Why? Weekends!

***A bit of blogkeeping: Today is the last day to enter my giveaway to win 2 tickets to Market at the Foodbank. Check it out! Remember, you can tweet daily for more entries!***

It was a wonderful weekend of friends and family celebrations! On Friday morning, I went to a butt-kicking vinyasa flow at Nishkama Yoga. I don’t get to practice at Nishkama as much as I would like, so I was happy to take advantage of one of my days off before I start my new job to get to class there (more on the new job tomorrow).

I spent the rest of the day on Friday learning how to make nut roll and poppyseed roll with Mom. This is a traditional Eastern European holiday dessert and I’m all about tradition at the holidays.

For my first try, I was pretty happy with the results and, from the way they were gobbled up, everyone else was, too!

Friday evening, Matthew and I met up with the usual suspects to fete our lovely friend Kimberly for her birthday. We started with the ridiculously well-priced Friday wine tasting at Wine and Design. Two delicious wines for $5? Yes, please!

Then it was off to dinner at Dante. Matthew and I decided to share a little bit of a lot of things on the menu. I love Dante’s options of tasting or appetizer-sized portions, which gives you a chance to taste even more dishes.

We thoroughly enjoyed everything we ordered: the wild mushroom and baked brie tartlet, the Hawaiian tuna tartare, the “chunky” soup with lobster, potato, and leeks, the green spaghetti, the three-cheese polenta, and the black squid ink risotto.

Since Kimberly and Chris are Dante regulars, Chef Boccuzzi treated us to quite the dessert spread on the house. I was so blissed out, I don’t remember the exact names of most of the dishes, but there was a chocolate and orange meringue, baklava with pistachio and cherries and cardamom ice cream, a chocolate banana crepe, and a heavenly s’mores-like sundae.

It was a fabulous evening befitting a fabulous friend! Kimberly is truly one of the sweetest, most caring, funniest people I know and I am so blessed to have her in my life! I hope this year is her best yet!

Saturday morning brought more yoga, this time at Harmony Yoga. Then, it was into holiday prep mode. I hosted my parents, grandfather, and Matthew’s father for a traditional Holy Saturday dinner of kielbasi and sauerkraut.

We got our kielbasi from Pinzone’s Market Fresh Meats, which is one of my go-to stands at the West Side Market. Tradition is tasty!

On Sunday, we went to Easter Mass and had dinner with my parents and grandfather.

I also broke my Lenten no-sweets fast (Friday night’s dessert bonanza excluded) with some yummy chocolate from Malley’s. All in all, it was a great weekend with some of our favorite people!

How was your weekend? Do you celebrate Easter? What are your traditions?

Why? Weekends!

***A bit of blogkeeping: There are no words to express the heartbreak I’m sure we’re all feeling in the wake of Friday’s tragedy in Connecticut. The local United Way in Newtown has established the Sandy Hook School Support Fund and I encourage you to contribute in whatever way you can.

This light, happy weekend recap is written with full knowledge of how blessed I am to be able to have a light, happy weekend.***

We’re in the last week before Christmas! Are you feeling the crazy, cheery, busy rush like I am? I had Friday off this past weekend, so I decided to take advantage by both being productive and taking a little time for myself.

I haven’t been practicing yoga as much lately. There are a number of reasons, some valid, some not as valid as to why. So, with a whole day free and the guilt of a lot of cookie eating hanging over me, I decided to get back to class. I checked out Harmony Yoga since it’s close to home. They have a new-student deal of $10 for 10 days unlimited, so I’ll be cramming in as many classes as I can over the next week or so.

Image Source – harmonyyogastudios.com

The power vinyasa class gave me the kick in the yogi behind I needed. When you’re holding flipped dog for 10 breaths or flowing from one-legged chair to eagle to dancer to standing splits, you remember you haven’t done this in awhile. I definitely miss practicing regularly!

