BACK TO THE BOOKS

Here we are back again! School is back!! Yippee (yes this is me trying to draw up some enthusiasm)! I'm basically really nervous because even though I'm only going to be taking 2 classes. One is Part 2 of the hardest Accounting class in the program and the other is Federal Income Tax.

I'll have class Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday from 5:30-7:30pm.

But to ease the pain of letting go of all my free time....I decided I needed to purchase myself a DKNY messenger bag. Yes ladies...the Prada Campus bag may need to be let out to finer pastures...I've destroyed it (shocker)....

Let's hope me and the new DKNY bag hold up better than last semester!

PS...One of my classes is with the professor that wants to see me wearing ONLY my DKNY
bag....oh yeah can't wait!

SEXY BACK

First off for the gals that could make it to my birthday celebration.....I want to say THANK YOU!!!! For those that couldn't make it- I smoked some Hookah for ya! I was a little leary with the empty lit lounge that I escorted everyone too with a "care-free" server. But once they dimmed the lights are served up some fabulous food and drinks it was all good! Manahatta was awesome! We danced our pants off for a while. But then the few leftover of the bunch wandered over to Joshua Tree to shake more of our groove thing. Until we were kicked out of a local dive bar Hook and Ladder at 4am!! Woohoo!!

As you can see from the pictures I had a blast-ha!! I hope everyone had a great time too! It was definitely my favorite birthday party yet!!! Clearly I brought sexy back-ha! More like wasted back! I'm so glad Mel was there to catch every drunk moment :) And also a reminder to myself as to why I don't bring out a camera more often!!

To end my birthday celebration, Katie got us tickets to see the Ellen Degeneres Show with Justin Timberlake-yum! So on Monday, Katie and I stood outside in Central Park in the mist for a couple hours but it was worth it!! We made friends with the women next to us in line who actually thought Katie and I were lesbians-ha! That's a first :) Our response was oh boy that would be so much easier!!

JTim is so sexy!! We saw his sound check and he performed the whole show! We were on the grass in lawn chairs but we could totally see him and his SEXY BACK!! And of course Ellen was as fun as ever.

Thank you again! I am so lucky to have such great friends!!!

ES MI CUMPLEANOS!!!

So clearly I found the best cake ever here online-ha!

I just finished baking cupcakes for me and my co-workers-yum! It was quite a task to balance out and make 50 cupcakes in an apt with no tables or a counter. Just picture me mixing batter in a bowl on my couch :) But I had a blast and my fun little mexican kitchen buddies will all love the yummy treats I baked up for us!

I know my birth ranks high up there....but I'd like to also give a shout out to Cal Ripken Jr. (former Orioles baseball player) and Steve Gutenberg (best known for his role as the cartoonist in Three Men and a Baby). My fellow birthday buddies! Um, yeah I don't think that could get any lamer.

Oh no wait....Mount Vesuvius errupted in Italy the same day as my birth. Oh man-this is getting worse!

The only other good thing that I could find that happened on my bday besides me of course was that it was the first day of airing of Facts of Life. Go Tootie!

Can't wait to see you all Saturday!!

A CHURCH GROWS IN BROOKLYN

Martin wrote me about how he had knee surgery right around my surgery so we thought it was a funny we had gimping in common. He is 28, a Social Studies teacher in Brooklyn and lives there too.

I spoke to him on the phone for a while. He was very nice and talkative. A little on the overly polite side. We were trying to figure out what to do and I suggested Mexican. He said he doesn't like to eat Mexican on the first date. I thought that was kind of weird like what does that mean? He would fart in front of me on the second date? But whatevs....

I met him in front of Mercury Bar at 8pm. He was wearing jeans, t-shirt, and black shoes. Very clean cut as you can tell from the picture. I'm stuck wearing sneakers and an air cast so I was wearing my black so-lows, cute blue shirt, and sneakers-ha! Definitely not my typical date outfit-but it was super tight so I thought it was still do-able.

We went in and sat at the back bar and chatted up a storm about a ton of things. We ordered drinks and split an appetizer. He was very considerate and polite. But then we stumbled onto an interesting subject.....religion. He is super duper religious. He goes to church every week with his super traditional family. He even sings in the church choir. And unfortunately, I feel the exact opposite about religion. And I think he nearly fainted when he saw my tattoo on my back. I asked him about how he feels about people that don't go to church and he said that short term he feels ok about it but long term he expects someone to go to church with him all the time.

The conversation moved onto different things and my interest was fading. I was just kind of getting bored and by 9:30 I wanted to leave. But he kept buying me drinks so I stayed a little longer. He walked me towards my apt and he gave me a hug. He asked if I kiss on the first date (I wanted to start hysterical laughing) but then I said No. Me not even wanting to kiss him at the end of our date and our very different views on just about everything just sounds like we are just not meant to be.

Oh well-Can't have chemistry with everyone :)

HOLY LEG SCREWS BATMAN!!!

