Party Like A Rock Star

We celebrated Husband's 30th birthday with a backyard party filled with lots of friends and fun. I have to admit that I didn't start planning it until the day before, but fortunately it turned out great. I kept everything pretty simple and kid friendly (since most of our friends now have growing families).

Here are the supplies I purchased:

A few pieces of cute paper (and stuck with a color scheme) - $5

Small cellophane treat bags - $2

Lemons and limes - $3

4 bags of lemonheads - $4

With the paper I made the garland that you see hanging from the trees and added a few details to some of the serving pieces. Then with the treat bags I made party favors for guests to take home.

Afterward, we enjoyed a game of volleyball with plenty of smack talk (some more than others - Robin!). We even had our very own cheerleaders :)

Action shots courtesy of Nat (thanks Nat!)

Keep it Simple

You want to know what the problem is when you eat Italian food in the States? Way too many ingredients. Seriously, the Italians know how to do it. They keep it simple.

Dinner typically starts at around 8:00pm and you first start off with appetizers, which for us was either caprese or bruschetta. Then you move on to the first course, which is pasta. The pasta consists of noodles and a sauce (no meat, extra veggies, or cheeses). Then you move on to the second course, meat. Typically fish, but sometimes you'll see a red meat or chicken. Then dessert, always dessert. And lastly, a cappuccino or coffee (and if you decline they look at you funny). In between each course they talk and smoke and hang out. It turns into quite the event, lasting at least 2 hours.

While in Rome we found a tiny restaurant tucked away in a little street, where I had the best pasta of my life. It was Spaghetti Carbonara, pictured above, which consists of bacon, eggs, and cheese. That's it. Anyone have a great recipe? I'm dying to test it!

Lunch pretty much consisted of caprese sandwiches. Tomato, mozzarella (the freshest I've ever had), and basil on a roll. That's it. Soooo good!

This may not seem to surprising to those of you who know me, but my favorite place also happened to have the best food. Vernazza, Italy - check it out (the picture speaks for itself).