After class on Friday, I met up with Elizabeth from the Lake County Visitor’s Bureau to chat about blogs. We went to the recently-opened Melt Bar and Grilled in Mentor. The only times I’ve been to Melt, I’ve stuffed myself with enough bread and cheese for a week. This time, I chose a bowl of the soup of the day and Elizabeth (a girl after my own heart) had the pierogi appetizer.

I got a pack of Goldfish crackers with my soup and we were watching Scooby Doo during lunch: childhood perfection! The soup of the day was a sausage chowder with chorizo, smoked sausage, and banana peppers – spicy, hearty, and delicious! Those pierogi looked pretty fantastic too! Plus, I had a great time connecting with another local social media gal. Elizabeth and I have some collaborations in the works, so stay tuned!

Friday evening, Matthew and I had my family over for dinner to show off the Christmas decorations and have part of Grandpa’s 88th birthday celebration.

Aside from dinner and cake, we also whipped up some eggnog martinis with Hartzler Family Dairy eggnog, which I think is the absolute best you can find. The recipe is so simple too: 3 parts eggnog, 1 part Kraken Black Spiced Rum, and a sprinkle of nutmeg on top. Cheers!

Saturday was a mix of holiday shopping and a much-needed evening at home with dinner, Christmas Ale, and catching up on the DVR.

Sunday, Matthew and I went to the Straight No Chaser concert at Playhouse Square. I’ve loved a Capella music since college and Straight No Chaser has become one of my favorites. On stage, the group is playful and funny, but also incredibly talented!

The second half of the show was dedicated to holiday music. Seeing the theaters all decorated for Christmas, plus listening to the beautiful, fun, festive songs definitely put me in the Christmas spirit.

One of my favorite Christmas songs by Straight No Chaser is called Christmas Can-Can, which is light-hearted look at all the holiday craziness. It can make me laugh, even when driving through the crazy traffic near the malls. Since Straight No Chaser encouraged photos, video, and even took a Twitter break during the show, I figured I’d share a video of Christmas Can-Can I took at yesterday’s show:

After the concert, we met up with my family for Grandpa’s birthday part 2 at Carrie Cerino’s. This is one of those places I get to once a year for Grandpa’s birthday, but I always really enjoy it. I had the veal a la Tosca, which is pounded veal medallions with an egg and lemon breading, served with fettuccine alfredo. Very tasty, plus I have tons of leftovers for lunch during the week!

It was a great end to a lovely weekend full of family, food, and pre-holiday fun! How was your weekend, CLE? Oh, and have you entered to win my blogiversary giveaway? Today is the last day!

Why? Blogiversary!

It’s a very special day here at Why CLE! First, it’s CLEgrandpa’s 88th birthday, so cheers to him. Also, cheers to PIP Mom, as it’s her birthday as well!

But it’s also Why CLE’s second blogiversary!

Image Source – softandstiffpeaks.blogspot.com

I’m amazed at what this blog has grown into in the last two years. Over the past 378 posts, I’ve strengthened, changed, and truly found my voice, with the help of you and your 2,254 comments. But numbers only tell part of the story.

My early posts were decidedly less personal and more tour guide-ish, such as this one.

It took me five months to post a picture of myself, which I did for the first time in this post.

It took me a year to start using “Jen” instead of “CLEgal” to refer to myself, which I started in last year’s blogiversary post.

Over the last two years, I’ve shared things, not just about why I came back to Cleveland, but about my weight loss, my hard lesson in Internet safety, and even my wedding.

When I started Why CLE, the blog was going to be balanced between good and bad things about Cleveland. I soon realized that I just love this city and there is more than enough snark on the Internet, so I changed to fashioning every post into a reason why I love Cleveland, hoping that you could find the common threads in my experience to hold onto for yourself. I will always be honest with you about my experiences, but at the same time this blog will always err toward the positive.

Beyond just the changes in my writing, I’ve found my love and commitment to Cleveland strengthened, my social calendar filled, and my creative muscles flexed in ways I never could have imagined two years ago. I’ve also met some of the most amazing people, done some of the most fun things, and made some of the most wonderful friends.