We have all known each other a long time now. But now I think our friendship is reaching a whole new level.....I am now revealing my true insides-ha! Yup this is my actual x-ray!!! HOW CRAZY!!

You are looking at 7 screws and a plate on my Fibula. That long screw is going through my Fibula and my Tibia!!

My doctor's visit was a success! I hobbled in with a boot and crutches and walked out with an ace bandage and air cast!! I need to wear sneakers and ace bandage for a couple of weeks but besides that things are looking great! I go back in 4 weeks to follow up and see how much physical therapy I need. He thinks PT will be minimal because I've been doing my own exercises at home when I had the boot.

The big question is whether or not I'm going to have surgery to take out that long screw. Basically if I leave it in there it will eventually break and become part of the bone and it will be virtually impossible to remove. Particles of nail will be floating in my body and who knows how it will feel when it actually breaks. Option 2 is going under local anesthesia in December and having him do a little slit to unscrew and take it out. I will be out of commision for 2-3 days. I'm leaning towards Option 2 right now but I have 4 weeks to give my official word.

So YAY!! I'm a free woman!!!

PS...went on the date last night too but don't have time to write about it....check back Monday!! :)

CROSS YOUR FINGERS GALS

This sassy girl on the left has a big day tomorrow! (Thursday...probably today by the time you read this)

First...I have an official dr appt. I am super hoping that they are going to take this boot off and I'm going to be crutch free! When he gave me the boot this was the expected date that I may possibly walk out of the office with an ace bandage!

Second....I am entering into the dating scene again! There is a guy from online that I've been chatting for a while with. I've spoken to him on the phone once and he passed the crazy test! He also had knee surgery and was gimping around recently. So I've already warned him I may be on the boot :)

And as per your request Mel...you can see more of the sassy hair in this pic. It was a side part poof with a bunch of faux hair wrapped around the pony tail. I was looking for Gwen Stefani type-do but it wound up being more Barbie hair. I loved it all the same!

WILD WEDDING WEEKEND

First off sorry for the delay in posting!! I have finally started to recover now on Tuesday!! I digresss....I had the best weekend ever! So here I continue onto spill the journey.....

Thursday
Rehearsal dinner at Brindisi's in Westbury had 60 of Justin's closest friends and family and I think Carolyn added another 15-ha! It was the first night I attempted without crutches...but the 18 million vodka tonics also helped. Hence why I don't have any pics from that night. But there was really nothing too exciting to capture. Oh but I did happen to invite all my mom's out of town family over to our pool the next day :) Um yeah my dad wasn't too happy to find out but he eventually calmed down-ha!

Friday
A nice little gathering with some of my mom's family. Here are some highlights....


Jerimiah, one of my little cousin's from Chicago

His sister Jessica
Kara, Ann Marie and Jada (Jessica's twin sister)

Saturday

The big day! I stayed overnight at the hotel on Friday because of the 7am hair call at the Glen Cove Mansion (the hotel everyone was staying at). I had my faux hair in tow and was super excited.

Here is the happy couple in the midst of shooting photos before the wedding. Not so sure what is going on with that top hat and cane?? I thought we were medieval? And I was glad Carolyn was wearing sleeves too...hehehe. They looked great nonetheless! Plus the photogs were super hot and EJ and I were being sillier than ever. I don't think we stopped laughing the entire time!

We were having a blast...until the shuttle from the hotel to the Cresent Beach broke down!! The bride, groom, and entire wedding party was stranded on the side of the road. Justin was freaking out because we were running late and the same shuttle was supposed to pick up all the guests at the hotel to bring them to the wedding. Carolyn was just kind of in shock and not saying much (which is not typical). But then a lady with a suburban stopped and drove 8 people there. A bunch of my other relatives also drove back to get us too. We made it there in time and it was smooth sailing from then on!

Oh yeah that's right! I think it was supposed to be Justin and Carolyn's wedding but these 2 gals stole the show. This is us on the side of the road (clearly freaking out about not getting there-ha!). You can even see the fancy bouquet....again a la Stephani :)

My father walked EJ and I both down the aisle because there was one more girl than guy. But it was only EJ and I being introduced at the reception. So we had to come up with something! Because of my boot/leg issue we were limited but EJ came up with the whole reeling in the fish skit. IT WAS AWESOME!! Just picture it....EJ and I strutting out, me continuing and dramatically turning around so I can reel the squirmy fishy EJ. The whole crowd was hysterical laughing and cheering. No one else even did anything??!!

The official full length shot of these beautiful masterpieces! They weren't so god awful when we were all together and pretended we had no fashion sense??!! I like how my mom looks more fashionable than we do!! But it was all good :)

My dapper dad! He probably didn't mind the top hat-ha!

