9.09.2013

Turning 27 & Celebrating Year Two

The end of August and start of September holds two significant days for me. Those two days being my birthday and Andrew's and my wedding anniversary. It's still hard to believe we're married—let alone celebrating our 2-year anniversary! This year we took some time and enjoyed a short vacation while house-sitting for his parents.

My Face
Full Body - Arms Forward
Sam Edelman Yara Lucite Heel Sandals
TOP & PANTS: H&M, JEWELRY: Forever 21, Art Effect, Macha, DIY, SHOES: Sam Edelman

Everything sort of jumbled together during that week and a half, as most vacations do, and ended with an incredible meal at an entirely-too-fancy restaurant as a gift from my in-laws. It was the perfect, and I mean perfect, excuse to finally break out my Sam Edelman Yara Lucite Heel sandals. They are absolutely the most gorgeous things I have ever put on my feet.

Oceanique First Course: Salmon
Lightly Smoked Salmon, Caviar, Radishes, Cucumber, Horseradish Crème fraîche (+ a single chip (lol))

Oceanique Second Course: Shrimp GazpachoOceanique Second Course: Corn Soup
Gazpacho with Heirloom Tomato, Shrimp, Crème fraîche | Corn Soup with Leeks, Corn, Lobster

Oceanique Third Course: Palette Cleansing Sorbet Raspberry Sorbet, Peaches, Basil

Oceanique Fourth Course: Wild Icelandic Cod & Wild Alaskan Halibut Wild Icelandic Cod, Seasonal Mushrooms, Bacon, Turnip, Tarragon Sauce
(My entrée, blurred in the background: Wild Alaskan Halibut, Seasonal Vegetables, Porto Sauce)


Oceanique Fifth Course: Chocolate Flourless Cake & Raspberry-Blueberry Tart Chocolate Flourless Cake, Vanilla Ice Cream & Raspberry-Blueberry Tarte, Blueberry Ice Cream

The food served at Oceanique was fantastic and we'll probably never go back again—ha! After our meal, we ended the night with a few cocktails at Billy Sunday (Rahm Emanuel walked in, strangely enough). Andrew's more of an Old Fashioned, served up kind of guy, whereas I like my alcohol to taste as little like alcohol as possible. Billy Sunday's Cobbler was just the drink for me.

Andrew at Billy Sunday
Billy Sunday Cobbler Cocktail
Vin De Maison, Soursop, White Dog, Lime, Martinique Bitters, Elderberries

Andrew surprised me with a horseback riding adventure on my birthday—something I'd never done before. I wasn't expecting to be as frightened as I was and it took some serious soul-searching to calm my nerves. The horses were beautiful and quite docile but still. Although it happened to be the hottest day of August, the trail was beautiful and the experience was a lot of fun and mostly pain-free. The sore thighs the next day? Whoa.

We also spent a day at the Lincoln Park Zoo (while it was 90° with 80% humidity), ate loads of food, did some frivolous shopping, and of course a good amount of relaxing. I'd like to say the end of my summer was awesome, but it's well into September and still 95° out. You guys know what I mean!

20 comments:

  1. you are so pretty! everything suits you.

    congrats on yr anniversary.

    and i totally feel you on the weather. summer is alive and well here in florida.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. You're too sweet, thank you! I wish everything did suit me but it totally, sadly, does not lol. The weather is out of control. As I type this it is 93°! How???

      Delete
  2. Congrats-a-birthdaversary!

    ReplyDelete
  3. Congratulations on your anniversary, and happy birthday! Looks like it was a great celebration.

    And seriously, what is this awful hot weather about?! It's supposed to be 95 degrees here in Indiana today, too. I want fall! LOL

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thank you! We had a lot of fun, it was very low-key and awesome.

      I am dying for the cool down. We had one chilly week mid-August and I was so sad summer was over, now listen to me! Come October I'm sure I'll be missing this heat all over again.

      Delete
  4. you always look so amazing! i've always wanted a pair of lucite heels but they always end up being a bit too expensive for me. these look so great on you! and that food looks so good! happy belated birthday, and i hope that your 27th year is a great one!!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks so much, Emie! So far it's off to a great start. :)

      The Sam Edelman Yara's are totally the most expensive shoes I've ever coveted (originally $199.95). I lucked out because Nordstrom has an amazing policy and they price matched plus let me apply a coupon code FROM ANOTHER STORE annnnnnd, I had a store credit! They ended up costing me $65! So intensely amazing. I will forever love those shoes.

      And the food! Man... I don't want to think about it too much because then I'll just want to go back and their entrées are like $60.

      Delete
  5. Happy 27! The food looks soooo good. Although the single chip cracks me up.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks! Ugh, the food was so good, but also equally ridiculous and pretentious! Haha, little dollops of stuff all over the plates and everything.

      Delete
  6. AMAZING - I hope my life gets to be this amazing at some points. Congrats on all the amazing celebrating!!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks, babe! You and your life is fabulous. I hope your birthday is awesome! xoxo

      Delete
  7. Happy Birthday! I'm laughing over here at one chip. I guess you really can eat just one.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thank you! Haha, right? I will never stop laughing at that appetizer.

      Delete
  8. I went horseback riding for the first time a few years ago and no one warned me of how painful the day after would be. I had bruises all over my inner thighs.

    And HAPPY BIRTHDAYVERSARY!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Oh man, luckily I was bruise-free but the soreness was the worst! I was walking funny all day lol. Luckily we didn't show up wearing shorts, I can't even imagine the intense pain that would have caused!

      Thank youuuuu! <3

      Delete
  9. Happy Anniversery! And gimmie them D@%n shoes, lol! LOVE them, you looked Fab!

    ReplyDelete
  10. Happy Anniversery! And gimmie them D@%n shoes, lol! LOVE them, you looked Fab!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. OMG, right? They're so amazing. I want to wear them everywhere, even grocery shopping.

      Thank you!

      Delete
  11. I'm personally a big fan of hippopotamuslee blog. Thanks for sharing this post.

    ReplyDelete

Thanks for commenting! I always love hearing from readers! ♥