Daily, I am so grateful for and humbled by those of you who read along on this journey and for the opportunities and relationships blogging has afforded me. I’m also so in debt to Matthew and my family who allow me the time and give me the support and patience when I take pictures of everything or spend hours prepping posts.

As a small token of my affection, I’d like to give away something I saw at CLE Clothing Co. that caught my eye.

It’s meant to be a Christmas ornament, although I think it could also be a year-round sun catcher. Here’s how to enter to win (leave a SEPARATE comment for each entry):

1. Leave a comment letting me know your biggest and best reason why you love CLE.

2. Tweet the following phrase: It’s @WhyCLE’s 2nd blogiversary and I want to win some CLE decor: http://wp.me/p1fb9r-19o

You can tweet once per day for additional entries, just leave a separate comment each time you tweet.

The giveaway will close on Monday, December 17 at 11:59pm and the winner will be announced on Monday, December 18. Good luck! And thank you for an awesome 2 years…I know blogs have a shelf life, but I hope to keep entertaining you for at least a little while longer.

Why? Weekends!

***A bit of blogkeeping: Have you entered to win some holiday glam products yet? Remember, you can tweet daily for more entries! Click here to enter!***

I hope you all had a fun, food-filled, relaxing Thanksgiving weekend! Mine was full of good family time and good eating, which is exactly how it should be, in my opinion.

On Thursday, Matthew and I hosted our first Thanksgiving in our new home. We moved into this house in February, so I’m really excited for our first holiday season here. We had my Mom, Dad, Grandpa, and Father-in-Law over for a Thanksgiving feast.

This year, we ordered our Thanksgiving turkey, as well as some other necessary items, from Fresh Fork Market. The turkey had a very different taste than your normal, every day Butterball. It was much fresher and a bit more gamy. It was also incredibly tender and juicy.

Almost every dish on our table had at least some Fresh Fork ingredients in them. One of the favorites was the streuseled sweet potato casserole, which had Fresh Fork sweet potatoes, maple syrup, egg, flour and butter in it. Click here for the recipe.

We also had a special bottle of wine to enjoy with dinner.

As a bridal shower gift, I received wines to be enjoyed on certain special occasions. So I was very excited to pop the cork on this bottle to toast our first Thanksgiving as a married couple.

It was a wonderful day of eating too much and spending time with family!

On Friday morning, Mom and I continued our 20-plus-year tradition of going out on Black Friday. Truthfully, we get very little gift shopping accomplished and we start later and later each year. But, we have a great time together, talking, browsing, and being a little bit silly.

As a respite from the craziness at the mall, we stopped for lunch at Rosewood Grill in Strongsville. I started with a very interesting cocktail: the 82 & Spicy. It has Hangar One Chipotle vodka, raspberry puree, lime, and bubbles. Sweet and spicy and really tasty!

We split a selection of appetizers for lunch, starting with the calamari and sushi shots.

I loved the breaded banana peppers that came along with the calamari! The sushi shots are phyllo cups, with mashed avocado and tuna, served with sriracha sauce. The sauce provides a nice kick, but these shots are good with or without the added heat.

We also shared the exotic mushroom and brie flatbread.

Brie and mushrooms are two of my favorite things and this combination was rich and earthy. The crisp sea salt crust on the flatbread added just the right texture to each bite. I definitely will be heading back to Rosewood Grill! In an area overrun by chain restaurants, it’s nice to have a foodie, independent option.

Saturday, Matthew and I loosened our belts for Thanksgiving, Round 2 with his family. Fresh Fork played a large role again, particularly in Matthew’s light, sweet apple cake dessert. This is from a recipe he found in the only English cookbook in his apartment in Italy when he studied abroad and it is one of my favorite things he makes.

It was another fun day with family, particularly catching up with our nieces who are growing up so fast and are ridiculously adorable.

Sunday was dedicated to decorating the house for Christmas. I always enjoy holiday decorating, but particularly with it being the first year in this house, I was really excited. First stop was picking out a tree.

