and be around people I enjoy. I'll be in Chicago this weekend for an entire weekend of girls, shopping, dinners, drinks, in one of my favourite cities that I have lived in. It will stink to be away from Miss Elle but I am thankful to be able to leave quite often for night or two and she does really well with Daddy and has done well with Ted's parents in the past so it makes it nice. And then the following weekend, the trip I have been waiting for all Summer since FL, is the adventure to Hilton Head. I finally get to see this beautiful place my Parents admired for several years as they would visit my Aunt and Uncle. The best of both worlds; friends AND family time. My girlfriend and I have been planning out dinners to make and talking about things we want to do. It will be a great way to end the Summer......

I miss my Mom and Dad every hour of every day . It's the hardest thing to explain when you miss someone so badly that you know or have to eventually accept, that you won't ever see them again, here on Earth. It's a miserable feeling yet we are so blessed in so many other aspects of our life....yet, it never seems enough. All of the good hasn't been enough these past two years. But we keep "living on" and taking all of the fun in while keeping the sadness and memories they left behind with us along the way....

Wow, August is here. So many birthdays this month and I will be the BIG 3-1 in just a few short days.....yikes...

Love,

Melissa