So the wedding was a success! The Crescent Beach Club was amazing! The ceremony on the beach and cocktail hour outside was so nice! We drank and danced (yes even I managed a shuffle or two). Then the party headed back to the Glen Cove Mansion to the bar and continued on until my mom was cutting me off at 1am and trying to play pool with EJ at the bar. Andrew was already back in the room with the baby. Andrew...btw...scored major points this weekend with me as well as everyone that met him. He was very social and even danced with Maddie during the father/daughter dance...so adorable!! Speaking of....here is my baby girl :)

MR. RICK SHAW

A few weeks back, I was in a slump and felt the need to give myself a day of beauty. So a facial at Georgette Klinger and highlights and cut were in order.

So facial at 3pm on 5th/54th and 5:30PM hair appt on 58th/9th. I thought I was leaving enough time. But the problem was catching a cab during rush hour.

I got out of the spa at 4:50....waited 10 min and still no cab on the block. Seems as if all the snotty people in the world were jumping ahead of me into cabs. All those sketchy unmarked cars and rickshaws were approaching but I refused. So I crutched from 5th to Lexington to Madison-ahhh! I was sweating soooo much, exhausted, and it was now 5:30!

Then this hot foreign guy in a rickshaw approached me. I'm not sure if it was my exhaustion, the hope of not crutching more, or his dreamy looks......I accepted.

Picture this....girl with cast and crutches in this rickshaw that was swerving in and out of taxi cabs. One arm wrapped around the crutches so they don't fall out and the other hand holding onto the rickshaw to make sure I don't fall out! First I was a little nervous especially because of his adventurous driving-aka one inch away from cabbies. But before I knew it I was snapping pics of me with my phone.

And a quick 10 minutes later Mr. Hot Rick Shaw man scooted me to the door front of the salon.

I bet my hair salon has never seen an entrance like that!!

SO IT'S OFFICIAL!!

After a long absence due to---after much investigation---a competing blogger pushing me down the stairs :) Well no one can keep this girl down!! So I'm back and so are Mr. & Mrs. Paul-Moses!! Did you really think EJ would give up her name??--hell no!

There has been so much going on so I thought everyone needed a "quick" run through at the very least!!


THE BIG DAY!!

The fancy setup in the Moses' NJ backyard on July 29, 2006. Mr and Mrs Moses and son, Daniel did a fabulous job!! There was yummy BBQ and even a fancy chocoate fountain! I don't have a pic of them up there and people in their seats because I was up in the front with EJ....did I tell you I was Maid of Honor??...oh that's right I'm bringing crutches to a whole new level!

Happy Couple!! Notice the fancy daisy and babysbreath crowns a la Stephanie! Dress courtesy of Sugar Plum. There were two very chaotic shopping trips involving a wheelchair. But thankfully we found this fancy frock!

Maddie wasn't letting a wedding ruin her sleepy time. PS...so weird to see EJ with a wedding ring!

Good Mommy!! Notice the blue ribbons hanging off the back of the crown (something blue). EJ was really excited about it all....it was very cute!

Rockin Momma....yeah right these girls couldn't stay all dressed up the whole day! Notice something new.....necklace Andrew's Gma gave her (all "her girls" have it-awh!!)....something borrowed...Carolyn's earrings...original item left at home...oops!

My brother stole my camera to document me in 105 degree weather balancing on one leg. Dress courtesy of BR...a la my college graduation party...its amazing those puke stains came out-yum! You can also note that I have continued to lighted the locks....see the pic of me and EJ down further for comparison :)


YAWN! Maddie is so over this wedding! So lets move onto another event.......

CAROLYN'S BRIDAL SHOWER!

The giggling Bride to Be! She claimed to be surprised on Sunday, July 16th at the Irish Coffee Pub. But I don't think they ever are! The "pub" actually turned out to be a really fancy place! Do I hear name change??!!

The two hottest bridesmaids in town!! We're not letting any broken leg or extra babyweight hold us back!!

NOW ONTO MY TWO AND A HALF WEEK "VACATION" IN B-TOWN:

My saving grace......my girl Maddie and I hung out everyday. I had the 7am-11am shift while EJ caught up on her sleep. Being around 24/7---I got the true understanding of a newborn....good lord sooooooo much work!! It is so much more than not sleeping at night!

My Mom couldn't get enough of Maddie either! EJ was initially bothered by us taking over but then she went with it.

We only had Maddie for a couple weeks while Andrew was in FL. So my dad needed to show her accounting basics on the computer. She was really catching on....I think we have a true genius!

I also had to teach her a few things........ha! That is so wrong but I couldn't help it :)

Maddie really loved riding Aunt Leelee's cast. Yeah thats what I decided I'm going to be called. Between all my little cousin's calling me "Lekis" I've decided to rename myself! EJ after much fighting agreed only if my unborn children can call her Aunt EJ. By that time Maddie will be calling me Aunt Leelee and my kids will no way support that EJ hoopla-ha!


And finally Maddie says, Peace Out and there is soooo much more fun to come with Aunt Leelee's blog!!