This is only my second year having a live Christmas tree. I always had artificial trees and Matthew always had live trees. I’ve found I really like having a live tree: the smell just says Christmas! Then it was time to come home and decorate. The finished product blends Matthew’s and my holiday traditions and I know I will spend a lot of evenings snuggled up on the couch looking at the tree.

How was your Thanksgiving weekend, CLE?

Why? Weekends!

***A bit of blogkeeping: To celebrate Cleveland Beer Week, I’m giving away 2 tickets to Brauhaus in a Beer Garden at The Greenhouse Tavern. Click here to enter! Remember, you can tweet and share on Facebook daily for more entries.***

It was a busy weekend in Cleveland! On Saturday morning, Tobey, Matthew and I got up bright and early to participate in the Monster Mutt Dash 5K to benefit the Berea Animal Rescue Friends (ARF). Since Tobey is a rescue dog, shelters that care for and find good homes for pups have a special place in my heart. In fact, Team Tobey raised $125 for Berea ARF!

While Tobey and I had big plans to “run” the 5K, his little legs got tired around the mile mark, so we’ll tell ourselves we were one of the fastest in the Fun Walk category. Besides the race, there was a Howl-o-ween fair with lots of fun games, prizes, and vendors. We also had a great photo op with the Indians hot dogs, who kicked off the race.

Poat-race, Tobey suffered through wearing his adorable pink hippo costume (I think he’s plotting revenge against me now).

I certainly wasn’t the only pet parent making their pup dress up. We saw tons of cute pooches in costume from Eeyore to Hershey Kisses to bumblebees!

Monster Mutt Dash was a fun morning for both humans and pups! Tobey was tuckered out and slept the whole way home!

Saturday evening, Matthew and I headed to Old Angle Tavern for my friend Theresa’s 30th birthday party. The party was held in the basement room and was all decorated for a celebration.

We munched on pizza, wings, hummus, and veggies and I discovered a tasty hard cider – Magner’s Irish Cider. I’m not usually a fan of hard ciders, but this one was not overly sweet. I also just had a great time catching up with college friends and celebrating with the birthday girl!

Hope 30 is your best year yet, Theresa!

On Sunday, CLEgrandpa wanted to take us out for Sweetest Day, which is just too, well, sweet. Did you know Sweetest Day started in 1921 in Cleveland? Most people outside this area have no idea the “holiday” even exists!

We had dinner at Creekside Restaurant & Bar, which is a favorite with every generation in my family. I enjoyed the pot roast, served over a potato pancake and topped with crispy onion straws. The tender meat and rich gravy is comfort food that hits the spot!

My favorite part of dining at Creekside Restaurant is the dessert case. While I wanted a pumpkin cannoli, they were sold out and so I enjoyed a regular cannoli, while Matthew had a Guinness cream puff. So delicious!

It was a sweet end to a great weekend! How was your weekend, CLE?

 

Why? Weekends!

It was another fun weekend in Cleveland! On Friday evening, CLEmom and I attended the Ohio Buckeye Chapter of the National MS Society’s Locavore fundraiser. Held at Windows on the River, this event is a celebration of local food and wine. We sampled wine from Maize Valley Winery…

…and ate delicious savory bites from AMP 150, Momocho, John Palmer’s Bistro 44, Corleone’s, Nosh Eatery, and more.

Kobe beef egg rolls and gazpacho from John Palmer’s Bistro 44 and meatballs from Windows on the River

There were also sweet treats from Lilly’s Handmade Chocolates and Indulgence Cakes.

Lilia from Indulgence Cakes with carrot cake cupcakes and chocolate baklava

There was music, fun, hanging out with “old” friends and getting to meet new friends, like our host for the evening, Mark Zinni from Fox 8 News.

But the best part of the night was hearing from 2012 Individual of Inspiration Award winner Adam Riedy, introduced by his best friend of 15 years, Charlene. Adam’s daily battle with MS and his inspiring and honest story from his diagnosis until now put in perspective why we were all there that evening: to raise money to help fight MS and to show support for those who daily deal with this disease.

