...And we're off!

Tomorrow morning Kevin and I are headed for our last big travel adventure before we tackle a life adventure of a completely different kind! We leave in the morning for 3 weeks in Asia! We can hardly wait!!

We fly to LA in the morning, where we will spend the entire day soaking up the SoCal sun. We're actually meeting our dear friends Aaron and Karrie, who actually live in DC, but will be in LA for the day. Then that night we board a midnight flight for Hong Kong that arrives on Tuesday morning. The rest of our itinerary looks something like this...

Day 1 in Hong Kong, but night 1 we fly to Bangkok
3 nights in Bangkok
3 nights in Siem Reap, Cambodia
2 nights in Bangkok
1 night in Hong Kong
7 nights in Bali -- laying on the beach!
1 night in Hong Kong
Then we fly from Hong Kong back to JFK

We have been planning and strategizing for months, and now we're finally going! It's hard to believe. I'm running around today -- much as I've been doing all week -- doing those last minute things that you have to accomplish before you leave for 3 weeks. You know, stopping mail and newpapers, buying guide books, buying sunscreen, bug repellent and first aid stuffs, buying snacks for the preggo since I'm hungry about every 30 minutes, buying new clothes and swimsuits (go here for that lesson in frustration), charging cameras, packing, unpacking, re-packing, cleaning up the apartment, cleaning out the fridge, double checking reservations...and the list goes on and on. Kevin is in Chicago this weekend, so I've been tackling it single-handedly...he'll fly in tonight in time to pack his bag, go to sleep, then get up and go. We've both had our fair share of craziness for the past few weeks, and are so anxious to get away and unplug completely...no phones, email, BlackBerries, TV...nothing!

You know, it's funny...usually when we travel I work really hard to "blend in". I try not to wear or carry anything that screams TOURIST, much less AMERICAN. Then I realized, that on this trip, I'm pretty much going to stick out no matter what I do...not to mention my 6'4" red-headed husband! Kind of funny...

Anyway, just wanted to send a fond farewell, and let you know I'll be back in a couple of weeks. Below I've included a map so you can visualize where we'll be for the next few weeks! And, but the time we get back, it will be autumn in NYC...my FAVORITE time of the year!!!

Happy Birthday to Us!

About a week and a half ago Kevin and I celebrated our birthdays. I turned 31 on the 3rd, and he hit the big 3-0 on the 4th. So this year's celebration was all about him. While I couldn't quite pull off stretch limousines and surprise hotel suites, I did have a trick or two up my sleeve. I had our friends Hicks & Dana fly in to surprise Kevin for the weekend. He knew about a big dinner I had planned on the 4th for 10 people, but didn't know of smaller dinner on Friday night with Hicks & Dana, his cousin Carrie (Tom graciously stayed home with the 3 kiddos when they couldn't get a babysitter) and our friends Matt & Laura who couldn't make it Saturday night. We had a fantastic dinner at a place called Fig & Olive down in the Meatpacking District. I don't get to pull it off very often, but Kevin was truly surprised!

The girls at dinner -- me, Dana, Carrie & Laura

Here's the crew after dinner -- Hicks & Matt on the right, and Kevin acting as photographer.

Dana, Carrie, Hicks and the Birthday Boy!

The next night we met friends at this great BBQ place called Hill Country down in Chelsea. We stuffed ourselves with Texas-style BBQ and just hung out for a couple of hours. It was a great night and a full, fun birthday weekend!

The Birthday Boy blowing out his candle...

One final shot of the b'day pair after a long celebration weekend!

Pathetic

Okay, okay...I know! After I jumped all over Tami for not updating her blog, I look back to see that I haven't written anything new since mid-June. Really sorry. But I promise I have a really good excuse! Here's what's been going on in our lives since then...