Adam and Charlene

Locavore was a wonderful evening for a great cause! To find out more about how you can get involved with the Ohio Buckeye Chapter of the National MS Society, click here.

After Locavore, a few of us girls decided to introduce CLEmom to the delightful dive bar that is the Harbor Inn. Beer and conversation flowed freely and it was the perfect cap to the night.

Saturday morning, it was time to get my downward dog on at Nishkama Yoga. It was a packed house for a hot and sweaty hour and a half Asana. Practicing with Alicia and Kimberly helped me get through some marathon planks and start my Saturday off right.

On Sunday, we took CLEgrandpa out to lunch to celebrate Grandparents Day at the new Danny Boy’s in Broadview Heights. This is a pasta and pizza spot the whole family can enjoy, with plenty of delicious carbs and Sinatra music to go around. Matthew and I split the Clevelander pizza, which pays homage to Cleveland’s spot right in between New York and Chicago.

A New York-style crust is layered with cheese and pepperoni, then topped with sauce to mimic Chicago-style deep dish pizza. While I’m usually a fan of less sauce, this pizza was truly tasty! Plus, we got to spend the afternoon with a pretty great life-long Clevelander, my grandpa!

How was your weekend, Cleveland?

***Disclosure: I was asked by the Ohio Buckeye Chapter of the National MS Society to help promote Locavore. In exchange, I received one complimentary ticket to the event. As always, all opinions are 100% my own.***

Why? Wedding Recap!

***A bit of blogkeeping: While I’m off on my honeymoon, I’ve lined up some fabulous Cleveland bloggers to give new Why CLE? perspectives. Today we have Alicia from Poise in Parma. Much thanks to Alicia for recapping the biggest day in my life…no pressure, right? Seriously, I’m blessed to have one of my best blogging friends writing this.***

As an event planner and a Cleveland blogger, I’m lucky to attend parties of all sizes, all around Greater Cleveland, on a pretty regular basis. But there was one event I’ve been looking forward to: Weddingpalooza 2012 featuring the #WhyCLEWedding & the marriage of our favorite CLEgirl and her CLEguy.

As Jen is one of my closest friends, I knew just how excited the entire WhyCLE Team was for this special occasion. The happy couple spent countless hours planning all the details, meeting with so many vendors (check out this and this post for details on whom they used for what) and gathering all the pieces to ensure one very happy day. Blog post spoiler: they had just that.

On Saturday, June 2nd, guests gathered at at St. John Vianney Catholic Church in Mentor for a beautiful 11AM ceremony. While plenty of tears of joy were flowing when Jen walked down the aisle, this blogger was jumping for joy: I was SO excited to see her so so happy!

 

After her entrance with her beautiful (both inside and out) mom, Jen met her handsome soon-to-be husband at the altar.

…and after one traditional Catholic mass, the priest presented them as Mr. and Mrs. WhyCLE!

I loved the bridesmaid dresses: the sleek silver color paired beautifully with the pink accents throughout the day.

That evening, Executive Caterers at Landerhaven were ready to execute all that Jen & Matt had dreamed possible for their wedding reception.

Since Jen and Matt had the Landerhaven Grand Ballroom, guests had access to an outdoor tented cocktail hour appetizers and beverages.

I knew Matt had to be please with the deviled eggs, one of his favorites!

After enjoying the lovely June evening & adult beverages, it came time for guests to be seated at the beautifully decorated tables:

Everyone was ready to welcome to newly married Mr. and Mrs. WhyCLE!

After their grand entrance, it was time for dinner. To start, lobster bisque and a summer salad with lemon poppyseed dressing:

 

For their main course, the feast continued beef tenderloin with a red wine demi-glace, potato encrusted grouper with mango salsa, porcini mushroom cake and an asparagus & carrot bundle:

The EPIC dessert bar featured an array of Viennese Mini Pastries and one amazing flourless chocolate cake (gluten free FTW), and of course this beautiful wedding cake:

 

A huge PIP thank you goes out to SMITTEN…in Cleveland whom might have a hidden talent in food blogging she’s not fully using!

After the traditional dances and blush-inducing garter moments, the dance party began and the #WhyCLEWedding Social Media Committee took over the dance floor. The DJs from Selective Sound kept the dance tunes coming all night long so we could show off our moves. To help ensure Jen’s wedding had everything it possibly could, I even secured a last minute wedding crasher. Good thing I have members of the PIP team ready, in the appropriate dress & on call, at all times! Jen & Matt’s wedding officially had EVERYTHING they could possibly wish for!!

…and before we all knew it, it was midnight and their big day had come to a close:

That picture says it all: you can feel the love in the room, the gratitude from the happy couple and the potential of what their two lives now combined as one can bring.

LONG STORY SHORT: When Jen originally asked me to guest post, I jokingly offered my idea to event recap her wedding on the blog. As we do love our social media, it seemed only apropos to continue the blogging fun of our #WhyCLEWedding hashtag. But now, I feel like I could have shared an entire series of recaps: these highlights just don’t do it justice. I am so so honored to share their special day with you – even in my fun, light-hearted, blogging way. Jen & Matt have that look: the one when you know two individuals truly and deeply love and care for one another.  They OWN that look  - and I know they’ll be giving each other that look for the rest of their lives.

So here’s to the very happy couple: Mr. and Mrs. WhyCLE – may you have many years of happy marriage filled with plenty of exciting (sometimes blogged about) adventures to come!

Why? CLE Wedding Update!

So, I was amazed at how many of you wanted to read about the wedding plans. My first wedding update post back in January was a hit! I thought I’d drop in another update post to let you know what’s going on, since we’re now less than two months from the big day!

Registering

Matthew and I registered at Crate and Barrel, Williams-Sonoma, and Macy’s. I tell you this not so you can buy us presents, but so I can tell you what was great about registering at these spots. Macy’s is obviously really convenient for just about everyone and always has sales going. The cook in both of us (and our amazing new kitchen) made Williams-Sonoma a must. And Crate and Barrel is a classic.

We went to the Crate and Barrel bridal registry event, which was so worthwhile. Crate and Barrel hosts these on Sundays twice a year. The store is “open” from 9am-12pm just to couples who are registering. You get a lot of one-on-one attention, plus fun treats.

We had faux mimosas (tip: I would have registered for more expensive things if I was drinking real mimosas), mini paninis, waffles, and more, all made with Crate and Barrel products.

To keep the peace when registering at multiple locations, switch off who controls the scanner. And then log-on when you get home and add (or delete) to your heart’s content. Seriously, I keep checking out the registries to see what’s been bought and then I get ridiculously excited or start trying to figure out where to put it in the house. I have issues.

Dress Fittings and Test Hair

I’m pretty sure there are few things less nerve-wracking than dress fittings. I’ve had my two and the dress is ready to go. Seriously, all that’s left is for Demetrios to steam it and then I pick it up the week of the wedding. Eek!

I had my test hair done this week and I love it! I’m having my hair done at Illusion Unlimited in Parma. I’ve had my hair done there for years and there’s no better feeling than having someone who knows you and who you trust working with you for the big day.

Best of all, the style looks exactly like the picture I found. I also had a mini dance party and it didn’t all come falling down or anything, so we’re safe there!

DJ

Speaking of dance party…last post I told you we chose Selective Sound as our DJ company. We met our DJ, Rick, recently to finalize all the details. Beyond just coordinating the schedule for the reception and handling introductions, Rick made music suggestions, got to know us and our tastes, and made me convinced the reception is going to be a great party. I may have selected an abnormal amount of Beyonce songs, however. I figure my bustle is the closest thing to a Beyonce booty I’ll ever have, so I might as well enjoy it!

Invitations and RSVPs

I had my “Cleveland Bridesmaids” (I have 2 out-of-town bridesmaids as well) over one Sunday to stuff invitations.

What happens when a group of Type A women set about a task? It gets done ridiculously quickly, leaving us more time to drink wine!

Before the wine...

After the wine...

Receiving RSVPs makes going to the mailbox ridiculously fun. The “no” RSVPs tend to bum me out a bit, but only because I think everyone we invited is special and important in our lives. But for the most part, it’s a total rush of fun getting RSVPs. Check back when the RSVP deadline has passed and I’m short on responses, though…

Ceremony/Church

Our ceremony is at St. John Vianney Catholic church. As part of the preparation, we spent all day one Saturday at a Pre-Cana retreat. I have to say, we weren’t initially thrilled with the idea of giving up an entire Saturday. We had just moved, there was so much to do, and so on. But it was really worth it.

There were talks from married couples in the parish, there was small group discussion with other engaged couples, and (my favorite part) we received letters from our family and friends. I opened my grandfather’s letter first. At 87, his eyesight isn’t great and his penmanship has suffered along with it, but he handwrote a 5 page letter. If that doesn’t melt you and make you feel infinitely supported, nothing will.

The Emotional Stuff

OK, so less than two months out from the wedding…very different feeling than a year away or even six months away. First, I’ve become one of those people who talks about the wedding whenever possible. As in, I would like a chai latte and by the way, I’m getting married. I probably annoy people with this (or at least confuse them). I’m honestly so crazy excited and so insanely happy that I think I’m going to burst. So, I’ll try to keep it down, but I’m not sure it’ll work…

I think the main thing I realized recently is that I’m ready. Not as in, I’m ready for June 2 and every I is dotted and T is crossed. As in, I’m ready to be married. It’s a different feeling than when we first got engaged. I was sure of Matthew and of us and our future. But it was still out there in the future. That’s why you have an engagement period, I suppose: to transition from seeing it in the future to being ready for it in the present. And I am so ready to be his wife. Wow.

So, that’s where we’re at in this crazy journey. Still to come: seating arrangements, bridal shower, bachelorette party…

Why? Weekends!

***A bit of blogkeeping: Cleveland Magazine has created a “Nothin’ but Net” bracket of 32 Cleveland bloggers in 4 different categories. I am incredibly honored to be included in the bracket in the “lifestyle” category. I’m in great company in the bracket as a whole and in my category specifically. I encourage you to check out all the blogs in the bracket, as all are doing great things spreading the CLE love.

Voting in the first round of the bracket begins today and the next round of bracket break-downs will be announced Monday, March 12. You can vote by clicking here. Thanks to Cleveland Magazine for including Why CLE? I’m so proud!***

We got a touch a chilly weather as we headed into March this weekend, but that didn’t make it any less of a great weekend! Friday night, CLEgrandpa came out to see the new house. For dinner, we decided there was nothing like the Cleveland Lenten staple of the church fish fry.

We headed to St. John Vianney – where we’re getting married – where, for $11, you get access to quite the buffet of meatless munchies. From breaded or baked fish to pierogies to mac ‘n cheese to clam chowder to french fries to corn, we ate until we were stuffed.

I love the adorable ladies serving up the food, too.

They definitely don’t know what a small portion is and that’s OK! Fish fries continue all over Northeast Ohio for the month of March. Check out this guide of great local fish fries or just pop by somewhere local to experience the food and the tradition.

Saturday morning, I finally returned to my yoga mat after a two-week hiatus during the move. I also went to a second class on Sunday morning. As a tip, if you haven’t done yoga in two weeks and then go to two classes in a row, you may find your legs giving out on you…probably in the middle of Warrior 2.

On Saturday evening, CLEguy and I headed to Toth’s Place for good friends and good burgers, courtesy of our friend Brian’s BurgAlicious Burgers.

Brian debuted a new burger that CLEguy had to try: the grilled cheeseburger. Think of a cheeseburger, but replace each bun half with a grilled cheese sandwich. Wow! I stuck with the bacon cheeseburger, personally. Brian’s burgers are always tasty and delicious and you can order them to make at home! Great for summer (or nearly spring) BBQs.

After a couple Great Lakes Brewing Conway’s Irish Ale, I decided to try one of the video games near our table.

Let me just say that I have zero skill in shooting buffalo, but everyone got a lot of entertainment out of me trying.

On Sunday, our friends B & E came over to see our new house and then we headed to Willoughby Brewing Company for lunch. Our beer choices ran the gamut from Railway Razz to Peanut Butter Cup Coffee Porter to Oatmeal Stout to Gutterpup Porter and they were all tasty.

I decided to warm up with the butternut squash soup to start my meal.

The soup was fantastic and the best part was the light and frothy cinnamon cream on the top. It’s probably dangerous that I live close enough to have this on a daily basis.

Next, I chose risotto crabcake appetizer.

This is a huge crabcake! While it was tasty, for me, the flavors were a bit too mild and I would have liked bigger chunks of crab in the mix.

CLEguy chose the BeerBQ Pulled Pork.

The sauce is made with Willoughby Brewing Company’s own Pale Ale. The pork was tender, there was plenty of sauce, and I loved the fried onion straws too. Definitely a great sandwich!

It worked out to be a very close-to-home weekend, with all our destinations right around our neighborhood. That was a nice change of pace for us, since we’re normally all over the place! What are some of your favorite local hang-outs? Hope you had a great weekend, CLE!

Why? 11 Random Facts About Me!

Last week, MojaMala2 tagged me in her 11 Random Facts post. Never one to pass up a blogging meme, I figured I’d participate. Here are the rules:

The Rules:

• Post these rules
• You must post 11 random things about yourself
• Answer the questions set for you in their post
• Create 11 new questions for the people you tag to answer
• Go to their blog and tell them you’ve tagged them
• No stuff in the tagging section about you are tagged if you are reading this. You legitimately have to tag 11 people!

OK, well, I’m going to modify the rules a little bit. The people who have already done the meme have tagged just about everyone in the blogosphere that I would have tagged. So, I’ll simply give you the 11 facts and answer Moja’s 11 questions.

Random Facts About Me

1. I HATE bananas. Even as a kid, I wouldn’t eat them.

Image Source - alazyjfishingcharter.com

2. I didn’t get my drivers license until I was 24 years old.

3. I’ve never been on a Tremont Art Walk. Bad Clevelander!

4. CLEguy and I met on Match.com. I totally think we’re cute enough to be on a commercial, don’t you?!

5. I didn’t play any sports in high school, but I was a captain on the Speech & Debate team.

6. When Bar Symon was open, I went to every monthly craft beer dinner there, but one. The one I missed was because CLEguy’s sister was having her baby, so it was a worthwhile trade-off.

7. CLEmom and I lived with CLEgrandpa while I was growing up. A three-generation household is an interesting challenge.

8. In between boomeranging back to CLE, I lived in DC for three years and Denver for one year.

9. My dream job is teaching constitutional law. Yes, I’m a geek. See, also, #5.

10. CLEpup is my first-ever rescue dog and I’m never going back to anything else.

11. “Cowboy Take Me Away” by the Dixie Chicks was the first country song I fell in love with and got me hooked on country music.

Now to Moja’s questions:

What are you wearing? Black yoga pants, t-shirt, lululemon jacket

What is your dream race to run? If I liked running/still wanted to run, then the Cleveland Marathon.

Where is your favorite vacation spot? Really anywhere warm, tropical, and beachy.

What was your last dream about? I honestly don’t remember.

Would you rather be too hot or too cold? Too hot. I’m a freeze baby and HATE being cold.

If you had to listen to one song on repeat forever what would it be? “Like the Rain” by Clint Black. It’s beautiful and haunting and his voice is amazing.

What was your favorite school subject? (Do not say recess) In high school, probably English. I always loved to read and write.

If you could go back to school would you study the same things or pick a different major? This is actually a big question for me at the moment. I’d keep both my undergrad major (political science) and grad school (law) the same. But I’d be more sure about how I wanted to use the degrees after school.

Are you an Apple fan or Android fan? Apple.

Any tattoos or piercing? Are they visible? I have my ears pierced. Yes, my ears are visible

Favorite alcoholic beverage? A big red wine…mostly Zinfandel these days.

Happy Friday, CLE!